I received my FREE “Using Meters in the Digital Age with Will Crocket” DVD from Sekonic today and just finished watching it. Although its emphasis is around the top end L-558R, I found it helped reinforce what I learned from online sources. The DVD explores three live photo shoots scenarios starting out with […]
A friend was debating between the Nikon Coolpix 8800 and Canon Digital Rebel XT 350D and asked for some advice, so I thought it would be appropriate to share some of my thoughts. Based on some past experiences with digital cameras, both SLR and P&S (point and shoot), I have to say they both […]
Two photos captured during my bike ride on the trails.
It’s quite an open ended question as there are many viable options. However, the two most common ways is to purchase either:
1. Hot-shoe mount with ¼ -20 socket (also sometimes the pc-hotshoe adapter has a reverse side with the ¼ -20 threads)
2. Swivel-Bracket –with Mount for Umbrella, Light and Shoe Flash […]
By shooting RAW you are making the most of your camera and bring out the best of your photos via PP(post processing). The myth for some novice SLR photographers is that RAW is big (file size wise) and harder / more time consuming to work with.
Well, let me bust that myth for you. […]
Rider: John Hauer, Location: Cupertino, CA
One of the things I wated to experiment with this shot is to bring some pop to the rider and isolate it from its rather cluttered background. This is actually one of the few times I have positioned a flash behind the subject to created the effect and something […]
Stopped by Kamera Korner in San Jose today and was surprised to learn that the Vivitar 285 (HV), 283s are no longer in production and discontinued by Vivitar. Its suprising since Vivitar’s 285 Model has undoubtly lit more picutres in the last 25 years than any other unit. The […]
Canon 20D / Tamron 28-75mm
ISO 200
1/200th
f/5.0
44mm
Location: Fremont Older, Cupertino
I’ll start off with a self critique of the areas I thought need work. Please feel free to chime in.
- Sun from the sunset is too hot near the handlebar.
- Flash color is not balanced with the warmth of the sunset which takes away from the mood.
- Background is not very interesting and the […]
Having trouble figuring out how to pose your subject/model for the photo shoot? Well fear no more because here is a PDF file showing all the various portrait poses for males, females, and couples (well at least common ones). I havent actually started taking portrait photography and would’nt know how handy it would […]
I have been looking to upgrade my hot shoe flashes (Vivitar 285 HV units which I use off-camera via Pocket Wizards) for some time now. The reason is because I already have a Canon 580EX for on board use and the fact that the 285s are limiting in terms of modifiers and light output […]
Flash Power Output and Distance
By: Ivan Wong (ibwphotography.com)
I think its time to go beyond referring to the flash guide table and to understand the fundamentals of what the Guide Number (GN) means and also the distance to flash power output relationship. Any photographer using manual flash/strobes should have these general ideas in mind, especially […]
Being an avid user of the focus/recompose technique, I am glad I learned about its possible drawbacks early on as the distance of the focus point upon recomposing is no longer the same as the original pre-focused distance. Hence, the focus distance is incorrect and can make for some soft photos.
For those […]
At a recent indoor biking competition, I decided to play around with my Canon 580ex flash settings to see if I could come up with something a bit more interesting than the normal “on the camera flash look” where everything is uniformly lit. What I mean is trying to avoid the usual “flat” look […]
Not a true Black and White, but close enough ;P What do you think?
Little was done [post processing] to this shot, which was taken with my old A85. What made this picture was the black background and nicely contrasting faucet/droplets. The setup was quite elaborate for a Point and Shoot. I setup two flashes (optical slave triggered), left and right of the faucet and turned […]
Details:
Shutter: 1/320 sec., Aperture: f9, ISO: 400, Manual mode with pattern metering mode., shot in raw
My brother actually took this shot of me as I was taking a break from the camera. I still remember yelling out the settings to him as I walked up the hill. What works for me in this […]
Shot with A85 with Macro setup. I am surprised at the sharpness with a $200 camera and fairly inexpensive reverse lens setup.
A self-portait taken with my old A85 on a tripod and a slave flash to my lower right. My rightside is quite blown out since the flash had no manual adjustments. I guess I could have move the unit further back a tad or used some tissue paper to diffuse it.
Shot wide open at 2.8. The composition is quite awkward but I like the vibrant colors. What do you guys think?
