Shouldering the Burden Of Sony With Peak Design

I am going to risk it. I know the ice is thin, and the nerves even thinner, but here goes: another review of a Sony product. Or rather, a product that can be used with a Sony camera…

I have reported on Peak Design equipment before, and from the original mention some years back until now, my opinion of the brand has improved. I think it is because their design department have had better ideas and their manufacturing division has been able to translate these into good products.

The Original peak Design product we saw in Camera Electronic was a belt holder for cameras - a quick release clamp that enabled you to put a camera on your shoulder strap or belt and then secure it with a click of a button. The CE staff at the time all got samples to go away and try - I demurred  - the idea seemed uncomfortable. Whenever I tried it I envisaged disaster if I was not careful how I mounted the camera. Remember I’m the man who dropped a Leica M3 with a Summicron lens on it into a Melbourne drain. They have stopped letting me defuse torpedoes…

This is different - it is a lens holder designed to accept Sony - mount lenses on both sides of itself and then to lock onto a shoulder strap. Whether that shoulder strap is dedicated to a messenger bag or a backpack is immaterial - the clamp has a positive two-screw lock that cannot depart from it with out deliberate disassembly. You can also put the clamp onto a waist belt and depend a Sony lens from that.

It would be a blessing to a wedding or event shooter who needed constant access to a spare pair of lenses while a third lens was on the camera and who did not want to have to fossick around inside a bag while working the crowd.

Peak Design have been reviewed here before - their new bags are both elegant and practical. This accessory seems to be exactly in the same good line.

Mount is also available for Canon and Nikon applications.

The Working Life Of the Fujifilm EF X-500

No, I don't mean how long it will continue to work - goodness, if you treat a flash right you can get decades out of it. Exercise it regularly and don't drop it off a cliff...

I mean... how does the performance of the new Fujifilm EF X-500 stack up in a working situation - where you have to use it to satisfy the client...rather than your desire to fiddle with new gear. Let's go out on different jobs:

1. The Event.

The party, ball, graduation, awards ceremony, etc. The grip and grin, speeches at 8:00, 2000-shot corporate gig where you stay sober and everyone else doesn't. The you-get-paid-if-anyone-buys-a-picture job.

Well, you are going to need to shoot those 2000 shots consistently - well-exposed if you can, but at least all the same. The last thing in the world that you want to do is sit there pushing sliders on a computer later. If they are going to be similar poses and groups you can probably trust the TTL to give you a good run off the faces and clothing - formal males suits are going to have similar reflectance and even the ball gowns tend to be alike. If you are going to do the Mardi Gras resign yourself to having the exposure system overwhelmed every now and then.

The TTL can be skewed, however, if needed...say a situation with high-reflectance stage costumes in a great many of the shots. Dive into the page button and then the +/_ exposure compensation button. twist the control wheel for up to 5 stops plus or minus output. This is vastly better than the Fujifilm EF-42 flash that only allowed + or - 1.5 stops. The fact that the X-500 does in in one dial turn vs the the 8 button presses and 20 seconds waiting time of the older flash is really significant.

Likewise the recycling time - I count 2.5 seconds on fresh batteries from a full manual dump to recharged. The EF-42 could barely manage in 6-8 seconds. Some events are very much run and gun and if your flash is not ready almost instantly for a follow-up shot, you either have to talk like a parrot to keep the subjects still for that 8 seconds or lose them entirely.

2. The Wedding.

This is like a corporate event but with a CEO in a white dress ready to explode if anything goes awry. You can multiply the pressure as much as you like - pressure to shoot far too many pictures, to be everywhere at the same time, and to do things as fast as possible. Plus the pressure to have multiple sets of equipment ready to go at a moment's notice. In that respect the new flash is a bit more expensive than the old one, but weddings are not the time to skimp.

Will you get a chance to use the multiple flash capability of the X-500? You have three groups at your disposal from the main X-500 control panel - they can be manual, TTL, or a percentage TTL that you can alter as you go on. The big group, the bridal waltz, the speeches, the formals - they all lend themselves to the studio-lighting approach of multiple groups.

As a wedding pro you will have also worked out how flash modifiers and stands can be used in these situations. You do get a flash foot with the EF X-500, of course, but you need to match it to some suitable stands. You also need an assistant, but then you knew that after your first wedding...

3. The Grande Portraite.

Funny how the mighty all want to look good, but grant portrait photographers tiny little windows of opportunity to actually do the job...Time is money is power is prestige...

Well, if you are going to play their game, play it fast. Main and fill and as many flattering shots as you can suggest in your 15 minutes with His Moneyship or Her Publicityship. The Mag Mod flash attachments may well help, as will the facility for multiple groups of lights. The fact that these are speed-lights with no extra battery packs is a blessing - less to haul in and out. The rapidity of recharge and of control changes is also vital when you are dealing with people who have decided that they have so much money and power that they need not be patient...

4. The School/ Santa/ Sports Carnival Portraits.

These are easy - just work out your main/fill multiple group setup in advance, sandbag the stands down, and take your medication. It will all be over in 6-8 hours. The fact that you can expect about 600 full-bore TTL shots out of a set of lithium batteries us a good thing - it will go down to about 150 with regular alkalines. If you plan to do your Santa photos from an armoured emplacement you may be able to arrange for a 6V power feed and the auxiliary plug of the Ef X-500 will allow you to shoot an unlimited number.

Note: there is a thermal protection circuit in the Ef X-500 that will shut it down if you have been shooting far too much far too fast. It will come on again when the temperature goes down.

5. The Advertising Business.

Well, as the sky is the limit for ideas, ( but rarely paid at stratospheric prices...), you can use a brace of EF X-500's for a lot of stuff. They have the sort of manual power control that dials down to 1/512th of full power, so that they can be used for tiny little multiple flashes. If your camera will do it, you can shoot multiple shots in a fraction of a second for stroboscopic effects. You can stop peak action at high shutter speeds - again if you are using the X-T2 or X-Pro2.

On a good day you can get a picture at 1/4000 of a second and capture a frame of art directors midway between changing their minds.

6. The Science Lab.

Here's where those tiny slices of light are the most use - scientists are always trying to take pictures of little specimens or delicate surfaces that wash out under stronger light. Three of them with TTL/ group are controllable and precise and a lot less of an impost on the department's budget than trying to do the same thing with studio flashes or portable battery and head kits.

Field workers can break these a lot less than they could a suitcase full of heads and batteries. And electricity in the sticks is more likely to be available in AA form than mains power.

7. The Real Estate Business

Hello 3:00 AM again...well, if you need to light up an interior there is nothing better than three speed lights and some Mag Mod Domes. The EF X-500 so equipped and hidden round corners and behind furniture is the answer for making pokey dark interiors look livable. You can group control them to balance the result and you can put dedicated gels into the mag Mod holders to try to match whatever the dawn or dusk is trying to do.

Try everything. If the images don't work there is always tomorrow and the owner of the place won't mind keeping everything off the tabletops for another day...

One Of The Dishes On The Buffet - Tokina

When we get a big-name camera we sometimes get a big name complex...and we cannot see beyond that name.

Members of camera clubs throughout the state are familiar with this as discussions of Nikon versus Canon versus Sony versus Flapoflex start up during the coffee breaks. The opinions expressed range from youthful enthusiasm to senile folly but fortunately there are few fist fights over the subject. Fair amount of snarling, but...

It can be the same with the lenses for the cameras. The big-name enthusiasts argue with each other and in the process sometimes fail to remember that there are other players in the game - and some of them are stars. Sigma, Tamron, and Tokina come to mind...and we're going to consider the latter brand.

I can make a personal judgment of this brand of lenses - I own one. It was purchased when I ran Nikon cameras and I was so taken with what it does that I retained it when I switched systems. It is the constant workhorse of the Little Studio and for good reason; it has a focal length and focus range that is unavailable in other brands , and it is very well made. For interest - you are looking at the illustrations on this column through it - the Tokina 35mm f:2.8 Macro.

But back to the lens in the heading image. Tokina AT-X 70-200mm f:4 PRO FX VCM-S. That's the usual advertising alphabet soup to tell you that it has a big enough image circle to work on all Nikon cameras, an image stabilising mechanism inside, and no aperture ring. You'll see that readily from the upright image, but what will not be evident until you handle the lens will be the weight of it and the solidity of the barrel. The secret lies in the fact that Tokina use metal barrels for their lenses.

The operation of the focus and zoom ring are as smooth as you could ever want. The focusing is internal so there is no pumping of the front element.

In every respect this is a first-class medium zoom lens that deserves your consideration along with the others in the class. The price is likely to be very attractive. I know the 35mm Macro was certainly so.

One other note: Made in Japan.

The Long-Awaited Fujifilm Flash Gun

As an honest weblog columnist I can do no better than to send you off googling for a YouTube clip made by the Fujifilm Guys. It features our own Warrewyk and Will - Australian photographers and Fujifilm demonstrators - putting the new Fujifilm EF-X500 speed light through some of its paces.

I'll wait here until you go see it and then come back. You'll probably want to search up the official Fujifilm Australia site as well to check out the technical specifications of the new gun.

Okay, if you're back you'll have seen how easy it is to use the EF-X500 to do fill flash with the new Fujifilm X-T2 camera in broad daylight - making use of the supplied diffusion box to soft the result. No longer should anyone have to struggle with fill-flash ratios and get either black or blasted results.

The simplest drive - that of TTL - should work flawlessly with all hot shoe-equipped Fujifilm X series cameras. The other modes require some learning but the estimation of power should be pretty straightforward if you are going to use Manual. Unless you know you are going to need all the power of the full dump, you are probably best trying a first exposure at 1/4 power and then going up or down from there.

People who are familiar with the previous Fujifilm EF-42 flash will be pleased with a number of improvements:

1. More flash power. GN is now 50. Illumination even with direct flash is remarkably even. 5 Metres away from the backdrop muslin.

2. Metal foot to the hot-shoe mount. There is also a locking lever rather than a plastic wheel to keep it fastened to the camera.

3. Manual power levels down to 1/512 of full power in 1/3 EV steps. Macro work particularly catered for. The Chevy and the Airstream trailer are 1/64 scale and that's done with one on-camera flash + diffuser

4. Master and remote modes available with optical command. Regular TTL and Commander are indicated by green panel and Slave mode is indicated by the amber panel.

5. LED video boost light available on front of unit.

6. Locking flash head tilting and stiff detent swivelling of flash head.

7. Up to + or - 5 EV in 1/3 EV steps. And Glory Be, it is done with a simple rotating thumb wheel rather than a series of button presses!

8. Socket for EF-BP external battery pack. ( YES! )

9. Up to 3 separate lighting groups in the master/slave relationship.

It is the unit all we Fujifilm users have been waiting for. For myself, the stiff detent and the locking tilt mechanism are wonderful, as they allow better control of the flash head when a heavy diffuser like a Gary Fong or Mag Mod unit is fitted. An event shooter can mount the flash, turn the head 90º to the right, and then just raise and lower it from portrait to landscape orientation to perfectly match the light angle to the camera. The EF-42 can do this too, but is weaker and allows the head to flop out of place as you move around.

The battery pack, when available, should also take some burden of waiting for recharge in the middle of a fast-developing event.

Personal Magnetism For the Speedlight Shooter - Mag Mod

Dang. Someone invented the better lighting mousetrap - and now presumably are having to resurface the pathway up to their door in anticipation of increased traffic.

Mag Mod have finally made a set of speed light modifiers that are worth using. The secret of their appeal is no secret - they have unique shapes and they attach to the speed light flash guns easily.

Note: easily. Also firmly. Firmly, as in use them in the rough and tumble of professional shooting and not have them fall off. And no more velcro bands or sticky tape panels.

The basic unit is a rubber adapter housing that stretches over the head of your speedlight. I used a Fujifilm EF-42 but I daresay the ban would go on any Canon, Nikon, Sigma, Olympus, Leica, or Nissan flashes just as easily. It's a darned sight tighter than any velcro band ever was.

On the outer edges of this band are imbedded small but powerful magnets. All the accessories that stick to the front of the adapter do so by means of their own magnets - so the things stick together fiercely. I tried to wobble the assembly apart by thrashing the speed light around in my hand and did not succeed in dislodging it one bit.

Okay, what can you stick on the front?

a. Basic 40º grid. Add another on and it becomes 20º. Add a third and it goes to 20º. Add a third...

b. A gel holder. They make sets of polycarbonate gels that last far better than the thin things on velcro. Colour correction or wild creatives in different sets.

c. A dome - looking like a soft goldfish bowl, and lighter than competing said bowls, it makes an instant bare-bulb look for diffusion. It's got a holder slot for those gels we mentioned so you don't necessarily need to stack the gel holder on too.

d. A big white rubber scoop. You swivel the flash head up and clap on the scoop. Some of the light goes out the back and fills the shot - most of the light goes out the front and illuminates the subject.

Coolest feature is the fact that Mag Mod have included two sets of magnets on the scoop - you can rotate the flash head of your speed light 90º to the right, attach the scoop looking forward, and then just swivel that head up and down as you move from landscape to portrait orientation. This looks like wedding and event shot heaven.

Here it is in operation out on the road:

e. The attachment that looks like the shift lever boot from a 1965 Pontiac or an Art Deco plumber's plunger is really an adjustable snoot. Fold the sections in and the area of illumination grows larger - pop them out and it becomes smaller. Be prepared for silly comments from the crowd.

Now there is more coming, and we'll detail it as soon as it arrives. Think Tele-Vorsatz and wide-angle panel and gobos to start with.

The strobists amongst you really owe it to yourselves to come in and see the Mag Mod.

See the Mag Mod range online on the Camera Electronic website here

The Custom Menu for Custom Shooters Of Kustom Cars

Pardon the Kustom there in the header - it is an affectation of the hot rod publishing world to refer to modified motor cars in a weird way. Not that some of them do not deserve it...a fillet of lead and 14 coats of Candy Apple can hide a multitude of sins. At least the magazines don't use an inappropriate a'postrop'he or several ümlaüts...

No, we speak of the custom menus that some digital cameras have - collections of settings that may be different from those that ship from the factory. Settings that might suit the camera better to the needs of a particular individual. Special combinations for particular jobs.

All cameras that have adjustments can be changed - we did it in the days of film by buying different film, exposing it at odd settings, and then trying to see if we could bully the emulsion into an image later in the darkroom. Now we do it with WB, ISO, Colour Space, Sharpness, Foam, Azimuth, and Snarkiness settings. (Those last three are imaginary, but camera designers are imaginative people so don't get comfortable yet...)

Many cameras provide  what they refer to as custom "channels", "settings", "programs", or " sets" that let you have a bunch of ready-made changes you can access at the press or turn of a control. Thus, if you are doing one class of shot regularly that requires a special WB or dynamic range or exposure compensation, you can get it without navigating the menu again on site. My Nikon D300's were good for this.

Make no mistake - you WILL do some serious button pushing to set up the custom system in your camera but you can do it slowly in logical sequence at home. And you can have 2, 3, 4 or more of these optional layouts ready all the time. Go to a new job or a new shoot and twist one dial, once.

Wise manufacturers have arrangements in their menu systems to identify these custom sets by name - actual written titles that you button into your camera. Otherwise, if you are just confronted by seeing Custom 1,2,3, etc you quickly forget what exactly it is that you are coping with and the whole exercise is difficult.

If the camera maker has made provision for a "Q" button in the back of the camera it can show you a small précis list of the the most important settings and you'll get a quick visual confirmation of what's going to happen. Here again it is wonderful if the maker has made arrangements so that you can decide for yourself what will be shown on the Q window.

Specifically, I know Leica will do this. So will Fujifilm. So will Olympus. It means you can suit yourself rather than others - I know I went into my Fujifilm X-T10 and X-E2 and threw out the noise reduction setting and dialled in flash compensation as it is far more important to me. I don't need to change much for my purposes but I do make use of 2 additional recipes in addition to the basic set-up, and the convenience it gives is amazing.

Historical note: I remember that Konica-Minolta had a system of small computer cards that you plugged into some of their last film cameras to program them in the same way. It was a gimmick before its time and deserving of all the criticism levelled at it at. But it was a signpost to the future.

For Basic Camera Training hit up Shoot Workshops' Learn to Shoot course

Pass Right On Through With The New Pocket Wizard IV

Transmitters and receivers for sending signals between cameras and flash units have been legion in the last few years, but few of them have combined all of the features that people wanted - now PocketWizard have released their new Plus IV and it looks as though it redresses the situation.

What it provides:

Radio-frequency command between your camera and your flash out to a long distance.

TTL through-put to a flash mounted on the camera - in other words you can send out a manual signal to outboard units while your TTL flash on camera does the usual measuring and quenching thing.

                                               

   

Control  for 4 separate flash groups.

Control for 32 channels.

Note that you get an orange back-lit panel when you press the Mode button. When you are using flash in dimly-lit venues any on-board illumination is a blessing. Rocket Wizard have decades of experience in the field.

Auto sensing for pairing the transmitter and receiver.

Two-stage remote camera triggering. Just like the shutter button on your camera - half and full-press and then turns off to save battery power.

Receiver will accept and fire up to 14.5 FPS.

Runs on 2 x standard AA batteries or you can put external power in through a Mini-USB port on the PocketWizard IV.

And best of all - they have lain the body of the thing down forward instead of making it stick up like their old units. Much easier to move about with the camera if it lies along the top of the lens. Note that they have been wise enough to make the battery door a hinged fair rather than a slide-off cover that would be lost and trampled on.

 

1/4" screw socket on the bottom and TTL hot shoe on the top. A stand-alone independent outfit.

Find it online or in-store!

Photo Live Expo 2016 - Wedding Bells Are Ringing

So who doesn't love a wedding? The spiritual experience - the colour - the romance and spectacle - the family connections - the buffet table...

I'll tell you who doesn't love it - the photographer who has been asked to shoot the occasion and hasn't figured out how to do it. Short of skydiving with an anvil, there are few more daunting prospects.

Well, help is at hand. Hie on over to the Photo Live Expo 2016 section of the Camera Electronic website and book yourself in for the talk about wedding photography by Kirsten Graham of Compose Photography. It's part of the Speakers Series. You can get a pre-book ticket for $ 11 as versus $16 on the day... and remember that if all the tickets sell out, you miss out.

Many photographers who are comfortable with other subjects and occasions freeze or panic when asked to take pictures at a wedding. They can be overwhelmed by the idea, by the unaccustomed environment, and by what they see as the responsibility. Kirsten can help by explaining some of the ways that professionals get through this. Remember it is better hearing this from someone who does it very, very well then trying to read it out of a book - or even off a weblog column...

Note for the timid re. responsibility. If you are taking pictures at a wedding you are not responsible for the ritual of the ceremony, the legal aspects, the catering, the flowers, the flower girls, the crazy uncle, or the wedding speeches. You are not responsible for the success of the day or the success of the marriage.

You are just responsible for showing what it looked like. And you can do that with focus, shutter speed, and aperture.

Keep some spare batteries and cards and a long sharp stick to poke the bridegroom awake in case it is a long ceremony.

PS: Kirsten may have better ideas - go along and hear her. You can buy tickets here. Remember that the writer of this weblog column has a secondary job as crazy uncle at weddings and may be biased...

Fujifilm Week Day Three - The 16-55 f:2.8 Lens

The Fujifilm customer who has come in to get a small mirrorless camera may well find themselves looking at a general-purpose zoom lens to go with the X -series body. We think in these term: " I don't know what I will be taking, so I better get something that does everything...".

Fair enough, but everything is some cases is more everything than it is in others...I'll propose several scenarios:

1. You are a small person with small hands and you will be travelling. You want a zoom lens for townscapes and scenery. Most of what you do will be in the daylight.

Step up to door no. 1 and collect your Fujinon 18-55mm f: 2.8-4 lens. It will be as small a zoom as you can find, and perfect for the subjects you need. If it gets dark, turn on the flash. PS: There is an anti-shake mechanism in the lens.

2. You are medium sized person who will be going to Africa and Alaska. You want a zoom that can bring the animals visually close while you stay far away. ( The lions and bears would prefer this too...)

Step up to door no. 2 and receive your Fujinon 18-135 f:3.5-5.6 lens. It has an anti shake mechanism as well, and this is more useful to you at the long end.

3. You area sturdy sort with one of the larger Fujifilm X cameras. You need to do interior shots in churches, restaurants, and theatre. You need all the width you can get and all the light that they won't give you... you need to...

Step up to door no. 3 and try the Fujinon 16-55 f:2.8 lens.

Constant aperture, so that if you are zooming you do not get a drop in exposure - and your flash work can be consistent. f:2.8 so you have another stop of light feeding into the sensor and better focusing. 16mm so you get a wider interior shot - considerably wider than the 18mm - each additional millimetre in wide angle increases the angle of view more and more.

No anti shake on this one - you'll have to be steady. And it's going to be heavier than the others.  More glass, more weight. But it does have a hidden advantage - extra sealing in and behind the lens - that's the rubber gasket you see.

Is one lens more "pro" than another? No. The user may be, for what it is worth. They are extremely well-made optical tools - the photographer just needs to know how to use them.

"Just Bring Your Camera"

"And I'll give you something for your film".

These two statements were frequently heard in the analog era when someone wanted you to do a professional job of sports, event, or wedding coverage but did not want to pay a professional price for the result. You were foolish if you thought that it was going to excuse you from doing a professional job - that was still the standard. But you were not going to get paid. You were a relative. Or a mate. Or the relative of a mate.

It always went the same way. The cost of the film and processing was never fully paid - they gave you something but that something was based upon their recollection of the price of a roll of Kodak Gold  or Sakura film seen at the checkout of the local supermarket. If you presented them with the actual cost of the pro neg film and the processing at the pro lab they recoiled in horror and accused you of being a gouger.

Once the pictures were delivered they asked for the negs, and then they took them off and used the pictures without any credits or thank-yous. But they would pass you onto their mates at a party to do the same thing for them...at the same rates. It was like being a football - the boots that kicked you changed but the sensation was still the same.

Well, now everything has changed. Now with the digital era the mates of mates realise that there are no more films to be bought and no more lab fees to be paid...so they no longer have to offer anything in compensation. They are entitled under their rules of the game to demand all the RAW files, all the jpeg files, and frequently the memory card as well.  You'll sometimes be offered a drink - and that is rare - and sometimes be offered "exposure".

Exposure is the method the ancient Greeks used to dispose of unwanted infants on hillsides and it is equally effective on modern photographers. The only difference is the modern mates of mates will then tell the mates of their mates that you'll do their weddings/sports carnivals/car shoots/parties for free, and you can die on that hillside repeatedly.

"Just bring your camera".

The Amateur Triumphant - Part Three

Well, you've finally done it - closed the doors of the professional practice and sent a farewell notice to the ATO. You've tossed the letterhead, invoice forms, and business cards into the fire and told the accountant that you will be doing your own lying in the future. You are set to be a real amateur.

No turning back. No doing jobs for money. From now on the only compensation you will be receiving will be "exposure", "a drink", and "recognition". And the occasional bucket of lemons from Mr. Valducci's tree. There will be more lemons than drinks.

The demands on you will change - while no-one can compel you to deliver the goods on time, they will expect you to hand over every raw file that you have taken so that they can have them printed at Officeworks. This might have seemed unreasonable when you were a working professional but that was when you were a person with a camera in hand - now you are a camera with a person attached. The camera has remained sharp but you have become fuzzy.

Do not despair. While you no longer will have money, you can still have fun. By all means turn over the raw files to the person who demands them. Just copy them all into 1993BFG.3.0PiX format on a 5" floppy disc and hand it over. And a pleasant smile when you do so doesn't hurt.

Your own photography will improve greatly in the future. You will no longer be asked to make tins of cabbage ends or anorexic teenagers look appetising. No one will ask you to take 3.2 metric tonnes of lighting equipment up the top of Bluff Knoll in relays to capture the magic of toilet paper. You can go to a wedding and drink.

Better still, you can go to a wedding and watch the wedding photographers at work and let them watch you watching them. If you know how to let out good strangled shriek or do a very slow face palm you can have fun all afternoon. A slow wink also does the trick.

Are you worried about the piles of gear that are still stacked in the locked cabinet? Well, if you haven't finished paying for them you need not worry too much longer. The leasing and finance companies will be sorting that/you out in short order. If it is yours freehold, you can either use it to take immensely detailed photo essays of spit or you can take it to the camera markets that they hold every three months. You can then bring it home again.

There is an opportunity for the new amateur to join the art scene. This can be effected on-line or in person by attending at local art groups. Sociability, kindness, and the ability to see good in everyone is an asset in this sort of affair. It is rewarding if you are prepared to learn the language of Artspeak and are not afraid to try a few halting phrases. " Awful Dreck " and " Ghastly Daub " are useful...

Finally, have you thought of finally settling down and writing the Great Australian Novel? Or the Definitive Outback Photoshoot? Or setting fire to paddocks? They are all equally attractive propositions, and as you are a free agent you can turn them over in your mind...

Onward. Excelsior!

Uncle Dick

Turning Amateur - Part One

Every working or professional photographer I have talked to - from the lowly international Magnum superstars to the most famous of the Santa Photos shooters in Boise, Idaho - secretly nurtures one supreme aspiration. They have a dream to become a full-time amateur.

All through their working lives you can see them shooting envious glances out the sides of the viewfinder at the chaps in the photo vests who are fiddling with the brown leather ever-ready cases festooned with lens hood holders. It is sad to say that if it weren't for the pressures of money and responsibility they would chuck their day job and reach for their goal.

I guess it is like a lot of things in life - they are set early onto the treadmill and there are few opportunities to get off. They get trained in photography somehow - university, technical school, or trade - and find a job and start to take pictures for money and then before they know it they are hooked. They want to eat every day and own more than one shirt and sleep in a bed. The sad slow decline into financial comfort and professional success starts and they never really see themselves slipping further and further into affluence. One day they wake up and have it all, and no where to put it, and another carton of it arriving Monday...

Then they long for the wonderful world of the amateur. No deadlines. No live lines. No lines at all.

No need to justify their camera purchases to the accountant or the ATO. No need to own the best and fastest before a competitor owns it. No need to go round and slander the other professionals in hopes of getting a client away from them. No need to sit there in a bare studio looking at a bare appointment book and whistling to keep up the spirits. Heck, when you are an amateur you can go to Dan Murphy's and buy spirits at 10:00 in the morning and no-one cares...

Oh, the siren call of the hot photographic news story...and how sweet it is when the siren goes on by their house and they don't have to get out of bed to follow it.

And the charm of attending a rustic wedding in a paddock in the wheatbelt. Amongst the grasshoppers and dust and hayseeds...and they won't have to change lenses because they're a guest instead of a worker. And they don't have to make small talk with the hayseeds unless they want to.

That wonderful dawn at 3:00 AM in summer. Not a breath of wind. Clouds glorious. The roseate fingers of light making for perfect balance between outside light and a desperate real estate agent. No need to haul three light stands and a Skylite reflector up to a third storey. No need to climb on a ladder to get verticals right. No need to spend the rest of the day spotting out the cat wee from the walls. Architecture photography as it was meant to be enjoyed...by someone else.

Well, now that I have set the glowing picture ( and it isn't all just halation ) read on in one of our next weblog columns for how to achieve this. Remember: Life was meant to be more than just getting the gravy spots off a sensor.

Uncle Dick

Getting Drunk And Using A Gary Fong Lightsphere

Okay. You're reading this. That headline got you. I knew it would. Read on and see what the connection is.

Note: if you are going to be all awkward about the drunk bit, substitute barley water and improving tracts if you wish - the Gary Fong advice still applies.

The Gary Fong Lightsphere is a device that has undergone a number of development changes. Early versions were made in two grades; clear and cloudy - and you had to pick the exact model to fit your speed light. Our shop had to stock about eight of them to service all customers. It was a beeping night- mare to get the right diffuser to the right customer.

Things have changed. Gary saw the light ( ! ) and got his factory mates to make a universal diffuser that not only fit all comers but was made in flexible plastic to fold down upon itself. It could be used for a whole new range of speed lights.

The basic idea of the Lightsphere is to fire the blast of flash light vertically into a roughly spherical translucent ball and let it spill out and make optical friends from there. If the flash was connected to a camera via some sort of TTL coupling, the light that spilled out of the front of the accessory illuminated the subject while the stuff that went out in an annular pattern and up to the ceiling  was weakened but still contributed to the look of the image. You got a softened effect on the main subject and adequate illumination of their surroundings. All in one shot with one flash on or near the camera. A real boon to event photographers who did not have the luxury of complex light set-ups.

Weddings. Dances. Concerts. Environmental portraits that have to be done with minimal preparation. Not perfect but better than straight blast-flash. Absolutely better than no-flash and f:1.4 and hope that it looks like art...

It is the equivalent of being drunk and still competent. You might not be able to operate a nuclear power station or do brain surgery but you can still turn on the lights or put on a band-aid.

And sometimes that is exactly what the situation requires. Gary Fong. Making people look good the easy way.

I've Already Got A Camera, But...The Ten Big Questions

1. But I'm going to visit France and I don't want to carry something the size of a trench mortar through the fancy boutiques and restaurants. Can you sell me a compact camera?

2. But I'm going to visit Alaska to photograph the grizzly bears and I need a camera the size of a trench mortar to bring them into focus without getting so close that they maul me. Can you sell me a DSLR with a 400mm lens?

3. I'm going to visit Ukraina. Can you sell me a trench mortar?

4. I want to take pictures of spiders. Can you sell me a macro lens, a macro slider, a tripod, and a can of Mortein.

5. I want to take street pictures in the rain and look cool and hip like the pictures in the advertisements. Can you sell me a mirror-less camera that's weather-proof.  I can organise my own red Nikes and two-day stubble.

6. I have no idea how it works. Can I take a course that will tell me what to do?

7. I need a memory card. Do you sell memory cards?

8. I need to do a wedding shoot tomorrow. Can you set my camera for me and sticky-tape the controls down? I'll pay for the sticky tape...

9. I put the memory card in upside down and now nothing works and it won't even open up. Is there a technician on duty?

10. No-one makes film any more. I read that on the internet, so it must be true. Can you sell me some film for it?

The answer, as if you couldn't guess, to all these questions is " yes ". We regularly encounter random requests and do our best to fulfil them. In the case of the trench mortars, they are made by Nerf and are suitable for use inside the home.

Singing In The Rain - With The New Fujifilm Lens

Today's big announcement of the Fujifilm X-T10 camera is wonderful. And closely following on is the release of the Fujinon XF90mm f:2 R LM WR lens.

Mouthful, isn't it - all those letters. They're easy to sort out, though:

Fujinon - top quality all the way.

XF - this is a lens that will fit the Fujifilm X-mount - the X-Pro1, X-E1 and X-E2 - the X-T1 and now the new X-T10 all share this mount. It is a remarkably unfussy coupling - no wierd levers and fingers of metal that need to be wound round each other - Fujifilm benefitted by looking at other mounts while designing theirs and avoided the troubles.

90mm - this translates in old film-speak to 137mm - it was a classic medium telephoto focal length that separated you from shy subjects and rendered the perspective pleasing. No big noses on the portraits.

f:2 - WooHoo. Fast! This is a lens that you can use in low light like churches, sports halls, and theatres. The combination of this wide aperture and the 90mm focal length means a restricted depth of field in portraiture and a pleasingly softened foreground and background.

Note that it'll also go as close as 60 cm so you can use that focal length to shoot close-ups of flowers and insects.

LM - Linear motor. Faster focusing - higher torque in the internals and a quicker and more precise response.

WR - here's the rain thing. Not that we advocate getting caught out in it like yesterday...but the WR means that the lens is water resistant. If you're doing sports in winter, it's a thing.

Fujifilm's range of lenses just keeps getting wider...and longer...and better. We'll be sure to let you see a picture of it as soon as we get one in the store - as well as some photos taken with it.

New Flash Rental Flash

The new Profoto B2 kits are available for experimenters - the Rental Department here has  two combo's ready for hire:

1. Profoto B2 Off Camera Flash 250 Air 2 - head Location kit. This is to go out at $ 110 per day or $ 165 per weekend.

2. Profoto B2 Off Camera Flash 250 Air 1 - head To Go kit. this will be for $ 88 per day or $ 132 per weekend.

Sales supplies will be arriving later, but you can whet your appetite now with a rental.

B2 Or Not 2B - That Is The Question With Profoto

There's nothing quite like a B2 arriving at night...

So last night we had a Profoto B2 plus pilot here at the shop for a demonstration of the new system. Over 50 photographers attended the session and the mission commander...Saul...gave us all a briefing about what it is and what it is going to cost.

The pilot - Stefan Gosatti - had taken the new equipment for a spin at a red-carpet affair, on a fashion shoot, and out to do twilight coverage of a sports event. He had examples on screen and printed out to show what the coverage and power of this new unit can do.

The flash is the even-more-portable off-camera flash solution from Profoto. They make a great battery-powered monohead called the B1 that can fire out 500 watt/seconds from an on-board lithium-ion battery. Heart-stoppingly short flash duration and takes all the big Profoto light shapers.

The new B2 is a battery pack system that supports the use of two small portable heads - much smaller in overall size than the B1 heads. Surprisingly, they have been moulded to still take the large Profoto light shapers....but the makers have also provided a new range of lighter-weight shapers and modifiers to match the portability.

Make no mistake - this is a pack system that you can carry round on your belt or shoulder all day but is capable of firing 250 watt/seconds - divide it between two heads as you like. It dials down to an incredibly small amount of light as well so it would be suitable for lab as well as studio use.

Okay - how did Stefan fire it? He used a Profoto Air TTL with his camera - Profoto can supply the Air TTL controllers for both Nikon or Canon DSLR cameras. If he had chosen the Profot Air without the TTL provision it could have been used on any brand of camera - I'm sure he would have been fine because he knows what light can do and how to set it for his results, but even he said that it was helpful in fast-moving situations to have the TTL to help out.

Note: we suspect other camera manufacturer's TTL system requirements will also be addressed in the coming months with Profoto Air TTL versions - don't know which ones but we'll find out eventually.

The heads have standard 1/2" light stand mounts or can be unscrewed from these for even smaller specialised applications. they are small enough to mount above the DSLR on an arm - this is the deal for he gunadrun event photographer. One head on 250watt/seconds is about 10 times the light of a speed light so you can work brighter in darker spaces...

The Profoto light modifiers for the new B2 are deliberately lighter than the studio ones - there is a new range of grid sets, barn doors, soft boxes, and beauty dishes. the soft boxes have been designed with integral diffusers and rods for very fast set-up.

Stefan found that he got nearly 200 shots from each battery charge - had he turned the power down on the lights the number of flashes would have been very much greater. Note that the charger will fill up the battery in an hour - and you can get a car charger as well if you need to top-up between jobs on the road.

My conclusion as a staff member lounging behind the counter was that the new flash is a clear winner in this class of photography. This in spite of my brand loyalty. It will become the standard of the industry for portable shooters.