A White Christmas in Sight

Sitting here on a sultry evening in Brisbane rather excited to receive a Skype call from the people we are doing a house swap with in Retford, UK. They wanted to show me the snow outside their house via Skype. In just over 8 days we will be winging our way to the UK and whilst snow will be a novelty I am not really wanting too much snow if it means I can't go out on my Photo adventures. One of the things I do know is that with the colder weather I will have to be careful with my Camera and lenses. Batteries will need to be kept warm to maximise their power.
Condensation will be one thing I will have to be careful with going from a warm house to a cool outside. It will be something different to photograph and test my white balance skills. I notice when you look at UK Photography Shops Websites they certainly carry more photography clothing to combat the extremes. Even the range of camera bags for hiking is far in excess of what we see in Oz. It is something I could never understand that Anaconda has not caught on to the fact that many photographers are keen trekkers or trekkers are keen photographers however it seems that this part of the market is totally ignored here. I have a Canon vest with about 18 pockets that can carry gear in. (yes I do get a ribbing wearing it but only from jealous Nikon users) The range of vests in the UK is staggering so too is the gear to sit out and do wildlife/outdoor photography. Check this site out www.stealth-gear.com as an example. I know we have a small population but many of our camera retailers and adventure outdoor retailers don't seem to cater at all for this market.  I know this is a photography blog but I have to rant about a near fatal mishap my trip overseas nearly came to. I use a Travel Agent as they have the expertise to co-ordinate the various flight legs to get to your destination.  So on Monday I logged onto the airline we are flying with website, to checkout type of plane, entertainment and types of meals. Imagine my surprise to find that the Airline no longer flies out of Brisbane on a Saturday. Now we booked in March 2010 and our ticket says our flight leaves 13.10 on Saturday 11th of December. Hmm not any more, quick phone call to Travel Agent, a few terse words and a visit to the boss to ask for an extra day off and to start holidays a day earlier so as to get to our destination. Still I hate to think what would have happened if on Saturday week we turned up blissfully unaware and finding no plane. Hmm I think my wife would have murdered someone...
Till next time.

What Lens Should I Get?

One of the hardest things to decide when you first get into photography is what lenses you should have in your camera bag? In most cases the lens you have that comes with your Camera is very basic. Mine came with a 18-55mm f4-5.6 I very quickly acquired a 50mm 1.8 Fixed lens (prime)most likely the best lens for the money. I then got a 70-300mm Sigma, A 55-200mm Canon and then a 17-85mm EFS Canon. I was buying up lenses like they were going out of fashion. eBay loved me and it was interesting smuggling them past an all knowing and curious wife but that is a story for another blog. I also read the reviews on DPReview but seriously they won't say don't buy you don't need it.
Now I have been doing photography for a  while and attended a few courses I realise I have gone totally down the wrong track.
Firstly the 50mm f1.8 is an excellent lens in your bag...anyone like myself wanting to do Portrait work the Bokeh is exceptional and capability in low light great. Now the next two lenses worth considering are the 70-200mm f2.8 IS or 70-200mm f4 IS. For me the opportunity to hire these lenses and try them out allowed me to use them and decide what one best suited me. I can throughly recommend http://www.rentalens.com.au/ Bjarne is very knowledgeable and hires both Canon and Nikon lenses at very reasonable prices. I rented the various 70-200mm lenses until finally deciding on the 70-200mm f2.8L IS. Now I wanted image stablisation if this was not an issue for you I must admit trying out the 70-200mm f2.8 Tamron lens at a Creative Photo Workshops I am convinced  that for the money it represents great value against the Canon Lenses.
Once again having the opportunity to try out the lenses allows you evaluate them and see if they suit your style and type of photography. It was through using Tamron's at CPW that my next lens a 28-75mm  f2.8 was purchased. I realised I needed the fast lens but at about a third of the Canon equivilent price having not long ago shelled out $1600 for a secondhand L lens, I could not see the Manager of War and Finance letting me spend $1200 on another lens.  My next lens will be a 90mm Tamron 2.8 Macro lens once again the Canon 100mm Macro 2.8 L IS is an awesome lens but is a big spend for a hobbyist. When starting out I think you need to be realistic and whilst I would like to own all Canon lenses until I can get more paying jobs I will use my third party lenses...by the way I will be offloading a few lenses on Ebay in the meantime just dont let the potential buyers read my blog. Seriously though if you are considering investing in a lens do yourself a favour hire it first. I think it is well worth the money and may prevent you spending money on what, could turn out to be, a waste of money. The other thing is Rentalens has tilt shift lenses and other speciality lenses that sometimes it may be better to hire rather than buy if you only have the occasional use. I certainly know that you don't impress anyone with a bag full of lenses..quality over quanity is my lesson here. Till next time

Finally Some Photography

Ok getting ready for our house swap and holiday in the UK. Made my umpteenth trip to the dump at Dakabin. Threw my camera gear in the ute and on the way back called into Lakeside. I like getting there to practice panning and smell burnt rubber and hear the throb of V8's.

Today was an American car day celebrating Thanksgiving. The crowd was smaller than for the 4th of July meeting and certainly not as many cars but still worthwhile dropping by.

Just few examples of the more exotic American cars featured. However my favourite are the Mustangs  a good range of models and colours featured.

Of course there was also the Chevy's and Corvettes and evertime I see a red Corvette my thoughts go to Smokie and the Bandit, I only stayed about an hour but am happy with shoots I managed to get.

Now for the technical details. All these images were shot with my Canon 20D 70-200mm f2.8L IS ISO 200 1/60 at f16.

Till next time..Bye.



iPhone a Photographers Swiss Army Knife

Okay I have an iPhone and as the young kids abandon them for the Nokia N8 and other windows phones or Android phones,  I will stick with mine and upgrade to another iPhone when my contract runs out. It has numerous applications that makes a Photographers job easy. The first Application you need is Photocalc. This program has Depth of Field  calculator, Flash Exposure calculator so you can work with  using your flash guide number, the aperture,  the iso the power and the distance.  A solar  calculator for sunrise and sunset times. It allows you set the options with your own Camera and has a handy reference section.
Ayetides is another handy application and allows  you to get the tidal predictions for over 10,000 locations all over the world. It also has sunrise, sunset as well as the moon phases. This program costs about $13 but does not need the internet connection for it's data.
Easy Release allows photographers and models to complete a release on the spot. Signing on the touch screen( a Stylus would be handy) then emailing it to both model and photographer in a PDF format.
 Strobox is a handy app that lets you draw lighting diagrams on your iPhone...pity I didn't use it at a recent Studio Workshop with Creative Photo Workshops.
LightmeterPro emulates a real light meter using the camera of the iPhone, you can set ISO sensitivity and type of exposure a priority of time or Shutter speed.
Kindle for iPhone is another great app download a book from Amazon to read or as a reference resource. DSLR Remote Pro is another app that lets you lets you control your DSLR camera through your iPhone, including LiveView. You require you camera tethered to your computer and using your WiFi network can use your phone to control the camera. Of course there are numerous applications using the iPhone camera. Like Photoshop Express, Vint shift, Camera Bag, Hipstamatic.Dash of Color,Best Camera, DoFMeter just to name  a few.
I use Smugmug to house my images and there is even an app called smugwallet that allows me to sync my iPhone with my photo library on  smugmug. So the  iPhone these days is the swiss army knife of today. Of course you can still phone friends, send texts and use the built in camera. I would not be without mine!

Captured by the Light

Captured by the Light: The Essential Guide to Creating Extraordinary Wedding Photography

I am excited. Not only is it two weeks before I fly of to the UK but also because of a book I started reading this morning. I have already read about 1/3 of it just in the space of commuting to work and home on the train today. Captured By the Light, The Essential Guide to creating Extraordinary Wedding Photography by David A. Ziser is a must read.
It has to be one of the best books on photography I have read outside of Scott Kelby's books. To my photography friends if you have attended a Creative Photo Workshops course on flash then this gives you the written along with some visuals to reinforce the ideas. It also has  a section on posing as well as tips all throughout on getting the right composition. He gives tips on workflow for  a Wedding all the way trough there is a series of  photos reinforcing the poses, the lighting.
I have read Hot Shoe Diaries and whilst an interesting read is perhaps not as instructional and I may now benefit from rereading it after attending a few workshops and reading this book. A word of warning to my Nikon friends David is a Canon shooter so tends to talk more from a Canon point of view but don't let that put you off as there is plenty of info in this book for Nikon shooters.
I think if you are serious about your photography and want to do weddings then this is an essential read and one you will continue to refer to until it all becomes second nature. So whilst you can read about it practice, practice is what reinforces it.


Till my next post.

Canon Powershot SX30IS

One of the things I dread is being asked the question "you know a bit about cameras can you tell me what camera to buy?"  It is  a bit like being asked how long is a piece of string? I usually ask how much are looking to spend and what sort of photos do you want to take?  I am no expert and most compact cameras these days produce some awesome photos. I have a Panasonic Lumix that would be smaller than a cigarette  packet and it  produces great images.
Recently  whilst looking at a photo shop catalouge I came across the Canon Powershot SX30IS. It retails for $649(but I have seen it cheaper) and yes you could get an entry level DSLR for that sort of money but let me tell you this Camera has a 14.1MP sensor, a 24mm to 840mm lens....yes you read that right  840mm (35 times zoom) fstop from 2.7 at 24mm to f8 at 840mm. Features a viewfinder as well as a swing out LCD screen, built in flash with option for hot shoe flash. It takes HD video, has image stablisation  as well as a full set of shooting modes including manual. Perhaps on the down side it does not shoot in Raw.
One of my work mates bought this camera on my recommendation and took it to New Zealand on her holidays. The shots are sensational and that zoom.... mind blowing. In one of my follow up blogs I will see if I can have permission to publish a couple of her photos. On her buying this camera two other work mates are now buying it. We had great fun one day when she brought it in standing buy the windows  zooming in on Kangaroo Point Cliffs. It was also great from the eighth floor reading the bus stop when zooming down to street level. The camera is a reasonable size and feels good in your hands. It weighs about 550g and would easily fit in a womens handbag. It is a tad too big to fit in your pocket and I believe the ability to shoot manual would ideally suit the enthusiast wanting a walk around camera giving quality without drawing attention to yourself.
For me I am now trying to decide on a Powershoot SX30IS or Canon 7D? yes I know should be the 7D but I really have got lens envy now.
In a follow up to yesterdays post on the Hoodman Loupe something I did not make clear is it has a magnifying adjustable lens similar to what you find on binoculars. This means you can adjust the image on the loupe to your eyesight. My thanks to my friend Karen Cougan from Above See Level Photography for asking me that question.


Till next time...

Welcome to Through the Loupe

Welcome to my first Blog post "Through the Loupe". Why Through the Loupe? Well all the other names were taken and given my liking for gadgets why not after one of my most useful photography gadgets? The Hoodman Loupe retails for about $118 in Australia and I must admit I looked for cheaper alternatives and even had ideas of making one myself. However since receiving my Loupe in the mail I can see it is worth every cent I paid for it. I wear glasses and don't have the best of sight but I defy anyone in the strong Australian sun being able to read the back of a LCD screen on  a camera. This device makes this so much easier when in the field and you can turn your LCD screen down. This must save battery power and stop you burning out your screen.
Today I was surprised to see a similar product from Genus-Tech in a UK photo magazine but at $A199 a bit expensive but it seems the drive for Loupe's is more to do with the use of DSLR's for Video production and both Hoodman and Genus make other adaptors to make filming with a DSLR easier.  By the way, using your Loupe on an iPhone screen is cool also although you might get some strange looks if you wore your Loupe all the time. In fact with the Loupe I can't help imagining myself as some famous film director scouting for the next location shoot!
Well I must pay tribute to my fellow photographer Melanie of A Surplice of Photography for inspiring me to do  a blog. She was going to help me out but being an impatient fellow and not wanting to take up her valuable time I have pressed on and developed my own blog. No doubt in the next few days she will run her critical eye over it and you will definitely see some improvements. It is a steep learning curve for an old dog like me.
I intend to give you my quirky view of the world and of course plan to have plenty of material whilst in UK to write about. So until my next post....bye.