LENS CAPTURE

Vol. 1 No. 63

Vol. 1 No. 61



Took an opportunity the other night to catch a friend's band playing out at Don Hills on Greenwich Street in the Village. With a couple of cameras in hand, I took to capturing my experiences that evening.

When I'm shooting live bands, I never use flash. I try and use fast glass (lenses with a wide maximum aperture). One of my favorites is the Nikkor 50mm f/1.4D lens. A super fast lens well suited to light low environments. Even with a fast lens, you will still need to shoot at high ISO settings usually above 800 and sometimes as high as 3200.

Vol. 1 No. 60

Bet you're wondering where the year went. I am. So I figured this would be a good time to contemplate on the "stuff" I've come to find interesting, desire, and/or add to my kit over this past year.

My favorite camera
For the last couple of months my main camera body is a Nikon D300s. Outfitted with the MB-D10 Battery Grip, this baby weighs in at just under 3 pounds without a lens attached. But she is a beauty with an DX 12.3 megapixel sensor, capable of 7 frames per second continuous shooting, cinematic 24 frames per second 720p HD video recording, exceptional low light sensitivity up to 6400 ISO, all clad in a weatherproofed magnesium-alloy body. She's not cheap, but a dream to work with.

Favorite lens

Without hesitation I would say the Nikkor AF-S DX 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 ED VR II. This optically stabilized zoom is my grab-and-go lens. It allows me a great deal of flexibility when it comes to framing the shot. My runner-ups are the Nikkor AF-S 105mm f/2.8 IF-ED VR Micro close-up, my Nikkor AF 50mm f/1.4D for low-light, and the Nikkor 10.5mm f/2.8 fisheye which is just a load of fun to use.

Favorite point and shoot

Just out this past September is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZR1. It boasts a 12.1 megapixel sensor and an 8X optical zoom LEICA DC Vario-Elmar lens. Able to capture wide expansive landscapes and detailed close-ups thanks to the 25mm - 200mm zoom lens. This slim compact features lens-shift image stabilization, face recognition for sharp portraits, a 2.7" LCD display, and dynamic 720p HD video capture at 30 frames per second.

Favorite Accessory

The indispensible Black Rapid R-Strapis almost always attached to my main camera. Not being a fan of the straps that come supplied with most camera bodies, I have gone through a great deal of straps to find something that works for me. The Black Rapid solution is not worn around your neck, but instead is slung across your body from shoulder to hip. Very well-made, this strap allows you to slide the attached camera to eye-level to capture your shot, and then drop it down securely to your hip freeing your hands. So simple in design, I scratched my head wondering why I hadn't come up with it. Darn, another missed opportunity.

Favorite Gadgets

I couldn't settle on one, so here goes.
The Gorillapodline from Joby make excellent travel companions. With models starting at less than $20 ranging as high as $100, these extremely flexible mini tripods can steadily hold just about any size camera from ultra compact point-and-shoots to pro SLRs. What's really great is how you can wrap these lightweight flexible wonders around poles, railings, tree limbs, and across uneven surfaces providing your camera a stable surface. Once you're done with it, the Gorillapod takes up very little precious space in your camera bag. I've even used these handy platforms to affix an electronic flash to something to free myself from holding it off camera.

The second is the ExpoDiscfrom expoimaging. It's a simple solution that helps to achieve consistent accurate color in your photographs. Most people leave their camera on auto white balance. Say you a taking a photograph of someone in an office setting. With fluorescent lighting above and natural window light streaming in from the side, auto white balance is pretty much a crap shoot. Instead, by placing the ExpoDisc over your lens and snapping a image, you then can tell your camera to use that image to white balance the scene. All subsequent images taken with the new preset white balance should be spot-on.

Favorite Camera Bag

The Urban Disguise 30by ThinkTank Photo is just that — a camera bag that doesn't look like a camera bag. This stealthy shoulder bag can easily hold a pro SLR with two lenses up to a 70-200mm f/2.8. You can even fit a netbook within the roomy interior. While not cheap, ThinkTank Photo manufactures a top quality product. Beautifully finished, solid construction with ballistic fabric, YKK zippers, a non-slip shoulder strap and a rain cover make this a feature rich choice that leaves you no excuse for carrying your camera.

Favorite Books

Two books by one author, award winning photographer Joe McNally still left me wanting more. The first, The Moment It Clicks: Photography secrets from one of the world's top shooters, Joe shares his straightforward insight into the world of professional photography. He details the challenges that the various projects in the book bring, and the steps Joe took to tackle them. As the rear cover proclaims, "The first book with one foot on the coffee table, and one foot in the classroom," this book is both visually impressive and exceptionally informative.

The second, The Hot Shoe Diaries: Big Light from Small Flashes, author Joe McNally provides us a look at his approach to lighting. A lighthearted adventure through his thought process, backed up by stunning images, makes this one hard book to put down. With the time Joe has spent in the trenches shooting for National Geographic, LIFE magazine, Sport Illustrated, and the recipient of many awards for his work, these two books are chock full of experience.

Well, that's it for this post. If you have a favorite photography-related item, share it by leaving a comment.


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Vol. 1 No. 59

Did I get your attention with the word free?  Hope so.  You need to check out this cool application called The Photographer's Ephemeris.

e⋅phem⋅er⋅is (noun)
A table giving the coordinates of a celestial body at a number of specific times during a given period.

If you love shooting landscapes, or for that matter, enjoy taking in a good sunrise or sunset, you need to check out this software. 



Written by a british photographer living in Colorado, Stephen Trainor has crafted a wonderful photography tool.  The best time for outdoor photography needs advance planning. Scheduling your shoot around sunrise and sunset is not a huge obstacle.  The actual time for these events only changes by a few minutes each day in my neck of the woods.  And it is pretty simple to look up the timetable online.  Where this application shines is precisely depicting, not just when, but where the Sun will be in the sky at any given point specific to the desired location.  It also tracks the Moon's phase, rise, set and azimuth.

Powered by Google Maps, this tool allows you to track these celestial bodies anywhere in the world.  You can use the various features of the built-in Google Maps to zoom, view terrain, satellite imagery, hybrid maps and view the horizon.  Where will the Sun the set over the lake, or say Liberty Island?  It is pretty simple to select a location you plan on shooting from, and view exactly where the sun will be in the sky, down to the minute. 

The latest production version, 1.0.3 even supports netbooks.  It utilizes Adobe Air framework for Rich Internet Applications which provides web interactivity outside of the browser.  The installation is straightforward and the website even has a couple of video tutorials to get you up and running.  While this is a free download, the author does accept donations through his website.

Don't wait, download this now!


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Vol. 1 No. 58

So, if you accept the responsibility of owning a dSLR (see previous post), or you are looking to buy someone else one this holiday season, read on.

Before running out to the camera dealer and plopping down a bunch of cash, there are some important questions to consider. Here goes:

• What are you looking to photograph?

Depending on whether you are focusing on landscapes, people, wildlife, sports, travel, special events can help in the decision-making process. Today's dSLR cameras come in cropped APS-C and full frame sensors sizes. While landscape photographers really benefit from the full frame sensors because very wide lenses such as a 12mm will yield extremely wide fields of view (122º horizontal). On the other hand, sports and wildlife photographers can benefit from the cropped sensor's tighter field of view. A 300mm lens mounted on a camera with a Nikon APS-C sensor with a multiplier of 1.5x (1.6x on some Canons) would have the same field of view as a 450mm lens on a full frame body.

• What are you looking to do with the images?

Post photos to your blog, making 8" x 10" prints, or producing huge billboards for advertising can both determine and limit your camera choices. The majority of cameras available today will all meet the first two requirements, but only a few are truly well suited to handle the latter.

• What's your budget?

This is probably the easiest to answer and the largest determining factor. There are dSLR cameras starting below $500 with prices ranging as high as $7,500. There are entry-level cameras, prosumer models and top-of-the-line professional dSLR bodies.

When determining your choices, keep in mind all the other stuff you need to purchase with the camera body. You'll need, at minimum, one lens. You'll need memory cards to record your images, a card reader to transfer them to your computer, a camera case to protect your investment, a tripod to provide a steady base, and a tripod head to accommodate the camera atop the tripod. And the list doesn't stop there. You should definitely consider purchasing a spare battery to extend your shooting time, or maybe even a vertical/extended battery grip. Some cleaning items like a microfiber lens cloth, and bulb blower are indispensible. Then there's the UV filter to protect the front of your lens. Starting out, I recommend you purchase one for each lens you own. Shooting outdoors calls for a circular polarizing filter to handle reflections and help darken a blue sky. What about a flash? Your camera choice may be equipped with a built-in pop-up flash. While they might not be as wimpy as the one found on your old point-and-shoot, they are not much better. If you're serious about this ________ (hobby, passion, profession - fill-in the blank), then you will definitely want a shoe-mounted external flash.

• Ready to invest the time?

I talked about the commitment of owning a dSLR in the previous post. You need to invest time before the purchase to research the various offerings available. This is part of the investment in owning a dSLR. There are numerous sources online to help you in your probe to find the best fit. A great place to start is the Digital Photography Review. DPReview has been around for more than a decade providing independent in-depth reviews and digital imaging news coverage. When you begin to narrow down your choices to a handful of cameras, I find their "Buying Guide: Digital Cameras Side-by-Side" application extremely helpful.

Shopping wisely

Now that you have identified the camera you want, you need to move cautiously. Deal with legitimate suppliers. Buy only product with USA manufacturer warranties. Be wary of prices that are way below the major resellers. Some unscrupulous vendors will remove manufacturer-included accessories in an attempt to sell them back to you at inflated prices.

I choose to stick with the vendors that I know will back the product they sell. My local favorites, in no particular order are B&H, Adorama, Berger Brothers, J&R, Armato's and Unique Photo. I have had excellent experiences with these retailers. Most will work with you to match legitimate competitor's pricing.

If you have any specific questions, do not hesitate posting it in the comments. I'll do my best to answer them.

Happy shopping!



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