Category Archives: photography gear
Hardware Review: Think Tank Airport International V2.0
We all have camera bags. Whether you use a Point-and-Shoot, an SLR, or any other type of camera, you are putting it somewhere eventually that could be defined as a bag. These bags are made in such a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and straps, it’s really amazing sometimes how many options there are for the photographer today. But like it or not, if you have a camera – you are gonna need a bag!
The Perils of Polarizers
Happy Monday all! My apologies at the absence on Friday – it seems some gremlins absconded with all my time on Thursday, so in the absence of any halfway decent content, decided to make it a legitimate “no blog” day heading into the weekend. But, a new week is here, and I’ve got a cool topic to cover briefly with you…that being: Polarizing Filters Polarizing filters can be a godsend – they can really bring out blues in a sky, or minimize reflections in windows, and can really help to improve the quality of your work. At the same time, … Continue reading
Cameras at Ten Paces…
If you think about it, cameras often share terminology with them…we go out to “shoot”. We aim, we fire, and our shutter release is often analogous to a trigger not only in what it does, but in the proper technique (slow and steady as you exhale). So, when I read recently about a camera holster, it kind of made sense. The entire system seems kind of cool, and they claim it’s designed for “even the heaviest of professional grade camera gear”. In a line of work where gear is often just off-the-charts expensive, I was surprised to find the Spider … Continue reading
Putting the Pieces Together, Dream Camera #4
You may recall that a while ago, I decided to start building my ideal perfect “dream camera”! In fact, I devoted 3 blog posts to it, and you’ve patiently waited for the grand finale, so here it is – what rounds out the list for the ultimate dream camera! For those that need a refresher, here’s what’s included so far (click the title to go the blog post where each item is explained in detail): Part 1 Full Frame Sensor EF-S support Low Light Performance ISO handling Multi-card compatibility Part 2 Megapixels Video Frame Rate HDMI support Internal wireless/Bluetooth Part … Continue reading
Saving Money is Always Good
In photography it’s pretty much accepted that you get what you pay for. If you want super fast glass with pristine optics, then expect to pay for it. Alternatively, if you’re on a budget, don’t expect apertures in the 2.8 range do bring the sharpest images. You can also kiss things like Image Stabilization goodbye (Vibration Reduction for the Nikonian crowd). So, yeah, we all know that photography is a field where you have to spend money. But, this does not mean you have to spend money unnecessarily. When there are savings out there to be had, I am all … Continue reading
Building the Perfect Camera, Pt. 1
One of the more recent episodes from the guys over at This Week in Photography had them wrapping up their coverage of PMA, where they talked tech about all the latest cameras to come out from the various vendors. Canon was noticeably absent from the show, but it didn’t detract from an interesting comment I think Ron Brinkmann said where he wished he could pull all his favorite features from each of the cameras and basically make his own. To me, the idea screamed “blog post”! So, I decided to go for it. I went through every major SLR on … Continue reading
The long-awaited Drobo review
I’d been waiting for the time to put together all the videos, audio, and pictures for this review for a while and I’ve finally caught up on other projects so am getting this out for the listening and reading audiences to enjoy! For those that subscribe and read via RSS, sorry because this is a video-heavy post and you’re just going to have to visit the blog to get the content today! Trust me though, it’s worth it as I take a look at how the Drobo performs in a real world environment with hot swapping drives, and the perils … Continue reading
Hardware Review: Rapid R Strap
I can’t believe I’ve waited this long to talk about my Rapid R Strap. This is a very cool camera strap developed by the folks over at Black Rapid. I had been wanting one for a while, and made it known to everyone prior to the holidays over a year ago (think pre-Christmas 2008). Thankfully, my wife saw the writing on the wall, and I ended up with one on Christmas Day! So, let me tell you what makes this camera strap unique. First off, it’s unique design has a built in “stop” so that you just let your camera … Continue reading
Hardware Review: Expodisc
It’s been a while since I’ve done a hardware review, and I realized that when the folks at Expo Imaging had sent me the Rayflash to review, I had also received an Expodisc. I know I recorded the video for it, but for some reason it never got published, as the two were meant to be posted back to back. In any case, here is the long-awaited review of the Epodisc from the folks at Expo Imaging: First – what is the Expodisc? It’s simply a disc that defracts light as it passes through your lens in order to determine … Continue reading
New Formats for the New Year
With the advent of a new year, the podcast is hopefully going to take on a new format – with things being more conversational. Erik Bernskiold comes back to the show and we’re talking about all the latest news in photography, as well as a main talking point of how to publicize and share your images online – looking at the pros and cons of the various options that are out there. Lots of news including announcements from the recent CES show, as well as contest information, and listener questions and answers so it’s a pretty heavily packed show. Almost … Continue reading
I Got a Camera for Christmas – Now What?
With the major holiday of the year behind us, many are proudly wielding new cameras…but many are also asking questions. The most popular question I am getting via emails is something along the lines of: “I got a new ______ for Christmas. Now What?” (Insert your own camera make/model in the blank) The answer to this really depends on what, if anything, you had before the new item made its way into your hands. For simplicity sake, I’ll break the response down to 3 different categories: 1. This is your first “serious” camera, and you are making the foray into … Continue reading
The Nifty Fifty from Sigma
After a couple weeks there of some touch-and-go blogging, rest assured, things are back into high gear this week. Today the trusty hardware review returns, and regular content is on the horizons for sure. Thanks for all the patience of those who have stuck around during some down time. Today, we’ll be taking at the Sigma 50mm lens, f1.4.
Classic Questions on Photography: Which Lens?
Every photographer, whenever they start or dip their toes in the proverbial waters, starts wondering about their gear, their work, and how to do things. And, in search of answers to questions – we start asking them. One of the classic questions is “What camera should I buy?” Another similar one is “What lens to get?” There are more (of course), but these are two of the most commonly asked questions I’ve had proposed to me (and that I’ve proposed myself in the past. The answer though, is a bit more problematic, because there are qualifiers to everything. More often … Continue reading
Hardware Review: XRite Colorimeter
Eventually you knew it was coming – the subject of color management. Now before you mosey along, or your eyes glaze over, rest assured, this is not going to be the typical discussion of color management. I am not going to talk about LAB color vs CMYK, vs RGB, or anything like that. And even though the term “colorimeter” may sound like something Marvin the Martian was going to use to destroy Earth in the classic Bugs Bunny cartoon (that was the Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator), there is nothing overly scientific in today’s post. Well, that’s not entirely true … Continue reading
Post #501: Hardware Review – Thinktank Photo Multimedia Bag
As you may recall from the video announcement on Friday’s post #500 – the giveaway product for September includes the newest bag system from Thinktank Photo. You read that right, it’s a bag system! Totaling $320 in value retail the bags include the following:
Wacom Bamboo Fun: Hardware Review
The good folks at Wacom were kind enough to donate a Bamboo Fun to me for review on the blog a while back. In order to really get a full handle on it though, I wanted to use it within the context of my at-home work flow. You see, I’m not a newcomer to tablets, as at work and through previous experience, I’ve grown quite accustomed to their usage. I’ve had to instruct people on how to use, configure the basics, and such on their computers. as well as used them in many of their varying sizes (most recently being … Continue reading
Finally some good news – it’s Friday!
Well, there’s some other good news too. Wacom delivered the something to me door yesterday to review here on the blog. I’ll be doing a more detailed write-up for both Windows and Mac in the near future, but thought y’all might be interested in the unboxing – seeing what you get from the good folks at Wacom when you order a: BAMBOO FUN! So, here’s a little teaser video for those that are interested: This might be fodder for an upcoming contest or giveaway, but only time will tell, so keep your fingers crossed. In the meantime, here’s the rest … Continue reading
Hardware Review: Sigma 18-250
// < ![CDATA[ // < ![CDATA[ // < ![CDATA[ google_ad_client = "pub-3565134799530909"; /* 468x60, created 2/25/10 */ google_ad_slot = "7247311792"; google_ad_width = 468; google_ad_height = 60; // ]]> First off, my apologies at the sudden absence on Friday – it was a day off, but not so much as a podcast recording that should have taken 30-45 minutes took 2 hours so my plans for the day were pretty much canned after that. But anyway, on to the subject of today’s post: The Sigma 18-250mm lens review! You read that right – Sigma has a lens that covers the range … Continue reading
Sigma Lightstand – Hardware Review
This week’s hardware review is the Sigma Lightstand. Specifically, the Impact 8 foot Air Cushion Lightstand. While you may think that this is something that wouldn’t garner much discussion – I actually have found this to be a very handy tool. “Tool?”, you ask. Yes, a tool. Sure, it’s primary function is to hold lights, but look at the variety even there – I’ve used it for small flashes (like my 550 EX II), studio strobes from Smith Victor, and water bags. Lest you do a double take, that’s right, I used it along with a makeshift boom (arm that … Continue reading
Steady as She Goes…
This first day after a long Memorial weekend, things are a little slow out of the starting gate, but as luck would have it, slow and steady is the theme for today, because my gear review that I postponed from yesterday is none other than the trusty tripod! The tripod is probably one of the most basic and easy-to-understand pieces of equipment in a photographer’s gear bag – yet likely one of the least used. I can’t tell you the number of times (myself included) I have heard someone utter “Argh! I left my tripod back in my car!” We’ve … Continue reading
Cactus, Trigger, Zebra, Oh My!
Remember the old game of password where you said a related word to one on your card to get your partner to guess it? Well, here goes: What do the words cactus, trigger, and zebra all have in common? If you answered “flash photography” you’d be right! As you may have realized, that does mean that the podcast will not come out today – I simply didn’t have time to get all my thoughts and notes together. So instead, here’s a review of sorts that I did just earlier this evening. A while back I decided to ditch the Canon … Continue reading
Tuesday Tech Talk: Canon ST-E2
This week, the Tuesday Tip is more of a “Tech Talk”. I got an email from someone inquiring about the Canon ST-E2 asking about how to use it, and what it’s compatible with. Taking a cue from this, I decided to make it a video tip from the MacbookPro,and set things up to give a basic primer on what the ST-E2 looks like, how it mounts to your camera, and how it triggers off-camera flashes electronically. Hopefully this will help demonstrate the purpose of the ST-E2 in a better light (bad pun, sorry…). Because it was recorded from the Mac … Continue reading
Rituals – Cleaning your Gear
Rituals are an important part of many cultures and belief systems. Yet rituals can also be patterns of behavior. We drive the same way to work every day, we tend to eat similar meals from one week to the next, and we do certain things each and every day, like brushing our teeth, taking a shower (hopefully anyway!), and a host of others. Well, just like other rituals, many of us become very fastidious about our work flow. We color manage things, we duplicate images, back them up, and save in multiple locations. Yet I’ve not seen anyone really talk … Continue reading
