About This Blog    |    Press and Contact Info     |   Available Languages:

ENQUIRIES: 08 9428 7200

May 2018

04 May

Posted at 08:32h in Blog, Dick's Rant by [social_share]

We're lucky here in Australia - we can use the word " cheap " to mean " inexpensive " or " frugal ". Charley Carters, the grocery chain, knew that and we could go to a shop that had oiled wooden floorboards and paper bags and not feel bad about it. This was back when there was Elvis and dinosaurs, but we are still allowed to use a perfectly good English word. In North America it has become a pejorative  - " cheap " means stingy or shoddy or small. That's the problem with languages - they can get away from you if you take your eye off them. Well, semantics aside, when we want to be cheap photographers there are still a few dodges and decisions we can tke advantage of: a. Printing paper is cheap enough at the normal rates but watch out for EOFY clearances when box prices can come down. If you don't open a box of the stuff or leave it in a damp place, you can print on it for years with no worries. Beware, however, when...

03 May

Posted at 09:00h in Blog, Dick's Rant by [social_share]

Don't keep hunting for the pickled herring - this is a post about inkjet printing papers. The title is because there are so many papers available - it can be like a photographic smorgasbord. To be certain you have got the right one for your needs you need to try them all. And I do mean all. Even if you don't really know what sort of paper you need - after all, you never know whether you like something at the smorgasbord until you taste it. You need to follow certain rules: a. Get good images to print. Learn to shoot and process a good wide-ranging image in whichever editing program you use. Even if your normal run of pictures are contrastless misty swirls or black cats in coal holes, make up a set of standard ones as well. You never can tell when your style will change and you'll want people to actually see what it is you have photographed. You can standardise on X-Rite colour panels or a test chart if you wish but be wary of becoming the photographer with the...

02 May

Posted at 08:35h in Blog, Dick's Rant by [social_share]

Why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we plant roses in garden beds and enthuse over them? The plants are 98% stabbing pains for every 2% bright colour or sweet odour. And their demonic spikes do nothing to deter their natural enemies - the aphids. Aphids climb over the spikes with impunity. The rest of us lose jumpers and forearms to them. Here's the only thing in the front yard that was not clawing at me. Ah, well, at least the things provided a little colour for the Panasonic GX-9K camera and Lumix G 30mm f 1:2.8 ASPH Mega O.I.S lens. This is serious micro 4/3 stuff with a dedicated close-up lens - expect perfection. And perfection that is easy to use in a walk-around package. Of course, if you are a dedicated photo enthusiast, easy to use, convenient, and simple are terms that mean nothing to you. The real zealot will carry lead-acid batteries, GPS unit, softboxes, and studio strobe kits up the side of a mountain to capture a toadstool. You may complain bitterly if your designer coffee...