Well, let's face it - as I was using a modern digital camera to capture some of the sights in the 2022 PhotoLive Expo at the Novotel, Langley, it was a dead cert that at least one of the trade stand operators was going to be able to say that to me. Had I been using a Speed Graphic with PF100 blue flashbulbs and a 6-inch reflector, it might have been another story . That sort of thing is always a temptation...
My new favourite saying from Matt Ball to describe products that deliver every time. As I am determined to write more from experience than imagination in the future ( my imagination having given out after seeing the stuff they show at the cinema these days...
Yesterday I treated myself to a wander - The 2022 PhotoLive held at the Novotel Langley hotel. It was the same venue as a number of past shows - the mezzanine show room and a number of additional theatres and rooms for workshops and talks. A good venue idea, as the trade display can be kept to the one room. There is also a good bar and restaurant in the building so there is no need to be hungry, thirsty, or tired at the fair. I approached the event a bit differently this time - less of the planner and more of the flâneur. I wandered the hall looking at the displays by the trade firms and looked for new and useful gear on display. These have been lean times for new equipment but I was not starved for interesting bits - And I picked up news of a new lens that interests me mightily. If you went and attended some of the talks or a workshop, you got more focused news than I did - as I said I lounged through listening...
At a recent photographic flea market...
We are always being beat around the head with " Best ". The idea of the top of the tree - only reached by climbing up through " Good " and " Better ". It was a constant theme in the older Sears Roebuck catalogues. Well, you'll have to decide in your own minds whether you'll be chivvied by this, but for my money, the Tiller electric bicycle for sale in Wanderlust right now ( white and black colours on the floor ) may well be the best of a number of things. Best combination of ideas, best compromise in size, best looks, etc. Might well be the best solution for your in-city transport needs, too. The idea of the electric motor in a bicycle isn't new, but the ability to use a rechargeable lithium-ion pack to feed it is - this is a product of new technology. The old technology in your legs is still going to be required for a good deal of your journey, but the part where you look up the longest hill in Perth will not be...
For doing a lot of things: a. Sticking things in my ears. As a kid, body cavities are fascinating. They are there to be explored. We used to see if crayons would fit up our nose and how far fingers could go into ears. Spoiler: no, they don't come out the other ear...
I had a long-term plan for my photographic career - stop laughing - it was to keep on taking pictures until I was either famous, infamous, or completely obscure. I didn't care which; I am starting to suspect I may have achieved it. Not imagining that I would make the profession or business of photography my sole career, I let it be the important sideline to my main profession. Then it became a big part of my life after the first retirement. After the second retirement. ( Will he never go away? Change the locks. ) it still echoes on as a passionate interest - and one that has a point supporting my other interests. Never planned it that way, but that's how it worked out. How about you? If you are top photographer, remunerated and awarded in keeping with your skill, you may have carefully planned this and worked out the steps that led you ever upwards. Perhaps a formal education at a tertiary level, then internship in a professional firm, then your own practice. Perhaps a apprenticeship - perhaps an...
In my digital adolescence - when I converted from a set of top-notch film camera systems to a major maker's enthusiast range cameras - I was amazed at how heavy the things were. If one equated weight with worth, I was getting value. And I didn't hesitate to add to that weight. Hey, I was working in Camera Electronic with all the lenses and accessories around me every day...
I have spent a rainy Perth day herding ducks. Not real live quackers - the virtual kind in my computer. I have succeeded in marshalling a small group of them into a row and fallen back exhausted from the effort. It's not one of those silly Facebook games - it's the business of organising digital photography files. Like many of our readers my growing collection of files is spread over a number of devices, held in a number of formats, and about as organised as a soup sandwich. I have elected to try to head 'em up and move 'em out by slow manual means as this is cheaper for me than organising software - I have time to do it. In truth, and you may reflect for yourselves, I had time to do it all along - and the manufacturers of digital equipment and knowledge tried their best to persuade me to do it. I've a bookshelf of manuals and instruction books for a number of editing programs, computers, and storage devices that all urge me to organisation. Even programs that...
Dale Neill, the superb professional photographer from Fremantle, has a catch line on his Facebook posts that says when we think Photoshop is the answer, we've asked the wrong question. Agree with him or not, his results as a pro shooter, judge, and writer tend to confirm his opinion. He teaches people to think away from their computer and editing program. Do I believe he's right? Many times I do, and with this particular question I think it revolves somewhat on the idea of quantity - I think he's spot-on when he teaches people to avoid long, hard sessions of computer editing. He teaches them to think beforehand and get the exposures, focus, and composition right before they press the shutter button. He's sort of a jpeg of photography teachers...