07 Apr Will AI Take Over Your Photo Studio?
Of course it will - you had better pack your personal effects into a cardboard box now and shuffle for the door...
April 2023
05 Apr And A Good Big Thank You To Isabelle
This last month has been trying - the weblog dashboard would not open for business because of IT security mechanisms - and nothing was going to come out in the morning from CE. This might be a relief for some - no three columns per week to worry about - but for this writer it has been a frustrating time. Hopefully the blockage is cleared and we should be able to carry on. In the interim, Isabelle has posted several good columns from the shop computer - one about Leica cameras and one about Marcus Bell, the renowned wedding photographer. Good writing, Isabelle, good rescue, and a good evening at the Marcus Bell event. I attended it and learned a lot. Marcus is far better at the wedding business than I ever could have been - and his images showed this. But the real lessons for a weblog reporter were different: a. Do not go to an event under-gunned. I did, and was sorry. I normally take a Fujifilm camera to shop events. The size of the weblog images I need is small, and an...
03 Apr Comic Sans Gets You Laughed At
And generally not in a fun way - this type font seems to bring out the critic in every graphic designer. If you use it you are seen at best as a rank amateur and at worst as an unranked amateur. Yet, Voltaire set in Comic Sans would still be readable. A dignified page of sophomoric gibberish in an elegant font - or worse: a page of graphic designer in-speak - would wrap fish. The medium is not always the message. Can you get the same derision in photography? You bet you can - take the portrait subjects out into the back yard. pose them under the Hills Hoist with the sun at your back, and see what gets said about you. Or take a trip to Fiji and have a slide night on the patio with 108 35mm colour slides plus mosquitoes. The only way you can get away with these clichés is to make them into parodies - if you're good at it people will suffer but not know why. How many more things can we do that risk the risible?...
17 Mar Leica SL System
The Leica SL System is a high-end, full-frame mirrorless camera system designed for professional photographers and enthusiasts who demand exceptional image quality and versatility. The system is built around the Leica L-mount, which is compatible with a range of high-quality lenses from Leica as well as other manufacturers. In 2018 Leica formed the L-Mount Alliance, licensing Sigma, Panasonic in the same year, and DJI in 2022, to use an upgraded version of the mount for their own products, opening the way for a more extensive system of fully compatible cameras and lenses. The camera body is made from a robust, weather-sealed magnesium alloy and features a high-resolution electronic viewfinder, a 24-megapixel full-frame sensor, and advanced autofocus capabilities. [caption id="attachment_46701" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Leica SL System[/caption] The Leica SL System is highly regarded for its exceptional build quality, image quality, and versatility, making it a top choice for photographers who demand the very best from their equipment, every Leica is rather simple, they are Germans that don't like to overcomplicate things. and the Leica SL System is no different. This camera is an excellent choice...
17 Mar Marcus Bell – Wedding Photography
Pushing the Boundaries of Photography Marcus Bell is a name synonymous with awe-inspiring landscapes and storytelling through photography. He is a multi-award-winning and highly acclaimed photographer whose passion for grand landscapes and fearless originality has taken him to the international space. Based in Brisbane, Australia, Marcus Bell is a master of landscape, documentary, and wedding photography. His creative and distinctive images have made him a well-known name in the global photography community, and he is a sought-after portrait and wedding photographer invited to photograph Governors, sporting legends, and international artists. Bell's journey in photography began when he was just 16 years old, and he started taking photos with his father's camera. Over the years, he has honed his skills and developed his unique style, pushing the boundaries of photography with his fearless creativity and originality. His landscape photography has been featured in several exhibitions, showcasing his ability to capture the beauty and grandeur of nature. His wedding photography, on the other hand, is a celebration of love and romance, capturing the essence of the special day with his unique storytelling approach. American Photo Magazine recognized...
01 Mar Once Upon A Time…
There was Time. You spent it, saved it, and had either a good one or a bad one, depending upon your character and luck. If you were employed in the camera trade you might get some of it spare after Christmas to skulk around at home and avoid housework. Then you retired, and if you were lucky time started to mean nothing. Getting up was when you woke up and your knees would work - going to bed the thing in reverse. Most days contained more time than you needed - the wise found things to fill it and the foolish just complained that they were bored. Then the pandemic stopped the commercial clock and a lot of things stopped with it. It has started again, but some things are still in limbo - small goods from small places are still an iffy proposition. But I am glad to see that at last some of the local production is ramping up to fill spots on shelves. You might not be able to buy hand-hewn Kangarooflex cameras produced in a shed in Manangatang yet,...
27 Feb Do People Really Buy After-Market Lenses Any More?
You bet - and they never stopped doing so. The big names of the camera-body world are also big names of the camera lens world - according to themselves. And also according to lots of users who would sooner part with a foot than with the big-name lenses that their maker produces. If they have a Flapoflex camera they need Flapanon lenses - no question. Any suggestion that they use lenses from an independent maker would be heresy. Some camera camera makers have even gone so far as to pull up the commercial and design drawbridge by refusing to share specifications, dimensions, and protocols that would allow other makers to provide compatible lenses. Until recently this was a thorn in the side of many camera users. Of course there are some makers who are not served by others because the others have no wish to make the complex or extremely expensive lens mounts they need. Now, however, there are two more possibilities - as there has been some movement at the station in regard to the legalities of secondary - and tertiary makers. a....
24 Feb Big Head!
No, not you - the person standing next to you. What? There's no-one next to you? Awkward...
22 Feb When Does Photographic Nostalgia Start?
Sentimental longing for things in photography is no new thing. I suspect that people in the wet-plate era often looked back with affection to daguerreotypes. There was something about boiling mercury that just tugged at your heartstrings. Likewise now we can be nostalgic about film days - and do something about it, if we wish. We are still close enough to the vast - if receding - sea of analogue photography to be able to rush for the shoreline and paddle in the developer. There are simple reusable film cameras made, brand new Leica M's, and markets of secondhand goods still capable of working for years to come. Our chance to work with chemistry is diminishing, but will probably never go entirely - someone will be able to develop negatives in the bathroom as long as there are bathrooms. Nostalgia in the dark and a big water bill. But what of later, rather than earlier, nostalgia. Is there someone sighing for the 1990's compact digital camera? Will there be a rising trade in 3 megapixel things with retractable lenses and Game Boy graphics?...
20 Feb Dial N For Nerder
Oh stop groaning. Be thankful that you saw the old Hitchcock movie called " Dail M For Murder ". With Grace Kelly and Ray Milland in it, it was worth seeing. Grace Kelly was always worth seeing. The N in this case is Nikkormat - one of the long line of successful 35mm SLR cameras from Nikon that were so popular in the 1960's and 70's. More affordable than the Nikon F line from the same makers, it could take the same lenses. In those days the production of cameras with electronics was just coming on - electricity was a new thing - and camera design had frequently to integrate mechanical function with some pretty busy engineering. The basics that you see today in your digital camera were all there, but a lot of the characteristics were factory-set. Set by the camera factory, makers of the 35mm film, and the people who later developed those films. You were expected to set controls on the camera yourself and set them right; otherwise you were disappointed a week later when the prints and slides...