Post thoughts on my daughter's birthday

I thought photographing my Isabella's 3rd birthday would be easy. I snapped on my Tamron 28-300mm lens and started shooting. Little did I know how shallow my DOF would be at 100mm. I ended up blowing most of the photos with soft shots while the camera decided to focus on the wrong thing. I could also have used a little faster shutter speed. Oh well, I still got a few good ones.

Afterwards I was anxious to get some good photos, so I got out a Speedlite and shot some B/W of the kids.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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Trying to balance my 7D for video

I figured if I'm willing to invest money for a quality camera like the 7D, I should look into buying a stabalizing system for moving shots when the camera is not on a tripod. I found a product from balvanzenterprises.com that makes a cool device that fits my needs. While I said I was frustrated with the product, I still believe it will get me the shots I want, but I'm clearly going to need to practice with the system a little more. I have not had the guts to put my 7D on it yet, so I will practice with my old Rebel XT for now.

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My favorite places to learn about photography

The Internet is full of great resources to learn about photography. Podcasts offer valuable information for intermediate to advanced photographers who want to stay current on trending news and techniques. I listen to these podcasts as I workout and do chores around the house. My favorite photography podcasts are:

1) This Week in Photography (TWiP) http://twiplog.com. A great weekly podcast comprised of a panel of experts who discuss news plus interviews with professional photographers.

2) Photography podcast http://photography.ca. Lots of great information, plus interviews. The sites also has a vibrant forum with lots of helpful members.

3) Photofocus. http://photofocus.com. Hosted by Scott Bourne, a former TWiP host, this podcast is "The original question and answer photography podcast". Scott often has a professional photographer as co-host to answer listener questions.

Aside from podcasts, I also visit blogs like http://strobist.blogspot.com. This blog is all about flash photography and delivers a mountain of information to a large following. If you are at all interested in learning how to use a flash, I recommend reading the "Lighting 101" section to get started. They also have a Flickr group full of great images and heated discussions.

Another blog that taught me a lot about lighting is http://photographyforrealestate.com. Real estate photography is a niche that interests me because of the many elements involved to create a quality image -  you need proper lighting, a good tripod, and good editing software to make the images look their best. No doubt the most challenging part of real estate photography is making sure the windows don't get blown out. For more inspiration I visit the Real Estate Photography Flickr page. I can't tell you how many times I will look at a photo and think it's great, until the members of the forum point out details I didn't catch. Those comments helped train my eye tremendously.

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Filters I'm using for my lenses

There are several filters out there that could enhance your photography. I'm using a polarizing filter with my portrait and landscape photography for reasons mentioned in the video. I tried the Cokin system, but I didn't like the fact I couldn't use my lens cap with it. Now I use screw in filters by Sunpak and am very pleased with the results. For my Canon 50mm 1.4 lens I use the 58mm filter, and for my Canon 10-22mm lens I use the 77mm filter.

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Shooting Video on the Canon 7D

A couple days ago I decided to shoot some video with my 7d, after all that is one of it's main selling points. What I came across was something unexpected. I realized that not only will shooting video be more difficult, but the files are way too large for me to edit. I'm going to have to invest in a more powerful computer if I'm going to edit HD video. For now I think I'll just stick to 640 x 480.

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SheBloom shoot with new backdrop

We just finished a photo shoot with out daughter wearing the latest SheBloom fashions. I had fun setting up my new backdrop and Speedlites. Unfortunately our daughter wasn't as cooperative as my equipment. She was moody and hyper all at the same time, if that were possible. But my equipment worked like a charm. I set up the wireless communication with the Speedlites and adjusted the power output from the camera. 

The backdrop worked well, though I wish I ironed the canvas a little to get the creases out. I'm happy with the construction of the backdrop, the metal frame is sturdy and stores easily into the bag it is shipped in. The canvas is huge measuring 9 feet x 15 feet and comes with two backgrounds, black and white. The only drawback to the backdrop system is the inability to quickly switch backdrops from black to white. This feature would have helped us with our shoot because of the several wardrobe changes we made.

Overall I'm happy with the shoot. Many times I got the shadowless photos I was looking for, and the backdrop gave use the flexibility to move around our subject as she jumped around without sacrificing the desired white background.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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This guy is my hero

Gary V. is pure passion and he's not afraid to show it. I think that is what makes him an Internet celebrity. The fact that he understands business in the new digital world better than most makes us all scratch our heads and want to learn more. Probably his biggest accomplishment is Wine Library TV's success, a combination of sweat, Web 2.0 savy, and instinct. This guy never slows down or change course, he tell you like it is and pulls no punches. I'm not saying we need more Gary's in the world, but I do think we all have something to learn from him, both personally and professionally.

Here is a talk Gary did at Google. Google! I find it unbelievable a world-class corporation is calling Gary Vaynerchuk to speak to it's employees because they feel he has something to teach them about Internet business. That's cool.

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Google Buzz looks cool out of the box

Social media is getting more dominant on the Internet every day. With 400 million users on Facebook, companies are quickly looking for new social networking solutions for users. The other day Google released a new product called Google Buzz. I'm just trying to figure this thing out right now, so I'll leave the explanation to the experts.

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Getting proper white balance with the Lally Cap

White balance is always a concern for photographers. You always want to get the colors right, preferable in the field. So I purchased the Lally Cap based on an ad I saw in Shutterbug. It's a little shower curtain for your lens to supposedly get the right white balance when setting-up your camera. Does it work? Check out the video.

You can get more information about the Lally Cap at Lallyphotography.com.

The included photos are the two I took with different white balance settings. The whiter one is taken with the Lally Cap and the warmer one is the auto white balance setting.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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Using the 7D with Speedlites

I decided to shoot a quick video on how I'm using the 7D's ability to wirelessly trigger Speedlites. The included photos are the ones I shot during the tutorial. The one with the fuzzy background is the one with the aperture set at f/1.8.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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My first unsolicited complement.

I uploaded this photo to Costco to see how it would look printed as an 8X12. When I arrived to pick up the photo the guy asked for my last name I said, "Zerrer". He smiled and said, "That was a cool photo." That was the first time anyone responded to one of my photo without me asking them what they thought of it. It was certainly the first time I was identified at Costco as having a "Cool photo".

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Having a blast with my 7D

I spent quite a bit of time researching which camera would be best for my needs, the 5D Mark II or the 7D. In the end it was the 7D for several reasons:

1) Cost. The 7D costs much less, allowing me to invest in lenses, filters, and other accessories to improve my photography.

2) Video. The 7D allows multiple frame rates and lots of other goodies that make it great for video work. The advantage of having more lenses come into play as I can create different looks with different focal lengths and apertures.

3) Speedlite control. This camera works amazingly well with my Canon Speedlites. The pop-up flash communicates wirelessly with the flash units to create a seamless and easy remote flash experience.

One of the big advantages I found with the 5D is the increased depth of field. To compensate for this on the 7D I purchased the 50mm 1.4 lens which allows me as tight of a DOF as I'll ever need. I also purchased a Canon 10-22mm lens to compensate for the 1.6 crop factor. This lens allows me to capture large landscapes as well as shots in tight spaces. I realize the 10 mm shots will create barrel distortion, but I just fix that in post processing.

I took this photo this morning with my 10-22mm lens. I was constantly looking behind me to make sure I didn't get hit by a car.

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Twitter schemes that fall short

My last post related golf to photography, I noted that each hobby contained an endless supply of expensive gadgets and equipment designed to enhance your experience. Since that post I received Twitter notifications from golf and gaming organizations hoping to gain my attention. This request feels like focused spam. Obviously neither of the companies read my post to find out I have no interest in golf, I simply made an observation. I would guess these companies have some bot that is constantly searching Twitter for keywords, then automatically following accounts that include those words in their tweets. Needless to say I chose not to follow either organization and am slightly offended that they would resort to bots to gain followers. It makes me feel they are trying to game the system.

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Getting into photography feels like starting golf

I've never golfed, but I hear it's an expensive hobby/sport. I'm feeling the same about photography. Even though I'm not new to photography, I feel obligated to constantly buy gear and gadgets that will either enhance my skills, or my experience of taking photos.

The latest purchase was for a stabilizer for my still/video camera. Even though my camera is capable of recording excellent video, you still have to follow basic principles such as not jerking around too much. I plan to use my tripod, but what about when I want to move the camera around? Then I ask myself if I'm willing to invent in a camera, why wouldn't I spend a little more to make sure the video movements are smooth. Enter the "MiniDV Stabilizer". This little device will hopefully make the movements with my camera smooth and fun to watch. I used a Glidecam stabilizer a few years ago with poor results. I'm hoping this product is better. The video makes the product look simple to setup, and the demo video looks decent. I'll be sure to have a full review next week when I receive the this product. Until then enjoy the video.

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Check out my grip

It's a camera grip that holds extra batteries for a camera. I know it's geeky, but it seems appropriate for a geek blog. Here's the video and here is the Amazon link where I got ht grip.

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It's like Christmas all over again

I ordered a SanDisk Extreme 16 GB capture card from Amazon the other day. I was shocked to see it in the mail so quickly. ABX ProTECH was the vendor who filled and shipped the order.

The first order of business was to pop this card into my Canon Rebel XT. I know this card is overkill for a camera like the Rebel, but I thought I'd check out the specs along with a quick burst run.

At the highest jpeg resolution I could take 999 photos. Seriously, 999? Why couldn't I just have one more photo?

At the Raw setting I was able to fit 947 photos. That's crazy. I would have to shoot with lots of burst sessions to even make a dent on this card. Which brings me to burst mode. With my old SanDisk card I could only shoot 6 photos in burst mode before the camera had to catch up. With the new Extreme card I can shoot 20 photos in burst mode before I see a lag. This is due to the difference in write speeds. The old card wrote information at 15mbps while the new card writes at 60mbps, now that's extreme.

You may ask, "Why would anyone buy such a ridiculous card for an old Rebel?" The answer is simple. I didn't buy the card for my Rebel, I bought it for another camera I plan to own in the next couple of days.

At this point I'm going to pull an Apple move and not tell anyone which camera it is until I present the unboxing in the next couple of days. But I'll give you a hint, it's black.

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