The Digital Photo Guy

Topaz Labs to Present FREE Webinar

Readers who attended the last Topaz Labs webinar will remember how much fun we had and all the great info presented by Eric Yang. Well, Eric has gone back to school so, this time, we’re shooting for Ashely Robinson. Eric may have been the Marketing Manager but everyone knows Ashley is the one who actually does all the work.
Click for more

Bodie, CA, Where Time is Frozen

Last time I was in Bodie, I nearly died. This time, I nearly roasted. Some of you know that, while photographing Bodie in the snow in 2008, I ruptured my intestine and nearly died of sepsis. This week, I returned to Bodie and felt the weather was going to kill me. At night, it’s been below freezing and during the day, it g0t to 90F.

Bodie looks very different in the snow than the hot, clear days of summer’s end. The rangers had been expecting snow by now so the 90F temps took them by surprise as well. Here are some photos from today.

Tomorrow, I’ll be at the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest at 11,000 feet where I hope to reshoot some photos I made last year with less than satisfactory results. Then, on Thursday, I’ll be in the Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, photographing arches blasted into the granite.

Leftovers from California Photo Festival

Upcoming Workshops

If you don’t have time for a week long workshop like the California Photo Festival that I just attended, check out some of my local workshops:

Wild Animal Park “Hands-ON” Workshop – Oct 9

Flash Photography at Deer Park Winery – Nov 13

Backyard Photography at Kit Carson Park – Nov 20

My new mantra is, “I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand”. Photography lectures are soon forgotten, demonstrations are remembered but do photography to understand what you’re doing.

No More Exciting Landscapes or Flowers

Now, we’re into the druge, hard work part of the California Photo Festival. This is hard work but someone has to do it. We’re stuck in small studios for hours at a time, trying to wring the best photos we can from subjects that are selected for us. We don’t even have a say in subject matter.

(continue reading…)

Canon 24-105/4L IS USM

Until recently I had resisted the temptation to upgrade my perfectly fine Canon 28-135/3.5-5.6IS USM to the new 24-105/4L. In fact, there was no temptation as I was perfectly happy with the results my older, non-L lens delivered. Even in my warped logic, I couldn’t think of any reason to spend $1050 for a lens when my 10 year old, $410 lens turned out such great photos as below.

However, as the saying goes, “I can resist anything except temptation!” When a known, reliable member of FredMiranda.com posted his 24-105 for sale for $850, I couldn’t resist. I immediately sent the money via PayPal and received the lens the following week.
More

Keeping Up With the Joneses (aka Nikon)

I’ve never been one to fret over features in other cameras but there was one Nikon dSLR feature that caused me a ”Jimmy Carter moment” (I’ve looked on other cameras with lust). Commander Mode, available as far down the Nikon product line as the D70, is an integrated wireless flash controller. This feature allows the dSLR to wirelessly control a compatible, off-camera flash. Canon, on the other hand, has never previously implemented this feature. Canon shooters needed a Canon ST-E2, a $230 gizmo, an extra Canon 580EX II flash for $445 or 3rd party wireless remotes.

Well, citizens, I’m here to tell you that Canon has finally seen the light (Get it? “seen the light” har-har) and added an integrated wireless flash controller to the 7D. So, what’s the big deal you ask? Well, step right up and read today’s article to learn all the cool stuff that this one feature brings to the table.

The illustration above (courtesy Canon) shows one cool application for this feature. In this scenario, the pop-up flash on the 7D can be enabled or disabled depending on what you’re trying to do. If disabled, only the three external flashes are fired by the wireless flash controller. If you want a little extra front fill on the subject, the pop-up flash can be enabled.
Click to read more