Another Tool
August 24th, 2007
I’ve ranted here before about the unimportant nature of the tools we choose for our work. There is no virtue attached to the tools, other than what comes from the quality of their construction or their designed-in ability to achieve their intended purpose. Cameras and lenses are tools. Photographs are what photography is about. We all chose the tools that work best for us. Knowing the available tools and making good choices is part of the discipline of photography.
The Holga lens on my digital camera is an interesting combination of tools with enjoyable results. I like the photos I’m getting with that combination. But this photo of the lovely model Vassanta http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=209943 was done with a very different tool, a 50mm f/1.4 lens.
Using a camera like the D200 with a 50mm lens changes the way that tool works from how it works on a “full frame” camera. On a D200 the 50mm focal length is a very moderate telephoto. Pretty much perfect for portraits. But I’m using my 50mm for a couple reasons. First, as was the case in this photo, it allows me to control depth of field. With that f/1.4 aperture I can achieve very shallow depth of focus to put a background out of focus and isolate the subject. I seldom use 1.4…it’s just too shallow and autofocus tends to miss too often. But stopped down one or two stops the autofocus has a bit more room for error and the background still goes nice and soft. The effect is a lot like what I would get with my beloved 85mm f/1.8 on my film cameras.
Of course, the other thing that makes the 50mm f/1.4 a useful tool is the ability to shoot in very low light levels. With the ability of my D200 to shoot excellent quality photos at 1600 ISO that wide aperture on the 50mm gives me a lot of flexibility to shoot in all sorts of light. Since I like to use the “available darkness” when I’m shooting outside the studio rather than bringing along and using supplemental lighting, the f/1.4 is very helpful.
The 50mm f/1.4…a useful tool for making photos in certain situations.
Vassanta…a beautiful woman who looks wonderful through any lens.
Another Fuzzy Farm Photo
August 22nd, 2007
I’ve been having a lot of fun working with my new Holga lens on my D200. I really like the results, so I think I’ll be posting more of them here. This is Angeliqua http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=441345 out at the farm last Saturday. She is a beautiful lady and did a great job modeling while getting all scratched up on the weeds and stickers that are part of any farm.
More shooting today and tomorrow, then maybe I’ll get a bit of a break and spend more time editing. Or maybe not…
More Digital Holga
August 20th, 2007
Here’s another photo from the farm shot with the “digital Holga” a Holga lens mounted on my Nikon D200. I’m very pleased with the results I’m getting with this cheapie lens.
I was back at the farm this weekend with my friend, Gary Mitchell http://garymphoto.blogspot.com/ This time I worked with a new model, Angeliqua Oryx http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=441345 , who did a great job and was a lot of fun to work with. I haven’t had a chance to even look at the photos we did, let alone edit them, but I’m sure there is a lot of good work there that will be shared here eventually.
The next couple days will be spent editing, then I have a couple more shoots set up later in the week. I’m just about two weeks away from a trip to NYC so I’m working on arranging shoots and visits with friends while I’m there. There seem to be quite a few models in NYC who want to shoot with me, so I should come back with more new work from there.
Vassanta
August 16th, 2007
I’m actually making a little headway on editing. I don’t know how long that will last, though, because I have several models who want to set up shoots in the next few days, so I’ll probably get distracted again.
But, here is a shot from the editing I’ve been doing. This is beautiful Vassanta on the farm where Dave Rudin and I did a shoot last month. I’ll be shooting more on that farm in the near future…and I’m hoping for some softer light next time, but we’ll just have to wait and see what mother nature provides.
You can see more of Vassanta on her modeling portfolio here: http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=209943
And now for something completely different…
August 13th, 2007
Anyway, a while back I had talked with a model who was also into martial arts about doing a shoot of two women boxing. The idea was to try to capture a good punch landing. It never worked out to do the shoot with that model, but recently I was talking to a friend who works out with a trainer down the hall from my studio. I mentioned that photo idea and she jumped at the chance.
Progress
August 8th, 2007
Today has been a productive day. I managed to get a lot of errands done and still had time to do some editing at last this afternoon. I worked on a shoot I did with Mandy http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=156097
up in the Cleveland area a couple months ago. I love working with Mandy. She’s really nice to be around and she has a body that is just amazing. Add to that the fact that she works really hard to get good photos and is up for just about any challenge. If you doubt that, just look back through the blog to see the photos we did in the snow last winter with temperatures in the low 20s.
On this day we shot at some parks that were a bit too crowded for us to do everything we had in mind. The very bright sun that day also caused some issues that were hard to overcome. But I think this is my favorite from the shoot…just Mandy on a rock. I like the tension in her beautiful body and the relationship between her tattoos and the markings on the rock.
Now, back to more editing so I can get caught up…
Magritte Sky
August 5th, 2007
My wife and I have long referred to clouds like these as a “Magritte Sky.” When I saw the Magritte sky while we were doing the shoot at the farm I thought I’d try to make a photo that was somewhat a reference to Magritte’s work. Unfortunately I didn’t have any bowler hats with me and had to limit the props to just the umbrella that I keep in my truck.
But since then I’ve bought a couple bowler hats. This may be the start of a series. I have one model on standby for future Magritte skies. We’ll see what happens.
Holga Daze Down On The Farm
August 1st, 2007
Still not making any organized progress on the huge editing task that I’m so behind on. So today I just felt like posting this photo for no good reason other than that.
This was taken on a farm in Ohio where I’ve had a lot of good fortune with photos. Two photos I took there have ended up in French PHOTO magazine. This time I was there with my friend, Dave Rudin http://figuresofgrace.blogspot.com/ and a couple wonderful models.
Now, fair warning, I’m about to begin an equipment rant. This photo was taken with a Holga lens. It was mounted on my Nikon D200. I found out about this possible perversion of modern technology from this blog: http://thefstops-here.blogspot.com/ and I ordered my Holga lens in Nikon mount from this site: http://holgamods.com/
Now I’m not a big fan of Holgas. I’ve never actually shot with one, although I did work with the similar Diana F back in my days at photo school. While I appreciate the effect that a shitty lens can produce, I don’t care for the random light leaks and other “features” of these cheapass cameras. I also don’t have much use for the lensbabies that are the current soft focus fad. They are way overpriced for a cheap shitty lens.
I’ve had a classic single-element soft focus lens in Nikon mount for many years. I use it from time to time and sometimes refer to the results as “digital Holga” photos…much to the consternation of some Holga fanatics. But that lens is a 100mm focal length which limits its usefulness on a digital camera with a smaller-than-35mm sensor. The Holga lens is 60mm…much better suited to my D200. And, of course, no one can argue now that I’m not actually using a digital Holga. And, no, I’m not going to punch any holes in my D200 to add light leaks.
Soft focus lenses are nothing new. For a long time they were all that was available to photographers. Then they were preferred by the pictoralists because they could simulate paintings. The F64 group brought sharp focus into style. Soft focus was discredited for a long time. But I think there is a place in the world of photography for the full range of tools and techniques that are available. So I like to stick a crappy lens on my fancy digital slr now and then to make something just a little different. But I’m not going to let the lensbaby folks rip me off for all that money when I could build the same thing with a $5 magnifying glass from Walgreens if I wanted to…in fact I have done that, but with the lens mounted on a lens board for my 4×5.
OK…end of equipment rant. Enjoy the photo and the lovely Sarah Ellis. There’s lots more from the farm shoot to come…it’s in the que to be edited.
Jackie at Ash Cave
July 30th, 2007
Still way behind on editing. Today I was getting ready to burn a CD for Jackie http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=192748 from our day at the Hocking Hills and this shot popped out at me, so I thought I’d go ahead and share it with you. Jackie did a wonderful job and the light was being very cooperative.
The opening of the Summ(ero)tica show in Detroit Saturday night was a huge success. We had a great time and met a bunch of wonderful folks there. The show will run through the month of August, so if you missed the opening you still have some time to check it out. Hours for the gallery are not all that frequent, but you can contact S3v3ranc3 Gallery http://myspace.com/s3v3ranc3 and arrange a time to look at the show. It is usually open on Saturdays when the Eastern Market is in full swing, so you could just drop by then too. You can also find information about the show and the organization that put it on here: http://dvsyndicate.com/mwsep/ I was very impressed with the quality of the work in this show. Every photographer represented is talented and creative and the prints on display show that clearly. It’s a show worth seeing.
More of Dave Rudin at work
July 27th, 2007
Dave Rudin has left Ohio and is now out in California doing fun things. Between Dave’s visit and a magazine job that I needed to prep for publication I’ve still been very busy and haven’t had time to do any editing. So I’m sharing a few more photos of Dave R in action. The model is Jackie Chantelle. The location is the Hocking Hills. Jackie was a major trooper for this shoot. We picked her up shortly after 5 a.m. so we could make the two-hour drive to the Hocking Hills and be there ahead of the crowds.
as some sort of summer camp group on an early morning hike/jog. They were just standing around when we got there, but soon we realized they were waiting for more of their group to show up. Before long the rest of them arrived and they moved on. After that we had the place to ourselves until after 10 a.m. Dave and I both got some shots in. The rest of the day was more of a struggle, with lots of other people around. Some places we hiked to were just too crowded to take any photos. Other places we had to work fast. Not as productive a day as I would have liked, but we did what we could. And Jackie was magnificient. I’ll be going back for more shooting there later in the year, after school has started and there is less activity.
