Thotograph's Guide for Taking Better Photos...

[Thotograph]

Medium format is by far and away superior when you speak in terms of quality. Good technique is a must when using one as you are back to manual focus for most except the top of the line systems. However fun cameras like the holga make medium format accesable to all so I encourage anyone who's interested to pick up a $20 toy camera and some b+w film and have some fun. Pm me if you want more details on where to find such cameras.

Kiev, classic, aahhaha at least russian numbers and our numbers are the same, right? Wait maybe not... I mean hopefully you know what aperature you are on and shutter right? Thats awesome. I've got a llomo, I think it is, cheap cheap twin lens from the USSR (I know it's changed since, this thing is straight oldschool). The images it makes are interesting, quite soft, there's an insert for 6x4.5 format but I think I lost it so it's good ole 6cm square images for the llomo. Didn't have much luck with it back in the day but I was also guessing my exposures most of the time it's worth another shot now I suppose.

After I picked up my Kowa Six med format I got a little more serious about things and also picked up a L-358 Sekonic Light meter. Def worth its weight in gold this little guy is, I take it with me even when I'm shooting digital, just to get a better grasp on lighting situations. Kowa's are a great med format camera for anyone looking to grow into a system but doesn't want to throw down a couple grand on a hasselblad.

The Six and Six MM Kowa's have often been called the poor mans h-blad. Very good optics, made in korea but the quality has held up for mine mechanically. I managed to find one in great condition for an awesome price... $150 with 85/normal lens, pentaprism finder, waist finder, original focusing handle, neck strap (she's a heavy one), and two focus screens, I think it was an awesome buy. I really want the 50mm wide lens and 150mm portrait for it, but I'm happy with what I got considering it's more for experimenting than work stuff... I'm looking to find another body and ^ those lenses (pref a six mm with mirror lockup and multi exposure) so I can add that to my wedding services. Medium just looks so much better yall.


Whoops got carried away there, I don't own any printers at home, about to get an epson, I've been spoiled by the Epson 9600 at work... def the 1800 is a good choice. I'm thinking about getting the little 580 guy for the scanner. Might get a larger one later if I leave the shop but I can get all my stuff printed there at cost for now. Printing at home is tough to get your system working right and color balance correct.

[Hexis]

My point about overkill is that if your goal is to help the kiddies on pbnation take better images of their gear for sale, then suggestions they have any chance of accomplishing make a lot of sense.

A lil diffused flash on a P&S is a pretty simple step for folks to use to make their pictures look better. I think your guide is written for budding amateur photographers. But the stated target audience is kiddies taking super basic images of their items.

Perhaps some basic steps to help someone just wanting to take decent BST photos at the beginning, then follow that up with a more in depth discussion.



One technical note about the 1D series. The sensor is a APS-H sized sensor (1.3x crop factor). EF-S glass does not work on any of the 1D series bodies.

[Thotograph]

If my goal was to help the kiddies on pbn I'd be on pbn dude. You're the expert so by all means please take more duukes on my thread. Why you want to continue to plug on camera flash and contradict me is beyond my understanding. I didn't want to say it but your example was marginal at best.

I'm trying to teach those willing to learn how to make better than average photos of paintball gear (and in general), and I don't think any of the suggestions I made are to hard to achieve, otherwise I would have not given them. My intentions for this thread were to help those that wanted it. Trevor the teacher typed this guide, not the photographer. I was trying to reach and educate my fellow aoers because this is the forum where I felt that people would be most appreciative of my efforts, and for the most part they have been.

I did look at your flickr site. You are obviously very experianced with a camera, much more so than the people I'm trying to reach with this guide. I'd appreciate if you'd chill out on the criticism of how I teach. I chose to do this on my own terms. Maybe this thread wasn't intended for experts like you?

[TheTramp]

[Thotograph]

Maybe that was just his opinion but before we debate semantics hear me out. Really what eerked me was the fact he kept plugging the on camera flash when I was trying to go in one specific direction with the lighting discussion, away from the invention that invented red eye: on camera flash. As well I poured alot of effort into this, so to have that be called overkill felt like a slap in the face.

It's really hard to try to teach something this complex while trying to make it simple enough so that anyone can actually take some knowledge away from it. If I'd just given some cute little tips or whatever someone else would've probably said I hadn't been thorough enough. You can't try to please everyone, all I can do is my best. Honestly I had still left out quite a bit. I tried to get people to think solely about things that could really make a difference in their approach, and help give them results that they could feel proud of.

If Hex had put it in a pm I would've had no issue at all with what he had to say, but it made me feel like I'd just wasted almost three hours of my time only to have some scotch tape and a piece of paper towel undermine most of what I had taught.

[psychowarden]

Good advice.

I'm a professional photographer and consider myself to take halfway decent photos, and I just can't understand how people can take some of the crap I see.

[Hexis]

I'm a professional photographer and consider myself to take halfway decent photos, and I just can't understand how people can take some of the crap I see.

It's trivial, they just don't care. A quick snapshot is all they want. Like nearly all things the vast majority of people don't care enough to learn to be better at something.


Thotograph I don't mean to be overly critical, really. Strobes are a great way to simplify a large problem in photography: lack of light. Using flash well will do a lot to improve BST type photography without having to teach/understand the fundamentals oh photography.

[trevorjk]

Nice post Trevor id expect nothing less then excellence from a Trevor

[Thotograph]

Thanks Trevor...

Dude so freaken tired right now, just got done setting up a temp studio at the track in Daytona. I'm working on a killer shoot Talk about large diffused light sources, today we made a 10'x25' softbox. Yes thats ten feet by twenty-five feet. Suspended from the ceiling in one of the garages in the paddock, using 12 profoto heads with two 2400watt second power packs, basically more soft gorgeous light than any of us would know what to do with. Enjoyed myself and really learned a great deal. Working with some true masters of their craft. I'll get some pics up later. Neeeeed rest, very tired. Nice 11hour day of bbusting my

[Fantom]

Sticky!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!