John Bennett
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On the contest.
Adam and Zach both have valid points.In reality Orvis could pony up a lot less and still receive thousands of entries. So on that front it is a “reasonable” prize offering.
I myself don’t enter contest, probably never will because I’m with Adam. These days contest amount to little more than out and out *unlimited* rights grabs. For the “lucky” winner, its a reasonable deal.
For everyone else you are potentially giving the contest sponsor their next ad campaign posters, promo material, etc, etc, etc. now and in the future.
Would I ever sell the rights to an image out right, and for perpetuity?
Absolutely. But it’s going to cost the buyer dearly. The harder the image is to come by, the more absurd my asking price gets. The larger the “buyer” the more absurd my asking price gets, and so onI dont know alot about Conkin but have read people say they are pleased. I beleive to get started “using and experimenting” with filters they should be ok. Sort of middle of the road, maybe a bit more…dunno.
Keep it simple to start and use what you get as a basis to form an opinion of whether or not employing filters is what you want to do. That way you don’t have alot invested in them if you decide you
a) love filters and want more/better
b) Dont like filters and decide they aren’t for you, especially when “software” can replicate many filter effects, but not all100% software post filter effect
100% mechanical filters (2 stop soft edge grad ND and Gold/Blue CP)
I would start with either a soft or hard 2 stop grad ND. Im a “retro convert” and cant imagine myself ever going out without atleast a couple filters with me. Due to their expense though (they aren’t cheap) it takes time to acquire but you want a couple Grad NDs (hard and soft) , probably atleast 1 reverse ND and then likely a solid ND.
As mentioned though if you bookmark Adam’s site and Tosh Browns you will learn far more from them with regards to how and what they are capable of.
And pop in here periodically. Even if you dont go Singh Ray you can see whats acheivable through filters, what types are commonly used and how/when to employ them. My filters are probably my most important, prized “accessories” now.
I use grad NDs and am planning to add atleast a few more.
They are a pain to use when your not on a tripod but its doable, with a tripod they are relatively simple to hold if not position.Like glass good filters are what they are. While you don’t have to get the best of the best (Singh Ray and Lee) make sure you get decent ones. Poor filters I expect have the potential to leave you feeling dissapointed with results, and thus unwilling to use them.
If you want to see good use of filters by a fellow angler, follow Adam Barker’s work (he post here occasionally). You’ll learn more about their capabilities and thus useage than I could ever relay at this point in time
Nice job replacing the sky Mike. It shows in a couple spots, but only after knowing its a replacement. ie having seen the original out of the box image.
With regards to filters.
A soft or hard ND would help “hold back” the sky while you expose for the lower portion of the frame. A bit of an excercise you can try is to meter the sky and then meter your foreground. You can do this in any mode but the easiest is M. By taking this step you get a hard “number” with regards to the differential between the two in stops. You then know that the sky is 1,2,3 stops “brighter” than the foreground. So if you can’t or don’t want to compose the image to remove the sky, you can use GRAD NDs to “balance” the two elements.Short of that you go the HDR route, which I personally am not a fan of at all. They tend to look surreal and cartoonish. So while both methods accomplish similiar things, the end product looks very different.
Matt I would suggest that the primary difference in the two photo’s is the rain and loss of light in the second, relative to the first.
Long exposures can be alot of fun. In your second shot you captured something that’s typical of (and often the goal) them. That being the the suggestion of the passage of time and motion. I’m not sure what the right word is for it, but the wind/rain has created sheer across the right side. While visible to the naked eye (due to the passage of time), thats not the case with standard photography where your freezing time.
Cotton Candy water, light trails (stars, cars, mid way rides etc) are all common examples of subjects to explore through long exposures. Less common, but no less interestng
Clouds
Tall grass being blown by wind
Waves/tidesAnother often interesting appoach, is night photography. Night photography differs from the above (where your suggesting motion to the viewer) in that your taking “night scapes” as opposed to “landscapes”. Leave the shutter open long enough and night becomes day. The more light (stars/moons) the shorter you have to leave it open. Try a “landscape” under a full moon and you can litterally produce a dozen very different images. A typical shot of this nature is a graveyard under a full or half moon.
Tips?
You have the most important. A good solid tripod. A cable release and/or mirror lock up, after that your imagination.Look at something mundane and likely uninteresting by day. Ask yourself how it might look in the absence of light and a 2 to 30 second exposure.
My personal *must try/do/get* shot I’ve been after for 2 years. No love as yet as it requires being in the right spot at the right time, is to set up on the edge of a clearing some evening/night and get some 20 second exposures of fire flies ghosting about. A typical “night scape” with neon green light trails across the meadow.
Glass is glass. The better the optics, the more its going to cost.
I think as long as you stay with a reputable maker (such as Nikon) you’ll be happy. I might suggest finding 10 x 35/40ish if you can. At 8x you might find them a little weak, although at 42 they will let in a fair amount of light, so not a bad trade off if you stick with 8 x 42.Alot of the stuff does filter down. Look at the 7D, which was actually released before the new 1D. Theres only so much they can do, pass on etc but if anything the “growth” has been in the Pro C and C lines.
Meaning from the 1DMKII to the 1DMKIV (4 generations)
There hasn’t been an awful lot of change. Mostly small improvements on things and the odd new feature (dust cleaning/live view/micro af adj)Compare the 30D to the 7D, also 4 gen’s
Heres the reel at rest.
Both images were taken on Sunday, a friend of mine is on their guide program and was in need of some promo images for his personal use, so I got to spend a day shooting a bunch of Loop gear. What a treat that was.
if your interested heres the gallery
http://jben.zenfolio.com/p2001873Yeah John, he is a most impressive buck. Near as I can tell 17 or 18 pts when counting stickers.
I had to sit in and behind a snow bank up to my crotch in the snow for about 2hrs in -20 (-30 with wind chill) to get anything worthwhile. At one point my entire right leg fell asleep and I was too afraid to move lest I bust myself after waiting so long…
lol sometimes I think Im certifiable.
Heres another look at him
some bits and peices I’m going to looking hard at. Although as discussed and the reasoning for it Im sure I’ll get one, it’s just a matter when. Now and be a Guinea Pig or later and wait to see what the other Guinea Pigs discover.
100% view finder…WYSIWYG
The 39 cross point af sensors at f2.8..thats big
Obviously see how it performs at high ISOs, no reason not to beleive it wont be stellar.Drive modes: Single, silent, high-speed continuous (approx. 10 fps), low-speed continuous (approx. 3 fps), 10- or 2-sec. self-timer
Will wait to see how the new af system works, and the new metering stuff.
The same birdy thats been feeding me the info also had this to say, from his source. Its one sweet camera and is going to set new standards. I read that as “hes been shooting it” and it lives up.
/edit add.
really like the way this readsLight for its category, the EOS-1D Mark IV features a full magnesium alloy body, providing protection against knocks and bumps. The EOS-1D Mark IV has also been the subject of some subtle ergonomic redesigns, with the buttons reshaped and given a more defined ‘click’ when pressed, to make life easier for photographers operating in more extreme weather conditions where gloves may be necessary.
The EOS-1D Mark IV is protected by a total of 76 rubber seals fitted around the controls and cover seams, making the Canon EOS-1D Mark IV dust and water resistant when used in tandem with Canon’s range of weather-resistant EF lenses and Speedlite EX flash units.
What David and Buzz said.
I don’t hesitate to expose my 1D and L lenses to light to moderate rain.
But I do wipe it down periodically.
In heavy rain it’s covered by a Kata rain cover.
You can expose it to severe cold as well.
This shot was taken in about -30 degrees, it was sold cold the mechanical parts were starting to grind.
My philosophy is.
Photography is to be enjoyed. If your worried about your gear when the weather isn’t nice, your not enjoying it.Stay home or have it fully insured.
Matt, nothing says you have to load it for bear. It may not be physically smaller, but will weight alot less. I find I sometimes throw light, personal stuff in the dead space when I load it up for light duty, but want the Pelican for peace of mind.
Ipod, wallet keys etc. So……………….
Just something to considerPretty sure mines a 1550 and it’s not big enough. I don’t plan on getting bigger just yet as in some odd way I like the fact it *forces* me to choose what I’m going to bring carefully
Sorry Adam I’ll try to clarify.
My next SR acquisition is very likely to be one of the two Variable ND’s. At $500 a pop it’s extremely unlikely I’ll ever have both.
Option 1 is the plain variable which will allow for me to mount any of my CPs.
Option 2 is the Vari ND/LB warming combo.
Logicically Option 1 is the most flexible. It would allow for images with or without a CP..which 99% of the time would be the LB Warming. However that begs the question. If 99 of 100 recorded images are going to be taken with the LB warming mounted, why not go straight to option 2. My understanding from reading various blog entries is that it’s a bit of a pain, aligning both the ND to whichever amount of light reduction you want (say 5 stops), and then having to align the CP.
Hence the Vari ND/LB warming combo. It makes perfect sense to just get it.
But doing so would negate the option of using the Blue Gold CP. I know from our images thats a filter you like to use (like me), but it’s a specialised filter, that one only mounts under certain conditions.
So I guess my question is given you like the B/G on those occassions where it can do something no other filter can. Do you find you mount the B/G on a Vari ND very much….and might it be worth foregoing the mechanical advantage (convenience) of the Vari ND comb which in reality would be the filter combination (Vari ND + LB Warming) used 98% of the time.
Regards,
JYeah I know exactly what you mean Eric and I’m constantly trying to think of ways to work around it. It’s a bit of a paradox (right word??) in so much as the two are at odds with each other.
In order to try and get the shots we’d really like to nail, te reality is it in all likely hood spells being busted. You had better have very understanding hunters with you for that 🙂
I had some latitude that day as it was an arranged “photo shoot”. The other party (Not Dale the writer) who’s part of the property committee(Rondeua Bay) was able to a) Get us a preferred blind and therefore forgo the “lottery” for blinds they hold each morning. And b) get us some lattitude due to the fact the Magazine was sending a team down to write about it as a destination…..aka a lot of exposure.
So that allowed me the freedom to be outside the blind (against the rules) and do *some* things. No doubt alot of mallards flared more due to me, than the guys raiing their guns. No body minded too much as the whole point of the excercise was for me to come back with a good variety of images. But even then there were limits with regards to what I could do.
Bow Hunting which is high on my list of wanting to do, may prove t be the toughest to arrange for no other reason than the realities where sound, scent and movement will bust a hunt badly.
I am of the mind that if I really want some good images my best bet may be to hire to a guide, and give him my wish list of images. He won’t care if I bust him because he’s being paid regardless and if a trophy buck happens in ad then subsequently bolts, what does he care…the Buck will be there for his next guest.
Good hunting photography is very difficult (imo)
How do you guys find mixing bow hunting with photography? As previously mentioned I separate photographing “hunts” from photographing the applicable target species.
Cant imagine Bow hunting being any different, especially if during those dead days when sound carries. 1 shot (shutter releasing) can and is heard for a long ways off, especially with WTs
More stellar work Adam.
I have a question for you as well, I don’t think you’ve menioned on the Singh Ray blog. I’m slowly building my SR arsenol and am at the point where my next one will likely be the Vari ND. Can’t decide between the vanilla Vari or the Vari LB warming, in large part due to the B/G and potentially wanting to mount the B/G on it once in very blue moon. The reality is 98% of the time I’d likely just want to add the LB but……….
Any thoughts?
J
