When Life's Blues Hit, Bust-a-Prime!

Last week I took only one digital picture, and that was only because my wife asked me to. This week was looking

to end up the same. It's not that I'm busier than usual, it's just that I'm having some personal issues and

photography has not been appealing to me lately. That's not good, because photography is one of the things in my

Life that makes me happy.<br>

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In order to thwart this photoless week syndrome, I decided to take desperate measures. Whenever I've felt like my

photography was stagnating, or that I was getting a bit bored, I've taken to implementing what I call

<i>Bust-a-Prime</i>™. As you might guess, it involves putting a prime lens on your camera; that's the easy

part. The hard part is forcing yourself to go on a walk around familiar places and taking photographs. Note that

I said <i>familiar places</i>; it just doesn't work the same if you're exploring new spots, which is a different

game anyway. One more thing, for Bust-a-Prime, I prefer using extreme primes. Try a 24mm on a film camera, or a

135mm on APS-C; anything that will take you out of your comfort zone.<br>

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Which was my prime of choice? The Sigma 400mm f/5.6 mirror lens. It's been sitting in one of my office drawers

for months, unused, and after reading Peter's posts about his recently acquired 1000mm f/10 mirror lens, it just

all seemed to come together. So I slapped it on the K10D and left work on Friday a couple of hours or so before

sunset. Here's what I found...<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468147896503794"><img

src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuylY4KTfI/AAAAAAAABBY/gS2DcfoZ7vc/s800/IMGP8776-small.jpg" /></a><br>

Partners in Crime<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468158883799954"><img

src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuymBzvI5I/AAAAAAAABBg/UgfyeuHSJWo/s800/IMGP8780-small.jpg" /></a><br>

Just in Case<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468172721426338"><img

src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuym1W4j6I/AAAAAAAABBo/3eu75ifesnk/s800/IMGP8784-small.jpg" /></a><br>

No Parking (I had to think hard about this title)<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468188271884002"><img

src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuynvSZtuI/AAAAAAAABBw/AW3G7OHLcjE/s800/IMGP8789-small.jpg" /></a><br>

Tall & Proud<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468200690137842"><img

src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuyodjJOvI/AAAAAAAABB4/C_L_T72OQLg/s800/IMGP8792-small.jpg" /></a><br>

My favourite abandoned car<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468212007614690"><img

src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuypHtcOOI/AAAAAAAABCA/_GuynRz65SA/s800/IMGP8797-small.jpg" /></a><br>

Out of Bounds</b><br>

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These next ones are a series dedicated to Dave.<br>

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I chanced upon this little nightingale chick hiding in a tree, enjoying the last rays of the sinking Sun.<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468232331565170"><img

src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuyqTbDGHI/AAAAAAAABCI/1DzCc0e2A-Y/s800/IMGP8800-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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I think she liked being photographed, because she flew to a nearby cable so I could have a better look at her.<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468245201587554"><img

src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuyrDXgDWI/AAAAAAAABCQ/u_GJBJCeArk/s800/IMGP8804-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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Then her mum came and asked if she was hungry. "Of course I am mum, I'm a chick, I'm always hungry!"<br>

<br>

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468255068999106"><img

src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuyroIEzcI/AAAAAAAABCY/V4qeNJbk_JY/s800/IMGP8807-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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So mummy nightingale flew off to find some dinner, while baby nightingale stayed.<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468263302141234"><img

src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuysGzAlTI/AAAAAAAABCg/m7b30PqXVdE/s800/IMGP8810-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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She waited for several minutes, but mummy didn't come. She cried out "mummy, I'm hungry!", but still mummy didn't

come.<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468276769056098"><img

src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuys49xZWI/AAAAAAAABCo/IJ7lPYxCKE8/s800/IMGP8812-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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After several more minutes, her hunger and impatience had built up, and she shouted as loud as she could, while

stomping her foot,

"MUMMYYYYYYY, I'M HUNGRYYYYYYY!"<br>

<br>

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468292545876050"><img

src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuytzvQkFI/AAAAAAAABC4/EroANEeNlkI/s800/IMGP8813-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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Finally, mummy nightingale returned, and brought a nice, big, juicy berry for dinner!<br>

<br>

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227468285726205410"><img

src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIuytaVUpeI/AAAAAAAABCw/3H-pSnl2woA/s800/IMGP8814-small.jpg" /></a><br>

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Now baby nightingale was happy, and would be quiet, her mummy thought, for at least 10 minutes :-)<br>

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<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/Miserere/Photos/photo?authkey=ez1ZOp6JExc#5227475249224551650"><img

src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/Miserere/SIu5CvYtDOI/AAAAAAAABEQ/1B0lZUbQEgU/s800/IMGP8815-small.jpg" /></a>

 

Very cool, Mis! I know the feeling--and the strategy, btw. You get donut-shaped flare, too?

Oh Mis! I just love this thread! I hope your success brought you out of your funk...it certainly made me happy...I'm still smiling...especially when thinking about the chick stomping her foot...what a great shot! You are oh-so-talented!

 

Lisa

Bust-a-Prime™ Is a great idea. It really forces you to take a hard look at the image and what you can get with 1 or 2 lenses (that aren't zooms) Good idea! Hopefully this has given some temporary relief from the 'blues'.

 

To begin with that lens is very nice, sharp and great colours. Second it's certainly not your average street shooting lens, probably the last one I would have picked up. I really liked the Partners in Crime, My favourite abandoned car and Out of Bounds. I'm really surprised the car is unused but there are signs of rust in one spot.

 

The Pièce de résistance is the bird series. What a great series of captures. Great because the shots are spot on in all respects and because you took the time to wait the events out and see what would happen. we've all seen lots of great bird shots but these are some of the best captures in a long while. Mostly because they are not static and tell a story. It doesn't hurt that your narative is very funny as well.

 

I had to share these with my family and evryone thought it was (pardon the pun) as hoot!

 

Great stuff. You should print and hang these somehow and maybe submit them to a wildlife magazine. I'm serious.

Mis., that is one great set. All in a day's work for a not-so-average photographer. The bird sequence is just wonderful. I hope it helped you

and I must admit I am glad to hear that even seasoned photographers like yourself get into those funks. I do have one question that

perhaps you or someone could answer for me. I have seen these "mirror' lens advertised but i have no idea what they are. Could someone

explain it to me. As always, thanks!

Oh, yeah! The donut flare on the razor wire kicks! I'm buying one for Maria for her birthday!!!

Wow, thanks guys! I really appreciate your enthusiastic reception of these photos. I spent about an hour walking

home from work (the trip usually takes 20 mins) looking at the familiar path I've trodden for the past 18 months

in search of new opportunities. 400mm is certainly an extreme prime, but I needed extreme measures, and by the

time I got home I did feel a lot better. I also got quite excited editing the photos and seeing how many I'd

actually got in focus. I'd say my success rate was about 80% (eat that, Garry!). The bird sequence lasted about 8

mins, so although I was patient to wait it out, I was also lucky to be there at dinner time :-) Mind you, it

feels like an eternity when you're waiting for 2 mins with the camera to your eye hoping that mummy bird comes

back. I'm sure it would feel a lot longer with Javier's Sigma 400mm f/4.5 LOL!

 

Dave, stop thinking about the flare, and think about the light weight. I shot your bird series handheld at

1/200s ISO250, and this was just before sunset. Imagine what you could do with a certain woodpecker, a tripod and

bright morning light... ;-)

 

Alisa, thank you! Not so talented, my dear; I still can't take portraits like you do!

 

Peter, thanks man! I have so many photos of that car, you wouldn't believe (I've posted a few on PoW threads).

It's parked in a driveway, but it hasn't moved in the 18 months I've been walking by it every weekday; I guess

it's not abandoned, just retired :-) As for this not being a street lens, I'm not so sure; you can take pictures

of people at 100m and they will still be recognisable. And because it's a smallish lens, if people see you (from

100m away) they will think you're just taking a wide angle shot. If only the lens were black! One day I'll take

it into the city and see what I can do with it. Oh, and what wildlife magazines do you subscribe to? There must

be thousands of pictures of nightingales feeding, no...?

http://www.outdoorphotographer.com/ I serious think you should watermark them and send the set off. You never know if they will enjoy the series. Sure it's a common bird but the sequence is so cool.

Robert, Start here: http://www.photozone.de/mirror-lenses

Then when you are done. Start a new thread to ask questions. Mis, I and others will be happy to take Monday off from work to shoot tons of new examples of how they work and post them to your thread. :-)

Robert, I am nowhere near a "seasoned photographer", at the most I'm slightly salt'n'peppered, but thank you for the comment. As for mirror lenses, here is a good article by the mythical Herbert Keppler:

 

http://www.popphoto.com/cameralenses/687/slr-the-cat-did-it.html

 

Matt, I'm not crazy about the donuts, but I must agree that the rainbow coloured circular reflections on the barbed wire are very cool. A mirror lens for Maria's birthday? Oh boy, you sure are a smooth dude... :-p But now that I think about it, she'll probably love it! Try to find the Sigma 600mm f/8, they go for around $150 on eBay.

"Mis, I and others will be happy to take Monday off from work to shoot tons of new examples of how they work and post them to your thread. :-)"

 

Yeah, just wait until Garry hears about this!

Mis, I know how you feel...''really''...Sometimes all the joy I have is photography...Do not let anyone or anything steal that joy from you...

 

Personally, my fav is the razor wire...Thats is one great shot and those circles are great..

MIRROR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

<p>

Wild laughter echoes from the open 10th floor window of an apartment building in downtown Taichung!

<P>

YOU STARTED IT!!!!!

<p>

YEE HEEE HEEE HEEE!

Mis - a few points need to be made here:

 

Bust a Prime sounds TOTALLY wicked! I'm going to invest in this practice myself when the time next comes!

 

Secondly, how do you feel now?

 

Thirdly, AWESOME series of shots!

 

Fourthly, how do you feel now?

 

Damn, I just wann go Bust A Prime right now!!!!!!

And Mis - your focus is killer sharp!

 

Yeah! Let's start a mirror thread - been needing to get that bad boy out for a while! Let's see how he does on the

K20D!!

 

Heads up everybody, Mirror thread warning, in a few days time. Everybody go Bust a Mirror Prime over the next day

or two - pics will be called for!

 

Oh yeah, Mis - how you feeling now? You expert master of mirrors you!

PS: you've convinced me about the mirror lens--I'm gonna get me one.

 

Oh and I can almost hear momma mocking bird mumbling, "Isn''t it about time fatso here got his own damn berries?"

Garry hows the sake over there tonight :) Mix a little Valium in the nightcap!

Garry, I have two more that I'll post on the PoW thread, after that...I'll have to take more I suppose. Can't let you show me up on the forecast mirror thread, huh? It did make me feel better; concentrating on the photography means my mind can't wander around elsewhere. Thanks for asking, Garry. As for the focus, why be modest? I rule, plain and simple :-) I have a split prism screen, but it's impossible to use hand-held because of the shaking, so I focused on the ground glass and didn't find it that hard (better than last time I used it). If using the lens on a tripod (and maybe a monopod), you can probably use the spit prism for more accurate focusing.

 

Javier, thanks Hermano. I do like that wire too; never thought razor wire could be so photogenic :-)

 

Dave, I look forward to many donut woodpeckers :-D And hey, you did say you liked manual focusing...

Reading Dave's last post I just realised that I've been calling these birds nightingales when, in fact, they are mocking birds. I know this because I spent 20 mins last night going over online catalogues of New England Birds to find out what they were (if it's not a sparrow, swallow, seagul or pigeon, I'm lost). And then I go and call them nightingales. A clear case of brainfartism.

 

Let's see if anyone hears me [clears throat]:

 

MR GREENSPUN, GIMME AN EDIT BUTTON, PLEEEEEEAAAAAASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Thanks for pointing it out, Dave.

Peter, no valium! It's all Stolichnaya - niiiiiiice vodka that one!

Actually, I kind of liked "nightingale"--maybe not ornithologically correct but aesthetically apt.

Mis, what a fun thread. I love the abandoned car and out of bounds. "Bust a Prime" is similar to why I enjoy getting new lenses so much, an excuse to wander around and force myself to take some pictures. I don't need a mirror lens for it, though... I am ALWAYS out of my comfort zone. :-) One of the things I took away from the LBA challenge was to do the same thing with lenses I already own but haven't used as much. It's been fun.

 

I think your bird series has the making of a children's book... I'll definitely show my kids when they wake up from naps! Thanks for posting, Nick

Peter and Mis., thanks for the links to the articles on mirror lenses. They sound interesting. My main purpose for being

interested would be for my sports photography. Since the pics get converted into b&w for our yearbook, they might be a

worthwhile options. Thanks again.

"I think your bird series has the making of a children's book"...OMG I canNOT believe you said that...I was thinking EXACTLY the same thing! Serioulsly, I loved what you wrote, Mis, but a children's book editor would love to get their hands on that series and do what they do...you should send that series in! I can totally see it in an early-reader book! Trust me...I'm a teacher and read books like this to kids all the time...

 

Lisa

Nice, Mis. Just don't bust a mirror prime, or it's seven years of bad luck for sure.