ni_gentry

I get floored by great images, not expensive lenses - unless maybe someone hit me over the

head with one, which plenty of people would love to do I'm sure !

M8, M6, 5D..... My bank account is cringing after reading that and also thinking about all the

money spent on the glass that's probably sitting with those cameras.

Most people are aware of their looks, good or bad. As a photographer, you just have to make

sure you know all the basic tricks to shoot from good angles, lighting, posing, etc... Most of

all you have to capture good expressions.. You might not be able to make some people look

"gorgeous" (in today's pop-culture sense of the word), but you should be able to make them

look as good or better than they've looked in any other photo they've seen of themselves.

Simple... I threw away the bracket.

Everyone is different and has their own way of doing things ( haven't I heard that before ).

<p>

There is no right/wrong way.... (well, maybe a wrong way)... but really, if you want to find out

what a specific person is doing, then just ask them. Go to their seminar or simply shoot

them an email. No matter how "high-profile" they may be perceived, most of these

photographers are pretty down to earth and glad to help (when they have the time).<p>

Mostly, you need to figure out what works for YOU and your clients. What someone else does

may not apply at all. Focus on your own market, style, technique and workflow.

Might help if you described what gear you wanted to carry in this bag.

<p>

Be much less concerned with your gear than with the moments and the people you are

attempting to capute. All the "L series lenses" and 5D's in the world don't mean squat if

you don't have a true understanding of light and if you don't know how to communicate

something with your images.

<p>

Always be looking for good natural light.

<p>

Have fun.

<p>

Don't take yourself too seriously.

<p>

Take your job very seriously.

<p>

There's other stuff, but that's what comes to mind off the top of my head.

Allan,

<p>

Some people don't shoot wide angle. Some do. What other people do is less important

than what <i>you</i> prefer. <p>

<i>Decisions decisions...I leave the 18-70 on one body almost the entire time, but I

wonder how much of that is at 70. If it's a lot, then I should consider a 28-70 (probably

the Tamron 28-75 because of cost).</i>

<p>

You should be able to look back at your own images and favorite images from others and

guestimate pretty closely what focal length was used. That's how you can find out how

people utilize a lens of that zoom range. Then decide what focal length appeals to you

and use that for your next lens "decision". If you can't answer those questions, then you

don't need to be thinking about a new lens... you need to be shooting a lot more.

>>> 28-70 (ish) as main lens - really?

<p>

 

That question is kind of like asking... "Honda Accord... main car - really?" <p>

It completely depends on how you use the thing and what results you want to achieve. Why

do people always worry about the "right" gear or what other people are using? It just doesn't

matter.

Sounds interesting and all that, but certainly this will be no "test" of RAW converters nor

any valid and meaningful comparison...<p>

why?

<p>

1) Everyone's monitors are slightly (or grossly) different in calibration and set up for each

individual's own proofing/output needs. <p>

2) Images posted here will be scaled down and compressed using wildly differing steps...

some will be sRGB, some will have no profile, and undoubtedly some will post files that

are are Adobe RGB or some other color space. JPG compression settings will be all over

the place. Some images will have been scaled down and re-optimized / sharpened, while

others will not. etc... Obviously, there will be variance depending on the re-sizing /

compression performance of the software as well as the procedures involved... not just

RAW conversion alone.

<p>

3) Like any post-processing task, there should be a clear end to the means... in other

words, what is the intent of the processing... to generate a 300ppi JPG for your lab, to

send to your Epson printer, to upload to a proofing gallery, to post on photo.net.... etc.

Depending on the final output size/format of the file and the final media, the RAW

converter may perform differently.

 

<p>

I'm not saying this "contest" won't be interesting. I'm sure it will reveal many cool tricks

and be a beneficial learning experience. But it certainly won't be anywhere near a

scientific test..... and I also don't believe it should be... photography is NOT science...

which maybe is my point.... that these sort of techie contest/testing things are kind of

pointless... like what is the MTF curve or the LPM of such and such lens... who cares? It

doesn't make the image nor the photographer any better.

I meant to say ...<p>

"Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure being "discusted" (or 'disgusted') is <b>NOT</b> a legally enforcable reason for just up and leaving a contracted wedding job. "<p>

Again, simply talk to the bride & groom, the officiant, and anyone else who matters BEFORE the wedding. It's not difficult.

Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure being "discusted" (or 'disgusted') is a legally enforcable reason for just up and leaving a contracted wedding job. <p>

We're supposed to be professionals and doing a job. There are bound to be situations that we don't like. Everything can't always be perfect and every wedding is not all love, smiles, roses, and fancy venues. Deal with the situation as best you can or find something else to do.

F100 is a film camera, right? If you are just starting out in weddings, I'd stick to either film or digital. You can do both later, but it will complicate your day at this point. Get a second flash as mentioned. I'd also have another fast prime (something wider), but that's me. Bring lots of memory cards and batteries.

Talk to people before the wedding and explain the deal. Why is that so hard? Either you tell them to get and stay out of the way before the wedding or you tell them during the wedding... those are your only choices. If the guests are in the way, then that's what you have to shoot. You're just documenting what's there. If you or the couple don't like it, then someone should have done something earlier. It's called being a professional.

I think photo.net forums is where a lot of people with "bad days" come to vent :0<p>

I say as long as if the the skin tones on your (people) subjects look good, then all's well. If you don't like green, then simply go into your color adjustment tool of choice and lower the Saturation for the green channel, or change the hue to something less green... as long as the bride's not wearing a green dress and there are no other greens in the image, that green cast is the only portion of the image that will be affected. Simple, right?

>> "I did one of these a few weeks ago and it was really fun."<p>

Which side of the camera were you on Sarah ;-)

Jessica Claire gives out the passwords to anybody? Can you send them to me ;-)

Anyone use non-Epson replacement ink cartridges in a R2400? I was just on B&H looking to buy some

Epson replacements and noticed catridges from a few other companies. How do those inks compare to

the Epson inks in color, consistency, quality, archival-ness, etc... ?

>> "Not in aperture priority mode,..."<p>

Yeah, that and the rest is basically repeating what I said.

>> "That is my question. Which lens will let me do what you sugest? The lens that I'm using now, will let me go down to f4, as long as I don't zoom. And at f4 800 it gives me 1/8 sec."<p>

Hi Joseph,<p>

Again, the lens (of the 2 you mention) doesn't really matter too much in this situation... f/2.8 or f/4... it's only one stop difference. If you're bouncing flash properly, then that will be your main exposure. The lens aperture will do basically 2 things... 1) control your depth of field, and 2) effect your ambient exposure (along with shutter speed and ISO)... So if you are at f/2.8, all you need to do to get the same ambient exposure is to slow down the shutter speed or bump the ISO (one stop for either, 1/2 stop each, or whatever). To re-iterate, the flash exposure (set to ETTL) is your main exposure. Letting in ambient light via the camera exposure will provide additional fill and background ambience for a more natural look..... remember, flash exposure will be auto/TTL. The flash output will be set automatically based on subject, distance, aperture, and ISO (NOT shutter speed).... The camera exposure will be set manually to let in just enough ambient light to suit your taste for a "natural" look... that ambient exposure will be based on aperture, shutter speed and ISO.

<p>

Now if you really want natural... then get a fast prime (f/1.4 or faster), which will allow you 2 or more stops of available light. You can then drop your flash exposure compensation a stop or two so that the ambient light is your main exposure and your flash just acts as your fill. Or if the lighting is good enough, turn off the flash completely. Of course, this means you're shooting at an even smaller aperture and possible on the edge of a fast enough shutter speed for handholding. So you have to have your technique down for nailing your focus point and holding the camera steady. Also, shooting at high-ISO's you'll have slightly less lattitude for underexposre because of the added noise.

To add... You could probably also bring the shutter speed down to around 1/30th sec since

again, the flash will freeze motion, and in this case your subjects are pretty stationary. But

since you are essentially "dragging the shutter" you don't want to go too low unless it's for

effect. The flash freezes motion, but the ambient exposure still can creep in. <p>

Also, try adjusting your white balance to fix those colors.

At wide apertures, your depth of field is smaller (also dependent on your subject distance

and focal length). So not everything is going to be sharp, especially when you have

multiple people arranged so that they are not all in the same plane. Also, using Aperture

priority or Program mode in dim lighitng like that will always result in a slow shutter speed

because the camera is trying to expose for the ambient light. Either dial down the

exposure compensation or better yet, learn to shoot in manual mode. With your flash, you

should be bouncing the light to give a softer effect and light up more of the area around

the subject as well as fill in the shadows. Next time in the same situation, try arranging

the people in a better fashion, set the camera to manual mode f/4 (or f/2.8), 1/60th sec,

ISO 800 ~ 1600, flash on ETTL and bounced off the ceiling with the little built-in bounce

card raised up. Guaranteed better results. (of course not all situations will be equal)

You have more than enough gear. A lot more than enough. Especially for your first wedding.

Keep it as simple as possible. I'm not sure what "semi-official" means... will they be "semi-

officially" married :-) <p>

Bring the two cameras, two flashes, the 50mm, 85mm, 24-105mm, and 70-200mm along

with the other misc stuff (batteries, etc.). Of course, any recommendation here is really sort

of meaningless in a way... it all depends on your style of shooting, the images you want to

get, the available light you'll have to work with, the venues, and your skills. Again, you have

more than enough equipment. I'd focus on using it as much as you can, which will naturally

get you answers to your questions (better than anyone here could give).

I just peeked at the candids in your "people" gallery on your website. It looks like you're

using the built-in flash and (I'm guessing) Program Auto or Aperture Priority. Some

photos look like the focus point is off (not on the subject's face/eye)... so there is a sharp

plane of focus, it's just not where you'd want it to be. Some other photos look like the

camera picked a slow shutter speed so you see a little motion from dragging the shutter.

Not sure if those are the things that brought you to post your questions, but just thought

I'd mention it. <p> And if you're using flash, then that changes a lot. The speed of the

lens and image stablization don't really mean as much when it comes to hand-holding,

freezing motion, etc.... The flash will take care of freezing the subject... you just have to

focus on the correct spot. A wider aperture (or other increase in ambient exposure) will let

in more ambient light and usually make the photos apear more natural. ... Of course,

that's all if you're using flash...

"IF" the problem is blurry or soft images, then the question is "why?". The specific lens is

likely NOT the problem. As already suggested, post an example and the exposure

information... <p>

- If it was dim lighting, what was your aperture, shutter speed, and ISO? <p>

- Was the shutter speed too slow to hand hold? too slow to freeze subject movement? If

so, then could you have opened the aperture and/or bumped up the ISO to increase

shutter speed? <p>

- Were you shooting in Automagic mode and letting the camera decide this stuff for

you? ...

<p>

Answer those questions first, then decide IF you need a new lens or if you just need to

polish your technique.