mike simons

Delanza -

I like your design sensibilities! It's got a nice look, and I'm sure your clients are going to be thrilled.

Where/how/who do you print through?

There were four photos - the groomsmen, the bridesmaids, the church (w/ oval pics) and the party in the pews that all have their horizontal tilted off-axis - each could benefit from some 'squaring.' Not a big change, but I found it distracting - particularly in pictures where there are flat/straight lines in the stonework or pews that such that you can perceive the tilt much, much easier.

Check it out; see if you see it for yourself.

Be well,

Mike

Anyone out there heading to Boston for Photoshop World in Boston? I come to

my shooting via my primary role as a digital photography teacher for our

media/Yearbook production class at a local high school in New York.

Wondering if anyone'll be in the area - always great to put a face to a name!

-Mike

As the New Year gets underway, I offer up a conversation-starter to the

forum... In my full-time job as a high school teacher, I often use sentence-

starters to get my kids thinking and focused for the day's topic. Here's one

for the forum, pertaining to wedding photography specifically:

"The one thing I wish (someone had told me/I had known) as I was getting

started is _____________________________________."

Be it serious, funny, technical skills-based, interpersonal dealings, or

something else altogether, what say you?

Enjoy Saturday.

-MCS

As ever, this group is fantastic to get feedback from... Much obliged for everyone's responses!

Peter - brides & large cows.... yeah, not so good. Fair point.

Eddie - the distinctions you drew are astute, and articulated well - thanks for the feedback!

Back to the drawing board.... Simons (surname) is actually pronounced Simmons, but spelled as above (thank you, Ellis Island; they dropped an "M"). Mispronunciations abound....

Considered where I live, on the top of a hill, looking west, on a particular road.... Sullivan Road Photography, Orr Hill Photography, West View Photography, but again, no name recognition... Just trying some options before opening the door on <<Name>> Photography.

Once again, thanks for the input, All.

-mike

Hi, Gang -

Continued appreications to the Vets and everyone else here who helps those of

us getting a legitimate start in the business.

I've been shooting studio and outdoor senior/family/sibling portraits for a

time, and had shot & sold landscape shots prior to that (4+ years ago). I've

operated under the name "Mooselight Photography," because it was a blend of

the first two photographs I ever sold to clients - a moose (shot on my

honeymoon in Nova Scotia from 15 feet away; shot 4 rolls as the thing munched

swamp grass, ignoring me) and a lighthouse (same honeymoon)... Mooselight.

Memorable, unique, meaningful (for me)....

I have a very well-established friend near me who's risen to the top of the

business in our region, and when I visited his studio this weekend for a chat,

he suggested - strongly - that I kill the Mooselight name and move in a

different direction if I'm headed toward wedding photography... that brides

(and grooms) would be thrown off, that I'd likely lose business, that it

doesn't give them context for what I'm offering, etc., etc.....

Yes, I understand his points. But I'm torn, too. Figured I'd throw myself on

the fire here at the Forums and ask for others' input. I'm interested in how

others of you arrived at your business names (read the Blue Peacock thread a

few below mine here), and recognize that a large contingent simply play off

their first and last names - not sure that's for me.

What did you do when figuring this out for yourself? And....

Mooselight Photography --- should it stay, or should it go, go, *go*?

Be well,

Mike

Looking at outfitting this spring with the 70-200L IS, as well, but wondering about the above-mentioned 24-70 vs. the 16-35, particularly in light of the fact that I have the 85 1.8 already --- open to opinions; shooting weddings, interested in the wider 16 for establishing shots of venues, local wineries, church interiors, etc., to help set context.

Thoughts are most welcome -

-Mike

For what it's worth -

If any of you are conspiracy theorists or doubtful of the update to Canon's

site, etc., etc., and if seeing the site itself wasn't good enough, I just got

off the phone with one of their rebate reps at 1-800-OK-CANON (the number listed

at the website) and she verified that the date *has* been extended into

February, no jokes.

Works for me; another month to bring in some revenue and rework my budget...

Just trying to help,

Mike

Hi, gang -

One of my digiphoto students at the high school got a BG-E3 for her rig over

Christmas. Today, when it was all set up, the main dial would only dial

down/backwards through options/settings, regardless of which way we were

spinning it. That is to say, for instance, that when we tried on the 'Av'

setting to go from f8.0 to f11, it went DOWN to 5.6 and beyond, bottomming out

at 1.8 (on her 85mm). It wouldn't "come back up" until we diagnosed that it was

the BG-E3 and removed it. We were able to have full functionality without the

grip, then added it BACK in, and the problem reappeared.

Didn't see anything in the threads ---- any advice?

-mike

Anyone else out there hemming and hawing about the final days of the rebate?

Anyone planning on making a last day/minute(s) purchase?

Eyeing a 5D & 16-35L combo....

-Mike

Might have a fundamental misunderstanding of what I just read, but if Haoda's base material is the Canon screen itself..... then what is/where is the improvement, and/or what is Fu doing that's fundamentally different/better about Fu's version? Sorry, not trying to be dense.

-Mike

An add-on question --- does anyone have a resource on how to make/obtain/find the "flex-out" hoops that allow such diffusers, etc., to be storeable and stashed away? I have a flex-out from Backdrop Outlet that's 8x16 feet and collapses to 42in. If one could find the hoop - without fabric - you could make a collapseable scrim.

Any thoughts, as a continuation of DG's question?

-mike

Patrick & Edward -

Thank you for the replies - Edward, thanks for the book references and authors' names. Patrick, yes, I've likely had a 'cart before the horse' situation with color management and my portrait work (senior pictures, mostly), and am glad I'm able to solve/fix/improve it now with efforts around identifying the resources I need for better management. Only reason I don't have a device yet is that our yearbook program (for which I'm an advisor) has ColorVision device already; I can make use of it for the near future, while I get my feet under me.

Then, yes, certainly, I need to assess my use/abuse (!) of Photoshop and my work in the digital darkroom. People looking dead isn't a good thing. :-)

Take care,

Mike

Hi, folks -

Just getting enough serious business that I need to (seriously) take a look at

my color management. I'll be borrowing software & a light sensor from my

school's computer labs --- believe it's a ColorVision product. Could be wrong;

it's got a transparent, 3-legged base and a 3in W x 1in H black disc/biscuit

suspended in between the legs; can be affixed to CRT or hung over LCD.

At any rate, my question is broad enough - I think - that the specifics aren't

important.

Simply - what's the process by which I can ensure that "red" on my computer

(PShop, CS2; Hanns-G 19' W LCDs x 2) is "red" to Adorama or WhiteHouse or MPix

or my proofing HP Color Laser 2600? Does it start with defaulting my

system/hardware back to manufacturer spec, THEN running the calibration software

& using the sensor, or do I get 'color profiles' from my printers first, and

move on from there?

I've got just enough of the basics down to be dangerous. Got a set of prints

back today where I made everyone look..... well, dead. People tend to not like

that, you know?

All responses welcome; I appreciate your time in talking me through this

process! This learning community has proved invaluable to so many of us just

getting our start.

-Mike

Addison, NY

DB & Others -

Is __________ (fill in the blank with spot or incident) preferred "over" another type of metering? I sense that the answer is, "Well, it depends on what you're doing."

So..... take for instance a "pensive" shot of a bride looking out a window, pre-wedding ceremony. I can walk up to her and use the incident metering of my handheld, OR I can stand back and use the spotmeter function of my 5D, right?

Thus....... which one?

Or - "Jeez, Mike, that's way too general a question. You sound just like those guys with $2,000 to blow on 'some good lenses for my new _______.' "

-Mike

Gary & Others:

I hear talk of ambient, flash, incident, and spot --- I know that some of those can be paired; ambient/flash, I believe.... are incident/spot synonymous?

-Mike

Howdy, folks - Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

I'm entering into my second year of relatively small business out of a home-

based studio (in addition to being a full-time school teacher, dad, and

husband), and am looking for advice/direction on a light meter purchase.

I'm a meter-using newbie, thus my question is simultaneously about A) basic

use and how I can improve my shots and efficiency while decreasing

my 'guesswork' and B) which light meters folks would recommend, based on the

kind of work I'm doing: I shoot about half and half indoor/outdoor, mostly

senior portraits and family photos, and have a set of 3 JTL monolights in my

basement studio (300/500/500), which I shoot cabled, though I plan to get a PW

set in the coming year. Shooting a Canon 5D and 95% of my shots (at this

point) are on the 85mm 1.8EF.

I read the boards here a great deal and am well aware of the posts where

someone's nearly laughed out of a forum for saying, "I have $X,XXX.xx to spend

and need to know which lens to get," which is a ridiculous question to ask.

To that end, I'll qualify my question by saying that - though I am proud of a

good deal of my work - I know I have a lot of learning left to do,

particularly around lighting and easing my workflow (and minimizing stupid

mistakes), and I hope that getting an education from experienced users of

light meters will help me inform my own decisions. I'm well aware that the

price range runs the gamut from the ridiculously cheap to the inordinately

robust, like the new Sekonic Digitalmaster, which yes, has caught my eye. But

before I buy a Porsche for a Subaru's work, I'd like some input. Budget could

be up to $400-500, if needs be. Wouldn't mind saving money, either.

There it is... Many thanks to all who respond.

-Mike

Folks -

<p>

<dd> Looking for any feedback users might have for me. I'm proud of this shot;

took it on the family's farm last night here in the southern tier of NY. A few

hot spots on the right side (upper left of dad's face, etc), with the long light

of late day.... used a touch of fill flash --- maybe more, maybe less?

<p>

Comments on posing?

<p>

How might I have (or should I have?) used any reflectors, etc., on the left side

of the image (though it would've been hard to maintain the same composition, no,

unless I used a terribly massive reflector...?)

<p>

Your thoughts are *most* welcome.

<p>

Link to: <A HREF="http://www.photo.net/photo/5061731">Family

Portrait</A>

<p>

-Mike

I am looking for a service/company that will take my 35mm negatives and turn

them into high-quality digital files. While price is a factor, I'm willing to

pay for higher quality. Can anyone recommend a company they've used for this

purpose? Most of the shots I'd like to transfer are landscape, if it matters.

Thanks,

Mike Simons

Hi, folks -

How do I best go about calibrating and... balancing (?) my two monitors, made

by different manufacturers, running off of one dual-output video card?

Do the calibration tools (the sensor and software, together) often support use

on two monitor setups, etc.? I can't believe I'm the only one in this

situation.

Thanks!

-Mike

Hala -

To the best of my knowledge, and from reading other posts here, you need 2 units - one on either end of the connection, so to speak.

Check this thread for more information, as well as a link to an article about the PWPII:

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00IA9r&tag=

Also, to the rest of you --- once you have two PWP-II's, you're up around $370.00 or so, from what I've read around..... How does their quality/usability/features compare with the much smaller MicroSync unit? I'd like to break the tether to my JTL monolights in my basement studio; tired of my 11-month old son and cats interfering with the sync cord. Quick advice from experience is welcome!

-Mike

Looking for any pre-made releases people have had parents sign for

minors sitting for portraits; I want to use their pictures in my

advertising and on the website gallery/portfolio.

Don't want to reinvent the wheel, and though I saw plenty of 'model

releases,' it didn't feel like that was the same ballpark for client

releases...

Your input is most appreciated.

-Mike

Stuart -

Re: shotguns --- And it's not just into co-workers --- some of us do it into 78-year old lawyers from Texas.

I'm right there with you; wish there was an easy software something-or-other we could jack our cameras into; we have a number of Canon DSLRs at the school where I teach, and I'd like to have a much more scientific idea of just how many shots they have on them, rather than just estimating.

Best of luck with anything you find out -

-Mike

I've known something about an upper limit for RAM upgrades based on... processor?? What is the criteria, and how can I find it for my system?

-Mike

I've searched through the archives, but figure I can ask this as a

fresh question.

PC users running Photoshop CS or CS2 (and possibly GoLive), what CPU

are you running? Processor, RAM, video card, etc.

I'm having very few problems running Photoshop, but GoLive is

*killing* me, and thus I can't efficiently update my webpage, etc.

I'm running a Presario S4200NX - 2.6Ghz Celeron with 1/2 GB RAM, stock

video card.

Hit me.

-Mike