jackie_boldt

<p>I'm not really looking to block out the light completely. I'm mostly looking for something to diffuse the light coming through. Should I just pick up a large panel or something??</p>

<p>I have just moved into a natural light studio in MN (not sure if the state makes a difference), and the windows are southern & western facing. The southern ones face my shooting area and the western ones are on the side. Anyone have any suggestions on how to control that light a little better during the time of the day when the sun is shining in? I've attached a photo to better help visualize my situation.<br>

Thanks!</p>

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<p>Thanks for your advice everyone. <br>

I've heard mixed reviews about the Black Rapid's harness, so I'm a little leary about going with them. I am going to look into the Op-Tech products and what they offer.</p>

<p>I use a Canon 5D II and a 50D during my weddings.<br>

Anyone have suggestions or recommendations on padded straps? I'm in desperate need of new ones!!<br>

Thanks,<br>

Jackie</p>

<p>Thanks for the advice. I've sent an email to all of my clients potentially affected by this error explaining to them what happened and if they have experienced this with their photos to email me for a new disc. So far, out of over 50 clients, I have received emails back from 10 of them. Some of them have responded and said they haven't experienced the issues, so I guess some people have the problem and others don't? I'm not sure why that is, but it is. I also offered to re-print any prints that they ordered and came back with that coloring.<br>

Thanks again, everyone!</p>

<p>Why don't they tell you this stuff?? :)<br>

Anyway, thanks for all of the help. Does anyone know of a good, easy, and free converter for my clients to use in order to get their photos to sRGB?</p>

<p>Well, shoot. I hope this doesn't cause too many problems for the clients I've given discs too already :( </p>

<p>I always export sRGB for my photos on the web (online portfolio and blogging), however when giving my clients the final disc of photos, I give them photos exported as ProPhoto RGB, or if I'm ordering prints for them. But now, I'm noticing that whenever I upload the photos exported as ProPhoto online, they end up with a funny color to them with a greenish tint. It's almost as if all of the red is gone. Thoughts? Anyone else experiencing these issues? What do you normally do when exporting files for your clients vs. web use?<br>

Thanks!</p>

<p>You know... as luck would have it, I got a notification that Lightroom 2.5 is available for download. So, I downloaded it and installed the update. It now works, so you were right! Thanks again!</p>

<p>Jackie</p>

<p>Thanks, Mark!<br>

How do I go about reinstalling it? It was a download from their website, so all I have is the file on my computer.</p>

<p>I did add Photoshop as an external editor and I can open images up in Photoshop. This is the only issue that I'm having with Lightroom & Photoshop so far... <br>

If the reinstall would help, how do I do that without taking out all of my catalogues?</p>

<p>I'm hoping someone here has the answer or can at least direct me to the right place where I can get the answer.<br>

I'm currently running the following software: Mac Leopard and the most current version of Lightroom. I just purchased CS4 and am trying to familiarize myself with using Lightroom with Photoshop. <br>

I have added Photoshop as an external editor, however when I go to "Open as Smart Object in Photoshop" (or any other option below that), it is grayed out. Before installing Photoshop, I had Photoshop Elements installed, but rarely used it. <br>

I was researching online common reasons why it would be grayed out and have tried everything. I have tried using jpegs, RAW files, selecting more than one file at a time, uninstalling Photoshop Elements (but it's still there, just grayed out, incidentally), and right-clicking on the file, rather than using the drop-down menu.<br>

Ok... I hope I've given everyone a clear picture of my situation. Any help would be greatly appreciated! I'm willing to bet it's something very simple that I'm just overlooking... at least I hope that's the case!</p>

<p>I am in need of a good tutorial of how to properly use the Pocketwizard MiniTT1 and the FlexTT5 with my 5D Mark 2 and my Canon flashes. I have 2 Flexes and one MiniTT for on top of my camera. The Flexs are attached to a 430EX and a 580EX on light stands. I mostly use them for receptions & dances. Right now, I get them set-up just fine. In fact, when I test them at home, they work great! However, in the field, I'm having issues. It might have to do with the placement of my lights or it might just be that I'm trying to shoot too many, too fast. Another issue is that one flash will go off, but the other one won't trigger. It does work properly part of the time. It's the other times that are frustrating. I hope my question has made sense!</p>

<p>So, basically, my issues is either the flashes don't fire at all or only one of them fires. Thoughts? </p>

<p>I am located in Minnesota and am looking for a good newborn photography workshop/seminar. Any suggestions? I'm willing to travel if that's what I have to do. </p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

 

<p>And, no one answered my question about blowing out the white background. Do I need to do it and if so, how? Do I just point my other light at the background? </p>

<p>Thanks for the feedback, although you guys make me feel like I'm taking horrible pictures, which I know isn't true based on my clientele...<br>

I'm confused about the blown highlights, though... When I'm post-processing these images, according to my histogram, those highlights aren't blown. Maybe something is happening when I upload them to my blog? <br>

Also, with the first blog link, help me understand something... I used only the one large Octodome on the pictures. I feel as though the light/shadow relationship is much better in these photos. Is the only problem the blown highlights on the one side of the face? </p>

<p>I have been working in my studio since October of 2007 and have had good luck with my lighting set-up. I have 2 alien bees strobe flashes with a 5' Octodome and a 45'' brolly box. I usually use either one or both of the lights directly on my subject. More recently, though, I have been experimenting with just using the Octodome as the only light source. <br>

Here are my current concerns. I know this is a big no-no, but I have my fluorescent overhead lights on while shooting. Since my dome & brolly box are not set up for the model lights being on, I don't know of any other way to light the set. Any suggestions or ideas?? I haven't noticed anything in my final product with the mixed lighting. Am I missing something in my images that doesn't look quite right due to the lighting? My other concern has to do with lighting the background. I have seen in the recent postings that the background should be blown out or white to have some separation from the subject. Even though it's not white-white, does it matter? Does it have to be blown out white? Can I use my other light to blow out the background? </p>

<p>These are links to some recent work that shows some examples.</p>

<p>http://www.jackieboldtphotography.com/blog/?p=5186<br>

http://www.jackieboldtphotography.com/blog/?p=5199<br>

http://www.jackieboldtphotography.com/blog/?p=5125</p>

<p>Thanks for your thoughts and advice!</p>

<p>Jackie</p>

<p>I love using Digilabs. I have had no problems with them whatsoever! They offer a great option for people who don't make alot of money from prints. You pay a yearly fee (I can't remember what, but it's very reasonable) and then it's 17% of the profits of the sales you make. It's a great deal, because the online album hosting basically pays for itself after a few print orders. Good luck!</p>

<p>Thank you!!<br>

So, now I guess my question is how reliable has PW been in the past with their firmware updates?? I really will need to be able to use the on-camera flash, so that is a very important feature to me to have. I don't want to waste my money on a product that I'll have to replace again in another few months if the firmware update doesn't work properly or they don't come out with an update.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I've heard rumors that the new pocketwizards are not entirely compatible with the 5d mark 2. Is this true? What exactly isn't compatible? I pre-ordered a mini and 2 flex from Amazon, so I want to make sure I'm not wasting my money on a product that isn't going to work for me!</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>Canon just recently came out with an upgrade to their already awesome (so I've heard) 24mm f/1.4. I had made a decision a few months ago to purchase this lens for my 2009 wedding season. However, with the upgrade, it presents me with a bit of a dilemma.... do I spend an extra $600 for the newer and updated version of the lens? Or, is the original version a great lens in itself for $1,000 (currently on Amazon)?</p>

<p>What are the major differences in this lens? Typically, do the upgrades really make that much of a difference? From what I've heard, the 24mm original was a great lens!</p>

<p>Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!</p>

With how big of pictures the newer Canon cameras are taking nowadays, I figured it's time to upgrade to 16 gb cards. I just purchased a

50D and used it for the first time in the studio today. I had to change my cards three times for 2 sessions it ate up my 8 gb cards so fast!

The studio sessions aren't my biggest concern, though. It's when I start doing weddings again, I'm not going to want to change cards

every hour or two.

 

My question is about the difference between the Sandisk Extreme III and IV cards. I currently use the IV cards for the 5D, so I don't know

how fast the III is compared to the IV. There is over a $100 difference between the cards on Amazon. I just want to make sure I'm either

not going to spend the extra money if I don't have to or spend that extra $100 for a reason, if that last statement makes any sense. :)

 

What differences have people seen with these two speeds of cards? Has anyone used them on the newer cameras and noticed a

difference between write speed with the newer camera vs. an older one (30D or 5D for example)? Do you think it's worth it to spend the

extra $100 for the speed or will I not notice a big difference?

 

Thanks!

I think I'm going to go with the 24 f/1.4 and stick with my current Tamron 17-35 for my really wide angle shots. I was at a

wedding last Saturday that was extremely low light, in which this lens would have been ideal for! Besides, I think the 24 will

be great on the new 50D I just purchased :)

 

Thanks all for the advice!

Thanks everyone!

 

I realized, William, that I did forget to mention the bodies I would be using this lens on. Currently, I use a 5D as my

primary and a 30D as my secondary. I have the 50 f/1.2 on the 30D and switch lenses more frequently on my 5D. I

have a Tamron 17-35 ultra-wide that I currently use, however I know the Canon 16-35 (yes, the Mark II version... sorry,

left that part out as well!) is a much better piece of equipment. If I were to get the 16-35, I would get rid of my 17-35. If I

opted for the 24mm (or even the 35mm), then I would keep the 17-35 around and continue to use it. I hope this helps! I

know that if I did purchase the 24mm, it would be just over a 35mm on my crop sensor camera, so that would be another

benefit to the 24mm.

I am planning on purchasing a new wide angle lens for next wedding season. I have been going back and forth between getting a wide

angle, really fast, prime lens or an ultra-wide angle zoom lens. If you use either of these two lenses, which do you prefer? I know that

some people prefer to use either zooms or primes, but is there anyone out there that uses both? In your opinion, what are the pros & cons

of both lenses?

 

I love how fast the 24mm lens is, however it is missing the ultra-wide option and the zoom option, which isn't as big of a deal for me.

 

Thanks for the insight!!

 

Jackie