wmervine

<p>I've had good results with the Nissin 622 mk 2 which is in that price range. I shoot Nikon and the exposure on TTL was pretty close to what my SB-600 gives. Also the wireless i-TTL worked flawlessly, but you'd have to see how well it does in the Canon version.</p>

<p>Staying with the holiday theme this is another take from a session in the studio recently, where we had fun with Christmas lights. I did cheat a little and used a torch to help define her face a bit.<br>

Seasons greetings to all!</p><div></div>

<p>Greetings all. Running late this week, but at least here. Saw these 2 gents chatting a a family function, so had to grab a shot.</p><div></div>

<p>The Nissin 622 Mk 2 is probably a good bet for the price. Works fine on and off camera, and way more output than the SB 600. Close to the SB 24 which I alsoown.</p>

<p>Greetings all.<br>

There's too many awesome photos this week to try single some out. Truly a memorable week.<br>

After a hiatus I got to play again in the studio experimenting with some alternative lighting.</p><div></div>

<p>Was blessed with the opportunity recently to do some portraits of a very good friend. A beautiful lady with a incredible heart for others. Loving the posts this week. </p><div></div>

<p>Thought I'd post another from the film I shot recently. This is a site I was scouting for a portrait shoot so took the opportunity to take a few photos. Kinda looks like the set from Transformers or something. </p><div></div>

<p>Hello Wednesday.<br>

Matt that is some stunning work! I know how tight those interiors are. Miha love your photo. So serene.<br>

From my side I finally got the film developed that has been living in my F80. This was taken at a local photography expo and it's the stand of a costume hire company. And no I have no idea why there are those bike mirrors on the one costume.</p><div></div>

<p>I had a chance to chat to a sales rep from Nikon yesterday. He says there is still stock on most things available here and in Europe where we get stock from. No idea on the U.S. though.<br>

Also the initial takeup on the Niokn 1 has been very good so maybe that will help soften the blow slightly.</p>

<p>I'm currently reading Joe McNally's hot shoe diaries. While he works with speedlights, there is alot you can get from his ideas. His writing style is fun and off the wall, but very inspirational.<br>

Another source of inspiation is Neil van Niekerk's blog.</p>

<p>I don't know about the other issues, but have read the Mark 2 version fixes the sub flash issue. And at least you don't have to send the unit in for firmware updates.</p>

<p>As I use both systems on a regular basis, I can say that both have their advantages and disadvantages. Personally I think to start with an on camera strobe would probably be of more use to the OP as on camera usage is a plus. Fill flash while running around chasing little uns gives you alot more flexability. And depending on what camera they have being able to to control the flash via CLS or the Canon equivalent is really useful. <br>

But beyond that if they choose to add a 2nd flash I would then say a mono would be the way to go, giving you a bigger range of options.</p>

<p>I've had good experiences with the Phottix triggers, with the Atlas being a really good option. However our local importer offers good backup as well which is a big thing. Have no idea if they are available your side.</p>

<p>Having owned the baby brother, the 622 mk.2, I'm quite impressed with the Nissins. What they give you is a simpler interface and more power compared to the Nikons. Based on the reivew at speedlights.net the 866 works failry well in CLS mode. Had no issues controlling the 622 from my D300 in CLS. Unless you are looking to use some of the advanced features like HSS the Nissin will give you more bang for the buck.<br>

I feel for general strobing use it's the better deal.</p>

<p>As mentioned before a good place to start learning would be strobist.com by doing his modules. And most of the info is equally applicable to using bigger studio lights or monolights as they are called. A camera mount strobe and shoot through umbrella are a fairly cheap starting point. Don't know what camera you use but getting a good strobe from the same manufacturer is not a bad idea. You can do alot with on camera flash as well if you understand the principles. Neil van Niekerk has some good articles on doing this. "http://neilvn.com/tangents/"<br>

Understand the basics and you can do alot with very little. Have done alot of portraiture with simply 1 strobe and a reflector.</p>

<p>Some truly incredible work this week.<br>

After staring at the mask and bottle of bubbly for some time, I decided to use them in a still life.<br>

Trying to find a good composition with just a few elements was challenging, but think I got it.</p><div></div>

<p>Like a surprisng number of guys here, I'm contemplating a MF TLR. Bust hunting on local listings.<br>

Also eyeing a Zenit E that's come up for very little money to add to my M42 menagerie.</p>

<p>After a quiet few months have started doing more portrait work of late. Funny how when I first started I wasn't interested in portraiture but now it's my favorite genre. Interesting to also see more portraits this week as well. Wonderful work all. </p><div></div>

<p>Having faced this issue on a regular basis, I will say lighting, pose and wardrobe need to do the heavy lifting. You will acomplish more there. But after that I find the liquify tool very useful. Just don't overdue it. As I only use PSE at this point I cannot comment on the puppet warp tool. I do use Portrait Pro and it can help but be light handed with your changes. And do be aware the reshaping can only work on the face with this software.</p>

<p>Had a chance to play a little with a V1 and the short zoom at our local photo expo. EVF is not bad, and the controls and shutter are reasonably quick. Feels like the lovechild of a point and shoot and an slr. Not a bad bit of kit and hope it sells well, although local pricing is pretty steep. Also got to play with a Pentax Q. Way too small for me but really cute. V1 feels more like a camera. But think my fav in that range was the fuji X10.</p>

<p>Greetings all. Once again wonderful diversity this week. Thank you to all for sharing.<br>

I was invited to my first murder mystery evening. Incredible fun. I unfortunately made a very unconvincing politiion, but ya. Had the camera with and got a few candid portraits during a break.</p><div></div>

<p>Greetings all. Not been out much but did get to a local computer gaming expo. Sadly I was there on the wrong day to see the cosplay competition, but this helpful gent was obliging.<br>

Have a great week all.</p><div></div>

<p>Once again some awesome work this week. Really enjoy all the portraits posted so far.<br>

Thought I'd post a candid I captured recently while testing what was once a pristine Tokina 28-70 f/2.6-2.8 lens but now just a 45-70mm after being dropped. Could have done with a less cluttered background but sometimes you have to just try capture the moment as best you can. Only processing was cropping, B&W conversion and a little sharpening.</p><div></div>

<p>For a moment I thought you were trying to replicate the Spyder cube, but that has a different function.<br>

Very clever.</p>

<p>Greetings all.<br>

I got asked to do some fun pics of a friend of mine and her daughter. Love the mischevious expressions here.</p><div></div>