It’s been a long time since I last blogged but I’m black! or is it back. 3 months ago my one and only camera decided to get messed up. I eventually had it fixed by a local camera repair man and tho he fixed the problem, my sensor and viewfinder is now dirty.
All that aside, I am back to taking pictures. For now I am taking test shots using a method called OCF (Off Camera Flash) aka strobes to see if my camera is ok. The flash is a borrowed SB 600 (thanks klew). I kinda like it, tho I am lusting over either an SB 800 or SB 900 flash.
OCF is kinda cool coz it produces really cool looking images, the images look different from how they would look if one put the flash on the camera. So here are some images I took. My setup was a DIY (Do It Yourself) “Lunch Box “which I got from strobist.com. So here are the images along with the setups:
My wife cooked some tasty cookies this weekend and here is an image of one. The strobe was set on 1/64 at a 14mm zoom. The lens was if the 70-300mm kind. My camera was dialed to 1/13th of a second at f/5.6. Below is the setup.
With the DIY setup, I decided to take a shot of a used “Imperial Leather” soap which I used to use but now detest coz it feels like showering with a bar of leather rather than a bar of soap when I last used it. Yuk!
Anyway, you must be asking yourself, “Is that dania (cilantro) I see?” My answer to that is yes in-deedee. Why dania? Coz I thought green would make the image more interesting. This image was shot with 1/5th of a sec at f/4.8 with the same lens. The SB 600 was set on 1/32 with a flash compensation of 0.7.
The setup:
As you may have noticed, I shot the image at a really low shutter speed. It was mainly coz I was indoors. As a result, I had to put the camera on a tripod and I also used the 10 sec self timer setting to make the shot.
As i took the shots, I noticed that the cameras sensor was way dirty. It has so many spots on the view finder and sensor. I guess the guy who fixed the camera did not bother to clean it real well. Any-who, I cannot complain too much coz I paid him a fraction of what I would have paid if I had sent the camera in to be fixed by the manufacturer. Notice the spots in the pic below (click on it for a bigger pic):
The problem with spots is that they are such a pain to remove via photoshop or lightroom. The are even harder to remove if you take a picture of a group. I might have to send it in to get the sensor cleaned. By the way, I used the DIY setup for this image. The flash was set on 1/32 at 14mm. The camera was on 0.6th of a second @ 5.6. I used a 10 second self timer to prevent blur coz of the insanely low shutter speed.
So this is it for now. If you have read all that I have written, I applaud and admire you. Thank you.
I feel caught in a runt and I no longer feel inspired to take images. Lately I have been spending a lot of time online checking out photo websites and blogs. There are so many photographers out there and their collective work is beginning to look the same to me. My fear is that I am adding my images to the electronic dumpster which we call the web. I keep asking myself; “Are my images any different from all that is out there?”
There is a part of me that really wants to set my camera aside, walk away and let it gather dust because I feel that I am not up to the task. I feel that I am not capable of making lasting, and memorable images. I love making images, I just hate it that currently I am making images for the sake of making them. Should I stop and take a break from photography, or should I continue to take pictures in the hope that as I do so I may get into the zone and begin to find my voice?
I decided to go ahead and keep on experimenting. I got a piece of paper, a stapler and made a snoot. Then as usual i took advantage of ras and decided to take a couple of shots.
THE TOOLS
So here are the shots i came up with.
SETUP #1
(Above) Strobe shot without snoot.
(Below) Same shot with a snoot.
SETUP #2
(Above) Here is the setup. I also turned off the light in the apt coz i thought that the darkness would make the shots interesting.
(Below) The setup in action.
I hope that I am not boring you with my excitement and images. I really cannot wait to do real shoots with the strobe. Hope you liked the images.
I came across a video that speaks to me as it does many photographers. We at times have doubts about our skills and abilities. The video is long, but it is well worth the watch.
It has been said that the hardest people to photograph are dogs and kids. This weekednd I got to photograph two children who made this quote a fallacy.
I have always loved taking portraits of people and I believe that the face is by far the most interesting landscape ever. The other day I was in search of things to photograph when I came across some high school kids. I asked if I could photograph them and they agreed.
Asking to photograph people has not been easy thing for me because I really don’t take rejection well.
“Ku uliza sii ujuinga” is a Swahili saying that when roughly translated means; Requesting for something is in no way a stupid thing. Americans have a somewhat similar saying that says; There is no such thing as a stupid question. This saying has been a source of encouragement when I am afraid to photograph people.
So as we go on to a new week, be courageous and do not be afraid to ask.
It’s hard to believe that 3 years ago , I had the crazy idea of working at this very amusement park. I even went to the man in charge and asked if they were hiring! After he explained to me that my pay would depend on how much people I cajole into a ride I decided against working there.
Every year this same traveling amusement park sets up shop at the intersection of “Spring Creek Parkway” and “K avenue” in the City of Plano, Texas. I had always wanted to take pictures of the park but I never had the chance to do so.
After Church, I grabbed my camera and headed to the park and took these images.
(Above) Here is the setup. I also turned off the light in the apt coz i thought that the darkness would make the shots interesting.
