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Thursday, May 1, 2008 -
Vodcast: The Daily Critique
Since getting my iPod touch I've been on the lookout for good photography related video based podcasts. I've previously mentioned some of my favourite Lightroom instruction/tutorial ones, but I recently came across Radiant Vista's The Daily Critique.
This vodcast takes an image or a series of images and then critiques them in a constructive and pleasant manner. The video aspects are simple - primarily the photograph is displayed and a red marker is used to highlight areas that the commentary is paying particular attention to. This simple approach is a great tool for people like myself to learn from. And, because it is a digital image, Craig (the reviewer) has the ability to actually edit the photo and show what impact some seemingly simple manipulations can make to it.
This vodcast takes an image or a series of images and then critiques them in a constructive and pleasant manner. The video aspects are simple - primarily the photograph is displayed and a red marker is used to highlight areas that the commentary is paying particular attention to. This simple approach is a great tool for people like myself to learn from. And, because it is a digital image, Craig (the reviewer) has the ability to actually edit the photo and show what impact some seemingly simple manipulations can make to it.
Saturday, April 26, 2008 -
Contemporary Photography : Lydia Yee
On Wednesday evening I attended another of the Contemporary Photography talks. This time it was Lydia Yee, curator of the current Barbican exhibition Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art.
She showed imagery of exhibits, as well as of some of the signage that has been used, and explained how they'd organised the exhibition of contemporary art according to anthropological categorisation. So, the exhibition is broken down into sections such as "Kinship and Descent", "Magic and Belief", "Ritual" and "Communication". Amongst the exhibits is a copy of the calibrator that Damian Hirst created to go to Mars on Beagle 2 - it is present because it might well have been one of the first earth based objects that a Martian would come across.
Lydia was a very engaging speaker, and did an excellent job of explaining how the exhibition came together, as well as describing the taxonomy and organisation of it. There are another 2 of these events to go. Next week is Anne Hardy, and the final talk, on the 7th May is Julian Germain.
She showed imagery of exhibits, as well as of some of the signage that has been used, and explained how they'd organised the exhibition of contemporary art according to anthropological categorisation. So, the exhibition is broken down into sections such as "Kinship and Descent", "Magic and Belief", "Ritual" and "Communication". Amongst the exhibits is a copy of the calibrator that Damian Hirst created to go to Mars on Beagle 2 - it is present because it might well have been one of the first earth based objects that a Martian would come across.
Lydia was a very engaging speaker, and did an excellent job of explaining how the exhibition came together, as well as describing the taxonomy and organisation of it. There are another 2 of these events to go. Next week is Anne Hardy, and the final talk, on the 7th May is Julian Germain.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008 -
Contemporary Photography : John Stezaker
This evening I attended a talk as part of a series on Contemporary Photography being staged by Photoworks in conjunction with the MA Photography course of the University of Brighton.
John Stezaker isn't an artist I've come across before, but from this talk I felt I got a really good understanding of the evolution of his works, where he started from, and how his more recent work (the marriage and betrayal series) builds on his work of the past. As with the Joachim Schmid exhibition I saw last year at the Photographers Gallery there still seems something slightly sacrilegious to me about the deliberate destruction of photographs, even to then use these elements to produce something more. In fact, a member of the audience this evening asked John about this, and John accepted this, and said that he couldn't use photos of his family or loved ones in this manner, but was more than comfortable using film stock and postcards. He mentioned that he liked using damaged photographs, and has also used postcards and images from his own past - postcards from his parents when he was a little boy, a picture of Queen Victoria from a book that he scribbled all over as a child.
John recorded a video interview with Tate Britain for Tate Triennial 2006 which gives a flavour of the content of his talk.
There are three more talks in the series, all being held at the Friends Meeting House in Brighton over the next 3 Wednesday evenings. To reserve a place, all you need to do is drop an email to events@photoworksuk.org.
John Stezaker isn't an artist I've come across before, but from this talk I felt I got a really good understanding of the evolution of his works, where he started from, and how his more recent work (the marriage and betrayal series) builds on his work of the past. As with the Joachim Schmid exhibition I saw last year at the Photographers Gallery there still seems something slightly sacrilegious to me about the deliberate destruction of photographs, even to then use these elements to produce something more. In fact, a member of the audience this evening asked John about this, and John accepted this, and said that he couldn't use photos of his family or loved ones in this manner, but was more than comfortable using film stock and postcards. He mentioned that he liked using damaged photographs, and has also used postcards and images from his own past - postcards from his parents when he was a little boy, a picture of Queen Victoria from a book that he scribbled all over as a child.
John recorded a video interview with Tate Britain for Tate Triennial 2006 which gives a flavour of the content of his talk.
There are three more talks in the series, all being held at the Friends Meeting House in Brighton over the next 3 Wednesday evenings. To reserve a place, all you need to do is drop an email to events@photoworksuk.org.
Saturday, January 26, 2008 -
Braun PixelBank - first impressions
I have recently bought a Braun PixelBank as a backup for my photographs whilst I'm on the move. I had a set of criteria which were:
I unpacked the box and found some nice features - they've included screws and a screwdriver so that you can change the hard drive if you so wish - it takes a standard 2.5" one. One disappointment was that the power supply has a European plug so an adapter is necessary. I couldn't find one around the house, so used the provided USB cable to charge the unit up initially. I left it charging overnight, to ensure it got a good solid charge, and when I looked at it this morning the LED had changed from red (charging) to green (charged).
I took a selection of photographs on 2 different SD cards, and 1 xD card and put the cards in one at a time. Next to the power button there is a play button, and pressing this starts the copying process. There is a % count displayed whilst the copying happening, ending at 100%. If you leave the machine to do this, don't be surprised if it turns itself off after doing the copy, it has an auto shut off to protect battery life. Displayed on the right of the unit is the remaining capacity of the unit. It is probably worth doing some mental arithmetic to validate the saving by checking that the capacity is decreasing as you'd expect.
Attaching the PixelBank to the computer via the USB cable results in the screen lighting up, with just the HDD and USB signs being displayed.
Opening the drive in Finder, shows a top level folder named CARDS. Under this is a folder for every card copy that has been done. The folders are prefixed with SD for an SD card (presumably also for MMC and MS), SM for an xD card (presumably also for SM) and according to the manual CF for CF or MD cards. The cards are then numbered sequentially, so the first card is SD0001, the second SD0002 etc. There is no different naming conventions for different physical cards - I copied my first SD card twice (SD0001 and SD0002), and the second one once (SD0003). The data stored is a full copy of the disc, so includes any extra files that get stored by the camera (e.g. NIKON001.DSC for my Nikon D80).
So, there ends the first impressions. I'll add more thoughts as I use it and rely on it more.
- Reads SD cards
- Reads xD cards
- Accepts Nikon Raw format
- Works with a Mac
- At least 40GB
I unpacked the box and found some nice features - they've included screws and a screwdriver so that you can change the hard drive if you so wish - it takes a standard 2.5" one. One disappointment was that the power supply has a European plug so an adapter is necessary. I couldn't find one around the house, so used the provided USB cable to charge the unit up initially. I left it charging overnight, to ensure it got a good solid charge, and when I looked at it this morning the LED had changed from red (charging) to green (charged).
I took a selection of photographs on 2 different SD cards, and 1 xD card and put the cards in one at a time. Next to the power button there is a play button, and pressing this starts the copying process. There is a % count displayed whilst the copying happening, ending at 100%. If you leave the machine to do this, don't be surprised if it turns itself off after doing the copy, it has an auto shut off to protect battery life. Displayed on the right of the unit is the remaining capacity of the unit. It is probably worth doing some mental arithmetic to validate the saving by checking that the capacity is decreasing as you'd expect.
Attaching the PixelBank to the computer via the USB cable results in the screen lighting up, with just the HDD and USB signs being displayed.
Opening the drive in Finder, shows a top level folder named CARDS. Under this is a folder for every card copy that has been done. The folders are prefixed with SD for an SD card (presumably also for MMC and MS), SM for an xD card (presumably also for SM) and according to the manual CF for CF or MD cards. The cards are then numbered sequentially, so the first card is SD0001, the second SD0002 etc. There is no different naming conventions for different physical cards - I copied my first SD card twice (SD0001 and SD0002), and the second one once (SD0003). The data stored is a full copy of the disc, so includes any extra files that get stored by the camera (e.g. NIKON001.DSC for my Nikon D80).
So, there ends the first impressions. I'll add more thoughts as I use it and rely on it more.
// posted by Jane @ 12:29 PM
Comments:
Hi Jane,
I bought exactly the same storagedevice like you. I´m happy with it. You can change the harddrive if you want and the battery is changeable too. I use this for my holidays last summer. It´s doing his job well. Just the transfer rate could be faster :-)
Have fun with it!
I bought exactly the same storagedevice like you. I´m happy with it. You can change the harddrive if you want and the battery is changeable too. I use this for my holidays last summer. It´s doing his job well. Just the transfer rate could be faster :-)
Have fun with it!
# posted by 
: January 30, 2008 8:13 PM
: January 30, 2008 8:13 PM
Hi Jane
By coincidence I have just bought one of these devices, also from Park Cameras - though I collected mine in person. You might want to contact them, because the one I got contains a UK power lead as well as a European one.
What attracted me was the prospect of being able to change the disk drive and the battery. Such a change from the usual "no user serviceable parts" syndrome. In a few years much bigger drives will be cheaply available; indeed I already have a dead laptop with a perfectly good drive in it.
Michael Hooker, Surrey
By coincidence I have just bought one of these devices, also from Park Cameras - though I collected mine in person. You might want to contact them, because the one I got contains a UK power lead as well as a European one.
What attracted me was the prospect of being able to change the disk drive and the battery. Such a change from the usual "no user serviceable parts" syndrome. In a few years much bigger drives will be cheaply available; indeed I already have a dead laptop with a perfectly good drive in it.
Michael Hooker, Surrey
Tuesday, October 9, 2007 -
Review: The Camera Phone Book: How to shoot like a pro
Having recently bought a Nokia 6110 Navigator, a phone with a 2MP camera, I wondered what helpful hints and tips this book could give me.
The book is split into 5 chapters which cover
- Choosing a camera phone
- Taking Pictures
- After the snap
- The camera phone community
- Troubleshooting
As I had already bought my phone based on other functionality, much of the advice in chapter one was too late for me although there was still a good section on accessories along with appropriate links.
Unsurprisingly many of the techniques in the Taking photos chapter are the standard set - rule of thirds, using ISO settings to compensate for lack of light, shutter speed and aperture etc etc. The camera on my phone doesn't allow access to all of these settings.
After the snap concentrates on what happens next - covering printing, sharing on mobile social networks (including some I'd never heard of - like fotochatter), digital frames and of course on-line galleries.
The community chapter covers mobile blogging, more about on-line galleries and camera phone cinema (I didn't realise there were camera phone festivals) including linnks and reviews of a number of providers of the various services.
The final chapter, troubleshooting, is what you'd expect but has an intersting paragraph about what to do if you've dropped your phone into salt water, chlorinated water or a fizzy drink (wash it in distilled water apparently).
All in all a great introductory book to the world of cameras in general, but obviously with a heavy mobile bias. The included links are relevant, and useful and all come with an explanation of what the service/site has to offer.
Review by Jane Dallaway, October 2007
Saturday, February 17, 2007 -
Which DSLR?
After 4 years of solid use, the time has come to say goodbye to the trusty Canon Powershot G3 and upgrade to a DSLR. As the last 2 digital cameras had been Canons, then I'd assumed I would remain true to the cause and remain a Canon girl. I have no lenses and therefore free choice at the moment.
My initial thoughts were to go for a Canon EOS 400D, and so I headed off to Jessops to try it out. I got on ok with the system, but it felt a bit too plasticky, and felt somewhat unbalanced with a larger lens on it. I began to think that I needed something in the "semi-pro" range instead of the prosumer range.
I continued to read up on options, and to ask about for recommendations. The next stop was to go into Clock Tower Cameras, here in Brighton which was a master stroke. The gentleman behind the counter was knowledgable, and patient and extended my models to consider by introducing me to the Pentax cameras. As always I'd headed off armed with 2 memory cards - one CF and one SD - and so proceeded to snap away and try them out. What became apparent very quickly was how much more robust the Pentax 100D felt in comparison to both the Canon 400D and the Nikon D40. Based on that, and the ease of use, in this range the Pentax would be the one.
But now I'd started thinking about the next range of cameras, so the Nikon D80, the Pentax K10D and the Canon 30D, so back to Jessops to hold and try. In this range, the Nikon and Canon catch up on robustness, and so there was no clear winner on this factor. I plugged all three models into the Digital Photography Review side-by-side comparator to get an idea of the differences.
The flickr Camera Finder has proven useful giving the ability to see what photos have been taken with each of the cameras:
Pentax K10D
Nikon D80
Canon EOS 30D
Unfortunately, it doesn't break it down by lens, but does give an idea.
After reading the reviews, it is between the Nikon and the Pentax (read the hands-on report), so a complete change from my original thoughts, I am leaning towards the Pentax at the moment, but I think another trip to the camera shop is required, to try a few more settings based on what I've read - including the Adobe RAW format on the Pentax K10D as all my test shots were taken as JPEGs.
My initial thoughts were to go for a Canon EOS 400D, and so I headed off to Jessops to try it out. I got on ok with the system, but it felt a bit too plasticky, and felt somewhat unbalanced with a larger lens on it. I began to think that I needed something in the "semi-pro" range instead of the prosumer range.
I continued to read up on options, and to ask about for recommendations. The next stop was to go into Clock Tower Cameras, here in Brighton which was a master stroke. The gentleman behind the counter was knowledgable, and patient and extended my models to consider by introducing me to the Pentax cameras. As always I'd headed off armed with 2 memory cards - one CF and one SD - and so proceeded to snap away and try them out. What became apparent very quickly was how much more robust the Pentax 100D felt in comparison to both the Canon 400D and the Nikon D40. Based on that, and the ease of use, in this range the Pentax would be the one.
But now I'd started thinking about the next range of cameras, so the Nikon D80, the Pentax K10D and the Canon 30D, so back to Jessops to hold and try. In this range, the Nikon and Canon catch up on robustness, and so there was no clear winner on this factor. I plugged all three models into the Digital Photography Review side-by-side comparator to get an idea of the differences.
The flickr Camera Finder has proven useful giving the ability to see what photos have been taken with each of the cameras:
Pentax K10D
Nikon D80
Canon EOS 30D
Unfortunately, it doesn't break it down by lens, but does give an idea.
After reading the reviews, it is between the Nikon and the Pentax (read the hands-on report), so a complete change from my original thoughts, I am leaning towards the Pentax at the moment, but I think another trip to the camera shop is required, to try a few more settings based on what I've read - including the Adobe RAW format on the Pentax K10D as all my test shots were taken as JPEGs.
// posted by Jane @ 6:31 PM
Comments:
Hey, I recently went through exactly the same DSLR dilemma :)
I was going to go for the 350D or 400D, but as soon as i picked them up, i found they were too plasticy and too small for my hands.
After trying a lot of DSLRs in Jessops, and researching them all on the net, i eventually returned to buy the Nikon D70s - a lovely, lovely camera at a good price, and the kit lens is great - 18-70mm :D
To be honest, all of the DSLRs are great, and whatever you buy, you're pretty much going to be happy!
One quick thing which you're no doubt aware of - if you want an AF lens with the D40, you need to get a newer lens with the focusing motor built into the lens, which are more expensive.
I was going to go for the 350D or 400D, but as soon as i picked them up, i found they were too plasticy and too small for my hands.
After trying a lot of DSLRs in Jessops, and researching them all on the net, i eventually returned to buy the Nikon D70s - a lovely, lovely camera at a good price, and the kit lens is great - 18-70mm :D
To be honest, all of the DSLRs are great, and whatever you buy, you're pretty much going to be happy!
One quick thing which you're no doubt aware of - if you want an AF lens with the D40, you need to get a newer lens with the focusing motor built into the lens, which are more expensive.
Jane,
Get the K10D. I looked at all the others and picked the Pentax. Image quality is, to all intents and purposes, identical whichever camera you choose. The deciding factors for me were the Pentax's superior build quality/weather sealing, the in-body anti shake, the fact you can use lots of older, cheaper Pentax lenses with it and the availability of top quality, compact and light DA prime lenses. It's not perfect-no camera is-but it was the best of the bunch for me. Having said that, make your own mind up. Handle them all and get the one that you feel most comfortable with, everything else being equal.
Regards,
Bruce
Get the K10D. I looked at all the others and picked the Pentax. Image quality is, to all intents and purposes, identical whichever camera you choose. The deciding factors for me were the Pentax's superior build quality/weather sealing, the in-body anti shake, the fact you can use lots of older, cheaper Pentax lenses with it and the availability of top quality, compact and light DA prime lenses. It's not perfect-no camera is-but it was the best of the bunch for me. Having said that, make your own mind up. Handle them all and get the one that you feel most comfortable with, everything else being equal.
Regards,
Bruce
Tuesday, August 24, 2004 -
Digital vs Film
According to Guardian Unlimited, The British arm of Ilford, one of the most famous names in black-and-white photography, has been forced into administration. Ilford has the lion share of the global black and white market, and is suffering, this doesn't bode well for the other players.
