New Directions, both in art and science

ART:

For the rather, somewhat inaccurate, "longest time" now, I've been writing in this blog sporadically. Whenever I felt I had found a topic to discuss. I love photography and I enjoy pulling out my XT, 5D and more recently, my iPhone (4s!), which I have found quite a few little 1x1 type photography apps that I have come to love and loathe.

Of particular interest here are the following two:
LEME CAM
and
RETRO CAMERA

Both are fun little apps that give you that oh-so-wonderful retro 1x1 look. Sometimes, the results are not that great, but given that these apps are programmed to mimic the very same thing that made some "toy" cameras so popular, one should expect less than desirable results.

Only downside to these two apps... NO FLASH! [Although, flash is mimicked in 1 or 2 of the modes within either]

I like the iPhone for the freedom it has afforded me in terms of photography. I use a MEC Sling Bag - which an acquaintance was quick to point out last night, I usually overload. Taking the 5D, 70-200, both flashes and possibly some other items, can weigh me down a lot. In some cases, it can aggravate my shoulder (which I injured 2x different times many years ago).

Still, I plug away with all three options at my disposal. Perhaps in the near future I can consolidate down. But given that the iPhone apps have awoken within me, a love for the stupidity that film can produce, I may just finally add the Minolta to the bag.

SCIENCE:

I've been somewhat aimless as of late and decided that I needed to do something with my life, to make it better. I've decided that enough was enough, and working in client support for the Investor/Public relations’ field was something I no longer wanted to do. As such, I enrolled myself into a Communications and Public Relations course at the local community college, which incidentally, is my Alma matter, if that means anything. Centennial College is conveniently down the road for me, and taking this course means that I will be able to move into a new role, and be the guy that sends the information for guys like me to send out to the wires.

Lacking any real usable skills outside of my former vocation, made me make this decision. I have all the basics already to succeed in CCPR, and I'm hoping that I can take this one on and walk away Dean's listed. The only time in my life I ever made the Dean's list was in my first 2 semesters at Centennial, the first time around.

Given that I'm 30min walk away from CC's East York Campus, have basic skills already, and the course being an intense 2 semesters, I think I can do this. I know I can do this. I WILL do this.

So, what's that mean for Bringing The Light? Perhaps more posts - more regular posts - more, well written posts with proper grammar, spelling and such. ;)

I like writing... I just never get around to it. With what looks to be on the horizon, I'm gonna have to start loving writing, for the sake of my grades.

*crickets chirp*

Hi there, intrepid travellers, readers and assorted others.

As you can no doubt notice from my previous entry, I haven't been here in a long while.

I haven't forgotten about this place. I have just gotten weary of the difficulty it takes for me to sit down and think of what I want to say and so on, so forth.

Suffice to say, i'm not shutting down. I'm re...developing.

I'm heavily considering a migration to another blog system and once there, chances are my aims will be vastly different from here. In other words, I'm thinking of changing the focus of my blogging joie de vie. [is that the right expression?]

Now, I still shoot, and I hope all of you out there do too. I haven't changed anything up much, gear wise - though, I have rented a lens or two along the way. I have a new love, in all things Canon... the 24-70mm 2.8L. It's a heavy piece of machinery that is ungodly versatile for people like me. If i had the money, I would have two full frame bodies with the 24-70 on one, and a 70-200 on the other. All other lenses would be shamed.

Kaput!

I was running a fan page on Facebook for photography. But it seems that Facebook has decided to kill that page.

After doing a quick bit of reading, I think I'm going to opt for a Facebook Group, as a way to revive my personal space for the photography

There are definite advantages and disadvantages to either. Allfacebook.com has this nifty graph outlining them. Problem is, deciding which is better for my photography.


I think i'm gonna give the Facebook group thing a whirl. See where that goes.

Upgrading... and admiring. [not in that order]

One thing I don't do, as a photographer - amateur or otherwise - is claim myself as a strobist.

Really, I don't. With great irony, I don't.

I love all the work that David Hobby has put into his website, and I love the way he has created a following on such a basic principle. He has brought a beautiful technicality to that part of the equation that it is, if anything, nothing short of awe-inspiring.

I suppose, to a small degree I am trying to do the same [with this blog], but I am not methodical (nor professional) enough to lay down a gauntlet, in respect to photography. Although, I could probably do so with working with Alternative Glass and building a database like pBase [but more informative]. I certainly have quite a few (lenses) in my possession, and through creating a formulae, I'm sure I could build up a nice single-contributor pbase rival for that purpose. If i do that, I may have to rebrand this blog again! [insert perfunctory LOL here]

The inherent problem with the title I chose is that, in talking about Lens, i am not talking about lighting, and through virtue of extension, not bringing light to anything. Perhaps, i'm shedding light on subjects rarely discussed? [insert strong LOL here]

I ramble too much. [insert annoying LOL here]

Having said that, for the last 9months, I've been working with the Canon 5D. A magnificent camera that has yielded some rather awe-inspiring photos every so often, for me. I also upgraded my flash system, returning the well loved SB-28 back to it's rightful owner, my de facto mentor - Scott [aka Thinkincolor], and acquiring a Canon 430EX for my primary flash system. The Quantaray QF30 remains, as before, my backup flash - on the ready with fully charged Eneloops in it's bay, just in case the 430EX or its batteries fail. This is, by no means, a plug for the QF30. It's a crap flash that is only redeemed by the fact that it is dedicated and TTL. Unfortunately, the former works against it as it cannot be used with off-camera wireless flash systems, such as the Pt-04 "Cactus" triggers, or the Yongnuo RF-602 trigger. The RF-602's were a small upgrade for me as well, this past summer.

Also, acquired for my kit... A DECENT TRIPOD! I got an Induro cx-114 last month, and my chances to use it, have been so far, very limited. It is a great tripod, nonetheless. I just don't have a tripod head for it yet, so i've been stuck with using it only when i bolt the camera on directly, which is never ideal. But at least, I haven't been forced to lug around a heavy tripod. Thank god for Carbon Fibre!

...But I digress [see what I mean about not being methodical?]

THE REAL UPGRADES I'VE BEEN MEANING TO TALK ABOUT

Flash/light modification is always key to a good photo. Something that my kit has been lacking is exactly that - light modification. I've been using my flashes as is all this time, with them either direct or bounced. Rarely, i slap on a snoot or grid, but more often than not, those don't work with the kind of shooting I do. On occasion, I have relied on bounce cards - which more often than not, have been playing cards or white cardboard, strapped on via elastic. I have recently moved over to scrap Chloroplast instead, as it is stronger and more durable.

Chloroplast by the way, is awesome for macro light tents.

So, I've decided that I need to get more out of my flash and to do that, I'm getting diffusers. I was only going to get one type, but I realized that I would still be limiting myself, so i went both with sto-fen and lambency types. The former, being a cheapie from Hong Kong, costing me $1.60cdn, the latter, ten times more. The beauty is, I can use both of them at the same time, theoretically. The Lambency is a rubbery kind that slips over, and i'm assuming with enough give to go over the sto-fen. [For the record, I did not get a Gary Fong... i went with an unbranded knock-off]

Lambency Type Flash Diffuser Mounted to an older Canon Flash

Also being added to the kit is an optical slave. As you recall, the QF-30 flash is far from great, but I hope to expand it's abilities and use, within my kit, by adding an optical slave to it. It's my hope that I can get more into proper strobing with it on optical slave. The funny thing is, I had given thought to selling it on Craigslist. Maybe I will still, but not until after I give the optical thing a shot. At the very least, I might be able to use it in conjunction with the 430ex this way, and with the Rebel's on-camera pop-up flash.

Outside of that, I'm thinking about upgrading my knowledge too. I've been hemming and hawing over buying a few books off Amazon. If i do go through with them, I'll of course review them here. I should give reviews for the books i have already... there's an idea! (right off the bat, I will highly recommend Michael Freeman's books, as they are a nice middle-of-the-road approach; using both inspirational and manual styles.)

Updates

Well... as much as I would like to update this more often, I've been busy lately.

Truth be told, the rapid-fire postings that I did in the tail-end of the last year were partly in thanks to a lack of employment. I had time to think things over and write up a few posts.

Sadly, I've been drafting 2 different posts on my laptop for the last month or so, but haven't written enough in either case to allow me to bother with posting. One is a correction to a previous post which I feel that I need a little help with completing properly and the other is a bit of a run-down/top-10 list of sites that I feel need to be made more public... at least, in top-10 list form. All of them, of course, being Photographer's sites.

Nonetheless, I think I may need to heed the advice of a former colleague and develop a schedule for myself. Every monday... write a post. Actually, his advice was every wednesday...but even he abandoned that in favour of a higher frequency, which to my chagrin is something I cannot do, but works fantastically for him. He discusses near-political and transit-based matters, which provide a lot of fodder for him. Give him a read at www.actsofminortreason.com.
[p.s his blog's name is meant to be ironic, but his content is not]

Having said that... I think I'm done for this post. I've said my piece (or is it Peace?)

See you losers in another 2 months. :P :)

Flashing and Streaking...

Having started this blog just a few days ago, explaining how I would like to focus my efforts on key subjects, I thought of the regularity of which said subjects could be discussed. Since, Wednesday was a car-blogging, then maybe another day can be a photography blogging? Friday, being the beginning of the weekend, I could discuss music. However, one could argue that it would be wiser to discuss music at the end of the weekend, after I have either a) downloaded and/or purchased new music or b) heard something new. Either way, I haven't got a concrete schedule that I can adhere to yet, and this early in the game, I probably shouldn't.

Today, is my first photo-blog entry, and I'm not sure what to talk about this (first) time. I suppose I can talk about some of the small little tricks I have learned in my short time as a serious, yet still amatuer photographer.

First, this is not just advice for photography, but for life. Start cheap. This isn't because you can get by with cheap, but rather because it's better to learn with cheap, growing into better equipment. I doubt some of the greatest photographers like Leibowitz or Adams started with the cameras that they took their most famous pictures with. The point i'm trying to make here is, it's with the less expensive equipment that you can get started and going. From the less expensive, you can learn the basics and some of the advanced too (if you're brave enough to explore some of the crazy features in your camera - I for one, am still looking for an opportunity to use MLU)

Second - Auto... learn to use it, learn to love it. It's in this mode that you can capture amazing shots without thinking. Why miss out on a killer shot by mucking about with your fancy Manual settings, when you don't have to? I started shooting Auto and Night-time before I ultimately moved to Tx (shutter priority). From Shutter Priority, I moved briefly to Aperture Priority (Ax), only to go back, before i went to Full Manual. It was in September of 2008, that I first went manual, successfully. To this day, I am still proud of that shot

Third -If anything I have learned [okay, observed] it's that if you find yourself in a photographic slump, there's 3 things you can do about it.

1) Do a little research on the net for tips and tricks.
I like to visit these three sites:
a) Strobist
b) DIYphotography
c) Instructables [note: i don't have a direct link for their photo stuff... couldn't find it]

Without a doubt, the modern digital photographer should be going to the first. The frugal and/or photographing newcomer, should be going to the the second and third as well. The latter two are actually good suggestions for getting close to professional results via methods that... well, professionals would balk at. Can't knock a cool photo now, can you? Anyhow... having said that, some of the projects on those two sites circumvent some crappy aspects of amatuer photography as well... like that of flashing with more power.

2) Join a photo club/blog/site.
If you're on Facebook, like so many of us are, there are hundreds of photoclubs. I alone, am in 3 different clubs, but I will admit, I don't really go to two of them often. I have found that these photoclubs can be a boon to a photographer looking for a challenge and for ideas. The reason being is, you can get a glimpse into what others are taking photos of. I do have to say though, I have a bit of a problem with some groups as they will allow users of point and shoot cameras in their contests, which i think is kind of cheating. More to the point, P&S users don't understand EXIF or the difficulty in making settings work. I'll admit, there are some fancy P&S cameras out there that do have full manual modes in them, but none have the control of a decent SLR. At least, in my experience. (Though the S5 and G9 are rather good).

Having said that... photoblogs and clubs are great for lists of ideas. Here's a sample list of what you can take pictures of:

Machinery * Religious Celebrations * Earth/Wind/Fire/Water * Around the House * Graffiti * Diagonals * Technology * Time * Glass/Crystal * Spring * Trees * Games * Feathers * Gardens * Many * Family Fun * At the Beach * Waterfalls * Architecture * Mountains * Boats/Ships * What's for Dinner? * Symmetry* Ruins * Toys * Pools/Fountains * Weddings * Music * One * Roads/Paths * Fluid * From the Underside * Secret Places * Fences/Walls/Gates * People at Work * Waves * Eggs * Spires/Steeples * Faces * Vases * Square * Attics/Cellars * Landmarks Ice * Centrepieces * Beverages * Grasses * Wood * Demolition * Collections * Books * Running * Fruit/Berries

3) The last suggestion is more of an idea that I'd rather not suggest, but it should be considered.

PUT THE CAMERA DOWN - at least for a while. I have found that the best way to get around a slump is to not be bothered by said slump. Putting the camera away for a while will force an abandonment of some bad techniques (theoretically) and will give you fresh eyes when you return to it. Sometimes, it helps to put it away so you can give thought to a technique you'd like to try. Thinking is good. Compose the shot as best as you can in your mind - think of how you need to set everything up and how to get there with your (available) equipment.

Having said all this... I'm currently trying to think through aperture designs for my Lensbaby.
My current project is attempting to create a zone plate for my lensbaby. Understandably, the creative aperture that I will eventually create will not be a true zone plate, but it will be the closest damn thing i can get to one. Naturally, a pinhole will be the easiest to accomplish (drill a hole in the aperture disk and bam! pinhole.

It was a Dark and Stormy Night...

It seems fitting that I should start some sort of writing this way, with that headline. Not because I'm a poor writer, or a fan of Bulwer-Lytton (or any other Victorian novelists), but rather, for the fact that I am a fan of good, simple writing. And an example that I recently enjoyed reading (finally) was Madeleine L'Engle's "A Wrinkle in Time". A novel that I have gone on far too long without reading. Many have asked me where i got my nickname from, and it wasn't from that book, but i can see their fascination with asking me that - it's one of those words you always wished you took for yourself as a nickname/handle. Well... HA! I took it, so there! Suckers!

But back to the serious - so, why the headline? Because that's how the famous novel starts. Well, actually, it starts with the chapter title, "Mrs. Whatsit", but that's being overly technical. I'm not sure why L'Engle made that the opening line, but it did set the tone well, unlike Bulwer-Lytton.

The fact of the matter is, last night was in fact dark, and it certainly was raining, but it was far from being stormy. The weather was rather unremarkable, yet still annoying. I for one, do not like walking home from the subway when the clouds break and shed their excess moisture. I do however - at least if i am not driving that is - enjoy a related weather phenomena: Fog.

Why? because it can add a very strong dynamic to our... static world. Where everything is between black and white, Fog really makes everything fall into the grey area. This has been a bit of a problem for me in regards to my photography, as I have missed quite a few times, the opportunity to go out and take photos of this foggy city. Such as... this morning. Or maybe not.

This morning, has been particularly sunny, moving into a sky filled with partly cloudiness.

So there you have it... the first look at into my thoughts and reasonings.

Now... what am i going to do with this blogspace? Well... I have to let you all know. I am an avid amatuer photographer, picking his way along in the crazy world of image capturing. Learning everything i can that's withing my means and disposal. It hasn't been always easy, but i've had some great results along the way - and i'll admit even that i've had some disappointments, but i've made the best out of those too. So... part of this blog will be about photography.

Another part is... I work as an editor. Particularly as a Copy Editor, working on financial and business media press relation materials. I think. I guess that's a good way of explaining it. I'll admit, the answer for the question "What do you do for a living?" never results in the same answer twice from me, unless I'm being lazy and i just say "Editor".

So, part of my blog will be about the stuff that I come across in my line of work. I have to upfront and honest right away about this... My blog will ONLY contain information that has been made public. And chances are... I'll be writing about stuff more in the media relations side of the job.
That... and stuff I saw on downstream partner websites (i.e. Globe and Mail).

Lastly... I'm going to write about a few random topics. Of particular interest to me are the following: Cars, Archaeology, Music, and of course, Visual Art. The latter being not entirely contained within the realm of real art, but also the bastardization of the visual [e.g. Lolcats, internet memes and the sort].