My Passion For Photography Has Been Revived

Wow!!
 
I see that it has been over 6 months now since I last did an update to this blog of mine....  So what has changed then / happened it the last six months then ? 

Well lets see, to start with then I did manage to break my Nikon D90 via working with it in heavy torrential rain as a journalist.  Which did then see Nikon point out to me when I contacted them, that it is not a manufatures fault but instead it is an "Operators" fault not only that but Nikon also pointed out to me that the do not advise any Photographers to take any Nikon branded products near any water / liquids whatsoever.   Also I just have to add that my Nikon SB900 also has developed a fault too as it's "CLS Flash's" are not working and it's no surprise that it was the SB900 speelight that I was using that day with my Nikon D90 when I broke the D90.  But it's not all doom and gloom people cause I still have my trusty old Nikon D40, yes it may be a 6 mega pixel camera but O'boy that DSLR sure knows how to help the photographer create an image even if they are limited to their creativity by it.

So what else has changed then with me in the last 6 months ?   Perhaps the biggest change that has happened to me in the last 6 months and perhaps is the main reason why I don't Blog as much here on Blogger is that I have developed a strong passion for making Videos now, so I'm always Vlogging on YouTube instead of Blogging here on Blogger.  Don't get me wrong my passion for Photography is still there, but I just find that with Photography that it's just so frustrating for me to know that I'm an "Off Camera Flash Photographer" (NB:  hence my alias Strober) in addition to being a "People Photographer"... but the main point is, is that Models / People don't want to get up off their butts in order to help me make mind blowing "creative lighting images"....  I think it's that would "work" that the don't like doing here and instead they would just rather "walk around pretending that they are that next upcoming Model", instead of "living the dream, and being that Model in real life...

Any way as I say my passion for Photography is still there, but I know when I have to move on.....  So it's Videography that is filling this gap here.... Why Videography you may ask?  Well my answer is if people just don't want to do anything other than  just sit on there butts all day and do nothing other than watch Television then I might as well go out and do something more productive and creative whilst releating / aiming it at the television / social media industry.

Not only that but Videography is offering me new challenges that Photography has not been offering me of late... for example in Videography you kinda get to work the same way as a photographer but this time you also have to concentrate on getting your "sound / audio" correct too, which is for sure not easy.  In photography the first thing you learn is

1)  ISO
2) Aperture
3)  Shutter Speed

Well in in the video game it works like this

1)  Gain
2)  Exposure
3) Shutter Speed

You see... Videography is offering these new challenges that again Photography at the minute is just not offering me.  Not only that but i'm finding that with my stuff, that people are more interested in watching my videos than my looking at my photographs.  Well if you think about it every body watches T.V. don't they ?   Now I opened my YouTube account on the 22nd July 2011 and since that time I have had 59,406 hits on my videos.  Yes, people it may not be a massive amount of hits compared to other YouTube account holders, but I do feel that, this is a humble little success for me.

So what else has happened then ?   Well I've recently meet a Rally Team called DRB Rally Sport and I am currently working on a media project with them.    I've been playing around with "Action Cameras" in their Rally Cars whilst at the same time shooting external shots with my Sony A1E Camcorder.  It was only the other day that I went around to talk to these guys about where it is that we are at with regards to our project ?   I had my trusty 6 mega pixel Nikon D40 with me with a Prime lens of F1.8 and I just decided to shoot a few stills of the lads as they worked on their cars around the work shop.  And that was when it hit me people, my love / passion for the "Art" of Photography hit me like a thug hitting me around the face with a baseball bat.....  The work shop was filled with both Florescent and Tungsten Lighting, now everyone knows under them circumstances then flash is just not needed.  That is if you happen to have a Nikon D40 with a F1.8 lens. 

Below is an example of some of the shots that it is that I was getting....

Moving on I caught up with the boys with regards to the video side of things, then it was suggested that we could do some Photography shots too.....  I agreed, that night and I went home and packed my kit for the very next mornings photo shoot and video shoot.  But just for the purpose of this blog then the photography kit that I did pack was

1)  1 x Pixel Bishop TX with / 4 x Pixel Bishop RX:  Radio Triggers
2)  4 x SB600 Speedlites
3)  3 x Light Stands
4)  1 X Nikon D40
5)  1 x Tactical Vest (NB:  Has magazine pouch's which SB600's fit into very well :)

When I meet the guys, first thing that morning, they then asked where should the location be for the the photographs ?  I proposed a place to them that I do know which I have wanted to do an "off camera flash" shoot at for ages... as a matter of fact people if the truth be known then I have had "dreams" about this location with regards to making images there.    The lads just said "Let's Go", .......  within about 20 mins we arrived on location and I put on my tactical vest on and started to set up the light stands, and went to work with putting all the radio triggers and speedlites into their correct places.  Now to finish this blog with people... Below is the finished photographs from that mornings shoot.

I enjoyed that shoot just as much as I've enjoyed writing this blog after my six months of absence from it.
Happy Shooting People and Merry Christmas if I don't see you all before it.

Gaz aka Strober

PS:  The very last photograph is of a "Proud Photographer" standing in one of his "own images"

Pixel King I-TTL For Nikon

It's finally here.... it's the new Pixel King (Nikon Version) which is finally here.

I've had my set for a few weeks now and indeed I am very impressed with this little Radio Trigger.  It boosts an astonishing 8000th a second sync speed.  And so far I've tested it at 4000th a second on my Nikon D90 (NB:  Which is my D90's fastest Shutter Speed) and it's just perfection, time after time again.  Not only that but I really wished that I had the money in the first place to buy that DSLR that shoots at 8000th of a second any way.

Right moving on then, there is a little bit of bad news for us Nikon shooters with regards to the new Pixel King (Nikon Version).  This is to say that we thought that we would be able to control the behaviour of our speedlites with the Pixel King (Nikon Version) just as if we were working with the Nikon Creative Lighting System.  Now it most be noted that this is just NOT the case and instead we are actually limited as to what it is that we can control wirelessly with the Pixel King (Nikon Version).

 Here is a working example of what it is that I mean, let us say that I am shooting on I-TTL and I want to switch my speedlite over to a "Manual" setting..... well in this working example I can NOT change this setting on the speedlite via my DSLR or Pixel King wirelessly.  As once again we Nikon shooters are limited as to what it is that we can control with our speedlites wirelessly.

On the other hand though if your a Canon shooter, then guess what your luck is in here lads, this is because you guys can in fact do the above working example with your speedlites no problem.  What I have learnt recently is that Canon shooters have an extra setting in their menus that allow them to wirelessly control the behaviour of their external speedlite / flash systems which is a feature that Pixel has taken advantage of. But once again for us Nikon Shooters then we have lost out on this one.

But hey.... don't let that put you off... because again look at what it is that we have got, we have an I-TTL Trigger, with a max sync speed of 8000th of a second (WOW!!).  It has an effective operational range of 100 meters (more than enough) and allows us to control our Nikon Cameras wirelessly with our speedlites via three ways.  These three ways are.....

1)  ISO        
2)  Apeture
3)  Expousure Value

Not only that but the Pixel King Nikon Version only costs us £110 "ish" which is in my opinion offering us great savings for an I-TTL Raido Trigger when we compare it to the price of it's competitors (Cough, Cough, LPA Designs Pocket Wizards, Cough, Cough).

Of course the Pixel King is the big brother of the Pixel Bishop.  And indeed both the King and the Bishop do share the same body. However, it has to be noted that Pixel has been busy adding some extra cosmetic improvements onto the body of the King over it's little brother the Bishop.  The Kings Transmitter now boosts an Auto Focus Illumination Light.  In addition to that, the King also now has "cut outs" on it's lock rings which allows us to insert "coins" into them in order to help assist us with the removing of the units if we happen to of screwed them on to tight in the first place (NB:  Well done Pixel great feature you have added there).  And lastly Pixel has also installed some locking "Pins" onto the foots of the Transmitters and the Receivers in order to add that little bit of additional security to the unit once it is connected to such sources such as your camera or speedlites foot mount.  etc... etc...

For more infomation on the Pixel King then head on over to http://www.ukhighland.co.uk or alternatively watch my video below.

Regards

Strober

PS:  I've also included some example images in this blog which I have taken with the my Kings and 1 Nikon D90 and 1 SB600 (Pics Just Below My Video).

New Camera: GoPro Hero Motorsports

Well it has been a very sunny week this week and I had only just got my brand new GoPro Hero Camcorder at the start of it... Anyway I decided to take my GoPro Hero Camcorder in addition to my Mountain Bike over to Mam Tor (Mountain) in the Peak District and make a video.  This is the very end result of that video.

The GoPro Camcorder is a Professional Camcorder, that is for sure.  However, there are a few nibbles that I do have with regards to it.  They are.....

A)  the mounts only allow you to turn the camcorder in 90 degree turns.  (Swivel & Lock would of been better here GoPro).
B)  you can not preview your composure on the GoPro so you can't be 100% sure that the shot you want is the actual shot that it is that you are going to get.  However I have learnt a new trick, which involves taking a photo onto the GoPro memory card and using an external device to preview that image in order to view my fixed composure.
C)  I really hate the noise that the microphone does pick up on the GoPro when it's inside it's water proof housing. Honestly that noise quality sucks and makes me cringe all the time.  Plus I don't understand why GoPro installed a microphone onto the GoPro Hero in the fist place as you have to use the water proof mount to mount the GoPro on to everything i.e. bikes, people, helmets, roll cage etc... etc...

Any way to finish, then out of 10 I would give the GoPro hero 8.

Cheers

Strober

Asrock Instant Boot Up On My Desk Top PC

Ok so I took the leap recently and invested in a decent Windows PC for my photo / video editing work.  I ended up buying a system that ran the AMD Phenom ii x6 1055t processor.  One of the additional features that did come with this system was the "Asrock Instant Boot" feature which I am pretty impressed with..... just watch my video below and you will see just how fast the Asrock Instant Boot really is with regards to starting / booting up your Windows Desk Top.  Over all i'm impressed with my new computer and look forward to working / editing my videos & photos on it.

Just thought I'd share the Instant Boot thing with you all though...... Strober........

Shooting wispers of Smoke

I've been meaning to photograph wisps of smoke for some time now and it was only yesterday (18th Jan 2012) that I did give this theme a go.

So I set up one SB600 and activated it via commander on my Nikon D90's flash.  As a result these are the final images that I did produce.

Also if you want a more detailed look at my set up then just watch the video below and it will give you a better insight as to how I made these images.

To finish with I was pleasantly surprised when I seen a young woman in a dress in one of these wisps of smoke looking back at me, when I look at the higher resolution of the image then I can even make out her face too.  Some would call it spooky, but I for one call it cool :)

Enjoy

Strober

Painting By Light

I was bored so I decided that I would go out in the middle of the night and make a new video for my YouTube channel with regards to Light Painting.

So off I went on my travels into the deep dark night.  I ended up finding this derelict building which was pretty cool.  But at the same time it was NOT that cool..... this is because part of the floor gave way on me and seen me plunge into the basement beneath it.  So beware if you are looking at going into derelict buildings for what ever reason then remember that derelict buildings are dangerous at the same time and you enter them at your own risk.

Any way I ended up making my video (which you can see below) and these are the finished images from that shoot.  Enjoy

Strober

PS:  Yes that is the hole that I feel through into the basement at the end :)