Things that made my life easier this month:
Nikon D4 with its’ incredible low-light performance.
Nikkor 24mm f/1.4 for it’s amazing sharpness and f/1.4 goodness.
Kessler Pocket Jib for being the most compact and easiest to carry around jib I’ve ever seen.
Edelkrone Slider- for being so compact and easy to use.
Switronix Torch- LED light that goes all night.
GoPro Hero Black- For cool hide-the-camera shots.
Buff Einsteins- Mine broke. Out of warranty. They sent me a new one anyway.
Things that made my life more difficult:
Rode Video Mic Pro- My go to DSLR compact Mic, which insists on having its mount fall apart
Pocket Wizard Flex- My love-hate relationships veered into hate as it failed on an outdoor shoot.
Workshops:
Nikon School Schedule has been announced for 2013-2014. Go to www.nikonschool.com to see the full schedule.
I will be teaching in New York, Hartford, Atlanta, Orlando, Raleigh, Chicago, Palm Beach, DC, Boston. Come out and take the class or at least stop by to say hello.
In the News:
ThinkTank Photo has a great video series called “About a Photograph”
Maybe the stupidest trash the dress session ever. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2365764/Smile-youre-The-moment-brides-wedding-gown-goes-flames-dramatic-Trash-The-Dress-photo-shoot.html
Have you seen the photo of this guy on fire? Not what you think it is…. http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/us/2013/07/17/pkg-photographer-talks-about-viral-lava-volcano-photo.khnl.html
Last chance to purchase the definitive volume on the making of “film”: http://www.makingkodakfilm.com
Ron Vesey talks about all the work that went into making the White Sox team picture. http://vesphoto.net/2010/taking-the-white-sox-team-photo-behind-the-scenes-insight-on-my-tips-tricks-and-lighting-techniques/
Interesting article on wedding photography http://petapixel.com/2013/07/17/unplugged-and-crowdsourced-the-new-age-of-wedding-photography/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PetaPixel+%28PetaPixel%29
Fascinating article on photojournalism in the age of Instagram. http://www.motherjones.com/media/2013/07/bending-the-frame-fred-ritchin-photojournalism-instagram?
Wonderful footage of Niagara Falls shot with a Phantom quadcopter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfoLYTKObiU#at=59
David Gilkey on photographing war: http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2013/07/22/202736337/looking-back-to-move-forward-13-years-of-photographing-afghanistan?utm_source=npr&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=20130722
Collection of photographers pushing the boundaries of time-lapse imagery. http://petapixel.com/2013/07/24/5-people-doing-time-lapse-photography-right/
Instagram secrets of pro photographer Brad Mangin http://blog.photoshelter.com/2013/07/instagram-secrets-from-a-pro-sports-photographer/
April Saul Interview https://nppa.org/page/photo-journal-april-saul
Excuses people use when they steal photos http://petapixel.com/2013/08/03/10-bogus-excuses-people-use-when-they-steal-photos-from-the-web/
Interesting new cloud storage for photographers called Stream Nation. http://twoeight.co/blog/stream-nation-may-solve-the-problem-of-cloud-storage-for-photographers.
Touching blog by a laid-off newspaper photographer http://maddiemcgarvey.com/2013-08-02
Amazing quality still images from a video camera http://filmmakermagazine.com/75331-stunning-first-images-and-video-from-the-red-epic-dragon/
A new look at some old photos http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/08/a-new-look-at-walk-evanss-american-photographs/?_r=1
Can’t resist this timelapse https://vimeo.com/shainblum/mirror
Looking to add a drone to your toolkit? Better learn how to fly it first. http://petapixel.com/2013/08/16/photographer-flies-his-drone-camera-into-the-grooms-head-during-a-bridal-shoot/
Nikon now has a blog covering use of their cameras for video http://cinema.nikonusa.com/blog/
This amazing piece of video from National Geographic utilized remote and robotic cameras. http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/serengeti-lion/index.html
Really interesting article on the “Decisive Moment” http://petapixel.com/2013/08/12/the-decisive-moment-and-the-human-brain/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PetaPixel+%28PetaPixel%29
Interview with author Marvin Hiferman on ihs new book “Photography Changes Everything” http://www.wired.com/rawfile/2013/08/raw-meet-marvin-heiferman/
Behind the scenes at a Seattle Times Photo shoot. http://seattletimes.com/html/picturethis/2021683279_thehandsoftheseahawks.html#.UhmQ6QwlBGQ.facebook
Some great tips on traveling with gear from the folks at StillMotion. http://stillmotionblog.com/2013/08/26/ultimate-travel-guide/
Nice piece on sports photography: http://www.chicagotribune.com/videogallery/77165653/Video-Photographing-sports-from-Payton-to-Jordan
Happy shooting
-Michael