This guy followed my advice, now he’s making BANK: RAWtalk 157
This is the second time Matt has been on the show. The first time was Episode #80 when he had only 30,000 YouTube subscribers. Now he’s back and has raised his number to over 150,000. No he’s not a photographer or videographer, he is a hair dresser. He’s a hairdresser who has built a following and is now sharing with me how he did it so it can help you. Don’t forget that I started with ZERO subscribers and so did Matt, you can learn a lot from what he’s doing to help your business no matter what it is.
We talk all things MisterWives as both Stephen and I shot the show and Todd was there to dance during their last song. I had all access to shoot anything and everything and Stephen had access to the pit.
This weeks show is PLUG FREE because their are five Mondays in November but we wanted to thank VideoBlocks and Atomos for their continued support. It’s because of sponsors like them that we are able to bring this show to you.
We have Gear of the Week and no flying solo but we have the Wheel of FRO. Thank you guys for your continued support and please enjoy the show.
00:00:16 – Show Intro
00:01:22 – MisterWives Show Recap
00:09:44 – Todd’s Dancing Video
00:16:41 – Photo News
00:43:51 – Matt Beck Interview
01:27:57 – Gear of the Week
01:33:32 – Wheel of Fro
Here’s all of Stephen’s photo news stories in detail:
Facebook’s New Technology Can Describe Photos to the Blind
Facebook is working on new technology that will be able to describe photos to the blind. CEO and Founder Mark Zuckerberg says the new Artificial Intelligence tech can “now look at a photo, figure out what’s in it and help explain it to you.” He adds that, “we see AI as helping computers better understand the world — so they can be more helpful to people.” They can do this by training the computer, showing it example images like a dog and telling it what exactly its seeing: a dog. Check out a video below that Zuckerberg shared that shows off the new tech. In they video, they showcase the AI to a couple blind people where the Facebook app literally speaks to them, explaining the photos. It says things like, “this image may contain: outdoor, cloud, foliage, plant, tree,” and “this image may contain: six people, child, closeup.” You may think that’s a very generic description, but they note that it will be able to give a full description soon enough. Facebook AI Research Director Yann Lecun says, “in the future we’ll be able to give a complete description of the image. We have systems in the lab that are able to do this, and they will be deployed over the next few years.” (via PP)
This Wedding Videographer Uses a Scooter For Steady Shots
Wedding videographer Mendel Mish, combines both a self-balancing scooter and a camera for that perfect smooth cinematic look. In a new video, which you can see below, he’s seen filming a bride by twirling around her with the scooter and a GlideCam-like steadicam. The video also contains the resulting footage as well, which if slowed down, would look really cool. But couldn’t you just put on a pair of rollerblades? (via DIYP)
This Photographer Made A Selfie Stick For His Large Format Camera
Moving back in time to older tech, photographer Jesse Chehak took the selfie stick idea and applied it to his Large Format camera. Calling it the Large Format Selfie Stick–or LFSS for short–the contraption consists of a 4×5 Graflex press camera, an 8-foot long pole (that just looks like a giant stick by the way) and a shutter release cable. He’s exposing the images with sheets of Polaroid Type 55 film, which isn’t made anymore. Check out some of the resulting shots here. (via PP)
Photographer Combines a 105-yr-old Lens with a Sony a7 II
Combining the new and old again, photographer Mathieu Stern took a 105-yr-old lens off a 1910 folding camera and mounted it onto a new Sony a7 II body. He attached the lens by using an M42 lens mount which he then attached to bellows (to acquire focus). Then, he used a lens adapter to attach it to the Sony body. He says, “the lens is incredibly sharp for a 105-yr-old lady… but it also gives some strange lens flares and light leaks that are pretty dreamy.” Check out his video below where he shows off the lens along with sample footage from it. You can find photos taken with the lens over on his website. (via PP)
Woman Cites Obsession with Photography as Reason For Divorcing Husband
A woman is divorcing her husband after only about a year of marriage. The odd part about this is that she’s citing her husband’s obsession with photography as the cause. The divorce application states that a woman named Ms. Chien accused her husband, Mr. Cai, of focusing (no pun intended) so much on taking pictures that he lacked empathy towards his family and friends. She says he took his obsession to “an unhealthy level,” photographing at inappropriate times, all the time. Some examples she lists in the court document include when their son was receiving a vaccination injection, the doctor was asked to administer it twice to allow Cai to get a good shot. When the couple woke to their son crying at 2AM. Chien says her husband insisted on pulling out his camera and tripod first instead of taking care of the boy. Her husband also apparently saw opportunities for close ups when his newborn son was going the bathroom and picking his nose. Is this too much? Would you divorce someone over this? (via Bokeh)
Newborn Photo Shoot Photobombed by a Deer
A deer photobombed a newborn portrait shoot. Having held the shoot outside for a Fall look, photographer Megan Rion spotted the deer and took the shot. The curious deer crept up to the 1-month-old boy named Connor, getting as close as about a foot away. The outdoor shoot took place in Sam Houston Jones State Park in Louisiana. Now, apparently the deer was hand fed when she way young, earning the name Maggie, so she’s very comfortable with people. She’s known to be photobombing people’s images too, especially the photographers–so much that she even put together a whole Facebook album dedicated to the deer in her photos. The photographer says “she [Maggie] has a reputation for it and parents even request that she come to shoots, but I let them know there’s no guarantee.” However, she says she always keeps a hand near the baby when the deer approaches “because she [Maggie] is a wild animal.” Check out behind-the-scenes video of the deer approaching and the final image below. (via Yahoo)
Photo by Megan Rion
New Book Reveals That Frederick Douglass Was the Most Photographed American in the 1800’s
A new book called “Picturing Frederick Douglass” reveals that he was the most photographed American in the nineteenth century. The book notes that “neither George Custer nor Walt Whitman, and not even Abraham Lincoln, was the most photographed American of that century. In fact, it was Frederick Douglass (1818–1895), the ex-slave turned leading abolitionist.” Douglass was apparently in love with photography too, the book says “during the four years of Civil War, he wrote more extensively on the subject [photography] than any other American, even while recognizing that his audiences were ‘riveted’ by the war and wanted a speech only on ‘this mighty struggle.’ He frequented photographers’ studios regularly and sat for his portrait whenever he could.” In total, there are 160 surviving portraits of Douglass, which were taken between 1841-1895. The book is now available on Amazon for about $32. (via NYT)
Canon Photographs a Man 6 Times, by 6 Photographers, with 6 Different Perspectives
Canon put together an interesting experiment called “Decoy” which details the power of perspective in photography: ask 6 photographers to take portraits of the same man, but tell them all something different about his background. The photographers were told that Michael, an actor in real-life, was: a millionaire, a life-saver, an ex-con, a commercial fisherman, a psychic, and a recovering alcoholic. Michael, did his best to then take on the personality of each character. In the video which documents the whole shoot, it showcases how each photographer is trying to get to know who Michael is, and how they want to portray him in a photo, as a photographer should do. The alcoholic portrait isolates him, showing a wide shot of him in a very empty room. The millionaire is an intimidating close-up portrait with him smiling. The convict is a dark and gritty photo with him staring at the camera in a mean pose–all very different images. Canon says, “a photograph is shaped more by the person behind the camera than by what’s in front of it.” Check out the resulting photos here. (via PP)
Man Turns His Wife’s Pregnant Belly Into Mini Landscapes
Photographer Simon Schaffrath didn’t want to do those cliche maternity photos like everyone else, so he turned his wife’s pregnant belly into different mini landscapes. He says he worked on every photo for a week, first sketching out each image and considering the angle of light that would be used. Then, he photographed himself in order to place himself into each image as a different character. Next, he took those tiny portraits of himself and what looks like pieces from a train set, some body paint, and Photoshop to create the landscapes. In the resulting images, he made her belly look like an island, her breast look like mountain tops, her stomach appear to be a golf course with her belly button being a hole-in-one, and much more. Schaffrath says, “we got the ideas for the messages for our son and so we considered what would match. ‘You can reach everything’ is The mountain climber. ‘You will find your way’ is the snowboarder in this lonely, snowy, and misty landscape. ‘Enjoy the moment’ is the sunbather on the lonely island. ‘Know your goals’ is the Golfer.” Fun fact too: while shooting, the baby often kicked his wife’s belly, so the paste got some cracks and they had to repair the landscapes constantly. Check out all the photos from the shoot here. (via FS)
Photographer Honors Family’s Late Son by Photoshopping Him In Wedding Photo
An 8-year-old boy named Lake Bozman, who lost his battle with leukemia in May, is being remembered in one family’s wedding photos. The boy’s mother, Anna Bozman, married her now-husband Travis Thompson last month, just months after Lake’s death. Feeling like her wedding wouldn’t be complete without her entire family by her side, Bozman knew she needed to make something happen. She says, “although I felt his presence that day and I was actually happy, it was almost unbearable to take family pictures without him.” However, her photographer, Brandy Angel, was able to have a picture made with her entire family, including him. She super-imposed an image of her late son into the formal family portrait, taking the opacity down quite a bit, making him appear almost ghost-like. Bozman loved it, saying “they turned out (beautifully), and thanks to my amazing photographer, she was able to get some special edits done. I needed this picture more than she or anyone could ever know.” What do you think–is the image tasteful or creepy? (via iTV)
Photo by Brandy Angel
Sony Resurrects the A-Mount, Announces Sony a68
Sony has announced a new APS-C A-mount camera called the Sony a68. The new camera boasts “4D Focus” which uses 79 AF points, the world’s highest among interchangeable cameras with dedicated phase-detection AF sensors. It also has Sony’s Translucent Mirror Technology that allows for super-fast AF tracking and shooting at 8FPS. Other specs include a 24MP Exmor CMOS sensor, an ISO range of 100-25600, in-body SteadyShot image stabilization, and more. The new body will sell for about €600 in Europe starting in March. No word on whether it will hit the States or not. Did you think they would resurrect the A-mount?
