Worst Photographer EVER: RAWtalk 176
This week we critiqued Todd’s latest attempt and shooting photos. This time it wasn’t at a wedding it was at his daughter’s dance meet. I know the title says worst dance photos ever but that may be slightly harsh, they are the second worst ever. Tune in at 30:20.
Check out my new coat, Noah’s fall, Todd’s new car, photo news and much more.
00:00:16 – Show Intro
00:00:38 – Jared’s New Coat
00:02:24 – Noah’s EPIC Fall (Recap)
00:03:40 – #StraightOuttaBalance
00:05:18 – Todd’s New Hybrid Car
00:06:28 – This Week’s Plug
00:08:56 – Photo News
00:30:20 – Let’s Critique Todd’s Photos v2
00:52:47 – Download Lightroom CC Trial
01:03:01 – Wheel of Fro
01:06:40 – AdoramaPix 25% Off Metal Code
01:07:37 – Submit Your Best Noah Falling Meme/GIF to WIN
Here’s Noah’s epic running fall–Best MEME/GIF wins!
Here’s all of Stephen’s photo news stories in detail:
Introducing the Irix: An Ultra Wide 15mm Rectilinear Manual Lens
There’s a new line of lenses by TH Swiss called the Irix lineup. The first one to be announced is their new fixed ultra wide lens which is a 15mm f2.4 lens that they’re calling a “photographer’s dream.” The rectilinear manual-focus lens is designed for Canon, Nikon, and Pentax full frame DSLRs. Spec wise, it has a 95mm filter thread, it’s optimized for 50+ megapixel sensors, and has a minimum focus distance of about one foot. Other features include a focus ring lock, and an “infinity click” feature for when you arrive at infinity focus. The lens also has a rear filter slot along with a filter window on the front to access a screwed on filter while shooting with the hood mounted. It comes in two different variations too: Blackstone and Firefly. Blackstone uses a durable aluminum and magnesium body and engraved markings so it’s a little heavier, where Firefly is the lightweight counterpart and features an ergonomic focusing ring. No word on pricing or availability just yet, but they hope to have it out sometime in the Spring. (via NR)
Here’s a Maternity Shoot…with a Pregnant Dog
Brazilian photographer Ana Paula Grillo did a maternity shoot…with her pregnant dog. The dog, named Lilica, can be seen here rolling in the grass for the camera, posing on a chair, and staring deeply into the camera. Ana says the shoot went well too: “It was amazing, I felt like I understood her completely. She made sensational poses!” Lilica later gave birth to five puppies the very next day. Check out the adorable photo set here. (via BP)
Photo by Ana Paula Grillo
Atomos Releases Upgrade to Shogun/Assassin with New HDR “Flame” Series
Atomos has already released an upgrade to the Shogun and their Assassin recorders. Introducing the new Shogun Flame and Ninja Flame. Atomos hopes to deliver HDR recording to the world with their new field recorders, the same way they paved the road with 4K. Looking nearly identical to the original models, the new flame series has a 7” monitor, which accurately displays 10 stops of luminance detail of Log with 10-bit HDR post production color accuracy, which is a first for field monitors. Their new AtomHDR engine, along with the power of their new 1500nit panel, resolves the dynamic range found in an HDR image—the highlight and shadows— with 10-bit color accuracy, which is 64x more color info than traditional 8-bit monitors (1.07 billion colors compared to the 16.7 million colors of traditional 8-bit panels). This means that the usual complications of exposing Log signals on a washed out image are eliminated – “with AtomHDR you simply frame, expose, focus and shoot.” If you don’t have a need for the new HDR function, you can still utilize the ultra bright screen for shooting standard dynamic range scenes if you switch to High Bright mode for outdoor monitoring, hood free. They also upgraded their power management system, making it hot swappable. And, they’ll come with new battery chargers which are 3x faster than the previous models. The new units will also have built-in bumpers to make them more durable and rugged as opposed to the Ninja Assassin which has a removable bumper. Both units will be available soon, with the Ninja Flame rolling in at $1295 and the Shogun Flame costing $1695. Check out a preview video showcasing all the new features below:
This Helmet Camera Automatically Records Your Life Moments When You Smile
If you want to automatically document moments in your life that make you happy, there’s now a makeshift camera system for that called the Smile Camera. Created by artist Andrew Maxwell-Parish, the new camera is a helmet camera which starts automatically recording when it senses a smile. Here’s how it works: it’s a GoPro camera mounted on a helmet which has sensors attached to your face, which recognizes smiles. Once you smile, it simply begins recording. He says he developed this because he finds that “trying to capture these moments result in pulling yourself out of the moment. Instead of focusing on what it is you are experiencing, you are looking at your camera or phone and making sure it is recording.” He plans on documenting his life experiences with the camera to share to the world. Check it out in action with his demo video below: (via PP)
This Retoucher is Taking Photoshop Requests Quite Literally
A retoucher named James Fridman is taking Photoshop requests quite literally and giving people exactly what they want, whether that’s adjusting their physical appearance, or what’s around them. Check out some examples here; funny stuff! (via Mashable)
Here are the Winners of the 2015 Smithsonian Photo Contest
The winners of the 13th annual Smithsonian Photo Contest have been revealed. 9 winning images were selected from over 46,000 submissions from numerous different countries. The grand prize goes to photographer Ambert Ivan Damanik of Indonesia with his photo called “Remaining on the Slopes of Mount Sinabung”. The image features a dismal cloud of ash rolling down Mount Sinabung with the caption, “Mount Sinabung intermittently spewed burning ash and gas a week after authorities told residents to evacuate the danger zone that lay with within a radius of seven kilometers (4.4 miles) from the crater.” Click here to check out all of the winning photos. Also, you can now submit your own photo for their 2016 contest.
Photo by Ambert Ivan Damanik
This Portable Darkroom Used by the U.S. Army is For Sale
A portable darkroom once owned by the U.S. Army is now for sale…on Craigslist. Going for $2500 or BO, the description says it is “fully equipped with enlargers, trays, professional style print washer, timers…everything you need for doing your own processing and enlarging images. (Chemicals and paper not included.)” If you’re interested, you’ll need a trailer to hull this thing away though, it’s nearly the size of a shipping container, painted in army green and all. You’ll want to be close by too, as it’s being sold in Hillsborough, NC. Could this be your next mobile home? Edit: It must have already been sold as the posting has since been deleted. (via reddit)
This Photographer Captured Skiers in Front of a Total Solar Eclipse
Photographer Rueben Krabbe did a photo series featuring skiers in front of a total solar eclipse, and the resulting photos look awesome. After some extensive planning for the shoot, Krabbe traveled to Svalbard, a group of Norwegian islands between Europe and the North Pole. With temperatures as low as -40 degrees, the team had to both find a spot to survive in and take photos from. Using radios, the team communicated, having to move the skiers and cameras as the sun moved, which was about every 30-60 seconds. They also were photographing on an active glacier, which didn’t make things any easier. To take the photos, he used super telephoto lenses, a 14-stop solar filter, and shot from nearly a mile away to make the sun larger than life. They made a 30-minute documentary about their entire trip and experience too called “Eclipse” which you can find below. Check out the resulting images here. (via PP)
This Photographer Makes Small Figurines Come to Life
Another cool photo series, photographer Felix Hernandez, takes photos of small figurines, making them appear life like. He says, “Ever since I was a kid I used to spend hours alone in my room playing with my toys. Now that I’m a “grownup,” I’ve realized that I never stopped playing and that the only difference is that now I have a camera on my hands.” He uses small scale models in his studio with studio flashes—he relates it to shooting product photography. Using a snoot or a beauty dish, he shoots the figurines, then typically lights the background with a pair of lights. He says, “I love photo manipulation and digital art, but what’s really cool is doing as much as you can in-camera. For snow scenes, I use wheat flour. For desert scenes, I use corn flour. For atmosphere, I add smoke. For rain, I spray water. For droplets, I add corn syrup.” Then, with a mix of Photoshop and straight-out-of-camera images, he brings his photos to life in post, which includes a lot of Star Wars figurines, model cars, toy soldiers and more. You can find more of his work here. (via PP)
Photos by Felix Hernandez
