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This week Mike Johnston looks at photographic clich?...
“The urge to make clich?s stems from a desire to make pictures that look like everybody else’s pictures. Why would anybody want to do this? Personally I think it’s because it relieves us from having to rely only on our own judgment when evaluating what we’ve done. Photographers, far more than other kinds of artists, are perpetually insecure about whether what they’ve done is going to be accepted as good.”
This week Mike Johnston looks at photographic clich?... “The urge to make clich?s stems from a desire to make pictures that look like everybody else’s pictures. Why would anybody want to do this? Personally I think it’s because it relieves us from having to rely only on our own judgment…
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Cherry Beer
| Brussels Town Hall #1
| Brussels Town Hall #2
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These 3 images were taken on Friday 23rd May in the breath-taking Grand Place in the centre of Brussels, a couple of hours after we had arrived. It was early afternoon and raining; not exactly the best time or conditions for photography…
I’ll be posting a selection of images, probably 3 a day, roughly following the order in which I actually took them. This means that the quality will gradually improve, in line with the Belgian weather conditions, which were overcast, damp and rainy to begin with, before becoming sunny and hot for the last 2 days of our stay.
From now on, all images will be posted on this page as thumbnails so that the initial download time is reduced. You just have to click on a thumbnail to open the 600 x 400 pixel version. This larger image may take some time to download if you’re on a 56K dialup connection, as they will be anything between 40-100Kb in size.
Cherry Beer Brussels Town Hall #1 Brussels Town Hall #2 These 3 images were taken on Friday 23rd May in the breath-taking Grand Place in the centre of Brussels, a couple of hours after we had arrived. It was early afternoon and raining; not exactly the best time or…
Internet rumours are circulating about the imminent announcement of the Canon G5. Fred Miranda has included links to a couple of sites that have details and pictures of this probable 5-megapixel successor to the G3. Apparently Apple have stopped Canon from using the G4 term, so they have had to skip that part of the sequence!
Website: Fred Miranda
Internet rumours are circulating about the imminent announcement of the Canon G5. Fred Miranda has included links to a couple of sites that have details and pictures of this probable 5-megapixel successor to the G3. Apparently Apple have stopped Canon from using the G4 term, so they have had to…
The newly-redesigned ePhotoZine have just reviewed 4 loupes from the very expensive but very high-quality Schneider range. Find out exactly why you would want to spend ?235 on a loupe by reading ePhotoZine’s review…
“Now, before you read on, if you’re the sort who would nip down to the local sewing shop to buy a magnifier for your slide viewing exit now. These loupes are more expensive than the zoom lenses you’d attach to your SLR camera!”
Website: ePhotoZine - Schneider Loupe Review
The newly-redesigned ePhotoZine have just reviewed 4 loupes from the very expensive but very high-quality Schneider range. Find out exactly why you would want to spend ?235 on a loupe by reading ePhotoZine’s review… “Now, before you read on, if you’re the sort who would nip down to the local…
Norman Koren has published an exellent in-depth look at the Canon EOS 10D, including his reasons for buying the camera, initial impressions, sample images and more. A must-read for anyone that is even remotely interested in buying the 10D, and also for all current 10D owners.
“I was very impressed by the Canon EOS-10D at the PMA show in Las Vegas in early March, 2003. 13x19 inch prints were stunning and 24x36 inch prints still impressive when viewed from a moderate distance. (You wouldn’t expect them to be absolutely sharp at that size.) The fast, positive, 7-point autofocus, rugged magnesium body, lack of obvious shutter lag, and reduced price compared to the D60 ($1499 vs. about $2200) were factors in my decision. I ordered one shortly after I returned home, and it arrived, after a few days delay, at the end of March. This is a big change for me—I’d been using Canon FD manual focus cameras and lenses, which date from 1986 and earlier.”
Website: Norman Koren - Canon EOS 10D
Norman Koren has published an exellent in-depth look at the Canon EOS 10D, including his reasons for buying the camera, initial impressions, sample images and more. A must-read for anyone that is even remotely interested in buying the 10D, and also for all current 10D owners. “I was very impressed…
A-Digital-Eye have posted their initial report on Sony’s highly-anticipated new digicam, the DSC-V1, together with sample images from Disneyland of all places!
“Initially, we also really like the light weight and small size of the camera for taking out all day at a place like Disneyland. We often could forget it was hanging around the neck. The camera operates very fast after an initial average start-up to extend the lens. Our first day of shooting resulted in very good overall results, the images are coming out with correct focus, good sharpness, they have a slightly bright exposure/tone but neutral look to them with no major color casts and fairly good saturation.”
Website: A-Digital-Eye
A-Digital-Eye have posted their initial report on Sony’s highly-anticipated new digicam, the DSC-V1, together with sample images from Disneyland of all places! “Initially, we also really like the light weight and small size of the camera for taking out all day at a place like Disneyland. We often could forget…
Lor has emailed me to let me know about an exciting new venture that aims to make photoblogging easier and more accessible. Due to launch on July 1st, Expressions! (my-expressions.com) is a hosted solution for visually driven blogs/photoblogs/media blogs, catering specifically for the beginner photo/mediablogger. There will also be an advanced version in the very near future. It looks like a great idea to me if you haven’t already got your own photoblog.
Website: Expressions! website
Lor has emailed me to let me know about an exciting new venture that aims to make photoblogging easier and more accessible. Due to launch on July 1st, Expressions! (my-expressions.com) is a hosted solution for visually driven blogs/photoblogs/media blogs, catering specifically for the beginner photo/mediablogger. There will also be an…
Well, as you can see from the 9 (!) new entries for today, I’ve arrived back from the Belgian capital of Brussels safe and sound, despite the best efforts of the French air traffic controllers, who decided to extend their strike by a day just so that my flight would be delayed (or so it seemed last night anyway…).
I’ll be posting a selection of the best images from my trip over the next few days, once I’ve copied them onto my PC and sorted through them. I’m also hoping to publish a full account of my completely digital 5-day trip; what worked well, what didn’t work so well, how chips are served with every meal, that kind of thing…
In the meantime I’ve been busy catching up with all of the new announcements from the photography world; please let me know if I’ve missed anything. I’ll be replying to all PhotographyBLOG emails tonight, and all new members should now have received introductory emails with the links to the free screensaver and wallpapers.
Phew!
Well, as you can see from the 9 (!) new entries for today, I’ve arrived back from the Belgian capital of Brussels safe and sound, despite the best efforts of the French air traffic controllers, who decided to extend their strike by a day just so that my flight would…
There have been a number of new cameras announced since I left for Belgium last Friday, the biggest of which is the Nikon Coolpix 5400. Retailing at ?650 and available in the rather vague timeframe of"Summer 2003”, the 5400 replaces the older 5000 model. DPReview has pictures and the full press release from Nikon USA.
Website: DPReview - Nikon Coolpix 5400 Press Release
Whilst Steve’s Digicams have already posted a First Look here:
Website: Steve’s Digicams - Nikon Coolpix 5400 First Look
Fuji have also been busy, despite their recent problems with sourcing enough CCDs to meet the growing demand for digital cameras. The FinePix A210 Zoom is “a simple, straightforward entry-level digital camera. With 3.2 Mp and 3x zoom, the FinePix A210 Zoom is an impressive, yet affordable, choice for anyone moving on from a no-frills, compact film camera to take their first steps into digital photography”, according to Fuji anyway. Price has yet to be announced.
There have been a number of new cameras announced since I left for Belgium last Friday, the biggest of which is the Nikon Coolpix 5400. Retailing at ?650 and available in the rather vague timeframe of"Summer 2003”, the 5400 replaces the older 5000 model. DPReview has pictures and the full…
The “Capture One DSLR” e-booklet from Digitial Outback Photo may be of interest to all users of Capture One DSLR (Pro and LE versions) RAW conversion software and Adobe Photoshop. Here’s the official blurb for the $17.95 e-booklet:
“DOP1007: for all users of Capture One DSLR (Pro or LE). It also features our new Photoshop Layer based workflow. Includes a 33 page chapter about working with Photoshop layers. For some this might be worth the price alone.”
You can download a PDF of the Table of Contents before buying to see what exactly the e-booklet contains.
The “Capture One DSLR” e-booklet from Digitial Outback Photo may be of interest to all users of Capture One DSLR (Pro and LE versions) RAW conversion software and Adobe Photoshop. Here’s the official blurb for the $17.95 e-booklet: “DOP1007: for all users of Capture One DSLR (Pro or LE). It…
Michael Reichmann’s new article “Safe Computing for Photographers” is a concise guide to protecting the photographs that you have so lovingly created from the computer issues that will affect you at some point in the (probably near) future.
“Photography is now about computers as much as it is about cameras and lenses. The use of computers brings with it a host of new issues ? but the most important is safety. Some of the specific concerns that we all have are…
? backups of both our general working environment as well as of irreplaceable image files
? securing our computers against virus attacks and spam
? ensuring that our other important files and programs are safe against catastrophic failure”
Website: Luminous Landscape - Safe Computing for Photographers
Michael Reichmann’s new article “Safe Computing for Photographers” is a concise guide to protecting the photographs that you have so lovingly created from the computer issues that will affect you at some point in the (probably near) future. “Photography is now about computers as much as it is about cameras…
The winning entries in Luminous Landscape’s Lunar Eclipse Competition were announced over the weekend, together with some technical details about how each shot was taken. The winning photo by Jim Hardy is a great image, and I also like Matthew Felton’s cityscape.
Website: Luminous Landscape - Lunar Eclipse Competition Winners
The winning entries in Luminous Landscape’s Lunar Eclipse Competition were announced over the weekend, together with some technical details about how each shot was taken. The winning photo by Jim Hardy is a great image, and I also like Matthew Felton’s cityscape. Website: Luminous Landscape - Lunar Eclipse Competition Winners…
Mike Johnston’s Sunday Morning Photographer column looks this week at the subjective issue of why some people like a photograph, and some don’t…
“The question, more bluntly put, is “Why the heck do you like that?” There’s no one right answer here, of course, so I can look at this from both sides. Most importantly, though, there ain’t no Emperor. What I mean is, I’m not privy to any secret Guild card or arcane knowledge that somehow bestows upon me the right to say what’s good and what’s not. When I say I like something, I just mean I like it. I’m not implying that you should like it, or if you knew more you would like it, or you’re a Philistine for not liking it. We all get to have our own taste.”
Mike Johnston’s Sunday Morning Photographer column looks this week at the subjective issue of why some people like a photograph, and some don’t… “The question, more bluntly put, is “Why the heck do you like that?” There’s no one right answer here, of course, so I can look at this…
Imaging Resource meanwhile have been less busy, posting just one new review of the Minolta DiMAGE F300.
“In almost every parameter, the Minolta DiMAGE F300 is an excellent performer, delivering excellent color with good white balance under a wide range of lighting. Its five megapixels of resolution combine with the excellent “GT” optics in its lens to deliver images that are sharp from corner to corner.”
Imaging Resource meanwhile have been less busy, posting just one new review of the Minolta DiMAGE F300. “In almost every parameter, the Minolta DiMAGE F300 is an excellent performer, delivering excellent color with good white balance under a wide range of lighting. Its five megapixels of resolution combine with the…
Steve’s Digicams have surpassed themselves and posted no less then 5 new reviews over the past few days. I don’t know, I go away for a short break and everyone instantly starts publishing new stuff…
Website: Steve’s Digicams - HiTi 640PS photo printer Review
Website: Steve’s Digicams - Apacer Disc Steno CP-100 Review
Website: Steve’s Digicams - Casio QV-5700 Review
Website: Steve’s Digicams - Pentax Optio 550 Review
Website: Steve’s Digicams - Polaroid PhotoMax PDC3350 Review
Steve’s Digicams have surpassed themselves and posted no less then 5 new reviews over the past few days. I don’t know, I go away for a short break and everyone instantly starts publishing new stuff… Website: Steve’s Digicams - HiTi 640PS photo printer Review Website: Steve’s Digicams - Apacer Disc…
CNET Electronics have just reviewed the $399, 3.2 megapixel Sony Cyber Shot DSC-P8.
“Sony’s 3.2-megapixel P8 is loaded with all the distinctive, fun features we loved in the P7, its predecessor in the DSC-P series of compact cameras. The P8 also offers a few treats of its own, including a live histogram and the Tracking Auto-Focus function. While this good-looking camera wins points for ease of use, dedicated point-and-shooters will find better value in 3-megapixel models with more-streamlined feature sets.”
CNET Electronics have just reviewed the $399, 3.2 megapixel Sony Cyber Shot DSC-P8. “Sony’s 3.2-megapixel P8 is loaded with all the distinctive, fun features we loved in the P7, its predecessor in the DSC-P series of compact cameras. The P8 also offers a few treats of its own, including a…
I’m finally escaping the mountain of work that is my City and Guilds Photography coursework, and jetting off to the Belgian capital of Brussels for a long weekend. The latest issue of the UK magazine Practical Photography coincidentally has a feature about Brussels being a great place for photography, so I’m really looking forward to getting away from my books and actually using my camera for a change. Hopefully the weather will be OK, although Brussels is supposed to be a great city at night, so even if it rains all of those puddles will reflect the night lights. I just need to work out how to fit my tripod into my rucksack and how to get all my extra hand luggage past the RyanAir staff!
Consequently I won’t be updating the site or answering any emails from tomorrow until next Wednesday. Have a good weekend!
I’m finally escaping the mountain of work that is my City and Guilds Photography coursework, and jetting off to the Belgian capital of Brussels for a long weekend. The latest issue of the UK magazine Practical Photography coincidentally has a feature about Brussels being a great place for photography, so…
I haven’t taken a single photograph in the last 10 days because of my City and Guilds Photography work, so I’m raiding the cupboards, so to speak, and posting the last of my Covent Garden images from my recent visit at the start of May. This photo was taken in the indoor market section, handheld at ISO 800 on the Canon 10D and Tamron 75-300mm lens, focusing on the two old ladies sitting down in the middle.
I haven’t taken a single photograph in the last 10 days because of my City and Guilds Photography work, so I’m raiding the cupboards, so to speak, and posting the last of my Covent Garden images from my recent visit at the start of May. This photo was taken in…
