We love photography – sharing knowledge, Tuesday 13th March 2018

Hi Folks,

Last night was a change to our clubs original programme and members were invited to give a 10 minute talk on any of these topics below

– What’s the piece of camera gear you never leave the house without and why?
– Do you repeatedly do anything in particular when planning/carrying out a shoot?
– Do you have any favourite photography related web sites?
– Do you have a favoured supplier of photographic products or services?
– Anything else that you think the club members would find useful.

Chris our chairman opened the evening by giving a talk on the various filters that he uses. He talked about each type of filter and in some cases the advantages of a square filter over a round one and how each affected the camera image.

With a round filter one has to have each type of filter to fit each lens size. where as,  a variety of filters can fit into one square device holder coupled to a lens.  Also on a square device holder it allowing the photographer to change the position of the filter or even use it upside down.

The UV filter for many photographers protects the lens from scratches and is a lot cheaper to replace than an expense lens.

The Polarising filter captures the blue sky as the eye sees it and is in two halves letting one see the bottom part of the image as normal. Also it cuts down reflection especially for Chris at car rallies where shiny screens, bonnets and headlights are everywhere.

Neutral Density does not impact on colour but reduces the amount of light coming into the camera and comes in various light stop sizes.

Colour filter is used by photographers using black and white to create images in single colours of their choice.

Infra red filters  detail in the dark cannot be picked up by the naked eye but camera sensors can with the aid of this filter.

Gradual filters cut down  part of the bright light whilst gradually toning the rest of the image and can be placed in various positions on a square filter holder.

 

Alan then gave a talk on monopods and showed us a Manfotto pod that he carries around. He suggests one gets what one pays for and this monopod is built really well and has lasted him years. One can use it to rest quite a large camera on it and by positioning one’s own legs it gives a steady shot. The base cost around £80 and has a good system of clips to adjust,  extend and clip back.

The heads come in various sizes and settings but this one costs around £50

It can be extended to about 2 metres and one can even get shots over a wall using a smart phone or a time setting. It can even be used as the longest selfie stick. Alan often uses it for a walking stick when going out on photographic walks. The monopod is used by many sports photographers who need to move quickly into different positions for a shot. Some monopods even have a spike to dig into grass.

Next to give a talk was Jan who brought along her little mini bean bag which allows her to rest her camera comfortably on posts and tables to keep the camera steady.

Chenxi then spoke about his favourite Nikon lens which is quite old but is a 300m / f2.8 lens. Chenxi explains he does not get a lot of time to go out and take photographs but when he does this goes with him on a full days walk usually in search of animals like deer.

However, it weighs 6kg and Nikon no longer will provide a camera with the mechanism for it to work but still his favourite lens. Modern versions of it would now cost a £1000 or more.

 

Coffee time

Then I did a quick demonstration of On1 software to show members there are some cheaper software programs on the market rather than just Lightroom to change images. On1 is a standalone package that one can keep once purchased,  updates are provide for the year and does not require any monthly payments.

Once that year is finished one has to either purchase an upgrade or stick with what you have and only upgrade if you think it is worth it. Obviously On1 software does not cover all features of Photoshop / light room but for the amateur photographer just changing the odd photograph it may be for them.

Last night I used two large Raw files and On1 recommend a good graphics card with a minimum of 4gb of memory but it did work on my old computer last year but only on tiny files.

So I then changed this bland sky image

 

using the layers features of the software combining another image of a sky I had taken a couple of days later. Then after making the picture into one I took it into development to enhanced it.

which made it into a reasonable image by  first increasing the exposure.

I then showed the localised sharpening tool which had impressed me into buying it and then added vibrance.

After finishing the picture I briefly went through several pictures showing how the theme of ‘something you are afraid of’ inspired me into using more elements of the software.

Then Nick who goes to a lot of clubs to photograph bands explained that photographers were only allowed to take in what they can carry.

This involved Nick taking three large lens with him.

 

Nick has found some leather type bags for each lens which now fit on a belt.

Nick did say that one evening he found somebody had managed to spill beer into one of the bags and since then they are sealed up tight.

Julia who does a lot of portrait photography gave a talk, firstly on an inexpensive item she always has with her which is a screen that has five different colours of silver, white, gold, black and opaque to bounce back any light

one can use the opaque to soften the light even in a forest where the sun has streams of light

but Julia pointed out she avoids using silver when photographing children as the bright light can often make them cry

Julia said Brian has told her the best way to use a flash gun and after initial trials on the camera she now uses it on a stand to get the correct lighting rather than on the camera which would produce reflections in glasses etc.

Julia recommended using a receiver on the flash and a trigger on the camera to fire it. The cheaper ones are less intelligent but will give you flexibility if you can get to know the settings yourself.

Also Julia  carries a piece of fabric cloth with her, it can give a good effect to a photograph and this can even be placed over a screen held by magnets on a stand, this makes a nice back drop for a photograph.

Finally Clive  goes walking a lot and said when he carried a big camera he ended up getting bruised from being constantly hit on his side by the camera.

He now has a very small Ricoh camera and carries a small box comprising of extra batteries, cables and various filters. Also a manual and sometimes a tripod.

So quite a range of interesting topics talked about last night

 

Next week is

Visiting Speaker – Mark Seymour