Reaching for Another 50mm: 50mm f/1.4 AI-S

The 50mm 'standard' lens was the 'kit' lens of yesteryear but that didn't mean that they were poor quality. In recent times, the 'basic' Nikkor 50mm was the very affordable and highly competent 1.8D but how does this compare to it's older uncle, the 50mm f/1.4 AI-S?

Going Old School

Who said all design in the 1980s was bad?

No Excuses Allowed

^{image (c) Jonathan Mak}
As the web weeps with it's tributes to Steve Jobs' passing this month, there have been some interesting items from business publications that have come back into the light. Of particular interest is Jobs' handling at Apple which may not be to everyone's tastes.

The (Apollo) Clones are Coming

The Westcott 28" Apollo softbox has been long admired for it's quality of light, but as with most things in life, quality costs. For a long time there were no other softboxes like the Apollos and it appeared that Westcott had survived the attack of the clones (unlike the Lastolite Ezybox), however recently there has been a number of umbrella style hotshoe softboxes appearing: the Westcott Apollo clones are coming.

Love that Magick

There is nothing like a good trick and ImageMagick (IM) has plenty of them - if you need a command line swiss knife image toolset then this is it.

White Balance Targets: WhiBal vs Digital Grey Kard

A colour correct image is important for the basis of any post processing: there are a number of white balance targets on the market (such as Xrite ColorChecker) but the 2 reasonably inexpensive options: the WhiBal vs Digital Grey Kard (aka DGK).

Look closer: The Man. that is older than AI

I don't shoot your traditional macros: I tend to shoot people although I do shoot products occasionally, but never enough to justify a dedicated macro lens. Not until a recent discovery, a Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI.

Embedded in RAW

One of the most common debates (ignoring brand wars) in the hobbyist/amateur camera world is whether one should shoot RAW or jpeg (or RAW/jpeg with varying degrees of jpeg quality). For me the decision is easy: shoot RAW.

Virtual Nerd'ing

[ non-geeks need to look away - notes about virtualisation on Linux ]



Years before I became a photo nerd, I was already a computer nerd with C/C++ and UNIX being favourite no-girlfriend past-times. Roll forward the years and now I can both.

Trap Focus: Shutter de-coupled, AF-ON and Fluxing

Hidding in a bush/behind the garbage waiting for something to come into view/focus and immediately want your Nikon to snap it? Trap focus is your friend. Along with the bugs/rats that are in your hidding place.

PocketWizards: Triggering a Remote Camera

This is one of those things that I always have to think twice before getting right, but this is how to remotely trigger your camera AND your lights which are attached to your Pocket Wizards PlusII units.

Prints: Holding on to the Physical - RAW workflow

Whilst all my photography has been limited to digital, there has always never been anything that compares to holding a physical (RGB) print. However, ensuring that your images are printed correctly needs careful attention and involves dealing with colour space/profiles and generating a final print in the print lab's required PPI.

Numbers: Show Me the Numbers..

I like numbers. Good numbers, like 8, and it's just so that I should get to know some more numbers when using my flashes/light modifiers.

Soundtrack to My Life

Music is a powerful thing and has always been around in my life. However, there have been some songs that have burned themselves into my mind as the definitive soundtrack that has punctuated my years.

High Speed Sync: Nikon Options (Revisited)

If you've ever needed to kill ambient midday or required to freeze action, then you'll know that insane shutter speeds are your friend. However, less friendly comes when flash is thrown into the mix.

With Nikon bodies and SB units you've got 3 options to acheive high speed sync (HSS) or auto FP sync (as per Nikon literature): CLS, radio triggers and optical slaves.

ISL: its the Law

The inverse square law (ISL) is one of those things that just annoys me as I keep confusing myself after I've learned it. When you look at it, its quite simple.

Hotshoe Action: Apollo vs Ezybox (clone) Comparison

Reasonable hotshoe softboxes only really come in 2 favours - the Westcott Apollo or the Lastolite Ezybox (incl the ebay clones). When I was trying to decide between the two, there wasn't really much consolidated information, so here's the science - Apollo 28" vs Ezybox 60x60cm (24") single diffusion panel clone.

Joining the 21st Century..

After years of being, what felt like the last person on Earth, without an iPod I finally joined the Apple family.

The Apollo has Landed

The Westcott Apollo 28" softbox is a speedlight softbox that I've been aware of for a long time now. Finally, I got myself a copy.

Shooting on White

I don't shoot much against a pure white background, but it's definitely something I should re-familiarise myself with as it gives another dimension for your subjects whether its for high key portraits where high key == happy and youthful so I understand, or for product lighting.



Someone commented that some of my stuff looked like it was lit inside a cave, so lets see how we can get outside.