What's in a Camera

I just wanted to post this photo to show that composition and timing matters more than the camera. I took this photo with a little Canon SD800 in the Outer Banks last May. "f/8 and be there," as they say.

That being said, I've had my eye on the world of film lately, especially rangefinders. In particular, I was drooling over the Leica M4P and M6, thanks mostly to the recent rants of Ken Rockwell. I was especially interested in the light weight, high build quality, and excellent optics that the Leicas had to offer.

Luckily I took a deep breath before buying anything. I realized a few things:

1. There are other high quality options that cost less and offer more features.
   
2. I needed to think about the kinds of pictures I really want to take with film (as opposed to digital), and where I was planning to take those pictures.
3. The Leica is just the main example Ken Rockwell is using for his fanatic crusade against the Nikon D3X. Leicas are still expensive (and obviously give a very healthy kick-back for referred sales).
   

Eventually I decided that I wanted to focus on landscapes when it came to film. Leica's reputation for street photography is alluring, but the idea of taking pictures of strangers on the street doesn't seem right, plus it's too experimental for anything but digital. I also don't have any upcoming trips where electricity and batteries will be scarce, which is another situation where the Leica would excel.

Inspiration! After reading many posts on photo.net, and looking at many rangefinder photos on flickr, I came across the Hasselblad Xpan. A film camera that can be switched into true panoramic mode, perfect for landscapes. On top of that, the optics are excellent, and the build quality is very high. I was particularly moved by Mathew Joseph's work, and his love for this camera; I believe the quote was, "Lost for words..."

My Xpan should be here next week. I'm anticipating a bit of a learning curve due to the panoramic format and the reintroduction of film in my work. Hopefully I can get comfortable with it this spring in time for my cross-country road trip this summer. I'm really looking forward to some panoramic Fuji Velvia.

In other news, I've been working on a way to get a lomographic look from the 5D in-camera (no Photoshop). I thought about buying an LC-A+, but I have trouble justifying the recurring costs of film for experimental snapshots. Anyway, I think I'm almost there with the 5D. I'll be sure to post my findings once I refine the idea a bit.

Links

• More Lomograhy
• More Xpan

Fifty

I've recently rediscovered the simple joys of shooting with the Canon 50/1.8 II (thrifty fifty). In a world full of huge, image-stabilized zooms, I'd forgotten how small, light, and fast the 50 was. Slap that sucker on the 5D, and suddenly you've got a surprisingly small, light, full-frame, natural perspective camera for street photography. I even took it with me to a blues bar last weekend, and my mostly sober friend didn't even notice that I was "packing heat" until we were about to leave.

One of the features I like about the 5D is its support for Picture Styles. For street photography, put it in Monochrome, bump up the sharpness, and you can come away with some pretty interesting street scenes. The Monochrome Picture Style also supports electronic filters in yellow, orange, red, and green. You can apply these filters without carrying any addition equipment. If you shoot in raw, like me, you can apply these filters in Digital Photo Professional. If you shoot in color, you can apply similar filters in Photoshop using Channel Mixer adjustment layers.

The 50 is also a great way to focus on composition. Even an experienced photographer can use a refresher in composition. One of the things I remember reading in Annie Leibovitz At Work, was that she could only afford a 50mm lens when she started shooting in the Bay Area in the 60's. Many of her classmates had 35mm lenses, which were looser and allowed them to put more in the frame. She said that the 50 forced her to focus on composition to get the shot. I think she was on to something.

Last Friday the weather here in Baltimore was bearable (about 50 degrees, heh), so I came home early to do some street photography. I was walking along West Pratt Street when I came across this spot next to Camden Pub. I've walked by it more times than I can remember, but I'd just never noticed it before. Generally I steer clear of power lines and telephone poles, but for some reason it just worked this time. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mode without the 50 in hand...

Goin' to Miami

Tomorrow afternoon I depart for South Beach. Three nights and two shoots worth of gear in just two carry-on bags. I've even got my beach towel and sandals in there.

My bags of choice for this trip are the Think Tank Urban Disguise 60 and the Kelty Basalt. Both of these bags are deceptively small, which is exactly what you want these days with Revenue Control Agents and picky flight attendants lurking about.

Since it's such a short trip, and I have my iPod Touch with me, I won't be lugging a laptop. This not only saves weight, but also opens up the laptop slot for two shirts. If you think a little outside the box about the spaces in your bags, you will be amazed by the amount of stuff you can fit into a couple small bags.

And I'm not just being thrifty by using carry-on bags. Packing light puts you in a more agile mindset. Plans may change, but that's ok because there's no giant albatross to burden the journey. I also don't support the first checked bag fee that many airlines are starting to charge, so I'm trying to minimize their opportunity to implement that fee.

Anyway, as I look at the weather report now, it's 16 degrees here in Baltimore and 65 degrees in Miami Beach. I just can't get there fast enough.

Richard Franiec Custom Grip

The custom grip for my Canon G9 arrived today. It definitely improves the feel of the camera.

The grip itself is heavier than I was expecting, but then again it is a solid piece of metal. The G9 is a very hefty point-and-shoot anyway though, so I wouldn't call this a real problem. It does seem like the all-metal design will suck the heat right out of your fingers in winter. On the flip side, the grip vastly improves handling when wearing gloves; it no longer feels like it's going to slip right out of you hands.

I am impressed with how well it fits the features of the camera's body, right down to a slot along the edge to accommodate the existing rubber strip/grip. The texture of the grip is also less course than I was expecting, but it seems sufficient. I was also a little surprised to discover that the grip is held on with very strong double-sided adhesive tape. I guess I was expecting it to latch on mechanically in some fashion.

In any case, if you're planning to stick with your G9, I recommend this little upgrade.

AAA's National Park Photography

AAA's National Park Photography is a book that never seemed to get much attention. I have found it quite useful when my time in the park is limited. There have been a few occasions when I was traveling for other business and decided to tack on an extra day to explore a nearby national park. This book shows you where the "hot spots" are so you can prioritize rather than aimlessly wandering through the park (though there's something to be said for aimlessness when time is on your side). It also tells the best times to visit the park, which can be very helpful.

Will you come back with pictures that have been taken before? Of course. Will you take other pictures along the way? Most likely. Will one of them be original? I hope so.

My only gripe with this book is that the binding is somewhat poor, causing pages to fall out. This can be turned around into a bit of an advantage though, because it means you only have to take the pages that concern the park you're planning to visit. Every little bit of weight savings helps when you're packing, and this is no exception.

The bottom line is that this book can be a big time saver and has the tips that most photographers are looking for.