Are you more the "learn by doing" type? As in, "Don't tell me, show me?"
Then you may be interested in one of the 2017 Strobist location workshops that are already planned. Or perhaps you would like to know how to schedule an in-person workshop of your own—for your photo exposition, camera club, or right in your damn living room.
Keep reading to learn how to make the monkey dance… Read more »
Strobist
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GoPro’s Karma Grip motorized gimbal mount was first released as part of the Karma drone kit. Unfortunately, GoPro had to recall the Karma drone due to problems with its power supply, but now the company has made the Karma Grip available as a stand-alone product.
The Karma grip is compatible directly with the GoPro Hero 5 Black and needs an adapter for Hero 4 Black and Silver models and the Hero Session 5. The motorized gimbal is used to stabilize video while walking or during other outdoor activities, when smoother footage is required than the cameras’ built-in electronic stabilization can produce. The camera can be charged and transfer data to a computer while mounted on the grip.
The grip can be handheld or attached to GoPro’s chest harness, Seeker backpack, helmet mounts and other camera supports. It’s available now for $ 300.
[ By SA Rogers in Gadgets & Geekery & Technology. ]
When you pick up this bright yellow receiver, you won’t hear a dial tone on the other end – what’s waiting for you instead is some of the worst music the 1990s had to offer. The ‘90s are calling and they want their boomboxes, payphones, ugly neon colors and alt rock radio hits back, but maybe you want to keep them by completing this hack yourself. A ‘digital alchemist’ calling himself Fuzzy Wobble explains how to procure an old payphone and load it up with music so it can be two obsolete objects at once.
“When I first started this project I suspected payphones would be hard to get, expensive, and a hassle to hack. I was wrong on all three! Online I was able to get city-grade cast-iron/stainless payphone for relatively cheap. And the hack, surprisingly, turned out to be quite elegant!”
Follow along step-by-step on Instructables to learn how to control the keypad, switches and audio on a payphone, whether you actually want to make your own ‘90s boombox or use it for some other audio project. The tutorial will tell you where to find a payphone and how to program the guts using modern electronic components like the Adafruit MP3 Maker Shield and the Arduino Mega, as well as offering the code and laser cuter templates.
“I would so totally just use this to rick roll people,” says one Instructables commenter. Sure. That’s no less relevant to our current world than The Offspring, Semisonic and Coolio.
[ By SA Rogers in Gadgets & Geekery & Technology. ]
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Hawkesmill England, a maker of luxury camera bags and accessories, has launched its new line of smaller bags designed to be used with mirrorless cameras, or smaller DSLRs with an attached lens. Like Hawkesmill’s larger models the new line comes with a removable camera insert and a rear sleeve for memory cards, documents and other smaller items and valuables.
The bags come in various styles and are made from premium materials, such as Scottish Harris Tweed and triple-layered waterproof canvas. A dual D-ring closing system allows for quick access to your gear while holding it safely. It also lets you slightly expand the bag’s capacity when some extra space is needed. All models of the new line come with the same overall dimensions of 10 x 8 x 5in (25.4 x 20.3 x 12.7cm). However, weight varies slightly between 2.5lb and 3.5lb (1.13kg to 1.58kg).
All canvas models of the small bag are available now for £329 (approximately $ 420), the Regent Street model, which is made from leather, will set you back £469 (approximately $ 595). All Hawkesmill bags are handmade in England and come with a lifetime warranty.
Press Release:
West Sussex, England (December 5th 2016) – Today, Hawkesmill England, one of the leading high-end camera accessories brands, announced it is rolling out a line of smaller luxury camera bags. Currently, Hawkesmill makes a stylish large camera messenger bag, suitable for needed gear and a 15” MacBook Pro. These new bags are designed to be used with smaller cameras, i.e., mirrorless, Leica, or a DSLR and single lens attached.
Hawkesmill utilizes superbly luxurious materials, such as Scottish Harris Tweed and triple-layered waterproof canvas, while the firm’s innovative dual-d ring closure and trigger hook system ensures that all of the gear it holds is safe and secure, while also being quick to access. A second d-ring acts as an overflow ring, for those occasions when a little too much has been packed.
Similar to the large bags, the small line also includes a removable insert that is replaceable, ensuring a lifetime of use, as well as a rear sleeve that keeps valuables, such as passports, tickets, memory cards and money, against your body and safe.
There are five models currently available: the classic all-black Bond Street; the olive Jermyn Street, sporting a traditional Harris Tweed design; the distinctive 18oz canvas Marlborough with English vegetable tanned leather; the black body with charcoal Harris Tweed flap Sloane Street; and, in a first for camera bags, the Regent Street, an all-Horween Chromexcel version, known as one of the finest leathers in the world.
The overall dimensions of each of the new Hawkesmill bags are 10? wide x 8? high x 5? deep (25.4cm x 20.3cm x 12.7cm), while the weight varies slightly by model, from 2.5lbs to 3.5lbs (1.13kg to 1.58kg).
All of the small canvas bags sell for £329.00, while the small leather Regent Street is £469.00. Along with the large bags, these are all handmade in England with a lifetime warranty against defects.
The company also makes luxurious leather camera neck straps, card holders and passport holders.
For further information about Hawkesmill England handcrafted bags and accessories, please visit www.hawkesmill.com.
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A few weeks ago, Kodak announced the Ektra, its new ‘photography first’ smartphone designed to appeal to mobile photographers. Designed to look like a camera as much as a phone, the Ektra includes a 21MP rear camera, a 13MP front camera (for the obligatory selfies you’re sure to take), and features such as an F2.0 maximum aperture, phase detect autofocus and optical image stabilization. Additionally, Google’s Snapseed editing software is integrated directly into the photo gallery app.
The Ektra is set to go on sale in Europe on December 9 at a cost of €499, but The Irish News is reporting that it has already gone on sale at a pop-up store in London’s Soho neighborhood for anyone who wants to get their hands on it a bit early.
What do you think about the Ektra? Is this a have-with-you-all-the-time camera that you would use? Tell us in the comments.
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German flash manufacturer Metz has launched a new compact sized flash unit that offers wireless TTL control and coverage to match 24-105mm lenses. First announced at Photokina, the Metz mecablitz M400 has a guide number of 40m/131ft at ISO 100 at the 105mm zoom setting, along with a tilt and swivel head for bouncing the light. The gun is compatible with Canon, Fujifilm, Nikon, Micro Four Thirds, Pentax and Sony multi-interface cameras and offers TTL metering with each. All but the Fujifilm model will support wireless TTL flash as well, with the M400 being used either as a slave or commander in a group. A USB socket is provided for future firmware updates.
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High speed sync mode is available, as is the choice of first and second curtain triggering, and 25 steps of manual control. The unit also has a 100 Lux/1m video light built-in that provides six stages of illumination.
The Metz mecablitz M400 is available now and costs $ 280/£122. For more information visit the Metz website.
Press Release
Compact and powerful flashgun
Metz has launched the mecablitz M400, a compact system flash suited to mirrorless system cameras and is ideal for any photographer or film-maker looking for a convenient, compact flash unit. It is available in Canon, Nikon, Micro FourThirds, Pentax, Sony and Fuji fittings.
Powered by four AAA sized NiMH, alkaline-magnesium or lithium batteries, the Metz mecablitz M400 has a zoom-swivel head covering a FOV range matching that of a full-frame 24-105mm lens, with a guide number of 40 (in metres at ISO 100/21°) at the 105mm position. Depending on your camera, the mecablitz M400 with master and slave mode also offers wireless TTL flash functionality. The M400 comes with an adjustable LED video/modelling light, bounce card and integrated wide-angle diffuser. Other highlights include high-speed flash synchronisation, second-curtain sync and red-eye reduction plus it can always be kept up-to-date via the USB interface for receiving firmware updates.
Features / Tech Spec:
High max. guide number 40m (131feet) for ISO100 and 105mm
Vertical (+90°) and horizontal (360°) bounce/swivel head
Clear OLED display
Integrated high-performance LED video light (100 Lux @ 1m)
Motorised zoom for 24–105mm illumination
Integrated wide-angle diffuser (12mm) & flip-out reflector card
Flash readiness indicator, correct exposure display on unit and on camera (camera dependent)
Flash range shown in OLED display
Automatic unit shut-off
Dimensions: (W x H x D) 65 x 92 x 87mm
Fittings available: Canon / Nikon / Fuji / Sony / Pentax / Olympus – Panasonic
Prices & Availability
Metz M400 Flashgun – all fittings. £121.99 inc VAT
Available immediately
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Cyclops Gear has introduced its new Cyclops 360 (CG360), a camera designed to record your motorsport advenuters with a single super-wide lens for recording 360-degree horizontal panoramas. The CG360 can snap 16MP still images and record videos at resolutions up to 4K/30fps; content is saved to an included 32GB microSD card. A compatible waterproof housing allows the camera to be used underwater as deep as 50m / 164ft.
Cyclops 360 features a total of 16 effects and modes, including time lapse, slow motion and loop recording, along with a driving mode that automatically starts recording when you start your engine. The camera can be remotely accessed and controlled via its built-in WiFi and the related CG360 mobile app for Android and iOS. Ten mounting accessories are included with the camera, among them being a magnetic mount for attaching the camera to vehicles for ‘vibration-free’ recording.
Cyclops Gear is only offering the CG360 through power sports dealers, aiming the camera at off-roaders and others who want to record content by mounting the camera on a vehicle. The Cyclops 360 is currently available through Can-Am for $ 350.
Via: Digital Trends
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Happy gifting!
Checkout these gifts, new and old, that are sure to make any photographer (new or old) smile.
New camera straps, phoneography essentials, tacos and more.
(…)
Read the rest of Holiday Gift Guide 2016: Gifts New and Old (0 words)
© laurel for Photojojo, 2016. |
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[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]
With ominous red lighting, creepy statue adornments, ventilation pipes resembling cannons and spaceship-like silhouettes, these buildings put off some seriously evil vibes. It’s hard to imagine how the architects failed to realize they were designing oversized haunted mansions, battleships, missile launchers, murder hotels and the Eye of Sauron, but as the subreddit r/evilbuildings illustrates, there are a whole lot of villainous-looking buildings in the world. Check out Reddit for dozens more.
Completed in 1972 to house animal research facilities, Berlin’s Research Institute for Experimental Medicine is a bizarre Brutalist wonder. Its shape coupled with a multitude of ventilation pipes sticking out of the exterior walls makes it look more than a little bit like a battleship – even the globes of the lamps outside could be mistaken for cannonballs in mid-flight.
One ring to rule them all! By day, the Kingdom Centre tower looks pretty benign. But at night, the skybridge at its pinnacle lights up in various colors, and when this photo was captured, its red glow made it a dead ringer for the Eye of Sauron.
This beautiful Art Deco building in Syracuse, New York cuts a dramatic silhouette when illuminated after dark, and the winged statue on the front – which is meant to symbolize lightning – has a bit of a foreboding feel to it.
Does this building make anyone else think of the muggle-squashing ‘Magic is Might’ monument that appeared in the movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1? It doesn’t help that the expression on this colossal man’s face looks anguished as he peers out from between two sections of the building.
Many people have rightly pointed out that the tip of the Tomorrow Square Building in Shanghai looks like it’s about to launch a nuclear weapon into the sky any time now.
[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]
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Many of our readers use Photoshop to edits portraits, but what if all you have is Lightroom? Or you don’t know Photoshop as well? You can certainly do most of your portrait retouching using Lightroom.
Here are some video tutorials that walk you through a complete edit of one portrait from start to finish, using only Lightroom. I have also included one that I myself did too. Every photographer has their own style, so take what works for you from each and apply that to your own editing style.
Photographer Adam Lerner walks you through his portrait editing process from start to finish. He will give you some tips and tricks and great hidden gems inside Lightroom that you can use.
Ed Gregory from Photos in Color processes a portrait using Lightroom from end to end. He makes a very different looking end result so if you’re looking for some style ideas and tips this might be a good one for you. See what he does the same and differently than Adam above, and myself below.
This is my version. Having taught Lightroom in the classroom and done portraits for over 20 years, I may have some good tips for you that you didn’t already know. I’ve been using Lightroom since the beta version 0.9 or so, and it’s my go-to image editor.
I almost never pull an image over to Photoshop unless I need to do layers for something. For portraits, that may be a head swap or something where I have to blend images. But otherwise, I pretty much use Lightroom for everything, even skin, eye and lip retouching.
How do you use Lightroom to process and do your portrait retouching? Do you have any other tips the three of us missed? Please share in the comments below.
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