Nick, Derek, and Dawn all pool together for this year’s most chilling documentary on a very real pandemic in the camera world, 10 years in the making.
Posts Tagged ‘dawn’
The Voice of Raw: Chimping Exposed
September 17th, 2009 by DerekPhotowalk = Success
August 28th, 2009 by Derek
Once again we photo-walked this week, and once again if you weren’t there you really missed out. DJ Jared was great to work with (and we thank him for giving us his time, if you were out there and had shots get them to me so we can share them with him in thanks). We had an Elinchrom Ranger pack and an A head with a softbox and some bounce reflectors, so we were able to shoot mixed strobe and ambient on location. We also had some of the new Lensbaby products out with us, showing off the Composer and the swappable optics system (which I hereby propose we call “swaptics”).
And, it was a good mash-up out there. Nick and I were shooting our trademark Olympus cams, Dawn brought her Nikon D40, one gent used Panasonic’s LX3 point-and-shoot, another the original 5D, and Tony showed up with a medium-format view camera. Film, people! Film! Craziness.
It was a lot of fun. There was shooting, strobing, and later, a motorcycle. Check out the pictures in the gallery below, and make sure to find your way out to next week’s walk so that you to can start padding your portfolio with awesome shots.
We run a Flickr group dedicated to showing off pics from the various photowalks, and you can find that over at http://www.flickr.com/groups/nick-and-dereks-walkabout/. You have to join, just so we can keep it strictly to photowalks and not get a lot of the vaguely tangentially-related chaffe that you get with Flickr groups, but don’t let that turn you off. We want to see what you got out there.
It’s like fishing stories, but for photographers.
“One time, I had this awesome shot. Stellar. Change your life. There was this chick–and she was hot–and there was this explosion and a cow tap dancing.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. Can I see it?”
“Ah, no. It got away. I forgot I had my camera set to ‘FAIL’ priority…”
Nikon Rocks Indy, Derek Shoots a D3, Pigs Nationwide Take Wing
August 13th, 2009 by Derek
photo by Dawn Boarman
So, as mentioned by the stalwart Mr Henry, the photo walk was great fun. Thanks go to Jeff and Erin for making it what it was. I spent the first half working with my normal tackle while Nick, at my recommendation, got some one-on-one love with the very sweet D700 and the (old/current) 70-200 VR. Then, near the end and at Jeff’s suggestion, I picked up the D3 that had remained strangely untouched and started running around with it and the 14-24, 24-70, and the 85mm f1.8.
The D3 was as impressive as I remember from the last time I got to handle one briefly, and the CH drive mode was so fast it took me a second to realize it wasn’t just a funny sounding shutter action but in fact three of them every time I pressed the button. Hair trigger on that beast.
Jeff was great to have out, he’s really quite knowledgable not only in specs but in methods, and he was very forthcoming with help and tips. And, afterwards at Rock Bottom, we were all (Dawn, Nick, Jeff and myself) talking it over, and we think maybe we haven’t been pointing out enough that these aren’t just photowalks for the guys and gals who know what they’re doing, that they are in fact learning experiences and that we’re out there to help you understand photography better. So, if you’ve been holding off on coming out because you’re not a ’shooter’, stop it. Come on out and ask Nick and myself any questions you have, we’ll give you all the advice in our noggins in exchange for your company.
Photowalk – Success!
August 12th, 2009 by Nick
Voice activated light stands
Things went rather well. The weather cooperated, so I didn’t need to use my rainsleeve. And even though I managed to convince everyone to park something like, nine miles from the shooting sites, everyone seemed pretty pleased with the outcome. Above, you’ll see our volunteer model Erin, framed by two voice activated light stands with Tony’s elbow poking in from the side.
Later on we’ll have footage to put on the Roberts Imaging channel on youtube, and as Derek and I filter through and spruce up our shots we’ll get them added to the Flickr feed for y’all to ogle and mock. Dawn’s got some pretty neat shots (and some hilarity) from the fish-eye she borrowed off Jeff.
We’ll be having another informal walk on Tuesday, August 18th about 5:45pm at the corner of Illinois and Washington (kinda by Champp’s, under the Artsgarden) and if the weather get’s nasty we’ll head inside. We’re working to arrange another model to come out and hang with us as that seems pretty popular. I know I get tired of shooting Derek.
Photowalk Rain or Shine
August 10th, 2009 by Nick
Alllllllll right you impatient walkers, we’re getting up on this tomorrow evening. Unless there’s a monsoon downtown, we’re still meeting at the circle at 6PM. For those worried by light sprinkles, be not afraid -be equipped. Aquatech, Optech, and Hefty all have options to protect your gear.
To reiterate, we’ve got Jeff Penn of Nikon coming out carrying a bag of flash for us to pass around and highlight Nikon’s Creative Lighting system. The ineffable (not to be mistaken with infallible) Dawn is cajoling a model friend out, so we’ll not only be equipped for street portraiture, we’ll also have a subject -till about 7pm. After that, we might be left shooting (shudder) each other, or strangers.
MM. Strangers.
Quick recap: Memorial Circle, Tuesday August 11th, 6pm, Jeff Penn, CLS, Dawn’s hot friend till 7pm, pictures, rain, raingear, monkey-business.
New ‘Women In Photography’ Highlights Beautiful Empty Spaces
July 22nd, 2009 by Derek
Untitled (Yellow Chairs), Lynne Cohen
Women In Photography, one of those magical institutions the likes of which we need more of, has updated its bi-monthly online gallery. This month the works of Lynne Cohen are on display, and, personally, I find them quite gorgeous. Sure, they break Colin Pantall’s ‘How Not To Photograph’ principle by relying entirely on that ‘Dawn of the Dead’ post-apocalyptic no people in a public space aesthetic, but I would be a huge liar if I said I wasn’t into that.
By reducing the world to empty spaces, by leaving us with just the architecture and no story, the world takes on a surrealistic abstract atmosphere and the photo rely on colors, textures, and strict composition to rise above instead of subject or context, and I think Lynne’s work in this style is exemplary.
Check it out over here.
Walkabout: The Evening Varietal
April 30th, 2009 by DerekSo, yesterday evening was Nick and I’s first time doing walkabout in the evening, AND NONE OF YOU SHOWED! But, we forgive you, because our friend and co-worker Dawn stepped out with us for it and we had a lot of fun anyway. The weather cleared up all nice there near the end of the day and the light up through the Veteran’s Memorial parks was nice. And random girls asked Dawn to take their picture. We’ll file that under “awesome”. I played some with fast shutter speeds and was pleased with the results that gave me at one of the fountains, which Jody informs me was made by one of the Calder clan (seriously, three of you in a row named Alexander? Friggin’ not cool). The post-walkabout chill at local haunt Rock Bottom was also a blast, and much merriment was had by all. Stayed tuned for when you too can be one of the cool kids and join us out in the wilderness known as Indy.
Oh, and check out this absolutely shinetastic new gallery widget down here:
Electro-Optical System
April 22nd, 2009 by Derek
Canon EOS Badge
It’s been twenty-two years now since the debut of Canon’s Electro-Optical System. Usually referred to, of course, as EOS, borrowing its name from the Greek goddess of the dawn.And, I have to say, it wasn’t a bad choice of names for the system. EOS was possibly the first entire system to decide to forgo mechanical operations between the lens and the mount (such as screw drive AF, which still leads to occasional problems for Nikon and Pentax users to this day). Since its inception EOS lenses (designed for the new EF mount, which boldly replaced the popular FD mount entirely) have had built-in AF focus motors. For pushing that envelope alone Canon is to be commended, as far as I’m concerned. The EOS system has gone on to be a massive giant in the camera scene, with something like 40 bodies, and gave the world the first “affordable” consumer DSLR in the form of the original Digital Rebel.
Despite changes in optics and motor technology, the distressingly forward-looking decision to switch to an all-electric mount has meant Canon has been able to increase functionallity without altering the mounts, and has lead to them having perhaps the largest and most comprehensive lens line-up on the market (although 22 years of history means the occasional confusion or overlap as better optics replace or slot in beside older ones).
So, this Friday, stop in and check out the current line of EOS products (including many impressive bodies, whose design by the way is influenced by work done in the past by renowned designer Luigi Colani).
Monthly Photo Contest Finally Judged
March 12th, 2009 by Derek
This is yesterday news, actually, but I was trying to clear up some details with the winner.
The shot to the left is the winning shot for our last Photo Contest theme, “Fruit.” Shot by Ken Gomes.
Ken was good enough to give us a description of how he captured this striking shot with his EOS Rebel XSi, and we’ve got that posted on the Winners’ page over here, definitely worth a look because it’s deceptively easyand clever.
The next theme is “That Stuff Under Your Bed” and my co-worker Dawn is managing all your submissions for that while I devote some time to fairly major site revisions. We’ve had winners using a Nikon Coolpix camera, an EOS Rebel, and up through an aging Nikon professional body, the D2x, so don’t be afraid to send pictures in no matter what you shoot. It’s far more important that you get the good shot.
Photos submitted this month will be judged by special gust judge Wilbur Montgomery.
Monster Mash
October 31st, 2008 by ChuckOn a good day some of my co-workers are scary. On this particular day it is very scary here. This is the day before my vacation. Very Scary! I am headed to Florida to see my daughter tomorrow, I am toting all my point and shoot cameras, my GPS, my Bogen Manfrotto tripods and bag pods, about a half dozen SD memory cards and a USB card reader. The cameras? One Olympus digital camera, two Nikon coolpix cameras, one Sony Cybershot camera and two camera capable cell phones. I hope I get a picture or two in Sunny Florida. I hope their not like the ones I took here at work today!
Skippy Skelington and Kim Il Dawn posed for me.
See why I cant wait to get out of Roberts today?
