Peter Burian tests Nikon’s latest affordable 10.2 MP camera which has great ease of use and surprising speed and versatility as well
Nikon’s D40 and D40x were very popular entry-level DSLRs but the replacement model is even more desirable. While it’s also very budget-friendly, the equally small D3000 offers some valuable benefits in spite of the pleasantly low price (about $600 with 18-55mm VR lens.) The primary improvements include a more effective AF system with 11 points plus 3D tracking focus, a larger 3-inch (7.62cm) LCD screen, a faster 3fps continuous framing rate and far more image retouching options in playback mode. The D3000 is also equipped with a new automatic sensor cleaner, employs a more powerful battery and provides even more convenient operation.
I remember when long intervals would go by before a new SLR was introduced, back when we were shooting film. Today, those intervals are growing remarkably shorter and shorter, although not short enough for some of us who eagerly await the next iteration. Technology, it seems, waits for no man or woman.
When the original, and very reasonably priced, EOS 5D came out, I bought it and chucked my APS-C Canons. I had heretofore resisted buying EF-S glass expecting to make this move one day. And while I’d considered the pricier 1Ds-series cameras, I felt that, for my needs, the 5D would do. In fact, for the same price as a 1Ds, I could buy the 5D and several lenses.
More to the point, I bought a Canon fisheye for starters, to take advantage of the full-frame sensor. So I felt like I had my cake and could eat it too. To top it off, all my Canon EF lenses would now be true to form. No more dealing with sensor factors. My wide-angles would be truly wide, although I did miss that extra boost my telephotos got with the 1.6X factor (applicable to Canon APS-C). But coming back to that fisheye, I now could take pleasure in that unique fisheye perspective. (Sadly, it wasn’t till I bought the Tokina fisheye zoom-for an APS-C camera, no less, namely the D300-that I truly began to exploit the possibilities of fisheye optics.)
With continued use, I could sense that there were certain features lacking on my original 5D, but I wasn’t really looking forward to upgrading too quickly. Besides, for me to take the plunge, a new 5D would have to be packing some serious new hardware-or software (technically, firmware).
Well, I’ve finally got my hands on the 5D Mark II. But is it all it’s cracked up to be, enough so for me to upgrade? Having tested the 1Ds Mark III adds another twist to this story. That 1Ds is a marvelous piece of machinery, if pricey. Should I continue to play the waiting game? Well, the only way to find out is to put the new 5D through its paces and see how it compares. (more…)
As a first time digital SLR camera buyer, I am wondering what filters I will need for my Nikon D5000 with the AF-S 18-55mm VR and 70-300mm GED VR lenses. When I had a 35mm SLR, I owned several types of filters, but sold all that long ago. Are filters still necessary in digital photography and do I need the expensive multi-layer coated filters? L.W.
Answer
The only filter that I use is the circular polarizer-an indispensable accessory for outdoor photography, with several benefits. This accessory can deepen the color of a blue sky, wipe glare from reflective surfaces (except unpainted metal) to allow the true colors to show through and reduce the effects of atmospheric haze so the subject will appear more sharply defined. Rotate the polarizer in its mount while viewing the scene through the viewfinder, or on the LCD screen in Live View. If it does not seem to have much effect, change your shooting position; you’ll get the greatest benefit when the sun is to your side. (more…)
One of the things that quickly distinguishes a professional photographer from an amateur is the ability to select a good location for a portrait (also, professional photographers have an air of mystery and suave intrigue about them, like James Bond). I see this every weekend when I’m shooting weddings (I’m a wedding photographer in Tampa, FL). People have a preconceived idea about how a photograph should look. They’ve seen wedding photographs before and they’ve seen tons of pictures taken at the portrait studio in the mall (or at school) and so, subconsciously, they believe that’s what a good picture looks like. (Not that they aren’t good. Don’t write me a nasty email, Mr. School Photographer. I shoot them too…) A good example of this at a wedding is that most people expect me to take a group and family portraits on the altar–and many times I don’t.
If you look at any good portrait photographer who works primarily on location you’ll see a common thread. They have a knack for looking at the surroundings and figuring out the best way to place their subjects. Being able to manipulate your surroundings to your advantage will help you in every type of photography that you do. In wedding photography, it can be the difference between a good picture and a great one.
With that in mind, I thought I might post some pictures from a recent wedding and talk about how I manipulated my surroundings to create, what I think, are better pictures. I’m just going to concentrate on posed shots this time around and maybe later I’ll do a post on candids.
This first picture was taken just before the bride left the dressing room to go and start the ceremony. We were already running 10 minutes late and the wedding planner was dragging her out the door when I stopped her.
“Can I just have 30 seconds?” I quickly closed the door and opened the blinds. Then I said, “somebody turn out the lights.” This shot is nothing but window light and a gray wall.
If you like this article, you can now get the book! Joe has expanded the “Tuesday Composition” series into an inspiring new ebook on composition, especially for nature photography. Check it out: The Tuesday Composition.
A while back we talked about visual echoes–and we primarily focused on repetitions of two similar or contrasting objects. Today I’m going to revisit that topic with a greater emphasis on repetition generally, whether two, eleven or a million similar image elements. If you didn’t get a chance to read the echoes post, I suggest going back and and reading it now, many of the ideas in today’s post will relate to and reflect on the ideas I presented there.
Repetition is a powerful and amazingly versatile tool.
One of my favorite uses of repetition in composition is in simplifying an image. In general, images with many kinds of disparate elements can be harder for the viewer to make sense of–put enough elements together and you take away an easy sense of what elements of the image are important, dominant.
Repeating patterns in an image can help organize all of those elements into a pattern that’s easier for the viewer to understand. Salt Polygons at Sunrise has hundreds of elements, but our eye quickly integrates the underlying pattern of the salt polygons and makes sense of what’s going on in the image. A random collection of that many disparate elements in an image would feel much more chaotic. (Of course, that might be what you want, but more often, my own work tends towards less chaotic.) (more…)
I’ve been working with Canon EOS single-lens-reflex cameras since they burst upon the scene. Well, actually, since shortly before, when I and other members of the photo press were introduced to the very first one-the EOS 1-on a top secret junket in Bar Harbor, Maine, many, many moons ago. Back then the photo press consisted entirely of print publications and cameras were analog, or as we simply liked to call them, cameras.
Fast forward to the digital age-and the full-frame EOS 1Ds DSLR. The 1-series continues to be the ranking member in the EOS lineup, designed for every imaginable professional application, with durability, functionality, reliability, and consistency at the forefront. And you’ve no doubt heard of the EOS 1Ds Mark III (MkIII, for short), the current flagship. While not the newest EOS on the block, like the 5D Mark II, it shares a 21.1 megapixel CMOS sensor.
But more to the point, it maintains the longstanding tradition established by its progenitors. And since Photocrati is a new site, we thought we’d take this camera out for a spin and round out our experiences with the EOS, with newer cameras to come under our scrutiny when available. In the meantime, here goes. Oh, and at the outset, at roughly $7,000, we should also point out that this is not the cheapest camera out there. But you’re getting a lot of bang for your buck and a camera that will probably outlast you in the field. (more…)
One of the first things I tell photographers who are at the beginning of their career is to "Learn from the mistakes of others." Learn from my mistakes, learn from…
A Problem of Perspective. Notice that the posts nearest the left and right edges of the image do not appear vertical.
In my previous article on tilt-shift lenses I talked about tilt and how that affects the plane of focus. It is a pretty great feature, and it is (I believe) behind the increased energy we’re seeing in the press and from camera manufacturers about these lenses. But it’s far from the only trick these little wonders can perform, today we’ll talk about the most basic use of shift (including what the large format guys would call rise and fall), to correct perspective in a photograph.
Perspective control using shift has been a staple of architectural photography for decades. When photographing a building from ground level, perspective causes the top of the building (which is farther from the camera) to show smaller in the image than the bottom. In seeing the real world around us this effect appears quite natural, but in a photograph the effect often makes the building appear as if it were falling over backwards. What we need for the image to “appear” more natural is a way to reduce the perspective-induced distortion of the shape of the building. (more…)
This picture has nothing to do with "Uncle Bob." I just feel bad when I write a long post and don't have any pictures..
There are so many issues that wedding photographers can argue about: light, composition, equipment, price, style and so on. I think it’s a hoot that the one issue that always seems to get the most varied and heated opinions has nothing to do with the actual art of wedding photography (I’m a wedding photographer in Tampa, FL).
I’m talking about “Uncle Bob.”
If you’re a wedding photographer then you know exactly who I’m talking about. For those of you who don’t know, “Uncle Bob” is the guest at the wedding with an expensive camera who has decided to become an un-official wedding photographer for the day. Every time you pose someone for a shot, Uncle Bob is right there snapping away. If someone steps in front of you at an important moment during the reception, it’s Uncle Bob. Uncle Bob means well, but he’s oblivious to the fact that you’re doing a job and he’s interfering (I once had Uncle Bob get mad at me because I wouldn’t “wait my turn” to take a picture of the Bride and Groom during an emotional moment at the reception.)
If you like this article, you can now get the book! Joe has expanded the “Tuesday Composition” series into an inspiring new ebook on composition, especially for nature photography. Check it out: The Tuesday Composition.
A circle is the reflection of eternity. It has no beginning and it has no end – and if you put several circles over each other, then you get a spiral. –Maynard James Keenan
In previous weeks, we’ve talked a number of times about how the eye tends to follow along a line. We’ve usually talked about this in the context of the eye traveling from one part of an image to another, but circles are another variation on this theme. By bending a line back around to meet itself, we get a circle (or a similar closed curve). The eye tends to follow that circle, tracing around it one or more times, pulling attention both to the circle itself and whatever it encloses. (more…)
