Category Archives: Tech Talk

Apr 06
0

MindShift Panorama Review

By | Camera Gear, Tech Talk | No Comments
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My New Favorite Camera Bag

 

I’ve had this bag for a few weeks now and I’ve given it a workout. So here’s how I have mine setup and my mini MindShift Panorama Review.  It fits comfortably and the rotation part works flawless. If you’re a landscape and nature photographer this is the bag!

My setup includes the upper photo insert which holds my Canon 6D with the 17-40mm mounted, a 50mm and my 70-200mm. In the rotational part I have a Canon 60D with the 100mm F2.8 macro mounted and some lens cleaning supplies. This allows me to hike or walk trails shoot handheld with the 60D until I get to a spot where I want to setup my tripod for landscape shots with the 6D. Your tripod mounts on the rear of the bag and they also have a tripod suspension kit if you prefer to carry it that way. It also has the compartment for a hydration bladder up to 3L on the left side and I store my gloves hats and snacks in the upper compartment.  Plenty of room but still not too big to weigh you down on a hike! It feels very sturdy and well constructed I would definitely recommend this bag to anyone who’s into adventure!

They offer this bag in two colors Tahoe Blue and Charcoal and there’s an optional rain cover for heavy downpours. (I took mine on a waterfall shoot a few weeks back and It did well keeping my gear dry without the rain cover.)

 

Check the price of MindShift Panorama on Amazon
MindShift Panorama Review

Feb 18
0

Topaz Simplify Review

By | Floral, Nature, Photography, Photography Blog, Tech Talk, Tennessee, Virginia | No Comments
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Topaz Simplify Edits

I was contacted earlier this week to try out Topaz Labs Simplify, at first I wasn’t so sure about this one. The first few images I saw created with this plugin just didn’t appeal to me. But after thinking about it I decided what the heck and downloaded it to give it a go… I’ve been very pleased with all the products from Topaz Labs they help me create my art work time and time again.  Like this one below a photograph I took over the fall in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Simplify turned an ordinary photograph into something totally different and I’m no painter that’s for sure… It would take me a year to paint that lol.

 

Topaz Simplify

 

Topaz Simplify

If you’re looking to create something different and turn some of your photo’s into works of art you should really check this plugin out.

Use the code febsimplify to get the special offer price of $19.99 until Feb. 28th
May 21
0

Topaz Clarity Results

By | Canon HDR Photography, HDR Software, Photography, Tech Talk, Topaz Clarity | No Comments
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Topaz Clarity First Look

Last week I had the opportunity to test the new product Clarity from Topaz Labs, and I must say I like it! The layout is like most other products from Topaz Labs and the version I had was limited on the presets. With only a couple included for landscapes (in the beta version)  but both seemed to do a pretty good job at adjusting the contrast in the image.  I used it on a few images that I had yet to process, these images were only processed using the Clarity software. Below are a couple photographs that I edited using Topaz Clarity, the included presets were used as a starting point and some slight adjustments were made from there.  To purchase Topaz Clarity click here, and use promo code: claritynew before May 31,2013 for a special reduced price! 🙂

Clarity_box_clear

 

Topaz Clarity Test image

The left half is edited with Topaz Clarity, right half is straight out of the camera.

 

Twisted Fog

Edited using Topaz Clarity.

 

May 05
0

Photographing Bodies Of Water

By | HDR Software, Landscapes, Photography, Photomatix, Photoshop, Tech Talk, Topaz Adjust | No Comments
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Photographing Bodies Of Water

 

I’m working on my first ebook “Photographing Bodies Of Water”. My goal for this book is to give the readers some tips on setting up for the shot and to make those pictures come to life with tips and tricks for processing those images. This book will cover different conditions like cloudy days, bright sunshine and sunsets. The release date for this ebook will be early Summer 2013 with a cost of $6.99.   So if you would like to learn more about HDR Photography or photographing bodies of water this book is for you.

 

Below is an example of what I will show you how to do in this book.

carvins_cove 036

This is the before picture straight out of the camera.

lonely_tree_carvins_cove

This is after using my editing tips.

If you think this book is something that would be helpful to you, please check back often for updates and mark your calendar. 🙂

Jan 01
0

I Love SmugMug

By | Photography, Tech Talk | No Comments

So you’re probably asking what is SmugMug? It’s the best place for your photographs in my opinion, I use them to store all my completed works that are available to purchase. It’s simple to use and gives you an online store in a matter of oh I’d say an hour or less. You sign up for an account, setup your galleries, upload your photo’s, set your pricing structure and you now have a place to sell your work. I also use this to store the photographs I take on shoots, by making them password protected only the client can see the pictures and download them straight off the Internet. Which means I don’t have to make copies and deliver them or mail them out to my customers. So if you’re looking to sell your work online or to get your work to your clients faster and cheaper take a look at SmugMug.

smugmug

Oct 28
0

Sony NEX-5N Review

By | Tech Talk | No Comments

Recently I have started using my Sony Nex-5N  a little more and thought I would share some results of what I like about the camera and  also what I dislike about it. First off the camera is much smaller than my DSLR which makes it a perfect every day or carry around camera. The kit lens 18-55 mm F3.5-5.6 seems to be pretty good with the limited shooting I have done so far. The added features of the camera are great some of the effects built in to it are great, while others aren’t of much use. The three that I think are very useful are the miniature effect, soft focus, and the selective color (red). I know lots of people who like to see edited black and white photographs of their children on a red bicycle, car, or whatever it may be but have the red bicycle still in color. If they owned this camera it’s as simple as setting the camera to JPG format turning on the selective filter under color and brightness and taking the picture! No software editing needed. The soft focus setting provides a nice soft focus effect to make photographs more dreamy like which sometimes can create and excellent image. The miniature effect works similar to a tilt shift lens, making parts of the image blurred out but retaining a section in focus. This creates the effect of taking a picture of a scale model. I have posted a few photo’s on my flickr photostream using this technique and I will share one with you below. This was taken in front of the Peaks Of Otter Lodge on the Blue Ridge Parkway, the only editing done was a simple crop and vignette was added in Lightroom 4.

 

Naked Tree

Order a Limited Edition print of this photo

The things I don’t like about the camera is the menu system seems to me like its a little hard to navigate, it’s okay but I think it could be better. The Auto HDR feature isn’t that great and as far as HDR goes I would recommend using other cameras, but it can be done with this one. The auto bracketing settings only allow for a .3 step increment which in HDR is pretty much useless, and I would rather have something with a 1 step increment. Overall I must say the image quality is great and some of the features are awesome. I would recommend it to people as a every day camera, which is super fast mirrorless, good image quality at 16.1 mp, very lightweight which makes it easy to travel and has lots of options to get creative.
Sony NEX-5N 16.1 MP Compact Interchangeable Lens Touchscreen Camera with 18-55mm Lens (Black)