Tag: video

Social Media That is Not So Social

Career, Life, Photography

Many of us who are gear geeks like myself get a bit of a thrill in chasing not only the latest releases, but also the rumours about the latest releases. We develop our own stable of reliable sources. Some of these could be direct contacts with manufacturers, some could be other news gathering bodies that take great pains to get it right.

While I do enjoy reading about the latest rumours, they do nothing more than give me a bit of a rush. It’s the anticipation of something new and exciting. But reality eventually sets in and I get on with my day.

One such source for me has been “Canon Rumors”, a website operated for the last 14 years by the same guy. I’m not going to mention his name here and you will see why shortly. The information posted has been very reliable and very fairly presented, accompanied by a rating system that clearly indicated how likely the rumour was to materialize and how reliable his source was.

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The Canon EOS R5 is NOT a Video Camera!

Gear, Photography, Tools

For the past year, I’ve been using the Canon EOS R5 as my primary stills camera.  It is a superb piece of equipment, carefully engineered to fulfill all of my wildest dreams for stills photography.  I purchased it for what will become a recurring theme for me – how to make photography more convenient.

As I get older, there are aspects of photography such as the tracking of moving subjects, the determination of tack sharp focus, remembering to switch from high ISO back to normal ISO, remembering to switch from single shot to continuous shooting and back, that could use a little help.  The Canon EOS R5 provides that to me exceptionally well.

Its large, high resolution viewfinder allows me to arrange all of the important shooting information around the edge of the frame without affecting the ability to see the subject clearly.  That’s what defines a mirrorless camera frankly and separates it from a DSLR.  That clear view of the subject and the settings allows me to set up the shot easily even with my diminishing vision, and when I can’t, there are built-in warnings and colour overlays to help me.

Likewise, the LCD is big, bright, rotatable to any angle that saves my aging back and knees, and yet lets me get the camera into the right angle to capture any scene, no matter how high or how low.

I can customize essentially every button and dial to perform the function that works for me, I can set up and save custom shooting settings that give me everything from landscape setups to close up to action setups at the flick of a button.  And I can save out all my customizations to a file to store remotely, in case something causes the camera to need a reset.

Sounds like a gem, doesn’t it.  It’s fast, light, smart and takes pretty pictures too.  It even shoots video.

Say what?  Shoots video.  But the title of this blog is that it is not a video camera. Read on, intrepid friend.

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How to Produce Compelling Photography – Shoot Video Too

Artistic Ideas, Photography, Videos

Twice a month, we have the pleasure of listening to amateur and professional photographers talk about their work at our local camera club.  It’s typically entertaining, sometimes thought provoking, but truthfully, only rarely compelling.

What do I mean by compelling?  For me, that means photography with a clear message, obvious story and emotional reaction.  Compelling may show human beings, other lifeforms, places on earth (or not on earth), human activities, the impact of human activities and on and on.  But in all cases, there’s has to be something about the work, the way it is presented that is different from what I’ve seen before.

While the familiar can also be compelling – for me, any shots of mountain ranges or oceans, for example – the unfamiliar is another way to get my attention.

Dave SanfordIn a recent visit, a pro photographer by the name of Dave Sandford definitely got my attention.  Along with stunning photographs, Dave told story after story after story and backed it up with undeniable proof.  That proof was video. Continue reading “How to Produce Compelling Photography – Shoot Video Too” →