What Stormtroopers do on Their Day Off | WildAmmo.com

Fantastic photos – makes me wish I had some stormtrooper action figures to try the . . . → Read More: What Stormtroopers do on Their Day Off]]> When you are bored and have some time, see what Stormtroopers get up to in their free time

What Stormtroopers do on Their Day Off | WildAmmo.com

Fantastic photos – makes me wish I had some stormtrooper action figures to try the same with

And last weekend we went to Itchen Valley Country park, which is also very close to Southampton, and I got some nice . . . → Read More: Hampshire Country Parks]]> A few weeks ago we decided to back to Manor Farm Country Park to enjoy the surprisingly sunny Sunday. Naturally the camera came with me (click on photo for a larger version)

And last weekend we went to Itchen Valley Country park, which is also very close to Southampton, and I got some nice photos of bluebells as well as some butterflies that were kind enough to let me get really close to them. The rest of photos from Itchen Valley Country Park are in my flickr set

Because of engine vibrations in the sports-car we decided to try the shots with . . . → Read More: Car photos]]> On the weekend a few photographers from work got together to have a go at trying some car shots. We turned up with cars and cameras and started off with some shots by mounting the tripod onto the frame of the car

Because of engine vibrations in the sports-car we decided to try the shots with the engine off, and the car just coasting fairy slowly. The shots from the side of the car weren’t bad, however the ones form the front did not have a slow enough shutter speed for the slow movement. Side-shots seem to work better as we had the car turning atight corner, so got some blur out of the rotation.

We then had a go at some panning shots, where someone drove the car past us and we took photos. Pretty much all my early ones were a bit rubbish.

I found it really tricky to do any shots closer to the car, and think I would have done better with a longer lens and being further back. If you are not in the centre of the arc the car is doing round you then you find the nose and/or tail of the car blurs quite easily when you are close

We also tried some tracking shots, where we were in the boot of a car, with the subject car following close behind – tip: don’t use a diesel as your lead car!

Set to become law on 16 February, the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 amends the Terrorism Act 2000 regarding offences relating to information about members of armed forces, a member of the intelligence services, or a police officer.

The new set of rules, under section 76 of the 2008 Act and section 58A of the 2000 Act, . . . → Read More: Jail for photographing police?]]> What the ?!?

Set to become law on 16 February, the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 amends the Terrorism Act 2000 regarding offences relating to information about members of armed forces, a member of the intelligence services, or a police officer.

The new set of rules, under section 76 of the 2008 Act and section 58A of the 2000 Act, will target anyone who ‘elicits or attempts to elicit information about (members of armed forces) … which is of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism’.

A person found guilty of this offence could be liable to imprisonment for up to 10 years, and to a fine.

British Journal of Photography – Jail for photographing police?

I can’t believe what I am reading! – This is ridiculous!

I understand that taking photos of sensitive buildings could be considered a security risk, and that places like airports already have restricted rights for taking photos, but the police and public places?

This is a serious problem for professional, particularly press, photographers but also amateur photographers. It won’t be long before you have to get any public photos approved by the government, and then we really will have an Orwellian Big Brother watching over us.

. . . → Read More: Yay, Snow!]]> I thought I should put up a few of the snowy photos I have taken recently. All were taken at IBM Hursley

While there I paid my . . . → Read More: Hillier Gardens by camera]]> Last weekend I decided to go to Hiller Gardens, primarily because the had a photography exhibition which I knew some friends from work had entered photos into. I was generally impressed with the photos, though some of the entries should have been vetted as there were way too may photos of bluebells…

While there I paid my fee, and wandered around the gardens with my camera – Heres a few of the photos I took

These first 3 are infra-red shots…

Here are a couple of shots from around work taken recently

. . . → Read More: More random photos]]> I have been trying to take my compact camera everywhere with me, and have been failing miserably. I missed the most amazing foggy sunrise yesterday at work because I had gotten lazy about bringing it.

Here are a couple of shots from around work taken recently

I went to see if I could get anything different from other years. Not sure I really did though…

Unfortunately I did get some rain blown from the trees on my lens, so some photos have some rain-spots (I suppose that is what I get for pointing the camera . . . → Read More: Hursley fireworks 2008]]> It’s that time of year again – Hursley Fireworks.

I went to see if I could get anything different from other years. Not sure I really did though…

Unfortunately I did get some rain blown from the trees on my lens, so some photos have some rain-spots (I suppose that is what I get for pointing the camera up while standing under a tree after the rain).

The rest are on my flickr album

The first thing to say about this camera, is that it blurs the term SLR. . . . → Read More: Panasonic Lumix G1 review]]> I recently had the opportunity to review the new Panasonic Lumix G1 Digital SLR. As there are other more detailed reviews out there, I decided to write about my impressions of using it, rather than trying to list statistics about the camera.

The first thing to say about this camera, is that it blurs the term SLR. Strictly speaking it might not be an SLR. SLR (Single Lens Reflex) in lay-mans terms means what you see in the viewfinder is a what the camera will take, which is achieved through the use of mirrors and prisms. The G1 uses no mirrors or prisms, as it is fully digital including the viewfinder (unlike Canon or Nikon DSLRs).

This is exactly what a compact digital camera uses for the screen on the back, often referred to as “live mode” on DSLR models.
Without mirrors you might say it is not an SLR, however you still see what is coming through the lens and it shows what will be recorded when you hit the shutter button.

I am sure a lot of photographers will have reservations about whether this camera is really a SLR or not, but it the lack of mirrors doesn’t change what it can do. It does use different metering and focusing systems, as the ones used in a normal SLR or DSLR cannot be used as the image is always being processed by the sensor. This gives the advantage that the live mode behaves exactly like on a compact – focusing works as you would expect, unlike the live mode on the Canon 40D.

This camera is a truly small DSLR – The body is much smaller than even the small Canon and Nikon DSLRs, and the lenses are based on a new Olympus format called micro four thirds. This new format is to four-thirds format lenses, as EF-S is to EF lenses in the Canon range. In short, the lens sits much closer to the sensor because it is designed for digital cameras, which allow the lens to sit deeper into the camera body.

The G1 uses contrast-detection focusing, which is the same as the new Canon 50D. As well as that it has live-mode face detection focusing, like the 50D. Of course, as the viewfinder is digital, you see exactly what you do on the screen on the back. The contrast focusing feels a tiny bit slower than the normal focusing on my Canon 40D, however it is only just noticeable.

As you can see in the photos, this camera has a flip out screen. The first thing to say is that the screen is HUGE. It also performs wonderfully in full sunlight, which is great. Being able to flip out the screen is something I really like in a camera, and if the lenses were compatible with my Canon range, I would seriously be considering Panasonic as an upgrade…
The screen actually changes the brightness depending on the light coming through the lens – so if you walk into a dark room, the power output of the screen drops to save power, which is a clever touch.
The screen also turns off when you put the viewfinder to your eye (and the viewfinder actually turns off when the screen turns on again)

Unfortunately I don’t have any screenshots of using the camera, but the software is rather interesting. It has all the normal things you would expect, and I guessed most of it without looking at the manual (which it turns didn’t come with English in my trial kit, so wouldn’t have helped). The camera has several focusing modes, much like the Lumix range of compacts, including a mode that tracks an object in the frame – you select a point in the frame, and it keeps the focus on it as you move the camera around. It works reasonably well, and is rather clever, though I can’t see myself using it.

The information mode of the back screen shows all your camera settings, including a nice wheel-style chart to show your exposure compensation and bracketing, which is nice. Speaking of bracketing, the camera offers several choices of bracketing presets. Up to 7 bracketed exposures, if i recall correctly, however you cannot choose the spread of exposures yourself – you have to use the presets. It is a shame that you can’t choose this, as most people will want 3 frames with the largest difference between them for doing HDR photography, and there is no preset for this.

The lenses I played with were a 14-45, and 45-200. Both were entry level as far as the aperture goes, however both were optically stabilised and did a good job of it. The conversion factor for these lenses is about 2x. This means the 200mm lens on this camera, is about the same as a 400mm lens on a full frame 35mm camera.
These lenses offer really nice coverage – the kit lens is the 14-45 which is a good starting lens. The 45-200mm lens is a rather impressive zoom lens, especially given it’s size and the fact it is stabilised.

To be perfectly honest about this camera – I think it has a lot over the bottom-end Canon and Nikons. The full live mode is fantastic, and perfect for someone new to SLR’s as you can simply put it on auto and use it like any old compact. The electronic viewfinder is a little odd at first, at least for a long-time SLR user, but after 10 minutes I forgot it was electronic at all. It is nice that all the info you can get on the screen, you get in the viewfinder, including a live histogram if you want it.

The flip out screen make it far more creative, as shooting from ground level with a normal SLR means lying in the mud.. The creative shooting modes (i.e. portrait, landscape) have a choice of styles, and the custom style tells you what you can change to make the photo different. For example, in portrait mode it allows you to change the aperture, but it shows a slider for background blur as that is really what you are trying to achieve. This, along with styles like black and white being live even in the viewfinder and the fact that you can adjust the saturation and contrast live before the photo, camera has an edge for new users that want to plat with a camera, but haven’t learnt all the SLR tricks and lingo.

The only thing that stops it competing with the likes of the 40D semi-professional cameras is the max 3fps continuous shooting and range of lenses and flashes. Raw output is already available for those that want it.

I didn’t get the chance to use the camera as much as I would have liked, but here are some sample images (sorry I can’t give full-res copies)

This little toadstool was taken with a flash each side to light it up, triggered with cactus radio triggers (flashes set to about 1/16th power i think, and quite a small aperture on . . . → Read More: There’s always time for a photo]]> I have been really busy recently, but have taken some photos over the past few weeks, so thought I’d share a few of them

This little toadstool was taken with a flash each side to light it up, triggered with cactus radio triggers (flashes set to about 1/16th power i think, and quite a small aperture on the macro lens)

I have also been taking some photos of a friends’ band The rivers of sound

Also, following comments on a recent post I decided to get out in the garden and try some photos of the insect life that lives there. Most of these had an off-camera flash on E-TTL auto, though manual actually works better with a little practice (if you get the exposure wrong, the flies are gone before you get a second chance (probably cooked by the power of the flash that close) so E-TTL is easier to start with)

Some are random (as seen below)

I also snapped a close-up of some ants and other insects (aphids?)) eating at the stem of my sunflower. I was quite surprised at the detail I got, though admittedly it was with my ef-s 60mm macro lens

I . . . → Read More: Recent Photos]]> I thought it’s about time I mentioned the photos I have been taking recently

Some are random (as seen below)

I also snapped a close-up of some ants and other insects (aphids?)) eating at the stem of my sunflower. I was quite surprised at the detail I got, though admittedly it was with my ef-s 60mm macro lens

I also got a nice shot of a bee while on a walk one lunchtime at work

And then there is my whole set of photos from Hinton Ampner, which I realised I didn’t have the old ones from last year up, so theres a fair few in there including a whole pile trying to catch a bee flying. (click on the photo below to see the whole set)

And I recently took photos of the Hursley Model Railway (again click on the image below to see the whole set). Some of these were done with an off-camera flash with a coloured gel, which produced some interesting effects, though not very life-like.

I have bee . . . → Read More: The Decisive Photograper – Bert Stephani]]> Bert Stephani (Confessions of a Photographer) has done two very interesting posts as part of a workshop he ran titled “The Decisive Photograper” – Live Shoot Outdoor and Live Shoot Indoor make for fantastic reading if you want to know more about balancing a portable flash with natural light for that perfect portrait.

I have bee following Bert’s blog for a while now, and it really is fantastic – I strongly recommend reading through his archive, particularly for the videos he’s done during shoots.

. . . → Read More: Random Photos]]> I stumbled over these photos the other day, and decided I really liked them.
I couldn’t remember if I had posted them up here, so decided to post them anyway

A map of the woods which was quite helpful is available from the forrestry . . . → Read More: Micheldever bluebells]]> On the last bank holiday I went to Micheldever to get photos of the bluebells, for which Micheldever woods is quite well known for.

A map of the woods which was quite helpful is available from the forrestry commission

This is something I plan to do every year