Starting in Photography - my experiences. (56k warning)

[RimBlock]

As some people expressed an interest I am going to put some of my experiences here for anyone who wants to read and maybe avoid some of my mistakes.

i am going to do it in sections (i.e. Overview / Camera / PC / Studio) within this thread to get upto date and then just add to it as things change.

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Ok after a bit of feedback it has been suggested that prople may like an index so they can jump to relevant points without having to trawl through the whole thread so here goes......

In the begining - here.
Computer specs - here.
Lenses - here.
Other equipment - here.
Home studio - here.
Clarification on aperture - here.
Studio lighting - here.
Models - here.
First pictures / workflow - here.
Second shoot / lessons learnt - here.
Changes & things to come - here.
Singapore shots - here.
Bangkok shots - here.
Chiang Mai shots - here.
Koh Samui shots - here.
Colour calibration - here.
Lessons learnt fron Asia shots - here.
Colour profiles explained (Kenlynch) - here.
Photoshoot 1 writeup - here.
Free Microsoft RAW plugin - here.
New camera / new shots / things to do - here.
Expensive body, expensive accessories - here.
Impressions of Canon 5D - here.
Where to find models / More shots - here.
More shots (body and Nana) - here.
Other RAW processing tools (Pukkita) - here.
Model shots (Kae) - here.
Model shots (Jira) - here.
Model shots (Xiang) - here.
Model shots (June) - here.
Model shots (ShuFen) - here.
Processed model shots (Kae) - here.
Processed model shot (June) - here.
It's all in the details - here.
Test Canon 24-105mm f4 IS L - here.
Test Canon 28-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS - here.
Model shots (Davina) - here.
Model shots (Ting Ting) - here.
Where to go from here - here.
Post processed (Ting Ting), Model shoot (Avani) & (Ru) - here.
Battery grip impressions - here.
Dpi/ppi and much discussion - here.
Epping forest, company for the day and me - here.
More archived shots (Ixus 430) - here.
High ISO, she just makes me smile - here.
Website thoughts turn to action - here.
More island archived shots - here.
Pre/post edit island archved shot - here.
Hows this thread going vote - here.
Candid shot (Radiohead) - here.
Image protection and copyright - here.

[Mr THX]

Will be interested to read that Rimblock, I've just dipped my toe into the DSLR waters and I'm very interested to learn more........

Look forward to it.....

[RimBlock]

My interest is more in portraits and candid photography. I enjoy landscape shots but feel I am better with the other two areas. It is also worth noting that this is just a hobby for me and I have no aspirations to make it a profession.

Specifically my interest is more in photographing women from portrait, to glamour to art nude. A study of women and the female form and currently I am in a position to be able to do this.

I live alone but am lucky enough to have a GF who used to be a model in her native Taiwan and so is happy for me to persue this. Oh I am also in my early 30's.

[RimBlock]

The time was right what with me looking for a new hobby, going to Asia for 3 weeks and fantastic reviews of the Canon 350d.

Being a total impulse buyer it was into Jessops on the way home and walking out 30 mins later with a lovely silver 350D, USM kit lens and bag etc.

That was not he last I was to be seeing of Jessops.

Top Tip 1:
Jessops by Liverpool Street will reasonably price match a UK shop or website price with stock in. They need to check with head office before doing it though.

Top Mistake 1:
Didn't know about price matching. Paid full price for the pack. Should have done more research.

Top Tip 2:
Don't buy the memory cards from Jessops unless they price match them.

Top Mistake 2:
Approx £80 for a 1GB CF memory card. Should ahve done more research.

As far as the camera goes, I love it. My first SLR coming from an Ixus 430 and even with my long fingers I have no problems holding the camera. Must be all the practice with the PSP, now that is difficult to hold and use the thumb stick.

Top feature for me must be the ability to take rapid multiple shots. Pointing the camera at a female friend would cause a pout. Pushing and holding the shutter release create a flick book like account of the pout breaking out into a beaming smile. Fantastic.

[Geordie Jester]

interesting stuff. do you have a website with your work ?

[RimBlock]

Working in I.T. I have a reasonable spec'd machine. Not top of the range as I have grown out of the 'keeping up with the Jones'. There are much better things I can now spend the money on including holidays in Thailand. A new top of the line video card will cost as much as a 12 hour flight to Asia in non peak season.

Starting Spec;
A64 3500
1 GB ram
Ati 9800 pro video card
SCSI 15k boot drive
Various IDE storage drives
19" CRT monitor.

This runs Win XP and CS 2 fine. The only problem I have encountered is when opening multiple Tiff files and copying and pasting to stitch them together just fills up the ram and brings the machine to it's knees.

Top Tip 1:
Get as much ram as you can. Doesn't need to be the fastest but it is worth having the spare space so CS or any other programs have room to stretch their legs. Working on single files will usually not cause issues with 1 GB but it really is the more the better.

After playing with CS 2 for a while I decided that I needed to upgrade a few parts.

I now have changed;
1 GB ram -> 2 GB ram
19" CRT monitor -> 24" Dell widescreen monitor.

For me it makes a big difference. The Dell monitor was around £650 and is fantastic. PM me if you want to know where it was bought from. I will not advertise the site as their forums have a near fanatical desire to stop people even mentioning competitors. If the prices are fair and they are competitive then what is the problem ?. Oh well just my view.

[RimBlock]

Two comments already.

Thanks guys. Nope no website yet. Still trying to get the post processing of images to a point where I am happy to display. Bit too much of a perfectionist for my own good :-(.

Guess the website will be another section for the future.

Right lunch time and then I will do sections on other equipment / Studio / Studio lighting and models. That is if work does not get in the way

[RimBlock]

Well the kit lens was fine until I started reading that is was 'just' fine and there are a lot of other lenses out there which will give much better results.

Well that along with going to Thailand again made up my mind that I wanted a lens with a longer 'reach' so I started looking around.

Two lenses popped up as possibles and they were;
28mm-105mm f4-5.6 USM
28mm-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS USM

Both were going for reasonable prices on ebay and I consider this a good place to buy as I have not had any issues buying or selling over the last 4 years not that I am a big buyer or seller there.

Ok so first a little bit about the specs on the lenses;

Both the lenses are zoom lenses having a range of focal lengths between the first 'mm' number and the second 'mm' number. If there is just one 'mm' number then the lens is a prime lens and cannot be used to zoom in or out of the subject. The advantage of this is that the quality for the same price is usually better as prime lenses are much easier to manufacture.

The second set of numbers are the maximum aperture settings at the top and bottom of the focal range. The lower the number the bigger the hole to let light into the lens. The bigger the hole, the faster the shutter allowing for less to no blur when capturing fast moving objects or the better the picture if taken at night. Basically the lower the number the better.

USM is for ultra sonic motor allowing fast and quiet auto focusing.

IS is for image stabiliser which hopes to eliminate the blur caused by small body movements when the shutter is open and the picture is being taken. These movements are emphasised more the greater the focal length of the lens.

The lenses will be marked with another number after these which is the filter diameter should you wish to attach any filters in the future.

I went for the 20mm-135mm lens as it had good reviews, was faster (had a larger aperture at the low end) and had IS. I bought from e-bay for £100 less than buying new with lens hood (used to help minimise the sun shining directly into the lens). The lens was exactly as advertised and I was a very happy bunny.

Since this point I have also purchased a 50mm f1.4 and a 85mm f1.8 prime lens specifically for portrait work. I am happy with all the lenses and a happy coincidence is that all but the 28mm-135mm take 58mm filters so are interchangeable.

The two primes were bought from Jessops (85mm f1.8) and York Cameras (50mm f1.4). Jessops didn't have the 50mm either in their shops or in their warehouse and neither did Jacobs Digital (New Oxford Street). The very helpful guy in Jacobs did point me to York Cameras which is just up a road opposite the British Museum entrance. It is a small 'enthusiasts' shop rather than a 'chain store' and as such the prices can be a little higher but they had one in stock and the price was reasonable.

I have heard talk of the 50mm f1.8 being phased out of production. When looking for the 50mm f1.4 I was told they were so hard to find because they were being phased out. I suspect this may be the case.

I would recommend York for hard to find equipment, Jacobs for good advice and a little chat (depending on who you get serving) and Jessops because......err...... its on my way home

[Geordie Jester]

images mate......... post some attachments.. would be great to see photos from various lenses/topics etc

[RimBlock]

Ok with studio work in mind and with a not too steady hand I knew I needed a tripod and a remote shutter release.

So I now have a manfotto 190 tripod and a 3 way head. I also picked up a wired remote shutter release which has two positions for both focus lock and shutter release just like the half push on the cameras shutter release.

Top Warning 1:
The Manfrotto website is seriously bad. I suspect someone is running it from their bedroom. Don't expect being able to download manuals etc from the site with any ease.

The tripod is lovely though. I can strongly recommend.

I also bought a zigview which clips onto the back of the viewfinder and displays an image on a small lcd screen. The quality is not great and trying to spot where the auto focus point was within the picture was sometimes a problem but, and here is the big plus, when taking portrait pictures I can speak to the model without being behind a camera. She can see my facial expressions and eyes which adds a more personal connection to the session.

I also find that the eye piece for the 350D means you need to push your face pretty snugly up to the back of the camera squashing your nose etc. The zigview means I no longer need to do that but I only use it indoors.

I have also purchased a graphics tablet for giving better control with picture editing. i have yet to sit down and really use it so cannot really comment yet although the installation went smoothly and I can now control Windows with a pen as well as with my normal mouse.

[RimBlock]

Ha-ha......

I am at work and do not have my pics here. I am also off out to the pub tonight so wont get a chance until tomorrow night to post some pictures.

There are two already in the forums, one portrait and one land (sea)scape.

I will try to get more up over the weekend. They will be linked to the experiences sections (i.e. Thailand, First model shoot) within this thread unless you want pics of the computer and of the camera equipment

[RimBlock]

Ok, I don't have a garage and I can't be bothered hiring a studio every time I want to do a shoot but I do have a spare room. The room is a pretty good size and is empty but for wardrobes along one wall and the computer.

This is how I turned it into a studio....... drawing pins, fabric and studio lights (see next section).

Is really is as easy as that.

The fabric was purchased from Fabric Land . The people were able to arrange and next day Saturday delivery (impulse buyer remember )

Fabricland do black fabric used for costumes for £1 for a 1 mtr by 1.47mtr wide length. I bought lengths to cover the wardrobes and one wall along with the floor making the interior of a black three sided cube. The other thing about this fabric is that it has some lycra in it so it can be pulled taught. It is also easy to Photoshop any seams out. I got an old dining chair from my loft and covered it with a small throw for the model to sit on. I also have an exercise floor mat which I can put down and cover with a throw if the model is laying on the floor to make it more comfortable for her.

I also bought some black velvet and some cream printed cloth.

That's it really. Three sides of a room, some black cloth and space for lights and the camera / tripod. Having the PC in the same room means I can proof the pics when the model is changing into another outfit.

Top Tip 1:
Using drawing pins to secure to the wall can give you a numb thumb tip depending on the hardness of your walls or lots of bent pins. I got through 50% of my pins as they bent.

Using this method I can unpin the all but the top pins and roll the backcloth up and store on top of the wardrobe. It takes me around 10 to 15 mist to get it pinned out again and the cloth attached to the wall I do not touch save for rolling the floor covering up to the wall as it was a git to get the pins in the wall in the first place.

[kenlynch]

The second set of numbers are the maximum aperture settings at the top and bottom of the focal range. The lower the number the bigger the hole to let light into the lens. The bigger the hole, the faster the shutter allowing for less to no blur when capturing fast moving objects or the better the picture if taken at night. Basically the lower the number the better.

Just a quick correction/addition. Lower is not better. A larger aperture will give less depth of field for the same focal length, this may not be what you want. All lenses are at their softest wide open, so stopping down the aperture is often a good idea to get the best performance from a lens.

In photography you have a range of shutter speeds and apertures that give the same exposure, so you should select the shutter speed and aperture according to the exposure and the creative effect you want from the shot - if you want to blur action to create a sense of movement or get lots in focus front to back, then use a slower shutter speed and a smaller aperture - if you want to freeze the action or use selective focus to pick out a point of interest whilst bluring the rest, use a wider aperture with a higher shutter speed.

[RimBlock]

Sorry, I did not make myself as clear as maybe I should.

Specific applications in photography do not require a larger aperture and therefore will not benefit from having a faster lens. Getting a faster lens widens what you can do with the lens and get good results (dependant on the lenses quality of course). A wider minimum aperture gives you more options on what you can shoot with the lens and come out with good quality.

I was using better generally. Someone with specific uses in mind like shooting long landscapes in bright sunshine would not benefit from larger apertures if this is all they were going to be doing.

I was also trying to save getting into the whole relationship between aperture, iso, blur, shutterspeed for another section rather than get bogged down in that one. It is hard enough to keep them this short .

Cheers
RB

[RimBlock]

Well now I have the basic studio setup I need to be able to light it.

I am under no illusion that this will be a professional studio with ceiling rails and thousands of pounds worth of equipment but then I want it to at least be semipro rather than just having spot lights.

The two main options available were tungsten lighting which work like always on spotlights and proper studio flash that only fire when triggered.

The problem with the tungsten lights is generally heat build-up. They tend to be quite high wattage and as they are always on you are going to get the model pretty hot (in a bad way ). They are cheaper but not ideal.

The studio flash lights generally only fire when triggered but usually have a modelling light which can be turned on to help arrange the lighting for the desired effect. These modelling lights are usually fairly low in power and don't generate much heat and so don't give the model a tan while she is posing.

Now most of the books I have read give a basic setup fro portrait lighting as requiring;

Key light - Main light to highlight the face.
Fill light - To fill in shadows created by the key light.
back light - To light the background.
Hair light - to light the hair .

Some of these lights can be replaced or enhanced by using reflectors.

So what to go for. Well the cheapest as mentioned was the tungsten system but for me this was just not what I wanted. The next cheapest was a flash system provided by good old Jessops. They put together a range of starter studio kits. The kits are called portaflash kits and usually come with all you need to get going. Two of the kits looked good to me, the cheaper 2 and the more expensive 3. The 2 had a master and slave flash where the 3 has two master and two slave flashes.

The master flashes have modelling lights where as the slaves are just flash bulbs. Well the books say that I need 4 lights so I went for the kit 3. Nope not from Jessops as £529 was a bit more than I could justify what with buying the camera and lenses etc as well. Along to EBay and I managed to pick up the kit plus a few extras for around £380.

So what did I get.
Two master flash heads. Power can be stepped up/down in 1/4 increments (i.e. 1/4 power, 1/2 power). Modelling light switch, sync cord socket.
Two slave flash heads (corded on/off switch)
Two umbrellas (for bouncing and spreading the light).
A softbox (for defusing the light).
4 colour filters for the slave flash heads
2 diffuser filters for the slave flash heads
3 stands
A snoot - funnel like device for channelling the light into a small area.
A honeycomb - like the snoot but for stronger channelling.
Various brackets.

There are two main ways of getting the studio flashes to fire. Using a PC sync cord (nope not PC as in personal computer). This is a cable that will run from the camera to the master flash unit allowing the camera to stell the master to fire. The other flashes will detect this firing and fire themselves. The second is via an infrared trigger unit. This type of unit will fire an infrared flash pulse that is invisible to the camera but will trigger the flash heads.

I chose the PC connection route as the hotshoe adapter (the 350D doesn't come with a PC sync socket). The adaptor was a few pounds at Jessops. Yes it adds another cable (along with the flash power cables) but I have also heard of misfires from studio flash due to a camera's preflash used for focusing in difficult conditions. A few pounds for the adaptor against £150 or so for a wireless flash trigger and there really was no competition.

I am pretty pleased with the whole setup but there are a few issues which I will cover in another section. These issues are more to do with lack of space more than anything else.