The benefits of Volunteering

Dear Readers;

The inevitably contractual basis of work as a freelance photographer will tend to mean that your paid work and activities fluctuate.  Fortunately there is a great way to keep active and practising whilst also marketing your own photography.

and the best part is: its FREE!!

all that you need to do (especially easy if you're a student) is to contact sports clubs, societies and keep tabs on local events and cultural events.  Often you need only write an email to committees, in order for them to agree to take you on as a volunteer photographer, they can also be persuaded to agree to allow you to add a watermark to each picture and to cover your costs (of batteries etc)

This form of agreement is mutually beneficial, you're out having a great time using your camera (and feeling very important doing so) and the society/group for which you're working are gaining pictures of their events.

If you bring along some fast lenses, and equipment you're comfortable using, you can get some really good results:

People will always be happy to be photographed doing what they do best.

Your First SLR

Often, Friends ask me which of the hundreds of SLR's, D-SLR's and other miscellaneous cameras is "the best"

My reply is often the same: it doesn't matter a great deal which camera you use; it matters that you feel comfortable using it, understand its features and menus and are able to use it as a tool to capture your artistic vision for others to admire/comment upon.

Obviously, for many budding enthusiasts this isn't a sufficient answer.  I know from personal experience that in lieu of the development of skill and talent, a photographer relies on luck and the technology at his/her hand.

Whilst skill takes time to develop the issue of which camera to buy remains; and I have several answers depending upon your outlook of photography.

• Stick with the camera you have- seems overly easy but most of photography is using your own critical views of your photographic output to improve your compositions and thereby improve the results you can achieve.
• Buy old- When I walk into camera shops today (I regularly do) salespeople are happy to jump on me, trying to sell me the latest addition to the Nikon/canon line up. Digital camera technology has stabilised somewhat recently and as a later post will hopefully tell you the sensor in the camera doesn't matter as much as the lens you have attached to the front. As of  28/01/2013 You can get an older Nikon D90 for roughly the same price as the latest SLR cameras. by buying the D90 however you gain the following advantages:
• Better built camera- it will immediately feel more robust
• More backwards compatible - It may not be in your immediate interest but the D90 and other semi-professional cameras of the same series have an inbuilt focus motor, which means you are able to buy lenses from the 1990's. One such lens I bought was the Nikon 35-70mm f/2.8 bought from ebay for £150. easily as good and usable as the latest lenses but for a fraction of the price.
• a larger, clearer viewfinder- this point seems very technical, but you will instantly benefit from the viewfinder as the more pro bodies use pentaprisms over the cheaper pentamirror meaning a clearer (in low light) and larger generally viewfinder.
• A better low-light performance- I'm still not certain why this is, but the sensor is the same size as cheaper D-SLR models but is able to offer a far superior high ISO performance.
• A more advanced feature set- the more professional feeling cameras will also come available with more advanced/usable features. although you may not be using these initially, as time progresses and as you improve your technique, eventually you will become grateful that your camera is more capable than the cheaper models.
• Go Big or Go Home- If you find that you simply must have the largest most professional camera available and nothing else will do, there are also options for you which are far more cost effective than buying a D4.  My suggestion for you would be to seriously consider buying a late 90's Film body, such as the Nikon F5, which can be bought on ebay (currently) in good condition for £200, you can then buy dark room supplies and an enlarger (often available in charity shops) for another £80 ish and a decent quality 35mm film scanner for £50. and immediately you have a fully professional full frame camera body which is fully compatible with all Nikon AF lenses (and even looks good with the older, cheaper professional ones).  The best news of all is that you can have all the fun of film photography and dark room use and you can look cool and retro to all your friends and, even better, you have still only spent £400 at the absolute maximum.

Tips for cold weather photography

Dear Reader

Please note that this particular post does not contain original material, source: Cold Weather Shooting

In weather like we're having in the UK currently, with frequently sub zero temperatures, I find myself trying to revise (hence the lack of recent posts) whilst combating a serene urge to go and to take pictures.

please note however that the cold weather itself presents unique challenges to the photographer, the following is a list of tips found on the national geographic website (link above).  National Geographic is a website littered with tips for the enthusiast photographer which can make a good scene into a great one.

Cold weather photography tips:

• Batteries- Batteries drain significantly faster in cold weather, ensure that whenever possible you carry an extra.  In order to prolong the longevity of any batteries a genuinely good tip is to keep it warm by keeping it closer to your body, this applies to any conditions and not just for cold weather
• Change lenses as infrequently as possible- I'm not a huge fan of "superzoom" lenses on any of my camera bodies. but introducing moisture to the inside of your camera body is inevitable when changing lenses outdoors in cold conditions (especially if its snowing) and is never good news. ensure either that your prime lens is versatile enough for the type of photography you would like to do, or that you can zoom with your feet, or equip yourself with a range with a high zoom ratio to ensure that you don't miss a moment but also don't put your camera at risk.
• Warming up- Warming your expensive camera equipment up too quickly can result in damage by condensation.  bring a plastic bag with you which you are able to seal and ensure that you stow your camera in the coldest possible place on first going back inside so that your camera can thaw gradually.
• use rain covers (if available) when under heavy snow
• fingerless gloves- aside from being a suave fashion accessory fingerless gloves ensure that the main part of your hand remains sufficiently warm whilst you can still access your camera controls as necessary.
• microfibre wipe- previously when shooting in snowy conditions I have found the front element of my lens becomes greasy very quickly which is very destructive for image quality, and can be the ruin of any long exposure type night photography.  bring lens wipes with you to keep the front element clean

That's all for today folks.  English weather isn't too adverse that you can't take excellent pictures provided you take appropriate precautions.

A Passion at Work

Dear Readers

This post follows on from my previous found at: My personal Camera Nostalgia (camstalgia)

No samples of club work In this post due to copyright restrictions :(

Christmas 2011 gave me both the Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5 AF-S DX and the Nikon SB-700

In the spring of the following year I had managed to break through what is possibly the photographer's glass ceiling.  And that is finding work, hence turning what had been a long standing hobby for me into something useful for which I was getting paid.  I found the process fairly easy. iamvip seems to always be hiring amateur photographers on the pre-requisite that they have a (camera mounted) flash unit.  They're also always happy to teach the basics of nightclub work; that is the environment from a photographer's perspective. They also informally tell you how to defend yourself, should the need arise.

All of these lessons were very important, and within only a short time, Photography had encompassed my weekend, Friday night meant that Saturday was a no-go and Saturday night finished me off until Wednesday.   Its not by accident that I'm implying the hardships of this job; it was tough with no chance of a staff job and the ever present possibility of ending a night with a total earning of £0.  Regardless, I secretly relished the opportunity to convert my hobby into a job and although I was tired I was happy.

But not for long.  Soon my patience had worn thin and I thought myself above the work type.  I left and promptly found something new to fill my weekend in the form of B&W 35mm film photography.

A friend pressured me into bidding on a used Zorki 4, an overly simplistic rangefinder camera from 1973 USSR (picture above)

The rangefinder's mechanics were old, but clean and functional.  And as I taught myself more about manual exposure and depth of field I joined the Leeds University Photography Society and paid only a little extra for use of the dark room.

Pretty soon I was filling 2-3 film rolls in a weekend.  And finally at Christmas 2012 I received a negative scanner to be able to share the results:

The development process clearly left its mark on the pictures, but I didn't care, the photos were for me at this time and the feel of film and manual focus lenses tempted me into buying a second 35mm film camera body: the Praktica TL5B, for which I later acquired 3 lenses.

It wasn't long at all before I shifted my focus back to finding work.  At some point in the excitement of film cameras I had subscribed to the photosoc, whose connections I now used to find another Leeds based employer.

La Fiesta Leeds and I were soon in contact, and soon after that I had been offered a staff position with an hourly wage which for me at the time was a jackpot and an opportunity I was not going to miss out on!

Although I personally dislike almost every picture I've taken whilst working with La Fiesta, working in nightclubs without the frustrating keychain around my neck provided by iamvip had a more professional feel about it.  Although I still wouldn't class myself as a pro, I would often be stopped from my work by people asking after my photographic services.

It was around this point in time I was making enough £££ that I simply stopped looking for part time sales assistant work and it now became sensible for me to return to Leeds early in 2013 in order to fulfil yet another pre arranged contract.

At Christmas 2012, I half bought & half begged a nikon D7000, a camera which at the time of writing I cannot recommend enough for its professional feature set.  As of January 2013 the 18-70mm lens is still my most used, along with the classic and standard prime, the 50mm f/1.8.

More posts will surely follow, with an emphasis more on product (nikon) recommendations, tips and advice for amateur photographer's.  If you've enjoyed the blog so far; I suggest that you watch this space.

My personal Camera Nostalgia (camstalgia)

Dear Reader

Lets get the boring back tracking out of the way!

What began as a hobby has certainly evolved, my parents call it an obsession, I'd far rather call it a passion.

From my first digital point & shoot camera: the fantastic (and I believe still usable) Panasonic DMC-TZ5 I was hooked.  Fond memories of frolicking on the Welsh hillside on holidays taking as many pictures as possible, and all to ram onto my Dad's relatively small hard drive, remain with me to this day.  Naturally the first relevant upgrade was my Dad's computer.

The way was paved for the development of my photography career.  and the next camera purchase saw me keep loyalty to the Panasonic Brand and so began my ownership of the Panasonic FZ45.  This was the camera which doubtlessly taught me endless lessons about manual exposure, aperture, and ISO sensitivity. and perhaps remarkably this compact camera produced my most popular image (below)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/63692261@N04/5808827386/in/set-72157632432296137/

Despite the accessibility of controls and the ease of use; this wonderfully happy superzoom bridge camera still couldn't satisfy my desire for better and better equipment.
Later I personally found it wanting of an optical viewfinder, which spurred my next large camera purchase, my only regret by this point is not getting more use out of this particular camera.

Following experiences with the bridge camera I now considered that I knew everything there was to know about the subject of photography.
Naturally I was wrong.
But nevertheless at the end of the "noughties" my Dad found his interest in photography rekindled since the days of film in the form of the canon 450D, and as I guess is natural I instantly felt competitive.
Around this time my Grandpa's passing left me with the finances to upgrade yet again to the Nikon D5000, which I bought in a twin lens kit for £500, ignoring the sensible advise to buy canon for lens sharing and cost cutting.

This camera, combined especially with the 18-55mm AF-S kit lens, was capable of producing frankly stunning colour rendition and felt great in my hand for the light amateur use I was still performing. examples of my favourite pictures with this camera are attached below and are also on my flickr account: Diddalls' flickr

 Apologies for the shameless self promotion in the form of the watermarking.

I now considered myself a photographer without a job, and naturally after a lens upgrade or two (it was two)  and leaving Cambridge for the University of Leeds (to study German & Economics) I decided that I needed a job, and a photography related one at that.

More follows in my next blog post: A Passion at Work