This was a privately commissioned shoot of the couple that owns this condo, and not an architectural shoot, but I was able to get these shots in between takes.

I shot tethered for the benefit of live-view composition, but I focused completely (and perfectly) through the E-Module Cloud. Once I get a better handle on the system, I’ll write up a full review, but so far, so good.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

Image Credit: J R BERNSTEIN MEDIA INC. www.JRBERNSTEIN.com
High-resolution images at: Dropbox
Shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 camera and Fujinon XF 18-55mm lens.

While I was at the Fuji HQ the other day, picking up the X-E1 and the brand new FUJINON XF14mm F2.8 R for an upcoming review, one of the Fujiguys, Billy, had a big surprise for me…they just received their X100s and X20 pre-production models in for testing, and they let me try them out while I was there!

I’ve already been called a “fanboy” once on Twitter after tweeting my first impression of the new AF speeds, so I’d like to set the record straight.  I am a fan of Fuji’s recent X-series cameras. And what’s wrong with that? Fujifilm cameras are not infallible, but I think the X-series cameras are excellent tools for serious photographers.

But back to the hands-on preview…

The X20

Having had a chance to really use the X10 a year ago, I could see there were a number massive improvements with the X20; most notably, the OVF and AF speed. Although the X20 looks nearly identical to the X10, they might as well be totally different cameras. The X20 now sports an enhanced optical viewfinder, more like what you’d find in the other X-series cameras, like the X-Pro1 (but not a true EVF). This give you accurate framing, all your important camera settings, and a visible focus confirmation. The last being rather important here because of the second major improvement.  Blindingly fast AF speed! The AF is so fast on the X20 that as I was playing around with it, I thought it couldn’t have been working correctly. It was so fast and so silent, I wouldn’t have known the camera even focused, had it not been for the visual focus confirmation. Switching to the rear-screen EVF, I could confirm that indeed, the AF was just that fast.

On the back screen, the images looked great, but I was unable to download the photos I took, so can’t confirm any improvement in image quality with its brand new 2/3″ type ‘X-Trans CMOS’ sensor. But it’s probably safe to say that image qualities are similar to those in the X100/X100s, but at 12MP.

The X100s

Never using the original X100, it’s impossible for me to comment on the X100s in comparison to the X100.  That said, I can tell you the AF on the X100s is nearly as fast as the AF on the X20. It’s not quite there, but it’s close, and quite impressive still.  I understand that this is a significant improvement from the original X100. It’s also a beautiful camera to hold and behold. While it has now taken its place as the middle-of-the-road X-camera, it really did set the stage for all the others, and its pedigree shows. The body is very well thought out and a pleasure to hold and use. It’s a very tactilely pleasing cameras, reminiscent of the rangefinders of the 1960′s…but perhaps better built.

Disappointing is the continuous turning focus-ring on the X100s, like most Fujinon X lenses. I was thrilled to see that the X-Pro1‘s and X-E1‘s XF 14mm lens has hard stops at either end of the focus range and that auto/manual focus selection is integrated into the focus ring. This is a huge improvement over all the other XF lenses, and I hope we see new versions of all the existing lenses (XF.2 maybe??) with this implementation. I had really been hoping that we would see the same design on all forthcoming X-series cameras and lenses. So I’m crossing my fingers that the pre-production version still has room for this change.

I also got to use the simulated “split image” EVF focusing. I’d say it’s a good attempt and some users will certainly prefer it over focus “peaking”. I’m not yet sure if I’m one of them. I’d be lying if I were to tell you it’s as good as an optical split-image focus screen, but I feel as if Fujifilm is inching its way closer and closer, as it continues to develop the technology.

Overall

Overall, these refreshed cameras are more than a new badge on the same camera with a few more mega-pixels squeezed into them. These are serious upgrades and updates. It used to be that when a new Nikon F camera came out, after years and years of waiting, you were looking at a brand new camera. Nikon’s philosophy was to introduce a new model only when there was a compelling reason to do so. Well, the days of 5-10 years between model releases seem long gone (for now), but Fujifilm have made compelling reasons for an existing user to trade in their body for a new one, or convince the hold-outs that this is a good time to get into the system.

I expect to be reviewing these cameras, in full, closer to the time of their release date, so stay tuned for those and my upcoming reviews of the X-E1 and XF 14mm lens.

Until next time.

J R BERNSTEIN

Remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

(Images courtesy of Fujifilm)

This past Toronto Fashion Week (officially “World MasterCard Fashion Week”), I had the pleasure of trading my usual DSLR for the compact Fujifilm X-Pro1 mirrorless, rangefinder-style, interchangeable-lens camera.

Since its introduction, and particularly after having reviewed the Fujifilm X10 last March in New York City, I had been looking forward to trying out the X-Pro1, and Toronto Fashion Week seemed like the perfect opportunity to put this camera through its paces. I wanted to know how it would compare with other rangefinder cameras that I’ve used, and also how it would compare to a professional DSLR.

Seeing as I don’t shoot from the media pits when I’m at Fashion Week, and I tend to mingle and attend all sorts of events, both on-site and off-site (ie. after-parties), I was really looking forward to a smaller camera that would more easily fit in with the crowd, and something that doesn’t weigh a ton — there’s nothing quite as awkward as having to swap hands and put down a load of gear, just to shake someone’s hand.  But, that said, I can’t sacrifice image quality when any number of my images might be published by a variety of outlets.

And to top it off, what could be more fashionable than a black retro-styled camera, to go along with the rest of my Fashion Week attire?

(To buy the X-Pro1, click HERE FOR USA and HERE FOR CANADA to help support this site!)

About the Fujifilm X-Pro1

The Fujifilm X-Pro1 is a full-featured, interchangeable-lens camera aimed at professional photographers and advanced enthusiasts. That’s pretty clear from the onset. Pretty much everything about the X-Pro1 says “professional”…including the price.  At $1700 without a lens, this camera is neither inexpensive nor is it cheaply made. Its all-metal body and lenses should take years of punishment. Although, you’d probably rather baby it and keep its retro good-looks intact! Originally shipping with three Fujinon  “XF” lenses (18mm, 35mm, and 60mm), two lenses just released at the time of this writing (a 14mm and an 18-55mm zoom!) and a slew of lenses on their way (23mm, 27mm, 56mm, 10-24mm, and 55-200mm), shows Fuji’s clear dedication to the future of the line.  No company invests in this type of lens production without a long-term product roadmap.

Source: http://www.fujifilm.ca/press/news/display_news?newsID=139

Along with the camera, Fujifilm Canada sent me three lenses; the 18mm f/2 (27mm 135 eq.), the 35mm f/1.4 (53mm 135 eq.), and the 60mm f/2.4 Macro (91mm 135 eq.). And while those do cover a wide range of subjects, I did feel that I would have made use of the upcoming 27mm f/2.8 pancake or 23mm f/1.4 more than any other lens, had either been available to me at the time.  That said, I have always made do with whatever camera and lens I have, and compose accordingly —  you just have to adjust your way of thinking.

Among a long list of features (all of which can be found at http://fujifilm-x.com/x-pro1/), one of this camera’s biggest stand-out features is the hybrid optical and electronic viewfinder (OVF/EVF). If you have ever used a rangefinder camera, or even an old film point and shoot, you have undoubtedly used an optical “tunnel” viewfinder (as opposed to an SLR, where you’re looking through the lens, via a series of mirrors or a prism), and will instantly recognise and feel at home with this viewfinder.  It’s only when you take a second to look around in this viewfinder, do you realise that there’s much, much more than you have ever seen before.  This hybrid viewfinder actually has a digital display overlay, much like what’s used in military heads-up displays, meaning that the X-Pro1 can overlay any amount of digital information over-top of a real optical viewfinder image, with no ghosting or motion lag or any other issues found in most EVFs.  This feature is HUGE, and no description can fully convey how brilliant this is to use. You have to try it for yourself.

You also have the option of using the hybrid viewfinder in the Fujifilm X-Pro1 in full EVF mode, which is good for manual focusing (more on that later) and very low-light use.

Not even the Leica M has this technology at over 4 times the price (without a lens).

Handling

Before I continue, I must confess…I fell in love with rangefinder photography about 13 years ago, with my Mamiya 7 medium-format film camera, and ever since the digital age took over, I’ve been looking for something comparable. So to say that I enjoyed shooting the Fujifilm X-Pro1 is pretty much a foregone conclusion. I love the fact that I can see what’s in AND what’s outside of the frame, as marked by bright crop-lines, and that I don’t momentarily black out as a big mirror goes kerplunk every time I shoot a frame. Composition is very fast because of your wide field of view and everything just feels more nimble. There’s something about the Fujifilm X-Pro1 and rangefinder shooting that keeps me connected with my subjects in a way that no DSLR has ever really been able to do. Maybe because the position of the viewfinder allows me to keep my left eye open and on my subject, or maybe it’s something else, but I feel the camera more easily disappears in my hands.

To me, the hallmark of a great camera is a camera that doesn’t make itself known or demand my attention — it’s a camera that disappears, both to the subject and to the photographer. The ideal camera is like a perfectly designed hammer.  That is, it’s an extension of my arm and my attention can remain on my subject, and not on the tool itself. There are no manuals that come with hammers and no one studies their hammer before nailing their first board. A good hammer just works — it knows what to do. The Fujifilm X-Pro1 hits the nail on the head, so to speak, and feels like a well-designed tool.  After just a few days of use, everything started to fall into place.  I was no longer knocking the exposure compensation dial, I knew where the AF button was without looking, the aperture ring was set long before the camera reached my eye, and I was ready to fire at just the right moment.

I can tell you, shooting at Fashion Week, without a flash, is one of the most demanding shooting environments you could imagine. There are all sorts of mixed lighting sources and they change all the time. (Multiple custom white-balance profiles would have been great, instead of just the one.) The venues range from very dark to very bright. People are moving. It’s crowded and not everyone is as polite as you might hope. Everyone has somewhere to be, so when catching that moment, you have to be fast. No “ummm…hold on….sorry…one more….uhhh…say cheese!” because by the time you get to “hold on”, your subject has already moved on, and if you’re shooting the runway…fuggedaboutit!

But with the Fuji X-Pro1, what I heard most often was “Wow! That’s amazing!”, when I told them I had already taken the picture and then showed them the result.

The Grip

I shot with the add-on grip on most of the time. Yes, it does block the battery/SD slot door, but with a 8 or 16 GB card installed, and a full battery, you should be good for at least a day of shooting…if not several.

My only issue with the grip is that it adds ½ an inch to the bottom of the otherwise-sleek camera, unnecessarily.  There’s a lot of extra bulk, just to add a bigger hump to the right hand-grip. I would have preferred to have seen a screw-in type, like many old film SLRs had.  That said, I didn’t mind it too much in use…I just kept asking myself “why?” Having the leather half-case would probably negate any need for an extra grip, but with less added bulk.

When a Rangefinder Isn’t a Rangefinder

A lot of people confuse the Fujifilm X-Pro1, with its hybrid OVF/EVF and retro good-looks, for a rangefinder camera. It is not. It may look like a rangefinder, but it does not function as one.

A true rangefinder-coupled camera works by triangulation to set focus. With some help from Pythagoras, the simple rangefinder mechanism superimposes one image over another.  As you adjust the focus ring on the lens, one image moves side to side over the other image.  Only when the two images are perfectly in line with each other is the image in focus. Coming from a world of SLRs, this might sound complicated and cumbersome, but in actuality, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Rangefinder focusing is very, very fast.

But remember, unlike the Contax G series of auto-focus rangefinder cameras, the Fujifilm X-Pro1 is NOT a rangefinder.  It auto-focuses by “Contrast Detection” just like many digital SLRs. So while it may look like a rangefinder, the X-Pro1 is focusing through-the-lens, onto the image sensor and is done completely electronically.

This method must have its advantages (rangefinders can need calibration from time to time, they take up some room…ok, I can’t think of anything else), but I would have loved to have seen a traditional superimposed image in the viewfinder of the X-Pro1, even if the superimposed image was a digital one (firmware update v3??).

Room for Improvement

While I did fully enjoy using the X-Pro1, like all cameras, I did find a few areas that could use some improvement.

• I wish manual operation felt a little more…manual. I think that due to the electronically controlled lenses, even in manual mode, the camera still adjusts the aperture before taking the shot (as you press the shutter release). The front lens element also seems to move, even in manual-focus mode, and I can’t figure out why. This seems to slow things down a touch.
• The battery can be inserted in any of four ways, but only one way works.  This seems like an oversight in design, as even the battery has a keyed notch, and the charger has the matching tab, but not the camera.
• Even in manual focus mode, the frame-lines parallax compensation only activate when the shutter is half-pressed. So, even if you pre-focus, you have to half-press the shutter release for proper framing…but,
• When you half-press the shutter release, neither the focus nor the aperture can be changed. Again, this goes back to the “feeling” of a manual camera. It’s just something that I expect to be there, but isn’t.
• Manual-focus “in focus” indicator. There is none.
• Image review is oddly implemented. From what I can tell, there’s no way to use the OVF and have images come up on the rear display. Instead, the images come up on the EVF display, blacking out the OVF, stopping you from shooting until you clear the image by pressing the “Ok” button or shutter-release, AFTER the image has been written to memory. That’s just way too slow for my workflow, and consequently I just turned off “Image Disp.” and only reviewed the images that I needed to check, by pressing the green “play” button. This works fine in practice, but might slow you down if you are always reviewing your images. On the up-side, this saves a lot of battery.
• The eye cup is too shallow.  This is a simple fix, but my eyelashes keep leaving smudge-marks on the rear element of the eye cup.  A small issue, but annoying.
• This is not the quickest auto-focus camera.  Nor is it the quickest manual-focus camera either. Focus-by-wire is not ideal in my view. I suppose there’s a trade-off somewhere, but I prefer Nikon’s implementation of their autofocus lenses — with their manual and auto/manual focus modes.  It’s hard to fault the X-Pro1 for anything, but if I were to pick just one area for improvement, it would be focusing…both automatic and manual.

Image Quality

I suppose all of this talk is nothing without image quality.

In short, images from the X-Pro1 are outstanding. Many of my Fashion Week shots were captured at 6400 ISO, and with just a little noise reduction in Adobe Lightroom, are perfectly usable. More than usable, in fact.

One area where the X-Pro1 really excels is low-light shooting. Its got the holy trinity of features that makes it a winner here. One, is its outstanding high-ISO performance. Two, are its fast lightweight lenses. And three, is the complete and total lack of mirror-slap induced vibration.  Together, this means that you can shoot hand-held, in near total darkness and still get fantastic low-light shots.

Summary

Fujifilm have always done their own thing, but have always done it very well. There’s a long tradition of innovation at Fujifilm, from the G617 wide-format film camera, the GX680 medium-format bellows camera with built-in view camera movements, the GW690 medium-format rangefinder, and the FinePix S1 Pro to the S5 Pro digital SLRs with their “Super CCDs” boosting dynamic range to previously impossible levels.

The X-Pro1 is no exception to this history of innovation. The fixed-lens X100 seems to have been a testing ground for the professional, interchangeable lens X-Pro1, and Fujifilm has implemented much of what they have learned into this exciting camera — a camera that really is in a class of its own.

It’s easy to compare this X-Pro1 to the digital Leica M-series cameras, but to me, they are completely different cameras, designed for different users and different ways of shooting. It’s like comparing apples and peanut butter.  One does not replace the other, and you may enjoy both.  If Leica came to me and offered me their latest M, I would surely take it and I would probably love using it, but that’s not to say that it could (or should) replace the Fujifilm X-Pro1. With autofocus, 6 frames per second (fps) shooting speed, an outstanding hybrid viewfinder, great image quality at every ISO (even high-ISO), and price-point, the X-Pro1 would still get A LOT of use.

I plan on using the X-Pro1 for as long as I can…that is, until Fujifilm Canada asks for it back. And then, I may just have to buy one.

Conclusion

So, when looking at the Fujifilm X-Pro1, you have to ask yourself these two questions:

• “Do I need a Fujifilm X-Pro1?” The answer to that will depend greatly on who you are and what you plan on doing with the camera. Given its price and its professional feature set, unless you’re a professional or an enthusiastic-enthusiast, you will probably find yourself answering “no, I don’t need a Fujifilm X-Pro1.” Very few people find they actually need an exceptional camera. But, when you ask yourself,
• “Do I want a Fujifilm X-Pro1?” Oh, yes! You absolutely do.

Until next time.

J R BERNSTEIN

Remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

Scroll down for even more Fashion Week photos taken with the Fujifilm X-Pro1!

Thank You

I would like to thank Fujifilm Canada and The Fuji Guys for sending me the X-Pro1 so I could write this brief review.

I would also like to thank my friends Simone R.C. and Lisa Kisber (www.lkisstyle.com) for putting up with me shooting them all week! xoxo

Disclaimer

This is an independent review and I have not received any compensation by Fujifilm or any of its associated companies for said review.

Excepts where indicated, ALL IMAGES COPYRIGHT © J R BERNSTEIN, 2012. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Images may not be copied – there’s no such thing as “fair use”. Just ask first.

For the rest of my World MasterCard Fashion Week photos, check out my Facebook Page HERE!

First of all, I like Richardson‘s and Teller‘s work.  I think their work is provocative and eminently stylish.  They’re able to consistently evoke a look from their models and bring a feel to the shoot, of which most photographers could only dream. The technical aspect of photography becomes secondary, while at the same time, bringing a raw and gritty feel to the images. You never get the feeling that anything is ever “fake” in one of their photos — everything is real.

A lot of would-be photographers have said (or have undoubtedly thought to themselves), ‘wow, that looks easy…just use an on-camera flash and put a half-naked model/friend/celebrity in front of a white wall, or in some random room…and let the magic happen!‘

The argument reminds me of the reaction most people give when they see a Rothko painting.  It’s usually “I could have done that!”  Or even worse “My kid could have done that!!” Yes, probably you could…but you didn’t.  And therein lies the key to why Richardson and Teller are wildly successful.

Originality.

Without originality you’re nothing more than a camera technician, and not an artist. An artist ask him/herself, what is it that I’m bringing to this photograph? Are you experimenting and trying to learn how to achieve a certain “effect” in order broaden your knowledge? Certainly a valid argument. Except in this case the “effect” lies in the interactions between the photographer and the subject, not their technical prowess and mastery of photographic technique. So, what are you practising? What are you trying to achieve?

Pablo Picasso allegedly said “Good artists copy, great artists steal.” (I say allegedly because this is in fact an unsourced quote.) But certainly, if you do copy, be better than Terry or Juergen and bring your own originality to the image.

So the next time you want to shoot like Terry Richardson or Juergen Teller, go ahead…but don’t even think of putting those shots in your portfolio and taking them to an agency to get booked. You’ll probably get the same type of reaction I’d get if I were to copy a Rothko and ask a gallery to buy it for a few million dollars and hang it prominently, for all to see.

Until next time.
J R BERNSTEIN

Remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

In New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made, oh
There’s nothing you can’t do, now you’re in New York
These streets will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you, let’s here it for New York
New York, New York

- Jay-z, Empire State of Mind

That was, without a doubt, my personal theme song during my whirlwind trip to New York City. It’s not like I haven’t been to the Big Apple before, but it had been a while, and I was really excited to get to try out the new Fujifilm X10, ultra-pocketable, retro-styled, X-series “point-and-shoot”. I do say point-and-shoot with some reservation however. To simply call this an expensive point-and-shoot really doesn’t do it justice. No, it’s not nearly as advanced a camera as it’s bigger brothers the X100 or interchangeable-lensed X-Pro1, but it’s still a beautiful little camera to behold…and use.

Side-beside comparison of my most pocket-able (full-frame no less) 35mm camera…the laudable Minox 35GT, and the Fujifilm X10.

First, let me address a pressing question: would I use this in a professional shoot? In a word, no. In three words, yes and no. No, it’s unlikely that I would go on a paid pro shoot with the X10, and only the X10, in hand. The images just aren’t up to the quality we’re all used to getting out of our DSLRs (that cost 2 to 10 times the price of the X10), and you simply can’t make a bus shelter-sized print with the files. No, when you compare it to a lens costing two or three times the price of the X10, the lens isn’t anything to write home about, and night shots can be a bit noisy, and the sensor doesn’t handle highlights particularly well (with obvious blooming around lights). But, on the other hand, I don’t always want to carry an expensive, heavy, DSLR around with me everywhere. In fact, I usually don’t. With the X10, I have no such reservations. I also wouldn’t hesitate submitting an image from the X10 to any number of print or online publications. The images that come out of this little guy are actually quite impressive and good enough for the majority of publications out there. Yes, that might say more about most publications, rather than the quality of the camera, but none the less…it’s pretty good.

Second, I need to mention the built-in panorama feature. The X10 isn’t the first camera to have this feature, but it’s worth noting that the X10 does a great job of doing in-camera what I might never get around to doing back at the studio, which means that it’s fantastic. The X10 motion panorama feature can be set up to 360 degrees, and works for both horizontal and vertical capture. I had a lot of fun with this…why don’t our DSLRs have this??

Panoramas work best for still subjects, like landscapes (below). If you look carefully at the first image from Grand Central Station, you can see where someone was moving quickly, the X10 captured the same person several times as he (and I) moved across the image.

Metering can be both a bit tricky and seemingly inconsistent, particularly with backlit subjects. This shot of the Guggenheim took far too many exposures to get right in my view. Hopefully a firmware update will smooth the metering out a bit.

For random holiday snaps, this camera is easy to recommend, even to someone who is more of an “Auto” mode shooter. This camera can be used in full-manual mode, but it’s Auto mode is really quite good. Nothing to cough at.

But having that manual option is great for things like dragging the shutter or setting up long-exposure night shots.

The Fuji X10 is also quite good in dimly lit situations, because of it’s  f/2.0 lens. If you shoot at a low ISO, with a wide aperture, you’ll get great results. However, if you’re shooting hand-held (which is where this camera will be used 99% of the time), and you have to bump up the ISO, one needs to watch out. Noise levels go up quickly and dramatically, but at less than 100% zoom, things look fantastic, and blow away any smartphone camera and many lesser point-and-shoot cameras. It does have a tendency to create blown out blooming highlights (note that the rope-light under the hand rail in the last image is made of very small, well separated lights, but came out as a bit of a blob here), but it’s certainly not a deal-breaker for me.

Conclusion:

If you’re tired of crappy images from your smart-phone (yes, even you, iPhone 4S 5 users), but don’t want to lug around a big DLSR and are on a budget (a digital Leica M with 50mm lens would work quite nicely, except for the $12,000 price-tag), it’s hard not to recommend the Fuji X10. It’s an advanced camera I would happily recommend to other pros, but simple enough to recommend to my mom, and I’d certainly buy one for myself.

Please consider buying the Fujifilm X10 here to help support this site!

Until next time.
J R BERNSTEIN

Remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

All images Copyright J R BERNSTEIN, 2012.

Inspired by The Tree of Life, by Terrence Malick.

Best viewed on a large colour calibrated display, full-screen at 1080p, with studio monitors or HD headphones, or in a home-theatre. (Watching on your iPad, you’ll miss the entire bass track without good headphones.)  Also best viewed in a darkened room, for effect.
Composed of still images shot with a Fuji S5 Pro and Nikon ED AF Nikkor 80-200mm 1:2.8 lens, from my back deck in Toronto ON Canada.

Very minimal post editing in Adobe Lightroom, and assembled in Adobe After Effects.  No added colours or effects.

Done, start to finish, in one afternoon.
My first short film and my first time using After Effects.

To my surprise, I felt most comfortable starting with the end and working backwards within After Effects.  That is, I first put together the sound track, to give me my points of reference.  With the sound track down, I created the ending, backwards, frame by frame starting with the final frame (titles added afterwards).  I then worked on the opening sequence.  And finally, I filled in the middle.

If you’ll notice, the there is a clear progression throughout the film, starting from fast and light images of clouds, progressing to the climax of slowly moving images that have a “fiery” space-like quality, to the dénouement of the sun alone.

The opening sequence has a very earth-like feel. Every day we move quickly through our lives, seeing a myriad of images throughout.  But as we go out further into space, the concept of size becomes unobtainable, and time appears to slow to a snail’s pace.  This is the idea behind the slow moving images as the film progresses.  Deeper into the film, and deeper into space, and the images become more fiery, violent, and unfamiliar.  The musical climax is matched to the visual climax, as we pan out to a scene with a blue streak across the heavens.  The blue streak is intentional lens flare, and is not added in post.  (No visuals were added in post.)  The deliberate break in the music sound track is done to both emphasise the rumbling bass track and to set up the last shots.  I added the bass track to give the visuals some added ‘weight’; the conceptual sound of an unforgiving violent space.  During the musical break is one of my favourite scenes, starting at 3:13.  This was done by taking a series of images of clouds as they approached the sun, and then blending them together in After Effects. It is in this scene that the musical sound track starts again and sets up the ending. Finally, the ever-present sun is all that remains, when the earthly clouds and strange heavenly scenes have long gone.

I decided to title this film “Perspectives” due to the impact that can be achieved by capturing a common every-day scene (you can’t get much more “every-day” than looking up at the sky!).  I’m quite proud of this work.  I think I was able to take some simple photographs of some clouds as they passed by the sun, and turn them into (what I think is) an ‘epic’ looking sci-fi space adventure.

Sometimes, the most humbling thing we can do is look up.

J R BERNSTEIN
Always be capturing.

J R BERNSTEIN

Because the L-758DR has a nifty little USB port used when profiling your camera/film, I thought the first thing to check was the Sekonic website for a firmware update. No such luck. The meter’s specs are clearly stated as “ISO 3-8000 (in 1/3 steps)”. Well, that’s really too bad, I thought to myself thinking that I’m going to need to go out and buy a new meter…and who, by the way, is using ISO 3?!? The lowest ISO film I’ve ever used is Kodak Ektar ISO 25 and the lowest digital backs only go down to ISO 50.

But I digress…

Not taking “no” for an answer, I went on a hunt for a work-around, and a-ha!  My beloved meter has the ability to set Exposure Compensation…up to 9.9 FULL STOPS of +/- compensation! To access Exposure Comp. on the L-758DR, while pressing ISO 1 and ISO 2 at the same time, rotate the jog wheel to change the value.

So what does that mean? Well, simply put, there’s a lot of life left in this mighty little meter! I would also assume that other meters of similar quality and features have similar exposure compensation, so this may apply to your meter too, even if it’s not a L-758DR.

Warning, Science ahead!!!  If you just want to know how to set your meter for ISO 102400, set your ISO to 6400 and your Exposure Comp. to +4.  If you want to know how to calculate that (or any other value), read on…

Here’s a basic re-cap of ISOs, F-stops, and shutter-speeds. Remember that, for every increase in one FULL aperture value (smaller number = bigger aperture) or one FULL decrease in shutter speed, 2x as much light reaches the recording surface (digital sensor in this case). Also, for every FULL step up in ISO speed, 1/2x as much light is necessary for a proper exposure. So, when we talk about Exposure Compensation (in EV units), +1EV, twice as much light gets in vs. 0EV. So +1EV = 1 f-stop = 1/2x shutter speed = +1 ISO unit, OR +1EV = +1 ISO unit. Ergo, we can calculate the Exposure Compensation needed for any particular ISO.

Mathematically, we can calculate this by:

Where

ISO₁ is the starting ISO value
ISO₂ is the newly calculated ISO value we want to figure out
EV is the Exposure Value compensation

So if we plug in the meter maximum values we get:

Meaning that the maximum ISO value that the Sekonic L-758DR can effectively calculate is ISO 7,643,406…or 5.9 full stops higher than the highest value any dSLR is currently capable of!

But what if we want to calculate the EV required when shooting the D3s at ISO 102400? Easy, all we have to do is re-work the equation and solve for EV! Thusly…

Ta-da! But not so fast…because our calculators only calculate log in base 10 and we’re trying to calculate log in base 2, we have to do the following to convert our equation to log base 10:

And now we finally have a working equation we can calculate the required EV needed for any particular ISO!  Try it, it works! (But don’t forget your brackets and order of operations.)

So let’s try an easy one.  What’s the EV value needed to go from ISO 3200 to ISO 400? Just sub in your numbers and solve:

EV = -3!  Which we can prove by working it out manually.  That is, half of 3200 is 1600 (-1 EV), half of 1600 is 800 (-1 EV), and half of 800 is 400 (-1 EV).  So that’s 3 x -1 EV or -3 EV.

So if we want to calculate the EV needed for the Nikon D3s at ISO 102400, all we do is sub in the numbers ISO₁= 6400 (I’ll use ISO 6400 because it’s a full stop value and works out evenly…you could use 8000, but you’ll get a long decimal answer that’s hard to remember) and ISO₂= 102400 and solve:

So our answer is that we need +4 EV on our meters for ISO 6400 to be equivalent to ISO 102400.  And that’s it!

I hope you found this of use!
J R BERNSTEIN

Remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

So, I recently bought a Katz Eye Optics split-image focus screen for my Fuji S5 Pro DSLR (based on the Nikon D200/D300 body, but with Fuji’s own sensor).  Installation was easy and I managed to not break anything at the same time!

While this is not a review of the Katz Eyes focus screen, I have to say that it was worth every penny (of which there were many…about 14400 US pennies in fact)!  I’m now shooting with near 100% in-focus accuracy!  There may be other brands that are as good as or better and are cheaper or more expensive, but I can’t comment on any of those.

Katz Eye Optics Focus Screen for Fuji S5 Pro

So far, I’ve only run into one problem, and I’ve just been able to solve that problem.  The problem and solution are as follows:

When looking through the viewfinder of the Fuji S5 you can see (and select) the 11 AF points, one of which must always be selected.  This image is a composite image taken from the D200 manual showing all AF points selected over top the Katz Eye focus screen.

D200 Viewfinder - Default "Normal" AF setting

Did you notice that in the centre position the AF area nearly covers up the entire location where the split image prism is?  Yeah, me too!  With this highlighted area over top of the split-image prism, it makes it almost impossible to focus…not good.  So my stop-gap solution was to simply move the selected AF point off to the side.  Not great, but it worked.  The problem was that it was a) distracting and b) made the digital in-focus-indicator useless.

Well, after a bit of searching through the camera’s menus, looking for a way to turn off the AF indicator (with no luck), I came across an option that lets you set a “Wide” AF area.  This reduces the number of AF areas from 11 to 7 and changes the look of your AF selector to this:

D200 "Wide" AF mode

Did you notice how the split-image prism is no longer covered up by the centre AF zone?  Me too!

Problem solved!!!

Not only do I no longer have a distracting AF zone off to the side of the frame, I also regain the functionality of the digital in-focus-indicator!

So here’s how on the D200 (taken from the Nikon D200 manual):

1. Open Custom Setting Menu
2. Highlight Autofocus
3. Display options
4. Highlight a3 Focus Area Frame
5. Display options
6. Highlight Wide Frame (7 Areas)
7. Make selection.

And here’s how on the Fuji S5 Pro:

1. Press Setup button
2. Open Tab 1
3. Select AF
4. Select Focus Area Frame
5. Select “WIDE (7 AREAS)

Enjoy!
J R Bernstein

Remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

I thought this would be a good example of how versatile one single lighting setup can be.

The reason I wanted to post this particular photo is because it is using the exact same lighting setup as shown in Lighting Tutorial No. 1!  In fact, they were taken during the same shoot.  The only thing that has changed is the position of the model and the camera; the lighting and the background are static.

So why bother with a lighting tutorial where I have nothing new to show you?  Well, for no other reason but to prove that you don’t have to be messing around with a lot of expensive lighting gear all throughout your shoot in order to create interesting and varied shots.  The less you need to concentrate on the technical aspect of the shoot, the more you can focus (ha, ha…) on the quality of your photograph.

Enjoy!
J R Bernstein

And remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

Back “in the day”, residuals were easy money, sort of.  Let me explain.

Let’s say you do a head-shot.  How much can you charge for a simple headshot?  $100?  And how long does it take you?  Well, there’s studio set-up (or workspace set-up if you’re not in a studio), that might take you 20 minutes (more if you need to find a location), there’s time going back and forth on the phone and on e-mail arranging dates, advising what to where, giving direction, blaa-blaa-blaa, that might take another 20 minutes or more, there’s the shoot itself which should last at least 30 minutes if your client is to feel happy about the shoot, and then there’s everything done in post, like file transfer, picking the best shots, doing colour balance, removing dust spots, retouching, etc.  That could easily be 90 minutes.  So all totaled, that’s 2 hours and 40 minutes…and that’s if nothing goes wrong.  That works out to be $37.50/h, or, not a whole hell of a lot!  Factor in your costs for your camera, computer, location, etc., and it’s MUCH less.  You might even be losing money!

So, as I was saying, back in the day, the “real” money would be made in prints because guess what, you keep the negative!.  You could charge $15-$25 for a single photographic print!  Someone needs 10 prints, that’s 150 bucks in your pocket with a cost of only about $10 (including chemicals).  And if that person is really looking for work, they’ll be coming to you ever month or more for more prints!  If you’ve got only 10 regular clients that need prints every month, that could easily be an extra $1500 for  you every month!

But things change.

Now I’m asked for the files so my clients can do what they will with the image.

Recently I was asked (by two separate clients) for digital versions of their letterhead I did for them, so they could fax letters without using their expensive letterhead.  Great idea!  But this poses a huge problem for me because of the industry accepted pricing structure for letterhead design.  That is, generally speaking the price you charge for letterhead is subsidized by the price you charge for printing (the residual).  The result is, the price ceiling the market is willing to bear for design is fairly low.  The market is expecting the price of letterhead in their hand to cost them $x and that the design should be $y/x.  This same formula can be applied to headshots, flyers, ads, etc.

When you’re printing, this traditional pricing formula works beautifully.  Everyone wins.  Your customer has the option of deferring their costs to when the printing is required and the creator is able to accumulate residual payments from work already done.  It’s a bit of a long-term credit situation…creative layaway if you will.  But when we introduce digital files into the picture (no pun intended) the creator gives up all those residuals without gaining appropriate creation fees (because of the already-established low market rate).

So what’s the solution?

In my view, the only fair and viable solution to this problem is via licensing.  A monthly (or yearly) fee to use the product of my creation.  However, this brings up copyright ownership and value vs. price.  But I’ll save those for another post.

So the next time a clients asks for a digital file, consider what you’re giving up and the precedent you’re setting for yourself and your colleagues.

Enjoy!
J R Bernstein

And remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

I think that if you’re going to do something well, you have to immerse yourself in it; be-it fashion photography or basket-weaving.

To be a fashion photographer, not only do you need to know something of photography and lighting, but you also need to be well versed in business, photographic style trends, the technical aspects of digital photography and digital work-flow, and you need to know what’s in style, out of style, and what will be in style down the road.  (Plus about a million other things!)

Enter the RSS feed to the rescue!

There are LOTS of great web-sites and weblogs out there and they each have something useful to offer (the good ones do at least).  The problem has always been keeping up with all your favourite sites and checking them religiously to see if they have been updated.  This usually results in skipping the sites that don’t get updated on a regular basis.  Well, check-no-more my friends!

Through the use of an RSS feed reader, technically called a News Aggregator, (I use Microsoft Outlook 2007 at home and Viigo on my Blackberry), I’m able to have all my latest information sent directly to my Inbox…no searching and surfing required!  Just click the bright orange Subscribe button on the site you’re interested in and that’s it, you’re subscribed!  For more technical information, do a Google Search for RSS+Feed+Reader+Subscribe.

So, with that, here are my three must-read feeds:

• FPBlog
• NOTCouture
• x=blog+stay+informed

Enjoy!
J R Bernstein

And remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!

Lighting Setup

This was a fairly simple 2-light lighting setup, but was able to deliver the impact that I was after. The hardest part of this type of look is getting the light-source relatively large enough to give those smooth gradients and narrow shadows. To achieve this your light needs to be very large or very close to your subject. (Remember, the relative size of your light to your subject is inversely related to its distance from your subject. Further=smaller.) I also made use of some “negative fill” to the right of the frame to make sure those shadows were very dark, creating contrast. Finally, a small amount of light was kicked off a reflector onto the background in order to give it some texture. Visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/worldwidephotographic/3762213033/ for the full image.

Enjoy!
J R Bernstein

And remember your ABC’s – Always Be Capturing!