OK, the title has to be read British accent style ALA  Austin Powers, cuz this is how much fun I had testing the Lensbaby composer.

The general idea, much like the Lomo Action Sampler, the composer is about letting go. Sharpness is low, repeatability is almost out of the question and state of the art electronics are relinquished in favor of artistic control.

The full review is just after the jump, and I'll discuss the lens operations, thoughts and trade offs, however, if I had to squeeze it all into one word I'd say FUN.

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DIYP is going to turn 3 in two weeks or so. To celebrate this occasion we're throwing our biggest contest ever.

I figured this can be a great opportunity for DIYP readers to show off and win prizes. This is also a great opportunity for sponsors to get exposed and familiarized with DIYP readers. And I mean this in the nicest way. As SPOY was such a great contest, I am going to model this contest in a similar fashion. Read on for more details. Click to continue ›

One of the simplest mods that were featured in DIYP is the lightstand to backdrop holder mod.

It is fast to make, has some PVC in it - PVC ROCKS - and it is a can be a cheap and easy alternative for on location instant backdrop. 

Martin Kimeldorf (Flickr) who is the master mind behind this simple-yet-genius contraption has been busy. Taking in the great reader comments on the original post, Martin has improved his original design. I was really happy when I got the note in the mail asking to share the new generation of the Light Stand Backdrop Holder.

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I like to let the pool gather some weight and take a nice slow journey once a month. It gives me a great relax time and a great opportunity to get to know DIYP readers.

The pool currently holds 8277 great photos, and 4546 members. Thanks for everyone who shares their photos, and everyone who's still holding on the "send to group" button, the pool is a great place to view images, comment, mingle with other photographers, and get critique.

Here are January picks. Click to continue ›

Remember the story about that king from ancient Greek called Midas? Midas was a greedy, greedy king that loved gold more then life itself.

In fact Midas loved gold so much that he prayed the gods to grant him a golden touch. His wish was granted, and now, everything the king touched turned into gold. 

This was quite a party trick with the wooden cup, table cloth and the chicken and apples. Wait a minute, chicken and apples? Yes. Midas could not eat. With his fear of starving to death he prayed the gods again to take his gift away. His new wish was granted. Moral at the and of the post.

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This is it, the contest is almost over. This was a fun contest to run and submission taught me a great deal about how we all see friends in different ways. It has also taught me that for the next contest we have here, I'd wanna have prizes that are globally available. (More on that in the upcoming week).

1st Place by You:

This spot remain open till you - DIYP readers - make a selection. Make a comment with your favorite image from the submissions below. In two weeks, I'll tally up the votes and announce the winner of a two-weeks Body and Lens rental from BorrowLenses.com. Click to continue ›

Here is another great one from Martin Kimeldorf, converting a LumiQuest popup diffuser into a softbox thingy. This will work great to add some direct flash fill in. Now, I am not saying that you should run and buy one of those just to mod it, you can start with silk and some black Bristol and get the same place.

I liked the LumiQuest Diffuser for Pop Up flashes except that the diffuser panel hung rather limply on my camera and thus produced an unreliable surface shape. Also, I wondered about the light escaping the sides. Then I thought, I could add sides and create a miniature soft box, especially if the inside had a silvered lining. Click to continue ›

Don't we all love to make Lighting diagrams? They help us explain our lighting setups. They can also help us design a setup in advance.

UPDATE 3: The The Lighting Diagram Creator now supports export to jpeg. Man, Huy has really done great work with this one, It even allows adding sound gear.

UPDATE2: Lets try and make the online diagram creator complete. read on for making a stamp on the history of online lighting diagrams tools.

UPDATE1: Due to licensing issues the tool has been revised to use Don Gianatti PSD file - It is still a great way to create lighting diagrams online.

In the past I have written about a great PSD file created by Kevin Kertz. This PSD file allows you to describe (almost) any lighting setup you create. I have used this excellent method myself in Shooting The Team series.

There are other lighting diagrams creating tools out there, but none was as complete as Kevin's. The only drawback to the PSD file is that you had to install Photoshop or The GIMP to use the file (yap, PSD is Adobe's Photoshop native format).

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I believe that the best way to understand lighting is to experiment with it. But understanding the basics of light and the general scheme of things can help you set foot in the right track. This is why I think reading lighting books is a great way to improve your photography.

Today I would like to review on of those books, Matters of Light & Depth by Ross Lowell.

Just before I dive into the content of this book, I'd like to say something about style - Ross has plenty of it. The book got a smile on my face more than once. With titles like Light of Passage, Light Philosophy, and Shedding Light, you take in valuable lessons while not feeling too serious.

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So much going on around us in the past month. It looks like the world is changing for the better, for the worse? I am optimistic. However time will tell. Till then here are some favorite photography links from around the web. Click to continue ›