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I finally used my DIY UV box for making Van Dyke wet prints – Here’s my complete process

It’s been a little while since I built my UV Box but sometimes, life gets in the middle of our fun projects! Now, I’ve finally tested the UV Box and I can say that it works great. I made a test with two different negatives: a very soft flower subject lighted with painted light and a very sharp subject lighted with a very contrasty light. I wanted to see how this printing process deals with different subjects.

I proceeded with some step tests to find the corrected exposure for my negatives. I did 2 seconds steps and as you can see in the video, I was a little optimistic with my first strip of 2,4,6,8 seconds of exposure. In the end, the correct exposure resulted in 11 minutes.

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How to shoot a clean and simple coloured fill portrait in the studio

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Sometimes you just want a clean and quick setup to start a shoot off the right way. Sure, you may have a ton of creative ideas in store for later on in the day, but they may be new ideas you’ve never tried before or they may be more experimental. If that’s the case, I always find it smart to start a shoot with a tried and true setup that’s not too tricky to do, quick to set up and provides great shots each and every time.

That way, the team knows that whatever happens from here on out with the more experimental work, we’ve already bagged some killer images and everybody is positive about the setups to come.

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Stop obsessing over the latest lenses – It’s probably the least important part of shooting a photo

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A good photography practice should consider all elements in the creation of an image, from technique and lighting to mastery of gear and employment of the right tools for the job. It is imperative that a competitive photographer knows their gear and knows what gear to use.

However, some camera manufacturers have a vested interest in deceiving you. Some bloggers cling to unverified information because it gives them an air of authority. Today on the glossary of photographer’s Woo we’re back on optics.

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Canon EOS R3: The art of moving forward

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The tracks begin to ring.

I listen closely with the engine roaring louder and louder as each second passes and ready my camera…my finger resting steady on the shutter.

The forest; the leaves; the freight train tearing by and then slowly fading; everything falling quiet again — it all makes me think of Riley. After his passing, my therapy was walking along these tracks, camera in hand. Many times I would never even take a shot, instead preferring to immerse myself in the stillness and color around me.

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I built a Frankenstein large format wet plate camera from scratch for photographing ghosts

Corrine at Corrine West Photography booked a wet plate workshop with me before the pandemic started. Two years later we were finally able to do it. The main subject was to get comfortable with the wet collodion process and to create images similar to the ones of spirit photographer William H. Mumler. Mr. Mumler created images (probably double exposures) where his clients could take a picture with their deceased relatives.

The photograph of Mary Todd Lincoln with the “ghost” of her husband (Abraham Lincoln) was his most famous one. Corrine found my double exposure wet plates and that was the reason she contacted me in the first place. About two months before the workshop Corrine surprised me with a question: “Can we build a wet plate camera together?”. I talked with a friend and after a long visit to a DIY market, I was sure that we can do it. A DIY Camera and capturing ghosts. That sounds like a fun workshop to me!

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The importance of teaming up with other photographers in your photo walks

Amy Joseph, who has a small gallery in tiny Pismo Beach, California, agreed to go on a photoshoot with me of her amazingly photogenic coastal town and led the way.

No, we weren’t going to photograph the Pier (everyone does that) and when I suggested doing the sunset from the top of the nearby hotel, she said no. “All we would get is a shot of the parking lot,” she said.

Instead, we walked left from the pier, about a mile, and ended up at a butterfly preserve that happened to have really nice trees. A spot she knew, but I didn’t. From this vantage point, we would photograph the sunset that way, through the branches.

And yes, the shot was amazing.

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How to clean up San Francisco from camera thefts

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If you missed the explosive report by KGO-TV reporter Dan Noyes on the theft epidemic in San Francisco, I want to both share his stories, and offer some common-sense solutions to a problem that’s gotten way out of hand.

You know that thieves in San Francisco (and elsewhere) are smashing the windows of cars to rob stuff, sensing that the police won’t chase or arrest them. Photographers have been followed by thieves, had their gear taken, which got quickly resold on the streets. They easily move laptops in broad daylight, and even though they’ve been recorded on video doing so, the city continues to allow it to happen, with few arrests.

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Lighting setup: Indoor swimwear shoot

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Shooting swimwear outside in natural light is nearly always the best solution, after all, the bright, crisp sunshine is an easy-win when it comes to making swimwear look good. But what if an outdoor shoot simply isn’t practical or even possible due to location and of course weather?

In this article I’ll discuss a simple indoor setup that can be created in almost any sized space and with standard kit. This setup isn’t trying to synthesise daylight indoors like I’ve done before, but it is about recreating that feeling of an outdoor shoot and I’ll share a couple of tricks I employ to do just that.

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Make your own DIY trekpak for under $20

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The Trekpak Case Divider System is a beautiful piece of design. It’s simple, it’s clean, and most importantly, you can switch up your configuration to your needs. It’s meant to replace the current pick-n-pluck foam system that Pelican and other hard shell manufacturers use. The problem with the pick-n-pluck system is once you pull out the foam, you’re stuck with that set-up. If you decide to change the setup, your only option is to replace it with a new foam insert. This will set you back at least $30, depending on your Pelican case and size.

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I designed and 3D printed my own grid for the Aputure MC and here’s why

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I love shooting product photos and videos with the Aputure AL-MC. It’s such a versatile and powerful helper compared to its size. I use it on almost every product shoot.

There’s only one thing that is not ideal and that’s the light spill. The MC has a super wide angle of light spread, so you will get light spilling onto your background unless you have a big studio where you can put the background system a few meters away from your scene.

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