Hacking Photography - one Picture at a time
There are no two ways around it, high quality continuous LED lights are expensive. When you need a good amount of light and a high CRI that passes all the necessary certifications and safety checks, that’s just the way it is.
Sure, there are cheaper LEDs out there, but they’re often not very good. They have colour issues or aren’t very powerful. But if you’re handy with tools and a soldering iron, there may be a better, inexpensive DIY option, as this video from Matt Perks illustrates.
Perhaps you remember Iranian photographer Alireza Rostami for his experiment with “magic bokeh.” This time, he has made something you may find even cooler. He used a broken camera and turned it into a watch. And it doesn’t only look sharp (no pun intended) – it can take actually take photos, too!
If you want a Nikon Z7, but are concerned about it only having one card slot, here’s another option for you. This one has zero card slots, and there’s no waiting list! Posted by Boonlert Rojanaboworn in the Nikon Z series Club Thailand Facebook group, this printable paper cutout allows you to make your very own. And you can make the 24-70mm lens to go with it.
Dora Goodman sure is doing some interesting things with 3D printing. First, there was the Goodman One, announced a few months ago, the 3D printable medium format camera you can make yourself. Now, she’s released a new 3D printing project. The Goodman Art Adapter.
The Goodman Art Adapter is a 3D printable depth of field adapter. It basically allows you to mount lenses intended for full frame cameras onto your phone, and still be able to get that full field of view and depth of field. And you can print it yourself.
If Murphy’s Law has taught us anything, it’s that when you forget something, that’s when you will need it most. If you need to protect your external hard drive and you have forgotten the protective case, Zach Ramelan has a solution for a quick fix. He’ll show you how to turn the hard drive’s packaging into an emergency protective case.
I know many people who keep a hold of all sorts of bits and pieces thinking “I’m gonna need this someday.” I admit, I can get like that from time to time. If you’re a filmmaker/photographer and have this tendency, all those knick-knacks that you keep stored in your garage or basement might actually come in handy. In this video, Michael Lohrum a.k.a. DIYCameraGuy goes through his garage and gives you plenty of ideas on how to turn household items you already have into filmmaking gear.
Ring lights are a big love-hate thing in the world of photography. Some people are actually quite passionate about the catchlight it can present in a subject’s eyes – believing that there’s only one way to use a ring light. But ring lights can produce some wonderful light on your scene, especially when used off-camera.
And that’s how this giant ring light is intended to be used. Inspired by Oscar-winning DP, Roger Deakins, Todd at Shutterstock shows us how to build our own in this video. It’s fairly straightforward to do if you’re comfortable with basic tools.
Sometimes, you aren’t able to get access to the types of real locations you need in order to photograph somebody. Sometimes the location might have a fee to rent it, there might not be enough time to arrange it, or it may simply be out of bounds. But there are other ways around the problem. Like reconstructing it in your own studio space.
When the background is thrown out of focus, it’s easy to fake all kinds of looks. That’s what Jeff Carpenter of Readylight Media explores in this video, where he creates a fake recording studio out of pegboard and a cardboard box for the background of a client headshot.
When you’ve been into photography for a long time, and especially if you have the so-called “gear acquisition syndrome,” keeping your gear organized can pose quite a challenge. In this 90-second video, Ted Forbes will give you six DIY ideas for storing your precious gear. They all include household items, and some of them you may already have at home.
Thanks to lens mount adapters, you can play with vintage lenses on modern cameras and get some of their bokeh goodness in digital photos. Iranian photographer Alireza Rostami made a simple modification to one of these vintage lenses. By flipping a single optical element, he has created “magic bokeh” which adds a dreamy, unique feeling to images. In this video, he shares a process and a couple of sample photos he took after modifying the lens.
You can find out more about John on his website and follow his adventures on YouTube and Facebook.
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water, or use a camel as a light stand.
To see more of his work please visit his studio website blurMEDIAphotography, or follow him on Twitter, 500px, Google Plus or YouTube.
JP’s photography is available for licensing at Stocksy United.
Find my work on My website or follow me on Facebook or My page
