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As you probably noticed, there is a certain background setup I’ve grown to like in the last few weeks.
It is a setup that produces a nice circle in the background. You can see it in the gridspot article, My Ode to PSU and the shot I took to be the icon of the Babies series. You can also see it used on a large scale portrait here.
There comes a time at any man’s life, where he enters their workroom oh-my-god-kids-what-is-going-on-room and something smelled funny.
Smells metallic. Burning. My socks on fire? No…. What is it? Smelling my way towards the source, I found it to be my computer. Or more precisely, my four years old power supply’s fan has decided to die on me. A dying fan means that the computer is heating up, which means that blue screens of death will pop in any second now.
I quickly went to the nearest computer store and bought myself a new unit with two fans. I figured if one will die the other one will still be there. Total cost – 65 Dollars. Definitely worth it.
Just before I throw the little guy to the little recycle bin in the sky, I wanted to say good buy in an appropriate, nice way. After all it did give me power for four years.
Loosing my power supply got me thinking that I need better backup to my pictures than the external hard drive I am currently using. After all my pictures are stored on my personal computer. If you have an idea, please post it in the comments section. I also went to reread some of the great stuff Brian has to say about backing pictures up.
So aside from the ode, there is also a setup shot and some explanations after the jump.
Today’s speedlinks comes a little bit before the usual monthly time for the speed links. The reasons for this is that there are several links that I wanted to share and that will have less relevance if they were not published today. Specifically, I am talking about the monthly TimeShoot project which will expire today.
I tried to get a little bit of everything on today’s post and cover studio, digital workflow, photography fun and heavier articles discussing copyright issues. Enjoy the mix.
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Related Links:
– Speed Links for 4-20-2008
– Speed Links for 2-23-2008
– Speed Links for 12-20-2007
– Speed Links for 12-11-2007
– Speed Links for 11-20-2007
Six free photography eBooks (+ two halves) for your reading pleasure. Click the title and go to the download link on the as marked at the end of each section.
1. Tinker Tubes – Personal Lighting Systems by Dean Collins
This is where the entire DIYPhotography blog started. A complete tutorial on creating a studio from nothing but PVC pipes, Ripstop nylon and Nikon SBs. Creating studio photography systems like the Ghetto Studio, the Backdrop Stand and Reflector Holders, are all covered in this book.
[26 mind expanding pages, click on "Download the Tinker Tubes book"]
2. Lighting 101 by David Hobby
Or should I say by The Strobist. The complete nothing but a strobe lighting guide. This is a great book for the starting photographer covering the following topics in depth:
– On The Go Lighting Gear: Clamps, Umbrellas, Swivels, …
– Strobe Lighting Techniques: Bounce, Bare Bulb, Hard Light, Ambient Balancing, and more
– Creative Flashware: Gels, Gobos, Ball Bungees
If you liked the book, you’ll surly love the blog.
[36 pages, click the "mirror" on the UPDATE section at the bottom]
2 1/2. JPG Magazine by 8020 Publishing
Jpeg mag is one of the better photography magazines out there. This photography magazine features readers photos (selected by readers), and also great articles (written by readers). In fact JPG mag is very similar to an online forum only it is printed. How cool is that?
In fact it is so cool that you can download a PDF version of any issue right from the JPG mag site. Go to "Issues" on the top banner, select the desired issue and click Download PDF on the right hand side. (Of course, you still order the JPG magazine in print).
OK, so this is not exactly a book, which makes it the first half of the six and three halves.
[pages vary, click the download issue on the right hand side]
3. The Image-Space Tips and Tricks collection by Joe Barrett
This is a great book for any digital photographer using Lightroom (and don’t we all). The Image Space is a blog dedicated to Lightroom Tips, and the books covers areas like:
– Using Lightroom full power to organize your images
– Making the best of the develop module
If you liked this book, you can follow the online Lightroom tips and tricks here.
[34 pages, click on "Download the free Lightroom tips eBook"]
Nuts, Bolts, Dye, Polypropylene, Muslin, PVC. What do all those have in common? They are all supplies for one or more DIY Photography projects.
Some projects are very easy and you can get the stuff for them by digging through your drawers or junk cabinet (If you read this post, you must have one). Other projects require a trip to the store. But which store?
This post is about helping other photographer find what they are looking for and help you find what you are looking for.
The subject of common mails and comments that I receive is asking about where to get the materials for different projects.
Since I do not live in the United States, I don’t always know where to get some of the stuff. DIYP European readers share the same problem; some of the most available supplies in the US are nowhere to be found in Europe.
So, this is where this post comes to the rescue. In the table below, I am going to list some of the more popular projects and the materials that I get allot of questions about. I’d love it if you can help fellow photographers to find some of the stuff. Post the name of your favorite stores, web stores or links to where you get your DIY supplies.
One of the things I like most on DIYP is the strong warm community that has build around it. It is more and more often that readers are sending ideas, hacks and modifications that far surpass any ideas that might be having on the late hours of the night.
Reader Joseph A. Sorrentino (flickr) gets the genius-of-the-week award for moding a cable-wrap into a pocket wizard mount device.
Joe has tested several options before going with the cheapest and easiest solution I have seen so far. Here are his thoughts and reasons for designing a whole new Pocket wizard mount from scratch. In my mind all the other alternatives are very good and offer some advantages, but Joe’s mount is the best of class. (Check them all for great mounting ideas.)
After taking some shots with the Floor Lit Table Top Studio by Nick, It’s time to take it up a notch.
The previous article showed how to take great liquid product shots, though the set up can work for both liquids and solids.
In this part of the tutorial Nick will show a modification of the setup that allows you to add some color effects to the shot. If you like it, stop by Nick’s flickr stream and say “Hi”. In addition to showing your appreciation, you’ll get some great studio images and setup shots. Now for todays exiting twist:
I always keep my eye on the strobist flickr pool. It is one of the best places to get your lighting ideas. The other day, I saw a cool Corona shot there made by Nick Wheeler. Nick was so kind to share his lighting technique with DIYP readers. So, the following article is a guest post by Nick Wheeler, If you like this tutorial as much as I did stop by Nick’s flickr stream and say “Hi” (You’ll also get a nice dose of fine images).
Just recently, I became the proud owner of a new dining room table. Not a massively exciting announcement you might think (and you would be right), but what was getting me excited was the fact that it had a frosted glass top. While my significant other was wondering where to put it and what to do with the old table, I was thinking “I wonder what would happen if I stuck a flash underneath it?”
The answer at first was a little disappointing but after a while I was getting some pretty good results, particularly with bottles and containers of liquid. I was finding that with light coming from underneath it was helping light up the liquid and giving it a nice glow. The only problem I was having was the table top itself. The glass was dimpled, not smooth, and while that gave a nice effect, it was not ideal for every shot. The answer of course was a spot of DIY!
Last night I got fired by my daughter. I kid you not. She firmly stood on her two tiny legs wearing an executive outfit and gave me the hard news. My Daughter is almost 3.
Not long ago David X. Tejada (blog, site) posted a video showing his setup for a firm executive shot. You can watch the video at the end of this post. One thing that I believe pushes me forward as a photographer is learning the techniques of great photographers like David X. Tejada, and then apply them on creative ideas that I have. Note that for this learning technique to work, you can not copycat an image (there is another technique of trying to reproduce an image to learn the lighting, but that is another story).
Usually on this site I describe ways to deal with shadows in pictures. This is because shadows can distract the viewer from the main subject. Shadows also often create high contrast that gives the sensor some hard time. In past articles I’ve shown how to eliminate the shadows, minimize them, diffuse them and even bounce to get rid of them.
But what if? What if there was a way to turn the shadow into a friend, to make the shadow so distracting, it will become the subject itself?
In this article I’ve decided to face the enemy and make it a friend. Here are eight ways to get a great shadow picture:
Udi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.
Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe
Dave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.
John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.
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