In case you have not heard, Adobe announced plans to abandon selling software outright and setup a subscription only model. As such, you will have to continue to pay, every month, to not only use 'your' software, but to access and work on the files you have created. Stop paying and it ceases to function. The issue here is that Adobe does not consider the software 'yours'. In their opinion, it never was yours in the first place. So from their perspective, this marks a natural evolution in software marketing. I beg to disagree. I'm not in Adobe's pocket so I get to speak out. Any other subscription based software simply ceases to … [Read more...] about The Great Adobe Marketing Debacle
Hands-On First Impressions: Sony HDR-AS10
A great little Action VideoCam for us extreme videographers. By now, anyone who has looked at the category of Compact Action Camcorders knows about the HERO brand. I have friends who have them and most of the ActionCam videos on YouTube are done with it (if you don't count iPhones). For good reason too. They started this revolution in compact rugged video cams AND they deliver a quality image. There's even a '4K' version for those with a 4K TV. That said, I'm on kind of a budget so I went looking for a cheaper alternative. I don't shoot video often enough to justify spending $400 or $500 on a video camera solution. Yes, I could simply shoot … [Read more...] about Hands-On First Impressions: Sony HDR-AS10
My Sweet Little NEX-7, A Personal Perspective
NEX-7 - A clunky, utilitarian approach to pro digital photography NEX-7 BASIC SPECS- Mirrorless rangefinder style, 24.3MP CMOS APS/C sensor (1.5x focal length multiplier), 3:2 image ratio, adjustable 3" LCD, 2.4 million dot OLED electronic viewfinder, proprietary Sony hot shoe, pop-up flash, no built-in image stabilization (lens only), Sony AF/E lens mount, SD/SDHC/SDXC and Memory Stick Pro cards, USB 2 and HDMI ports, AVCHD Progressive 1080p video at 60 or 24 fps with stereo sound recording capability via a microphone socket, weight with battery- 14.11 oz. The Sony Alpha NEX-7 has been out well over a year so there are tons of reviews … [Read more...] about My Sweet Little NEX-7, A Personal Perspective
Fireworks Photography, an Argument for Film
Why I do what I do and why I still do it. I've been setting off fireworks longer than I've been using a camera. Those that know me, know I used to shoot commercial fireworks in Alaska. Photographing fireworks was a natural progression. Shooting fireworks is simpler than you think. No, you cannot get good shots of fireworks by hand holding the camera. You need a tripod. Most exposures will be a few seconds or more. I have a method where I accumulate 'several sets' of several seconds onto a single frame which I will explain in a moment. Because of the long exposures, you will need a camera capable of being left 'open' until you decide to … [Read more...] about Fireworks Photography, an Argument for Film
My Long and Twisted Path to Photo Nirvana
A ridiculously long narrative intended to entertain and inform I've been around a while and used a lot of different gear. I've also seen the photo market go through a lot of changes. Including the disruptive transition from film to digital. I've always been a 'camera geek' and wanna-be camera collector. ShutterBug magazines were never far from hand and then there is eBay. At age 10, my 1st camera was a Kodak Brownie. A simple box camera. I still have black & white prints of the shots I took with it of the Good Friday Earthquake of 1964. In my late teens, I scored a used Olympus Pen FT (1/2-frame 35mm porro-prism) with 3 lenses. It … [Read more...] about My Long and Twisted Path to Photo Nirvana