Tangents

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Review: Canon 135mm f/2L vs. Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

June 26, 2016 Neil vN 47 Comments

Review: comparison Canon 135mm f/2L vs. Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

One lens that has a huge loyal fanbase, is the Canon 135mm f/2L USM lens  (B&H / Amazon). It has a wide aperture for a medium telephoto lens, and the lens is small and compact. Unassuming. Easy to love. Then the inevitable question comes up from photographers stepping into getting their first telephoto lens - which is the better choice?  How does the Canon 135mm f/2L compare to the  Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II zoom? The advantages to the  Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II  (B&H / Amazon) is  Read more inside...

Time-lapse photography video clip – Brooklyn waterfront, NYC

June 24, 2016 Neil vN 5 Comments

Time-lapse photography video clip - Brooklyn waterfront, NYC

Dipping ever deeper into Time-Lapse Photography, I recently bought the Dynamic Perception Stage One motion controller. What makes it unusual, is that it breaks down into 20" segments. The carbon-fibre rods are also light enough to carry around in a tall backpack ... just the recipe for adventures in Time-Lapse photography. One thing that you quickly realize with Time-Lapse is that there is a never-ending learning curve. Just as you have a good grasp on the ethnical aspects of shooting - the gear, and such - then you realize  Read more inside...

Tangents – the Facebook group

June 23, 2016 Neil vN 2 Comments

Tangents - the Facebook group

It's time for me to fully embrace FB ... and have a FB group that relates to the Tangents blog. With that, I will be re-posting photography related stuff to this group. As the Facebook group for the Tangents blog, this is where anyone can show off photos; ask questions; hang out and discuss photography. This has also become necessary since FB is randomly throttling organic traffic to my FB page on photography when I announce new Tangents posts. Perhaps this move will also stop some people's disappointment when I post a cat video to my personal FB  Read more inside...

Photo shoot with Off-camera flash – Adapting to opportunity

June 19, 2016 Neil vN 15 Comments

Photo shoot with Off-camera flash - Adapting to opportunity

One of the fun elements of the Photo Walks in NYC, is looking for opportunity, and being ready for any serendipitous moments. We were photographing Claudia, using the Profoto B1 TTL flash (affiliate), and a 3' octa-box as our off-camera lighting setup. Of course, we could also shoot available light ... or sweeten it with a touch of off-camera flash. We have options in how we use light. It's all part of the adventure of looking for great photos. In this instance, there was this reflective metallic wall on three sides of  Read more inside...

Wedding photography posing tips – For variety, make slight changes

May 27, 2016 Neil vN 15 Comments

Wedding photography posing tips - For variety, make slight changes

Wedding photography often feels like a sustained burst of stressful periods - the processional (where you have a really limited range to nail everything in low light), the family photos (where you have to gain control over a potentially chaotic situation), and the romantic portrait session with the bride and groom. Even with a couple as cool as Jackie and Todd, there is still the pressure to get photos as awesome as the images you show in your portfolio. The time is usually limited, and you have to nail the lighting,  Read more inside...

Lighting for a small commercial video shoot

May 25, 2016 Neil vN 4 Comments

Lighting for a small commercial video shoot

Those of you who have followed the Tangents blog for a while, will have noticed that over time I've expanded the range of photography that I do - in addition to weddings and portraits, I have taken on commercial photography and corporate photography as well. This has included small commercial video shoots as well. One of these was a promotional video clip for a company - Buddy Bagz - to introduce their innovative variation on sleeping bags for kids. The photo and video shoot was produced by Cheryl Galante, and the video edited by Wendy  Read more inside...

Gear list – Starting out with off-camera flash

May 20, 2016 Neil vN 17 Comments

Gear list - Starting out with off-camera flash

You can get great lighting with just on-camera bounce flash when shooting indoors, as shown in this related article - Lighting with bounce flash. But at some point you might want more flexibility and consistency. Or you might run into problem scenarios with bounce flash, such as colored walls and ceilings. Or you might run into a situation where you can't use any bounce flash at all, and the available light isn't ideal. Then it is time to step it up with off-camera flash. Starting out with off-camera flash photography might seem  Read more inside...

Improve your portrait photography: Lighting with bounce flash

May 16, 2016 Neil vN 22 Comments

Improve your portrait photography:  Lighting with bounce flash

For a straight-forward but effective portrait like this, there are just a few things that have to come together ... all within your control as the photographer: Framing / Composition  This is mostly as simple as looking at the edges of the frame in your camera's viewfinder, and then deciding how much head-room or breathing room you want to allow. Also look at the background, and exclude what doesn't add to your photograph. In this example, it was easy enough, working in my studio which has a grey wall. So often  Read more inside...

Photo shoot: On-location lighting problem solving

May 13, 2016 Neil vN 11 Comments

Photo shoot: On-location lighting problem solving (with Profoto)

When I photograph on location, many of my decisions on the technical stuff like camera settings and lighting, are based on common sense algorithms. Max flash sync speed, choice of aperture, and direction of light. That forms the basis of decisions, but just as often we, as photographers, have to adapt and go into problem-solving mode. Here's an example during a photo shoot where I had to come up with a different way of using my off-camera lights. It was a big deal for me when I was asked by the management of Home  Read more inside...

Photographing the wedding formal groups

May 3, 2016 Neil vN 9 Comments

Photographing the wedding formal groups

Photographing the family groups and the formal photos at weddings doesn't really strike fear in my heart any more. I have the experience to work efficiently, and also work around any challenges that come up. I can take things in my stride, and I'm not often ruffled. I keep things motoring along. With that, I just had to share this amusing photo from a recent wedding - the bride and groom with the 3 nephews. Count them! And that's about the best shot we got with all three of the kiddos in the frame. So even with all the experience and  Read more inside...

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