Tangents

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Comparing output: Studio lights vs. speedlites / speedlights

October 14, 2014 Neil vN 36 Comments

Comparing power: Studio lights vs. speedlites / speed lights

Speedlights pack a huge amount of light for the size. Very portable, and loaded with sophisticated features, owning a speedlight is a must. A simple choice. Studio lights and the larger portable flashes such as the Profoto B1 TTL flash (B&H / Amazon) , offer a lot more power than speedlights. Exactly how much more powerful, isn't all that easy to gauge. There's very little available as direct comparison. Even the specs aren't directly comparable. Speedlights' power is given as a Guide Number (GN), and studio  Read more inside...

Progression of an idea in a photo session – cosplayer

October 11, 2014 Neil vN 17 Comments

Progression of an idea in a photo session - cosplayer, Ger Tysk

For me, there's always some anxiety before a photo session - especially when you have the opportunity to photograph someone quite unusual and photogenic like Ger Tysk, a cosplayer. (She also creates cosplay outfits for others, and has published a book on Cosplay.) Her latest outfit is Black Widow (from Marvel.) Now, the stressful part before a photo session like this, is that there is the pressure of having a great opportunity, and then having to create a photo series that is worthy of the moment. Even if you don't quite  Read more inside...

Full-frame vs Crop-sensor comparison : Depth-of-field & perspective

October 9, 2014 Neil vN 126 Comments

ull-frame vs crop-sensor comparison

Full-frame vs Crop-sensor comparison :  Depth-of-field & Perspective

When the differences between full-frame and crop-sensor cameras are discussed, there is an inevitable question about whether the crop sensor multiplies the focal length. Whether a 50mm lens on a crop-sensor acts like a 75mm lens (on a 1.5x crop sensor) or 80mm lens (on a 1.6x crop sensor). The answers given on the photography forums are confusing - yes, the focal length effectively increases. No, it doesn't. Two answers that are polar opposites. The discussion (which tend to devolve into arguments) are  Read more inside...

Using the Profoto B1 portable flash at a wedding

September 30, 2014 Neil vN 54 Comments

Using the Profoto B1 portable flash at a wedding

With wedding photography, there are nearly inevitably time-constraints. It is therefore imperative that you, as the wedding photographer, are able to keep everything running as smoothly as possible on your side. Which implies that it is important that you (and your equipment) are adaptable. And it is also hugely important that your gear is easy to set up, and very reliable. Karissa and Rory's wedding was the first where I pulled out the Profoto B1 battery powered flash (B&H / Amazon). I'm even more impressed with it  Read more inside...

book review: Roberto Valenzuela – Picture Perfect Posing

September 28, 2014 Neil vN 15 Comments

book review: Roberto Valenzuela - Picture Perfect Posing

I've noticed that articles on Tangents which deal with the topic of how to pose people, gets a lot of attention. Posing is a challenging topic for most photographers except the very best who seem to have an innate gift for it. Books on posing tend to approach the topic as a list of suggestions - the kind of "1,000 poses" type books. Another alternative offered is flow posing where you maneuver a couple through a number of poses mechanically. Both of these approaches means you have to memorize poses by rote, instead of  Read more inside...

Nikon D750 – high-ISO noise performance

September 27, 2014 Neil vN 33 Comments

Nikon D750 - high-ISO noise performance

The two things everyone is most curious about with the Nikon D750  (B&H / Amazon), is the auto-focus performance and the high-ISO noise performance. Here's a quick preview of what the D750 does at higher ISO settings. Specifically, 3200 ISO and 6400 ISO.  (A more complete comparison has since been posted here: review: high-ISO performance – Nikon D750 vs Nikon D4S / D4 / D810 / D610) To put the Nikon D750 (affiliate) through its paces for the (upcoming) review of this camera, I met up with NYC model, Glass Olive for a  Read more inside...

Nikon D750 – camera settings & custom settings

September 26, 2014 Neil vN 55 Comments

Nikon D750 camera settings & custom settings

The Nikon D750 (B&H / Amazon), was one of Nikon's most anticipated cameras, as so many photographers were waiting for an update to their beloved D700 cameras. And like you'd expect from a top-end camera, it has a huge range of customizable settings. These make the Nikon D750 a camera which can be configured in a highly personal way, depending on your shooting style and needs. Going through the menu, the options might be overwhelming. Many of them can be left to the default. Some settings will clearly user preference.  Read more inside...

Various scenarios: Balancing flash with ambient light

September 16, 2014 Neil vN 11 Comments

Various scenarios: Balancing flash with ambient light

Adding flash to ambient light - its's a topic that can appear to be confusing. With advice that ranges from under-exposing the ambient light by a stop or two ... or dialing FEC down for fill-flash, or advice that you should be metering for the background ... it all appears confusing and contradictory. What we do, and the thought-process we step through, depends on the (lighting) situation we find ourselves in. There isn't one blanket do-all method. No single piece of instruction that will fit every occasion. So let's try to  Read more inside...

Wedding photography – Macro photography: options and alternatives

September 10, 2014 Neil vN 9 Comments

Wedding photography - Macro photography: options and alternatives

With wedding photography, I mostly use a macro lens just for detail images at the bride's place - rings & jewelry. I do use a macro lens for detail photos of the rings. However, during the early part of the day at the bride's place, I try to bring as little equipment as possible. Then carrying a macro lens for just a few detail images might just add too much bulk to the shoulder bag. Also, if your budget is constrained, then it might seem a bit much to spend that much money for a lens that will see so little use.  Read more inside...

What else is in your camera bag?

September 6, 2014 Neil vN 29 Comments

Non-photography goodies in my camera bag

Work as a wedding photographer isn't just about taking photographs of key moments, or about the photo gear. Often enough it is up to you as the wedding photographer to help guide the day's time-line and flow, and also just to help.  For me, wedding photography isn't just a passively observed event where I take photographs. And if you shoot with a photo-journalistic style in mind, it doesn't mean you have to remain uninvolved.  I'm there to record the day's events, but also to help, if necessary, making it a spectacular day. In the photo  Read more inside...

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