“Join Ted’s and Canon for an introductory course for those new to lighting concepts in photography!
One of the most powerful tools in photography is lighting. Illuminating a subject in unique and creative ways is all-important in controlling the desired outcome of your image, but to do this requires a depth of understanding in how to apply techniques and lighting tools in different ways in order to produce a quality photograph.
With so many tools and techniques out there, jumping into working with lighting can be intimidating and overwhelming. Join the Introduction to Creative Lighting course, and start your lighting journey with Ted’s!…
Topics Included
Introduction to Lighting Concepts.
Refresher of Exposure.
Depth of Field as a Function of Subject Lighting.
Lighting Ratios.
Light Shapers.
Metering your main and fill light.
Creative Lighting Composition.
Studio Lighting Example with student participation.
Links
B&H Affiliate Link – click here to research and purchase or pre-order your choice of cameras, lenses and accessories for stills photography and video production whatever your genre and subject matter.
“Join Ted’s World of Imaging, Fujifilm Australia, Benzin Cafe (Dural) and Michael Catabay for an exciting workshop for photographers looking to who would like to learn how to photograph automobiles using natural and studio light sources.
This workshop will also teach attendees how to create video reels (short videos) for story-telling on social media….
Schedule
3.15pm-4.00pm: Complimentary Shuttle Bus (departing Castle Towers). For those who are not driving to the venue directly themselves, a complimentary shuttle will be departing from Castle Towers at 3.30pm. Please arrive by 3.15pm sharp to avoid missing the transfer.
4.00pm – 4.30pm: Arrival and sign in / get to know your group / food & drink orders.
4.30pm – 4.40pm: Introductions – Dan (Benzin Cafe) / Fujifilm AU team / Charlie (Ted’s World of Imaging) / Michael Catabay.
4.40pm – 5.15pm: Automotive Photography with Charlie (composition & lighting).
5.15pm – 5.45pm: Storytelling through video with Michael.
5.45pm – 6.45pm: Application of learning in practical setting.
6.45pm – 7.00pm: Wrap up and conclusion of event.
7.00pm – 7.30pm: Complimentary Shuttle Bus departs Dural and heads back to Castle Towers (estimated arrival of 7.30pm)….”
Fujifilm GFX100S with Fujinon GF 20-35mm f/1.4 R WR. Image courtesy of B&H.
Fujifilm GFX100S with Fujinon GF 110mm f/2.0 R LM WR prime lens. Image courtesy of Fujifilm Australia.
Fujifilm GFX100S with Fujinon GF 20-35mm f/4.0 R WR. Image courtesy of B&H.
Links
B&H Affiliate Link – click here to research and purchase or pre-order your choice of cameras, lenses and accessories for stills photography and video production whatever your genre and subject matter.
About the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre
The Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (PEC) works to support the growth of the UK’s Creative Industries through the production of independent and authoritative evidence and policy advice.
Led by Nesta and funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council as part of the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy, the Centre comprises of a consortium of universities from across the UK (Birmingham; Cardiff; Edinburgh; Glasgow; Work Foundation at Lancaster University; LSE; Manchester; Newcastle; Sussex; Ulster). The PEC works with a diverse range of industry partners including the Creative Industries Federation.
Meme graphic on PEC report on class inequality in the UK screen industries by For Film’s Sake, @forfilmssake_org.
Australia’s recently-elected Labor Party federal government badly needs to make up for almost a decade of neglect if not downright destruction of the creative industries by the former Liberal-National Party rightwing government.
The PEC’s reports provide plenty of inspiration and food for thought about what must be done to pump life back into Australia’s creative sector and to combat the dominance of those industries by, too often, WASP males from upper-middle and upper-class backgrounds.
We’ve provided links to the PEC reports that initially caught our eye but we are about to dig deep through the organization’ archives.
Creative Industries Policy & Evidence Centre (PEC) – Eight things to know about the Creative Industries – “What are the Creative Industries? The Creative Industries are a diverse and complex sector made up of a variety of sub-sectors, from performing arts to computer games, and graphic design to advertising. This diversity is spread across the UK, with different places having very different characteristics.”
Creative Industries Policy & Evidence Centre (PEC) – Screened out: Tackling class inequality in the UK’s screen industries – “…the sector faces challenges too and one of the greatest relates to diversity. Whether in terms of race, gender, disability, or social class, the Screen Industries are failing to include and support talented individuals from a range of backgrounds and demographic groups.” – PDF here
“This new pilot program is founded by Canadian photojournalists from the Black, Indigenous and People of Colour communities who see the need for diversity in our news gathering. Our allies include Canadian Journalists of Colour, The Globe and Mail and The Narwhal.
The goal of this program is to offer mentorship opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) who are passionate about photojournalism and visual storytelling. BIPOC industry professionals along with allies will help guide those interested in pursuing their own goals and becoming established visual storytellers for their community and the Canadian media industry. People with diverse experiences and ways of seeing can only help strengthen our newsrooms and ensure the stories Canadians see are as diverse as the lives they lead.”
Commentary
Apologies for publishing this post after the deadline for applications has passed but I only came across this excellent program just now.
“Applications are Now Closed.
We will not be processing anymore applications for this program year.
Deadline for applications to the 2022-2023 program is April 15, 2022 at 6pm EST. Program starts May 2, 2022.
Use this form so we can see how best to help. The form is just to get to know you and find out where you are in your photography….”
Perhaps you may wish to keep an eye on the next applications deadline and be well prepared in advance.
I throughly support the concept of affirmative action when it comes to equity, diversity and inclusion in the media and applaud the people behind Room Up Front and the other Canadian organizations listed below.
The mainstream and independent media, whether in print, online or both, are far too much in the hands of white men of a certain background, everywhere.
Gatekeeping into the media in all its forms remains rife.
All forms of media must be staffed by a diverse range of workers from all so-called “minority” backgrounds including BIPOC and way beyond and if that notion upsets those who currently dominate the media then too bloody bad.
They’ve had their monopoly long enough.
Links
Canadian Association of Black Journalists – website
Rise – website – “It’s time for a journalism conference in Canada that’s focused on celebrating journalists of colour and reimagining an equitable future for the media industry. That’s why the Canadian Association of Black Journalists (CABJ) and Canadian Journalists of Colour (CJOC) are excited to host our inaugural joint conference—for and by racialized journalists.”
It’s now time to look for a new cap to wear when out and about and especially for when I am making photographs and video.
Not just any cap will do, unfortunately.
It needs to have a reasonably flat brim to accommodate wearing spectacles and Cancer Council Fitover overglasses without knocking them down off my face as heavily curved brims do, needs to be adjustable in size, a low to mid profile so my head does not look huge in it, able to be squashed into bag or backpack without damage, and should offer a choice of colours.
Unisex Winter Cap from Manfrotto Lino Collection. Brilliant products but poorly marketed so discontinued. Image courtesy of Manfrotto.
Black is my preferred colour but lighter colours would be sensible given summer is coming and no doubt it will be sunny and hot.
It should definitely not be branded with a manufacturer’s logo or anything sports related as that can draw undue attention and comment!
The point is to blend into the background at all times.
Like any needs as specific as these, I am sure it won’t be easy to find but if and when I do, I should get several of them as nothing lasts forever.
Right now we are in the middle of a long lockdown and so bricks-and-mortar stores are shut and shopping for items like these must be done online.
“Featuring in-depth and often irreverent interviews with the world’s best-known music photographers, musicians, gallerists, music journalists and social commentators, ICON: Music Through the Lens is an eye-opening thrill ride through the amazing world of music photography. This series charts the fascinating lives and often crazy experiences of the men and women who have documented popular music in images, from the earliest darkrooms to the fast-evolving digital landscapes of the present day….”
“… The two main takeaways from this interview with Mr. Yamane are a recognition of where his company needs to improve (specifically around AF performance in mirrorless bodies) and a commitment to do so, coupled with a concurrent commitment to Micro Four Thirds. This should come as good news to virtually all Panasonic shooters, regardless of which system (or which side of the video/stills divide) they’re invested in.
Some of the most innovative and pioneering cameras in the early history of consumer digital imaging were launched under Panasonic’s Lumix brand….”
Commentary
Are new cameras and lenses on the way from Panasonic for its G-Series Micro Four Thirds and S-Series 35mm sensor-equipped mirrorless hybrid cameras?
Time will tell.
One thing is for sure: given how far ahead other mirrorless camera makers are with their phase detection autofocus compared to Panasonic’s contrast detection autofocus, Mr Yamane and his team really need to pull their collective fingers out and pronto.
Compared to cinema cameras and their more specialized user base and uses where autofocus usually plays second fiddle to manual focusing, hybrid cameras need top quality autofocusing capability to satisfy a much broader base of users.
Brian Griffin is one of the greatest photographers of his generation but all too little known here in Australia. We may never see any of his touring exhibitions here but at least there is this wonderful book about how he did it plus many more books of his work. Image courtesy of Brian Griffin.
“Black Country DADA
1969 – 1990
I have written my autobiography … yes, I have written it myself! A hardback book of over 200 pages, with an insightful introduction by W. M. Hunt. It tells truthfully what it was like to survive and make ones way as a photographer in Britain back then. I tell the story through my personal experience of those tough times.
Those were those analogue days! Growing up amongst the factories of the Black Country, studying photography in Manchester alongside my friends Daniel Meadows and Martin Parr, and then filled with trepidation going down to London to make a living as a photographer in the early 1970’s.
In popular recollection, the 1970’s have gone down as the dark ages, Britain’s gloomiest period since the second world war, set between Harold Wilson’s ‘swinging sixties’ and Margaret Thatcher’s divisive eighties.What was it like to be a young photographer then?
By the end of the 1980’s my photography was known throughout the world. How did I do it? What did I go through? It’s all in this book that tells the story warts and all.”
Given the trials and tribulations of living in lockdown for the past few months I have not been following the release of Canon’s EOS R5 and EOS R6 mirrorless hybrid cameras as closely as I should have. Apologies, so here is a catch-up.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless hybrid stills and video digital camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens. Image courtesy of Canon via B&H.
My lockdown-born distance from recent digital developments suddenly changed when I came across a rather shocking Instagram post by camera accessories company Tilta featuring its Tiltaing Cooling Camera Cage for Canon R5, featuring its Canon EOS R5 Cooling Kit, a fan-driven and heavily-finned device designed, apparently, to rapidly reduce the camera’s temperature to one that makes it a little more usable.
Camera accessories maker SmallRig also appears to be working on a solution for the Canon EOS R5 and R6 cameras’ overheating problems, a Cool Cage for R5, and the company may take a different approach to that of Tilta.
Time will tell just as it will as to the actual usability of the R5 and R6 for their designed purposes, but for now enough camera reviewers with a professional background have shed whatever Canon fanboy tendencies they might still harbour in order to share some of the many problems they have been having with both cameras.
Canon EOS R5
Images courtesy of Canon via B&H.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless digital camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless digital camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless digital camera.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless digital camera.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless digital camera.
Canon WFT-R10A Wireless File Transmitter for Canon EOS R5 mirrorless hybrid camera.
Canon BG-R10 Battery Grip for Canon EOS R5 and R6 mirrorless hybrid cameras.
Canon EOS R5 flagship mirrorless digital camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens, full kit.
Canon describes the R6 as having “… four times the detail of 4K” making it “the world’s first interchangeable lens digital camera with 8K movies” and the specs for the R5 and R6 certainly look impressive.
But, given the comments I have been reading from credible reviewers like Philip Bloom, Gerald Undone, Andrew Reid and Matthew Allard, the R5 and possibly the R6 appear to be major fails that may lead to class action lawsuits against Canon given the R5 at least does not live up to its marketing claims.
Canon EOS R6
Images courtesy of Canon via B&H.
Canon EOS R6 mirrorless digital camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens.
Canon EOS R6 mirrorless digital camera with Canon RF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens, full kit.
Might Canon fanboys be better off with the R6 just as a stills photography camera given it is slightly cheaper than the R5?
Tilta Tiltaing Cooling Kit for Canon EOS R5
Images courtesy of Tilta.
Tilta Tiltaing Cooling Camera Cage for Canon R5 mirrorless hybrid digital camera.
Tilta Tiltaing Cooling Camera Cage for Canon R5 mirrorless hybrid digital camera.
Tilta Tiltaing Cooling Camera Cage for Canon R5 mirrorless hybrid digital camera, cooling module details.
In his Facebook post on the EOS R5, Philip Bloom adds:
Please don’t accuse me of bias. I have none. I love Canon and have a lot of history with them. I spent £4200 on a camera I cannot use most of the time and that’s ludicrous! I truly hope they find a way to fix this debacle.
You either love it or hate it. Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens, prone to the all-too-common aperture control ribbon cable failure.
Unlike Mr Bloom, I do not love Canon and nor do I have a lot of history with the brand’s products.
My first Canon camera was the once revolutionary but even-then crippled EOS 5D Mark II which was initially only available in a kit with the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens.
From the start there was a problem with the 5D Mark II, its erase button remaining pushed in after first attempt at using the camera so it went straight back to Canon Australia and eventually returned with the button repaired under warranty.
A straight-out replacement would have been a better option.
Then, just after the warranty for camera and lens expired, the 24-105mm kit zoom lens failed spectacularly and I have still not been able to have it restored to working order.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II with Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM kit zoom lens.
Despite urgings by my BFF to get rid of my 5D Mark II, I have kept it despite not having a working Canon EF lens for it, instead occasionally using it with a couple of adapted M42 manual focus lenses via a Gobe M42 to EF adapter.
My beloved late uncle Brian Bell aka Sir Brian Ernest Bell CSM, KBE, CStJ, of the Sir Brian Bell Foundation and the Brian Bell Group of Companies, paid for my Canon EOS 5D Mark II and its Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0 L IS USM zoom lens, and I simply cannot let them go given I barely knew him and yet he proved to be so kind to me and understanding of my situation in his final years alive.
Uncle Brian gave me the 5D Mark II and lens as a gift in order to help me start a new life in photography and video after too many years away from them due to often insurmountable health issues.
At the time I knew nothing about the mirrorless hybrid revolution that was going on at Panasonic and to a lesser degree at Olympus so did not, to my regret, immediately buy into those two company’s Micro Four Thirds system that offered so much more than Canon in terms of affordability and video production capabilities.
Despite my misgivings about Canon’s clear lack of adequate quality control, thus quickly coming to rely instead on Fujifilm, Olympus and Panasonic cameras and lenses, I continued to hope that Canon might eventually see the light and provide the necessary alternative to the smaller sensor-based systems.
So, what a disappointment Canon’s attempt at matching if not surpassing Panasonic’s S-Series cameras has turned out to be, but I should not be surprised given what my BFF has told me about Canon’s research and development efforts before and during the time she worked there in an engineering role.
For fifteen years, apparently, Canon’s Australian R&D division was at the cutting edge of global camera, lens, printing and other technologies and creativity and innovation were anything but dirty words.
Canon had bought an independent Sydney-based R&D company then turned it into the major part of its worldwide product and technology development effort, replete with top engineers, mathematicians, physicists and other scientists and technologists.
Then the suits and the marketing types began taking it all for granted, replacing all this talent with the cult of process engineering, resulting in employees voluntarily departing or being fired en masse to the point where Canon’s R&D division no longer existed.
The scientists and technologists with the genius to solve problems like those apparent in the Canon EOS R5 and R6 were no longer there and, with the company now in the hands of marketing men, this mess is the result.
The chickens that became so apparent in the long years my BFF worked at Canon have finally come to roost, with a vengeance.
The “cripple hammer” described so often by my BFF and increasing numbers of professional customers has found its mark on the cameras that were supposed to firmly establish Canon as a pro-quality force in the mirrorless hybrid realm.
There will be nasty outcomes for Canon from all of this.
For a start, in his latest article at time of writing on the R5, Andrew Reid of EOSHD states that:
If it is proven that Canon purposefully hobbled the camera, or artificially restricted recording times in firmware, with heat as an excuse, in all the highest quality video modes on the EOS R5 they advertised as key headline grabbing features, I will never buy another Canon camera again for as long as I live and I think the full force of consumer law should be brought to bear.
Lastly, here is a comment from my BFF:
“Having worked for over ten years in the Canon research arm (CiSRA) I’ve seen first hand the erosion of innovation, given in to a vast implementation of process engineering.
Contrary to the process engineering activity curve rising sharply, our USPTO patent and innovation curve dived to nearly nothing in the space of three years.
It was all about keeping us engineers heads down with endless vacuous new policies thrown at us, while stifling us with excessive process engineering admin activities such as process management, configuration and release management, excessive performance waterfall adherence and the endless justification to Canon head office that we were worth keeping as a world-class Australian research facility, all the while shedding staff; some of the most brilliant sw and hw engineers, math professors, physicists and other ground-breaking innovators.
The company eventually closed its doors in 2016 after having spent millions moving office space.
In the end, the pointy-headed managers and their cohorts raked in the money while everyone else suffered.
Canon management only have themselves to blame.
Being a Japanese company, the way that female engineers get paid less than male engineers is bad enough, but the way management has destroyed innovation in this company is a crime.”
Links
Canon Australia – EOS R5, Game On – I would normally default to the Canon USA product pages but have been getting “THE SITE IS CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE.” messages on that website.
EOSHD – Andrew Reid has written several articles about aspects of the overheating problem with the Canon EOS R5.
Facebook – Philip Bloom – “This is the first camera I have used in memory that punishes you for using it. Shoot stills then down goes your ability to shoot video in all but the basic line skipped normal speed 4K mode.”
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