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The Hollywood Distagon at f/2: A Single Daffodil and the Contax Zeiss 28mm on the Sony A7RV
April 28, 2026
But Is It Art?
I ran across an interesting story at The Jesuit Post and found it to be very inspirational as well as disturbing in some ways. So much in fact, I contacted the author Jesuit Tim O’Brien for his permission to repost it here as a Feature Story. While it is not directly on point discussing photographic images, it does address directly the question of what is Art, photography’s future, and the current trend of combining prior art into a new “restoration” or form. Post Instagram, photography has changed forever; so have many people’s ideas about what constitutes “Art.” As to this
Read moreFolioBook for iPad: Present Your Portfolios!
The Latest From DigitalOutBackPhoto: FolioBook for iPad The iPad is an excellent device to show your portfolios to clients or friends. Unfortunately the Photos app is not really very good to show your work. The main reason is that the Photos app is a photo browser (even a very limited at that). When you show images to your clients it is all about your photos and how you present them. Here the FolioBook app comes into play. This application is all about letting your photos be the center stage and not a limited photo browser. FolioBook allows you to create
Read moreThe RAW vs. JPG Debate:Which Way To The Front Lines?
I Couldn’t Make This From JPG’S Okay! Giulio, Fro, Will and all the rest; I get where you’re coming from. I did shoot the parts for the video at the top using a mirrorless camera, but I could not have created this production without having RAW files to use in the post processing. For Giulio and Will; in your workflow JPG makes all the sense in the world. Your images are delivered small. Primary use is for the web, or for integration into your short video segments. Will Crockett: he’s so far down the JPG road he’s even playing
Read moreRAW or JPG? Which one when?
This week’s Hybrid Hangout™ From DiscoverMirrorless.Com Both jpeg and RAW photo file formats are good these days, but they are very different. Now that we are adding more video into our everyday imaging, we realize that there is no RAW for video. Ouch. So, when is it a good idea to use RAW, when is it best to shoot in JPEG, or what about shooting both at the same time? The answers depend all on you, your camera, your camera skills, and what you need to shoot. To explore the best options for today’s growing hybrid image maker, we’ve assembled a
Read moreMachu Picchu at 12 Gigapixels – by Jeff Cremer
The last time I visited Machu Picchu was probably back in 1994. At that time, it was a long arduous trip first to Cusco, then on to a half day train ride on what had to be the most primitive railroad in South America. Like every other place in the world, times have changed and so has the ease of access to many historic sites around this planet. Those visits have enriched the areas with their tourist dollars, but have had a terrible effect on the sites visited. It’s our individual responsibility as photographers to go, see, and photograph the
Read moreThis Man Shoots Hobbits!
Few of you have likely ever heard of my friend Nels Israelson. For years, Nels has been one of those hard working photographic souls who’s work is absolutely fabulous, but who’s lot in life is to work for major film studios. You know, those fat cat corporations who squeeze value and every PR possibility like they had the big egos of some Producers who never share credit with anyone save for themselves. If you’ve been alive at least fifteen years, you’ve most likely seen Nels work many times. Nels shoots many of those fabulous movie posters that grace the lobby
Read moreFrom The Lens Of James Balog – “Chasing Ice”
A new documentary looks at how photographer James Balog captured climate change on film by placing two dozen time-lapse cameras throughout the Arctic and other areas to document melting glaciers. Dubbed by some a new “Inconvenient Truth,” the film chronicles Balog’s work with the Extreme Ice Survey, a long-term photography project that works to preserve a visual legacy of how climate change and other human activity impacts the planet. We’re joined by Balog and the film’s director, Jeff Orlowski. Balog is an award-winning photographer whose work revolves around the relationship between humans and nature. He is the author of seven
Read moreDon Farrall VideoGraph
Our friend Professional Photographer Don Farrall has been experimenting with many new and different types of imaging. Probably best known for his extensive collection of unusual stock photography, Don has begun exploring new areas ranging from creating VideoGraphs (still images that move) to moving paint using sound waves to create paint sculptures! You can see more of Don’s fabulous experimental work at http://DonFarrall.Com. PLEASE RATE THIS STORY! [ratings]
Read moreBrian Smith’s Secrets
‘Secrets of Great Portrait Photography: Photographs of the Famous and Infamous‘ from New Riders, an imprint of Peachpit, is a book 30+ years in the making, drawing upon the best lessons learned over the last three decades photographing portraits of the rich and famous, it blends lavish celebrity portraits of a coffee table book with technical how-to insights with a side dish of behind-the-scenes celebrity stories. The book is based on a talk that Brian Smith has done everywhere from Brazil to Boise including the last two years at PhotoPlus Expo and WPPI, which takes you though all the stages of
Read moreLumix GH3 Video Clips
Some first test video clips with a pre-production Panasonic Lumix GH3 using Beta firmware. This from the video blog of French Videographer Emmanuel Pampuri, CEO & founder @ Les Machineurs & TRACTOfilm. Sure looks impressive to me! PLEASE RATE THIS STORY! [ratings]
Read moreGoPro 3:4K Video In A Small Package
At a special event in San Francisco, GoPro launched its latest action cam, the Hero3. Compared to the Hero2 that we all know and love, the new camera is both more portable and more capable. It’s 30% smaller and 25% lighter. I never thought the old one was all that heavy myself, but I guess someone’s destined to want to attach it to a rabbit and see what’s actually down the Rabbit Hole ;=) The image processor built inside is now double the speed – twice as fast – giving faster frame rates for both video and still photographs. The camera
Read moreDiscover Mirrorless
From the folks who present ShootSmarter.com, the new website DiscoverMirrorless.com is the product of what happens when photo innovator Will Crockett collaborates with other photographers and photo educators to realize that the photography industry is changing. Technology is going to change the way that we create, view and share portraits and images with our family and friends. We have smartTVs, smartphones, Notebooks, Tablets, iPads, iPhones and…well you already know this. But, what you may not know is that we have to change the way we shoot, print, and sell photography products that will soon be digital products. DiscoverMirrorless.com is here to show you how. Visit and bookmark: http://www.discovermirrorless.com Subscribe to stay in touch with the latest
Read moreBIG Prints From A Small Body!
My friend Ira Block decided to take his recent images shot with the new Panasonic Lumix GH3 down to his professional printing lab, Gotham Printing in New York City, to test out how these GH3 stills would look printed up large. The results certainly amazed me! PLEASE RATE THIS STORY! [ratings]
Read moreBlackMagic Cinema vs. Canon 5D3
Several of my professional photography friends and I have recently begun discussing our business futures. As many of you know, the photography game as a business has changed pretty dramatically in the last three years. Not only have the paying client jobs been fewer in number, but the client demands have increased. Where once most of us shot only still photographs, today’s reality is we need to also provide video together with something more to set us apart from our competition. Historically still photography and video capture are two entirely different fields. The workflow, capture techniques, lighting, viewing angles, makeup,
Read moreLumix GH3 Video
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, along comes something to assure you that you don’t. That’s the feeling I get when I feel the shivers craw up my spine thinking about the potential in the new Panasonic GH3. In my last post I reported on my friend Ira Block’s video report on the new Panasonic Lumix GH3 camera, and the strengths it has for still photographers. Right behind it today is this video, GENESIS. A short film by Bruce Logan and Philip Bloom shot entirely on the new LUMIX GH3 camera. I don’t know either of these gentlemen personally,
Read moreIra Block On The Panasonic GH3
My friend Internationally renowned photojournalist Ira Block explores the new LUMIX GH3 in early development and puts it through a challenging pace in the American Southwest. Ira shoots primarily for National Geographic. He’s one of the most meticulous photographers I know, and an absolute perfectionist in everything he does – including choosing his gear. Ira and I have spent many an hour on the phone discussing the latest technology innovations and how they can assist in our work. Ira is one of those rare individuals who is passionate about his gear because he is passionate about his images, and is an
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