Hey Everyone! Hope everyone is well and healthy today.  This week I want to discuss something I don't think I have talked about in my blog. Firmware.  Back in the film days we really didn't have to worry about firmware because everything was mechanical but now in the electronic and computer age everything seems to have some sort of program in them.  And for some reason there is always an update to be had.  Firmware ( in simple terms) is the program that electronics use to do whatever they do. When you update your firmware you are altering the program that was in the device that your updating. Usually fixing some sort of bug or adding some sort of feature.  Much like Lightroom or Windows updates they correct bugs or improve stuff. In your camera this could mean better focusing or faster focus.  Maybe they add some sort of new software to make your camera like new.  As long as the hardware can handle the upgrade the possibilities are endless.  Some company's put out lots of firmware updates and some do not.  Making sure your camera has the latest and greatest update can make the camera perform like brand new saving you from having to upgrade or buy a new one. If you haven't checked your firmware you should. If you  have never updated the firmware you may tell a big difference in the way that it works.  Installing the firmware is easy and all of the camera companies will have a step by step procedure for you to follow to make sure you have the latest and greatest.  This usually involves installing on your computer some sort of program that when your camera is connected to your computer the program updates the firmware.  On older cameras it was _DSC6277 installing the firmware on a SD card and inserting it into your camera and going through a series of procedures to update the firmware. In any case it's fairly easy to do .

But now a days its not just camera bodies that get the firmware update its also Lenses.  Newer lenses have small computers in them also that can be tweaked to give that lens a sharper focusing and quicker focusing.  So check your lenses especially if they are fairly new.  The firmware updates that you do to them can make them really nice lenses.  If you have a new body that has super fast focusing powers but your lens is still using the old way of focusing a firmware update to that lens could make it perform just like a brand new lens. I just got through checking all of my lenses for the firmware updates and they were all up to date. Its a good feeling to know that all of your equipment is up to date and running as efficient as it can.  I think this should almost be an annual event or even a simi-annual event to check the firmware of all of your electronics.

 What about other types of photography gear?  I just checked on some of my newer flashes and strobes and they can all have a Firmware updates that can be installed.   I am currently shooting Godox and Flashpoint mono lights and they can have firmware updates too.  That's one of my projects for this weekend is to check all of my flashes and see if there are any updates and then update all of the firmware in my lighting systems.  With our camera bodies getting so smart and sophisticated we need all of the supporting equipment to be up to the task. So what else what about GoPro's or any action type camera's.  They definitely  have firmware and need to be to the latest version to get the best performance out of them.   What about drones? I don't personally have one but I bet the firmware update on these devices can be critical to their operation and stability.  Anything to improve communication between the drone and the controller or phone that it's flying it will be a needed update.

So I have rambled on enough about Firmware updates. Please check your camera's and equipment and get on your google machine and see if you have the latest updates installed. If not install them and you may have yourself a new piece of camera equipment in your hands without buying anything.  So until next week get outside and shoot!

Hey Everyone!  Hope everyone is doing well this week.  This week I want to talk about the way I do community service as a photographer.  As a photographer it seems all about us whether we're taking photo's of Landscapes or Wildlife its what we can get!  As portrait or wedding photographers its how we want it to look our creative vision.  Its always what we can get out of our craft. Now I'm not saying that's a bad thing we want what we want.  But just giving! We don't do that too much.  The Help Portrait Project is all about giving! So what is Help Portrait?

Help-Portrait was founded by celebrity photographer Jeremy Cowart in 2008. While doing some street photography as a personal project he found a homeless person.  He asked if he could take his photo and  he agreed. He told the person that he would bring a print for him.  The person said Okay but really didn't believe it .  When Jeremy came back and gave him the photo he was so happy and appreciated the jester. Jeremy got the Idea of why cant we do this on a larger scale.  So he set up the 1st event in Nashville TN.  The event grew each year and is a world wide event held on the first Saturday of December each year. Help-Portrait is about GIVING the pictures, not taking them. These portraits aren’t for a portfolio, website, or sale. It’s about giving people who otherwise couldn’t afford photography, a chance to capture a moment, a memory…and a whole lot more. Photographers, hairstylists and makeup artists all around the world will find people in need, take their picture, print their picture and then deliver it—free of charge.  Here is a link to the Help Portrait website for more info.  I did get some of my info for this directly from this website. Help Portrait Website Link

My Camera Club has been doing this event for quite a while 8 or 9 years.  It started very slow.  The first year or so we only got a few customers. I think in 2019 we had almost 60 portraits done.  We were on a roll but then came COVID. We had to skip a year.  So when we decided to do it this year we were hopeful that we would get a lot of customers but in reality we really didn't expect much.  The last year we sponsored it  we had three photo stations set up with two editors and printers and we stayed busy all day.  This year we had only two stations but that seemed to be enough. The final count was 22 family's portraits were made.  Not too bad after a year off.  We had to practice social distancing and wearing of mask. After photo's were taken we had the customers wait in their cars if they had them and delivered the Photo to them.  We supplied a 8X10 photo in a photo sleeve and offered an email digital copy also if they had an email address. Overall it was a great day and we got to GIVE back to the community. Next year I hope it is bugger and better than this or any year.

So if you're a member of a camera club and the club is not doing this talk them into to it.  Its a great event and all kinds of jobs for everyone to do.  There are editors  and printers.  Someone to cut and put the photo's in the Sleeve's .  There are of course the Photographers.  Runners take the people through the process from registration to the hair and make up if you have them to the  photographer and to a waiting area.  You may have snacks and food so someone has to take care of that.  The registration has all the forms to fill out from release forms etc... My job most of the time is shooting the event.  I use still photo's, video and time lapse and make a short video of the event to put on our Facebook website.  Here is a link to the video that I created.  2021 Goldsboro Help Portrait Video Link

As you can see there is lots to do and learn.  If you haven't taken many portraits before this is a great place to learn.  Maybe help one of the photographers and have them teach you along the way.  Its a great way to learn especially how the photographer interacts with the customers. So until next week be safe and think about next years Help Portrait.  Get outside and shoot!

 

Hey Everyone! I hope this week finds you healthy and excited about photography! This and every week I give you my thoughts on photography and the different aspects of it as I see it .  This week will be no different. If you have followed my blogs you have heard me say that photographers get emotional about the equipment they use.  And that is understandable we spend a lot of money and time and effort in the purchase of this equipment. Then we take it to some of our most  memorable places.  So I can see the connect to emotion.  So we try to use one camera for every situation because we just love our camera's.  But I have  approach.  I think of them as tools and try to match the best camera to the specific job its going to do.  I actually have 4 camera systems to do this with .  I know it sounds crazy but just hear me out.

My with me all the time camera. Of course we all have this its my smart phone.  I use the camera on this _MSP9570 mostly for reference photo's.  Maybe I'm out shopping for my wife and I need to know if I'm buying the right thing I'll take a photo of it and send it to her " is this the right thing?". Or maybe I'm working on something and I need the model number instead of writing it down I'll just take a photo of it.  We've all done this.  On occasion I'll take a photo of where I am just so I can share it easily to the web.  But thats pretty much the extent of my first camera the smart phone.

My second season is the camera that goes with me.  When I go to work this camera is in my truck. It travels everywhere I go and it also goes with me when I'm out with my wife and I don't want the camera to be a distraction.  For example my wife and I went to Washington DC a couple of years ago and this is the camera that I took with me.  It is a point and shoot and has a 1 inch sensor much better than a smart phone.  I even have filters that I can put on the lens to polarize it or do a longer exposure.  It can shoot in manual and raw.  Its a Canon G7XII.  Its a great little point and shoot.  It takes great photo's and is easy to use and small. It has a 20MP 1inch  sensor.

My next camera is my newest one. It is used for street, portrait photography.  Things that a shallow depth of field my come in handy.  It is a full frame sensor.  It is a older camera that I bought used but is great for photography.  Its the Sony A7II full frame.  I plan and have been using only primes on this camera to keep the weight and size down.  It does great in low light and a shallow depth of field which works great for street and portrait work where everything in focus can be distracting. This camera is mostly handheld and it has a stabilized sensor that works great. I'm really having a good time with this camera and its working great. It has a 24mp full frame sensor.

My main Camera.  This is the camera that I shoot almost everything else with from Landscape , wildlife to travel photography.  It is a crop sensor camera that has a larger depth of field which is great for landscape photography.  I have three great zoom lenses that I use with this camera  that give me a range from 15mm to 525mm.  It shoots at 11 frames per second and has a image stabilized sensor.  This is what I call my main camera because I use it most of the time.  Its the Sony A6500 crop sensor Camera . I have had this type of camera from when I went mirrorless and love the form factor .  Its small and the lenses are small compared to their big brother the full frame sensor cameras and for landscape and travel they are great!

So there are my 4 cameras (tools) that I use for different jobs. Smart Phone I use for reference type of photo's. My Point and shoot I use when I'm on the go at work and when I don't want photography to be a distraction to our trip.   My full frame camera is my street and portrait camera because of the shallow depth of field it works great and the combo of prime lenses makes this a great kit and fun to use.  My main camera for all of my Landscape, wildlife and travel is my crop sensor camera and its large depth of field makes this work great.  The right tool for the specific job really works for me.  Might not work for you but for me its great. So until next week take lots of photo's with the right camera!