The most common question asked about gear is “what lens should I get next?” My answer is consistently, “what can your existing lens or lenses not do?” Answers vary. People want many things and are very reasonably cautious about investments.
Gear
Winter and early spring are ideal times to get out an take part in a very challenging, but very rewarding activity: Bird photography. Location A great place to start with bird photography is right in your own yard. You can put up feeders in locations where the birds have some cover and in a short time, you will have winged guests in your yard. This is a commitment because once you start putting food out, your feathered neighbours start to depend upon you. Also expect that the presence of food […]
Autofocus is a joy. It helps us get sharper images more quickly and is often faster in low light than the human eye can be. This tip takes you beyond full auto, to exercise more creative control as well as to take command of the camera.
All across this great country, we will be celebrating the 150th anniversary of Confederation and the founding of Canada. One of the great things that comes with Canada Day are tremendous fireworks shows. Here are some tips to help you get great shots.
While much of what we see on YouTube is shot handheld, except for “shaky-cam” effects in movies and TV, most video shots are done from a tripod. If you’ve recently seen a film in the cinema or even on somewhere like Netflix, the chances are that a tripod was used in the making of it. A good video tripod has some very specific functionality that is not found in tripods for still work. And, like a great stills tripod, a great video tripod will last for years and years. When […]
A good way to annoy your family on a family vacation is take along a lot of photo gear. If everyone in the family is not a photographer, you’re going to be “unpopular”. Vacations mean carrying a lot of stuff around with you to begin with, and going to places that may be a bit camera hostile – beaches, oceans, lakes, mountains, hiking trails, boats, amusement parks, etc. You get the picture. Although, it is easier when you have an RV to help store everything along the way. You can […]
If you’ve been shooting for quite a while, you may be looking for something more to expand your photographic horizons. Consider going to a larger sensor.
Ever run into a situation where you need a bit more light while shooting photo or video? As we create more and more content with our mobile devices, drones, and action cams, we find that their small sensors just don’t perform well when the light level is low. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to carry a portable sun in your pocket? Meet Lume Cube.
For those photographers who shoot JPEGs only and are not interested in a lot of post-processing work, a creative filter system is ideal for more creativity in-camera. Cokin’s filter system, for example, is an easy-to-use, flexible option that offers a variety of creative opportunities.
Spring is a great time of year to start thinking about teleconverters. Useful for bird, wildlife & sports photography, teleconverters are viable alternatives to spending thousands of dollars on a long lens. A teleconverter, paired with a decent zoom lens of reasonable speed, is a fine choice. This article dispels common myths about teleconverters, and explains just how useful they can be.