Haiti at Night

Ok, here is a story... Haiti is experiencing a lot of difficult problems, including energy issues especially in low classes of population. here is some "views from window". Night pictures of places around Petionville. (click to picture for better view).

Petionville at Night

Some of Telecom...

Petionville Downtown at Night

And now interesting part...

Rich

Border between Rich (upper) and Poor (lower)

Border between...

Poor

Poorest

And neutral topic... Montana hotel... Found in 1974 but damaged so badly in 2009 by earth quake. Still in business, but not so nice as was before.

Montana Hotel

If you think this is good place for vacation, you are wrong. Daylight pictures will be in next post.

Links in topic:
1. Music For Relief - Linkin Park band initiative to help Haitians to have light at houses.
2. Haiti travel Album - everything I uploaded about Haiti

Black and White Carnival?

"The task is not to go somewhere where you never been and take a great shot, but to see around you by different angle and show it to others."

Curacao Carnival 2011 in B&W

by Caroline Castendijk

Yes! And this is beautiful. Pictures from Curacao are really impressive.

Caribbean are full of carnivals in February this year. What people are seeing on different islands is colourful and loud parades, all is emotional, impressive and BLACK and WHITE.

Different world at all and piece of art of Curacao community was exposed in B&W by Caroline Castendijk today


See and enjoy full album here.






This exposition shows carnival moments from different and outstanding point of view. Impressive and emotional.

it is one of the best examples I ever seen of event photography.  Most of photographers, watching this album looks like started to thing to go to Caribbean next year, but... Did you think ever, that something similar is hidden around you? Can you change angle? Can you see different way what you have seen millions times? Here is not difference is this Carnival in Curacao or party on next street of you house, or parade, or whatever. Just what you need, see it by another angle.


I've heard a lot of complains about poor photographer's life, limited ability to travel, and impossibility to access to famous hotspots and events worldwide. But... Did you ever think to change your point of view, and come with camera to you home town as stranger? Can you?

Bottom part of this story not carnival itself, but understanding and seeing world different way, showing something what others couldn't see somehow. It is one of the point to be photographer.



PS: I am appreciated for this kind of show to Caroline Castendijk, processional photographer from Curacao.


PSS: 
Caroline Castendijk's personal website http://www.carolinecastendijk.com
Page in FaceBook https://www.facebook.com/CarolineCastendijkPhotography?sk=info

16 times in same award list

Amateur Photographer Magazine just release AP 2012 awards. And here you can find some of nominations shown. Word "Sony" appeared in this page 16 time what is twice more than Nikon or twice more than Canon :)

Additionally to listed nominations online, you can find in February 25, 2012 AP magazine issue nominations of "Power of Photography" (winner is Steve McCurry), "Exceptional Achievement in Photography" (winner Terry O'Neill), as well as detailed explanation why and for what from AP's point of view all of nominated awards are granted.

But again... Word "Sony" is appeared in search in this page 16 times. :) Ringing anything?

B&W with no PhotoShop

I mentioned about art-features in Sony SLT-A77 from manual mode in this article. One of amazing art modes to make your images touching, with warm filling about good old B&W photography (what I am really thinking about with nostalgia), and save time in non existing post-processing. Literally, you will see alive your picture in B&W before you click a shutter.

So, Eleonora Orlova, art-photographer, with long term Nikon cameras experience made creative pictures in B&W by Sony SLT-A55. B&W images with nice compositions are showing small creative photo-story here. By the way, you can compare there B&W pictures made by Nikon and post-processed with pictures made by Sony SLT-A55 in B&W art-mode. 

Evening in winter. Odessa, Ukraine. Something what we felt about 70s. Just download from camera to Facebook. No Photoshop, no waste of time.

So, Art-modes are available in manual mode in Sony SLT-A55 with firmware version 2.0, same way like on Sony SLT A77. 

...Let's see how helpful will be A99 (son of A900)...

SE with no E

Old news are old news, but now it is very near. No Sony Ericsson anymore :)

Noooo.. I am not jumping to "apple" or "tea" products, just SE will be S. here is email I got today:

Sony Ericsson is becoming part of Sony*

	Dear Nikolay,
	I wanted to give you some more information about Sony’s intended purchase of Sony Ericsson and what it means for you.
	Some things won’t change at all. For example, your existing warranty will remain completely valid and you’ll still get the same great service and support that you’ve been used to. But you will see some important new benefits.
	Your Sony Ericsson phone already features great Sony technology. But in future, you can expect even more leading-edge Sony capabilities – and easy connectivity with other Sony products including TVs, PCs and tablets to allow you to share content seamlessly across multiple screens. There will also be more opportunities to enjoy premium entertainment content from Sony including music and film services from the Sony Entertainment Network.
	The first smartphone product from Sony, available this Spring, will be the new Sony Xperia™ S Click here to find out more about this exciting new Android handset.
	We’re really excited about the future and we’d like to keep in touch with you as we become part of Sony. To help us with this, you can update your profile info as usual. We look forward to sharing the journey with you.

Thanks Steve Walker, Chief Marketing Officer, Sony Ericsson

Thank you Sony(Ericsson) I will be with you :)

Smart Interactive Tutorial from Sony: DSLR - Exposure

Why do we need redo what already done and done very smart way and easy way for understanding?

Most of started "professionals" just bombing by different type of tutorials what actually makes amateur photographers much more confused than understood some topics.

Why not look back to camera vendors and read and follow what they are thinking and what advising in key "how to use our product better"? Sony UK popup with nice interactive tutorials about photography basics under name "DSLR: maximising quality".

I suggest to read and "play" those tutorials not to beginners but for professionals too. Sure, this material provided by Sony - inventor of "mirrorless", but correctly saying, translucent cameras, what influenced competitors such Nikon and Canon to make bogus "something-like-this". this can be a reason of most of Nikon and Canon influenced photographers to avoid to review these articles, but... Guys, you will lose a lot :)

So, here is one of those articles started:

Exposure

The core of quality

Auto-exposure systems are extremely accurate at calculating the right amount of exposure for images. However, cameras cannot read your creative mind. To suit your taste or for special effects, you may want to override the camera’s settings.

 

Or you can take over the controls completely to set exposure manually. Even in this case, your Sony DSLR camera will guide you.

Continue is here (including interactive tutorial)

ABC: SOPA or NOT SOPA

Yes. It is not philosophical question anymore like "to be or not to be".

Personally we have our own point of view to SOPA perspectives, here is our ABC "statements":

A. world with #SOPA: #Internet will be divided to vendor (people who make content), and customer, people who use this content.

B. world w/o #SOPA: #Internet will be divided to #slaves (people who make content), and "angels" people who use this content.

C. As content maker, I believe that copyright MUST BE protected. Never do job for free.

Claim your free answers about Photography

Do you want to be answered about Photography in any interested your topic? Talk to us, ask us. We will write personal article for you based on your questions and interests FOR FREE.

See details by link below.

Complete form on this page.


This is limited time action, do not miss it.

Different world of translucent mirror digital photo camera

...here is just feelings about Sony SLT-A77V camera use...

Translucent Mirror

Drive tests passed very good with filling I am a bit in a future. As A55, A77 is Translucent Miorror camera what is making photography a bit different. Process to catching even quite invisible tones became much easy, with no special lenses or/and filters.

High ISO

ISO800

I still feel that higher ISO is giving more noise on image, but 24.3MP are enough to "hide" it during post processing. the lowest ISO when noise already appeared on blacks 800. Built-in noise remover is not really blurring, and damaging image much more than can be possible to remove by Image Data Converter (in case you are shutting into RAW format). But even with high ISO some images coming very sharp with no compensation of post-processing re-size. 

Lo ISO

Ok. I was surprised about, but I feel comfortable when I have ISO50 and ISO80 in my camera. Image detail is much better with lower ISO, and amazing capture of light... this made me remember my old film camera and technical tricks I used when shut with ISO80 or 50. ...and for sure, no noise in image... 

ISO50

White Balance

Another not really good point, AWB (auto white balance). In complex (non-natural) light environment, this camera is driving very confused, and makes even much warmer colors with quite cold light existing. In this case, first in my practice, I started to use "grey cards". Not really grey, because Sony Cameras are supporting "point-to-white", so I purchased two side card (white and grey) to make pictures close to natural. Anywhere you can use any white object on a scene to set manual WB. Some basics information about white balance is here (not bad tutor by the way).

Lenses from old set

ISO200

So, I got A77V body, means no lenses. I used my Sony and Sigma lenses for tests, and was impressed by feeling that camera a bit faster than lens in auto-focus. I do not have G lenses yet, but tried once tested camera in shop. Looks like, A77 made for SSMs ;) New feature like a auto-focus and exposure track of moving subject is very impressive, but not working on simple SAL lenses well because lenses could not re-focus so fast... Time to think to upgrade my lenses set.

Art effects

Sony SLT-A77V manual art modes

Instead of automatic mode art effects with Firmware v2.0 on A55, A77 is able to process art renders during shuts. What is some times saving a lot of time, especially if you hate waste a time for post-processing. Ready to go black and white, sepia, soft light, or selected colors images can be produced in one click. the problem only in my head, I have to switch my mind to specified mode to see a scene like camera can do, before switch A77 to selected mode. 

Ergonomic

Smoking room

R1 style, good old R1. It is not only make look of A77 professional, but really intuitive and simple interface with fast access to everything. In compare with Nikon professional series, A77 gives ability to change aperture and speed on a fly, and shift both parameters increasing or decreasing aperture and shutter speed parameters together, what is making fast and easy for example background defocusing or infocusing effects to change, or decrease/increase star-effects of light sources, with no damaging of overall fixed scene exposition. (Finally) Top screen with parameters is appeared in A77, what is making easy parameters check, but really I am not "view-finder" photographer, and use it not so common.

Note

None of images here was post processed except re-sizing. 

All of sample images are made by myself here. if you need any details in "how-to", let me know.

Similar article

Taking Brilliant Photos. Defocusing background

Taking Brilliant Photos

Technical Tips for newbie light hunters

Tip 1: “Defocusing background”

About

Sharp object of image and blurred aka unfocused/defocused background – amazing photo effect to make maximum attention to subject   of shooting. This type of shooting is useful for “close up” portraits and romantic compositions, or any images when necessary to pay attention exactly for subject of shutting, but not to scene in general.

Task

Make narrowed depth of field to get only object focused

What you need

1. Camera with ability to switch to manual mode and lens exchange.
2. Bright lens like with maximum aperture F1.4, F2, F2.8 (if less, harder to rich effect discussed here)
3. Enough scene light at all, or higher subject light cover against background (in low light conditions)

Keys

1. Keep aperture opened to maximum, align exposition by shutter speed to catch enough amount of light, or make higher ISO if not enough light of scene.
2. Keep subject of shooting as far of background as possible to keep in focus only subject, or be close enough to subject, but keep in mind composition and natural means of light and subject position.
3. Pay attention to lens characteristics: most of success in this method are reached with lens focal lengths about 75mm and 100mm

What to do

1. Install lens selected.
2. Switch camera to manual mode.
3. Set auto focus mode to spot to avoid camera to capture unnecessary background elements.
4. Open aperture to maximum. If you cannot reach maximum aperture supported by lens, change ISO to higher.
5. Adjust shutter speed to make correct exposure of scene and object.
6. Focus on object, adjust distance between camera and object (zoom in, if lens supported, or just make few steps closer), and, if not damaging your composition, move your object closer to camera far of background.
7. Shoot.

Success scene conditions

1. For mid and high light conditions: Background is bright enough like shiny water, bright walls, etc.
2. For low light conditions: Background is dark enough, but focused object is in enough light

What to understand

Lager aperture produces narrower depth of field. Lenses of longer focal lengths a much more capable of producing narrowed depth of field. So, depth of field is golden key for this method, and aperture and focal length of lenses are major “instruments” to reach this effect.