Planetaki Planet photography

Punch & Judy

2009-07-03T09:19:22+00:00

“Punch and Judy is a traditional, popular English puppet show featuring the characters of Punch and his wife Judy. The performance consists of a sequence of short scenes, each depicting an interaction between two characters, most typically the anarchic Punch and one other character. The show is traditionally performed by a single puppeteer, known since Victorian times as a ‘professor’.” — Punch and Judy, Wikipedia

Photos from tellyazz, elvis_payne, Mark.D.Baker, and Hellblazer!’. View more photos in our “punch and judy” clusters or in the Punch and Judy group.

Boot Camp II: Assignment #2

2009-07-03T09:19:13+00:00

The second Boot Camp II assignment will be easier than the headshot assignment, logistically. But calorically speaking, it will be far more dangerous.

And since you will not have to wrangle a model for this shoot (not a living one, at least) we are going to up the difficulty level by tightening up the deadline a bit.

Hit the jump for the details -- and some internal and external resources to help you out.
__________

A Little Belt Tightening

It's probably safe to say that many of us are eating out less often than we were at this time last year. But that is not the kind of belt tightening of which I am speaking.

For me, it is not so much the belt itself that is getting smaller, but rather that the job the belt has to do has gotten larger. Me and food, we were made for each other. And we have had an especially close relationship over the last six months or so, when I have been on the road more than off. So this summer I am practicing a little girth control.

Which is why I am already questioning the wisdom of the second BCII assignment -- to photograph a gastronomic subject so well that it will cause me to go off the wagon.

The vast majority of you are using small lights, and they are especially well-suited for this kind of an assignment. In fact, as we showed last week, you can create very elegant light for food with one bare speedlight and some household paper products.

But don't settle on a thrown-together quickie of some tomatoes -- those were just done as a convenient example to work with the light. For this assignment, you should be looking to create a mood -- to make a photo that would look at home on the cover of a high-end food magazine.

Complicate Things at Your Own Peril

The trick, of course, if to balance the mood-setting stuff with what is probably the most important axiom in food photography: Keep it Simple, Stupid.

Before you even choose what you are going to shoot, spend some time looking at a lot of examples of food photography and see what you like. It's not like there isn't a lot of inspiration out there, so your first stop will probably be Google.

Don't try to shoot a whole turkey, or a crown roast or anything like that unless you are insane. You'll do yourself a big favor by aiming for something you can pull off with style and simplicity.

Lighting-wise, whether you use an umbrella, a soft box or a DIY "lunch box," you will want to at least consider lighting your food from the top/back. It creates depth and texture, and gets you a long way toward a nice photo with little risk. Not that that style is required, of course, but many people who have not shot food before will make the mistake of assuming you would light it from the same angle you'd light a portrait.

Also, be sure to be in control of your shadow detail. Not that it has to be flat -- and there is no rule that there has to be any shadow detail, to be honest. But you want to be in control of it. The easiest way will be through the use of small reflectors.

Again, the scale of the subject works for you here. They can be folded sheets of paper, aluminum foil, whatever. If you are from the UK, maybe the mere act of standing near your subject will suffice. (I can say that, because I wear shorts all summer and am still pasty on Labor Day...)

Food for Thought

I did promise an opportunity to do good with each assignment, and this one is no different. The following is not a requirement for the assignment, but rather a chance for your effort not to go to waste -- even if it does end up going to waist.

The fact that you are probably eating out less frequently probably means that some local restauranteurs in your area are feeling the pinch, too. So, you may wish to double up on this assignment by shooting your favorite dish at a small, independent restaurant.

The owner probably does not have the excess cash flow to be funding food shoots these days, and you might be able to be of help. Sometimes all a restaurant website needs is one, killer food shot. That could be you.

What's in it for you, other than an excuse to go out to eat? Well, I am thinking that food is gonna styled pretty well when it leaves the kitchen. Probably better that you would have done it. And no stylist's bill to deal with, either.

A little advice -- call first and let them know what you are up to. Try to sked it in the middle of the afternoon, when you won't interfere with meal rush time and will have your pick of tables to shoot at. We used to shoot all of our restaurant reviews at The Sun in the 2:30-3:30pm neighborhood.

If you explain what you are doing (and why) and offer to share your photos with them, you will probably find yourself in a very collaborative situation -- with a nice environment in which to shoot. Especially of you are a regular there who genuinely wants to make an image of some value for the restaurant.

I am starting to feel like we are putting Roberto's kids through college, as often as we eat at our favorite Italian place. And that is exactly where I would head if I were doing this assignment.

Again, the restaurant tack is not required. But it could solve some problems for you very symbiotically. From experience, I would suggest that the chef keep things very simple, as their first instinct is to throw in every visual thing but the kitchen sink. Bring some examples of food photography that you really like (it will probably be simple and sparse) and show it to them as an example.

Home-Grown is Okay, Too

You are more then welcome -- especially you foodies -- to do it all in-house, so to speak. No brownie points or demerits either way.

And for clarity's sake, let's make this one pretty broad. If it is food, or drink, it's eligible. Some of you international types might even take this as a point of pride, featuring something that is a special delicacy in your country.

(Please -- no haggis.)

But whatever you do, keep it simple. Consider the photographic shelf life of your food. Grilled and roasted items are especially hard -- typically significantly undercooked and sculpted with char-marks by using a blow torch. Don't make it harder than it has to be.

Non-frozen desserts are pretty stable, for example. Don't make things harder on yourself than they have to be. Simple comfort foods can be great subjects.

Resources Abound

A quick Google of "food photography" brings up lots of useful stuff:

DPS: Food Photography -- An Introduction
Still Life With: Food Photography Blog
Vegan Yum Yum: Food Photography for Bloggers

Those were right off of the front page of Google results, so there is no shortage of information if you are willing to look.

Of course, photographers are visual people. So sometimes it actually helps to watch a seasoned professional at work:

(Lest you take yourself too seriously.)

How to Enter

As with the first assignment, you enter the photo through Flickr, by placing it in the Strobist Flickr Group pool, and by tagging it thusly:

SBC2ASSIGN2

If you need technical help on the Flickr stuff, try this thread. Please read the thread before asking any questions, lest someone reply that "your father smelled of elderberry" (or words to that effect.)

(UPDATE: They have already started in with the general craziness, so you can skip to the more relevant stuff by jumping to this point if you like.)

If you are successful, your photos should appear in this search within a few minutes. Please, only submit one entry. As we are hoping to create an inclusive slideshow, please do not tag photos which are not appropriate to this assignment with the SBC2ASSIGN2 tag.

For the same reason, please do not turn in any photos which are NSFW.

In fact, the more I look at this Cheeto shot, the more inappropriate it is starting to look. But maybe that's just me. As we noted yesterday, breaking these rules will get (at least) your photo removed from the Strobist pool, and thus, this assignment. Thanks much.

Please note that your photo must be tagged correctly and in the Strobist group pool to show up in the search.

And please, this is a lighting blog. So even tho you obviously can do a lot of amazing food photography with natural light, use flash for this one. You are free to combine it with ambient, tho. And, as always, put your lighting info in the caption of the photo.

If you want to ask questions, or otherwise discuss this assignment, you can do so in this thread.

And you can check out some of the other bloggers following along, here.

And the Winner Is ...

One winner will be chosen from qualified entries. That person will receive the following, shipped anywhere:

• One Strobist Lighting Seminar 8-DVD boxed set (more info)

• One set of Strobist Trade Secret Cards (more info)

and, I am very excited to say that our external prize this week is:

• An Orbis Ring Flash Adapter, which turns just about any speedlight into a ring flash.

Not coincidentally, the latter is something I have found to be pretty darn useful for small object photography, including food shoots. (Think awesome, shadowless fill to smooth out your edgy, sculpted light from other sources...)

Don't Overcook It

Since this shot is the simplest of the four (deceptively so, some might say) the deadline for completion will be end of day, your local time, on Saturday, July 11th.

You procrastinators will want to make sure you get started by about dinnertime on that date...

And, Just to Keep Things Honest

While it is very possible that you may have some beautiful, pre-existing food shots in your portfolio, we are not interested in those. So just to make sure we get the one you shot after this assignment was released, the winner will have to produce a shot very similar to the winning entry -- with two coins somewhere in the foreground of the shot.

So, don't forget your verification shot -- just in case!
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Full, "On-Assignment" posts for the food shots featured above can be found at:

:: Lemon Cake ::
:: Flavored Vodkas ::
:: Macaroni Shells ::
:: Cheeto (and various other Munchie Porn) ::

halogen lamp burned my lens?

2009-07-03T09:19:20+00:00

I was setting up streaming video with my Sony DCR-TRV33 camcorder and had it aiming at the other desk - straight at a Halogen desktop lamp. Now, when I record, . . .
Category: Video Camera: Sony

Pentax Optio W80

2009-07-02T15:56:15+00:00

Waterproof, shockproof, coldproof... This is probably the most safe camera in the world. I doubt many people would want to test whether the camera truly is so p . . .
Category: Digital Camera: Pentax

Stars & Stripes

2009-07-03T09:19:16+00:00

Massachusetts Veteran's Memorial Cemetery
Winchendon, Massachusetts

fiveprime.org/hivemind/Tags/Obama/
fiveprime.org/hivemind/Tags/Reuters/
_______________________________________

This photo is challenging Waterpipe from the pool of
Highly Competitive - Flickr's 100 Best -
www.flickr.com/groups/best100only/. Wish me luck!
Part of the Challenges July 2009 discussion:
www.flickr.com/groups/best100only/discuss/72157620860194604/

Palm Pre

2009-07-02T13:00:34+00:00

It's the best multitouch screen we've seen yet. Pre's screen is smaller than both the iPhone and the G2's, but has the same 320x480 resolution that equals both, . . .
Category: Camera Phone

Sony DSC-F717 underexposes

2009-07-02T10:19:44+00:00

My camera has been in this "dead" state ever since Dec 2006. Lucky that I came across this as I really liked the camera! Checked the Sony site at http://esup . . .
Category: Digital Camera: Sony

Happy Canada Day, eh?

2009-07-01T21:10:48+00:00

Now you know how to greet a Canadian today.

Photos from talulayu, Dave77459, ɹǝʇǝd, Jeremyfortytwo, and Lynn McFulton.

how to watch a others webcam knowing his IP adress

2009-07-01T23:48:55+00:00

hey cna u teach me how to do it or do i need a cirten progam
Category: WebCam

How Niche is the Web? This Niche:

2009-07-01T15:15:40+00:00

A new site dedicated to photo assistants' uploaded lighting tests. Not sure whether to roll my eyes, or RSS it.

Who am I kidding -- I'm gonna RSS it. I love this kind of stuff.

(Via APE.)

-30-

NEXXTECH VGA WEB CAM need these drivers

2009-07-01T12:12:50+00:00

uh.. no KATH.. nexxtech doens't suck.. i don't have a problem with the picture quality.. it jsut depends on what lighting im using and i also need to adjust the . . .
Category: WebCam

Driver and Software for Nexxtech 2516507

2009-07-02T10:19:44+00:00

i lost the cd installation to my nexxtech usb web cam with the model# 2516507 no mic, just a web cam :P
Category: WebCam

nexxtech webcam

2009-07-02T10:19:44+00:00

I lost my installation driver for my webcam. and I can not install it on my new computer.
Category: Digital Camera: Others

Sony DSC W70 with stuck lens

2009-07-01T09:28:16+00:00

My ancient DSC-W1 got stuck out as well - almost gave up on it. It was doing the same thing with the shutter half out and telling me to turn it back off and ba . . .
Category: Digital Camera: Sony

driver for Gigaware VGA PC Camera

2009-07-01T04:32:05+00:00

usually on radioshack if you type just the model number in the keyword/search box it comes up with the software. for example i typed in my model number, 25-234, . . .
Category: WebCam

Minolta MD lens to Canon EOS body adapter

2009-07-01T04:32:05+00:00

Great links there. I have a Canon EOS 350D and a Minolta AF 80-200 zoom lens. Before I buy this adapter mentioned can somebody assure me that it will work beca . . .
Category: Lens: Adapter

photo.shoq, photographer profile

2009-07-01T04:31:53+00:00

This month’s profile comes courtesy of Jasper at Photo.shoq. I think that the thing that instantly struck me about Jasper’s photoblog was his sheer dedication to photography. His photoblog has been going strong now for 5 years (1840 photos), and he shares some great advice with us on how to keep inspired and publishing your work! Have a read, and make sure you visit his site.

BOPB: What drew you into photography in the first place, and at what point in time did it become a more serious hobby?
Jasper: I always wanted to take pictures and create stuff. The whole analog shooting thing never got to me though. I bought my first digital cam for way to much money back in 2002, A 2-megapixel Sony DSC-S50, and started to experiment with it. Mostly long exposure stuff. I was too lazy to carry it around all the time, but I often saw shots I wanted to make. I took part in a small shooting competition on a Dutch tech forum and enjoyed the search for the best photo to enter with. I decided I wanted to really get into photography and started looking for ways to really push myself to keep shooting. The result was ‘the birth’ of my photoblog in 2004! I pushed myself to post one new photo every day. This way I had to go out and shoot! Pretty soon after that I got into the whole DSLR-thang and started spending way too much money on this hobby

What is the one piece of equipment that’s currently in your bag that you couldn’t live without?
That would have to be my Canon 5D. Although it is pretty boring without any lenses. I try to work with all my lenses, so I usually choose one I will work with that day, so I have no real liker. You can find a Sigma 15mm fisheye, Canon 17-40L, Tamron 28-75, Canon 50mm 1.8 and Canon 70-200L f/4 in my bag. Oh yeah, and a modified Holga lens with Canon mount.

What platform does your photoblog currently run on? Why did you choose it over the other options?
I never really researched for off the shelve photoblog software, so I forced myself into building it myself. My blog is built upon a custom CMS built by the company I work for, so I only (mostly) had to worry about the way my blog looks. Later I started expanding the software with Google Maps, Tagclouds, CoolIris support, RSS feeds, etc. My colleague Maarten over at Talkin.nl took over all development and really made the software to what it is today. Thank him for that!

If you were able to give one single piece of advice to another photographer who was considering setting up a photoblog of their own, what would it be?
Do it for yourself! I think that is the most important thing. Every once in a while I take some time and browse through my images and enjoy the whole documentation of my life there! I tend not to include people in my shots, but they are there when I shoot! This brings back good memories.

What do you think has been the biggest benefit associated with running your own photoblog?
The ability to test out new features is nice. Although you have to be a bit into coding and tweaking. I introduced my photomap some years ago after Google released their Maps API. Nowadays I don’t add much new functions, I just tweak the layout once in a while. I think this is my 6th of 7th makeover Oh yeah, I just redesigned my archive page.

While browsing your site for questions I noticed on one of your posts, that you have posted 1750 entries, if you have stuck to the “one a day” that’s roughly 5 years, first congratulations and second what would be your advice to other photographers who are struggling with “staying inspired”?
Yup, I started about 5 years ago, so I missed a few days unfortunately. I think my main advice is to not post what you think will work and score a lot of replies, but just post the images you like. As I said earlier, run the blog for yourself. I just celebrated my 5th birthday, which makes for 1840 photos already!

I really love the polariod style shots on your site, what was your inspiration behind creating those?
Thanks! Most of the shots are taking with the Polarize iPhone app. I don’t carry around my 5D where ever I go, but I do carry my phone around. The Polarize app processes the photo Polaroid style and puts the border around it. There are some amazing photo apps on the iPhone which I tend to use like Polarize and ColorTaste. You can also find a time lapse movie on my blog which was also done using an iPhone app. It is a very enjoyable app that me and my girlfriend use a lot when walking around somewhere

You seem to have a real passion for landscape photography, what was it that drew you into this type of photography?
I have no idea really. I think it is mainly because those are the photos I really liked to watch on forums and blogs. Maybe I was inspired by my dad who makes etchings of landscapes. Shooting a beautiful landscape in beautiful light appeals more to me than setting up lights to shoot a portrait series. I enjoy portraits in a way, but am to scared to approach people on the streets. I am pretty jealous of Jessyel at Dailysnap.com and Benoit Paille for their amazing portraits. My goal is to do portraits of strangers in the street. So keep checking my blog for that (and kick my ass if you don’t see any of them over the next couple of weeks ).

Would you mind telling us about two other photoblogs who you really enjoy and why?
Of course DDOI was a real inspiration for me as this is one of the longest running photoblogs around (I think) and one I have been following since I learned about those things called photoblogs. Nowadays his shots are less appealing somehow. I do follow Jessyel at Dailysnap.com and many other blogs through my RSS reader. I also follow a lot of wonderful artists on Flickr, which also show up in my reader. If there are two blogs I visit daily, it is my girlfriend’s and my dad’s. My dad started blogging about 6 months after I started. He was taking shots everyday and collecting them in a book. Publishing them online has been very enjoyable for both of us.

Since I talk about monetizing your photoblog I need to ask the Blurb book you have self published. How successful has it been?
Well, not very much I sold one copy, which was bought by my father. I still haven’t ordered it myself The problem with trying to make money of your blog is that your group of visitors is simply too small. I think many amateur bloggers do shoot work that has commercial value and I do have some ideas on helping these people sell the images. I can’t tell much about it, but I will definitely keep you posted!

(ED: Don’t let Jasper’s experience be a deterrent. I still feel that self-publishing is going to become even more important in the not-so-distant future!)

Would you recommend self-publishing a photo book as a way to help with offline promotion?
I don’t think so. I think if you want to succeed as a photographer, so have to do a lot more than that. Getting featured in the local paper, try to get a little exhibition in the local coffee joint, etc. etc. If you see how many photobooks are already being promoted in bookshops, it would be hard to get yours noticed.

(ED: I love the local coffee shop idea, if you’ve had any experience with this type of promotion why not let us know how it went)

What have you found to be the most effective method of attracting new visitors to your photoblog?
When I first started blogging, I tend to reply a lot on other blogs just to get people to visit mine. For the last three or so years I simply do not have the time to do that. If a shot is really special I tend to comment though Sites like VFXY do help to promote your blog.

How do you see photoblogs evolving over the next few years?
Pfew, that is a good one. I haven’t thought about that one yet. I do think that running your own blog has its advantages, so I think people will continue to blog on their own sites.

Finally, where do you see your photoblog in the next 3-5 years?
I hope it is still running 10 years of photoblogging would be very special, wouldn’t it? On the short term, I hope to post more portraits as mentioned earlier. But on the long run I simply want to keep it running and keep posting everyday

Sony HDR-HC3 Tape Door Won't Close with C:32:11 Error Code

2009-06-30T22:55:15+00:00

I just fixed C:32:11 on my HDR-HC3. The solution as following 1. Remove power supply and battery. 2. Use small screw driver to rise door latch release until th . . .
Category: Video Camera: Sony

Twitter your Flickr

2009-06-30T22:55:17+00:00

Tweet! Tweet! Tweet! We’ve launched our Flickr2Twitter integration.

Share your Flickr content either via “upload by email” or feature existing Flickr content in your Twitter stream.

If you’d like to Twitter your Flickr then check out the following three FAQs for easy setup and use:

How do I Twitter my Flickr photos?
Can I post to Flickr and Twitter from my mobile?
How do I Twitter from Flickr?

Here’s an example of what a tweeted photo looks like:

And, we’re getting our ducks in a row to begin broadcasting on Twitter @Flickr. We’ll be sharing bits and pieces from around the Flickrverse, but please keep in mind that the best way to reach us for help and assistance is via the Help Forum (a great place to get help for general issues from fellow members), Help by Email (1:1 support for technical help), and Report Abuse (a place to let us know about content or behaviour that you may stumble upon that contravenes the Yahoo! Terms of Service or our Community Guidelines).

Hey, developers! Kellan has published an extensive blog post on code.flickr about how our API methods can support Flickr as your photo sharing option: Twitter in the API.

Lastly, we’d like to thank all of you who helped out with the Flickr Twitter Beta. Keep your eye on your FickrMail inbox for a small thank you that we’ll be sending your way soon.

Birdy illustration by Dee Adams.

IBM PC Camera High-Res Hack

2009-06-30T20:07:26+00:00

Read more hot reports about Business, Form business or Women small business loans http://business.goodnano-av.com/
Category: WebCam

DCR-PC109E error C:22:00

2009-07-02T10:19:44+00:00

Then I suggest you use Sony's head cleaner and give it a try. That's how I cleared my C:22:00 dirty head error. If that still doesn't help, then you may have a . . .
Category: Video Camera: Sony

DCR PC5E Error code C 21:00

2009-06-30T11:27:19+00:00

This Is Freak'n amazing? Thanks guys for the help. been trying to solve this for a couple of years. Battery out, smack that bottom and BINGO no more C21. Thank . . .
Category: Video Camera: Sony

Yuri Arcurs: Mr. Microstock

2009-06-30T00:18:31+00:00

Do you dabble in stock photography? Maybe, say, a little microstock photography?

If you do, this is the guy you are up against.

To say Yuri Arcurs has the game figured out would be a bit of an understatement. He sells nearly 2,000 images a day, 24/7/365.

Hit the jump for a video tour of his insane, made-for-micro studio, and a look at his lighting techniques.
__________

Made for Micro

I have to admit that when I first started watching this I thought it was one of those parody videos. But then I realized that Yuri (a nom de photo used by Jacob Wackerhausen) has basically beaten the microstock equivalent of the Kobayashi Maru by creating an entire facility based around the needs of microstock.

Insanity? Genius? Maybe a little bit of both:

(If you are reading this via email or RSS, you may have to click on the post title to see the vids.)

This being a lighting blog we are not gonna let you out the door without at least a little lighting tute. Yuri has everything down to a science, and his lighting reflects a quest for repeatable, predictable quality -- designed to make those warm, happy photos that make a microstock purchaser dig deep down into the couch cushions and cough up 40 cents to seal the deal. Over and over again.

(The lighting info starts at the 2:56 mark.)

You can see more about Yuri at his website, and you can also follow him on Twitter.

Owyhee

2009-06-30T03:36:19+00:00

The Owyhee Canyonlands cover over 10,000 square miles (25,900 square kilometers) of the western United States. It’s roughly the size of Massachusetts. It’s so rugged and hard to access that, despite it’s size, very few people live there or have even heard of it. It’s inaccessibility has kept its deep canyons and starry sky secret and pure. You won’t find it in many guidebooks. Above is a peek inside from Flickr members that traveled through it.

To see more of Owyhee check it out on the Map or try a tag search for owyhee.

Photos from merrittglenn, Doug Idaho, hay5bales, larrysul2001, Walks On Rocks, webtwb, Nikon Junkie, and jasmine008.

Yesterday, a rainbow over Brooklyn

2009-06-29T21:25:37+00:00

There was an amazing rainbow over Brooklyn yesterday, and everyone was out taking pictures of it. See more images of the rainbow by doing an Advanced Search for brooklyn rainbow, uploaded before June 29, 2009, sorted by most recent.

Photos from jetty., 13thWitness, circle sixty, jen (pluie latéralement), Danon’. [Live ... ou presque ... from the US!], Chris Shiflett, JimmyOKelly, MariaTeresaCB, RICHBRAT, AlbertoVargas26, Peter McCarthy, and simply photo.