Unless you’ve been living under a rock or purposely turning a blind to the issue, you’re most likely aware that B&H Photo has been in the middle of a class action lawsuit involving discrimination for a little while now. It started when workers in their warehouses (located in Brooklyn) started protesting unsafe conditions and discrimination. The workers, who wanted to unionize, were not being allowed to do so. Now, to settle the problems B&H Photo has “agreed to pay $3,220,000 in back wages and other monetary relief to more than 1,300 affected class members.” according to a recent press release issued by the Department of Labor.
As you have noticed lately, we have been exploring the arena of party and event photography, specifically the gear and tools needed to get great results in that genre. So far we have covered cameras and lenses, the two most critical aspects of a party or event photography kit.
Presets are the lifeblood of so many photographers that don’t have a whole lot of time, and so Capture One Styles is more than a welcome entry into the photography world. Capture One has had a number of styles built into the program itself. Then there are other options such as the large variety of film styles (presets) available. But earlier this year, Capture One Styles was released–therefore expanding the number of official presets made available directly from the company. Available with a number of different packages for purchase, photographers and editors using the latest version of Capture One can utilize some of the newest and interesting options available for editing.
There was a time when shooting with a crop sensor meant being looked down on, and in many cases that is still the case. But many of the myths about shooting a crop body are not as true as they once were, for everything from high ISO low light performance to Bokeh. These days you can get some really great bokeh from crop sensor cameras and they aren’t going to break your bank either.
We all love bokeh, after all, what’s not to like?! Actually, there is quite a bit not to like in the form of digits on the price tag. The best bokeh is not a cheap thing to attain, but with that said, bokeh is hardly extremely expensive either. Many lenses that are extremely affordable can offer you bokeh that fights above it’s pay grade.
Gordon Laing’s In-Camera book is a natural evolution of the famous website CameraLabs.com. If you’ve been doing photography for many years the way that I have, you probably remember watching his videos and reading his ultra-long reviews in your photographic journey. In fact, Gordon was one of my biggest influences when I started the Phoblographer–originally publishing reviews in daily field review journals only to be concluded at the end of a larger compilation blog post. Gordon gets pretty technical and in-depth on his website; but In-Camera is more or less the antithesis of his website’s famously long reviews.
Telephoto zooms are more popular in the party and event scene than you might think initially from the outside. These fast lenses with long-range help photographers capture interactions from a distance without disturbing anyone. You certainly shouldn’t be using a telephoto zoom for an entire party or event in most cases, but as part of a well-rounded party and event photography kit, these make for valuable tools.
My creative influences are widely ranged from the great photographers like Lindbergh, Avedon, Demarchelier, over literature like Paulo Coelho and Charles Bukowski right over to the cinematic world.
Edward Weston, one of the most influential American photographers of the early 20th century, is known for his work in championing extremely detailed imagery that was so far removed from the soft focus look that was popular during his time. He spent over 40 years photographing and developing a style of imagery that to this day photographers reference for inspiration.
Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Instagram – Social Media. Although many of us photographers wish that these things were not as important to our businesses as they are, the fact is that they are. So with that knowledge, we all have the intense desire to do well on each of the social platforms that we take part in. Be that friends on Facebook, or Followers on Instagram and Twitter.