Showing posts with label Accessories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Accessories. Show all posts
Friday, December 18, 2009
3DVista - panoramic photos in one shot
A friend asked me about taking some shots of their flat today and was wondering how estate agents take those 360 shots of rooms. Well, he found THIS very cool tool... the 3DVista one shot lens. Takes 360 degree panoramics in one shot, and unwarps the shot with included software. Very handy if you're an estate agent, or even for landscape shots.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Carrying 101 by thom
If selecting the right camera, lenses, and support system is troublesome enough for you, welcome to the world of "never satisfied." Yes, I'm about to delve into the topic that plagues all photographers: bags...Read Full Article Here.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Monday, December 29, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Innovative RS-Strap
BlackRapid Blog
BlackRapid.com
Update: It has arrived!...Will be doing an in-depth review after using this week. There is a Photowalk in Portland on the 1st which I hope to attend giving the strap a full workout.
Stay Tuned for Review on Sun. or Mon.
My Hands On Review of RS-Strap
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
Viewing your Sensor
Another handy tool for the Do-It-Yourself crowd is the sensor loupe or scope. It can save invaluable time and minimize time objects are making contact with your sensor.
This can minimize chances of damage and unnecessary contact with the sensor.
The links below are two I have come across.
The Delkin Sensor Scope and the cheaper Copper Hills
This tool and a blower like the Giottos Rocket, Sensor Swabs and Eclipse fluid are just about mandatory for safely cleaning your sensor.
Tenba Shootout Daypack Video
SHOOTOUT™ is a comprehensive collection of backpacks, waistpacks and accessories designed from the ground up for serious outdoor imaging. Shootout gear is light on your shoulders but heavy on protection, access and features.
The Daypack is a compact, expandable pack that holds more than you might imagine, yet is a pleasure to carry.
If your day (or more) of shooting calls for a camera, a good basic selection of lenses and accessories, and even lunch or a change of clothes, the Daypack is the perfect travel companion...Check it out Here
Monday, November 24, 2008
Joby Gorillapod a different kind of tripod
The Joby Gorillapod firmly secures your camera to just about anything — anywhere and everywhere! Unlike traditional tripods, the Gorillapod has flexible, gripping legs which can wrap around almost any surface. It is now available in three sizes!
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Black Rapid's R-Strap: A Hands on Review
First Impressions: Day 1 - It has arrived and I open the roll. I find the RS-2 strap & FastenR. I inspect the strap inside and out and find the quality top notch. All fasterners and webbing are high grade. So I study it a bit to see how everything works and attach my camera with my 55-200vr lens.
Standup and Walking around the camera hung well and out of the way. It was a bit weird wearing a camera and reaching for it and it is not there. It is on the side leaving the front of body free. Boy that is a kinda of liberating to have the full front side of myself unencumbered. And with my frontside pouch I need all the extra room I can get.
Started to quick draw and found it fast and natural. How come nobody thought of this before? The only fiddling is to find the sweet spot on where the camera resting spot is. To low and it may bounce or roll with short lenses.
Walkabout Day 2: Now for the real testing. I was concerned that it would get in the way of my Slingshot 200 but surprised that I still could use the slingshot slide to front to access my gear.
Also another of my concerns was the screw in mount to camera since none of my zooms have a lens mount on them and that with strong force the fastener would come loose under the torque of the camera moving side to side or any rotational forces. Well that did NOT happen. I even tried to make it happen with spinning the camera and banging against my hand and picking up and dropping camera on bed. And it stayed locked into camera screw mount.
Walked around for about 2 hours bending,quick-step,jumping,etc... as I was shooting action in the park blocks and found it great to let go of camera and have hands and chest area free. Also accessing my bag in front without the normal camera strap getting in the way was a great sense of freedom. At the end it was comfortable and you forget it's there (Careful! when you sit down).
Also found it alot easier to always grab it heading out the door just to go to the store. It's there and unobtrusive ready to snap that robbery in progress late at night at the local 7/11.
Photowalking event with Thomas Hawk Day 3 : It is now March 1st Saturday is the Photowalk event were about 15-20 people showed with Thomas Hawk and his beautiful wife. A couple of people asked about the strap so I handed out some BlackRapid cards and gave them the blog address so they could read my review of it.
Starting at Pioneer Square we headed to Waterfront park. The strap proved itself again when I noticed other's with a standard strap that it got in the way when trying to access their shirt or jacket pockets. And other's removing strap all together to get to their packs. These things are second nature to them and not noticeable unless you are looking for it.
We headed down the waterfront to Saturday Market which opened today with it's kazillion booths of Crafts,Arts,Exoctic Foods. And moving thru the crowds was fine but a hand on the camera as not to bang it into anybody. The rest were headed up for neon to north portland but I had to go.
The Final verdict: "I give it two thumbs up.. I like the whole idea behind it's design and function."
So that was basically the test I gave the strap. There was much walking,squatting,quick run,etc.. And of course the strap proved itself to me. It is now the replacement to my regular strap.
But are there any problems or pet peaves? Of course there are. There's always something.
Pet Peeve's or how it can be improved: (Of course this is only my Opinion and take it for what it's worth).
1) The FastenR seems big to me. Especially connecting it to a camera body. You won't be able to set the camera down like you would normally do with a regular strap. If another fastenR could be designed specific for the camera body that would be great.
But I don't think it is feasible for Black Rapid to do that without alot of additional cost and trouble for such a little issue as that.
But on further thought. Attaching or adhering a D shape clip to a tripod plate might work great and give back the ability to lay the camera down (Just a thought). Also there have been complaints of camera detaching from the clip. And had it do just that twice on me. So definite redesign of the clip seems to be indicated.
2) Light Cameras and Lenses let the strap slowly creep down the front. Solution get yourself some anti-skid material for the backside of the strap. This for me is the main peeve for me and other's with entry or mid level dSlr's that are designed light.
I suspect this will only be an issue for people with light camera-lens combo's. Pro's that use the Heavier Tank models should not have any problems with this.
3) Would like to see a 3rd model with a longer and 1/2" wider pad with more pockets or attachments (Straplets?). They could have a series of attachable packets for holding batteries,cards,filters,etc.. Again just a thought or dream?
4) A RS-2 with FastenR shipped will cost you about $62-65 bucks or so and seems a bit high.
Well I imagine yes if they were selling 10,000 units per month. But not high if they are only selling 100-500 units per month. It is a new product so if it takes off then I imagine the price would come down. But I don't see how that would be possible this year anyway.
So I would say give it a whirl if you do alot Two camera or Action shots. I even hear people using two straps one on each hip (Gunslinger Complex?).
And if you order one let them know you read it here. I would like to know if people actually read my review and find it useful.
And I would like to thank Black Rapid in Seattle for sending me the RS-2 to test and review. Tho it is not a 10 it is a solid 9.5 and have no problems recommending it.
Original Post to Pics and Video,BlackRapid website and blog.
Innovative R-Strap Update: The Strap Has Arrived!
BlackRapid's MySpace page
David Norris Photography | ModernPics.com
Honda-Tech Threads on R-Strap
http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/610155/0
Be sure to leave comments which I will incorporate into the posts on your own experiences with this product.
4 comments:
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Thanks for the review. I just bought one but did not have your review beforehand. Would have made me more confidant. Thanks.
- March 10, 2008 7:07 PM
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Thanks for the excellent review. One quick question: Do you feel that the Quick Release clip mechanism on the strap is really sturdy? Some other strap brands have quick release clips that are too light and self-release under weight of the gear. Many thanks for your thoughts on this.
- April 19, 2008 10:34 AM
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The Black Rapid comes with a small plastic tube, that prevents the gate from accidentally unlatching. I found the tube to be too short. I put one a wee bit longer on mine (about ½ inch) and it's much better. I bought a one foot piece of tubing for $0.17 at the local hardware store.
Russ - June 23, 2008 8:01 AM
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Thanks for the review. I am considering this strap and this blog will help form my decision.
- July 22, 2008 5:40 AM
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Canon 500D Close-up Lens Attachment Yes for Nikons too!
Most lenses can only magnify to about a 1:10 ratio (the Nikkor 50mm f1.8 AF does slightly better at 1:8). The first "1" signifies the nominal value of the film or capture device and the second number represents the fractional value vis a vis the subject's actual size, or in other words, a 1:10 ratio means the subject is 1/10 its actual life size on film.
As the number becomes smaller, such as 1:4 or 1:2, the subject is being magnified more and more and 1:4 represents the subject being 1/4 its true life size while 1:2 represents the subject being 1/2 its true life size. A 1:1 ratio represents the subject being its actual life size on the piece of film and is the standard that most macro photographers want to work with.
Full Article Here
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Demb Flash Diffuser
The Demb Flash Diffuser consists of 2 separate parts: a Flip-it!, which attaches to your flash, plus a front double-clear panel that goes on the strap of the Flip-it! with Velcro. It comes in 2 sizes: the DFD Pro features a Big Flip-it! and the DFD Jumbo features a Jumbo Flip-it! More information about the sizes is on the Models page.
Check it out Here
How to Make An Inexpensive Light Tent - DIY
If you’re like me, you don’t want to spend money if you can do it yourself and yield the same results. One day I was at my local photography store I saw one of these “Pop-Up” light tents. It consisted of a collapsible white fabric box with a hole in the front and 3 lights - used for photographing small objects in photographic studios (like the shot of the chocolate reindeer to the left).
I was going to purchase it until I saw the $100 price tag. No way I am going to spend $100 on some fabric and 3 lights when the material costs far less. So I set off and built one of these light tents and it did not come out bad at all.
Full HowTo Here
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
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We would love to post your review on our site Blackrapid after this weekends Photo walk.
Ron
Your welcome to anytime. And thanks again for your giving spirit.
Can't wait to read your review. I'm pretty interested in this strap.
So far I like it...Been wearing it around to test for it's out-of-the-way and comfort.