fotofriend

Pixelpost - Authentic Photoblog Platform

cucicov — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:48:31 +0000

Hi, everybody! This time in tools section I want to recommend you a great tool, I’m using myself, for photo blogging. It is as easy as wordpress - just a simple installation procedure and you’re ready to post your works.

However it is not as powerful as wordpress, but does have a lot of addons and themes designed especially for a photo blog.

pixelpost default horizon theme

administration panel

browse photos page

It is highly customizable to fit your needs. You can also develop easily new themes for it or customize your own one.

I encourage you to give it a try, I’m sure you’ll like it a lot. More information you can find at pixelpost official webpage: pixelpost.org

31 lucky lens flare photos

cucicov — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 10:17:59 +0000

Why lucky ? Because often you have to be very lucky to catch good lens flare, one that does not spoil your photograph. Professional photographers know how to use this in their advantage.

This collection of images consists of the best pieces I’ve found out there. Please feel free to share your own works on this topic in the comments section.

What is dust to your camera

cucicov — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 06:33:00 +0000

A common problem of most photographers is the dust, be it in or on the lens, as well as on the sensor.

Considering it is annoying for the most camera owners, let us first see how important it really is and how much time and effort should we invest into cleaning and keeping our lens free of dust.

The dust ON the lens

Dust on the lens is the most frequent problem. The best way to remove it is with a tool made for the job. If the lens is dirty clean it with some lens wipes very gently and then put a UV filter on and leave it on. If the images are fine don’t mess with the camera.

It is not recommended to use the compressed air cans you use on computers. They are too powerful, and you might run the risk of scratching the lens if you happen to have a tiny piece of something hard on or near the lens surface.

The dust IN the lens

focal length diagram

If the dust is inside the lens, then we can speak of a more serious problem. Canon lenses (except for a select number of the L series lenses) are not dust or weather sealed. So each time you work the zoom mechanism on an inexpensive lens, the mechanism is working like a giant billow allowing air (and dust and moisture) to flow through the lens and camera body. Sometimes large dust particles can accumulate on the different lens elements, but it does not have any impact on the quality of the photo.
The dust particles inside the lens are PRETTY FAR from plane of focus and as they are VERY near to chip/film plane, they are always safely far from DOF.

The dust on the sensor

dust on the sensor

If the dust is on the sensor, the best way to clean it is to use a product like discofilm. Using any other method other than using discofilm or a sensor film product does nothing but pushes dirt around the sensor without lifting from the sensor surface. If the camera is turned on while changing lens, the sensor is charged and it might attract dust. A CMOS sensor does not attract dust, whether the camera is on or off but a CCD sensor does.

The cause of dust gathering

It’s mainly a problem of zoom lenses, because when you zoom at the long end, then there is usually an open hole through which the dust can go from the camera to the lens. You can see it when you unmount the lens. Zooms tend to be worse than primes, as the air displacement of the lens elements’ zooming action sucks in dust.

It is considered that push-pull zooms are worst of all. This is also a problem on trips, where there is a lot of dust and you need to change frequently lens while being outdoor. Also the home storage seems to be important.

The detriment of dust

Take a couple of test shots to be sure, but I will not worry about it at all. Point the camera at a bright white wall. Focus at minimum distance (regardless of where the wall is). Do you see the dust or any effect of it? Then try a dark wall. When dust is right in the middle of the glass, it makes a lightly fuzzy impression on the print. Being inside the lens, they are not “in focus” so they can’t be seen in the viewfinder or on a print. If there was a lot of dust, haze, etc. on lens elements it would start to degrade your image, though.

Generally speaking the dust will be uniformly spread all over the photo and will not be visible on the photo as long as it is also far from the film/chip plane. But that’s always true because there is always a space for mirror between the rear lens element and the sensor/film plane. So all the damage to a photo the dust can do is to reduce the light that falls on the sensor.
If you have dust on the sensor, then you can get some dark areas on your final pictures. It also depends on the angle of the light that falls on the lens, as it can reveal the dust particles or not, on the final shot.

the effect of dust on the sensor

Preventing dust from getting to your lens

For prevention you can use the following:

1. Lens Cap, allways put the lens cap on when camera is not i use
2. Lens Hood, will protect you from accidental damage to your lens even in the process of work
3. UV Filter, keeps your lens safe from dust and scratches

Using a filter will help prolong the life of your lens. It is the most common and efficient method to save your lens from damage. Another advise would be using high-quality scotch tape to cover your lens. Although some say they tend to leave something behind almost always. It is true that the amount of glue left will be extremely small in these cases, but still it could then hold to more dust than the lens would have acquired otherwise.

A relatively large and completely clear plastic bag could save your camera from dust. Put the camera in the bag, facing down and change the lens with the camera in the bag. It is especially useful in dusty, outdoor shootings.

Cleaning the dust

To remove dust and lint, a simple microfiber lens cloth will solve the problem. Use light strokes working towards the outside of the lens. For mud or other stubborn dirt, you will need to use a cleaning solution designed for photographic lenses. If you use ammonia or another household cleaning solution you could permanently damage the lens. Most photographic lenses have a fine coat of oil on their surfaces. Eventually, this coating will wear off with repeated cleanings of any kind.

You can do sensor cleaning at home, using the special tools for this. Basically speaking you’ll need three items: a sensor brush, some cleaning solution(like Eclipse) and eventually a sensor loupe.

You can also read some good toturials on sensor dust cleaning from cleaningdigitalcameras.com and impulseadventure.com. Below you have a demonstration about how it is done. You can see it’s a simple procedure and you have nothing to worry about.

The general conclusion would be that every camera has dust in it and this is not really a reason of concern as the methods of cleaning in most cases are pretty simple.

You don’t actually need to be in panic every time you see some lint on the camera, because it is not of so much damage to your shots. Just be sure not to miss a shot because of this

Weekly Tweets about photography [week 28]

cucicov — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:13:56 +0000

The best photography tweets of the past week

Since so many photographers and photo enthusiasts use nowadays Twitter, you can find there a lot of useful information. However, a lot of uninteresting posts are to be found on twitter if you don’t follow the right persons and the right channels. It is hard to say who is a good twitter-er and what channels to follow, since the community is permanently changing, as the whole web. So, you have to stay focused all the time and follow the right direction, or better said - the direction that interests you.

Here, I will try to make a selection of interesting tweets on photography topics, weekly. You can also find great people to follow here, just check out their profiles, if you liked the tweet. For those of you who don’t know what twitter is - it’s a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read other users’ updates. It is so much fun as soon as you get used to it. Now, enjoy the tweets and the good information shared.

Tweet recommendations of the past week

BenjaminServet: 78 Photography Rules for Complete Idiots http://tinyurl.com/rxpmzc

Photocritic: How to win photography competitions http://is.gd/1s85m is one of my favourites from my archives.

Todd_Klassy: Friday Flickr Favorites: http://bit.ly/IIp7N http://bit.ly/gzJJe http://bit.ly/n6AbN http://bit.ly/pvgs1 http://bit.ly/U6Tws

ItsBrendaYooo: New Blood I absolutely love this picture. Check out Chris Phelps’ photography. =) http://flic.kr/p/5kU6qc

chrissculthorp: Photo: artpixie: love this pic. http://tumblr.com/xgs2awpxe

somalekbaute: Watchin the most amazing & wonderful photographer’s work http://www.chriscraymer.com

CorinnaHoffman: stumbled across this nature photographer close to Asheville area http://www.richardbernabe.com/index.html .. simply amazing

mariustroy: Enjoy the fashion photography by Marc Philbert http://tinyurl.com/kl3h7t

Zeka79: Freedom http://twittley.com/r/m4q #photography #freedom

collidingatoms: http://www.josephford.net/ - Creative Photography

pheraghty: “Where light and shadow fall on your subject – that is the essence of expression and art through photography.” - ME (via @ScottBourne)

petapixel: What a weird, yet fascinating, photography project… Eyescapes: http://bit.ly/7gJwx

cgmoyer: great site for photographer showcases http://lenscratch.blogspot.com/ and a great photographer herself

27 photographs to feel the Hasselblad spirit

cucicov — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 21:08:16 +0000

Hasselblad focusing screen

As my last post was about Hasselblad, I would like to extend this topic and add a collection of Hasselblad pictures that would show the spirit of this brand. Just like Apple has it’s fans and it’s community, so does the Hasselblad brand.

Sure, not anyone can afford a Hasselblad and this is what makes the community a small one, but with very loyal members. Small communities have always created great things, as the collection below proves. Enjoy !

First, you might want to check the article about Hasselblad: Famous Cameras #1 : Hasselblad - the first camera to visit the moon.

Hasselblad Composing

flower field (hasselblad view)

colleen hasselblad 1 resize

Fog

Lying in Wait

Non- / Chalance IV

carlos leyendo a Ferlosio en los parques de Montjuic

BH Hasselblad

end of the day - monochrome

Voyeur Me [Hasselblad 500CM]

Hasselblad 500c

hasselblad 202_FA

my reflection *2

hasselblad late afternoon

Hoody Hassy

Sturmgrau & Sandbeige

stormy hasselblad waters

Hasselblad

underwater hasselblad

The Hasselblad

aquarelle sky

Through my brightest eye - Canon’s Dream on Hasselblad

Weekly Tweets about photography [week 15]

cucicov — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:24:54 +0000

The best photography tweets of the past week

Tweet recommendations of the past week

srarellano: 50 Stunning Examples Of Architecture Photography - Opensource, Free and Useful Online Resources for Designers and… http://ff.im/-23f3F

seifip: Some amazing photography by Shinichi Maruyama (mainly check-out the Nihonga section) - http://ping.fm/nt9QB

Si_p: Collection Of FREE Photography EBooks http://bit.ly/3UEH8Z

inf3ktion: Who Started The War on Photography: http://twurl.nl/h8fjuc (via @scottbourne)

living_martyr: Photography is my drug

court785: Liking the photography of Brigitte Sire: http://tinyurl.com/ch5j6u

iwasaround: via @AlanDavidson Life is like photography, we use the negative to develop.

arnoldparadeza: Food photography is especially fun when you get to eat the food.

bruxedo: weird and beautiful girls art photography http://linkbee.com/OB0E -There should be a male version to add balance.

minjae: One Picture Per Day: This lady (also @oda) is a genius when it comes to photography…. http://tinyurl.com/cypdeo

RandDuren: Beautiful and Creative High Speed Photography http://bit.ly/3h0I6

krts: Michael Kelley chose a huge pixellated image to open up his photography portfolio. Excellent portraiture! http://ow.ly/2pLd

lenmetcalf: “The goal in photography is the whole image, not just getting some of the parts right.” - Len Metcalf http://tumblr.com/xvn1kssz4

cmeintjes: tips on how to start your photography business http://bit.ly/5DX4w

Famous Cameras #1 : Hasselblad - the first camera to visit the moon

cucicov — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 16:00:00 +0000

the latest model of Hasselblad - H3D featuring a 48 x 36 mm sensor with a size of 39 Mpixels

There’s nothing wrong with 35mm, that a 5X4 (Hasselblad) can’t put right. /Ted Orland/

I thought about starting a set of articles about world famous photo cameras and for the first issue of these series I’ve chosen Hasselblad cameras - a famous brand and a legendary camera. Please enjoy and wait for other articles to come.

the world first Hasselblad consumer camera, the Hasselblad 1600F.

The roots of Hasselblad

Victor Hasselblad

Hasselblad is a medium-format camera created by Swedish manufacturer Victor Hasselblad. This type of cameras started it’s fame ascension during the World War II, when the Swedish government approached Victor Hasselblad with the request to create some models of military cameras for aerial surveillance.

All the models were a great success, but Victor still wanted to create high quality civilian cameras.

Medium format has traditionally referred to a film format in still photography and the related cameras and equipment that use this film. Generally, the term applies to film and cameras used to produce images larger than the 24 by 36 mm of 135 film, but smaller than the 4’’×5’’ size, which is considered to be large format. In digital photography, medium format refers either to cameras adapted from medium format film photography uses, or to cameras making use of sensors larger than that of a 35 mm film frame./wiki/

How did the fame come

Hasselblad SWA with Biogon lens

The company grew fast and after participating at the Photokina trade show in Germany in 1954, it started to gain worldwide fame. At the German trade fair, Hasselblad presented their great improvement - the new 38 mm Biogon lens by Zeiss also known as SWA (Super Wide Angle), that was a great success and derivatives of SWA were sold for decades.

In1962 NASA began to use Hasselblad cameras for space photography and meantime the brand was gathering a steadily growing reputation among professional photographers. By the 1970’s Hasselblad increased it’s name recognition dramatically, partly because of the publicity created by NASA’s use of the product.

Replica of the moon camera from Apollo 11. The camera is a modified Hasselblad 500 EL. The lens was equipped with a polarisation filter. The camera was painted with silver colour to reflect the heat from the strong light on the moon.

In 1969 when Apollo 11 mission was launched, there was a special Hasselblad camera designed to be used on the moon surface. It also featured a Zeiss 60 mm Biogon Lens.

Hasselblad camera evolution

In parallel the company developed high quality civilian camera types and the first one was launched in 1948 - a 6×6 cm format SRL camera named 1600F, because of it’s high shutter speed of 1/1600 sec. Later in 1964 500C SLR camera offered flash synchronization at all shutter speeds along with interchangeable bodies, lenses, viewfinders, film magazines and other accessories.

In 2002 Hasselblad launched H-system cameras. First of all it moved away from traditional 6×6 format to 6×4.5 cm and included auto-focus lenses. It continues to sell H-system cameras till nowadays, the newest model being H3D and it’s variations.

Hasselblad 500 EL, 1968

Hasselblad 500C/M with in-lens Compur shutter and top shutter speed of 1/500s

Hasselblad H2D with a large format, high quality 22 Megapixel CCD sensor measuring 37mm x 49mm.

Hasselblad H3D with the sensor of 39 megapixels in size and more than twice the physical size of today’s 35mm sensors.

Examples of Hasselblad photos

shot with HASSELBLAD 500C/M Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm f2.8 T*

shot with HASSELBLAD 500C/M Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm f2.8 T* + Extension

shot with Hasselblad H2D

shot with HASSELBLAD 500C/M Carl Zeiss Distagon 50mm f4

shot with Hasselblad H2D

taken with Hasselblad H2D

You can check a larger collection of Hasselblad photos at : 27 photographs to feel the Hasselblad spirit

Recommended Cameras:

How to shoot on vacation and be proud of the results

cucicov — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 15:32:32 +0000

Although spring has barely started, some might decide to take some leisure time away from work, for a day or maybe a whole week-end. It is always a good idea to have a camera with you, so that you can share the impressions with your friends or just back-up the memories. But how can we take the right photos to catch the vacation atmosphere ?

Prepare for the shooting

Go ahead and ‘google’ the place you are visiting, so that you find out about interesting places to photograph. On Google Earth you can explore photos from that place, so sketch a route of the places of interest and make a basic plan about what you want to visit.

In case you have a DSLR camera, I would suggest, for the lens, something in the range of 17-50 mm or 24-70 mm. These will do just great with the landscapes, portraits and urban sites you’re visiting, without making you carry a lot of equipment. It is a good idea to have some extra memory and batteries, so that you don’t happen to see the Big Foot and run out of battery just before taking the first pic.

Some lens suggestions:
Tamron AF17-50mm F/2.8 Di-II LD Aspherical
Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 EX DC Macro HSM
Canon EF 28-70mm f/2.8L USM

What and when to shoot ?

When you take photos of people smaller than you, get down to their level. It is especially important when photographing children, so you get their real face expression and smile, and also don’t make them seem even smaller in the photos. Watch the background - pick a nice one, you don’t want buildings or trees growing out of your models heads.

nice portrait with the model on the first plan, you can also see the Tower quite well

Try as much as possible to get close to the people you are photographing; it isn’t cool to see a photograph where the Eiffel Tower is in full height and the character in the photo is a dot somewhere at the horizon. Close-ups are also more interesting to look at, and to make them even more attractive, try to catch the moment: improvise, shoot under different angles.

Group jump is a largely used technique, however you can always get good result with it

Come with something different than the usual ‘cheese’ for group photos, and take some real smiles from your models.

It is best to shoot portraits on cloudy weather, as the light is soft, while on sunny weather is recommended to take landscape pics.

The clouds work here as a natural studio soft-box and provide a soft light - it’s perfect for the portraits.

When photographing landscapes, try to make them not look like standard postcards - look for the unusual, fill the photo with other elements, like people, or make a depth of field ‘game’ with things like trees, bushes or anything you have under the hand.

For the portraits, shot on a sunny weather; try using a flash - it eliminates the hard shadows on the subject .

The flash fills in the normal sun shadows and highlights nicely the model’s face

And for the all photos - try to create art, rather than just pressing the shutter like a mad, without giving a simple thought on the final result.

How to deal with the after-shooting process

First of all, when you take a photo and do not like how it looks on the camera screen - erase it ! There is small chance that you will like it better on the computer screen, and it saves you time when you have to sort the hundreds of photos you’ve taken. Later, when you already have them on your computer - make a selection of the best photos and erase the duplicates or the ones with a bad quality, you don’t want to fill your hard drive space with useless files.

When you share the photos on the internet, try to make an even smaller collection, of about 20-25 photos, because people usually get bored by viewing a big amount of photos, especially if there are series of similar ones. It is a good idea to write a description at least for some of the shared photos - tell what happened or your enthusiasm about what you’ve seen, it helps people understand better your experience.

That’s about it, have a great vacation !

Eolo Perfido: Portrait, Fashion & Advertising Photographer

cucicov — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:25:13 +0000

I arrived at photography quite late in my life, but fortunately passion has no time limit. I first picked up a camera when I was 28, little thinking that I would soon decide to never put it down again. Photographing has become something that goes quite beyond simply capturing an image and it has deeply changed how I experience life and those around me. I am the kind of photographer who likes to take pictures of people and I attempt to improve my sensitivity on a daily basis so that I am able to delve more deeply into their inside image. I was born in Cognac, France in 1972. I have a wonderful family, a few good friends and a girlfriend that I love. I live and work in Rome.

Eolo Perfido official website: eoloperfido.com

I added Eolo to my favorites from the first time I saw his portfolio. His studio, called smallstudio does some amazing fashion and portraits works, where you can feel the professionalism and enthusiasm. One can really see the difference between the millions of plain fashion and portrait photographs found on the internet and these fine-art works by Eolo.

Eolo also has an interesting web portfolio as it has a horizontal arrangement of images, wich simulates the museum arrangement of works and in my opinion helps a lot for a better viewing of the photographs.

You can find some more of his works at altphotos.com.

Eolo Perfido works:

metmo

arkhee_wonderland

portrait_4

mariannaderossi

arkhee_shout

vision_magazine_editorial

carla

arkhee_dogma

music

vision_magazine_editorial_4

vision_magazine_editorial_1

Outro

I’m sure that you have your faves and I would love to hear about them. Please make a comment about it or send me a message and I will make a post based on your suggestions.

A ‘must see’ list of movies for photography lovers

cucicov — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 23:19:29 +0000

As photographers deal with ‘composing’ beautiful visual stuff, they must be in a permanent search of something new - of a new experience for their brain, through the eyes. A good photographer always seeks for good photos, good paintings, colors, shapes, everything to keep his inspiration going. Besides this, photographers have good taste in art, especially when it comes to visual arts.

That is why I think a person that draws, takes photos, designs or any other kind of art, in this case we speak about visual arts, must have a trained eye for criticism, because indicating ones faults is not always very pleasant, but it helps to improve.

Next I will recommend a list of movies that seemed inspiring to me and I’m sure you will find things like composition, colors or message, to learn from this pieces. Each of them comes with a bonus of emotional load, which is also of great help for your inspiration.

1. Ashes and Snow (2005) - Gregory Colbert

It is truly a breathtaking piece of art, for the moment it’s my favorite movie that deals photography and I recommend it to everyone. This work is an installation of photographic stories combined with narrations and soft music. It is both inspiring and impressive at the same time.

trailer (YouTube)

2. Born into Brothels(2004) - Zana Briski

A documentary about children of prostitutes from Calcutta and their first initiation in photography.

trailer(YouTube)

3. Fur: An imaginary portrait of Diane Arbus(2006) - Steven Shainberg

Diane was an American photographer, noted for her portraits of people on the fringes of society, such as transvestites, dwarfs, giants, prostitutes and ordinary working class citizens, in unconventional poses and settings.

trailer(YouTube)

Diane Arbus works: artphotogallery.org.

4. Coffee and Cigarettes(2003) - Jim Jarmusch

I loved this movie, it has such a hidden humor and also great composition with a classical black&white scenes. As it is not directly about photography, you must pay attention to the details and the situations showed in the movie, which are very close to photography.

trailer(YouTube)

5. Blow-up(1966) - Michelangelo Antonioni

A fiction movie about a fashion photographer, recommended by a lot of users on flickr groups.

trailer(YouTube)

6. The Return(2003) - Andrei Zvyagintsev

This is again one of my favorites, except this one does not have a direct connection to photography. However it is a masterpiece of cinematography that should be a source of inspiration not only for photographers.

trailer(YouTube)

7. Delirious(2006) - Tom DiCillo

A cute drama involving a homeless youth, a pop music singer and a member of paparazzi.

trailer(YouTube)

8. Baraka(1992) - Ron Fricke

Baraka consists of a set of expertly photographed scenes, a movie that doesn’t have a consistent plot.

trailer(YouTube)

9. The Third Man(1949) - Carol Reed

It is recommended to watch from time to time, good old black&white movies. They often open a fully new understanding about cinematography and give us a break from the pollution we sometimes get from Hollywood movies.

trailer(YouTube)

10. War Photographer(2001) - Christian Frei

A powerful documentary about the activities and thoughts of a war photographer James Nachtwey. He is considered by some people to be the best war photographer of our times.

trailer(YouTube)

James Nachtwey works: jamesnachtwey.com