Monthly Archives: August 2015

 

 

At two thirds of the way through the current season of workshops it’s time to make some plans for 2016!  I’ve been thinking about this for a while and have decided to cut down the size of our workshop groups in 2016.  Next year the workshops and tours, except for Nashville, will be limited to only 8 attnedees.  I want to be sure that people get more individual help and there is more time to review more images from each student.

 

I’ve also noticed that our students are getting better and better, they are no longer beginners, and are solidly intermediate or advanced shooters. I want to start to spend a lot more classroom time exploring how to “see better” as a photographer, how to affectively compose images, and work on such things at “extraction” and advanced field techniques.

 

I also will spend the winter trying to find new and exciting locations that are, “more off the beaten path”, new places where few other workshop companies go!  The Badlands is a good start to head that way, and the Route 66 Tour is as well!

 

So if you are up for some great adventures stay tuned for a complete description of the coming season, and things to come.

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

It may just be the “key” to a great experience and wonderful fellowship!

 

 

 

Number 1.  I’m reading a new book by Ronald Kessler called  The First Family Detail.  It is the behind the scenes story of some of our recent presidents and their families and their dealing with the Secret Service, FBI and our Military personnel.  I have to say it probably was not a shock to me, but some of the stories bring new understanding of the depravity of most of our leaders.  That we send these people to Washington represent us, and they behave as many of them do is sickening!  If you are considering voting for Hillary, you need to read this book!  If you think you know her, you need to read what countless Secret Service people have to share about her, truly disgusting.  I am certainly not without fault, but I strive to be genuine, what you see is what you get, that is apparently far from the real Hillary Clinton!!!!  Trust me, the whole book is an eye opening read.  Morality and decency has been absent from Washington for some time!

 

Number 2.  I’ve had with the TV networks.  Let me explain.  I watch old TV shows and movies I never got to watch because of my schedule when I’m working in my office.  Ever once in a while a find a show I like and put it in the upper left hand corner of my iMac while I process images or answer emails.

I recently found a show I really enjoyed, Taxi Brooklyn, well written and acted, great TV, and I watched the entire season over several week in and out of my office.  I got the the last episode of Season One and it was one of those cliff hangers leaving all kinds of questions unanswered.  I jumped back on Netflix and went to find Season 2, nothing there????  I Googled the show and found an article saying that NBC and cancelled it after one season!?&%$#^$#Q@  O.K. I t think it should be a law of televisions that if a show is cancelled hanging like this that one more episode has to be filmed to give viewers closure, I mean these people had become my make believer friends, and now they have just disappeared.  Sound pretty lame for a grown man, who knows this is fiction to care, but dang it, they owe us that much if we watch a whole season!!!!     Come on guys, give us a break!!!!!

 

Number 3.  Football Season is still almost four weeks away.  Man do I miss it.  I live for the college and pro football seasons.  I can stay mild interested in Kentucky Basketball, could care less about the NBA, or Major League Baseball!  It has been a long dry spell,  just can’t wail!

 

O.K. so not really earth shaking issues, but fun to ponder!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim

 

 

 

 

And so it goes.  The never ending, ridiculous exercise of trying to decide what to take, how to carry it, and what to do with it!!!!  So here goes, I generally go out to shoot with two purposes, actually more than that, but for now let’s limit ourselves to the main two, just to try and save our minds!  I’m either doing travel, (going light), or doing serious in-the-field work, ( a bigger system),  generally nature or Americana work.

 

For travel, I want the smallest possible system that gives me a good spread of focal lengths, but remain lighter and smaller.  For travel I think I will be using the Fuji X-T10, that I call the “baby” X-T1.  The X-T10 is just as capable and has lots of great features, but weights at least 25% less and is more compact.  Image quality is identical, so no sacrifices there.  To go very wide I like the small, light and super sharp 14mm f 2.8 lens which is a 21mm equivilent.  The 35mm f 1.4 is small and light and once again super sharp, hey these are Fujinon lenses, I really don’t need to keep saying that, and I won’t!  A nifty fifty is always a great lens to have along!  My most used travel lens and one of my favorites is the 18-135 f 3.5-5.6 which is the equivalent of a 28-200 or there about.  A great range and it is, ooopps sorry about that.  The last lens is the 55-200 f 3.5-4.6 (70-300) which gives me the long lens when I need it!  4 extra batteries, chargers and cords go in my luggage.

 

When the assignment is field work for Nature and Americana I need lenses with more speed and rely a lot on the best of the Fuji zooms.  Let’s start with my mainstay bodies a pair of Fuji X-T1s. Since there is room in the bag, and only, because I rarely use it, but hey it will be there just in case, the Rokinon 8mm Fisheye f 2.8.  For wide angle images the 10-24 gives me a 15mm to 36mm equivalent lens and it is Optically Image Stabilized.  It happens to be one of the best wide angle zooms on the market as a plus!  The 16mm f 1.4, (24mm equiv.), is spectacular for focusing close up on foregrounds and throwing the background out focus, not used all the time, but the ticket when you need it!  The 16-55 f 2.8 is a 24-85 equivalent mid-range zoom that gets a great deal of use. The next lens is the incredible new 90mm f 2 lens which, like the 16mm, is a wonderful tool for out of focus backgrounds.  The 50-140 f 2.8 lens is one of the most incredible of Fuji’s lenses, it’s OIS is so effective that even I can shoot at 1/15th of a second at 200mm equivalent and get tack sharp results.  That only leaves one last lens to add, the 60mm Macro f 2.4.  If you need to shoot closeups this is the only option right now, and actually it is, oops, almost did it again, a truly great macro lens and by adding the auto extension tubes from Fuji you can get to greater than life size.  It will be replaced by the 120mm f 2.8 Macro next year!  For now, though, it is a great little lens!  Yep, 6 spare batteries!

 

Now the bags.  The Travel System fits perfectly in the Lowepro Flipside Sport 10L AW The travel system weighs in at 7.5 pounds.  The Field System is carried in a Think Tank Airport Essentials backpack.  The field system weighs in at 19 pounds.  I don’t carry the Field System but work out of that bag into a Vest or belt system.

 

For now this is the way I’m going to try to work, and of course I will keep you informed.  When I travel buy car, I will take both bags, by air I will pack the Field System in a Think Tank Airport Security V. 2.0 rolling bag, and transfer the gear on location.  The Airport Security also allows transporting the laptop, hard drives and cords.

 

So, the right gear, on site, “may” be solved, but the proof is in the pudding!

 

Blessings,

 

the pilgrim