Venting my spleen

I can’t listen to band photographers griping about current state of affairs without saying my piece.

Photo credit: Josefina Takes a Picture by carlosluis

Recently I’ve been reading a spate of emails from professional band photographers complaining that “amateurs with point-and-shoots” are being allowed into the pits, and that record companies, bands and management firms are expecting images for free.

As much as I love shooting live bands more than anything, it’s pretty obvious that this is not a career path capable of paying the mortgage. So, I do it for fun and the occasional remuneration. My genuine photography income comes from bread and butter stuff like portraiture and corporate events. Those things need photographers that know what they are doing. Amateurs cannot yet service that demand. They can service the need for live band images.

My annoyance at these photographers who can’t see the forest for the trees led me to respond as such. I thought I’d share. [Read more]

Upgrading from a “point and shoot” to a DSLR

I’m forever being asked about DSLRs and which one to buy for newbies.
There is no right or wrong answer to that question, so all I can do is explain at a basic level why you should do it, and which cameras and lenses are important for what purposes.

To save some time in the future I have posted a link to an article posted by the Age on this topic.
Before you read it, be aware that this reviewer has only looked at cameras from the perspective that you are only going to buy one camera (body) including the included (kit) lens.
For the average amateur that is fine and good, but if you get the bug, and I bet you will, you will need more lenses according to your interests.  Please be aware that LENSES are the most important thing, not the camera body.
After all, you capture light traveling through glass, not electrons traveling through plastic and gadgetry.

So, my advice to you after reading this post is to consider the Canon and Nikon bodies first, as they have the largest and best possible lens range available.  Don’t get me wrong, the Sony is a great camera, and if you are certain you will not get bitten hard by the photography bug then go ahead and buy that one off the shelf. They too, have decent lenses, but nowhere near the range of Nikon & Canon.
Also, be aware that without spending a fair bit more on a better lens at time of purchase, the stock “kit” lens that comes with these cameras is usually not a lot better than a boat anchor.  Enjoy using it to learn photography, but your photography will benefit greatly with an upgrade as soon as you have started to understand what you are doing.

So, finally, here’s the link to the Choosing a DLSR camera article.

Tags: camera, DSLR, upgrade, compact, tutorial

AITP at the Brunswick Hotel

I’m back in Melbourne, and taking a look at my online photo galleries I’ve realised I haven’t posted any band shots since early this year! Time to change that.

Wednesday night presented an opportunity to go see my friends in Asleep In The Park at the Brunswick Hotel.

Max in her trademark colour

Not known for it’s stage or lighting setup, I wasn’t expecting to shoot much, but of course I brought my camera just in case. Well, the lighting was well improved, and although the place was completely red I still managed to shoot some images I like.

The band rocked the house – they’ve improved out of sight since I last saw them. Very tight, new drummer, better song arrangements and production. Thanks guys for trimming down on the chaotic madness your music was getting lost in, and getting back to showing how good your song-writing is.

Rotation of duties

Marty goes without

Nomes in the engine room

All my Asian holiday photos will be posted at Picasa

I can’t believe how hard it is to get the rest of my holiday documented here. But what I have been doing is throwing up the unedited photos into Picasa so at least you can see them without the accompanying story if you want to.

So, instead of waiting forever for me to update this blog, check out my Picasa site for galleries of where I’ve been. I’ll be updating Picasa every day or two, so keep checking back.

Back home – Daily travel updates will still be posted below…

Well, I’m finally back home and the last few weeks absolutely flew by.  I’m very glad to be home but I will really miss many aspects of my trip.  Japan was by far my favourite country and I would really love to go back to Tokyo again – this time for much longer.  Maybe I can find a job that involves travel there…?

As I predicted, I simply didn’t have any time left at the end of each long day to update this blog.  SO.  I will be updating each day’s observations and photos after the fact, however I will be dating the posts according to the actual days I took the photos.  Therefore you will need to check below this post for new posts.  Expect no more than one post per day from Sabah (Kota Kinabalu) up until Japan (including a few hours in Cairns), with all Asian holiday posts ending on August 8.

I’ll try to kick things off tomorrow…