Photography Photography

Think Tank - Sizzler

Think Tank Photo has just announced what they’re calling their “Sizzling Summer Savings.”  With it, you can save up to 30% on some of their most popular gear, including their Urban Approach and Perception shoulder bags and backpacks, Retrospective Leather and CityWalker shoulder bags, and the My 2nd Brain laptop bags.  And don’t forget, by using my special Web link, you will receive free gear and free shipping with your orders!CLICK HERE TO ORDER

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Photography Photography

New Hard Cases from Think Tank and SKB

Think Tank Photo have just announced an exciting new partnership with hard-case manufacturer SKB.  Think Tank’s designers have created internal divider sets, organizers, and a backpack designed specifically to fit within 10 SKB hard cases.  There are times when you simply have to airline gate-check your most precious photography equipment.  At moments like these, nothing will do a better job of protection than a hard case.  But one of the downsides of hard cases is that they are basically hard shells with not a lot of other features built into them.  Think Tank’s partnership with SKB solves this problem.  The result is the best of a hard case with the best of internal organization.  Don’t forget that with our special partnership with Think Tank that you receive free gear and free shipping when you order using our special link.

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Photography Photography

The Pixel Connection

This weekend I will be at the Pixel Connection photography show and programs.  On Saturday June 3rd I will be leading a Macro photowalk - and would love to have you join.  The event is free and promises to be a great learning experience and a lot of fun too.  I addition, I will be at the local camera club and the store showing the fabulous Panasonic Lumix line-up. 

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Lens, Lumix Leica 100-400 mm, Mirrorless, Panasonic, Panning, Photography Lens, Lumix Leica 100-400 mm, Mirrorless, Panasonic, Panning, Photography

The GH5 continues to excel

With the exception of the last three years we typically go to Damariscotta Maine to photograph the Osprey fishing for alewives.  The main reason for not going was the decline in activity.  However we did spend this past weekend in a lovely B&B - The Mill Pond Inn in Nobleboro.  It is a great place and has two of the finest hosts.My main purpose was to test out the GH5 for its tracking capability and the Dual IS 2 function.  Both these images were shot with the GH5  and the Leica 100 - 400 lens, hand-held.  Exposure was set to "Manual" and the ISO was set on Auto.  The focus was set to 1 Area and reduced to its smallest size.  All images processed using Capture One Pro, version 10I intentionally left the shutter speed slow so as to get a lot of motion in the wings and to have the water droplets streak.  I panned this shot keeping the 1 Area on the bird's eye.As we waited for more action (that never happened) a Bald Eagle flew by in the distance and finally landed on a tree on the far bank.  I knew that the bird was just to far to get a decent shot but I wanted to see what I could get irrespective.  Once again this was hand held.  I did increase the shutter speed to 1/1600 sec and the lens was out at 800 mm (FF equivalent).This next image is the un-cropped version.The next image is a crop at 1400 by 1050 pixels:#LumixLounge #wherelumixgoes #lumixusa #lumixGH5 #gh5 #birdphotography#birds #africa #wildlifephotography

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Photography Photography

Capture One Pro 10.1 released with support for the Panasonic Lumix GH5

Capture One Pro 10.1 offers new key features and general improvements.New in this release:

  • Enhanced Styles workflow
  • Improved PSD Support
  • Improved Fuji X-Trans support
  • Temporary reset of adjustments
  • Vectorscope Color Wheels Layout
  • Tokenized watermarking
  • Apple Script Enhancements (Mac only)
  • Graphics Acceleration (OpenCL) improvements
  • New camera and lens support

Capture One Pro 10.1 is a free update for Capture One Pro 10 owners and subscribers.CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

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Photography Photography

Panasonic Lumix GH5 - High ISO tests

These images were captured with the Lumix GH5 at ISO 6400 over the past few days during the Florida Birding and Photography Festival in St. Augustine.No in camera or Lightroom noise reduction has been applied.  Images have been cropped for composition and white and black points set.    

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Photography Photography

Florida Birding Festival - St. Augustine - Day 3

With the Leica 100 - 400 mm broken and not sure of how the GH5 would perform I decided to take the G85 with the new Lumix 100 - 300 mm lens for this morning's shoot.  A big thank you to Tom Curley, Panasonic for overnighting me tis lens - it is most appreciated.  I am very pleased with the performance of this lens and for the price it is truly worth it.Here are some images all captured with this kit.            

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Photography Photography

Misshaps do happen - Day 1 and 2 with the Panasonic Lumix GH5

Day two of the Florida Birding Festival in St. Augustine started great with lots of interest in the GH5 combined with the Leica 100 - 400.  Then disaster struck when someone wanted to test the kit to photograph birds in flight.  Not supporting the camera while undoing the tripod clamp sent the GH5 and lens down to the boardwalk (I saw it in sloooooooow mooooooo) - total separation of lens from camera in a flash.  NOT GOOD.  The GH5 seems to be working fine but they are both going off to be repaired and tested as soon as I return home on Monday.Now for the good news - the GH5 is just awesome - no questions asked.  Birds in flight, awesome focusing and equally awesome performance.  I am more than impressed with the stills performance and the quality of images from this camera and lens combination.  I am still working on the best settings for the style and subject matter I like to shoot but even so, the results are impressive.  Images are sharp, the color rendition is great and focusing is impressive.Here are a few images from last evening and this morning.    So the lens and camera body will be shipped for repairs and I will be back in business soon.   

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Photography Photography

Signature Series by Think Tank Photo

The newly released Signature Series from Think Tank Photo is a modernized version of the classic shoulder bag. Hand sewn,  advanced fabrics blend weather protection and durability with the classic feel of fine wool. Genuine leather detailing and metal hardware add character and stand up to the rigors of daily use. In addition, the zippered flap provides full closure and security to the main compartment, or tucks away when not in use. The Signature 10 fits a 10” tablet; the Signature 13 fits a 13” laptop. With our special relationship with Think Tank, by clicking here  you will be able to add free gear and receive free shipping on your orders of the Signature bags and all of their other gear.If you just want to check out the Signature Series - click here

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Lumix Leica 100-400 mm, Mirrorless, Panasonic, Photographs, Photography Lumix Leica 100-400 mm, Mirrorless, Panasonic, Photographs, Photography

Lumix G85 4K Photo

On my visit to Ft. Myers I wanted to test the 4K Photo Mode capability of the Panasonic Lumix G85.  The image shown was captured in 4K photo mode on March 14, 2017. The entire sequence was imported as a video file.  I did not want to select and save a JPEG file in camera. Saving a JPEG is the suggested method for 4K Photos.  The video frames were exported at individual TIFF files with a frame resolution of 3328 by 2496 pixels (an 8Mb file)  this was processed in Capture One ver. 10 and exported as a JPEG for web display.  The camera was mounted with the Leica 100 - 400 mm lens, hand-held using "Dual IS".  For reference purposes the scene's exposure triad was ISO 800, f6.3, 1/250 sec.

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Accessories, Lighting, Lumix GX85, Macro, Mirrorless, Panasonic, Photography, Portraits, Product Reviews, Stacked Image Accessories, Lighting, Lumix GX85, Macro, Mirrorless, Panasonic, Photography, Portraits, Product Reviews, Stacked Image

Lume Cube Review

The makers of Lume Cube have a new  smaller and less powerful but a highly efficient light designed for phone photography called the Life Lite.  This is a smart, Bluetooth controlled, pocket-sized Lifestyle Light for iPhone, Android, DSLR or a GoPro. The Life Light will be available in March.This gadget review however, is of the original Lume Cube and the cheaper version that does not have any bluetooth connectivity. Both are identical in performance and while you can controll one with a smart phone the lite version is all manual.  I have been using the Lume Cube for many months and have been most satisfied with its performance and portability.  I have used these lights for macro, video and portraiture and love the results they have helped produce.Specs:

  • Type LED
  • Output Variable: 0 to 1500 Lumens
  • Strobe: Variable 1/8000 to 1 second
  • Mount Type: 1/4"-20 female
  • Power Source: Integrated battery
  • Battery Duration: 100% Brightness: 20 minutes; 90% Brightness: 60 minutes; 50% Brightness: 120 minutes
  • Power Connector: USB (for charging)
  • Waterproof Depth: 100' / 30.5 m
  • Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.5 x 1.5"

CLICK HERE TO ORDERThe Lume Cube comes in a small cube shaped cardboard box that contains the Lume Cube and a USB charging cable.You do need to unscrew a small cover to access the charging port.  This access cover is a requirement as the Lume Cube is rated to be waterproof to depth of 100 feet.Shaped as a cube, the unit has two rubberized push button switches on the top and a 1/4 20 mount that can be used to mount the light on a light stand, tripod or any flexible light mounting device.The two push buttons control the video light and the alternate flash function of the device. Each time you depress the on/off video switch the light cycles through 10 levels of intensity.You can also control the Lume Cube using the mobile app. Lume Cube has simplified its lighting controls with a proprietary wireless, Bluetooth-enabled app, available on both Apple iOS and Android. The app is capable of controlling up to 5 Lume Cubes simultaneously. The app allows you to adjust the brightness, flash duration and red eye latency on each Lume Cube independently; and with its onboard optical sensor, Lume Cube can be configured as a slave flash unit to be fired by any other external flash.You have to register your Lume Cube to sync it to your app once registered you can control all your Lume Cube’s power and settings separately.Lume Cube Setup and test for portraitsTo test the Lume Cubes I fitted two Lume Cubes on two separate light stands. The “Main” Lume Cube was place so as to create Rembrandt lighting on the dummy head.  The second was place to create a gentle fill.  As you can see from the image below, the Lume Cube, due mainly to its size creates a fairly hard light.  The settings were ISO 200, f/1.7 at 1/125 sec. using a Panasonic Lumix GX85 body and a Lumix 42.5mm f/1.7 lens wide open.  The light emitted is cool and for this test I used an X-Rite Color Checker Passport to balance the temperature.The second test was conducted with the same placement of the lights but instead of the Lume Cubes facing the dummy head directly the light was bounced off two Rogue Flash Benders.  No Diffusion material was used.As you can see the light was much softer and way more pleasing in the image below.  The settings were ISO 640, F/1.7 at 1/80 sec.  Clearly there is about 3 stops of light loss when using the Flash Benders.  However, the soft light is excellent for portraiture. Lume Cube for Macro/Close-up PhotographyThe Lume Cube produces a really hard light as it is a very small light, but also a very powerful one.  The Lume Cubes were about 1.5 inches from the subject.  Exposure triad: F/4, 1/800 sec., ISO 640.  The lens was a 30mm macro with an extension tube.  Camera: Panasonic Lumix GX85.The following is the setup:The image shown below is a 45 image stack using the GX85's focus bracketing feature.The portability of these little powerhouses has me convinced, and I tend to carry two in my bag at all times.CLICK HERE TO ORDER

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Photography Photography

Lume Cube LITE Announced

Lume Cube has recently announced the Lume Cube LITE. This is priced at just $69.99, which is $10 less than the OG Lume Cube. Essentially the Lume Cube LITE is the same build quality as the Lume Cube, with just two features pulled out to cut costs. The Lume Cube LITE is stripped of the Optical Sensor (which is primarily for Professional DSLR Flash Photographers) as well as the Bluetooth connectivity (sometimes not needed for your everyday use), cutting the Lume Cube down in both weight, and in price! It still has the same 10 settings of bright light output, the same clean beam angle provided by our built-in fresnel lens, but the Lume Cube LITE has a manually triggered Strobe Light mode. CLICK HERE TO ORDER  CLICK HERE TO ORDER

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Photography Photography

Panasonic Lumix Camera and Lens Firmware updates - Feb 8, 2017

Panasonic yesterday released firmware updates to its G 80, 81 and 85; GX80 and 85 camera bodies; and the Leica H-RS100400 lens.The firmware update to the G80,81 and 85 fixes the following:

  1. Reduced operation noise during the shooting standby or the motion picture recording.
  2. Dual I.S.2 function with the interchangeable lens H-RS100400 is available.(Firmware update of the H-RS100400 is required.)

The firmware update to the GX80 and 85 fixes the following:

  1. Reduced operation noise during the shooting standby or the motion picture recording.
  2. Fixed a problem that camera fails to connect to the Picmate server.

The firmware update to the Leica H-RS100400 lens fixes the following:

  1. Dual I.S.2 function is available.(Firmware update of Dual I.S.2 compatible model is required.The firmware of the DMC-G80/81/85 should be ver.1.2 or later.)
  2. Fixed the instability of Auto Focus when the focus switch set to [5m - ∞], using Olympus Corporation's OM-D E-M1 MarkII.

PLEASE NOTE: THE UPDATES ARE SPECIFIC FOR EACH MODEL. PLEASE ENSURE YOU USE THE CORRECT UPDATE FOR YOUR CAMERA.Thes updates can be downloaded using the following link:Panasonic firmware updates

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