I live in Ghent, one of Belgium's more touristy cities. From medieval castles to contemporary design, there's a lot to see and photograph in this city and therefore, it attracts lots of tourists, often with big, bulky and expensive cameras.
A wise man doesn’t give the right answers, he poses the right questions.
— Claude Levi-Strauss
Occasionally, when I'm having the odd drink on one of the beautiful terraces along the river that intersects the city, I'm baffled at how some people photograph these old buildings and beautiful monuments. Often, they'll get out of the bus and walk up straight to the front of the monument - the front side being dictated by the shortest line between the bus doors and the actual monument - and squeeze the trigger. They don't kneel to get a more dramatic perspective, nor do they stroll a little further to the bridge because a bird's eye view might tell the story better. They don't walk around to see if the light is better from the other side nor do they wait until there's more or less people in the frame. They don't set up a tripod to let a slow shutter speed make the other tourists disappear. No. They just point a $2.000 camera with a $1.500 lens at the 'subject' and push the button.
They should probably read 'Making the Image', David duChemin's new Craft & Vision eBook.
Now before you think it's easy to be hard on others, I can be just as hard on myself...
Take this situation for example... It's May 18th. I'm on a Long Exposure photography weekend in New York and I've just spent 45 minutes on a train and 30 minutes schlepping my gear around to photograph New York from the Jersey side. I just had to get the iconic shot. That's the picture below. It was all that I could think of.
Fujifilm X-T1 | XF16-55mm F2.8 R LM WR | 16 mm | 340,0 sec at f - 8,0 | ISO 400
It's an OK image - blurring the water helps to focus on the city - but if Rod (the super cool Formatt Hitech Marketing Manager) hadn't pointed me to this less stereoptypical, but lighting-wise much better view right behind me, I'd probably still be staring at the Manhattan skyline.
Fujifilm X-T1 | XF16-55mm F2.8 R LM WR | 16 mm | 240,0 sec at f - 8,0 | ISO 200
Because, low and behold, what's there at page 60? Exactly the question I should have asked myself on May 18th but I didn't. And yet, I had all the time in the world because I was doing an almost six minute exposure!
I'm an experienced photographer (at least I like to think I am). I know my f-stops from my ISOs and my filter threads from my Wattseconds. But, like many other photographers, I often forget the essentials. I'll be sucked in by the technicality of things that I forget to ask the basic questions.
And those basic questions is what 'Making the Image' is all about: the ones you should ask yourself in the field when you're making a photograph that pretends to be more than a snapshot. The book poses 35 of them in two broad categories: 'Question the Scene' and 'Question the Process'. The questions themselves are deceptively simple: 'Shapes or details?' , 'Can I move to change the lines?' or, indeed, 'What's behind me?' Yet, they're probably as important as your camera manual is - actually more important because as we all know, most camera manuals suck big time anyway.
True to the Craft & Vision tradition, you get a lot of value for your money, as this eBook really is a bundle containing:
The little companion eBook that you can put on your phone is as simple as it is effective: just flip through a couple of random questions for each photo you're about to make and your images will improve. Pretty soon, you'll be asking these questions automatically, in your head!
The actual eBook, 158 pages exploring each of the 35 questions in greater detail, illustrated by photos that help make the point;
A smaller companion eBook to store on your phone, which just contains the questions, boldly formatted so you can see them clearly and you can flick through them on your phone quickly. My recommendation: read the book once, so you get the full meaning of the questions and then, before a shoot, randomly pick a couple of questions from the list and you'll walk home with a stronger image;
A 45 minute companion video that also explores these concepts in more detail.
'Making the Image' is one of those eBooks that should be bundled with every new camera. It doesn't tell you how to press the shutter - plenty of books do that already. Instead, it gives you the questions you should ask yourself before you press the shutter. It's not about stopping down your lens, but stopping down yourself and thinking before you shoot.
The book doesn't give the answers nor does it have to: it's the scene in front of you that will give you those.
The'Making the Image'bundle is available here and costs $25 + tax (only $20 during launch week), which is less than the price of a memory card, and it will make sure that that memory card will have better pictures on it. Fewer maybe, but definitely better.
But hey, you don't have to take my word for it, here's someone who's much more eloquent than I am: David duChemin himself! Listen to what he has to say about 'Making the Image':
As you probably know, I have a passion for India, for photography and... for Fujifilm gear. I'm proud to be a Fujifilm X-Photographer for Fujifilm Worldwide and a Fujifilm Ambassador for Fujifilm Belgium. You might also know that I share these passions with another X-Photographer, Matt Brandon from www.thedigitaltrekker.com.
This shared interest has resulted in Matt and I organizing a number of photo workshops in India. Most of the images you can see in the galleries on this website were shot during those workshops. At the end of each workshop, it has become a tradition of ours to do an audio podcast about the Fujifilm gear that was released over the past year. Last year's podcast even included Matt and I ducking under a blanket to kill the noise of the AC in our Delhi hotel room. We'll do anything for quality!
This year we didn't have the time to do record the podcast in India, but thanks to the miracle of Skype, it's now here. So, if you have some time to spare, you can not only hear what we think about the new 90 or 16 mm but you'll also hear some inside tips and techniques, for example on how to use the X system for flash photography.
We have also just opened registrations for our newworkshop: from February 14 to 24, 2016, our North India workshop will bring its participants from Delhi over Agra, home of the Taj Mahal, to Varanasi, one of India's holiest (and most photogenic) cities. This intimate ten-day workshop is limited to a maximum of nine participants.
Matt and I will teach you how to get the most out of this beautiful environment, how to make striking portraits and how to tell visual stories. Finally, for those interested, there will also be ample time to talk about postprocessing: being an Adobe Certified Lightroom expert, I eat Fuji .raf files for breakfast!
The workshop's official language is English, but if English isn't your first language (in fact, it often isn't for most of the participants), I'll be happy to assist you in Dutch or French, too! If you have any questions about this workshop, feel free to contact Matt or me.
ZOWEL DE VOORMIDDAG- ALS DE NAMIDDAGSESSIE ZITTEN VOORLOPIG VOL, IN AFWACHTING DAT IK ALLE STORTINGSBEVESTIGINGEN BINNEN KRIJG. GELIEVE VOORLOPIG NIET MEER IN TE SCHRIJVEN. INDIEN ER EXTRA PLAATSEN VRIJKOMEN, LEES JE HET HIER.
Beste lezer,
tenzij je de laatste weken op de maan verbleef - en dan nog, de mensenstroom is ondertussen waarschijnlijk ook van daar uit te zien - kan je je ogen niet meer sluiten voor het vluchtelingenprobleem. Fotografie speelde een belangrijke rol in dat bewustwordingsproces.
We hebben schrijnende foto's gezien die op ons collectieve netvlies gebrand staan. Ten huize MoreThanWords waren het de foto's van dode, aangespoelde kinderen die de spreekwoordelijke druppel waren. Foto's die nooit gemaakt hadden moeten worden.
Ik kreeg ze te zien terwijl ik mezelf net wou trakteren op een cameratas van een paar honderd euro. Ik heb diezelfde dag nog dat geld aan Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen overgemaakt. Deze erkende NGO zorgt niet alleen voor eerstelijns-hulp maar timmert ook hard aan de broodnodige maatschappelijke bewustwording en integratie. Die tas loopt niet weg.
Ik vroeg me af of ik nog iets kon doen. Helaas... vraag dat gerust na bij Mrs. MoreThanWords: ik kan bijzonder weinig waar de gemiddelde vluchteling beter van wordt: ik kan niet timmeren zonder eigen en andermans lijf en leden in gevaar te brengen, mijn kookkunsten vallen onder de categorie 'misdaden tegen de menselijkheid' en in een tent die ik rechtgezet heb, kan niemand veilig een nacht doorbrengen. Ik kan eigenlijk maar één ding redelijk goed... en dat is Lightroom les geven!
Lightroom for Life
Daarom: Lightroom for Life, een speciale Lightroom Masterclass van een halve dag waarvan de opbrengst integraal naar Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen gaat. Ik zal live foto's bewerken en je nuttige tips en tricks verklappen, zodat je heel wat bij zal leren over Adobe Lightroom's Ontwikkel (Develop) module. Er zal gespeeld worden met kleureffecten, gecropt en er zullen virtuele kopieën gemaakt worden dat het een lieve lust is. We vliegen ook heen en weer naar Photoshop en af en toe stoeien we wat met plug-ins. Op drie uur tijd kan je een pak bijleren, of je nu beginner of al wat meer gevorderd bent. Een laptop hoef je niet mee te brengen: alles wordt op een groot scherm geprojecteerd.
Waar en wanneer gaat Lightroom for Life door?
Lightroom for Life gaat door op zondag 18 oktober in Bedrijvencentrum de Punt in de Kerkstraat 8 te Gentbrugge, vlak bij Gent. Omdat de voormiddagsessie al op één dag vol zat, is er een namiddagsessie ingelast: deze gaat door van 14u tot 17u30. Het inschrijvingsformulier hieronder is voor de namiddagsessie. De gastvrije mensen van De Punt ontvangen ons gratis in een warme zaal en verwelkomen ons met dampende koffie, een beetje zoals Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen doet. Dankzij de sponsoring van De Punt kan elke euro integraal naar het goede doel gaan. Er is ook volop (gratis) parking beschikbaar.
Wat kost het ?
Normaal kost een MoreThanWords Lightroom-cursus van een halve dag 89€. Nu mag je gratis binnen... als je 50€ overmaakt aan Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen - meer mag natuurlijk ook!
Door zelf rechtstreeks over te schrijven naar Vluchtelingenwerk krijg je bovendien een fiscaal attest. Zo kost je storting je netto minder dan 30€. Stort je 100€, dan betaal je netto slechts 55€, enzoverder. Ook ben je op die manier zeker dat ik het geld niet in mijn eigen zak stop, want die cameratas was écht wel mooi.
Maar bovenal krijg je het warme gevoel dat je iets kan doen voor mensen in nood en dat... is onbetaalbaar.
'Count me in. Hoe gaat het praktisch?'
Je plaatsje veilig stellen voor deze unieke workshop gebeurt in drie eenvoudige stappen. Let wel: het gaat hier om de namiddagsessie (14u - 17u30); de voormiddagsessie zit vol!
UPDATE:
ZOWEL DE VOORMIDDAG- ALS DE NAMIDDAGSESSIE ZITTEN VOORLOPIG VOL, IN AFWACHTING DAT IK ALLE STORTINGSBEVESTIGINGEN BINNEN KRIJG. GELIEVE VOORLOPIG NIET MEER IN TE SCHRIJVEN. INDIEN ER EXTRA PLAATSEN VRIJKOMEN, LEES JE HET HIER.
1) Vul het formulier hieronder in
Vul het formulier hieronder in en klik op de 'Ja, ik kom naar Lightroom for Life'-knop. Je plaatsje wordt dan gedurende een week gereserveerd.
2) Doe je storting van 50€ (of meer)
Het makkelijkste doe je dat rechtstreeks op de site van Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen via deze link. Je krijgt dan dit scherm te zien waar je rechtstreeks het bedrag van je keuze (minimum 50 €) kan betalen. Voor de duidelijkheid: doe in de rubriek 'Mijn gegevens' de storting in je eigen naam, niet in de mijne, anders klopt je attest niet! Vul ook je eigen adres- en emailgegevens in.
Indien je één van de betaal-opties rechtsonder gebruikt (Belfius Direct Net, ING HomePay, KBC Online), stuurt Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen je onmiddellijk per email een bevestiging van je storting. Indien je de optie rechtsboven gebruikt, krijg je op je scherm een bevestiging van je betaling, maar geen email. Maak in dat geval een print-screen van dat scherm (of van het rekeninguittreksel in je home-banking applicatie). Als je niet weet hoe je je een screenshot maakt, vind je hier de instructies.
3) Forward de bevestigingsemail of de screenshot
Stuur de bevestigingsmail die je van Vluchtelingenwerk ontvangt of de schermafdruk die je gemaakt hebt, door naar info-apestaartje-morethanwords-puntje-be. Je inschrijving is dan bevestigd! Gebruik liefst hetzelfde email adres als hetgene dat je gebruikte in stap 1 en stap 2. Dat maakt de follow-up makkelijker.
Tot op 18 oktober!
Ik hoop dat je erbij kan zijn op 18 oktober. Werken in Lightroom is sowieso al plezierig, maar op 18 oktober krijgt het een extra dimensie. Heb je vrienden die in fotografie of Lightroom geïnteresseerd zijn? Nodig ze dan uit door hen de link naar deze blogpost te sturen. Delen op Facebook mag natuurlijk ook. De vergaderzalen van De Punt zijn groot genoeg!
Chances are that by the end of this week, your inbox will be overflowing with emails about the 5 Day Deal. Even more, I'll put in my own two cents through my mailing list, Facebook and Twitter. The reason is that if you're reading this blog, you're interested in photography education in general and in postprocessing in particular. And that's what the 5 Day Deal has to offer. In spades. It's an unmissable opportunity to learn a lot about photography and image editing for relatively little money. Oh, and in the mean time, you get to do some charity as well. Where's the catch? There isn't. Other than you'll be needing a good internet connection to download all the stuff!
What is the 5 Day Deal?
The 5 Day Deal is a bundle of photography-related training videos, eBooks, Lightroom presets, Photoshop actions and the like. These are offered at a bundle-price of $127 (+ VAT for Europeans, if you have a valid VAT-number, you can order VAT-free). So far the 'Deal'-part. The '5 Day' part means the Deal is only valid for five days: from now until September 15th.
All the instructors are big names in their field so this bundle really is 'All Killer, No Filler'. To name but a few of the 20 photographers and retouchers: Lindsay Adler and Jeremy Cowart (portrait photography), Zack Arias (flash photography) and Serge Ramelli (French Lightroom-instructor, who's worth checking out if only for his super-enthusiast French accent. It's like being taught Lightroom by 'Inspector Clouseau'!) And let's not forget Joel Grimes (flash photography and compositing in Photoshop). Even yours truly is featured in the list!
Lindsay Adler's excellent course is but one of over 40 training resources in this bundle.
When purchased separately, the total bill of these resources would amount to over $3300. Now, they can be yours for less than 5 percent of that price. Or a discount of over 95 percent! Even if you're only interested in half of this bundle's content, the 5 Day Deal is a great deal to fill your iPad with training and reading material for the coming winter. Some of the over 40 training titles separately cost more than the entire bundle.
And, as the proverbial cherry on the pie, a part of the sale goes to charity! More on that later.
Yes but is there also something interesting for me?
Of course, I cannot decide for you, but I've already had a sneek peak and below is my personal, highly subjective top-10.
Zack Arias - On Assignment - The Art of the Editorial Flash expert, Fujifilm user and all-round nice guy Zack Arias takes you behind the scenes of a couple of commercial editorial shoots. You can see how Zack tackles challenges and makes the best of a situation and an environment and turns these into really nice portraits. On top of that, this tutorial is brand new! What can I say? I love Zack!
Joel Grimes - Start To Finish Tutorials Joel Grimes is a US commercial photographer with a signature (and oft-copied) style. He's also known for his compositing work. The 5 Day Deal brings you two of his training videos.
Jimmy McIntyre - Art of Digital Blending This Photoshop training teaches you all about advanced Photoshop selections and masks and introduces you to the concept of Luminosity Masking. Recommended!
Lindsay Adler - 5 Creative Studio Lighting Setups Famous New York portrait photographer Lindsay Adler shows us 5 easy yet powerful lighting setups.
Klaus Hermann Lightroom Preset Power Pack The previous 5 Day Deal had Klaus Hermann's Mask it like a Pro video training which I really liked. Now, Klaus is back with a Lightroom preset pack and a 100+ page eBook that covers all you could possibly want to know about Lightroom presets. He not only covers Develop presets (the most popular category) but also metadata presets, tool presets and so on. German thoroughness or 'Deutsche Gründlichkeit', as they say in Germany.
Lightroom for Landscapes We stay in Lightroom-territory (litterally) with this Lightroom training designed specifically for landscape photographers. It covers everything from import over editing to exporting your images. Another training that by itself costs more than the entire bundle.
James Brandon: POST Video Tutorial Photoshop wizard and acclaimed landscape photographer James Brandon shows us how he processes his images with Photoshop and he throws in a bunch of Lightroom presets just for fun!
The Art of Sculpting Splashes by Alex Koloskov This is the beauty of the 5 Day Deal: the subject of this video training interests me, but I would have a hard time paying the normal $250 price tag. Now, I don't have to: I can get this training for almost half of its suggested retail price and get dozens of other books, presets and training videos in the process!
Serge Ramelli - Lightroom CC Complete Training If you think I'm sometimes overdoing it in my Lightroom edits, wait until you see what 'PhotoSerge' does with his raw files! Personally, I find his training to be very entertaining, if only for the funny Franglais.
The Created Image Series Volume 2 Last but not least this one: the video recording of last year's Created Image Seminar in Vancouver, Canada. Great motivational keynotes by David duChemin and three super-interesting lectures by Steve Simon, known for his 'The Passionate Photographer' book.
The total value of this top-ten alone is over $1.100. And there's more, depending on your interests: a newborn photography video tutorial, Photoshop skin softening actions, a Wedding Photography Planner Guide, it just goes on and on. In fact, you can find the full list of all included resources here.
Oh, and lest I forget, you also get Clarity by Topaz Labs, a fully functional Lightroom and Photoshop plugin that is like Lightroom's Clarity slider on steroids.
The full list of all the 5 Day Deal goodies.
I am proud to be featured in The Created Image video series, which is just one of the over 40 training resources. I talk about speeding up your Lightroom workflow, Dodging and Burning and Black and White conversion. The entire 5 Day Deal bundle contains 70+ hours of video, 10+ eBooks and hundreds of Photoshop Actions and Lightroom presets.
The funny thing is that even yours truly is - indirectly - represented in the 5 Day Deal: in the Created Image Video Tutorial I mentioned earlier, you'll find three sessions in which I talk about Lightroom efficiency, Black and White and Dodging & Burning.
If you need an extra push, you can always ease your conscience (or your partner) with the knowledge that 10 percent (i.e. almost $13) of every bundle sold goes to the four charities the 5 Day Deal team picked. Even more, you can opt to double that amount upon checkout and you get to choose the charity of your liking, too.
You can choose to which of these 4 charities your 10 percent goes. By default, they all get 2.5 percent. Or, if you think the 5 Day Deal's actually too cheap, you can double the amount that goes to charity, too!
Last year's 5 Day Deal gathered a whopping $200.000+ for these charities and this time they're aiming at breaking the $300.000 mark.
All 4 charities look great, but I have a soft spot for the BOMA project, if only because my good friend David duChemin already did some pro bono work for them: if it's good enough for him, it's good enough for me! Boma helps very poor women in rural African areas to the financial means to start small projects.
Disclaimer: if you purchase the 5 Day Deal bundle through the links on this page, MoreThanWords receives an affiliate commission (which cost you nothing extra, by the way). However, this does not influence my opinion about this bundle: on my blog, I only recommend things I find worthwhile. For instance, a while back, there was another bundle which I decided not to recommend because I knew this one was coming and I liked it better.
De kans is groot dat je deze week rond de oren geslagen wordt met reclame voor de 5 Day Deal. Meer nog, ik zal flink mee doen op deze blog, Facebook en Twitter! De 5 Day Deal is namelijk een niet te missen opportuniteit om voor relatief weinig geld veel bij te leren over fotografie en beeldbewerking, en en passant nog een goed doel te steunen.
Wat is de 5 Day Deal?
De 5 Day Deal is een bundel van fotografie-gerelateerde trainingsvideo’s, eBooks, Lightroom presets, Photoshop actions en meer van dat fraais. Deze worden uitzonderlijk samen aangeboden aan een prijs van $127 (+ BTW voor Europeanen, tenzij je een BTW-nummer hebt). Dat is het 'Deal'-gedeelte. De '5 Day' in de naam slaat op het feit dat de deal maar 5 dagen geldig is: vanaf nu tot 15 september. Alle instructeurs zijn grote namen in hun vakgebied. Geen rommel, dus. Of, zoals de Amerikanen het zeggen: 'All Killer, No Filler'. Om er een paar te noemen: Lindsay Adler en Jeremy Cowart (portretfotografie), Zack Arias (flitsfotografie), Serge Ramelli (Franstalige Lightroom-instructeur, alleen al voor zijn overenthousiaste Engelse accent het beluisteren waard) en Joel Grimes (flitsen en compositing in Photoshop). Zelfs ondergetekende komt - via een omwegje - voor in de lijst!
Mocht je alle cursussen apart kopen, dan betaal je meer dan $3300. Nu betaal je minder dan 5 procent van die prijs, of een korting van meer dan 95 procent. De nuchtere Vlaming of Hollander in jou denkt nu 'Ik zou dat allemaal apart nooit kopen' maar zelfs al vind je maar de helft of een kwart de moeite waard, dan nog is de 5 Day Deal een niet te missen buitenkans, waar je tijdens de wintermaanden een lekkere kluif zal aan hebben. Sommige van de meer dan veertig trainingstitels, zoals Advanced Splash Photography kosten apart meer dan de volledige bundel.
En, als kers op de taart gaat er nog een deel van de opbrengst naar het goede doel. Meer daarover verder.
Ja maar, zit er ook iets interessants bij voor mij?
Ik kan natuurlijk niet beslissen in jouw plaats, maar ik heb de bundel al op voorhand kunnen inkijken en hieronder vind je mijn hoogstpersoonlijke top-10.
Zack Arias: On Assignment - The Art of the Editorial Flitsexpert, Fuji-gebruiker en all-round toffe peer Zack Arias neemt je mee achter de schermen van een paar commerciële ‘editorial’ photo shoots. Je ziet Zack afzien en af en toe uit de bocht gaan en toch mogen de resultaten er telkens zijn. What can I say. I love Zach!
Joel Grimes - Start To Finish Tutorials Joel Grimes is een Amerikaanse commerciële fotograaf met een heel eigen stijl. Hij staat ook bekend voor zijn compositing-werk. In de 5 Day Deal vind je twee van zijn video’s.
Jimmy McIntyre - Art of Digital Blending In deze Photoshop video-training leer je alles over het maken van geavanceerde maskers (zogenaamde luminantiemaskers) die je de ultieme controle geven voor het lokaal bewerken van je foto’s. Bekeken en goed bevonden!
Lindsay Adler - 5 Creative Studio Lighting Setups Indien je de introductiecursus studiofotografie van Frederik Herregods kon smaken die we net op Photofacts Academy online gezet hebben, dan is deze tutorial-reeks zeker ook iets voor jou!
Klaus Hermann Lightroom Preset Power Pack Van Klaus Hermann zat in de vorige 5 Day Deal al het uitstekende Mask it Like a Pro (over Photoshop-selecties). In deze editie zit een preset-bundel en een super-grondig eBook van meer dan 100 bladzijden dat volledig over Lightroom-presets gaat. Deutsche Gründlichkeit, noemen ze dat!
Lightroom for Landscapes We blijven bij Lightroom met, zoals de naam het aangeeft, een Lightroom-training specifiek voor landschapsfotografen.
James Brandon: POST Video Tutorial Voor de verstokte Photoshoppers onder ons toont Photoshop-wizard en landschapsfotograaf James Brandon je hoe hij zijn landschappen nabewerkt met Photoshop. Je krijgt ook een set met zijn Lightroom-presets.
Advanced Splash Photography door Alex Koloskov Een geavanceerde workshop flitsfotografie. Alleen deze video-cursus kost al $250. En dat is het mooie aan de 5 Day Deal. Nu kost hij iets meer dan de helft en je krijgt er nog tientallen andere boeken en video-trainingen bij!
Serge Ramelli - Lightroom CC Complete Training Wie vindt dat mijn bewerkingen er soms al over zijn, blijft best uit de buurt van deze video-training maar persoonlijk vind ik de cursussen van PhotoSerge heel entertainend, al was het maar om zijn grappige Franglais.
The Created Image Series Volume 2 Last but not least nog deze: het video-verslag van het Created Image Seminar vorig jaar in Vancouver. Mooie motivational keynotes van David duChemin en een paar heel interessante lezingen van Steve Simon, ondermeer bekend van zijn boek ‘The Passionate Photographer’.
De totale waarde van deze top-tien alleen ligt al boven de duizend dollar. En er is nog veel meer, zoals tutorials over newborn-fotografie, Photoshop-actions om huid te verzachten, een Wedding Photography Planner gids en ga zo maar door... ik heb hierboven enkel de dingen opgelijst die mij het meest interesseren. De volledige lijst vind je hier.
Oh ja, en voor ik het vergeet, je krijgt ook nog eens een volledige Lightroom en Photoshop-plug-in cadeau: Clarity van Topaz Labs! Als je van de Clarity-regelaar in Lightroom houdt, dan is deze plug-in iets voor jou!
Dit is de volledige lijst van alle trainingmateriaal, actions en presets in de bundel!
Yours truly is ook van de partij in de Five Day Deal bundel, met drie video-tutorials in de 'Created Image Series' over Lighthroom-tips en Zwart-Wit in Lightroom en Photoshop.
Het grappige is overigens dat ik onrechtstreeks zelf ook vertegenwoordigd ben in de 5 Day Deal: ik was namelijk vorig jaar de derde gastspreker op het Created Image Seminar in Vancouver (nummer tien in de lijst hierboven). Ik gaf er ondermeer lezingen over hoe je Lightroom workflow te versnellen en Dodging & Burning in Lightroom en Photoshop.
En het goede doel?
Als je nog een extra duwtje in de rug nodig hebt: je kan altijd je geweten (of je partner) sussen met de wetenschap dat 10 procent (dus ongeveer 11 €) van elke bundel naar het goede doel gaat. Meer nog, je kan tijdens het betalen zélf je goede doel kiezen uit vier opties en je kan die tien procent te verdubbelen. De vorige 5 Day Deal heeft zo in totaal $200.000 aan fondsen ingezameld en dit jaar willen ze daar nog de helft bij doen!
Persoonlijk heb ik het nogal voor het Boma Project, al was het maar omdat mijn goede vriend David duChemin, tevens uitgever van al mijn Engelse eBooks en presets, al pro bono werk voor hen gedaan heeft. Boma helpt heel arme, alleenstaande vrouwen in rurale gebieden in Afrika aan financiële middelen om kleinschalige projecten uit te voeren. If it’s good enough for David, it’s good enough for me!
Disclaimer: indien je via de links op deze pagina de 5 Day Deal bundel aanschaft, ontvangt MoreThanWords een affiliate-vergoeding (die jou overigens niets extra kost). Die vergoeding beïnvloedt echter niet mijn mening over deze bundel: ik raad namelijk - vergoeding of niet -op deze blog alleen dingen aan die ik de moeite vind. Zo was er enige tijd geleden een andere bundel waar ik fijntjes over gezwegen heb, omdat ik hem niet zo goed vond als deze 5 Day Deal waarvan ik wist dat hij er aan zat te komen.
If you follow this blog or if you've read some of my eBooks, you know I love working with plug-ins. For example, for film simulation I really like Alien Skin's Exposure. For local edits like dodging and burning, I like the Control Point technology found in Viveza by Nik Software. In this video, I'll show you a way to combine the best of both worlds, all while keeping your effects completely re-editable.
Now that is one cool workflow, isn't it? I actually forgot to mention yet another advantage of the Smart Filter workflow in the video: if you double-click on the icon in yellow (see screenshot below), you enter the Smart Filter's Blending Options. In that dialog box, you can not only change the Blending Mode for extra effect, but you can also reduce the Opacity to globally scale back the effect of the plug-in without having to dial back all of the individual sliders!
I hope you learned something from this 12 minute video. If you did, imagine what you could take away from 70+ hours of video tutorials (and over 10 eBooks, and hundreds of Lightroom presets): for only a couple of more days, you can take advantage of the 5 Day Deal, a unique bundle of photography training resources (including some 5 hours of video training by yours truly) that normally retails for over $3.300, but that can now be purchased for only $127! With 39 top-notch instructors like Zack Arias, David duChemin, Lindsay Adler and Joel Grimes and one über-geeky Belgian-with-a-strange-accent (that would be me) you're bound to learn a ton!
You can grab that bundle here and you're not only doing yourself and your photography a favour: 10 percent goes to charity. Last year's 5 Day Deal raised over $200.000 this way!
Zoals je in deze blogpost al kon lezen, loopt nog tot morgenavond (dinsdag 15 september) 21 u onze tijd de 5 Day Deal. Een unieke bundel van (Engelstalige) fotografische training content. Mocht je alles apart kopen, dan was je meer dan $3.300 + BTW kwijt. Nu betaal je slechts $127 (+ BTW). De bundel bevat in totaal 70 uur video-training, meer dan 10 eBooks en honderden Lightroom presets en Photoshop actions. In totaal meer dan 30 gigabyte aan materiaal!
Van de 70 uur video-training in de 5 Day Deal bundel is er ongeveer 4 uur door yours truly!
Als nuchtere Vlaming - of nog meer nuchtere Nederlander - vraag je je natuurlijk af of die bundel wel écht de moeite is. Is ie $3.300 waard? Misschien niet: er zit altijd wel iets in wat achteraf je ding niet blijkt te zijn. Maar de échte vraag is: 'Is ie meer dan $127 waard?' En het antwoord daarop is absoluut 'Ja': deze bundel zal meer doen voor je fotografie en beeldbewerking dan een nieuwe cameratas of een paar UV-filters.
Al ben ik natuurlijk - een beetje - bevooroordeeld: van die 70 uur neem ik namelijk zelf 4 uur voor mijn rekening. In 'The Created Image, Vol II' heb ik het in mijn mooiste Engels over Zwart-Wit in Lightroom en Photoshop (handig wanneer je de live workshop niet kan volgen), over Doordrukken en Tegenhouden in Lightroom en Photoshop en over tips om vlotter met Lightroom te werken.
Om het je nog makkelijker te maken of de bundel iets voor jou is, heb ik hem hieronder even opgesplitst naargelang mogelijke interesse-gebieden: beeldbewerking, portret- of landschapsfotografie. Je zal merken dat indien je in een van de drie geïnteresseerd bent, de bundel al ruim de moeite loont. Ben je in meerdere topics geïnteresseerd, dan zeker!
1. Je bent vooral geïnteresseerd in beeldbewerking
De totale waarde van de aangestreepte onderdelen alleen is $1240,98. Je krijgt het ganse pakket voor ongeveer een tiende van de prijs.
2. Je bent vooral geïnteresseerd in het maken van portretten en het fotograferen van mensen, al dan niet met flitslicht
De totale waarde van de aangestreepte onderdelen is 1557 USD. Je krijgt het volledige pakket voor minder dan een tiende van de prijs. Zelf bekeek ik al Lindsay Adler's cursus en die van Zack Arias (samen al meer dan $275) en ik vond beiden heel boeiend.
De totale waarde van de aangestreepte onderdelen is $967,95. Ook hier nog steeds een uitstekende zaak. Zelf bekeek ik al 'The Art of Digital Blending' over het werken met luminantiemaskers en dat was alvast een heel interessante cursus.
Mocht je nog twijfelen, dan vind je hieronder nog 5 extra argumenten:
Deze vorm van leren is, samen met mijn Nederlandse training website Photofacts Academy, een van de goedkoopste manieren om je fotografie-kennis bij te spijkeren op je eigen tempo, waar en wanneer je dat wil. Hier krijg je 70 uur video-tutorials voor omgerekend ongeveer zo'n $2 per uur. De eBooks en presets krijg je er nog eens bij.
Een groot deel van het materiaal van de 5 Day Deal bundel is nieuw en als het niet nieuw is, is het alvast nog nooit in een andere bundel aangeboden.
Ben je meer geïnteresseerd in de business-kant van fotografie, dan vind je in de bundel ook een training van marketing-expert en fotograaf Dave Seeram over online marketing voor fotografen die alleen al meer kost dan de bundel. Ook vind je een cursus SEO optimalisatie van Dan Carr.
De bundel verdwijnt onherroepelijk op 15 september, 21 u onze tijd.
10 procent van de volledige omzet gaat naar het goede doel. Momenteel werd al meer dan $100.000 opgehaald.
Adobe heeft zonet op de AdobeMAX conferentie heel wat Lightroom-gerelateerd nieuws gereleased:
een nieuwe update van Lightroom Desktop
een nieuwe versie (1.3) van Lightroom mobile for Android
een nieuwe versie (2.0) van Lightroom mobile for iOS
een nieuwe versie van Lightroom Web
Voor je enthousiast aan het updaten slaat, wil je misschien toch eerst even de volgende paragrafen er op nalezen. Er komen immers niet alleen dingen bij, maar er zijn ook nogal wat features gesneuveld met de bedoeling het pakket gebruiksvriendelijker te maken.
Dehaze (Nevel verwijderen) is nu ook beschikbaar als een lokale aanpassing.
Lokaal Nevel verwijderen
De nieuwe update brengt, naast de gebruikelijke ondersteuning voor nieuwe camera's (DxO One, Leica S, Olympus E-M10 Mark II, Sony A7SMII) en een resem nieuwe leesprofielen, ook twee nieuwe features. Ten eerste is er nu de mogelijkheid om Dehaze (Nevel verwijderen) lokaal toe te passen in het Verloopfilter, het Aanpassingspenseel en het Radiale Filter. Zonder meer een mooie nieuwigheid die wel enkel toegankelijk is voor wie Lightroom als een abonnement heeft. Heb je de kooplicentie, dan leer je in deze video hoe je alvast de globale Nevel verwijderen functie kan gebruiken via een gratis setje presets dat ik gemaakt heb.
Houd er rekening mee dat je Lightroom nu eerst moet verwijderen met de uninstaller vooraleer je de nieuwe versie installeert (ook op Mac)! Dat verwijderen heeft overigens geen invloed op je Lightroom catalogus zelf!
Het nieuwe importdialoogvenster
Uit ervaring weet ik dat nogal wat beginnende Lightroom gebruikers struikelen over de importprocedure. Ik spendeer dan ook heel wat tijd in mijn boeken en video's om het importeren goed uit te leggen. In de nieuwe 'Lightroom in 90 minuten' video-reeks, die later deze week live gaat op Photofacts Academy, hecht ik daar ook veel belang aan.
Het nieuwe 'Add Photos' scherm moet het makkelijker maken om foto's terug te vinden om te importeren. Het scant je schijf naar mogelijke fotobestanden. Zelf ben ik er niet zo'n fan van en bovendien kan het op sommige systemen voor een onstabielere en/of tragere Lightroom zorgen. Gelukkig kan je het scherm uitzetten in de Lightroom voorkeuren.
Logisch dus dat Adobe het importeren zo eenvoudig mogelijk wil houden en daarom hebben ze het importdialoogvenster vereenvoudigd. Hieronder vind je een video over hoe het nu werkt.
Zoals ik in de video al aangaf, zijn echter nogal wat gevorderde features gesneuveld:
Het nieuwe importdialoogvenster is heel sober (misschien zelfs té sober) gehouden: normaal zie je enkel de foto's en de blauwe import-knop. Om de import-bronnen te tonen, klik je op (1). Alle min of meer geavanceerde opties zitten verborgen achter het tandwiel-icoontje (2) en de Geavanceerd (3) knop. Tenminste, de geavanceerde opties die nog overblijven want zoals je verder kan lezen, sneuvelden nogal wat opties.
de optie Verplaatsen (Move) is niet langer beschikbaar;
de optie om je geheugenkaart veilig te verwijderen na het importeren is verdwenen;
de voorvertoning (in italics en met een plustekentje voor de nieuwe mappen) die je een preview gaf van waar de foto's gingen geïmporteerd worden, is verdwenen, wat betekent dat je meer kans hebt dat je op een foute manier importeert;
vroeger kon je de optie om te checken op duplicaten tijdens het importeren uitzetten, zodat je desgewenst doelbewust toch duplicaten van foto's kon importeren. Dat kan nu niet langer. Op zich geen slechte zaak voor beginners, maar wel voor gevorderde gebruikers die dit soms nodig hadden;
er is nog wel een raster en een loepweergave, maar je kan niet meer zoomen;
de te importeren foto's krijgen een donkere waas over zich, precies het tegengestelde van vroeger (waar de niet-geïmporteerde foto's donker weergegeven werden);
de bestandsnaam van de te importeren foto's is niet zomaar zichtbaar: je moet met de muis over de foto hangen om hem te zien te krijgen;
de mogelijkheid om te importeren foto's te groeperen volgens doelmappen (bv. op datum) is eveneens verdwenen;
je kan nog wel de naam van een foto veranderen, maar je hebt geen voorvertoning meer van hoe het er uit zal zien.
Zoals je ziet best wel een indrukwekkende lijst aan zaken die verdwenen zijn.
Indien je (een van) deze features vaak gebruikt, zal je misschien even de kat uit de boom willen kijken vooraleer up te daten.
Zelf heb ik bovendien op mijn Mac wat stabiliteitsproblemen ondervonden met de nieuwe versie. Die verbeterden weliswaar toen ik het nieuwe Add Photos scherm uitzette in de Lightroom voorkeuren.
Normaal ben ik de eerste om Lightroom updates enthousiast te omarmen, maar zoals je merkt, ben ik in dit geval toch wel wat meer gereserveerd en zou ik je enkel aanraden om up te graden indien je echt de nieuwe features of camera-ondersteuning nodig hebt.
Indien je toch de upgrade doet, en je zou problemen ondervinden (of terug willen naar het oude importdialoogvenster), dan kan je op de site van Prodesigntools.com de vorige versie (6.1.1) terug downloaden (Mac link / Windows link). Ook hier geldt dat je dan eerst de laatste versie moet desinstalleren met de uninstaller.
Lightroom mobile is nu gratis!
Zowel de iOS als de Android versie van Lightroom mobile kregen ook een update, maar het belangrijkste nieuws is waarschijnlijk dat beide Apps nu gratis zijn en je niet langer een CC abonnement nodig hebt om ze te gebruiken. Je kan Lightroom mobile dus nu gewoon gebruiken om je foto's op je mobieltje te bewerken en te delen op Social Media.
Echter, als je je bewerkingen en je foto's ook wil synchroniseren met Lightroom op je desktop of laptop, heb je nog steeds de Creative Cloud versie van Lightroom nodig.
Nieuwe features in Lightroom mobile 2.0 voor iOS
Er zit nu een camera ingebouwd in Lightroom mobile. Dat is natuurlijk logisch gezien de nieuwe politiek waarbij de App gratis en onbeperkt gebruikt kan worden (zolang je niet wil synchroniseren met Lightroom op de Desktop).
Klikken op het diafragma-icoontje links onderaan opent toegang tot de meer geavanceerde instellingen: Dehaze, Vignettering, de Kleurtintcurve en het HSL en B/W paneel.
Dehaze (Nevel verwijderen) is beschikbaar op iOS.
Samenwerking tussen Lightroom mobile en het nieuwe Photoshop Fix.
Volledige controle over je kleuren en je zwart-wit foto's: zowel het HSL paneel als het BW paneel zijn nu ook ingebouwd in Lightroom mobile voor iOS.
Integratie tussen Lightroom mobile en het nieuwe Premiere Clip: een storytelling-App.
Vernieuwd Collections-overzicht.
Het startscherm werd overzichtelijker gemaakt. Rechts onderaan vind je ook de knop waarmee je de nieuwe Lightroom Camera activeert!
Nieuwe features in Lightroom mobile 1.3 (Android)
Lightroom mobile voor Android loopt typisch wat achter op iOS. De meeste nieuwigheden hier zaten dan ook al in een vorige versie van Lightroom mobile.
Volledige controle over je kleuren en je zwart-wit foto's: zowel het HSL paneel als het BW paneel zijn nu ook ingebouwd in Lightroom mobile voor Android.
Kleurtintcurve.
Vignetten.
Uitsnede-gereedschap
Vernieuwd Collections-overzicht.
Ondersteuning voor TIFF bestanden.
Lightroom Web
Het startscherm van Lightroom Web
Het mag je misschien ontgaan zijn, maar behalve Lightroom mobile is er nog een andere mogelijkheid om mobiel met Lightroom te werken: Lightroom Web of afgekort LrW. LrW was tot voor kort vooral een tool om anderen je gesynchroniseerde verzamelingen te tonen zonder dat die daar Lightroom mobile voor nodig hadden. Maar met de nieuwe features kan je nu ook je foto's bewerken in een browser. Als je dit wil proberen, raad ik je Google Chrome aan: Safari was namelijk niet van de snelste. Persoonlijk verkies ik nog altijd om mijn Catalogus op een externe SSD te zetten en met Lightroom op mijn desktop of laptop te werken. LrW laat je vanaf nu dus ook toe om via een browser je foto's te bewerken (op voorwaarde dat je ze eerste gesynchroniseerd hebt met de Lightroom Cloud).
Mocht je de onverklaarbare drang voelen om je foto' s te bewerken in een internet-browser, dan kan dat nu. Houd er wel rekening mee dat de schuifregelaars niet zo vlot updaten als op de desktop-versie.
If you love Lightroom presets as much as I do, you may already have experienced situations where a preset is just a tad too strong, or - the less likely scenario - not strong enough for your taste. Instead of trying to manually tweak all the preset's settings, there's a cool little plug-in that does the work for you.
It's called The Fader and it's available here. Best of all, until the end of this month (October), it's half price, only $5. The video below shows you how to install and use it.
If you're interested in my Colour Grading or Black & White Lightroom presets, you can find those here. They're also available as a bundle with a 25 pct discount!
As a photographer, you can never have enough storage space. Especially if you’re of the traveling kind and your laptop’s internal hard drive is limited.
I already reported about one of my favorite external drives for traveling, the WD My Passport Pro (review here).
Now a while back, WD introduced a new portable drive, the My Passport Ultra. There is also a Mac version of this drive, the My Passport for Mac. Except for the name, both are identical, it’s just that one is pre-formatted for Windows and the other is pre-formatted for Mac. The review copy WD sent me was an Ultra. As I use a Mac, I changed the formatting to HFS+. Easy enough.
75000 raw files on a pack of cigarettes
The My Passport Pro is available in four colours. If you use more than one (e.g. one for data and one for backup), choosing different colours can help you tell the drives apart.
Compared to the My Passport Pro with its built in dual drives and raid system, the My Passport Ultra technically is a lot simpler: inside is a typical 2.5 inch laptop drive (you have a choice between 0.5, 1, 2 and 3 TB). At 5400 rpm, the drive itself is no faster or slower than the majority of other small external drives. The interface is USB 3 (backwards compatible with USB 2). What really sets this drive apart is its size and weight, or rather lack thereof: the 3TB version I tested weighs less than 250 grams (0.5 pounds) and at 21 x 81 x 110 mm (0.83 x 3.21 x 4.33 inches) it is not much bigger than a pack of cigarettes. At an average of 40 Mb per raw file, this means it can contain 75000 raw photos. Seventy Five Thousand! On a drive that fits in a shirt pocket! There won't be any more room for those cigarettes then, but they're bad for your health anyway. The beauty is that it’s USB powered, so no need to lug around a power supply that sometimes weighs more than the actual drive.
Possible uses
As you know from this post, I use a separate SSD drive to store my Lightroom catalog on. But SSD memory is far too expensive and limited to store your actual images on. And that's where this My Passport Ultra comes in. There are a couple of ways to include the Ultra in a portable Lightroom workflow:
If you are a high volume shooter, you can use it exclusively for image storage. As I mentioned, if you calculate at an average of 40 MB for a raw file, the drive will contain up to 75.000 of them. If you shoot JPEG only, you can easily multiply that by 5. Just make sure you make regular backups to another drive. You don't want to lose 75.000 images in one go! You could get another My Passport Ultra, obviously, but you could also opt for a cheaper, bigger external hard drive with a separate power supply which would cost about half. You would then leave the bulky backup drive at home (or in your hotel room) and take the My Passport Ultra with you when you go out the door. Never leave your backup drive and the drive with your originals together in your hotel room!
If you normally store your images on your internal harddrive, you could use the Ultra as a small and lightweight backup-only drive, although in that case, you probably don't need the 3 TB model!
Personally, I make a hybrid use of the drive: as I'm really paranoid about losing my images, especially while traveling, I import them to my My Passport Pro, which is set up in Raid 1. That means if one of both drives in the My Passport Pro fails, I still have my pictures. However, Raid 1 does not protect me from theft or fire or other damage, and that's where the My Passport Ultra comes in: I've split it into two partitions. One, 1 TB in size acts as a Time Machine backup for my MacBook Pro's internal 1 TB drive. The other, 2 TB in size acts as a backup for the My Passport Pro. I've attached some velcro to the back of the My Passport Ultra (and to the back of my laptop case) so I can easily attach the drive to my laptop when I'm working.
The My Passport Pro which I reviewed separately contains two drives. You can set these up in Raid 0 (they act like one big, faster drive but when one drive fails, all data is lost), Raid 1 (everything you write on one drive is automatically mirrored to the second) or JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) where they act as two different physical drives. The Pro has a Thunderbolt interface, which makes it more useful for Mac users than Windows users.
The above use cases are just examples. I'm sure you can come up with your own ideas on how to use 3 TB of storage!
Price
This drive exists in a 0.5, 1, 2 and 3 TB version. Personally, I don't know who would buy the 0.5 TB version unless you're a photographer with lots of self-restraint. The 3 TB version costs around € 200 / $ 200. You do pay a premium for the small form factor, but I find the price to be very reasonable, especially given its extreme portability.
My Passport Pro or My Passport Ultra?
The Pro and the Ultra are different drives for different needs. For me, the main advantage of the My Passport Pro lies in the fact that it saves to two drives automatically, offering an initial and automated backup. However, having said that, you still need a secondary backup of the data that's on a My Passport Pro. After all, the drive can get lost or stolen, too.
If you don't mind making your own backups (on my Macs, I use Shirtpocket's SuperDuper), for the price of one My Passport Pro 2+2 TB, you can buy two My Passport Ultra 3 TB drives, giving you more flexibility and more storage.
Conclusion
I like the My Passport Ultra a lot. It's so small and lightweight that you can bring it with you wherever you go. The only disadvantage I could come up with is that the drive's housing isn't shock-resistant or weather-sealed, which would undoubtedly have added to the weight, size and... price! Other than that, if you’re looking for a lot of storage in a light small, convenient package, then look no further. Especially for laptop users this USB-powered drive combines convenience with ample storage without adding much bulk. Just as always, make sure to back up your data. No drive, regardless of the manufacturer, is failsafe.
Craft & Vision, my English publisher, is having a massive Black Friday sale: all eBooks, video tutorials and presets are all 50 percent off. No complicated rules or discounts that only apply to the basement stuff. No, everything is half price, from the just-published and highly interesting eBook by Willem Wernsen, 'On Street Photography' to my very first 'The Power of Black and White in Adobe Lightroom and Beyond'.
And on top of that, 20 percent of all profits will go to the Red Cross. Lord knows the world needs some patching and mending!
Last time I counted, there were over 50 titles in the store, all reasonably priced even at full price so they're definitely a steal during this Black Friday sale. Below is a - highly subjective - selection. Be sure to check out the titles I don't mention here, too! The sale goes from now until Saturday, November 28th, 11.59m PM (PST)
On Street Photography
Dutch Willem Wernsen was a Street Photographer long before every bearded hipster with a second-hand Leica claimed to be one. In 'On Street Photography', Willem talks about his approach to street photography. There is some excellent advice and some equally excellent images from a career that spans decades.
Regular price is $15 + VAT, now only $7.50 + VAT
Piet Van den Eynde's Black & White Develop Presets
From Street Photography to Black and White presets: it's a small step. My Black and White preset bundle contains over 100 presets, ranging from 'One Click Effects' to 'Finishing Touches'. The bundle comes with nice extras: 4 video tutorials and a manual. Some would charge $20 just for those.
Regular price is $20 + VAT, now only $10 + VAT
PHOTOGRAPH 09, Black & White Special
And while we're (still) on the subject of Black and White: issue 9 of Craft & Vision's bi-monthly magazine is a special edition dedicated to B+W. There are really stunning portfolios and interviews with some of the best black and white photographers out there. I really loved the work of Julia Anna Gospodarou.
Regular price: $8 + VAT, now only $4 + VAT
PHOTOGRAPH bundle
PHOTOGRAPH is a highly addictive magazine, so if you buy one, you're going to want to buy more. So, why not just treat yourself to the bundle of 12 issues. This bundle is already 25 percent off of the regular price and the Black Friday special brings it down to only $36 + VAT. There's some 2.000 ad-free pages of beautiful photos, interviews and tutorials, including 12 before and afters by yours truly.
Regular Price $72 + VAT, now only $36 + VAT
Piet Van den Eynde's Colour Grading Presets
Ready for some more presets? This Lightroom preset bundle of 80 'One Click Presets' and dozens of 'Finishing Touches' presets comes bundled with a beautiful manual. I've let myself be inspired by the colour palette of contemporary movies and television series. These are the presets that I use myself on a daily basis. Here you can see a couple of before and afters.
Regular Price $20 + VAT, now only $10 + VAT
Shoot the Look video
In 'Shoot the Look', Vancouver based commercial photographer Dave Delnea shows you 5 lighting setups including the postprocessing. From a headshot over an environmental portrait to a moody fashion-shoot in the woods, complete with a fake (flash) flare. It's all there. As a nice extra, Dave also walks you through the postprocessing in Lightroom.
Regular Price: $40 + VAT, now only $20 + VAT
Making the Image
No list would be complete without an eBook by Craft & Vision's founder, David duChemin. In 'Making the Image' David asks the questions you should ask yourself before pushing the shutter button. I've reviewed the book here more thoroughly. What I especially like is the small companion PDF that is formatted for smartphones: the idea is that you just randomly pick a couple of questions before you take any image, and let these questions challenge you into getting a stronger photo. Highly recommended, especially for beginning photo enthusiasts and a nice recap for the veterans amongst us.
Het begint een traditie te worden dat de lezers van mijn Lightroom-boek de cover mee kunnen kiezen. Het boek heeft wat op zich laten wachten, maar ik beloof je dat je geduld beloond zal worden: het is compleet bijgewerkt en bevat nu nog meer van die handige tips & tricks en praktische cases die je van de vorige versies misschien al kent. Het boek zal ongeveer 400 pagina's dik zijn (al is een eBook natuurlijk altijd even slank) en er is bovendien een bijlage met 20 bonus-cases.
Nu de opmaak van Lightroom 6/CC ontmaskerd (eindelijk) zo goed als klaar is, zou ik graag weten welke van de zes onderstaande cover-ontwerpen jullie het beste vinden. Onder de stemmers worden 3 eBooks van Lightroom 6 Ontmaskerd verloot.
Je kan het PDF eBook ook nog steeds voor-bestellen voor 20€ in plaats van 25€: gebruik kortingscode PRELAUNCH bij het betalen. Blijk je er achteraf eentje gewonnen te hebben, dan krijg je je geld gewoon terug :-) Ik verwacht dat het eBook tweede helft van december helemaal klaar zal zijn.
Heb je liever de gedrukte versie, hou dan de blog en de nieuwsbrief (waarop je je in de rechterkolom kan abonneren) in het oog: die zal waarschijnlijk voor tweede helft januari zijn. De prijs daarvan zal vermoedelijk 39,90€ bedragen.
Om te stemmen laat je gewoon het nummer van de cover die je voorkeur wegdraagt na in de commentaren bij deze post. Klik op de miniaturen om ze groter te zien. In de finale versie van de cover zal het woord 'ontmaskerd' ook wat vetter komen te staan, omdat het nu moeilijk leesbaar is... Ik zoek de cover die een goeie mix is tussen mooi en commercieel... En dan nu... stemmen maar!
Bedankt allemaal voor het stemmen. Er zijn bijna 600 stemmen uitgebracht! Als iedereen die gestemd heeft nu ook het boek koopt, dan heb ik meteen een bestseller :-) Bedankt ook voor de vele positieve opmerkingen op de foto's en de uitgebreide motiveringen van jullie keuzes.
Uiteindelijk is Cover 2 het geworden met een neuslengte voorsprong op cover 4. Wat jullie vooral apprecieerden waren de kleuren, de compositie en de sluiers, die maken dat er nog een link in zit met de titel. Ik heb wel de cover nog wat aangepast: de rechtse vrouw keek een beetje boos en alhoewel sommigen dat een plus-punt vonden, heb ik liever een all happy cover. Dus heb ik haar vervangen door een vrolijker kijkende versie van haarzelf die ik een paar frames verder gemaakt had. Of... hoe de cover van een Lightroom-boek soms wat Photoshop nodig heeft!
Voor de gear-heads: de cover is gemaakt met de Fuji X-T1 en de haarscherpe 50-140 mm!
Stemmenverdeling
Volgende stemmers winnen een exemplaar van het eBook: Tim Delmoitie, Jo Vancraeynest en ene Ivo Raymaekers. Gelieve wel nog even jullie email-adres door te sturen. Voor wie niet gewonnen heeft: je kan het PDF eBook ook nog steeds voor-bestellen voor 20€ in plaats van 25€: gebruik kortingscode PRELAUNCH bij het betalen. Je krijgt dan alvast een download-link voor Lightroom 5 Ontmaskerd. De link voor Lightroom 6 Ontmaskerd wordt je dan doorgemaild van zodra het boek klaar is!
Yes, it’s the time of gift guide blog posts. So I thought I’d chime in and give you some gift ideas especially for those loved ones that use Fujifilm cameras, although some of these gifts are perfectly compatible with other camera brands. I’ve listed them by increasing price. I'm also assuming that your loved ones already have their share of X-cameras and lenses. Otherwise, these would be my first suggestion, obviously!
1. A remote control for the X-T1
This year, I've discovered the world of long-exposure photography (I know, I'm late to the party but better late than never, right?) Until last year, a long exposure for me was something like one third of a second! If you're doing a 4 minute exposure, you don't want to keep the shutter button depressed for all that time. That's where a remote like this affordable Neewer (Amazon link) comes in. It's actually marketed for Canon cameras, but it has the same plug as the X-T1's microphone jack, which does double duty as the remote control jack. This cheap and handy remote not only lets you do bulb exposures, you can also set it up for interval shooting or specify a delay.
Although marketed to Canon users, this remote works perfectly with my X-T1.
This remote helped me to capture this 240 second exposure. Shot with the X-T1 and my favourite lens: the 10-24 mm.
Price: $18.99
2. The Fujifilm X-T1, 111 X-Pert Tips to Get the Most Out of Your Camera
The X-T 1 is a fantastic camera. It's also getting more complex with every firmware update. This guide by Fuji expert Rico Pfirstinger helps you to unlock its full potential. It’s filled with tips you don’t find in the manual. For a limited time, code XT1240 gives you 40 percent off. Rico also wrote a similar book for the X-T10, available here. Until the end of the year, code FUJIRUMORSXT10 gives 30 percent off. Finally, there's also a book, Mastering the X100s and X100T. It's written by Peter Fauland and is available here.
Price: $24,95
3. A Lastolite Trifold umbrella
At $25, this is an unmissable accessory for anyone who's starting out with off-camera flash photography, whether it is on the Fujifilm system or on any other system. This lightweight umbrella folds down so compactly, you have no excuse not to put it in your camera bag or backpack. It will tremendously improve the quality of your off-camera flash light. The bigger the light source, the softer the shadows! One word of caution, though: because of its folding mechanism, this umbrella does not fit in every umbrella adapter.
The Trifold in action, used with 2 Godox Ving V850 flashes on a Lastolite Exybox II dual flash bracket.
One of the joys of the Fujifilm raw files is that they allow for a lot of leeway in post-processing. Although there are some raw converters that manage to squeeze more sharpness out of a Fujifilm raw file, Adobe Lightroom is still my go-to software. I've created two preset bundles, one for Black and White and one for color grading. When you buy them over at Craft & Vision as a bundle, you get a 25 percent discount. By the way, Craft & Vision has gift cards, too!
The presets come with a detailed PDF manual that explains how to install and use them. By the way, the cover image was shot with the excellent 56 mm 1.2, one of my favourite Fujifilm lenses.
The Colour Grading presets are aimed to give your images a truly cinematic feel. This image was shot with the Fujifilm 55-200 mm. A lightweight yet versatile and high-quality travel zoom.
Price: $20 + VAT per set, $30 for the bundle of both.
From dusk to dawn with the click of a single button. That's the power of Lightroom presets for you!
5. Adobe Lightroom
To me, Lightroom is still the best all-round raw converter available and it also lets you manage your photos, share them, print them, publish them in a website or print them in a photo album. That makes Lightroom a great gift for any photographer who does not yet use it.
Don't you just love Fujifilm's fast prime lenses? Even at ISO 4000, an aperture of 1.4 and a shutter speed of 1/25th, this image shot inside a Buddhist monastery was still incredibly dark. After adding an extra stop and a half of Exposure in Lightroom and tweaking the Detail panel sliders a little, I got this perfectly printable image.
Price: there are two versions of Lightroom: the perpetual license costs around $129 ($89 for an upgrade from a previous version) but the better deal in my opinion is the Lightroom + Photoshop subscription, where $10/€10 per month (billable annually) + VAT or Tax gives you one year access to both Lightroom and Photoshop.
6. The gift that keeps on giving: The Fujfilm Instax Printer
I’ve started giving out instant prints to the people I photographed along my journeys as early as 2009. At the time, I used a Polaroid Pogo. Handing out prints allowed me to not only take a photo but give something back in return. And by doing it on the spot rather than on my return back home, it saved me the trouble of trying to decrypt hastily written addresses or trying to remember which photo I should send to which person. But what I hadn’t expected at first, was that handing out prints to people was also the perfect door-opener to photograph… even more people. More than once have I had the experience that someone did not want to have their photo taken, only to ask me to take their photo just minutes later after they had seen me give a print to someone else.
My buddy and co-workshop leader Matt Brandon with the Fujifilm Instax Printer. Read his review about the printer here.
The Pogo did have its disadvantages, though: the battery lasted for only 10 shots and color fidelity was clearly not high on the specs list. So for a moment I dabbled with the idea of bringing a Fujifilm Instax camera, but then Fujifilm announced the Instax Share SP-1 Printer. If you get only one of the accessories that I have listed in this overview, make it that little printer. Especially in remote areas where people don’t have ready access to photography, you’ll spread joy with every Instax print you hand out. And, as a sign of good Karma, you’ll be rewarded with more great photo opportunities, too. And you don’t have to take my word for it: check out the praise of Matt Brandon or Zack Arias in their reviews of the SP-1.
The Instax Printer helps to break the ice and is a great way to give something back to the people you photograph.
The Instax printer. Instax prints, instant fiends.
7. Nissin i40 Flash (Fujifilm version)
The i40 is the perfect mid-size, mid-power companion for the Fujifilm X-cameras. Not as powerful as, say a Godox V850, but also a lot smaller and lighter.
The i40 fits the 'functional retro' style of theX cameras really well. I love the old-school dial on the back that quickly lets met adjust Flash Exposure compensation or manual power.
I use a number of flashes on my Fuji cameras. When I want something unobtrisive and lightweight, I reach for the i40. I love its manual dials: they let you quickly switch from manual mode to TTL mode and adjust flash exposure compensation without diving in to the camera menu. Especially in combination with the X100T (and when shooting at its 1/2000th sync speed) this little flash can even overpower the sun.
I really like the concept of an outer shell, in which you put an ICU of your choice, depending on the job or the hike (and gear requirements) at hand. There are straps on the side to fit a travel-sized tripod or a small light stand such as the Manfrotto Nano.
I've never been much of a backpack user until I discovered the F-Stop Loka UL. UL stands for Ultralight and with a base weight of around 1 kg, that is exactly what this backpack promises. I say 'base weight' because there's also the weight of the modular camera insert. F-Stop calls these these ICUs or Internal Camera Units. Depending on their size, these add about half a kilo to the bag's weight. The idea is that you can use a bigger ICU (possibly even with a laptop sleeve to carry your gear to a destination and switch that out for a smaller one to carry parts of your gear around while in that destination. The smaller the ICU, the more room you have for other items, such as a jacket, a fleece or other hiking essentials.
As far as I can tell, the F-Stop Loka UL only has one disadvantage, and that is that it's often out of stock!
Not all ICU's fit in all F-Stop backpacks. This is the compatibility table for the Loka UL.
Price: $199.95 for the bag, $50 to $89 for the ICU, depending on size. Benelux importer is Disnet.nl. In the Netherlands, Cameranu.nl has the bag in stock at the moment of writing this.
9. Roboshoot X-triggers: Wireless TTL Flash Freedom for your Fuji cameras
The MX-20 is the trigger
The RX-20 is the receiver
Ok, I'll admit it, I'm a bit of a flash photography geek (which you'll no doubt see reflected in this gift guide) but I did not want to leave this one out: it's probably the newest and most hi-tech of all of the gift suggestions in this post. In fact, it's so new it might not be out yet by Christmas but you can always give your loved ones a self-made voucher. These triggers are the first that let you wirelessly, remotely trigger a Fuji flash in TTL from your camera. Yes, you read that right. Wireless TTL support! And what's even better, it also works with selected Nikon flashes like the SB900 and the SB910. So, if you've just moved from Nikon to Fuji and you have a couple of those lying around, you can trigger them in TTL from your Fuji. I've been testing a beta version of this system (I recommend the MX-20 and RX-20) and it works as advertised. The system supports up to 4 different groups, the manual power or TTL Ev compensation of which you can set from a smartphone App.
This image was shot with the Fuji X100T and a wide-angle conversion lens (which also makes a great gift for any X100 user, by the way! An MX-20 trigger on the camera and a Nikon SB-900 attachad to an RX-20 receiver.
Ok, this is the sort of gift you give to people you really, really love, such as... yourself :-) All the gear in the world does not mean anything without you putting it to use. And what better way to do so than with like-minded people in one of the best countries to photograph in the world: India. After successful workshops in Rajasthan and the Indian Himalayas, fellow Fuji X Photographer Matt Brandon and I have teamed up again for a fantastic 10 day photo workshop in India.
Who said 'If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough?' Shot with the XF 14mm prime.
From February 14th to February 24th, we'll roam the small alleyways of Delhi's fascinating Chandi Chowk district (where the cover image of my Black and White preset bundle was shot), we'll explore the majestic Taj Mahal and finally, we'll spend 5 days in what seems to be the most photogenic city in India, maybe in the whole world: Varanasi. With two seasoned travel photographers, who know their way around the Fujifilm X-system as your guides, you're bound to learn a tonne. Matt focuses on storytelling and composition and I will be teaching you all about off-camera flash and postprocessing images. Workshops like this might be more expensive than your average package bus tour with selfie-snapping tourists, but they'll leave you with an impression and a portfolio that will last long beyond next year's Holdiay Gift Guide!
Below are some typical shots from similar workshops Matt and I ran.
Every year, I try to set myself a new professional goal. For 2015, I wanted to redo my blog and website. And so I did. I switched to Squarespace from Wordpress. Squarespace is easier than Wordpress, but still, I had to learn it from scratch. So, you’re looking at the result of this year's goal. I hope you like it. And if you don’t, just imagine my previous site was even worse!
For 2016, I want to get better at compositing. In preparation, I think I’ve bought just about every tutorial and book there is on the planet. And there are a lot of them, believe me!
A couple of weeks ago, I noticed Dutch compositing guru Adrian Sommeling had released his brand new (and first) English training DVD: Realistic Compositions. Adrian’s work is fantastic, both literally and figuratively. I know his work from some of the covers of the Dutch photo magazine Focus. Although they're very realistically composited, I'd rather call them 'Surreal Compositions'. A look at his portfolio will tell you why. Watching one of Adrian's composites is like watching a show by a really good magician: you know it's not real, but you can't put your finger on 'the trick'.
I was lucky to receive a review copy. So... here is my review!
Almost 5 hours in 11 chapters
In this download-only production, which is broken up into 11 chapters, you get to see and follow along with a full composite from shoot to finish. That’s already a big difference with some of the other tutorials out there, who simply start with the Photoshop process. As it turns out, the way you plan your shoot (and your lights in your shoot) is essential to make your compositing project work.
Another difference with some of the other training material available, is that Adrian chose a more complex shoot (including flying chickens!), with lots of challenges. That partly explains the length of this DVD. On the other hand, it also means you can really learn a lot and after following this DVD to the end, you should definitely be able to create a realistic composite of your own, especially if you're smart enough not to make your first one as complex as this one!
So the first chapters are all about the shoot. Then, Adrian will teach you how to mask your subjects to extract them from the studio background and put them into their new surrounding. I was surprised to see he only uses the Quick Selection tool. And I picked up a brilliant tip on how to use it that’s probably worth half of the DVD’s price. Now that I know that tip, I can understand why Adrian only uses this tool.
I learnt a trick about the Quick Selection tool that by itself is worth half of the price of the DVD
It's all about the shadows
You might think that cutting out the individual elements is the most difficult part of the procedure, but it is not. That award goes to the tedious process of creating realistic shadows. Have you ever wondered why most composites (and compositing tutorials) only work with portraits from the waist up? That’s because it’s really difficult to create realistic shadows. And this is exactly what the biggest part of this DVD is about: Adrian gives us a little theory about shadows (I love his simple yet informative slides) and then he explains how to make contact shadows and ambient shadows.
Adrian's explanation on the types of shadows, their importance and how to recreate them from scratch is simply the best I've seen in any compositing tutorial.
He really makes you see your composite in three dimensions: there’s the shadows that the sun casts on the elements in your composite, but there’s also the shadows that the elements in your composite cast upon each other. Here again, I was surprised to see how he manually paints his shadows and then refines them with a layer mask. The closer a shadow is to its origin, the harder its contour will be and Adrian teaches you exactly how to simulate that.
One thing that is really typical for Adrian’s work is a very threedimensional feel: the elements seem to leap off your screen. He does that partly with his lighting, partly with his choice of lens (mostly wide-angle) and viewpoint (close to the ground) and finally, partly with his postprocessing. Adrian shows you how he uses relatively simple dodge and burn techniques to make his subjects stand out better.
Finishing touches
The final chapters are dedicated to ‘finishing touches’ such as replacing the sky, making tonal corrections, adding some Color Efex Pro (one of my own favourite plug-ins) and adding motion blur.
A nice personal touch is that Adrian uses his son in a lot of his composites. I can only imagine the kick the young boy must get out of seeing himself in these super composites.
Source files included
The DVD comes with all the source files, so you can try to mask them yourself and then put them together. My own boy is two and a half years old. He’s still too impatient to model for me and that probably (and luckily) gives me a year or two to work on my composites. In the mean time, I’ll rewatch Adrian’s DVD a couple of times!
Conclusion
As you might have guessed by now, I can really recommend this DVD. 85€ is a very fair price considering the amount of info that you get and given the fact that all the source files are included. In fact, if you ever consider taking one of Adrian’s workshops, this DVD is an excellent boot camp. In order to get the most out of this training DVD, I do recommend you should be familiar with layers, layer masks and adjustment layers. If you aren’t, I would recommend taking a basic Photoshop course first. I'm obviously slightly biased but I have had some really nice reviews about my own - seven hour - ‘Photoshop for Photographers’ over at Craft & Vision. Alternatively, if you speak Dutch, the Photoshop courses Marit Hilarius and I have created for the Dutch Photography, Lightroom and Photoshop online video tutorial website Photofacts Academy. For the latter, you can get a 2 week free trial (no credit card required) here.
In a week or so, Fujifilm will be celebrating their fifth anniversary of the X-system. I know very few camera companies that have created such a fantastic camera eco-system in such a short time. My switch from a fullframe DSLR was a gradual one: I started with the X-Pro 1 in 2012. It was the appeal of having a lightweight, unobtrusive camera for my travels that won me over. Or, as my colleague and Fujifilm X-Photographer Matt Brandon says, 'I came for the size, i stayed for the quality'.
Yet, it took some adjusting: I love two things: flash and wide angle and neither were very developed at the start of the X-series: the widest lens was an 18 mm (27 mm in fullframe terms) and being used to 16 or even 14 mm on my fullframe DSLRs, 27 mm felt like I was looking through a telescope. However, in four years, Fujifilm have developed a lens line-up that is very complete, at least for my needs. If I were a Nikon or Canon crop DSLR shooter, I guess I'd be very jealous of the available lenses. There's everything from super wide angle over fast zooms and primes to telephoto. And rumour has it that the long-awaited 100-400 mm super telephoto will also be announced in the coming weeks. My favorite lenses currently are the 10-24 f/4 and the 56 f/1.2, although recently I've been very impressed with the sharpness of the 16-55, too! In fact so much that I only use the already excellent 10-24 in the 10-16 range and then I switch it out for the 16-55.
I came for the Size, I stayed for the Quality
— Matt Brandon
Flash photography on the X-system
But I digress. I wanted to talk about flash: it's no secret that flash is the probably the least developed part of the Fujifilm X-series. That's not completely by lack of want from Fujifilm's part. Apparently, Fujifilm were going to develop a wireless TTL system in collaboration with German manufacturer Metz but that plan either got tanked or at least postponed due to the latter's bad financial situation. Luckily, things are improving. For example, the X-Pro 2 is rumoured to have a sync speed of 1/250th instead of 1/180th of a second on the X-T1. That makes any flash about 30 percent more powerful (at least when working at the sync speed).
Fujifilm and TTL flash
So, it's not like you can't do flash with a Fuji. There are just less TTL whistles and HSS bells :-) All of the X-series cameras have a hotshoe and there are a couple of TTL flashes available, such as the EF-42 or my personal favourite: the Nissin i40, a review of which will follow shortly. The EF-42 might be the most powerful one, the i40 is the most fun to use and also the most balanced in terms of size and weight, at least when you want to use it on-camera. These flashes will work both in manual and in TTL, but the latter only on-camera.
If you want to use off-camera flash, up to now you are limited to using manual flashes and triggers. For manual use, I recommend the Godox V850 and the FT16s trigger, reviewed here or the Cactus RF60 and V6 trigger. If I need more power, for example when I want to overpower the sun in sunny India in the middle of the day, I turn to my big bazooka: the Jinbei HD600 II, a review of which you can read here.
A holiday snapshot: with kids never sitting still, TTL is a handy feature to have. In this case, I used the Lastolite Trifold collapsible umbrella. It folds down so small you have no excuse not to have one in your camera bag.
All these off-camera flash options work well but they are manual-only. Although I have no problem working in manual (and sometimes even prefer it), there are times when having TTL remote control of my flash would be great. Especially for those instances where you have to work fast and/or when your subject is moving around in the frame, like my 2.5 year old son likes to do. Manual flash is a pain when the flash-to-subject distance changes a lot, because of that damn inverse square law. I can safely say that my toddler is responsible for my renewed interest in off-camera TTL flash photography! When I'm on holidays and I want to take a family snap (I always have the Nissin i40 with me), TTL is great to have because my mind does not have to think as hard. After all, it's on holidays, too!
TTL with a cable
Up to now, there was only one workaround to do off-camera TTL flash with a Fuji camera and that was to use - oddly enough - a Canon flash sync cable. Yes, a cable! How very hipster retro :-) For example in this shoot of Dutch supermodel Rosalinde Kirkstra, I used a 10 meter Phottix OC-E3 flash cable. The downside of this is that it's not exactly practical, but it works. If the prospect of cloning out 10 meter of flash cable from some of your shots does not particularly entice you, please read on!
At 1/1000th of a second, the tiny Nissin i40 becomes as powerful as a couple of regular speedlights. In this case I used a 10 meter Phottix OC-E3 TTL cable, but wireless triggering is so much handier. The modifier I used for this shoot is the fantastic SMDV 70 cm Speedbox.
RoboSHOOT to the rescue
Then I heard about a new company, Serene Automation, that were developing TTL flash triggers for Fujifilm cameras. I contacted them and they were kind enough to send me a (pre-production) review sample of their top-of-the-line triggers: the RX-20 receiver and the MX-20 trigger. And they work like a charm. Below I've listed five reasons why, if you're even remotely interested in using flash on your Fujifilm X-cameras, you should seriously consider these triggers.
The MX-20 Trigger Unit
The RX-20 Receiver Unit
1 RoboSHOOT triggers allow TTL flash off camera, straight out of the box
This shot of Frannie and Brecht was made with the tiny but very capable Nissin i40 for Fujifilm and the SMDV 70 cm Speedbox. And of course the RoboSHOOT RX-20 and MX-20. I set one of the custom function buttons on the X100T to Flash Exposure Compensation. I also used Fuji's wide angle converter.
For many people, this reason alone should be enough to order a set. You attach the receiver to a Fujifilm compatible flash like the EF-42 or the i40 and put the trigger on your camera, enable the flash on the camera and you're good to go. If it does not work, it's generally because you've either set your camera to Silent Mode, or you're in one of the settings that disables the flash hotshoe. This happens for example when you're in Continuous shooting mode. Fujifilm has already said they would come out with a firmware that allows flashes (and therefore also triggers) on the hotshoe to fire while shooting in Continuous mode. In fact, the recent 4.20 X-T1 firmware update was supposed to install that but it got withdrawn because of a bug. I also recommend that when 'installing' the trigger, you make sure the little safety pin on the trigger aligns nicely with the corresponding hole in the hotshoe, before you tighten the wheel on the trigger.
The SMDV Speedbox 70 is one of my favourite modifiers for use with small flashes. It has a nice quality of light and it sets up and folds down in seconds. I got mine from the friendly people at www.foto-morgen.de. It's a German website but they sprechen English too :-)
Contrary to the cable solution I described above, which limits you to only using one off-camera flash, the RoboSHOOT X-system lets you work with multiple flashes off-camera. There's four different groups you can assing flashes to, you just need an equal number of receivers. A smartphone App (iOS and Android), then lets you set TTL flash compensation (more on that later).
Most of the time, I only use one remote flash, though. In those instances, I find it easier and faster to change the flash exposure compensation on the camera. Here's a quick tip: you can either set the Flash Exposure Compensation (FEC) as one of the items in your Quick menu or, faster still, you can assign a function button to FEC: to do so, simply press and hold the function button of your choice for a couple of seconds and then choose FEC from the list of available options. It works like a charm.
2 The MX-20/RX-20 combo does TTL with Nikon compatible flashes
Let me say that again: this system allows you to use (specific) Nikon flashes with your Fujifilm cameras. Off camera. In TTL! I don't know how John (founder of Serene Automation) pulled this one off, but he did! This is great news for 2 reasons: first of all, quite a number of Fujifilm users either have switched from Nikon or they use Fuji gear in addition to their Nikon cameras. In both cases, chances are that they have already lying an SB-900 around.
This shot of lovely Stéphanie was lit at 1/2000th of a second at f/7.1 with a single Nikon SB-900 speedlight! I again used the SMDV 70 cm Speedbox, which I not only love for its lighting characteristics but also because it's a breeze to set up and take down.
Below is the current compatibility table. As more people will use these triggers with different kinds of third-party flashes, the list will probably grow. For example, I have successfully tried the triggers with Phottix' excellent Mitros+ for Nikon. Others have reported them to work with the Metz 52 AF-1 and the Yongnuo 568 EX.
Compatibility table of Fujifilm and Nikon flashes. I've personally tested the Nissin i40 and the Nikon SB-900.
But there's a second reason why this is such a big deal. Even when you don't have Nikon flashes lying around, you might actually consider picking one up or buying a used one because, as great as the Nissin i40 is, it's nowhere near as powerful as an SB-900 or an SB-910. Especially when you're working outside or with a diffuser, you'll quickly reach the limits of the i40. Unless... you're using it on the X100T, which brings me seamlessly to the next advantage:
3 The triggers support the high sync speed of the X100T
One current disadvantage of the Fujifilm flash system is that there is no High Speed Sync (HSS): you're stuck, both on- and off-camera, to whatever sync speed your camera has. In the case of the X-T1, that's only 1/180th of a second. As HSS support is a combination of camera, flash and trigger, I currently cannot say whether the Roboshoot triggers will support High Speed Sync if/when it comes out. But having gotten to know the CEO a little, I would not be surprised. However, Fujifilm have a bit of an odd one out with the X100T: this camera uses a leaf shutter which allows for a 'regular' sync speed of up to 1/2000th of a second. In fact, this sync speed is so fast that you can freeze motion or overpower the sun with a simple speedlight. At those sync speeds, the trigger sometimes becomes the limiting factor as some triggers' electronics simply aren't fast enough to take advantage of that high sync speed. The Roboshoot triggers are: I have succesfully used them on my X100T with shutter speeds of up to 1/2000th of a second. At these shutter speeds, the tiny i40 can almost overpower daylight and a Nikon SB900 becomes as powerful as the four times heavier Jinbei. The RoboSHOOT triggers are designed to work with all Fujfilm X cameras. They have been tested with the X-T1, X-Pro 1 and X100T. Personally, I use them the most with my X100T as you can see from the EXIF info in the images. I'm also looking forward to trying them out with a more powerful TTL flash like the Godox Witstro II. I'll report back on that as soon as I can.
4 Manual and TTL multi-flash control from a dedicated App
Using a free Android and iOS App, you have full control over up to four groups. You can set Flash Exposure Compensation and mix and match manual and TTL groups.
As you can see from the pictures, the MX-20 does not have power controls on the unit itself. Instead, when you want to use a flash in Manual mode or want to work with more than one flash in TTL and change relative FEC, you can use the free RoboSHOOT X App. This App lets you do the following:
turn groups on or off without having to use the actual buttons on the receivers
mix and match TTL and Manual control
set relative FEC compensation (e.g. Group 1 +1 FEC, Group 2 -2 FEC)
set FEC lock
set manual power levels, from 1/1 all the way down to 1/512!
The App can do a lot more that I haven't tested, but it's really complete without being complex. Still, while having smartphone control over your flashes is great in a studio, for outdoor work, I would still prefer to be able to control power levels, FEC and groups from the transmitter itself. I would really like to see Serene Automation develop a clip-on group controller much like Pocketwizard did with the AC-3 zone controller, so the phone can stay in my pocket during the shoot. In fact, I already pitched the idea.
This image of Stéphanie was shot at 1/2000th of a second, a feature made possible by the X100T's leaf shutter and the RoboSHOOT triggers. Not all radio triggers support these high sync speeds. If you have an X100T and you like flash, the RoboSHOOT triggers are a no-brainer! I used a Nikon SB-900 and a Nissin i40. Main light was shot through the SMDV 70 Speedbox.
5 Other advanced features
If these features alone weren't enough to startle your interest, there's a couple of advanced features that I did not even use or try because I simply did not need them: you can use TTL lock, create up to four profiles that you can call up by pushing a button on the transmitter, specify delays and so on. The profiles can store advanced things like flash zoom setting, allowing you some extra pop from your flash by zooming it remotely. Wedding photographers will also appreciate the fact that there's a TTL passthrough hotshoe on the MX-20 trigger unit so you can put an on-camera fill flash on top of the trigger. It's actually even more than a simple passthrough, as it is also part of the group system that can be controlled from the App. Like I said... advanced features :-)
Conclusion
Although Serene Automation also produce a more basic trigger-receiver combo (the MX-15 / RX-15) I would recommend getting the more powerful and versatile MX-20 / RX-20 combo. The product page on the website gives you more info on the differences and specifications of the units. If you're only interested in manual off-camera flash, the MX-20 and RX-20 flash triggers are probably overcomplete and there are simpler and cheaper options available like the ones mentioned above. However, if you want to be able to use TTL off camera and/or if you have an X100T and/or if you still have some Nikon SB-900's or SB910's lying around, then these triggers are almost a must-buy.
At $380 for a set, they aren't cheap, but bear in mind that flash photography on Fujifilm is somewhat of a niche market and most importantly, they're currently your only option anyway. So considering the fact that Serene Automation basically has a monopoly right now on this kind of trigger and considering the relatively small market, the R&D that must have gone into it and the advanced features, I think they're actually reasonably priced.
You can order them directly from Serene Automation. If you live in Belgium or Holland (or elesewhere in Europe) and want to avoid potential hassle with customs and VAT, you'll be pleased to know there's an importer for the Benelux, VDH Photo. They will be able to tell you which camera shops will retail these units.
What I liked
They're the first (and only) TTL off-camera flash triggers that currently exist for Fujifilm cameras
Let you use selected Nikon and Nikon-compatible flashes in TTL with your Fujifilm camera
Advanced feature set (MX-20/RX-20)
Free iOS and Android App
Super fast sync speed (ideal for X100T users)
Support for rear/second curtain sync (haven't tried it myself but I know a lot of people want this)
Continuous shooting (introduced in the faulty and now revoked 4.20 X-T1 update) will be supported once Fuji re-releases the updated firmware.
What could be improved
Manual power control of individual flashes or groups of flashes and FEC of groups of flashes only via App. A hardware option would be great
Price (but in fairness, these are Serene Automation's top of the line triggers. The RX-15/MX-15 bundle is about 30 percent cheaper). The RX-15 does not let you use Nikon speedlights in TTL and the MX-15 does not work with the App.
Like the look of these images? Flash is a (big) part of it, but there's also the toning and styling that is done in postproduction: all images were postprocessed using my Lightroom Colorific Presets pack. You can learn more about these presets here.
What can I say. I love postprocessing. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you probably know this by now. The great thing about digital cameras and raw files is that postprocessing has become very accessible. Back in the film days, you had to be a digital alchemist even only for performing basic tasks such as dodging and burning or adding some contrast to your print.
Postproduction in the digital age
These days, it's just a matter of dragging some sliders around. At least, that's what software manufacturers want you to believe. But all the sliders in the world won't make up for a lack of vision, both at capture time but also during postprocessing.
And that's where “After the Camera. Vision-Driven Editing and Postproduction”, the brand new video series of David "Gear is good, vision is better" DuChemin comes in. In 20 video episodes totalling 4 hours of tuition, David introduces you to what he calls his "vision-driven editing and postprocessing workflow".
This video series does not claim to be a complete guide to what every button and slider in Lightroom does. There are already plenty of resources like that, including my own Lightroom Unmasked eBook over at Craft & Vision.
What it does do is show you the entire workflow of a living, breathing, money-making professional photographer. Nothing more, nothing less.
What's in the box?
Well, first of all, there is no box. We're in the digital age, remember? What you do get is an access code to watch the videos online on Vimeo.com, but you can also download them so you can view them offline. The first chapters are about the Library module and give an introduction to importing, organizing, working with collections. As a Lightroom trainer, it still surprises me how many people don’t use collections. It’s like buying a convertible and never taking the top off.
Although the main focus lies in the Develop Module, David does touch on some important aspects of the Library module as well, such as importing, collections and back-up.
David also – rightly – mentions the importance of backing up and explains his own – simple but effective – workflow.
Editing your work
As of Chapter 4, we dive into the meat of the videos: the first couple are about the editing (some say “culling” process): how do you separate the wheat from the chaff. The answer lies again in what your intent, your vision is. David talks about the importance of having a project, even an imaginary one, in mind when you go through your images.
Maximising mood & Minimising Distractions
The next chapters are about “Maximising mood” and “Minimising distractions” and to me, that’s really the core of what good post-processing should be about: good postproduction should make your viewers feel what you felt when you were at the scene while minimizing the uninteresting details.
Drawing the Eye
The bulk of the remaining videos are about the photographic principles (what pulls and pushes the eye) and the tools in Lightroom that you can use to apply those principles.
Whether you work with a Radial Filter...
... or the Adjustment Brush...
Local adjustments help to draw the eye to where YOU want it to be.
I’m happy to see that David gives a lot of attention to local adjustments as well.
Before and Afters
Everybody loves a good Before & After and I’m not different. That’s why I especially liked the 6 cases-studies, in which you get to follow along with 6 images and see the principles and the techniques applied. But again, that’s the difference between this tutorial and many others: it’s as much about the why as it is about the how. Or, to use David’s terms, as much about the artist as it is about the geek.
Final chapters
The final videos are about the importance of sharing your work and speeding up your workflow by using presets so that you have more time to do what you love most (that is, if that’s what you love most): go out and shoot!
Conclusion
As a bonus, you get David's Lightroom presets pack, a $10 value.
Every once in while, a video tutorial comes along where I think "I wish I made that". Well, this is one of those tutorials. If you’re a beginning Lightroom user, I very much recommend this course. But even (or maybe especially) if you’re already more advanced and you know what all the buttons do of the Lightroom cockpit do, but you feel like no-one ever told you where to fly the bloody plane to, you will learn a lot from this video series.
After the Camera is very reasonably priced at $40 (+ VAT in Europe), and until January 13 there’s a 25 percent discount. On top of that, you also get David duChemin’s Lightroom own presets (a $10 value) as a bonus. After The Camera is available here at Craft & Vision.com. Still not entirely convinced? Watch the trailer below.
When a while back, Fujifilm offered me the opportunity to test a pre-production sample of the upcoming X-Pro 2, I felt honoured, humbled, frightened and excited all at the same time.
Honoured, because I was one of a limited number of photographers worldwide to receive an early sample. Humbled, because the list of the others included big name photographers that I regard very highly, such as Damien Lovegrove, David Hobby and Zack Arias, to name but a few. Compared to these guys, I'm just a grown-up kid with too many cameras, too many lenses and waaaay to many flashes. I felt like taking a shower with the highschool football team. When I had just been out in the freezing cold...
You know the old joke ‘How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb?
Frightened because I had a tight deadline to give Fujifilm four images, preferably from different shoots. Four images that would be looked at, pixel-peeped, scrutinized by the whole world. Four images of which Fujifilm would choose one to display during the Fujifilm X Series Five Year Anniversary Exhibition in Tokyo. You know how photographers can be ruthless for each other’s work. I couldn’t help but think of the old joke: "How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb?" The answer is: "Eleven: one to actually fix the bulb and ten to comment afterwards about how that one guy could have done it better."
Charleroi, one of Belgium's old industrial cities. I scouted this cool location without ever leaving my house, thanks to Google Maps and Google Street View. The actual hike up the hill made me appreciate a lightweight camera system like the X-Series even more. Hills definitely look lower from Google Earth than they do when you're standing in front of them! My original plan was to do a Long Exposure here, but the wind was so strong I could not keep the camera steady enough.
Excited
But I also felt excited: I had been slaving away at my new Lightroom book for months (the Dutch version is available now and the English version is in layout) and I hadn’t really been photographing a lot. This opportunity and the deadline it included gave me a much needed kick in the butt. So I rustled up some models, fired up Google Maps and Google Street View to scout some cool locations, charged the battery of my Jinbei flash, dusted off my Formatt Hitech ND’s and my B+W Vari ND's (Dutch link, English link) and planned a couple of shoots.
Shooting JPEG (and actually liking it)
It was freezing cold but model Stéphanie was a real champ. Shot with one of my favourite lenses: the 10-24 mm. I used the Jinbei HD600 II and the Phottix Luna Folding Softbox. In very contrasty, backlit situations like these, it's good to have an Optical Viewfinder, too. Especially the X100T-like one, where you can still have a small EVF inserted in the bottom right corner to help you with your composition. The X-Pro 2 also has a 1/3rd stop faster sync speed than the X-T1, which comes in very handy when you're trying to overpower the sun in bright daylight.
The camera being a pre-production sample, the camera’s firmware was also still beta, so there were a couple of limitations. First of all, the ‘Preview Exposure and White Balance in Manual Mode’ feature was not working on my sample. It’s a feature I rely on heavily when using flash, because it lets me easily set the desired ambient exposure. However, my model will generally be too dark in this mode, so once I’ve determined how dark or bright I want the background to be, I will switch this mode off.
I use the ‘Preview Exposure and White Balance in Manual Mode’ so much that I’ve assigned a function button to it.
I’ve even dedicated one of the function buttons to it. To assign a function to a function button, press and hold it for a couple of seconds and then choose the desired function from the list that appears. When off, the EVF goes to a normal brightness level so you can choose your composition and your focus point more easily. Being able to switch between both views and having a live histogram is one of the key advantages of mirrorless cameras. Needless to say, the feature will work as expected on shipping X-Pro 2’s.
Another thing that slightly worried me was the fact that there was no RAW support yet. In fact, there still isn’t (as is always the case with new cameras). As a Lightroom user, author and trainer, I eat RAW files for breakfast. Although I love the quality of Fuji’s out-of-camera JPEG files (they’re probably the best in the whole camera industry), I prefer to shoot at least RAW + JPEG for the added postprocessing leeway that RAW files give me. Partly, that’s for creative reasons, as I like to edit my images quite elaborately but partly it’s also to cover up for the underexposure mistakes I sometimes make while shooting. When you know your way around Lightroom, you run the risk of becoming a sloppy photographer because you know the tricks to cover your ass after the shoot.
Just like David DuChemin, I firmly believe in Vision-Driven Postprocessing. I always try to maximise the mood in my images to make them convey what I felt at capture time. As you can see from the behind-the-scenes shot, this image was actually taken during the day, but I thought the loneliness I felt from shooting from the top level of a parking lot, would be better expressed by a "dusky" postprocessing. I used one of my Colorific Colour Grading presets.
Old X-Pro 1 shoots new X-Pro 2 :-) This is what the scene really looked like. The dusky atmosphere was added in post. I was surprised to see that even a JPEG could survive this much postproduction, so that's very promising for the RAW files!
For that reason, I chose to shoot with the Standard Profile, rather than with Classic Chrome which I normally prefer: that film simulation blocks the shadows and without the fallback option of a raw file, I preferred to keep my options open. The X-Pro 2 also has a new Black & White film simulation and a new grain feature, but I did not test that for the same reason.
In this blog post, I will list my top 10 favourite features of this incredible new camera. To conclude this post, I was amazed with the quality of the JPEG files and the flexibility they still offered in terms of further processing. It almost made me wish Fuji would offer an option to save images as 16 bit TIFFs: you would get the benefit of near-raw like editing options along with the beautiful out-of-camera film simulations.
So, these were the four images I submitted to Fujifilm. I’m as curious as you to know which one they picked for the 5 Year X anniversary exhibition. I hope they picked at least one. And even if they haven't, I still had a hell of a time shooting! For me, the X-Pro 2 is already a fantastic camera: it made me get up from my couch and go shoot. Isn't that what all good cameras should do?
This location, an abandoned cooling tower, had been on my to-do list for quite some time. But writing books, magazine articles, creating Lightroom presets and changing the occasional diaper kept coming in the way. The X-Pro 2 deadline was the necessary kick in the butt to finally load up my F-Stop Loka UL backpack and go explore. And that's probably what I like most about Fujifilm cameras: they inspire me to just go out and shoot, experiment, learn from my mistakes and shoot some more.
My trusted F-Stop Loka UL backpack and me at the foot of the hill overlooking Charleroi.
My favourite new camera with my favourite old lens: the 10-24. I think I make about half of my shots with that lens. In fact, three of the four images on this page were shot with it.
All images in this blog post are JPEG images coming from a pre-production X-Pro 2. They were processed in Adobe Lightroom with my Colorific Lightroom presets. A big thanks to Serge from www.fotografieblog.be for the behind-the-scenes shots (made with an X-Pro 1).
The X-Pro 2 looks very much like the X-Pro 1. So you'll have to take my word for it that that's actually an X-Pro 2 on my tripod. Not convinced? From this angle, the diopter adjustment next to the viewfinder is the only giveaway.
So, I’ve had the privilige of using a pre-production sample of one of this year’s most eagerly anticipated cameras for a couple of weeks. You could already read about that in this blog post. By now, your RSS feed and Facebook status page is probably overloaded with features, comparisons, opinions and what not. The following thoughts are not solely based on specs, but on actual usage of the camera. Given the four year gap between the X-Pro 2 and its predecessor, there’s bound to be a lot of change. In this and the following blog post, I’ll try to outline my personal top-10 improvements of this camera, taking into account the way I use it: as my everday camera, with a focus on travel- and flash photography.
Two of my favourite models: Brecht & Frannie. Shot in an abandoned carpet factory. On urbex (urban exploring) shoots like this, I appreciate the fact that all my camera gear fits in my F-Stop Loka UL, a small and lightweight camera backpack (US link, EU link)
Evolution on the outside...
When I got the camera, it felt like reconnecting with an old friend: it looks almost identical to the X-Pro 1 (which I consider a good thing), especially from the front. In fact, I could probably have taken this camera to a Fuji workshop and people would have thought I was shooting my old trusted X-Pro 1. Outside, there are only a couple of changes, and they're all for the better.
But on closer inspection, a lot has actually changed for the better. Which brings me to the first point.
1) Improved ergonomics
This one’s so important that I’ve actually put it before the ‘obvious’ advantage (the higher megapixel count, more about that later). The first thing you’ll notice is the joystick on the camera’s back: it has a number of uses but its main use is changing the AF point. The advantage is that this frees up the four buttons surrounding the Menu/OK button. You can now actually program three of them to a custom function. If you like to change your focus points as I do, the joystick works really well, it just takes some getting used to and retraining your muscle memory not to go to the old position. On top of that, there’s 2 more function buttons, bringing the total to 5. There is no dedicated WIFI function button, but WIFI is obviously included, and another big difference with the original X-Pro 1.
One thing I did not like about the X-Pro 1 was that there were some buttons on the left of the LCD. All buttons are now at the right, meaning you can control this camera with just one hand. For you, it might be sipping cocktails, but in my case it leaves the other hand free to hold a flash and an umbrella, for example.
The grip is slightly bigger and more pronounced. As a result, the camera feels better in your hand. And as mentioned, this is now a camera that you can completely control with one hand! Great news for photographers who like to smoke on a shoot. No more cigarette breaks needed: smoke and shoot as you go!
There’s also a new Front Command Dial which in playback mode lets you browse flick back and forth through your images (the rear one zooms in and out). While shooting, the FCD lets you adjust the shutter speed to the intermediary settings between the full stops that are marked on the dial. It probably does some other things too, but I haven’t discovered those yet. The manual was even more preproduction than the camera (in other words, non-existent!)
Speaking of dials. Probably the coolest feature is how Fujifilm managed to integrate the ISO dial on the top of the camera. It’s literally on the shutter speed dial: you have to pull the outer ring of the shutter speed dial up and then rotate it to set the ISO. The first couple of times, you’ll probably inadvertently change the shutter speed itself, too, but once you get used to it, it works very well. While turning the wheel, you can see the value adjust in the viewfinder. So no need to take your eye off the viewfinder. Now, in honesty, I liked the old system with the top function button, too but this system has the advantage that you can also see at a glance what ISO the camera is set to. And I do like this implementation more than that of the X-T1. While we’re still talking about dials: the Exposure Compensation dial now has a -3 to +3 range and even a Custom setting that allows you to go from -5 to +5, another use for the new Front Command Dial.
And finally, another big one in the ergonomics department: a built-in diopter adjustment with the same range as the X-T1. That’s right, no more messing around with little screw-in adjustment lenses that you’re bound to loose sooner or later.
Although I’ve printed images from my 16 MP X-T1 as large as 30 x 60 cm (12 x 24 inch) and I could easily print even larger, I welcome more pixels any time, provided they offer me the same or even higher image quality. The X-Pro 2 has got 50 percent more of them. So, you can either print prints that are 50 percent larger (in terms of surface, i.e. 22 percent longer and 22 percent taller) or you can crop 1/3 of your image away and still keep the same amount of pixels as the X-Pro 1 or the X-T1. Another nice advantage is that you can experiment some more with alternative crops, like 16:9, or square, while still retaining enough pixels to print relatively big. Especially with the best quality lenses like the 16-55 and the 50-140, the increased resolution actually shows in the image. Those two lenses really are perfect companions for the new sensor.
I have really come to appreciate the 16-55. Sure, it's a bit big and heavier than its prime siblings but boy, what a sharp and versatile lens! If you're an event or press photographer, it's hard not to be impressed by its sharpness. Model: Stéphanie. Image processed with my Lightroom Colorific Colour Grading presets.
3) Faster AF, more focus points and more phase detection pixels
As you might know, cameras use two techniques to achieve autofocus: phase detection and contrast detection. The first is faster, the latter is more accurate. As of the X-T1, Fujifilm has started to combine these two techniques by incorporating phase detection pixels in the sensor. The X-Pro 2 increases both the total number of focus points available and the number of phase detection pixels. By default, there’s 77 points including 49 phase detection pixels, but you can increase this to a whopping 273 points, including 169 phase detection pixels. Just be prepared to use that new joystick controller a lot. Regardless of the number of focus points, what I really appreciate on mirrorless cameras in general and those by Fuji in particular, is that you have focus points all over the frame. If you like to frame your subject off-center, that’s a very handy feature to have. With a DSLR, you’ll be forced to focus and recompose, but if you’re shooting with a shallow depth of field, that can lead to images that are out of focus.
"And how many focus points would you like today, Sir?" I don't think I'll be using the 273 focus points layout a lot...
... but I do like the fact that there are more phase detection pixels (you can recognise them by their slightly larger size in the grid...
I really cannot count the times I have sworn at my DSLR for not giving me a focus point where I needed it. With 273 points to choose from, that’s no longer necessary! Of course, the same AF enhancements that were introduced with the X-T1’s 4.0 firmware upgrade, such as wide tracking AF and zone AF are also present. I just haven’t used them much as most of my subjects are pretty stationary and if they aren’t, like the dancers I shoot, I prefer to pre-focus manually. It’s a matter of habit and preference.
4) Improved viewfinder
Take the hybrid viewfinder of the X-100T, add the resolution of the viewfinder of the X-T1, and turbocharge the framerate to 85 frames per second and you have the recipe for the X-Pro 2’s viewfinder. It’s really as state of the art as it gets. The front lever lets you switch between EVF and OVF and also between OVF modes themselves: simple OVF or OVF with the little EVF screen in the bottom right corner that was introduced with the X100T. This little screen-in-the-screen can be set to three possible zoom levels when you’re in manual focus.
The Hybrid Viewfinder combines the best of both worlds...
... especially since you can overlay a little LCD panel that for accurate framing...
... or manual focus checking options: choose from 100%, 2.5 x en 6 x.
The first is 100 percent view (which basically gives you a mini view of the entire scene in your OVF, ideal for combining the precision of the EVF with the bright viewfinder of the OVF. The second is 2.5 times enlarged and the third is 6 times enlarged. Pressing the rear command dial (you knew that the rear command dial can be depressed, also on the X-T1, didn’t you?) cycles through these magnification levels. Combine those features with manual focus aids such as digital split-level or – what I prefer to use – focus peaking and you have noone to blame but yourself if your pictures aren’t sharp using manual focus on the X-Pro 2!
5) Dual Card Slot
I haven’t verified this, but according to Fujifilm, this is a first on a mirrorless camera. I know a lot of wedding photographers and generally everyone that shoots unique events that will utter sighs of relief. The card slot can be set to any of the following three options: sequential (when the first card is full, the camera starts writing to the second), backup (anything written to the first card is also written to the second) and RAW/JPEG, where RAW files are written to one card and JPEG files are written to the other.
Needless to say, the write speed to card has also dramatically improved. I remember that on the X-Pro 1, when I accidentally shot a bracketed series of photos, I swore because the camera would freeze up, literally for seconds. None of that on the X-Pro 2. I do recommend that you use fast cards. My sample unit had two Toshiba 16 GB Exceria Pro SD cards installed (the ones with the double row of contacts) and that worked perfectly.
That's it for the first 5 features. In this blog post, I'll cover 6 to 10. But let me leave you with one last image of Stéphanie. After all, it's all about the image, not about the camera, isn't it?
In a month, I’ll be off to India again to teach a travel photography workshop together with fellow X-Photographer Matt Brandon and I hope to take the X-Pro 2 with me. I’m really looking forward to the trip. When I’m traveling, I always hope that nothing bad will happen to my gear because it’s often difficult to replace or repair. That’s why I’m extremely happy with the next item in my top-10 of new features:
6) Weather Sealing
Contrary to the X-Pro 1, the X-Pro 2 is now weather sealed. Now, truth be told I’ve never had any issues with my non-weather sealed Fujifilm cameras and they’ve eaten quite a lot of dust, too, but it’s still a reassuring feature to have.
When you're playing with flour, it's good to have a weather sealed body and lens to keep the stuff on your model and not in your camera.
Of course, ideally, you then have to pair the camera with a weather proofed lens as well, such as the beautiful XF-16 mm 1.4. I love that lens because, thanks to its wide aperture, it still allows me to play with shallow depth of field although it’s relatively wide-angle.
Belgium's probably got he ugliest coast line in the world (40 miles of ugly concrete skyscrapers) but there are a couple of noteworthy exceptions, such as this the Blankenberge Pier. Working this close to sea and sand, I was happy to be using a weather-sealed combo. Processed with my Colorific Colour Grading presets, but you probably know that by now :-)
One of my resolutions for the new year is to use the 16 mm prime a little more. I used a Formatt Hitech ND filter to get the exposure within reach of the new 1/250th sync speed.
7) Flash improvements
This one is pretty big, at least for me: the sync speed has been increased to 1/250th of a second. That means that when you’re working at the sync speed of your camera, your flashes effectively become one third of a stop more powerful than they were on an X-Pro 1 or an X-T1.
Sofie shot with the X-Pro 2 and the Jinbei HD-600 II flash. To date, still my favourite 'big gun'. I'm very happy that I can now use flash also in Continuous shooting mode. This lets me fire a burst of shots (until the flash has to recharge) rather than one at a time so I dramatically increase my options of having the right expression or composition when using flash). Image postprocessed with my Black & White Lightroom presets.
But even better, you can now also use a flash when the camera is set to continuous shooting. To be fair, it’s something almost every other camera has but it’s great to see that my X-Pro 2 now does it, too. Especially with more powerful flashes like this Jinbei, this means that you can keep on shooting with flash at lower power settings for quite a while until the flash has to recharge. This is the same feature by the way that got introduced for the X-T1 in the latest firmware update that subsequently got pulled because of a bug. So X-T1 users, this one is coming your way, too!
Finally, Fujifilm have announced a new speedlight, the EF-X500, that is capable of doing High Speed Sync. I can't wait to get my hands on that one!
8) Improved Bracketing
I’ve never understood why the bracketing functionality of all Fujifilm cameras was limited to 3 shots with +/- 1 EV. If you want to create HDR images, that range is often too limited.
Maybe it has something to do with the new maximum shutter speed of 1/8000th of a second, but you can now bracket 3 shots with +/- 2 EV. I would still love some more options, like shooting 5 or 7 frames but it's already a big step up. If you want to go beyond what's currently possible, I recommend you do as I do: put the camera on a tripod and use the Exposure Compensation function on the Camera Remote App: this lets you make up to 7 bracketed shots, 1 stop apart, without touching the camera.
I already like Fujifilm’s menus more than most of the other brands out there, but they have made the menu even better: it’s more legible and there’s also a MyMenu, which lets you assign up to 16 items for quick acess. So between this MyMenu, the (customizable) Quick Menu and the function buttons, there really is no shortage of options of having this camera do what you want it to do, as fast as possible. On thing that did not improve is formatting the card. It takes way too many button presses. Luckily, there appears to be a shortcut which I learned about over at Kevin Mullins' excellent review. If you're thinking about using the X-Pro 2 as a wedding camera, read his review (and then start saving). Oh, the shortcut you ask? Press the delete key for a couple of seconds and then click on the back command dial.
10) 3 Power Management Modes
Let’s be honest. Battery life isn’t the best feature of the Fujifilm cameras. But let’s also be honest in that the batteries (the X-Pro 2 uses the same as the X-T1, X-Pro 1 and X-T10) are very lightweight and compact so adding a couple to your bag won’t break your back. I think Fuji did well in maintaining the same battery. However, what they did is offer three power management modes: Economy, Standard and High Performance. As you might guess, autofocus speed and EVF refresh rates increase as you switch from the first to the latter, but battery life decreases, from 330 shots over 250 to 220. I just use High Performance and I pack a couple of spare batteries. I guess I’ll only use Economy when I see I’m popping in my last spare! Oh, and even in Economy the camera is still a Ferrari compared to the original X-Pro 1. So, as greater minds have already said: ‘Everyting is relative’.
So, that’s it for this highly subjective top 10. As some of these are firmware-related, there's some hope that they might trickle down to other cameras too.
This is what the new interface looks like. Again, evolution, not revolution but it looks and reads better than before. There are loads of smaller refinements, such as this one: you might know there's a digital depth-of-field scale that you can overlay in the EVF and OVF. Only, it did not match up with the one found on lenses like the 14, 16 and 23. Because the lenses' DOF scale was film-based (with a larger Circle of Confusion, in other words, larger tolerance) whereas the digital scale was pixel-based. You can now set the digital scale to film-based as well. If I were a street photographer, I'd love this feature!
There are other features, such as the new black and white ACROS film simulation and the new grain engine, which look nice. But as I explained in this blog post, as long as there is no Raw conversion software that can actually read the raw files of this camera, I set my film simulation to something very neutral as the JPEGs are currently the only thing I can work with. Setting a black and white film simulation would mean I currently cannot work on the image in colour and I want to keep my options open.
If you have any questions, I’ll be happy to try and address them in the comments.
Don't forget to switch off the light.
What about the Tilt Screen?
Yeah, what about it? There isn't one, as you probably know by now. For me, it's not a deal breaker. Sure enough, if the X-Pro 2 had one, I would welcome it, but not if it came at the expense of a bigger, bulkier body. Between the dual card slot and a tilt screen, I'll take the dual card slot any time. Also, don't forget that you'll be able to wirelessly control the camera with the smartphone App. That's even better than a tilt screen, in some cases!
What could be improved?
Some testers have reported the Exposure Compensation wheel is too loose. It did not feel loose on my sample. What I would like is that Fujifilm offer the option of saving 16 bit TIFF files to card. I feel that Lightroom still isn't squeezing everything out of the RAW files and this would be a nice addition, especially for people who shoot rather slow and deliberate, like me. Alternatively, I wish that Fujifilm would release a simple RAW to 16 bit TIFF conversion software. Basically, a desktop-version of the in-camera RAW converter that would allow batch-processing. And no, I don't mean Silkypix, that awfully complex raw converter that ships with the camera.
Another thing I would like is to see on the accessory list is a 'Long Eyecup' like the X-T1. This helps to block the sunlight and gives more contrast in the viewfinder which is especially helpful on sunny days.
Finally, I would really love to have some more highlight clipping information in the EVF and OVF: we can already program a gazillion warnings in the viewfinder, but the one I would like to see is a Lightroom-style highlight / shadow clipping warning, showing the actual areas that are clipped. Sure, there's the live histogram but that only says there's clipping. It does not say where that clipping occurs.
As you can see, minor quibbles that are mostly software- or firmware related. Other than that, I really can't think of much. So now, I'm off to shoot some more! Where did I put my spare batteries?
