Photography Advice..WTF?
 

Is it karma or just the way it is? - everyone I have asked for advice talks down to me..."go play with your camera and figure it out for yourself little boy" or flat out ignores my questions - just because I don't give it up doesn't mean they should do it too...haha - Why is it so top secret how something is lit? Industry secrets...competition, yeah yeah yeah - whatever - it's all been done before - read a book blah blah blah - we are all trying to make a living so be nice and help a bro out - now ask me your questions and I will try to be nice and answer each one. :warning

i have found guys like donny and aaronm to be very helpful EVERYTIME i've asked them about any facet of the business... :xomunch

Sure how about a good digital camera with a wide assortment of available lenses that is moderatly priced. Know of any that you would reccomend?

probably the best bang for the buck right now is the newest canon digital rebel (if you are only using it for web work). tons of lens choices and great color, low price.

(i don't own one, just carefully scrutinize the files it produces)

Wow! Nice offer. I've been a videographer for 8 years. Got that down pat. Just bought me a Nikon D70, but I'm so lost I wouldn't even know where to start with questions.

Here's one - I've got my hot lights (3200°) that I use for video. I also have the SB800 flash for the Nikon. I've been trying to mix them with little luck. I've been using the tungsen gel on the flash, and setting my white balance that way too. Shooting in Raw so I can fuck with the white balance. I want to shoot as automatic as possible (I don't need my stuff to look anything as good as your stuff does).... Videos are what keep my members, so I would really like to stay away from strobes and stuff. Just want acceptable stills. Soon I'm going to be buying florecents for my video work which is the same temp as the flash, and outside, so I'm hoping that my problems will be solved with them (will they?), but untill then Should I just turn off my hot lights, and use a few tourch lights, and the flash on auto? Oh, and I've been playing with different diffusers, and the white eye card thing. UGH!

Btw - I have a Nikon D70 book, and a DVD coming in the mail, as I'm a total noob.

see...threadjackers - no respect

Put full CTO gel on your flash - shoot in tungsten mode - see if that works - warms up the flash to 3200 - temprature is the prob - flash is daylight balanced

Canon 20 D - the best buy on the shelf - lots of features and solid utility camera.

Heya Red...

I been shooting alot lately if ya got time this weekend wanna sit down and have some coffee or a drink?

well you could add filters to flash head and monkey around with it but the easy way to do it is just shoot everything in raw and then batch correct WB with software. (bibble, etc) this requires a computer with some horsepower---if you don't have that you are resigned to working with jpg files.

you have less correcting latitude if you shoot in jpg format.

make sure you have consistent exposure, this is the main advantage of using hot lights, if your exposure changes it will be very difficult to accurately batch correct the color balance, try to always be within 1/4 stop of correct exposure. don't believe the camera autoexposure, do some bracket tests on manual, then tweak the auto exposure setting as necessary to get perfect exposures as you walk around the set. constantly monitor your shots in your LCD, and tweak exposure for distance---this will require practice but soon become second nature.

also you need the proper series lens for auto exposure with that flash---keep the flash head off the camera and use an L bracket like wedding shooters to get the flash off the axis of the eyes to avoid redeye. mostly your flash will not be your main light if you are using hotlights, but will just add a very little fill. use the hotlights for modeling, do not overlight. a better trick is do it like the fashion shooters by putting a small soft box on your flash head (something like an apollo) and then a coiled cord extension that goes on your hotshoe, now you can shoot with one hand and hold the flash head at arms length high and to the side, for quickie fashion look. no time to write a book here---take chances and experiment, and throw away any shot that's not good enough.

all of this is a compromise for fast production. i do not recommend shooting with hotlights if you have the girls eyes in the pix. (it closes down the pupils and you lose the sexy bedroom eyes look)

hey - maybe - hit me up on icq - fair warning though I am swamped with editing so i am pretty much sticking around the house

hey - latino - fuck off and get your own advice thread - goddam - fuck this - jackass - get your own advice thread - threadjacker dickheads fucking piss me of even more when I am trying to do something nice - ASSHOLE! - BTW - auto anything is stoopid - AND - anyone who depends on photoshop to fix their shit alone has never turned in original elements to a client - that would be embarassing for a pro - oh whoops - wrong color temp - sorry dude - have your post guy do all my work for me - shit.

Very true!!!

Thanks guys!
I would also like to add Dean Capture to the list.

:thumbsup

Did anyone ever tell you you're really sexy when you get your feathers ruffled, Red? :winkwink:

Anya

I have a canon digital rebel too, I shoot in raw form, but the camera is slow.
I would like to snap, snap, my pic. and it runs so slow...tells me it's busy. :Oh crap

What can I do? Anyone know?

Thanks
~LL

Anya - You are the sexy one here - I would love the chance to shoot - pleeez hit me up if coming to SoCal - I will do the same if road slead me to Texas - Beautiful fetish model folks - check out her site - incredible!!!!

yeah, stop shooting in raw mode and shoot in "jpg" mode

I'd like to get more dynamic range out of the 20D & more detail in shadows areas any tips?

Well are you asking random people for advice? Yes I would tell you to fuck off. Show me a reason to want to work with you..... BTW i dont do porn stuff but people still ask me for advice and free info all the time. Information is valuable it doesnt get out for free. Sure there are some things everyone knows

I'm pretty good with photography questions, so ask away.

I had my own studio for 2 years and was the Photography Editor for my High School Yearbook. :) :1orglaugh

Now I'm blushing :wetkiss
Vegas in Jan look good to you, Red? If you're gonna be there, we can work something out. I'll be bringing a girlfriend of mine who also does fetish (super looong all natural blonde haired babe), maybe a g/g shoot too? :winkwink:

Anya

Lets definately plan on it - I will come out to Vegas for the convention - I'll hit you on ICQ for more info!

haha - fuck off

Anya is kick ass, and sweet as hell, one of the girls I wish to shoot someday too!

Red I hit ya on ICQ and it does not seem to be working. I am gonna go hit some Sushi in a few minutes or so:) Hint hint:)

Fuck jacking the thread, I am jacking the poster!
Hit me up Mang!

Okay, I'll give you a for instance scenario - I found a pic I liked the lighting - it was an outdoor glamour shot of nice looking, curvy model in a bikini - nothing majorly amazing about the shot but I could tell there was something different about it - sent the guy an email and asked what he did to get the skin tone in his shot - wants to make it sound like some ancient family recipe to get it that way - whatever bro - suck yourself off all you want - I was just trying to get a little dialogue going with a fellow photog - he can bask in his self absorbant glory all he wants - the point is that this happens almost everytime I have tried to make a connect with somebody on this kind of thing - a lighting detail or technique - so - I thought I would offer up the chance to help some people here and it turns into a fuck you threadjack - hehe - typical - I don't care anymore - I will figure it out on my own like I always have anyway - all these photogs can be dickheads as much as they want - me too I guess - nice huh? shit.
:321GFY

you need fast eu glass lens - I use the 24-70mm 2.8 - if you want it even faster go with a 50mm prime lens at 1.4 ? - about $300 usually for canon - be more specific on what you want to shoot.

calling now

Don't shoot RAW mode - change settings to JPG - the camera has a buffer range for big files and has to process the info - RAW means uncompressed and sloooowwwww - JPEG the way to go - smaller file size equals speed.

thanks for the email johhny but was only looking for advice on a few particular shots from certain photogs work i had seen - wondering about a certain shot technique - not general photo advice.

I'm off the eat sushi with Alien - crunch rolls here we come !!!!

A faster card (pending you don't have one already) might help some.

Good thread.

Alien how do I miss the invites to Sushi?

Man, the Canon must be ultra slow compaired to the Nikon D70. I think the Nikon has a 8 Raw pictures buffer. I've never been able to out pace the camera.... just the flash.

Thanks for the info. guys, I will have to ask my man, why he likes to shoot in Raw mode.

I was talking with Stewie, and he likes the Nikon too.

I know we have a fast card, I think, we were shooting in Raw, cause the pics. were alot nicer looking.

thanks
~LL

Fabulous, it's a date! I showed her your site and she loves what she sees! :thumbsup

Anya

Aww thanks, Alien! :wetkiss
We'll work something out, babycakes! :thumbsup

Anya

Doh!
Well we just got back from dinner.
I did rather, Red should be on in a bit.

How about next time? There will be a next time!

I learned somthing new about Red...

He did some work for Pantera. Definatly an amazing guy.

And thanks Red was great chatting with you about stuff, it was an honor!

Red - I can only speak for myself here but I don't mind helping someone out with some very generic type photography questions. However, some questions about a certain technique that I may have used to get this look or that look...I may not be as comfortable discussing. I have techniques that I've developed and fine tuned over the last few years that I'm not willing to discuss with other shooters. Who wants to spend years fine tuning techniques and learning new skills just to hand it all over to the first guy who asks..."how did you do that"? I know that we are all out there trying to make a living but the bottom line is that you and the person that your asking advice from might be competing for the same dollar. You really shouldn't take it so personal :winkwink:

Right on - how about a pic of blondie - curious now :b

Designers are stuck with the same thing. There are tricks and techniques.
I have always given them up freely, and there are alot of coveted design tricks by many designers.

In fact Tylo recently put up some really good information and a long held secret amoung "Good" designers that demonstrates how to get hair to look very natural in a photo crop in design.

Personally I have never had a reservation about providing information to other's. I know for a fact there is somthing no other designer can do and that is capture the spirit in how I do things. Techniques and tricks are really minutia in the grand scheme things and there is somthing inherent in every person that is creative. It is ZEN in it's best sense, the spirit of "just doing can not be immitated" no matter how hard others may try.

So in that fiath I discuss what and how I do things rather openly and give my peer's the best of luck in helping them with things they may want to know.

Experience yield's the artists value and again that can not ever be immitated..