A great place to get photography accessories!

My wife and I discovered the shopping website Wish about a year ago and since then I have "purchased" many photography accessories from the site. I put purchased in quotations because due to Wish's own rules, if a product isn't delivered by a specified delivery date they will return your money and you still get to keep the item if it comes in afterwards. Some of the accessories I have received I have paid for, some I have gotten after I was refunded.

The accessories I have ordered and received have ranged from lens hoods, to flash reflectors to backdrops to remote flash triggers to a softbox. So far all have been really good quality. I will give a review of some of my favourite purchases.

One of the first things I ordered was a Christmas themed backdrop. I wanted in time for the annual charity Santa pictures my wife and I do at the Walmart where she works. We do it to raise money for the local food bank over a two day weekend. The backdrop came in too late for last year's shoots but I will be using it for this years shoot. The colours are a little muted then they looked like in the pictures but overall I am pleased. It is 5' x 7' in size. I have also received a black backdrop that was kinda of canvas/plastic material and a grey patterned paper backdrop that are really nice as well.

Another of my favourite item kinda go hand and hand. They are a flash bracket and a set of three flash remote trigger set. So far they all are working great and will be a big addition to my photo shoots. The trigger set has three different channels I hope will work with my strobe set as well, they work great with my flash gun.

I also ordered a softbox which I was surprised by the size and quality of it. I was very pleased it when I received it. I will be definitely ordering another one soon. It works great with my strobes. 

These have been the bigger items I have ordered I have also ordered some smaller accessories that so far I am very please with. These include some flash reflectors (one of which is a snoot), a shutter remote, a couple of lens hoods, a bracket to hold a reflector, some lens bags and more. 

I plan to do some more in depth reviews of some of the larger items such as the soft box and the flash triggers with some test shots taken while using those items in future blog entries. But for now I highly recommend anyone who is looking for studio and photography accessories at prices that won't bankrupt you to check out Wish. I know I will be ordering more, in fact I am waiting for the delivery of a small flash unit that I plan on using with my Fujfilm X30 and a "Grey Card" set. I may do future reviews of those when they come in. 

My favourite Fujifilm X30 feature: Film Simulations

It should be clear by now that I am a huge fan of the FujiFilm X30 advanced compact camera. In my mind it may be the perfect "street" camera. Unfortunately the X100T (and now the X100F) and the X70 got the majority of the Fuji "press" when it comes to their advanced compact category of cameras. Which in my opinion is a real shame because the X30 is an amazing camera. There are many things I love about the X30 and Fuji cameras in general. I plan on doing a series of posts to discuss the various options and features that the X30 has that make it such a great camera. The first such post will be on FujiFilm's film simulations!

                                                      Film Simulations

One of the things I love about the X30, and something it shares with most Fuji cameras is the film simulation settings. The film simulations that Fuji puts into their cameras are simply amazing. Each has its benefits and uses. On the X30 I changed the video button (customization of the controls is another great thing about the X30) to be the control for the film simulations. That way I can just push a button and have access to the simulations. 

There are film simulations that will fit anyone's choice or preference. Regardless of how you want to shoot, or how you want your photos to look. My personal favourite settings are Vivid (which gives you amazing colours, especially greens and reds), Classic Chrome (which gives your pictures a, well classic look to them) and Monochrome with red filter. In fact, these three are the ones I use in the camera's "Film Bracketing" mode. The film bracketing mode allows you to set three different film simulations and then each time you take a shot it gives you three copies, one in each of the three simulations you set. 

                                                                            Vivid

                                                                   Classic Chrome

 Monochrome with red filter

There are other simulations to choose from including Monochrome without filters and with various other filters. sepia and more. The three above are my favourite ones to use. Of course all of these film simulations can only be used with the JPEG's and don't affect RAW images. That being said the FujiFilm JPEG's are so amazing I have never been tempted to shoot in RAW. The Fuji film simulations is something that I recommend that everyone look into if they are looking for a new camera, the newer Fuji cameras have even more simulation options such as Acros Monochrome and more. The film simulations are a feature that sets the FujiFilm cameras apart from most of the competition.

Favourite Portrait Photographers!

There have been many amazing portrait photographers whose work I admire and am inspired by. Some are old school and shot only in black and white and some shot in color. Some of them are no longer with us and some are still shooting today.

One of my all time favourite portrait photographers is Yousef Karsh! Karsh is known for some of the most famous portraits of the twentieth century such as the iconic shot of Churchill standing with one hand on his hip and the other on the back of a chair. Karsh is also a favourite because he was a Canadian photographer. Karsh was so in demand that he shot everyone from Churchill to Queen Elizabeth to JFK and celebrities like Hemingway, Einstein and many more. His black and white portraits always look more like paintings than photographs. I have a book about Karsh that has many of his best photographs with details about how the pictures were taken. It is full of great stories and insights on how Karsh photographed his subjects. The book came from my cousin who live out in Nova Scotia, I think he found it in the basement of his house.

Annie Leibovitz is another inspirational portrait photographer whose work I love. The people who have posed for her are the "Whose Who" of pop culture and public figures. Her photos can be almost be divided into two categories. Her black and white portraits have a classic formal feel and look to them. However a lot of her color shots almost have a fantasy feel and look to them.

Jason Lenier is a current photographer that I discovered through his YouTube channel. His channel has behind the scenes videos of a lot of his workshops and photoshoots. He likes to shoot in unique places like abandoned buildings, graveyards, caves and abandoned amusement parks. I have found a lot of inspiration in his shoots.

These are just three photographers for now, this post will edit as I come up with more and discover more photographers that inspire me.

Trying A Boudoir Photo Shoot!

Boudoir photography is an interesting field of photography. The pictures are both sexy and artistic. Boudoir photography can do a lot to take the models out of the comfort levels and at the same time give them self confidence and make them feel good about themselves.

I recently did a boudoir shoot with my wife as the model. It took her out of her comfort zone, and I would like to think it made her feel good about herself. The following are some of the shots we captured. It is a field of photography that I would like to experiment more with.

All of these shots were taken with a Canon T5 (1200D) using the 18-55mm kit lens. 

Canon's 55-250mm "Budget" lens

I received Canon's 55-250 mm is II EF-S lens (for Canon APS-C sensor cameras only)for Christmas this year from my wife. It is a cheaper alternative to the 75-200 mm lens that is so popular with sports, photojournalists and wildlife photographers. The 55-250 mm lens is a really good lens that is far better than what the price would lead you to believe, it usually runs under $200 (the newer STM version runs closer to $300). The focal range is great, with the shorter end of 55 mm taking over where the 18-55 mm kit lens ends and the 250 mm is actually further than the "pro" zoom lens of 200 mm. The lens is pretty sharp and so far I don't have any complains about the quality of the pictures taken with this lens.

This is a shot I took just of our Christmas tree, using the Canon T5 at 250 mm, f5.6, 1/6 sec,  iso 1600. I have no complaints with the sharpness and the bokeh is nice, even at f5.6.

This is a picture I took out my back door of a neighbours birdhouse in a snow storm. I took it using my Canon T5 at 250 mm, f5.6, 1/320 sec, iso125.

I took this picture of a sunrise over Lake Simcoe in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. I took it at 123mm at f5, 1/1000 sec using iso100. This is a picture right out of camera with no editing. I love the colours.

If I were to have any complaints about the lens there would be two. Firstly, the max aperture is only f4 at the 55 mm end of the zoom and drops to f5.6 at the 250 mm end. I would have preferred a larger aperture, at least one of f2.8 and for it to be a constant aperture.

Another complaint, well not so much for me but it will for others, and that is that the Image Stabilization is on the loud side. There is an audible clicking sound from the I.S. and for anyone wanting to use this lens for video will have a problem with the clicking sound being heard on the video. If anyone is shopping for one of these lenses for video I would recommend they spend the extra money for the newer STM version, the STM (short for STepping Motor) is a quieter image stabilization mechanism that Canon designed with video in mind. However if you are like me and only take photos, then the "is II" version is a good options, the clicking noise is a bit annoying but if not doing video then it is a minor annoyance.

So all and all I am very happy with the 55-250 mm is II lens. It is a great "budget" zoom lens that doesn't behave or shoot like a cheap lens. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a good zoom lens for their Canon APS-C sensor cameras. It is great lens for general landscape and still wildlife photography. I would not recommend it for sports or moving animals, it just isn't a fast enough lens for that. However for most other types of photography it is a very good zoom lens.

Urban vs Street

The common definition of Street Photography is that they are essentially candid photos of people going about their daily life, usually without even knowing that the picture was taken. If a photo doesn't have some aspect of people in it then it isn't usually considered as a Street Photograph.

I prefer the term Urban Photography for my approach to taking photographs in urban settings. Some of my photographs have people of them, but not all of them. However they are all taken in urban settings. Some of my photographs are of buildings, or different features I find of interest such as this fire alarm I found on the side of a building in Saint John, New Brunswick. 

This alarm caught my eye because it is something I have never seen before. That is the type of things I like to photograph, stuff I haven't seen before, or don't see often. I am also fond of graffiti and street art (I know that is cliche for a Urban photographer). When I find some street art that I find interesting I try and find an angle that would give the photograph a different perspective, such as this huge piece of street art that is in Barrie, Ontario, Canada.

Urban photography is much more of a definition for my type of photography, without coming into conflict with those who strictly adhere to the "traditional" definition of what makes Street Photography....well according to them...."Street". 

Compact Love!

If you have been reading any of my Blog posts you have probably noticed that that I have a love for the category of camera referred to as Advanced Compact cameras. The Advanced Compact (AC) cameras is definitely my favorite type of camera. Why?

Well lets start with other type of cameras and then I will go on to the  AC's. I do have a Canon T5 DSLR and hope to upgrade to either a T5I or a T6I in the spring. DSLR's are great for weddings, portraits, landscapes and basically every other type of photography. The versatility of the lenses offers a tone of options for your photography. I do enjoy using my T5 for portraits and once I get some more lenses I will enjoy using it for landscapes and more. DSLR's are definitely the benchmark cameras by which every other is compared too.

The newest craze in photography is definitely the Mirrorless or Compact Camera Systems cameras. Most of these offer all the advantages of DSLR's in a much smaller body. Most use an electronic view finder over the optical ones that DSLR's use. I haven't actually used any of these cameras but have done a lot of research on them. The main reason I haven't tried one is due to the price of these systems. For the good ones, they are generally very expensive and the lenses are too.

Now on to why I love the Advanced Compact style cameras so much.The main reason why I love these cameras has to do with my main photography focus of Street/Urban photography. Small but advanced cameras like these are perfect for that type of photography. They are small, like their "little brothers", the point and shoot cameras, but much more powerful. They don't draw a lot of attention when you use them on the street, unlike the larger DSLR's. When you are using one on the street people think you are just a tourist, if they notice you at all. They are also good for other types of photography such as Macro, Product, Artistic and Conceptual genres. Most of these cameras offer great Macro settings that make them very versatile cameras.

There a ton of options out there for anyone looking to add a Advanced Compact camera to their bag. Almost every camera company offers some form of Advanced Compact camera, it all depends on what you want or which company is your favorite. There are cameras out there utilizing all kinds of different sensors, different megapixels and different lenses. Some use 2/3 sensors such as the X30 that I own, some are Micro Four-Thirds, some offer 1" sensors and some even offer CMOS and "Full Frame" sensors.

There are a ton of lens offerings out there to chose from too. There are some cameras like the Ricoh GR, FujiFilm X100T and X70 which offer single focal lengths lens. And a lot more offer medium length zoom lenses, such as the FujiFilm X30 which offers a 4X zoom (28-112mm). It all depends on what you need.

There are also a lot of advanced options that a lot of these cameras offer as well. Most offer both JPEG and RAW shooting options. Most have really good "film simulations" settings that gives you a lot of options for shooting. Most of these cameras offer similar "Manual" controls that bigger cameras offer such as shooting in Aperture, Shutter and full Manual modes, some utilize them better than others but they are usually there for you to use. Some of these cameras are also very good for video, some are not, it varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.

The price range for AC's also vary from company to company. You can get great cameras for as little as $400 or you can spent over a thousand dollars for some models. There are tons of options out there in every price range. They make the perfect travel and street camera.

Dreams of a Leica!

I am sure that there are very few Street Photographers in the world who would not want to be shooting with a Leica! In the world of photography and especially Street Photography, Leica is a brand of camera that very high on most people's lists of dream cameras. As a collector of vintage cameras I would love to add a vintage Leica film camera to my collection.

If you know your cameras, then you will always recognise a Leica when you see it. Pretty much every Leica camera share a similar look. Rounded edges, all metal construction, similar dials and controls are all Leica "trademarks". The reviewers who have used various Leica's say you can look at a photo and always tell that it was taken on a Leica, they just have a look to their images, their colours, the amount of "noise" to their images also add to the "Leica look".

As great and iconic as Leica cameras are their is one major downside to their cameras that keeps them out of the hands of the average photographers.....they are greatly over priced. Even the most basic camera is around two thousand dollars. The most expensive of their cameras can run you close to ten thousand dollars. These price tags put the best of the Leica brands out of the reach of most photographers. Even the older, used film cameras sell for thousands of dollars.

So I will probably never own a Leica, however there are two Leica cameras that I wish other companies would take inspiration from. They are the Leica M Monochrom (type 246) and the Leica M-D (type 262).

The Leica M Monochrom is a very interesting and appealing camera, especially for those who like black and white photography....why? Because the camera's sensor only processes pictures in monochrome (B&W). As a Street Photographer who shoots mostly in black and white this is very appealing. The pictures even show up on the live view screen in black and white. Only thing that thing I don't like about the camera is the optical viewfinder. I would much rather it had an electronic viewfinder that shows the scene only in black and white. I think the optical viewfinder which shows the scene in color would take away from the appeal of shooting only in black and white. This camera, like all Leica is very over priced at almost eight thousand dollars (U.S. price).

The other Leica that really catches my interest is th the Leica M-D (type 262). The reason this camera is intriguing is that there is no back screen to set the camera settings. There are dials for Aperture and Shutter control and a dial on the back of the camera to set ISO and a wheel for exposure compensation and that is it. There is no buttons for white balance, focal points, no flash (but there is a hotshoe). It has a rangefinder style optical viewfinder. It appears to be the camera that is the closest there is in a digital camera to shooting film. There is no way to check you images until you upload them onto your computer. The camera doesn't even have wifi so you can't upload them onto your phone. The camera also only shoots in RAW format, making you edit them into JPEG format before you can upload your pictures. It is a very intriguing camera indeed. However, again like all top Leica's it is way over priced at six thousand (U.S. price).



I would live to see another manufacturer, like Fujifilm or Sony, take inspiration from these two cameras and make their own versions, at a much cheaper price. I especially would like another company to make a B&W only camera that the average person could afford. I would like to see a B&W version of the X100T or X30 from Fujifilm or a version of the Sony A6300. Now all of these already shoot B&W but I would like to see what they can do with a sensor dedicated to monochrome only.

So until either someone gets inspired by Leica and makes something similar to the Leica M Monochrom or the Leica M-D....or I win a lottery....my Leica Dreams are just that, dreams.

A Street is a Street!

Some people feel or believe that you have to be a big city like New York or London if you love Street/Urban photography. Now while places like New York are certainly the mecca for Street photography, they are not the only places where you can make great pictures. I have shot Street/Urban photography in small towns, in small cities and in biggger cities. And some of my favourite shots have been taken in small towns and cities. While smaller communities may not have the diversity that big cities have, but they do have their charms. A lot smaller communities have unique "downtown" areas that while have a slower pace still have a lot of life to them. You may find things in these places that you won't find in other places.

This picture for example was taken in a small town north of Toronto called Alliston. It has a small main downtown area that mainly consists of a main street that stretches about five blocks and a a few side streets. This old advertising sign hangs on one of the side streets. I don't even think the building still holds a bar, but Schlitz beer signs still hangs proudly.

This next shot was taken very early one morning downtown Barrie. Barrie is a small city about an hour or so north of Toronto. It is a widely spread out city but it does have a great downtown core with a great main street and some great alleys. I just wish the rest of the city had kept the same charm that the downtown has, even though it has it's share of problems.

Another favourite place to do street photography is Saint John, New Brunswick. It is Canada's oldest city. It has such history and an amazing core of streets, shops and landmarks. While not as big as places like Toronto, it ranks 78 on the list of Canada's biggest municipalities based on population.(Barrie ranks 34th). What Saint John might lack in size it more than makes up for it in history. It is definately one of my favourite places to shoot. It has a very laid back feel to it. This shot was taken this past summer

So while places like New York, London and even Toronto will be the mecca's for Street/Urban photography, you can get great shots no matter where you live or are visiting. All you need is a good eye and an open mind. 

Fujifilm X30 vs Canon T5

I have had my Fujifilm X30 for about nine months now, and I have had my Canon T5 for a couple months. Which do I prefer? My answer might suprise you.

Both cameras are great cameras. Both take great photos. However if I was to name a favourite camera between the two I would have to say I prefer the X30. Why?

The number one reason is the viewfinder. I would rather have the electronic viewfinder of the X30 over the optical viewfinder of the Canon. I find the focal points on the Canon T5 had to see, especially in low light or against a dark background. Where as the focal points are much easier to see on the Fuji. And the Fuji has more focal points and more options as where the camera will focus. Also you can increase/decrease the size of the focal area with the X30. Another bonus is the overlay options that the Fuji offers, such as the "Rule of Thirds" overlay which is only available on the live view screen on the back of the Canon and not on the viewfinder.

Another thing that I prefer on the X30 is the menu systems on the camera. I find the menu's on the X30 easier to understand and navigate. The Canon is a little more confusing and seems to more limited. The "Quick" menu on the X30 makes it so much easier to make adjustments. And the customization on the X30's buttons is a lot better than with the Canon.

I also prefer the dials on the X30 over the Canon. I like to be able to make adjustments to exposure on the X30 quickly with the compensation dial over trying to find it in the menus on the Canon. This is something that would make the Canon T5 much more comfortable to use and shoot with. The other dials and controls on the X30 makes it a much easier and enjoyable camera to use. The Fuji also offers more customization of the function buttons as well.

Other things I prefer on the X30 include the tilt screen, film emulations and in camera special effects and filters. They are much more advanced and easier to access on the X30.

The Canon T5 has its advantages as well, including price, availability of accessories, better low light performance, bigger sensor/more megapixels. It is a better camera for portraits and landscapes.

For the majority of the types of shooting that I do I would rather use the FujiFilm X30 over the Canon T5. All this considered I do plan on upgrading to a better Canon DSLR over a FujiFilm mirrorless system. This is mostly based on price of the camera and availability and price of the lens and accessories. Canon cameras are more compatible with "third party" accessories than the Fuji cameras are. If I could afford to buy a more advanced Fuji mirrorless system such as the XPro2, I would. But I can get two good Canon's for the price of one good Fuji camera. I am not talking about "Pro" grade DSLR's but rather the Hobbyist or Enthusiast grade of cameras such as the T6I/S or the 70D (or 60D or 80D).