Pocket Wizard Flex TT5/TT1 for Nikon Review...

If you're a Nikon shooter I know you've been jealous of the fact that the Canon shooters out there have had the Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 and TT1 now for a long time.  Long time did I say?  Almost two years in fact.  Now while I knew for a fact that before going into the beta test of these devices I could do a lot of what I already do using my SU-800 Speedlight commander, the allure of a RF High Speed Shutter Sync at up to 1/8000th of a second at up to 1,000 feet?  Yea, pretty awesome.  But that's not all that I was concerned with when I was able to test these Nikon Flex Beta Units.  I was not only worried about how they performed under extreme conditions, but I was worried about how they would perform in every day conditions as well.

First off I'd like to mention that I was not paid for this review, and am not going to say 100% positive things about these units, however I know that the units that I tested were in the beta stages and most of the very few problems that I encountered have been solved in the final hardware that is shipping over seas even while I write this.  So for you tech nerds out there, are you ready for the nitty gritty?  Hope so, because there's a lot of it.  For you photo nerds out there, I hope the pictures are just as interesting...

 

Anyone who shoots with Nikons CLS system knows how hard it can be to shoot TTL in the snow.  Luckily the day that I received my beta units was the largest snowstorm we have received here in Indianapolis all season.  Not only that, but my friend David VanDeman had also invited me to tag along for his photoshoot with the Fashion Wrap up.  Needless to say with all the snow, and the capabilities of these Flex units plus the style of Kaitlin Elyse, (That's Kaitlin above trying not to freeze while I do a light test), the look of Chelsea, hair and makeup by Allure Salon and the accessories of Apricot Lane.......we had an exciting afternoon in front of us. 

Nikon D3s, 100ISO, Nikon AFS50mmF1.4, 1/1600th@F2.  Single Nikon SB-900 Speedlight set to iTTL zoomed in to 85mm shot through a 32" translucent umbrella attached to a Pocket Wizard TT5 Transceiver on the end of a paint pole and Kasey Pole softbox attachment adapter Speedlight fired by Pocket Wizard TT1 attached to the camera. 

That's Chelsea there.  Very pretty girl, very good at the modeling gig.  She did an absolutely outstanding job in such a terribly cold environment.  She struck the poses, and made the shots very instinctively and very smoothly.  It went especially well since we stopped about every other minute to put a jacket on her.  Despite how cold it was though, and despite every bit of white that was out there, this shot was done shooting nothing but TTL and the Pocket Wizard FLEX units.  A single Flex TT5, and the TT1 on my D3s as the shooting info suggests.  In just a few frames I had this shot, and it was just like I wanted.  The units performed just as flawlessly as Chelsea.  The FLEX Units performed so flawlessly in fact, that during the course of the shoot I fired only 50 frames, including test shots, and shots of David scraping the windows of his car...

Nikon D3s, 160ISO, Nikon AFS28-70F2.8@70mm.  1/200th@F13.  Single Nikon SB900 zoomed to 200mm with a 1/4CTO fired by a Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 attached to a SC-28 off camera cable on a pole to camera right set to iTTL. (SC-28 Off camera cable was used to attach the TT5 because the TT5 was too large to fit into the hot shoe mount of the Softbox stand adapter I was using).  Second SB-900 Speedlight zoomed to 200mm about 30' to camera left with a 1/2 CTB, set to iTTL -3.0.  The camera was also set to -.3EV to account that the light on the left wasn't dark enough.) 

That there is another Canon shooter that if you've read the you'll recognize as Michael Guio.  Mike was gracious to donate an evening of his to help me as a model while I evaluated the units in several ways.  The first thing we did though, was test the units in my every day shooting style.  I easily could have that the image above with the SU-800 (and some shots that evening were actually shot with it, instead of the Flex Units), but what I wanted to know was how the Flex Units did in terms of predictability.  Here's what his basement looked like without the lights...
 

Ambient Light in Mike's basement.  Nikon D3s, 1600ISO, 1/40th@F2.8

This is where I had some of the very few issues that I had with the Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 and TT1 units.  When it came to TTL and 1 light, they were flawless.  When it came to TTL and 2 lights, they seemed to be cancelling each other out in cross lighting situations.  This was easily remedied by changing the lights to Manual, and probably could have been remedied by attaching the SU-800 to a TT5 unit or with an AC3 command unit.  I was not supplied with an AC3 unit, and was also unable to get my SU-800 to function with my Beta units, but I have been assured the issue is corrected in the final hardware revision.  I know that all sounds horribly technical, and for that I apologize, but either way the punchline should reach home for everyone.  I got the shot.  It just wasn't like I thought getting the shot would be (which it often isn't anyway, which the previous blog talks about more).  In the card Shark shoot, I was using two hard lights because I wanted to simulate a hard puddle lit back room in a club; where this guy could be dangerous. I did attempt several shots using a softbox on one light, but it just didn't provide me the shot I was looking for. 

Nikon D3s, 200ISO, Nikon AFS28-70mmF2.8@50mm, 1/200th@F13.  Single Nikon SB900 zoomed to 200mm with a 1/4CTO fired by a Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 attached to a SC-28 off camera cable on a pole to camera right set to iTTL. (SC-28 Off camera cable was used to attach the TT5 because the TT5 was too large to fit into the hot shoe mount of the Softbox stand adapter I was using).  Second SB-900 Speedlight zoomed to 200mm about 30' to camera left with a 1/2 CTB, set to iTTL -2.0.  The camera was also set to +.3EV as I needed to make a small adjustment, but didn't want to go back to the left speedlight.) 

I definitely found that the TTL on the Flex TT1 and TT5 worked better on Spot metering, but in terms of actually firing the lights held up to the epic standard that pocket wizard is known for.  The units were very, VERY reliable.  My only concern is that they fell asleep a few times while I was shooting.  Playing around in the ControlTL software, I was unable to find a way to shut the sleep time off either, which annoyed me.  Either way if you are conscious, it's not a big deal.  Just burn an extra frame before you start going to wake them up, and you're in business.  Not that I want to miss a shot because my units were asleep though. I did make sure to mention it several times in my writeup to Pocket Wizard.

These New pocket wizards not only support High Speed Sync, but also support up to 8fps firing rate if your flash is set low enough that it can handle bursts at that speed.  Me, being the fool that I am made my first attempt using TTL at this speed, to which I was pleasantly surprised.  Again spot metering was king of this test, and from time to time the camera would slow down while in TTL, but it was still surprisingly snappy when used that way.

This string of shots were shot at 8fps, with a Nikon D3s.  While the added light of the Pocket Wizards made the 4000ISO very clean and usable in commercial print, I deemed that the frozen speed-bag action wasn't what I was looking for. 

In the end the high speed 8fps test wasn't what I had hoped even though I got  few shots that looked very nice; but it also begged me to realize something I myself in the past have preached.  Just because you can do something; doesn't mean you need to...

Nikon D3s, 400ISO, Nikon AFS28-70F2.8@45mm, 1/200th@F11.  Camera set to -2EV with the Pocket Wizard TT1 on the hot shoe.  Nikon SB900 Speedlight zoomed to 75mm set to iTTL with a light green Gel attached to a Pocket Wizard TT5 Transmitter.  Nikon SB900 Zoomed to 200mm above camera left with a Theatrical red Gel, set to TTL on a Pocket Wizard TT5 Transmitter as well.  Both Hard lights, no modifiers. 

So instead, I found a better way to test the 8fps High Speed Sync with the Flex units with my girlfriend Shannon.

Nikon D3s, 200ISO, Nikon AFS70-200F2.8N VR2@110mm, 1/1250th@F6.3.  Pocket Wizard Flex TT1 Unit on the Cameras Hot Shoe, Nikon SB-900 to Shannon's right about 15 feet in the air angled down attached to a Pocket Wizard TT5 Transceiver. 

Shannon loves the snow; especially playing in it.  She is also a Poi Dancer, which is something else I'd like to shoot her doing, but it seemed a bit too frigid to have her out swinging fire around in spandex.  Snowballs seemed appropriate.  It was easy for her to work up to throwing snowballs at me as relatively frequently I say or do something that gets her aggravated at me, but I think the snow playing got the best of her as every frame I have she's grinning like the happiest girl int he world.  Just the way I like her.  Again as mentioned before, the Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 and TT1 Units performed Flawlessly outside, even at a distance (albeit a small one as compared to the guys over at Fstoppers).

Some will notice my lack of light modifiers in these tests, and I noticed it too as I am mentioning it now.  The thing is that I did use soft-boxes and umbrellas for a few other things, but felt the shots that were without Created more desirable images.  Rare, I know, but true.  Plus I may or may not have a few other images I'm  holding back from these tests for the future, so keep your eyes peeled. 

Conclusion: (finally, I know right?)
Will I buy em?  Hell yea!  Will they be epic?  HELL Yea!  Do I still have some experimenting to do?  Hell yea! Wait what?  Like I said earlier, I couldn't get my SU-800 to work with my beta units.  I also was not given an AC3 unit to test with my TT1 and two TT5 units.  This leaves a window of testing that is very important to me untouched.  I LOVE the iTTL capabilities of my Nikon SU-800 and Accompanying strobes, and that's why a lot of people own Nikon Gear.  It's not the Resolution, Autofocus system, or the fact that the lenses are black.  It's the fact that they can light stuff very intuitively, and that is the part of this system I didn't get to play a whole lot with.  That seems like a BIG part though right?  yes and no.  Is having 1/8000th of a second shutter-speed  available in RF important, even if the strobes are on manual?  Hell yea it is!  That and shooting outside with these so I can use my 85 F1.4, or my 50F1.4, makes them totally worth the money (at least for me).  The other part is that these units are capable of syncing with the older Plus II Transcievers, which makes the 7 of those that I have even more valuable to me.  Now, I can't do a high speed sync, but I can set a light pretty far away, and just trigger it like normal; and there's nothing wrong with that.

The saavy shooters out there, are now saying that nothing I've done here is groundbreaking, and they are right.  Having only 48 Hours to evaluate the units, I wanted to test what was most important to me; and that was the functionality.  I had no time to get an 800mm Lens from Sigma like fstoppers.  I did find time to physically break one of the units, but that's part of the test right?  If they weren't meant to be used, why would you buy them?

Hopefully this quick review of the Beta units sheds some light on their operation to at least a few people.  I've got a set pre-ordered from Roberts here in Indianapolis, where I buy almost all of my equipment.   Get on the list, as the list is LONG.  These units are most certainly worth buying if you like using your speedlights to shoot everyday, or just from time to time.  For more information, check the following links:

Pocket Wizard Website (For more information)
Roberts Camera  (For pre-order)
The FStoppers Review, and their latest Photoshop Contest 
Another Reivew

More Soon.

Season of Excitment...

The end of the year can be an exciting time for everyone.  Holidays are approaching, some people like snow (seriously, they are out there), looking forward to families, looking forward to taxes, maybe a little time off........any number of wonderful possibilities.  I'm dreading the fact that I'm considering making my blog part of a new years resolution as I've sort of fallen off the blogging train the last few months.  I've said before that I've just been busy, and I have been busy; but that like so many other things is an excuse I suppose.

 

(Canon EOS5D Mark II, 400ISO, Canon EF70-200F2.8L@120mm, 1/80th@F9.  Single 580EX SPeedlight zoomed in to 105mm set to 1/16th power hard light from the left of the frame aimed at where Dr. Evans hands touch the patient. Fired by Pocket Wizards. I chose the dark moody lighting to simulate a private room in the Office, which we clearly weren't in as I was shooting at 120mm.)

Shot some stuff for Pro Chiropractic clinic in Fishers recently.  Was a nice place- good people.  This is Dr. David Evans, who from what I am told has magic fingers.  Can't say I've ever been to a chiropractor or had a massage.  I even know a Masseuse who does a lot of work for the Indiana Fever, but have never taken the plunge.  Not sure if I'm missing anything or not, but one day when carrying all my gear comes back to haunt me, I know of at least a few people that can take care of me. 

In terms of everything, including the gear that'll break my back; this has been a rather exciting year for me over all.  I've grown personally, and photographically more than I ever thought I would.  I've bought and sold equipment, I've learned new types of photography including the use of a Tilt Shift, or Perspective Correcting Lens.  I've also received phone calls from people and picked up clients that I'd never considered possible this year.  All thanks to a little help from friends, and most certainly a lot of luck.

 

(Nikon D3s, 200ISO, Nikon 24mmF3.5PCE 1/200th@F16.  Single Dynalight 400 Uni inside of a 24"x24" Softbox to camera right, white paper surrounding the guitar to camera left acting as fill cards to about 4' tall.  The image to the left is shot at -6 degrees Tilt, and the image to the right is shot square away like a normal camera lens combo would capture it)

That photo above is two consecutive frames from a recent shoot; straight out of camera.  Didn't expect the shoot to require a PC lens, but I have a 24mm one that I purchased for some commercial real estate a few months ago.  I knew absolutely nothing about PC lenses before this year, and had no reason to, but since I bought the lens I've found myself using it in all sorts of strange ways. The nice part about tilt shift is that the image on the left that has been corrected is not only much more flat as if I was directly head on with the guitar; but the the guitar is 100% in focus of depth of field at F16.  This lens is capable of 36" of depth of field from front to back from 7" away from an object when tilt shifted correctly.  Absolutely phenomenal for shooting product, real estate as you can flatten out things that you can't physically center  yourself on.  That's not generally what a Tilt shift, or PCE lens is known for, but it's what it's original design was intended for.  All the way back to the bellows on a view camera. It's not for everything, in fact I kind of wish I'd bought the 45mm instead of the 24mm, but oh well.  Maybe next time. 

Bought myself an iPad too, which after a week I have decided is going to be an invaluable tool in my business.  After forgetting my card reader for the laptop on a shoot I had to proof a few of the pictures on the iPad.  Turns out it can read D3s .NEF files.......Can we say,  blown away?

 

(Photo by Joe Lee)

Not only is the iPad awesome for carrying my portfolio around (you never know when you'll be talking to your next employer), but at the same time it definitely made an impression on the client at this photoshoot.  It wasn't tethered, but to pull a few images and be able to show them large on a screen I could literally hand them made a big impression. 

So yea, kind of a lot has been going on.  Strangely enough some of these things I've been working on I  can't even talk about yet, which is kinda cool and yet nail biting at the same time.  I can assure you though that there will be some very cool blogs coming up soon, and a new website/blog to boot.  Some of which including the Guitars I showed above, Help-Portrait Indy is coming up very soon on December 18th (email me here if you're interested in helping out somehow), as well as I've got one or two more wild projects that I think might make good blog material.  More Soon. 

Static Shocked....

Two weeks ago I got a very strange call from my boss at the newspaper.  That call was about an assignment that was very much unlike a normal assignment for me, in being that it wasn't a controlled environment, and a controlled subject.  This assignment was an event at the Vogue here in Indianapolis called Static Shock hosted as a fundraiser by Static Salon in Broad Ripple here in Indianapolis. 

(Nikon D700, 2000ISO, Nikon 14-24F2.8Nano@22mm 1/60th@F2.8)

Anybody that has read this blog knows that most of my newspaper and non newspaper assignments include things like business portraits or product photos for glossy publication.  A fewer amount of people are going to notice that while normally I shoot Canon for the newspaper (as that's what they provide me), This event I decided to break out my own Nikon equipment as it provides me cleaner and sharper images in this kind of an environment. 

 

(Nikon D700, 280ISO, Nikon 14-24F2.8Nano@21mm, 1/40th@F2.8)

Honestly I was very saddened by the number of photographers that I saw at the Vogue that night that were shooting just to get their names out there.  Don't get me wrong, I can definitely understand the need to get your name out there, but in order to even think about doing that you need to have some idea as to what you are doing.  There were several 'photographers' that night that had cameras that were most certainly set to program that had flashes on camera set to EPIC blasting the most amount of light as possible towards their subjects.  In some cases missing the most beautiful of light in the darkest of places...

(Nikon D3s, 450ISO, Nikon 50mmF1.4G, 1/80th@F2)

That was shot in completely ambient light that night in the Vogue.  Not but moments later I saw another of many photographer blasting Mr. Stuart Sayger with their direct on camera flash.  Not saying that using flash is always bad, and that you need to ramp to High ISO every chance that you get either because getting away with using High ISO all the time can make you lazy.  It's like when I was younger and because I survived the dentist I told my mom and dad that I deserved some candy because I had no cavities.  A month after I'd be using that same excuse for candy knowing full well that the reward time had long since past.  If you get away with using it once or twice you can easily start to always think it's feeseable.  Even thought my D3s is capable of very useable images at 12,800ISO doesn't mean I always if ever actually go there.

(Nikon D3s, 2000ISO, Nikon 70-200VR2N@116mm, 1/250th@F4.  Single Canon 580EX Speedlight set to 1/32nd Power zoomed to 105mm superclamped to the upper level of the Vogue pointed down at the runway fired by Pocket Wizard.)

That's one of the lovely ladies from the Fashion part of the show at the Vogue, after all; that was my assignment.  I can't honestly complain about having to take photos of so many lovely ladies either.  Honestly the only thing better than doing that is the fact that my girlfriend Shannon accepts the fact that I do what I do, knowing that these girls are doing their job while I'm doing mine.  Speaking of doing my job I had the fortunate ability to run an experiment at the vogue while I was there...

(Nikon D700, 2500ISO, Nikon 14-24mmF2.8Nano@17mm, 1/60th@F4.  Canon 580EX Speedlight set to 1/32nd power zoomed to 105mm superclamped to the upper level of the Vogue fired by Pocket Wizard)

Shooting Sports gave me sort of a crazy idea that I put into practice that night as you can see above.  That blueish light in the photo isn't actually as much a blueish light as it is a Speedlight superclamped to the upper level of the Venue.  Having shot enough sports using speedlights set to low power I decided to see what that could do for me in terms of sharpness at a venue with uncontrollable dynamic lighting.  Honestly, it was the best thing that I ever did as it allowed me to bring my ISO down to between 1600 and 2500 for the evening, and made my images more consistantly sharper than they would have been otherwise; just like when shooting sports this way.  

 

(Nikon D3s, 2500ISO, Nikon 70-200VR2N@70mm, 1/200th@F2.8.  Single Canon 580EX Speedlight set to 1/32nd Power zoomed to 105mm superclamped to the upper level of the Vogue pointed down at the runway fired by Pocket Wizard.)

All in all the evening was a heck of an event.  It had a great turn out, and was beautifully scripted to which the naked eye could tell no deviation, and I met at least one other photographer that I felt as though I could learn from.  Great job to the ladies out at Static Salon for the event that they put on.  I greatly hope that they decide to host such an event next year whether or not  I'm fortunate enough to cover it or not.  More Soon. 

Just one Light...

A lot of people ask me about my lighting techniques, and how I come up with some of the things that I do in order to light things effectively.  The last blog post was definitely one with a complicated light setup in it too.  This one is a little differently.  I believe it was Zack Arias that recommended originally that anyone learning to light should learn to do so with a Single 60" umbrella and that's it.  Mainly  because that's all you really need.  Not that hair lights, and fill lights, and background lights aren't necessary in some cases, but in most cases they totally aren't...

 

(CANON 5D Mark II, 250ISO, Canon 70-200F2.8IS@200mm, 1/40th@F10.  Single Canon 580EX Speedlight to below camera left at 1/4th power zoomed to 70mm shot through a 32" Translucent Umbrella fired by Pocket Wizard)

Nicole here is the Neice of the owner of Ceez Genesis Salon here in Indy.  Had two lights set up to start and totally according to plan one didn't fire giving me this.  The other one with both lights looks pretty solid too, but I love the way the light defines her face in this; and so does she.  Only one light thought, and it most definitely works.  It wasn't even a 60" Umbrella like I was pushing above the pic! 

The one light isn't just a fill light from on camera though and unless you have a ring-light, direct on camera flash as your only light source should be last resort.  Ring-light is a very style specific piece of equipment that can be used for either that style, or at a very low power as a fill light.  Personally I'm not much a fan of the ring-light, but that's another story for another day; back to the Umbrella.  Say you don't have an  umbrealla and can't afford one?  There are lots of things you can do with a single solitary light without an umbrella....

 

(Nikon D3s, 1600iso, Nikon 18-23F3.5-4.5@22mm.  1/40th@F5.6.  Single SB-900 Speedlight zoomed to 200mm on a light stand set to 1/16th power aimed directly down on the bride and groom fired by Pocket Wizard)

My Pal Scott at Roberts Distributors reminded me the other day that a little bit of hard light can go a long way sometimes.  The above photo was made using ambient light as a very little bit of fill light, with a single bare bulb strobe behind the Bride and Groom.  Yes it took several shots to get this one, in fact I'm pretty sure I have about 50 shots of the light blasting me in the eyes......but in the end this shot was worth the effort, and the bride and groom have something very unique to remember the moment with.  

Doesn't take much light sometimes.  Earlier this week I shot a semi commercial job using a single hard light actually.  It was kind of a last second job with no staff or budget, but we made it work.  Vincents Furs wanted some photos of their jackets, and the ads are going to look like a night out on the town.  Due to lack of any other preparation we went with the Single Speedlight approach.  Seemed to work ok.....

 

(Canon 5D Mark II, 320ISO, Canon 16-35F2.8L@18mm.  1/100th@F5.6.  Single Canon 580EX Speedlight set to 1/8th Zoomed out to 24mm held directly over the table from camera right attached to the end of a Home Depot Paint pole fired by pocket wizard held by one of the Male models waiting for their turn to be shot.)

That's an outtake from the shoot.  Not sure if its what they are looking for or not, but we'll find out.  Probably would have been nice to have had drinks or something on the table, but with a lack of budget we weren't going to buy 12 beers for the cast and crew and then either finish the shoot a little beer'd up or leave them there....  

Sometimes though, you just need to go all out, or maybe just observe things are they are.........behold the beauty of photography.  Had a lot of different experiences the last two weeks since I've blogged.  Roller Derby Nationals is coming up in Chicago next weekend.  I won't be attending as I've got a few gigs here in Indy that I booked prior, but I will be represented by photography up there in programs and as some trading cards.  Derby season has started up again too.........but this is all too much to go into now....More Soon.

The WOW factor...

A few weeks ago I was approached by a company here in Indianapolis named Beckman and Coulter contacted me about taking some photos of a very crazy looking room inside their facility known as their Command Center.  My first question was whether or not this command center was really a basement or not, and if we would be able to hook an Xbox up to the Big Screen.... Which, oh yea!  This Command Center?  it had the Second largest LCD Panel in the World in it.

 

Cool huh?  Ok not really, but that was the problem.  This company had the issue of the Wow Factor working against them.  The Photo above shows the room as it was, and as our eyes saw it.  The first word I said when I walked into that room was, WOW... But that's not what the photo above does for anyone.  The photo above just is of this large room, but doesn't give you the sense of being there, and how cool that room really is.  

It was a monumental challenge of a concept to me, as of course any photographer would/should be worried that they couldn't pull off this WOW factor.  I was most certainly worried about it.  I had a few ideas though, thanks to inspiration from people like Dave Black, and Joe McNally; whom I read and research frequently in times when I need inspiration.  This is what I came up with...

(Nikon D3s, 800ISO, Nikon 14-24mmF2.8N, 1/20th@F8.  Nikon SB-900 Speedlight with 1/2cut CTB to camera left set to 1/4 power zoomed to 85mm on a stand fired by Pocket Wizard. Nikon SB-900 Speedlight with Full Cut CTB to camera right set to 1/4th zoomed to 105mm,  fired by Pocket Wizard.  Single Dynalight Uni400 head on each side of the Mamoth LCD Screen set to full power, each with a full CTO over the reflector.  both fired by Pocket Wizards)

The room was plenty dark though too, and I needed to expose my shot for the screen.  The D3s can handle 800 or 1,000ISO like it's its job giving me absolutely minimal grain in the worst of conditions so I felt no hesitation in pushing the camera up that high to get a decent depth of field for the shots.  (Something I'd never have done with my old D2x, not even when shot correctly).  I probably wouldn't have gone much higher than 1000 though, even though the powers that be say the camera can take it, I still prefer the cleanest image possible and I probably would have attempted to find a lower ISO possibility.  The coolest thing about this space is definitely the screen, but I felt as though the screen (despite being large and bright) was sort of lost into the black abyss of Sound Proof tiles behind it.  The orange lights to separate it from the wall were a MUST in my mind.  The lights didn't need to be orange, no; but I felt as though the warm colors really added a lot of contrast between the Blue GPS screen and the background as well as the desks in front.  I did add some blue lights on the desks, but those are a lot more evident in the shots with staff involved.

(Nikon D3s, 1000ISO, Nikon 18-35mmF3.5-4.5@26mm, 1/40th@F9.  Nikon SB-900 Speedlight with 1/2cut CTB to camera left set to 1/4th zoomed to 70mm on a stand fired by Pocket Wizard, Nikon SB-900 Speedlight with Full Cut CTB to camera right on a stand about 50' away zoomed to 200mm at 1/2 power fired by Pocket Wizard.  Single Dynalight Uni400 head on each side of the Mamoth LCD Screen set to full power, each with a full CTO over the reflector.  Both Dynalights fired by Pocket Wizards)

Sometimes people aren't as cooperative in groups, especially when it's around their lunchtime.  In this case my assistant, Mike Guio, is sitting at the desk in the yellow shirt, to fill in for whomever had to get off the clock.  Nothing wrong with it, and it does incorporate their logo into the shot, even though its very small...But it is a little bit of an easter egg for anybody who knows him.  The client didn't seem to mind, and Jeff the Liaison from their IT department was off doing his IT'ly duties and we wanted to keep shooting.  Sometimes, you've just got to keep shooting.  

 

(Nikon D3s, 640ISO, Nikon 14-24F2.8N@14mm.  1/30th@F7.1.  Single SB-800 Speedlight zoomed tro 105mm Fired by Pocket wizard through camera right, shot through a Queen Size bed sheet hanging over the windows to the conference room.  Single Dynalight Uni400 head on each side of the Mamoth LCD Screen set to full power, each with a full CTO over the reflector.  Both Dynalights fired by Pocket Wizards)

One of the neater elements of this place is that they had a VIP Conference room overlooking the Command Center.  It was neat because they had a small cross section of the screen for the VIPs, or meeting attendees to utilize for their presentations.  I was still jonesing to put an Xbox or death Race up on one of the big screens, but alas I was still denied.  I did however ask what the coolest thing they had ever put up on the screen was though, and that was the World Cup.  Not gunna lie, I think thats pretty cool.  

Also pretty cool was a message I received from the Director of the Command Center.  They were thrilled with the turnout of the photos in achieving the 'Wow' Factor.  he even joked about not being able to use the photos because they made the room look cooler than it actually was.  It was an awesome compliment, and I thanked him quite a bit.  I came a far way through this project, considering I wasn't sure I would be able to deliver when offered the Job.  It just goes to show you that if you work towards a vision, anything is possible.  With a little perseverance, creativity, and with a good vision, you can accomplish anything.  Maybe a little (or a lot of) luck doesn't hurt either... More Soon.

Kickin the tires. Lightin the fires...

So it's been longer than my normal pauses between blogs, and I swear it's not because I haven't wanted to. I've had the great fortune of being busy, busier than I can handle almost which any photographer can tell you; is a blessing. The blog isn't the only thing that's suffered in my absence though, the photo of the day that I do on my facebook page has been missing for about 5 days now. Good thing I wasn't going for a record there or anything.

Anyway, just got back from Philly where I was invited to shoot at the East Coast Extraveganza, which is a Roller Derby exhibition tournament to help teams change their standings right before the regional tournament selections are made. It was quite an event, and aside from shooting some random artsy stuff it helped me put some new equipment through the rigors it needed to get broken in.

(Nikon D3s, 2500ISO, Nikon 70-200VR2. 1/250th@F4 SB9000 Speedlight zoomed to 105mm to camera left set to 1/16th power superclamped to the lexan saftey glass around the hockey rink. Same setup on a second SB900 to the right side of the camera, except zoomed to 200mm. Both fired by Pocket Wizard.)

I did shoot more than just the Naptown girls this trip, in fact I shot 6 bouts in total. I'd never shot so many bouts in a row before, but it was easier than I anticipated. It probably helped having a beer after the 4th one straight, but who knows. The girls are always a pleasure to travel with, and I'd never been to such a large derby event before. I mean, in terms of people Naptown puts on a LARGE event, but having 20 teams all in one spot? It was absolutely amazing. Philly is a beautiful city and I wish I would have been able to see more of it. Fortunately for me, there are a lot of beautiful towns and a few projects have popped up recently that allow met to see some more of them very soon.

(Nikon D3s, 800ISO, Nikon 70-200F2.8VR2 with the TC20eIII 2x teleconverter. 1/1000th@F9)

Someone once asked me how I can afford to purchase and own up to date camera gear, and my answer was simply this. I don't keep the old stuff. My D3 was going to net me more money now than tomorrow, or next week, so purchasing the new body is relatively inexpensive. Figure if you only spent a thousand dollars every other year to have the most up to date camera body, would you do it? Yea, my D3 was very sentimental to me as it was a major accomplishment in technology and in my career for being able to own one. The tens of thousands of shots that I put on it helped make my living, further my craft, or were shot for pure enjoyment. But by selling that D3, I made way for a new Nikon D3s at a fraction of the cost of purchasing it outright. My buddy Scott down at Roberts Distributors here in Indianapolis has me always on mind when it comes to deals that come in. I can't say I always take the deals he finds me, but when he finds me a deal I always go in to check it out. I buy almost all of my equipment from Roberts, as does Sports Illustrated, USA Today, and many more. If it's good enough for them, I suppose it'll do for me... In the end, is the D3s everything I had hoped for? Yes, and then some. It's a pretty amazing camera that feels like an old glove as it's identical to the D3 in almost every way except some very important ones. Those ways that it's not identical though? I've got some neat projects coming up for that, so stay tuned.

(Nikon D700 200ISO, Nikon 18-35F3.5-4.5@18mm. 1/400th@F22)

Unfortunately there's not much more than Derby photos that I can post from the last week or two as I don't want to scoop the publications or organizations that I've been shooting for. What the Naptown Roller Girls did was amazing in Philly though, and they deserve every bit of credit anyone wants to send them for their accomplishments. Very soon though I've got a lot of content coming down the pipe that I'm very excited to talk about. Lets just say I'll give you the following keywords to think about. Motorcycles, Beer, Music, Going Green, and Sunsets. Much Much more soon.


(Nikon D3s, 2500ISO, Nikon 70-200VR2. 1/250th@F4 SB9000 Speedlight zoomed to 105mm to camera left set to 1/16th power superclamped to the lexan saftey glass around the hockey rink. Same setup on a second SB900 to the right side of the camera, except zoomed to 200mm. Both fired by Pocket Wizard.)

From inside the paint...

Or as close as you can be to being inside the paint while still being a spectator anyway... One week a year I am assigned to shoot sports like I used to at Purdue. One week a year, I get to sit on the sidelines once again and attempt to provide all of the official imagery for the Indiana High School All-Stars basketball teams here in Indianapolis. It's essentially 6 basketball games that have to be shot in as high of quality, and resolution as possible for glossy commercial reproduction. That can be no easy task when shooting in a high school gym, as my good friend Michael Guio learned last week while accompanying me to the Rushville Indiana exhibition game.

(Canon 1D Mark II, 500ISO, Canon EF300mmF2.8IS, 1/200th@F4. Two Dynalight Uni400JR heads set to half power aimed down at the top of the key of the basket I'm sitting under set to 1/2 power fired by pocket wizards)

Anyone who knows me just a little knows that I prefer to shoot my Nikon equipment when it comes to shooting sports. It's what I've shot the most sports on, and I know what it's capable of when shooting things like basketball, soccer, swimming, tennis, football, roller derby or anything else that moves. This year though I decided to do as the newspaper asks and shoot using their equipment. The main reason for this is that if I get hit by a basketball player and break the lens right off of my camera I'M the one paying to fix it, not them because they provide me gear that I wasn't using. Makes sense sort of, except I feel like I'd have done a better job with my own gear. Otherwise though, I didn't think I did too bad for someone who shoots basketball one week a year.

(Canon EOS1D Mark IIn, 100ISO, Canon EF 70-200F2.8IS@70mm, 1/250th@F4. Lit using the in house Pacers lights at Conseco fired via pocket wizard.)

Despite the fact that the days are incredibly long during this week, I do look forward to them every year. I wasn't feeling very well during Conseco series, but I pulled through. Shooting sports spoils me quite a bit though, as watching any sport any other way than on the field or court, is just not good enough. Photographers sit closer than the coaches in some cases. It's also a nice treat to shoot along side of some of the people that I've always looked up to as sports shooters since that's their job all the time. People like Matt Kryger, Tom Campbell from Purdue, Mike Conroy and AJ Mast. I have a great deal of respect for these guys becuae they've shot better sports images with their eyes closed than I'd even be able to stage on my own.

(Canon EOS1D Mark II, 400ISO, CanonEF300mmF2.8IS, 1/250th@F4. Two Dynalight UNI400JR;s about 20 feet above the court in the stands aimed at the top of the key of the basket that I'm sitting under set to 1/2 power fired by pocket wizards.)

The thing I Like about shooting sports, is the same thing that I like about shooting jewelery; it's tough. You either get something or you don't. In sports you can't dwell on it though, you just have to keep shooting in sports. I've actually been known to put tape over the back LCD on my camera so I don't spend more time looking at the images than shooting them. Yea sometimes it's nice to be able to eliminated out of focus images, or images without the ball in them but like I said earlier; you either got it or you didn't in sports.

(Canon EOS1D Mark IIn, 100ISO, Canon EF 70-200F2.8IS@153mm, 1/250th@F4. Lit using the in house Pacers lights at Conseco fired via pocket wizard.)

The one down side to this assignment is also the greatest part. My assignment isn't one player, it's the Indiana team. That means the Introductions, the Awards winners, and game action from every player. It's not just about number 1, number 8 or any other individual. Yes I absolutely need photos of Mr. and Miss. Basketball, but ALL the team is important. It's nice because I can shoot anything I like. It's not as nice because I have to make sure anything I shoot is sharp and lit. It's an incredibly stressful week, but I'm already looking forward to next year. Check out all the photos for download by the teams and families here. More Soon.

(Canon EOS1D Mark IIn, 800ISO, CanonEF70-200F2.8IS@70mm, 1/125th@F4)

Big Jobs with Small Flash...

A few weeks ago I was offered an opportunity to redo all of the marketing material for a retirement community here in Indianapolis. As it turns out Justus homes isn't just a custom made housing company, but they also own several retirement villages. This opportunity came a little differently than a normal shoot like this would, as this one came through the newspaper as opposed to from the outside world. Anybody who reads the blog, knows that I prefer to use Speedlights when on location, but sometimes getting down to low 100 or 200ISO can be tough with speedlights. Advancements in cameras allow us to climb relatively high into the ISO scale to accomplish what we need with minimal noise though. I've shot jobs with lights that have taken me all the way up to 2500ISO for commercial print. The D3 is an amazing camera when it comes to High ISO noise, but despite that fact, the lower you can stay in an ISO range, the better. That's not why I chose to shoot this assignment for the newspaper with my personal Nikon gear though. I chose to shoot this with my personal Nikon gear instead of the 5D Mark II and L lenses they provide me is because of the Nikon iTTL Wireless Speedlight system.

(Nikon D3, 320ISO, Nikon 18-35mmF3.5-F4.5@26mm. 1/50th@F5. Single SB900 Speedlight behind the wall to camera right pointed towards the coffee drinking lady at the table shot through a 43" Umbrella on a stand set to TTL+/-, Single SB900 Speedlight set to TTL-1 zoomed to 70mm Fired into the opened refrigerator door to illuminate the food prep lady. Both Speedlights fired by Nikon SU-800 Speedlight Commander on Camera)

The director of marketing had some very specific things in mind when it came to the shots we were to take at the Crestwood Village retirement communities. (At the time of this blog, the media on the website aren't mine. The media on the Direct mail is though). These communities are especially known for hosting an active lifestyle, and all of the residents that I met were genuinely ecstatic to be not only there for the photos, but to live there in general. The staff was very helpful as well, always making sure peoples concerns and needs were taken care of, which in this next photo was something we wanted to show.

(Nikon D3, 320ISO, Nikon 50mmF1.4G, 1/400th@F2. Two SB-900 Speedlights zoomed to 70mm set to 1/4th power sitting on the desk pointed into a bedsheet draped on the wall to camera left. Both Speedlights were fired by SU800 Speedlight commander unit from on camera.)

Aside from that yellow office being yellow, it was significantly smaller than it looks in this photo. Made sure to use the trusty bed sheet for lotsa reasons. All the residents thought I was out of my mind when it was pulled out of the bag, but when they saw the result on the back of the camera I received half of my perceived sanity back. There were still plenty of thigs I did later that day that removed that last bit of percieved sanity though, which is why I kept track of getting it back I suppose. Things like this...

(Nikon D3, 250ISO, Nikon 18-35mmF3.5-4.5@35mm@35mm. 1/30th@F8. Single SB900 Speedlight to above camera right set to 1/4th power fired by pocket wizard through a 16" FotoRosa softbox. Single SB900 Speedlight in the hallways fired by pocketwizard into the hallways ceiling set to 1/4th power. Single SB800 Speedlight zoomed to 105mm fired by SU-4 Magic eye set to 1/2 power shot directly into the lamp on the bedstand to the left of the frame, and the bed.)

This may look like someone looking at a laptop on a bed, but really it's someone looking at a laptop on a bed while being lit by a strobe bounced off of a lamp. Like I say when I give lighting workshops; light is like a kid in a mud farm, it picks up the color of anything it touches. In this big blue room I couldn't use the walls to bounce the lights, and I didn't want to waste the models time going back out to the car to get yet another light modifier like a reflector. The white lampshade in the corner of the room did just fine. Really it was a bit of a gamble, I had no idea how much spill there was going to be, but happy accidents are just as good as planned accidents in my book.

(Nikon D3, 400ISO, Nikon 85mmF1.4D, 1/60th@F8. Single SB900 Speedlight fired through a 42" Umbrella set to iTTL +1 to above camera left. Single SB900 fired through a 43" umbrella set to 1/4th to behind the left of the subjects fired by SU-4 Magic eye. Single Nikon SB800 Speedlight sitting on a table to camera right set to iTTL +2 shot into the wall to camera right as to illuminate the ambient in the scene.)

Those guys were more than eager to play poker for us for a little bit. The room was relatively large, but the three speedlights made relatively short work of it all, creating media that the director was very pleased with capable of being printed poster sized which made the client incredibly happy. I'm pretty sure the three gentlemen continued to play poker for a while after we left too, which was too funny as I have no idea how they actually concentrated while I was there. Speaking of concentrating though, These ladies got the good end of the deal; we gave them cake!

(Nikon D3, 320ISO, Nikon 85mmF1.4D, 1/200th@F2. Single SB900 Speedlight 20 feet to camera right set to iTTL+1 shot through a 43" umbrella. Single SB900 to above cameara left set to iTTL +/-0 fired through a 43" Umbrella as well, Single SB800 Speedlight zoomed to 105mm set to 1/4 shot into the ceiling 45ish or so feet behind the table being photographed. All speedlights were fired by a Nikon SU-800 Commander Unit from On Camera.)

This room is probably about 75 feet deep, and 40 feet across, and the small strobes I packed in the bag did a wonderful job of lighting this for me. It's definitely an advantage of using the Small strobes out places, but what really makes things work well is the wireless iTTL of the Nikon speedlight system. Without this, it would have taken me much longer shoot these photos, having to moved to adjust the lights every time there was a mistake, or having to figure out the ratios during setup. As it was, I traveled 147 miles that day to four different Crestwood Village locations and was able to provide quite a few usable images to the client; many more images than were shown here.

Shooting with small strobes is greatly versatile, Nikon and Canon have given photographers the power to quickly light things like never before. It's not just about being able to take your camera up to 1600ISO if you want to, because you should only do that when you NEED to. Now it's about being able to shoot ANYTHING for glossy poster quality. Anything's possible in any space. Joe McNally once used 47 speedlights to light up an aircraft. What could you do with a few? More Soon.

Battle Royale...

Recently while attending the concert of my friend KJ Testin, I was offered a very unique opportunity. Well, egged onto is more of an appropriate term rather than offered, but either way I did accept. I digress though, we were at a KJ Testin concert, and my good friend Brad was completely amped about his purchase of a Nikon D700. I don't blame him, it's an amazing camera that is capable of taking amazing photos. Brad you see, recently traded in ALL of his Sony Alpha equipment in order to purchase this D700. I kept telling brad that there was nothing wrong with his Sony A700, but he was convinced that after years of watching me shoot with Nikon there was a difference. I continued to tell him what I say,and what you'll hear a lot of pro's say. "The camera is just a tool." I was challenged to prove it.

(Photo by Bradley Clampitt. D700, 2500ISO, Sigma 70-200F2.8@70mm, 1/160th@F2.8)

Brad isn't your average shooter by any stretch. While he claims that he never inspires to be a professional, he constantly takes time to work on getting better at taking photos on his own time. I can't tell you the number of times that he's called me at 3AM to tell me about a shot he wanted to take while out on the canal while he was there taking it. He's got a good eye, and while not a professional he is definitely not average.

The company that Brad works for happens to own a Nikon D2Xs which of course he had in his car at the time. (It's like he planned this or something? Sheesh!) Again, I digress. So Brad goes out to his car and to my dismay provides the Nikon D2Xs. A little history on the Nikon D2X series of camera is that at 100ISO is the greatest camera you will EVER use. Above 400iso the camera looks like you've printed your images directly on sandpaper. Detail loss is rampant in every occasion but one, and that's the occasion of a perfect exposure; which as a professional I was expected to hit.

(Nikon D2Xs, 1250ISO, Sigma 70-200F2.8@200mm, 1/125@F2.8)

The challenge here wasn't to prove who was the better photographer. Not by any stretch. The challenge here was to prove that a camera didn't matter, it was the know how of the user that mattered. The challenge was to prove that I could provide photos just as good in terms of quality with the Nikon D2Xs, as with his much newer and more advanced D700; and that's what I did.

(Photo by Bradley Clampitt. Nikon D700, 2500ISO, Sigma 70-200mmF2.8@105mm, 1/30th@F2.8)

The rules were simple. We were to shoot the first two sets of the concert and pick 5 files out of our take to swap with the other person. Brad took 1,181 Photos and for some reason my itchy trigger finger decided that 298 total shots was the right number. (Potentially limited by the single 8gb card that I had, but that's another story). Neither of us were allowed to crop the images at all because yes the primary objective was to prove that the camera didn't matter, not how well one or the other can crop an image to be more interesting. I guess in that aspect there was a little bit of Photographic skill in competition here, but the big thing was image quality. The images would then have all of the EXIF data stripped from them, and be sent to several civilian judges to see if anyone could tell the difference. One judge was a Digital Imaging and Retouching expert, another judge was a Professional Photographer here in town, and the final was a civilian who just liked looking at photos. They were asked if they could tell which shots were shot with which camera, and to pick 7 of the 10 that they liked the best.

(Nikon D2Xs, 1250ISO, Nikon AF-S 50mmF1.4G, 1/125@F2)

In the end, as you can tell by the photos in this blog, the Nikon D2Xs camera handled itself admirably. Scott at Roberts Distributors in downtown Indianapolis describes the D2x as the most undervalued camera on the market today, and I totally agree. It also shows that if you know what you're doing a camera is just a tool; like a hammer. It's great that the technology makes it easier to take photos, but in the end its the person behind it. If you've got a Digital Rebel, or a D70, D80 or lots of other cameras you've already got a camera that handles noise better than the D2 series of cameras did so go out and shoot. That's where you'll get better. Not by owning better equipment. None of the judges could tell which camera shot what. There may have been a bit of a style difference that was recognizable, but that's another story.

With that said, I also feel as though there is nothing wrong with owning a really nice hammer. After the dust settled on our little Battle Royale, Brad thanked me as he had seen that technology is helpful, but not the end all be all in the world of photography. The shots that I took were very useable, at a much lower ISO than he had even attempted to shoot at. I could also stop sweating at that point as I had no idea if I would have been able to pull off useable photos with that camera even though I'd done it hundreds of times when I owned one. In retrospect this was probably a horrbile idea, but we'll just say that a dinner Won is sweeter than a dinner cooked, or bought yourself. I've said the camera doesn't matter and I stand by that but I'll tell you what: it definitely helps sometimes. More Soon.

(Nikon D2Xs, 1250ISO, Sigma 70-200F2.8@70mm, 1/125@F2.8)

Water Droplets....

A few weeks ago I gave a presentation to the PhotoVenture Camera Club here in Indianapolis on Macro Photography. I unfortunately wasn't as prepared for that presentation as I'd have liked to have been because I hadn't shot water droplets and I wanted to show them something that I know a lot of people have interest in (other than bugs, flowers and diamonds of course). So at the end of my presentation I made sure to specifically promise an in depth tutorial about shooting water droplets. Here we go...


List of materials needed is as follows:
-Colored background (important)
-At least 1 strobe that can be fired either via wireless flash, pocket wizard, or off camera cable
-Water (duh)
-Plastic Baggie
-Trash can
-Paper towels
-Thumb Tack
-Tripod
-Cable release
-Snacks
-Fishbowl, large snack bowl, Flower Vase, Basically a glass or plastic transparent vessel to put water into
-Patience

The thing to remember is that you may not get this on the first try, but once you get the idea you'll get some really cool stuff. You'll want to set your camera to Manual Focus and set it to where you think the water drops will land. (AIm for the middle of whatever you are using to drop them into). Keep in mind that you aren't going to have much depth of field to work with if you are using a macro lens and are getting close up. So you may not get sharp shots every time, but keep at it as it'll take a few drops. I used Ziplock bags and a regular thumbtack to make the hole to start the drips, because that's what I had on hand and because the plastic in those bags is usually pretty good meaning that the hole wasn't going to tear and create a waterfall on me.


The REAL key here is the light. You don't actually light the water droplets, you light the background. Water is transparent, and has very similar qualities to glass in some aspects. The easiest way to light glass is to light around it. This is why you want colored backgrounds. I took things one step further, buy providing two colored backgrounds. In my case it was Red and Blue, which gave the overall feel of the water a red one, but gave the highlights of the water a blue hue.

I used a cable release as to avoid touching the camera while firing the shutter. Like I said, you have kind of a slim depth of field while doing this, so any bit of camera movement you can avoid would be good. Also if I did it again I'd find a much larger vessel to put the water into, the smaller vase worked alright, but I'd rather shoot through as little glass as possible for something like this. Every layer of glass between you and your subject is a texture, blur, or other that can get in the way of the sharpness of your image.

(Photo By Brad Clampitt on his iPhone to illustrate the lighting of the background)






It doesn't look like much (and the video was towards the end when I was getting faster while looking for drop on drop action) but believe it or not that setup can yield results....


The final image is here:

(Nikon D3, 320ISO, Nikon 105mmF2.8VR Macro, 1/125th@F25. Nikon SB-900 Speedlight zoomed to 135mm fired into the red binder sleeve behind the vase set to 1/4th power Fired by Pocket Wizard. Camera fired by MC-36 Digital Remote Release. Side note: the above photo shows two speedlights. Only one was firing, the other was setup in case I wanted another one, which I didn't)

I'll have to say that I was pleased with the result, yet at the same time there are things I'd have done differently, which is mostly getting a larger tank. Keep in mind that it takes some time to get the timing down, and you wont get this on your first try. I took 576 shots yesterday afternoon while doing this, and there are a lot where the drops didn't land where the camera was focused, or where i was just a little too slow, or fast to catch it. To avoid this problem you can buy or make an audio trigger for your camera. I however just decided to wing it, and burn a few shots. I learned a lot, and I hope anyone that reads this learns a few things too. Coming up I've got a few interesting entries. One details the use of a Nikon D2x while shooting a concert along side a Much newer and more advanced D700. Others include the engagement of some friends as seen below, so definitely check back because as always: More Soon.

(Nikon D3, 200ISO, Nikon 18-35mmF3.5-4.5@24mm, 1/160@F22. Single Nikon SB-900 Speedlight set to TTL +3 held on the end of a light stand by Joseph Lee fired by an on camera SB-900 set to master mode.)