JabariHunt.com

Wish List II

jabari — Thu, 17 May 2012 21:19:29 +0000

My first “Wish List” post is a bit outdated. many things have changed since then, both within my own realm and within the photography gear market as a whole. I took more of a “money is no object” approach before, but this time around I want to build a list that is fairly obtainable. As a matter of fact, I’ve acquired a chunk of what’s listed already. I’ll ~~scratch things off~~ as I get them!

I’ve been wanting to take the medium format plunge for some time now. As I stated in another post, the cost of doing so has traditionally been beyond what I and most other hobby/semi-pro photographers are willing to spend. The market has changed quite a bit sense then! Quality digital backs of yesteryears have now been replaced by even bigger and better models. That, along with the mighty Nikon D800 nipping at the heels of medium format resolution has significantly decreased the price of entry into digital medium format photography.

Cameras & Lenses:

Mamiya / Phase One DF
~~Mamiya AFD II or III (backup + film)~~
Mamiya DM22 / Leaf Aptus 22
~~Mamiya 45mm 2.8 AF~~
~~Mamiya 80mm 2.8 AF~~
~~Mamiya 210mm 4 ULD AF~~
Mamiya AF Extension Tube #3

Nikon D3X OR Nikon D800E
Nikon 28-70mm 2.8 or 24-70mm 2.8

Lighting:

5 Paul C. Buff Einsteins [1 of 5 + 1 Alien Bee B800]
5 PocketWizard Power MC2 Einstein Receivers [1 of 5]
Swap My PocketWizard MultiMax And Plus II For 2 Plus III triggers
3 Paul C. Buff Vagabond Minis [1 of 3]
3 Vagabond Mini Spare Batteries
3 Paul C. Buff LiteMod Systems [1 of 3]

An Alien Bee Ring Flash would be nice as well, but definitely not on the immediate radar. Once I get a couple of more Einsteins I’ll trade my B800 for the Ring Flash!

Accessories:

5 Heavy Duty Light Stands [2 of 5]
2 Short Stands [1 of 2]
LOTS Of Modifiers!!!
Hard Waterproof Cases For Everything

I’d love to hear what’s on your wish list! Let me know in the comments below…

Nikon vs Canon

jabari — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:17:58 +0000

This is by far one of the most debated topics between hobby, semi-pro, and professional photographers alike. I know some who’d rather give up shooting than switch from Canon to Nikon or visa versa. It’s silly for sure to say the least, but I’ve participated in the occasional ribbing of my Canon toting counterparts from time to time. For me it’s all in the name of fun. However, many others take this topic far too seriously! I’ve seen friendships end, relationships go astray, and clients lost. So who was right? Which one really is the king of the photography hill???

The answer to the question is simple…neither! I’m sure you’ve heard a million and one reasons why one easily dominates the other, some of which are very sound. I’m also sure you’ve seen your favorite photographer brandishing one brand or the other at some point in time and figured, “That MUST be the best brand, right?”. I mean why else would he or she use it? To be perfectly honest with you, I can’t say exactly why. I can say with 100% certainty that it wasn’t because that brand was better than the other though.

The Test…

To prove this, I’ve put together a little test. I challenge anyone who has convinced themselves that one brand is better than the other to take it. If you can answer 10 out of 10 correctly then I will be the first to concede that whichever brand you think is best really is the best. Hell, I’ll even sell all my gear and switch if you believe Canon is better! Here it is…

Go to 500px.com and select any 10 of the fantastic photos on their main page.
Thoroughly examine each photo, then list whether you believe it was taken with a Nikon or Canon.
View the EXIF data of each photo and see if you were correct.

What was your score? 10 of 10? (If you say yes I know your lying!!!) 5 of 10? 1 of 10?

You probably chose your favorite 10 photos because those were they ones that you liked the most. Some were taken with a Nikon, some were taken with a Canon, and others may have been taken by a variety of other brands. My point is that the camera itself had very little to do with why you chose those images. It was the skill of the photographer that drew you in. Maybe it was the use of depth of field or some other technique related to composition. Maybe you were overwhelmed with the colors. Maybe it was the simplicity of abundant white space married with a small interesting subject. Whatever the case, neither Nikon nor Canon had anything to do with why you liked those photos!

So How Should I Choose?

I was originally a Canon shooter back in the day. I switched to Nikon for one reason and one reason alone. They simply felt better in my hand. There are a number of other things that usually factor in as well. I’ve listed a few that are important to me, and I’d be dilighted to add any others that you guys list in the comments:

Grip – Which feels better in your hand, both while shooting and while carrying it around. This sounds trivial, but after a 3 or 4 hour shoot you’ll appreciate making the right decision!
Ergonomics – Are important buttons easy to reach? Are there dedicated buttons for critical setting changes or do you have to go into the menus to change them?
Menu System – When you do have to use the menus, how hard is it to find and change settings that are important to you?
ISO – Is the camera capable of shooting at the minimum ISO required for the type of shooting you do? Can it produce clean images at the maximum ISO you’d like to use?
Flash Sync – For you strobe users, what is the maximum flash sync speed of the camera?

A Little Fun…

All that said, everyone knows that Nikon is the best! *grin* I kid. Enjoy some of the videos I’ve run across that have a little fun with this never ending debate:

Exposure vs Pay?

jabari — Sun, 06 May 2012 20:52:33 +0000

I’ve seen this video floating around lately. It pretty much sums up what you are really asking when you offer a photographer “exposure” rather than pay…

Ashley I

jabari — Fri, 06 May 2011 04:28:40 +0000

Ashley II

jabari — Fri, 06 May 2011 03:40:36 +0000

Ashley III

jabari — Thu, 05 May 2011 16:55:31 +0000

Nue York – Nudity At Its Best

jabari — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:11:49 +0000

The other day I happened to come across one of the more interesting art nude projects that I’ve seen in a while. Erica Simone is a New York based photographer who took a series of nude self-portraits in various public locations around NYC. The shooting style is like that of someone who happened upon her in the street and took a quick photo. I wouldn’t be surprised if she used a point and shoot as a matter of fact. It makes for a realistic viewing experience. You can check out her project here: Self Portraits Of A Bare Naked Citizen

Genesis I

jabari — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 04:00:38 +0000

Philippe Kerlo & Patrick Hall

jabari — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 17:11:59 +0000

I’d seriously fallen behind in reading my photography related RSS feeds. While catching up with them over the weekend I came across two outstanding videos on FStoppers.com. One was a super creative beauty shoot by Philippe Kerlo and the other was an over the top wakeboard studio shoot by Patrick Hall. If you’re a photographer in need of creative inspiration, here is 16 minutes of video that will get some the juices flowing!

Philippe Kerlo

Philippe is a beauty and fine art photographer based in Paris. This video features him shooting face shots through pexiglass decorated with paint and other colorful materials. The concept is amazingly simple, giving you a “why didn’t I think of that?” moment. The final results are outstanding!

[FStoppers post]

Patrick Hall

Patrick Hall (one of FStopper’s founders) is a wedding and commercial photographer based in Charleston, SC. He is experienced in wakeboard shoots, but wanted to do something with it that was completely different than anything that’s been done before. He wanted to go from amazing to over-the top. He definitely succeeded!

[FStoppers post]

Carmen IV

jabari — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 00:29:16 +0000