The Photocrati Blog

Review: NexStar Hard Drive Dock

NexStar single-bay Hard Drive Dock, with a 3.5" disk inserted

One of the most important aspects of any backup system is having a process, doing something consistently and uniformly enough that it’s easy to make sense of what’s going on, where information is, and so on. My backup process, while complete, has been a little ad hoc at times, and so as part of a move to simplify and organize my backup strategies I’m moving to keeping most of my backups on bare “internal” hard disks. While there are several ways of hooking bare drives externally to systems, recently I’ve become aware of a couple products that allow hard disks to be used almost like video game cartridges, plug in the drive, and go. Excited by the fact that this would simplify working with bare drives, I recently purchased the Vantec NexStar NST-D100SU 2.5-Inch/3.5-Inch SATA to USB 2.0 and eSATA Hard Drive Dock (White) and wanted to share my initial impressions and experiences with the product, which I’ll be calling “the Dock”, with apologies to my Apple readers.

The Dock connects your internal disk drive using either a USB or eSATA connection. NexStar provides not only USB and eSATA connectors but also a desktop bracket and cable that hooks to an internal SATA connector and provides an eSATA connector, as well as the obligatory power cables (each are actually labeled on the cable noting which type of cable it is, not entirely necessary but a nice touch for those of us who occasionally seem to generate cable nests). A simple instruction book is provided as well as a driver mini-CD/installation guide, while drivers are provided on the disk the disk should only be necessary for users of Windows 98/SE, or MacOS 8.6 or earlier, Windows ME/2K/XP/Vista, MacOS 9 (or later) and Linux 2.4.18 (or later) users should be able to plug and play according to their documentation. I tested the unit on an XP-based laptop via USB, and on a 64-bit Windows Vista system using eSATA. Vantec also makes a Vantec NexStar NST-D200SU 2.5-Inch/3.5-Inch SATA to USB 2.0/eSATA Dual Bay Hard Drive Dock (White) version of the Dock but I haven’t tested that myself. (more…)

A few words about postcard marketing

postcard_4x6_front — A simple show annoucement postcard

I’ve got a show coming up soon (a two-person show, I’ll be showing a new set of dune abstracts), so for the last week or so I’ve been spending a fair amount of time on marketing the show. I’ve sent out an email to my on-line mailing list, updated my web site and my Facebook fan page, and so on. It would be just so easy to stick with electronic marketing, but I think in this case that would be a mistake. Even in this modern age, there’s a place for the postcard.

Designing a simple postcard isn’t that difficult if you have moderate graphic design and Photoshop skills. For announcements of photographic exhibitions, the front of the card should contain one or two eye-catching images and your name, it should also suggest that the card is about an exhibition and not waste ink on a whole lot more. Save most of the time/place details for the back, the more “real estate” on a small card you give to your own work, the more it will attract the notice of your customers. What goes on the back of your card– which is heavily constrained by US postal regulations– all of the major postcard vendors provide templates so you know what areas you need to leave blank, and so on. (more…)

Product Review – Wacom Bamboo

As someone who’s been using Photoshop since version 1 I’ve had my share of bad days with a mouse. The occasional forearm and wrist numbness that come with a long session of silhouetting and clipping paths is becoming more and more common. (Those long sessions of Call of Duty don’t help either.) I’ve never been one for the pen/tablet tools though. After all, my abysmal hand skills are one reason I got into photography in the first place. But about a month ago I got an assignment that was going to require some pretty heavy use of layer masks. About the same time I came across a display at the local office supply store of the new Bamboo (Small) Pen Tablet with Pen Only line from Wacom. Wacom is the leading brand when it comes to pen/tablet input systems, they’ve also got the Cintiq line of pen/monitor systems that are a lot of fun. But since I’m not an illustrator, and rarely do heavy retouching or manipulation, the pen systems haven’t held a lot of sway with me. (more…)

Review: The Kacey Beauty Reflector

I was recently given the opportunity to experiment with a Kacey Beauty Dish, so I decided to put together a review/explanation/demonstration.

One of the blogs I read all the time is the Strobist blog (www.strobist.com). David Hobby has been writing this blog for a while now, and I have learned lots from him.

One of the great things he did when he got started was he realized that it was not going to be possible for him to answer every question, or respond to every comment. So, being the innovative person that he is, he started a flickr forum that allows various photographers from all over the world to learn, share and teach one another.

That forum is here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/strobist/

Recently on this flickr forum there was a review and discussion about the Kacey Beauty Dish. Musician/photographer Steve Korn apparently got one to play with, and offered his opinions in a well-written review here.

I was lucky enough to be able to play with one of these beauty dishes (Kacey calls them “Beauty Reflectors”) recently, and took it on several different shoots. (more…)

Fun with Sunstars

One of the stranger and more interesting artifacts you’re likely to come across in photographing nature is the sunstar. You’ve probably seen the effect, or one like it, where bright points of light. While many of these effects are the result of ::amazon(“B00004ZCDV”, “specialized star filters”)::, effects like this are, in some situations, easy to create without a filter due to a strange quirk in the physics of light, the phenomena of diffraction. Fortunately, you don’t need a degree in physics to get sunstars in your own photos, just a few simple tips. (more…)

Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S DX VR Nikkor Review

This zoom has taken me far and wide, expanding my creative vision.

I wasn’t about to be swayed easily. Until now I was not a Nikon enthusiast–my camera allegiances lay elsewhere. So, if I was going to start using Nikon gear seriously, that gear had better prove itself. Accordingly, when I tested out the D300, I chose the one lens that I’d anticipated would either demonstrate the merits of this system or let it fall flat on its face. I wanted a lens wide enough for scenics and groups and long enough to capture people and wildlife unobtrusively. In an all-purpose lens, I also wanted image stabilization, or, as Nikon calls it, Vibration Reduction (VR)–or specifically second-gen Enhanced VR II Vibration Reduction–a nice adjunct when shooting by available light or stretching the limits of a low light-sensitivity rating (ISO).

What I really wanted was one lens that would do it all. I didn’t want to schlep around three or four lenses as I did with my other DSLR system. I wanted a compact solution, but one that would not involve compromise–at least, none that I would notice in everyday shooting.

And that search led me to Nikon’s 18-200 VR. Aside from a fisheye that I carry for an entirely different perspective on the world, this lens is all I’ve carried on recent trips to Germany, Miami, and Las Vegas. It has so much going for it that–well, maybe we should start at the beginning…

jn_01a-compact2 — THE LENS. The AF-S DX VR Zoom-NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED is fairly lightweight, and relatively compact when not zoomed out. Note the three switches: one governs focusing (auto with manual override or full manual), VR on/off, and VR mode ("normal" for camera shake and smooth panning or "active" for shooting from a moving vehicle). Frankly, I rarely used this last feature, and when I did, I didn't notice a measurable difference. When fully extended, this lens becomes obvious for what it is: a zoom with telephoto reach. The petal-shaped lens shade may not seem deep enough, but it does the job well. Photo Copyright ©2009 Jack Neubart. All rights reserved.

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Q and A: What is the best pro-oriented compact camera?

Question

I’m very happy with my Nikon D300 but I also need a smaller camera for hiking and for family outings when I don’t want to carry a heavy DSLR and lens. Are there any really fast/versatile cameras with built-in lens that would satisfy a serious photographer? I would want all the modes, overrides and RAW capture that you get with a DSLR? A.B.

Answer

In truth, no such camera is fully competitive with a DSLR in terms of versatility — especially in Continuous Drive speed — but there are three models that you should definitely check out while shopping. I have tested all three and found that they’re packed with advanced features, including numerous modes and overrides plus a RAW capture mode. (more…)

A Quick Introduction to Mono Lake

Mono Lake is one of the most famous California nature photography sites, that fame is a consequence of both it’s photographic and environmental history. Environmentally it supports the second largest population of California gulls (the first, paradoxically, being in Utah), that support was threatened by the diversion of streams that provide water to the late for use by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, 300 miles away. Photographically, tufa, the strange limestone formations exposed by the lowering lake level, the backdrop of the Sierra Nevada to the west, and the gull population provide a rich source of photographic opportunities. In this post, I hope to excite you (just a little bit) about the area, and suggest a few places you might want to begin your photographic exploration of the area.

The most frequented area of the lake is the “South Tufa Area”, located along the south side of the lake. While often a busy and well-frequented area, the number, size and variety of the tufa formations there are unparalleled. Your biggest challenge many times of year will be other photographers, but the area is large and gets interesting light both at sunrise (both toward the Sun and toward the Sierra) and just past suns, when the geography and elevation often provide strong, saturated earth shadows such as the one in the image I’ve included above. (more…)

Comparison Review of Full-Frame Digital SLRs: Canon EOS 5D Mk II vs. Nikon D700 vs. Sony a900

Field Test Report

As discussed in my previous Q &A item about the pro’s and con’s of large sensors, an increasing number of DSLRs employ a full-frame 24x36mm chip. Some of those cameras are very expensive ($7000+) but three models fall into the “relatively affordable” category. I tested this trio often using large, premium-grade zooms optimized for 24x36mm chips. Because the cameras became available at various times, I was unable to do side-by-side testing. For the sake of consistency however, I did return to a couple of scenes in similar lighting and made some comparable images.

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What I look for in an assistant

One of the tried and true methods of learning about the photography industry is to spend time as an assistant. Even with a formal education in photography, time spent as an assistant is critical to learning the industry and business, as well as learning a bit about yourself. Sure the hours are long, the pay is bad, and you may very well spend the day picking up turkey poop or standing in triple digit heat for eight hours (both of which I did while assisting) but you’ll also get to see things and do things that make most normal people jealous. (more…)