Lots of Announcements!

Also in this issue

• AF modes explained on video
• Least Likely Place to License an Image
• Retraction to last month
• Parting Shot

Before I get to the interesting stuff, let me share with you some news on some long-awaited titles:

Tracking a Moving Object

Olympic Hopefuls Practicing their craft in Park City, Utah.

Also in this issue:

• Why I Hate Amazon
• E-Reader Hell, Part II
• New and Updated Ebooks
• Seminar Update
• New Focusing Modes on the A77 II

A Love Letter to the RX-100 (all 3 models)

MK II, Pismo Beach, California.  Here the extra telephoto reach made a difference.

In my seminars, I try to drive home the point that the camera you have with you is infinitely better than the big and heavy one you left at home because it was, well, too big and heavy.  And for many years my point-and-shoot of choice was the Sony Cybershot T10 (a compact, small-sensor camera).  To prove its value in good light I would show off several images that I have licensed over the years that were taken with it.  

Why Facebook Images Look Awful

Also in this issue:

• Free Ebook Upgrades
• What's Meaningful Photography?
• Los Angeles Seminar
• A Sony A-mount lens on a Fujifilm X-T1

Why Facebook Images Look Awful

I've often joked that no matter how much television may improve in the future, people will still be watching reruns of "I Love Lucy" on them.  Despite the march of technology, some things just don't change.

The same is true of common snapshots.  No matter how fancy or sophisticated our cameras / phones become, no matter how miraculous an engineering achievement they represent, people will always be taking pictures that look like the ones gracing this blog post.  (Always!)  The photos shown here are real snapshots taken across the decades using popular instamatics of the day.  In all cases, the scene looked perfectly good to the eye, and after all, doesn't a camera just capture how it looks to the person shooting it?

Preventing Bit Rot, Part 2

Boy, did I get a lot of email from last month’s blog!  Most people had no idea that even though they were making regular backups and they did a file system check on a regular basis, their valuable files were STILL vulnerable to corruption.  It’s rare that anything I write leads other people to action, but it happened in this case with Patrick Corrigan, author of the book Data Protection for Photographers, created a blog post which essentially mirrored my own conclusions.  You can read his scholarly take on the issue here.

So I've learned that every time I hit a nerve like this, it makes sense to delve deeper.  One of the best suggestions to come out of the blog comments was the reinforcement of the idea to use a more advanced file system like ZFS (Unix) or ReFS (Microsoft Windows 8.1, a compelling reason to upgrade right there!) which is designed to combat this very problem.  One of the most cost-effective and easiest ways for a technically-inclined person to do this is to download and install FreeNAS onto some old computer hardware and have that act as your server.  It's free (except for the hardware), and your data gets the extra level of protection it deserves without you having to switch computers or operating systems.

Preventing Bit Rot

Data Decay (sometimes referred to as "Data Rot") can corrupt your .jpgs as they idly sit on your hard drive.  How many of YOUR precious memories are deteriorating on your storage media right now?

Also in this issue:

• Unobvious Things about the Sony A7 and A7r
• New Ebooks out!
• The Friedman Archives is Hiring!

Elegant Product Shots

Also in this issue:

• So How Sharp Is This Lens?
• Homeless for 5 Years
• Welcome a New Member of the Team
• A Surprise Gift
• More!

Elegant Product Shots

I'm quite engrossed in book writing right now, and to support the effort I took these two brochure-worthy product shots using the A7r and a Minolta 100mm macro lens (with LA-EA4 adapter, of course.)

These shots are easier than most people think.  All it takes is one wireless flash off to the side, preferably with a diffuser like a white sheet in front of it to soften the light.  In my case I used a softbox designed for wireless flashes which does the same thing (see photo below).

My First Month with the Sony A7 and A7r

It's been a busy month, and during that time I've been putting both the A7 and A7r through their paces.  Let me share with you both the good and the unexpected.