Rejoice, no choice!

© Photographer: Bradcalkins

I'm currently reading a few books, including one called the 'Paradox of choice'. One of the themes is that too much choice brings negative side effects. People seem to want choice, and to exercise their freedom to choose - yet when choices are more limited they are better able to make a decision and happier with the result.


I got to thinking that this kind of applied to how I use my lenses. While I wish I could bring and have access to all my gear when I leave the house, I often find I use my camera more if I just pick a single lens and run with that for the day. Especially if the choice is a prime lens! It is somehow easier to make a choice and pick one lens prior to leaving the house. With everything in the bag I could obviously make the same choice on the fly, but somehow I suddenly want to pick the 'right' lens if they are all handy. I'd never grab my 28mm prime to get shots of the kids playing soccer - yet if that was the only lens I had I take photos with it and get something different.

Ah the simplicity of not having to decide if I want to zoom in or out... Rejoice! No choice! There are some extra benefits too, like learning how one piece of equipment works to a higher degree, getting comfortable with the angle of view, etc.

So next time you head out, limit your choices and see how you like it!


© Photographer: Bradcalkins

Animoto

Hey, I'm loving the Animoto service that allows you to upload photos and video and then makes a video slideshow out of it. It is pretty cheap if you don't want HD - I was able to create a video in a few minutes.  It looks to be great way to share videos and photos with friends.  I truly find creating a slideshow tedious at best, especially when a large number of short video clips are involved. Plus, you don't have to worry about copyright on music... The link above is a referral link, where you get money off and a free month if you sign up for a Pro or plus account. No pressure :)

Climate change stock photos

Climate change stock photos can be found in my collection on Dreamstime, from a number of photographers including myself...  Here are a couple of mine:

What to call the mirrorless format?

DPReview has a vote going on to find out what people think the new mirrorless format should be called.  They have a list of six options, but none really make sense to me.  Just in case it ever takes off, I've got to put down what I would name the genre of cameras: High Fidelity Compact (HFC) or HFDC (high fidelity digital camera).

The issues with all the names they have, in my opinion, is that they don't distinguish from Point and Shoots with tiny sensors (which have never used a mirror) or by including the word 'system' they try to only include cameras with interchangeable lenses.  But I think most would agree that the Fuji X100, Leica X1, Ricoh innovatively odd lens module system, Sigma's DP1/2 and so on are all contenders for dollars when it comes down to cameras like the micro-four thirds and Nex offerings.  To me, it all comes down to the sensor size.  Yet the mFT sensor is so close to an APS-C sensor it would be a mistake to rule out bigger sensors (surely the Leica X1 or Sony Nex are pysically smaller than the GH2 with bigger sensors).  Mirrorless really just defines the viewfinder technology - so what about the new Fuji camera with a fixed mirror in the viewfinder.

Anyways, to me the 'format' encompasses too many different technologies to to try to build a name around any of those features - or you just exclude new developments from the field.  I think it is all about getting higher images quality out of a small form factor camera.  At the same time, the physical sensor size is kind of irrelevant - if we can get super high quality out of a sensor smaller than MFT in 5 years, will we care about that technicality, or just that it is high quality and fits in a pocket?

Brooklyn Bridge

Here is a recent shot I took of the Brooklyn Bridge.  It is always fun to play around with filter and so on.  Tough to spend a lot of time on composition from a moving cab, so I'm pretty happy with the results...

Playing around

With Dreamstime having some much lower weekly upload limits (35/week) I'm now running into the limit from week to week and having some time to play around with other stuff.  Here are a few snaps that didn't work out so well that I tried to turn into something a bit more interesting.  The cloud one in particular was barely different than a light blue swatch before I applied some levels and added grain, etc.  Fun to play with, and result I enjoy looking at!  I should add that DT wasn't interested in these as a collection, though I suspect they would get a few sales.  I'm not heartbroken, as I did them for fun rather than for sales...

Something a little different

I don't shoot flowers all that often, but here goes: