By Dan on Oct 5, 2007 in Featured, Photography Accessories, Photography Equipment, Reviews | 2 Comments
Sorry about the lack of an update yesterday - my schedule has gotten crazy in the past few weeks, and I’m trying to find time to write. Daily updates should continue as usual soon as things calm down again.
Something astounded me today: I didn’t realize there are people who aren’t using digital camera card readers.
I had a new photographer for the paper come in and drop photos off for the first time, complete with her Rebel XTi and USB cord.
“You know you can do that without the camera, right?” I asked.
“What, really? How do you do that?”
After a minute-long introduction to the handy-dandy USB card reader, I had a new convert to the cause. The fact is, there is little or no reason to be using your digital camera as a card reader. An external card reader has a ton of benefits and costs next to nothing. Find out more after the jump.
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By Dan on Aug 22, 2007 in Photography Accessories, Flash Photography, Photography Equipment, Articles | 0 Comments
A photography umbrella gives the photographer a greater level of control over the lighting in a photograph like this.
I talk about lighting and flash photography a lot at Cheapshooter, but it’s with good reason. Lighting can be one of the best ways to make expensive-looking photographs on the cheap. Everything else - poor digital camera, subpar lens - can be forgiven if the lighting looks good.
I qualified my statement because photography lighting can also become expensive really quickly. I stay away from talking about expensive studio strobes and soft boxes - that’s for another site (and another photographer with more money) to handle. In my own photography I stick to cheap solutions, and I’ve found that one great way to achieve beautiful lighting is with a photography umbrella.
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By Dan on Aug 17, 2007 in Photography Accessories, Digital Camera Settings, Projects, Articles | 0 Comments
The benefits of having a diffusion panel on hand just keep coming…
In my Do-It-Yourself Light Box, I used Cracked Ice diffusing panels that are typically designed to cover overhead florescent lights as the outside panels of the light box frame. They served to diffuse the bright light sources I placed outside the light box, creating nice, even lighting within.
If you have leftover scraps from the diffusing panel after building the light box, they also are a good tool to set the custom white balance on your camera. Here’s how to do it.
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