This week, Michele Grenier kicked things off by showing us the power of Excire Foto, while Julie Powell reviewed the OneMo backpack.
Lauri Novak gave us inspiration by talking about photo challenges, Bryan Esler told us why it’s time for camera makers to embrace the smartphone and finally, Kevin Ames reviewed the new Torpedo LED lights from Genaray.
Have boots and bag will travel: The OneMo backpack - If you’re pretty serious about your camera gear, at some stage you’ll probably find yourself getting pretty serious about your camera bags (plural). There just never seems to be the perfect bag for every situation … or is there? I was recently asked to check out the OneMo from PGYTech. This seemingly incredible backpack reminds me of the TARDIS from Dr. Who — it is so much bigger on the inside than it appears on the outside. We packed it full of gear, from the drone to a camera, plus lenses, filters, spare batteries, laptop and more and still had more room. It is 25L but it is expandable to 35L with the hidden zipper compartments. So much storage and comfort There is room for pretty much everything you can imagine, we packed everything we needed for a day trip. Totaling over 17 pounds, the padding on the back, shoulder straps and chest straps made it comfortable to wear. There are so many pockets, including anti-RFID for credit card security. There are pockets for batteries (that fit camera batteries, but not drone batteries), which have a full or empty indicator. Clever ideas Side pockets allow for easy access to your camera and drone, and there is a removable bag for your drone which can attach to the backpack and be used as a waist pouch. Or, add the shoulder strap and use it as a day bag. We found it carried everything we needed for a day trip with our drone, controller and spare batteries. You can, of course, also use it as a camera bag for extra lenses and such. Comfortable and easy to wear If you take this bag out and use as the waist bag option, you could easily load a change of clothes in the backpack too — perfect for an overnight trip. Can’t fit a tripod and sleeping bag? There are so many straps and pouches you can attach a tripod on the side and hold in with supplied straps. You can even use straps to attach a sleeping bag on the backpack. There are clips for water bottles, too. There is also a pouch for accessories, phones, portable battery charger and a laptop. Everything is configurable by moving separators and compartments. The OneMo is sturdy, durable and water-resistant. It comes with its own rain cover and handles for easy pickup and carry, on top, side and the back. And just when you think you have found all the zips, pockets and pouches, there is always just one more … I wonder if that’s why they called it OneMo? The OneMo backpack starts at $199.
It’s time for camera makers to embrace the smartphone - When Olympus announced its intention to sell its camera division last month, a lot of people were quick to blame smartphones. Specifically, the fact that people thought that phones were “good enough” in terms of being able to produce a photograph. But what makes me scratch my head even more is why no camera company to date has actually embraced the smartphone era. Instead of playing against them, it’s time for them to play with companies like Apple, Google, Samsung and others. Olympus had the right idea You might remember the Olympus AIR. This was, as the company described it, “a new concept, open platform camera that pairs the sophistication of digital interchangeable lens cameras with the intelligence of a smartphone for SLR quality photographs.” Imagine taking a camera lens and controlling it completely from your smartphone. It was perfect to travel with — as the setup was very small — and you were able to achieve high-quality photographs right from your smartphone. You could take advantage of advanced shooting modes like Manual (which, in my opinion, no smartphone has gotten right, yet) a better autofocus system, RAW capture and more. The best part? Your phone didn’t have to be physically connected to the AIR (though you had the option for it to be). This meant you could literally get any angle you wanted with it. But Olympus was before its time. When the AIR was developed in 2015, smartphones were just starting to make a dent into traditional camera sales. It was difficult to market for, and photographers balked at the product. Worse yet, the device suffered from connection issues. Olympus also didn’t have the amazing lens lineup that it has today. Had this come out two years later and been perfected, I honestly think this would have been a game-changer in the market. Is the Pixii the answer? Recently announced, the Pixii is an APS-C rangefinder-style camera that connects directly to your phone. It sports a modern-looking body with a Leica M mount, meaning there’s already lenses out there that can be used with it. Like the Olympus AIR, the Pixii gets rid of the rear LCD screen so you can control it completely from your phone. But there are a few things that will undoubtedly hold this back. For one, it ditches memory cards and instead relies on an internal storage system. Two, it only has 11.1 megapixels, and is limited to 8GB of internal storage. For something that costs $3200, I’d expect much higher specs. Camera companies need to bridge the gap In today’s world, everyone from a tween to Grandma has a smartphone. They already have a camera in their pocket. So traditional cameras need to evolve with this, and start working better with smartphones. Here are a few things I’d like to see: Better camera apps This is a no-brainer. In every single one of the camera apps I’ve tried that are made by manufacturers, not a single one of them gets it. The apps are difficult and cumbersome to use, and super unreliable in terms of connecting to cameras. The apps represent their in-camera software — clunky, outdated and confusing. Make an app that just works. Make it clear how to control your camera for stills and video, and offer all of the same functionality that the camera has. If the camera supports RAW, your app should support RAW transfer — period. There’s no reason why some companies still hold back from this. If you’re not willing to better your apps, team up with a company that can. Imagine being able to control your camera with the Lightroom app on your phone — a kind of mobile tethering, if you will. That would be genius, especially because it’d be added to your Lightroom catalog across your devices at the same time. Embrace sharing Today, everyone wants to share images faster than ever. Make it so that it’s easy to do so. There should be a quick and easy way for my camera to connect to my phone’s internet connection. Then, make it easy to share images to Instagram, Facebook, Flickr and others. This is one of the features Tony and Chelsea Northrup have said would be in their “dream camera.” While Olympus users especially love to hate Tony and Chelsea, they make a good point here. As technology evolves, so should cameras. Make camera interfaces as easy to use as smartphones There’s a reason iPhones have been so successful. They just work. It’s clear where to find common settings, and the interface is intuitive. Camera menu systems need to start following this lead. As much as I love my Olympus cameras, the menu system is one of the biggest pain points for the everyday user. The same can be said for menus from Sony and others. Make it easier on your users. As camera makers you should want to encourage creativity, not have photographers spend time digging through menus trying to find that one setting that’s called something in one camera system, and something completely different on another. Smartphones are popular as cameras for a reason — they just work. And that’s what camera makers need to start embracing. Want to increase your mobile photography skills? Click here to view our Mobile Mondays column and more! Lead photo by Kalden Swart on Unsplash
A look at the Torpedo — new focusing bi-color LED lights from Genaray - Genaray’s new BLT-60B portable focusing bi-color LED lights are the bomb, er … make that the torpedo. The slick retro-spaceship design is great looking and it packs a lot of features including a choice of battery or AC power. These lights are great for product and portrait shots, too! B&H sent me a kit of three of them to review. Lots of light in a very small package Everyone who makes a product wants its review to be all positives. For the most part, the Genaray BLT-60B Torpedo light is just that. While its official name makes me want a sandwich, it puts a lot of light into a very small, portable, fan-cooled package. The light is eight inches long with the built-in barn doors folded and the unit focused at 15º. It’s not quite 3 3/4″ in diameter, and weighs in at just over 2.5 pounds. The light is dimmable from 1% to 100% and the colors are adjustable from 3200º K-5600º K in 100º K steps. It is made from ABS plastic that gathers fingerprints easily and is super hard to clean, as you might see in some of the product shots. Focusing light source Twisting the yellow ring that surrounds the torpedo focuses the light from a 15º spot to a 75º flood. The description of the Genaray BLT-60B says it’s a focusing floodlight. I want to clarify that while it can change the spread of the light from a wide 15º to a tight 75º is does not truly focus the light into a sharp-edged beam. This means that with the torpedo close to a subject, the cast shadows will never be truly hard-edged. The versatility of a light that can light a relatively small area or flood a large one outweighs the lack of true spotlight type focusing. Generally the tighter the focus and the closer the color temperature is to 5600º the more light the Torpedo throws out. The photos below illustrate the spot and flood effects. Using the torpedo The buttons that control torpedo light are on the back — on/off and mode on the left side and up and down on the right. Press and hold to power up the light. When it’s on battery power, the scale on the right of the display shows how much juice is left in the battery. On A/C power it glows full. The buttons require a lot of getting used to — I would love to see them replaced by dials. By default, the mode is the brightness of the light. It’s dimmable from 1% to 100% by pressing and holding either up or down until the wanted level is reached. Press and hold the mode button to set the color temperature. When the color section blinks it’s active. Press and hold up or down to move the color temperature in 100º steps. The torpedo comes mounted in a very solid yolk with fittings for an umbrella and to mount it on a standard 5/8 inch light stand. Two knobs on either side of the yolk allow the light to swivel in it. The specifications say the tilt is 180º which is true with a Sony L-series NP-F battery on board because it blocks the light by hitting the nut attaching the light stand/umbrella mount. A slightly longer yolk and a less thick nut attaching the yolk to the umbrella/stand mount would solve this. Using the mini XLR plug for A/C power the tilt is more like 270º. A slightly longer yolk and a less thick nut attaching the yolk to the umbrella/stand mount would solve this. Using the mini XLR plug for A/C power the tilt is more like 270º. The Torpedo comes with a power brick and a 3-prong U.S. power cable. The brick has a mini XLR connector that plugs into the bottom of the light toward the back. Additionally, the Torpedo can be powered by a Sony L-series NP-F battery that outputs 7.4 volts. One of the included accessories is a T-Tap to XLR mini connector for use with V-mount batteries when longer periods of use are required. Contrary to common beliefs, LED lights get hot. The Torpedo is fan cooled and it is so quiet I didn’t realize it even had a fan until I felt warm air flowing from the vents. This makes the Torpedo perfect for videos where sound is being recorded. Barndoors For the Torpedo, barndoors are included. They serve not only to shape the light from the Torpedo when they are folded in, but they also protect the Fresnel lens from damage. They unscrew from the light so that included color filters and/or diffusers can be added to the torpedo. The filters keep the price of the lights down. Bicolor lights are a lot less money than RGB-AW LED units. Each light comes in a soft-sided case that has just the right amount of room for the light, the power cord and brick with a little room left for a couple of batteries. The color discs and diffusers along with the T-tap are kept in a zippered mesh compartment in the lid. Nice! For current pricing on the Genaray BLT-60B portable focusing bi-color LED lights, visit B&H Photo.
How to find the pictures you’re looking for, with Excire Foto - Are you wasting time trying to find specific images? Excire Search provides the solution to find the pictures you're looking for! Here's how it works.
Improve your photography by taking part in challenges - I’m sure you’ve seen them around on social media — the daily, weekly and monthly photography challenges that are out there. These challenges can be a great way to help you improve your photography. How? Focus on one subject By concentrating your efforts on a theme, you’ll spend your time thinking about and working on how to create the best image you can. You won’t have the distraction of trying to photograph all the things around you. Focusing on one subject can also push you to try new techniques, and different post-processing methods and think about more than the standard way to shoot whatever it is you are photographing. Focus on one technique Choosing a theme or project using just one technique is a great way to learn all the ins and out of that technique. I know of a themed group on Facebook (also shared on other platforms) that is The Black & White project. You receive a word, concept or photography technique every two weeks to shoot in black and white. By exploring these different ideas only in black and white, you learn to see the shapes, light and shadows more than if you were taking these images in color. Focus on your creativity Another challenge site out there is 52Frames. From their site: “52Frames is a (free!) community of photography enthusiasts from around the world, working together to improve their photography skills. Join us to receive weekly guided photo challenges, share your work, and get tons of feedback from a supportive community!” They give you a theme along with a little bit of information on that theme and seven days to shoot for that theme. Being part of a group like this is a great way to push yourself and try new things and be inspired by others working on the same project. Focus on a community of creatives I may be a bit partial to this one but it’s well worth mentioning. The Photography Scavenger Hunt is a quarterly photo challenge. Each quarter the members receive 10 words and eight weeks to create an image to submit for each word. The amazing thing about this group is that they’ve been together for eight years. I can personally vouch for the amount of growth that has occurred for individuals because they’ve participated in this. The community is helpful, caring, supportive and more than happy to help each other out with just about anything. Round 36 is just starting up. It’s amazing to see what more than 200 people come up with different ideas for the same word. Focus on finding your muse One of the great benefits of photographing for a theme is that it usually helps kick start your motivation. We all go through periods of time where we don’t pick up our cameras at all. By joining in with a theme it allows us to not have to decide what to shoot. We don’t have to think about the subject matter and it gently forces us to grab the camera and play. Not only that — the other photographers in these groups are more often than not, quite supportive and inspirational. Focus on your own theme If you don’t have the time to participate in the groups on social media or in communities online, create your own challenges. Pick a word, photography technique or subject matter to explore. Give yourself a timeline to work with and create images strictly for that. Any of these ideas will help you to improve your photography in ways you never thought they could and ways I’ve likely forgotten to mention. So, pick a theme, search hashtags on Instagram or Twitter, find a Facebook group and join in! P.S. All of the images in this article were words or themes for projects. Personally, I strive to think as far out of the box as I can so that my images might stand out from the group. (If you hover over the images you’ll see the word.)
