Picture Tuesday

Not only is it St-Patricks day today, but it is also picture Tuesday! I have been extremely thankful for all the positive feedback Christie and I have been receiving in regards to our blog, so much so that I have rediscovered my passion for photography through the constant encouragement I receive from my Flickr contacts, close friends, and especially Christie (love ya). I love my cameras, really, I do. Since I went digital 4-5 years or so ago, I began to slowly but surely slow down as far as quantity is concerned, and in hindsight it really is rather odd since digital photography as a medium should, technically, open the way to making more rather than less. Unfortunately digital photography, at least the digital cameras with the same configuration options as film cameras, cost a mint, and I just could not invest a small fortune into that kind of equipment as I am not exactly making a living off of it. Enter my “end of production line” Nikon D80. I love this camera, it reminds me about what I was so excited about when I first began reading about “the future of photography = digital”. I can control pretty much everything I want with this camera, and it meets my needs. That’s an important one right there, it meets my needs.

The change has been so quick, so drastic, that suddenly not only have I become an avid Strobist reader http://www.strobist.blogspot.com , but I have also dusted off both my Holga 120 as well as my Mamiya M645 medium format film cameras. A short while ago, I decided to make the leap into wireless flash photography thanks in large part to the Strobist blog. I put together my first kit using odds and ends reviewed on the blog, and have been very happy with the results. Living in a city where finding an apartment offering the kind of natural lighting required for daily food photos costs a premium, I needed a different solution, off camera flash. I ordered my kit from China, and received it promptly one week later. I have been happy with it until now. Using only one lighting source has resulted in similar lighting results almost every time, and it was time for a second flash. But seriously, they are just pretty damn expensive (about 350-400$ Canadian for 1 flash unit).

I found myself at a local photo supply store last week, just about to suck it up and buy one, when I decided to “think about it”. I am very happy that I did. By complete random chance, I decided to browse over to Strobist this afternoon to take a peek, and lo and behold, and answer for my budget http://strobist.blogspot.com/2009/03/manual-flashes-two-debuts-and-adoption.html)! Mpex, a photo retailer in the US, has teamed up with Strobist to create a manual flash (the LumoPro 120) for people that require the flexibility of off camera flash, and removed the bells and whistles in order to reduce price significantly! I really could not be more excited, really, if you are interested in the least bit in lighting, I highly suggest taking a look at the Strobist blog, and take note of the post linking you to this wonderful new inexpensive flash. I am going to be ordering a new kit this week with an extra flash so that I can really work on lighting.

To celebrate today’s wonderful discovery (the Strobist created LumoPro 120 Flash), I decided to go through a binder of hand processed b&w negatives that I took using my modified Holga 120 camera. I have a full box of 120 format B&W film that needs to be used, and 2 lonely medium format cameras that are calling out to me to be used, so don’t be surprised to see me start to delve deeper and deeper back into photography, and I am loving every minute of it.