So, either I drive slow or Mike zips around. Both are possible. I was trying to keep up at Fort Wetherill in Jamestown as we set about to do our engagement shoot. Liana and Mike were looking sharp (beautiful, lovely, pic a word). This was take 2 on the shoot due to weather. We had to cancel our first date and even this day was iffy. But, a cloudy day is a photographer's delight - less shadows more drama in the sky.

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They were like mountain goats on the rocks. I was more than a little nervous as they climbed around - but this is what's it's all about; showing people doing what they enjoy. Mike and Liana are outdoorsy people and this was their playground.

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Awesome times.

Note: blog Jpegs are lower resolution and don't represent the final images.

Not every job is about pushing the bounds of creativity. Sometimes you just need to get the right shots. Such was the case going up to Boston to photograph documents at the archive of the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute and Society. The documents just don't photocopy (or scan) well. So, my job was to go up and get the job done. Olga, the archivist, was very friendly. Aside from the early morning it was a straight forward project.

I was early so I killed time by taking some self portraits in the library.

I am somewhat brand agnostic when it comes to camera gear. But, I do use a lot of Nikon equipment. The primary motivator was that I started with manual focus F mount lenses and I can continue to use them on almost all my cameras (Fuji DSLR included). In this video and on this shoot I used equipment made by a lot of different makers. It worked as advertised (even when I dropped the bag).

I forgot to mention the bag dropping in the video. It slipped from my hand due to rain. I looked through the viewfinder upon arriving at the shoot and it looked half messed up. At first I thought the lens was damaged badly. But, I shot an image and all was well. The mirror had simply come half-way down due to the jolt. It reset with the first shot. But, that is why I carry a back-up that I feel 100% confident in. And I use a heavily padded bag.

I was pleasantly surprised by the 1/200th sync speed this little setup achieved. For some reason I thought the radio trigger I was using would only sync up to 1/160th. So I have been trying to keep around 1/125th (which is a pain outside in good light). But, today I did a quick test and as you can see the 1/200th is fine but the 1/250th was just a bit too fast. Still, it was useful info for my shoot today.

If you're a photographer you have to love light to some extent. Whether it is your calling, as in Galen Rowell's "Mountain Light,"or not your interest - at the end of the day playing with light will define your photos.

This was a bit of fun. I'm working to shoot a new concept weekly. We'll see what happens. Some will be of people, some will be of still-life. It is all about expanding the tool kit.

Technical note: digital image shot on white background in a daylight studio. I tend to shoot a lot on white and use spill control to manage the background.