Back at it

There’s that old axiom about good intentions and this blog fell right into it. It’s been away too long and beginning here and now that will change. Regular updates. Information about my business and what we’re up to, but also lots of information that you can use. So check back often; I’ll have good stuff to share.

Megapixel mania

On the left, a $5000 Nikon D3. On the right, my now-ancient-by-today’s-standards Olympus D-480. Besides the five years and $4800 that separates them, the Nikon is a 12.1 megapixel camera, while the Olympus weighs in at a paltry 2.1 megapixels.

This being the season of the Big Belly Red-Suited Guy (aka Santa), chances are a sizeable number of you elves are shopping for a shiny new digital camera. I’ll also bet that while perusing the ads and talking up cameras at your local Best Buy, both you and sales person are focusing on among other things the number of megapixels available. Nikon and Canon both recently released their newest pro DSLRs capable of capturing images at over 25+ megapixels each. Truth is that for the average mom, dad, or college student megapixels are relatively meaningless…but a great way for a sales person on commission to rackup a bigger sale.

So what’s a camera-buyer to do? First and foremost ask yourself this: What do I plan to do with the photos I take? If you’ll be displaying them online, putting them on a digital picture frame (another big seller this holiday season) or printing them 8×10 or smaller then you don’t need a digital camera with 10, 8, or even 6 megapixels. My trusty little Olympus and its 2.1 megapixels will be just fine. Here’s why:

You see, camera manufacturers and sales-type folks in turn, began using megapixels as a measure of quality. But it doesn’t translate in the real world. Megapixels (or MP for short) is simply an expression of the number of pixels available and is calculated by multiplying the horizontal and vertical pixel counts…just like calculating the number of square feet in a room. I’ll spare you the math — besides, there are lots of other more knowledgable types online with websites that explain the numbers much better — but a well-composed photo taken with good technique using a 3-5 MP camera will always be better than a poorly focused and lit photo taken with a $5000 camera. Sharpness and print quality depend more on your photographic skills than the number of megapixels.

So if you’re shopping for a new point-and-shoot digital camera don’t look at the number of megapixels. Rather, look at the optical zoom capabilities. Spend a few bucks more for a 5x optical zoom over a 3x, but hang onto your hard-earned dinero if someone’s trying to pull the megapixel wool over your eyes. And if you’re in the market for one of the new Nikon or Canon DSLRs and you’re on a budget, take a pass on the brand spanking new Nikon D90 and go for an older D60 or D40 and use the savings to purchase the best lens you can possibly afford. Good glass is always a wise investment, whereas camera bodies come and go ever few months. Happy shopping!

My lil’ old Olympus at 2.1 MP (megapixels)

Click, click, click

About an hour ago I got back from Lucas Oil Stadium where I’ve been photogarphing the Bands of America Grand National Championships for the past three days. For those of you who aren’t marching band affacionados, think of it as the super bowl for high school marching bands. More than 90 bands competed over three days with Avon High School — which just happens to be an Indy-area school — being crowned Grand National Champion.

My right index finger is killing me. Over the past three days I took more than 31,000 images. You read that correctly…31 THOUSAND. Heard some great music, actually remember a bit of some of the better shows, but by and large it’s all a blur. I was one of four photographers capturing the action on the field, which means if my take as average, for the four of us we took nearly 120,000 photographs!

Why so many? Great question. To get one of say a guard member who’s tossing a rifle or swinging a flag, you have to let the motor rip and get off more than one exposure to hopefully come away with at least one image of the person facing forward…all the while hoping the photo is also in focus. It’s fast action that requires using top-of-line professional equipmpent. I used a Nikon D3 with either a 300mm f2.8 or 200-400mm f4 lens. This photo of a Vista Murrieta H.S. (Murietta, CA) sax player was shot with the 200-400mm f4.

So if your son or daughter or grandchild is in marching band what can you do to improve your photos? Keep checking back and I’ll share some tips next time around.

That’s all folks

Sometime just before midnight the marching band season ended for Hamilton Southeastern’s Royal Command & Guard. That’s significant for several reasons. First and foremost, my son’s a senior so this was his final season marching with the band. Second, the RCG had another award-winning season, winning their class at all the invitationals they entered and finishing the season as Class AAAA Reserve Grand Champions. And finally, yesterday wrapped up another busy season of being the RCG’s official photographer.

In addition to photographing other bands and invitationals, my company is the Royal Command & Guard’s official photographic partner. I was there nearly every day from the beginning of band camp last spring, right through the end last night. Along the way I witnessed firsthand the pride, work ethic, and spirit of these incredible young musicians. Over the season they logged more hours in rehearsals and performances than any high school athletic team. And most of the time they did it in obscurity…in the corner of a parking lot, without the attention that football and basketball teams get, and often in the wee hours of the morning and late at night.

For my part, I tried to document as much of the season as possible, taking more than 10,000 exposures along the way. My joy comes in watching the students and parents look at the photos and remember the good times they had (okay, there are some not-so-good times, too), their victories, and the friendships they made. Now comes the really hard part: Winnowing down all the photos to about 150 for an end-of-the-season presentation in a couple of weeks.

Hello world!

“How’s the photo business?” It was an innocuous sounding question; a way to start a conversation. I didn’t give it much thought until days later while emptying out a long-unused camera bag. Maybe it was the hour — two in the morning — but my mind drifted over all the questions folks ask when I’m out making pictures. “How far can you see with that lens?” is a popular one when the big glass comes out. “How much did that cost?” is the one that is never answered, especially when the wife is within earshot. “That camera takes good pictures,” a bit of a sideways compliment and one that I’m tempted to respond to most frequently with a firm “No! I take the pictures; the camera is just a tool.”

But I digress. The point of this is needing some way to introduce yet another blog into the already overcrowded blogosphere. We already clutter up the net with a family blog. But many of the experts in the photography world — by experts I mean the folks who speak at conferences and have other photographers line up in droves when they’re done to buy hundreds of dollars worth of information — say that all photographers must seriously consider a blog as yet another way to develop and maintain relationships with current and future clients. Besides, I increasingly find that I need another outlet to share some of my experiences, favorite photos, and ideas with others.

I’ll try to keep this blog updated on a regular basis, but regular is a relative term. Some days and weeks are so hectic that I barely have time to attend to myself, let along blogging. But I promise to do my best. Hope you enjoy reading…and don’t be a stranger. Let me hear from you, too.