Lens Hood Envy

I was a little taken aback when a client asked for a lens hood recently. It was a good idea, of course, as it would shield the lens from stray light and tree branches. But the lady was most indignant when I showed her the one that was recommended by her camera's manufacturer. It was the straight barrel variety, and she had seen petal-shaped ones on her friend's camera. She wanted the petal shape.

It took a little demonstrating with her lens to show her that the front part of her lens rotates when it focuses. That means that the hood does as well...and if she were to attach a petal-shaped hood to it there would be various degrees of vignetting and light cutoff as she focused the lens. It is only with the lenses that do not rotate that you can use the petal-shapes.

In the end she accepted the manufacturer's recommendation...but I can't help thinking she was disappointed that she didn't get to use the pretty one.

Students! - No More Naked Lenses!

I know you are a struggling student and I know you have no money and I know you are trying to make great art with your Canon DSLR...and I have a great idea for you.

Stop looking at the internet and the camera magazines and the secondhand cabinet. Count over your pennies, give up drinking at the student tavern for a week, and come in and get yourself a Canon 50mm F 1.8 EF lens and the proper accessories for it.

The proper accessories are a UV filter to protect the front of the lens from the fingers of your fellow students and a lens hood to protect your images from light flare. It is okay to have flair in your images, but not flare...

The 50 is about the most accurate small lens you will ever find for your little Canon - and remember that it is a red-dot lens and can go onto your Canon 1Dx when you become an international iconic superstar. It has great bokeh and can also make the background blurry, depending on which school you go to. It does good portraits so try to make friends with the good-looking students. It also does good art copy, so you can add the artists to your list.

It is light and fast. If you are trekking in the mountains with your Canon DSLR, or just fleeing from the authorities through dense bush, you'll appreciate not having to carry extra weight.

Best of all, the whole box and dice that you see on the heading image is only $ 169.45 complete with a year's warranty. No, you can't have a discount - that is cheap as chips as it is. You can get your normal 10% discount on ink, paper, film and chemistry.

Note to the non-student: the 50mm lenses of any manufacturer are generally the bargains of their respective ranges. They are, by now, probably the most developed of the glass, and can be the most accurate lenses in any lineup. YOU need one too.

Strange Creatures - Glimpsed Briefly Though The Mist

I cannot decide whether the macro bracket featured in the lead image should be marketed as the " Muhammud Ali" or the " St. Hubertus". It seems to replicate the characteristic postures of each of these legends...Suffice it to say that it is actually a pretty useful way of suspending a couple of small flashes out in front of your camera and macro lens to light up the closer subjects. It has a metal coupling foot to let it slide onto your Arca-style ball-head block and is quite light. A clever idea for macro workers.

The big black angular objects looming out of these images are Custom Brackets flash holders with camera rotation mechanisms built into the base. They are perfect for weddings or reportage - also fine for Steampunk. The quality of the machining on the brackets and the materials used are of such a quality as to shame their competition. I must be honest - these brackets have been here as long as I have  and I have a decided ambition to outlast them so will someone PLEASE come in and buy them at a very low price. You will benefit, and so will I.

The Velbon bracket is younger - it is a device to allow you to couple big telephoto lenses and small DSLR cameras into one structure for better balance on a tripod head. Why it has not gone yet, I do not know, as there are people all over Western Australia struggling with odd rigs that would benefit from this accessory.

The black Tokar brackets were originally designed to allow pirates to keep a sandwich and a bottle of beer attached to their wooden legs while they watched television. Photographers have adopted them as a good means of keeping accessories attached to tripods in a studio during a shoot. People really are ingenious these days.

And finally, the SOB bracket. I've met many SOB's in my time, but it has been rare to find any that actually advertise themselves so clearly. Those of you who want to hold a speed light and fire it into an umbrella while mounting it on a light stand will recognise the design. Good product. Good price. Love to talk to the executive of the JJC company who thought of the name...

Pssst - We Got The Stuff...

Psssst. Hey. Hey, you...c'mere. We got ya stuff...we got ya stuff right here...

You wanted binocular straps? We got'em. Light weight. Let the binoculars slide up to your eyes and down to rest. Op/Tech - ask for 'em.

Sick of hanging the camera around your neck? Try one of the straps that go on the right side of he camera and curve round the back of your hand. The camera can dangle there safely and you can shoot freely. Lots of manufacturers for this and they are all different styles -there's even one made of rubber for those times when you need rubber...

Want to light a macro subject without frizzling it up? Two clock batteries and a Macro light from Promaster are all you need. Ask me later about how good this is for the headlights of model car shots...Also good for nasal or ear surgery, I shouldn't wonder...

Uncle Dick