Still Time To Go Fishing

We've been delighted with the exhibition of underwater photography here in the shop - many thanks to the talent and vision of the WAPF photographers. Apparently Sunday was a lot of fun. The pictures swim away at the end of this week - Friday in fact - so do try to get in and see them in the meantime.

And for those of you inclined to try your own fins at the this sort of photography may we recommend that you go look at the work of Darren Jew - the Canon AIPP technical, scientific, nature photographer of the year. he has a website that is positively dripping with beauty. You'll have a whale of a time...

Also - we do have small underwater cameras for sale. Of course, you can take anything underwater but the specialised ones keep working...

Note to self: mop floor after the exhibition packs up. Some of those pictures are too realistic...

WAPF Underwater At Camera Electronic

This Sunday - the 29th of September - is going to see the inaugural opening of the WAPF Underwater Photo Exhibition - right here at our shop.

If you come to 230 Stirling Street, Perth between 4:00 and 6:00 on the 29th you'll see a glorious mini-gallery of underwater shots from some Federation experts. A chance to talk photography with people who love it, as well as see what you can do in the water.

Won't be a dry visit, either...

See you here.

We Love Photography - We Hate Cockroaches

You can be forgiven for wondering at the conjunction in the title - our shop slogan with crawling insects. Leaving aside speculation about the characters of the sales staff, I can explain.

Someone in the shop asked me how I got good results for belly dance photographs and images of model cars. I think they wanted me to tell them a secret of a special lens or a special light - an item they could buy to improve their own pictures. I was delighted to tell them the secret, but it did not involve selling a piece of equipment - it involved selling an idea. And the price was cheap.

The real way to get good images of anything - cars, cockroaches, brides, or belly dancers - is to either love or hate the basic subject. You can choose for yourself which emotion you fancy, and you can freely switch between them as you like - provided you really do care one way or the other.

If you don't - either through general lack of interest in any topic or burnout from long exposure to it - any pictures you make will show this. And the people seeing those pictures will perceive that disinterest. That's a powerful clue for them to let them know how they should react to your work, and they will comply readily. If you don't care, they won't either, and you have wasted everybody's time.

I think this is a pretty good explanation for a number of photographic books and monographs that I have seen in bookstores in Melbourne over the years. The old Printed Image bookstore in Prahran had shelves of them - the NGV bookstores at the main gallery or their Federation Square branch are also pretty good ...errr...dump bins. Okay, not every picture book is Cowboy Kate but some of the depths of banality that are plumbed by small publishers...

Not talking about vanity photo books or self-publishing here - the things that we make of our holiday snaps or our hobbies. These actually have some substance - the audience may be limited to a family, club, or individual, but the book is often intense and treasured. At least the thick ones can be used to swat cockroaches with.

Heading image: Thanx to Jane and Henri

Pictures To Look At - Drop Into The Box

I have just been informed by Ric McDonald that there are winning pictures from last night's Click West presentation to be sen in the Drop Box website. Not quite sure what to do, but if you are savvy about these things, go to the site and ask for Clickwest 13 winners. If you need more information you can contact Ric on

 ricmcd@iinet.net.au.

I had the chance to see the cinema they used last night out at Carousel - La Premier with the fancy seats up the back - and I daresay some pretty fancy projection equipment to show the images. As I was waiting to go in and put the show bags on the seats I watched the regular cinema patrons stream past. It's been a while since I went to the movies and it would appear in the interim that the snacks have gotten bigger - the popcorn tubs I saw yesterday were the size of railway gondola cars...the soft drink canister looked like an oil tank car with straws...

Back to the images - I'm looking at some of them right now but in book form. I like printed pictures in about a 6" x 9" size anyway, and these are wonderful. The WAPF must be very proud of itself in having such talent and being able to present it in such a way.

A Good Night Well Spent - With Kingsley And Crew - DSLR Video

Did goe to Shoot Photography in Stirling Street laste night and was greatly amused.

The venue was warm on a cold night, and filled with enthusiasts, equipment, and expertise - and I benefitted greatly from the lecture.

Kingsley Klau from Photo Coffee in Rockingham hosted a beginner's course on the video capabilities of the DSLR. This was to assist members of the WAPF to access the video section of the cameras that they already own - and to prepare them for an upcoming competition. The Nikon company will be sponsoring a video comp in conjunction with the WAPF and there seem to be a number of really valuable prizes on offer.

Never mind the prizes - what Kingsley had to offer last night was really valuable - the logical presentation of the subject with practical help to each member of the audience in setting up their own camera. There was a variety of ancillary equipment to be seen as well, courtesy of one of the experienced members, and good advice from a professional in the video business. But the inspiration that Kingsley gave was what people really need - he recognises that some of the new capabilities of the equipment ned to be matched by confidence on the part of the users.

We got a mention, naturally, and hopefully someone will come in and buy everything in the shop from the specials list...My particular thanks go to the lady who provided the coffee-time cake and Florentine slice. A good Florentine slice bespeaks elegance and fine character, and if that isn't a broad hint, I don't know what is. Canadian butter tarts are also considered grounds for canonisation.

Apart from this, we got to meet Nikon again - always a pleasure - and come away with the determination to record something - anything - and get out there and experiment. Ah, Inspiration, thy name is Klau...

Modest Proposals - Foto Reports From The Guild

Greetings foto fans and welcome to a new season of Modest Proposals - your view of the photographic world through the eyes of The Guild.

First up is the news reported in the DP Review that a major Chicago newspaper has sacked its photographic staff, closed the darkroom and other processing facilities, and enrolled its reporters in a course on how to take pictures with an iPhone. This is an on-going story that will unfold with time, or as long as the newspaper can stay open. Sounds like this might be a measurable period of time...

The Guild applauds this move to downgrade the profession, and sees it as a land mark decision in the fight for poorer quality images. No longer will readers have to put up with seeing the faces and actions of newsmakers clearly and have to endure well-lit or carefully-composed shots. This sort of thing has been going on far too long - and it is time it stopped. From now on the public will be encouraged to use its imagination about news photographs - filling in the gaps between the pixels just as they please.

Note that we cannot get an official statement as to whether the displaced photographic staff will be given 457 visas and moved to Perth to replace our current lot of newspaper photographers. It might be a good idea if the relevant local people form a mob with pitchforks and torches and storm up the street. Around dusk with some side-lighting would be nice. Try 1/60 second and f:2.8. Focus on the front rank.


On to the next bulletin - the Bureau of Statistics has released the report on weddings and has highlighted the number of these ceremonies that are being done for second, third, and fourth marriages.

This has led to an enterprising studio here in Perth instituting a service for these customers in the form of a book of tear-out coupons to be issued at the first ceremony but allowing for discounts for second and subsequent ones.

Dear old Elizabeth Taylor is long gone, and she would have got a roll of tickets on a dispenser - but there will be lots of others. The studio, Radish Foto, has been so named because it repeats on most people.


For our final news we would like to offer the readers of The Stiletto the chance to go into the 2014 Photographic Competition.

As usual there will be a historic images section devoted to photographic representation of great moments of treachery in the past. This is always popular, and has become more so with the introduction of digital filters that simulate old plate and film camera work.

There will also be the usual BGA Year In Review section that awards a prize for he best photograph of a Guild-registered stab in the 2013-2014 period. These are generally more modern images.

This year we are also going to include an Apprentice Section so that Guild apprentices for the current year may also compete. Time to start snapping, kids.

Here is a picture to keep you happy in the meantime.

Still Time To Get A Seat - Click West

Normally I would not advise someone to grab their seat in public...but tomorrow night is an exception. Mind you, you'll need to start searching for it today.

The WAPF is holding their second big exhibition of competitive photographs at Carousel's La Premiere cinema tomorrow night - the 6th of June.

This is the big one for WA camera clubs, with some of the finest photos by WA members shown on one of the biggest screens you will ever see. This beats setting up a bed sheet and a Hanimex Rondette in the CWA hall by a long shot...

The WAPF has a website dedicated to this competition - just Google on over to it and look up at the top of the page. There is a section that lets you book a seat for the night. There is reserved seating, seniors seating and lots of other things. Pop over there now and grab the telephone.

Note on the site that there are a number of big photographic names here in Perth associated with this competition - not least of which is us down here at Camera Electronic. We'll be sending one of the chiefs to the pow wow and I'll be reporting on the winners - with images I hope - afterwards.

Gone Bush With Camera Electronic

Last weekend we lost the bosses. Yes, we looked behind the wardrobe and no, they weren't there. They had escaped to the bush near Dwellingup at the Nanga Bush Camp.

The Western Australian Photographic Federation held a weekend retreat/seminar/camp there on the 24th, 25th and 26th of May. We packed the 4WD full of shop goodies and Saul and Howard took a pretty good trade presentation down for the WAPF members.

These things are always a bit of a puzzle to know what exactly to send. I bet this year on rain and packed a dozen of the Op/Tec rain sleeves and three of the Promaster rain jackets in the mix. In the end, it looks as if it was fine weather. Ah, well, a lot of other things caught the eye of the attendees so all is well.

Note from the attached photos that Nathan Archer conducted a class on portraiture and Sasha the model was there to help the photographers put some of Nathan's ideas into effect. If you're going to learn something it is good to learn from experts.

The WAPF always puts on fine shows - Ric McDonald sees to that, and Perth photographers would do well to look to the WAPF site to see what is coming up in the future - I know the big exhibition at the cinema last year was a major event and I suspect they will build on that to have even a better one this year.

"I want three volunteers for a hazardous mission. You, you, and you..."