Nikon Custom Memory Banks are USELESS ! guess I am not alone

Nikon's current Custom Memory Banks are USELESS ! guess I am not alone :)

I have actually grown to "Hate" the Custom Memory Banks , just because it's there.
It "could" be great , but on my Nikon's it sits there Unused. Period. And it makes me SAD.
Probably should be a feature that the Overwhelming Majority of Nikon shooters use, Every Day, But I doubt it. Seriously.

• I am not a Landscape shooter , and I actually "thought" Michael Reichmann was a Canon guy (that's a joke). But, I was soooo , soooo happy that he articulated in print what i have been feeling from the very beginning. It could be great , but it's LAME instead.

* IN FACT, I will go a step farther: Let me put the Custom Memory Bank on the Q DIAL (replace) , that I can simply Record ALL my camera settings to 5 or up to 8 Named Sets. THEN, let me Push the MODE button and ROLL the BACK Wheel. to Quickly go thru my SAVED Settings. The name and number of the Set up can appear on the LCD screen.
Once I release my mode button I can change at will. All I need is a FAST starting Point with EVERYTHING set on a roll of the wheel.
Give me that , and I will be in that mode All Day long!

• Let me SAVE the Settings , SO when I go back to it ... IT goes back to my ORIGINAL settings , NOT my last settings in the set up. (I prefer it to reset to my Preferred settings , so I have a CLEAN set up again.)

Think about it for a second. IF you have all the possible MODE settings , complete down to the Auto ISO setups, and maybe Card slot set ups ... WHY would you then need the MODE button (other than to ROLL thru the different set ups)
YOU can have a Shutter Priority Set up ... a Aperture Priority Set UP .. a Manual Set UP .. a Wedding Church Q , Quiet Mode setting ... a Sports Set UP .. a Night Manual Set up. On and ON ...
At that point , why use the mode dial again?
And if you really want to , you can just move the Dial Off the programed Q on the Dial.
Now is there Any way currently in Nikon that you can Change ALL your settings so completely SO FAST ?
Let's get off the Old School Nikon Custom Memory Banks that do not make logical sense if the goal it to change your settings Quickly, and Completely. AND, to be able to actually use it ALL Day, Every Day.


Below is LL link, and quote
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/.../nikon_d800__e_initial_impressions.shtml
You Can't Take it to The Bank
Sorry for the pun (I think it's actually pretty clever), but let's talk about Memory Banks. The Nikon D800/E has what could be the world's best custom memory settings system. Regrettably though, it fails pretty badly in terms of convenience and functionality.
There are only a couple of settings that are purely mechanical; metering mode and shutter activation. Everything else is firmware controlled, which means that everything else should be settable and memorizeable into custom user banks. They are actually, but not the way you'd wish.
Instead Nikon has implemented a two bank system; A Shooting Memory Bank and a Custom Memory Bank. Why Nikon, why?! What this means is that you can set some items, such as exposure mode in the Shooting Bank, and some things like the Focusing modes in the Custom Bank, but there's no way to activate them at the same time without accessing the separate banks, located under different menu headings. Yes, you can put both on the My Menu setting, but one still has to set two separate selections to put the camera into the state that one needs. And, since the point of this is to enable quick changes between shooting modes, the whole process is subverted. Really quite a shame, since it could be so convenient.
Here's a suggestion Nikon – make the Custom Settings Bank a selection in the Custom Memory Bank. It's just firmware, right? A SMOP.
More Bad Bank News
If that was all that was wrong with the Nikon memory bank system on the D800/E, I could live with it (sort of – what choice do I have?). But it's worse than that. Nikon's otherwise prescient engineers were clearly dozing the day that they designed this system, for the following reason...
There is no way to lock settings in a bank. So, for example, let's say that you've set the camera up for "fully manual" mode in Bank B. You work in Bank B, but then decide to make a change to couple of settings. Maybe pop into Aperture priority mode for a few shots. Now, you realize that you actually want to work with your Bank A settings (full auto), so you switch to those.
What happens to your Bank B settings? You guessed it. They now have changed to whatever you set while you were in that Bank. In other words, a memory bank retains the settings that were in effect the last time you were in the bank, not the settings that you want them to retain. This is really lame, and together with needing to set two separate Memory Banks for each individual shooting situations, the whole Memory Bank system becomes close to pointless. This seems more like it was designed by Sony, rather than Nikon.
Come on Nikon, put your "A" team on this for a firmware update ASAP.

Crucial m4 SSD FW ver.0009 256gb, for Faster Lightroom and CS5 performance

Crucial m4 SSD FW ver.0009 256gb, for Faster Lightroom and CS5 performance

I am sold on SSD drives!

4/28/12  UPDATE :   FW  000F  Newest  ...  Probably a good idea.

4/10/2012 UPDATE:  Cruical M4 SSD "BSOD" FW update - Warrning

Moving to the D800 , we all need Hard Drive speed.

I have been a big advocate of SSD ... and Cruical M4 SSD 256gb and Adrenaline Cache SSD.

So, I also feel obligated to WARN users to UPDATE to FW 0309 on the M4 256gb SSD ... no matter if you have the issue or not. It will happen on Hour 5184 (seriously)

http://www.crucial.com/...aspx?AID=10273954&PID=3332167&SID=u00000626

I got a "BSOD" ... Blue Screen Of Death ... in Win7 64-bit.

And because I have been running the SSD flawlessly for months , I did not suspect the Cruical M4 SSD.

The DATA does not seem to get effected ... but, I did not know that (at the time) ... so I partitioned and re-installed ... which is something I did not have to do.

• What needs to be done is a FW update.

When you get the "BSOD" you can shut down and reboot. But in an hour you will get it again. That's how you know, that it is this FW update you need.
My guess is that it also means ANY M4 SSD ... even the cache SSD.

More info on this link:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5424/crucial-provides-a-firmware-update-for-m4-to-fix-the-bsod-issue
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Yes, I have run Raid 0 and 0+1  on spinning hard drives.  Just did a "step" upgrade on my Win7 64-bit i7 Dell 435MT.
4/10/12 UPDATE :  changing my MotherBoard to a ASUS  with  SATA3 and USB3 on the board.

First, I ran out of space on my image drive.  So I went from a  1 TB drive to the Fastest  3TB hard drive I could find at 7,200 rpm.  That was the Seagate Barracuda XT with 64mb cache,  7,200rpm, with a 5 year warrantee.   The slightly larger cache did not impress me.  Small pop to my Lightroom  to CS5  CTRL+E   … LR users know what I mean.  Nothing to write home about.

Then, I increased my Memory from 6gb of  Tri-Channel  DDR3 to 24gb of Fast Tri-Channel  DDR3.  CS5 seems to like the increase in memory with a 60% use setting in the preferences (that was worth it).  But Lightroom v3.6  was a bit apathetic.  Imho LR v3.6 saw little if any change.  And my CTRL+E  did not improve much.  It seems that LRv3.6 only loads half into memory and even at 24gb of memory “still” loads the other half in the swap file.  What’s worst is, I don’t know how to change that.

I made sure to run this set up a few days, to really feel the speed and see if I could tweak it faster.

So, next was the SSD.   Obviously, I had some clue that this would give me a bump in speed. But, I have been waiting for SSD’s to get to a us$ 1.00 per GB.    Well, as luck would have it  B&H came up with a $ 329.00 price with Free shipping  till 1/30/12 on the Crucial m4 256gb SSD.   Imho,  prices on SSD’s will drop this year.    I have a need for speed as I prep for the new Nikon D800 36mp camera in LR (probably v4)  so I decided to make the jump.    It’s not the fastest,  but it was the cheapest.  And with the FW ver 009 it seems to be up with the top performing SSDs  at a very good price.  It  also seems to have good reliability and a 3 year warrentee.    Plus, there is a fact that I have bought  all my memory upgrades for the past 5 years from the Crucial website with NO problems EVER.

B&H on 2/6/12 us$339 : http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/768803-REG/Crucial_Technology_CT256M4SSD2_256GB_m4_SSD_2_5.html

Amazon on 2/6/12 us$339. with true Free shipping to Hawaii: http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-2-5-Inch-Solid-State-CT256M4SSD2/dp/tech-data/B004W2JL2A/ref=de_a_smtd

Here is some info:   Crucial m4 SSD 256GB Specs
Formatted Capacity 238.47gb
SATA 6GB/x interface   ... compatable  SATAIII or SATAII
Marvell 88SS9174-BLD2
3 year warrenty
2.5" form factor

Some have tested with FW 0009 at read performance nearing 500MB/s with write speeds around 243MB/s.

August 2011 review of the FW ver9

http://www.storagereview.com/crucial_m4_ssd_review_firmware_0009

There is also a interesting  Crucial m4 256gb RAID 0  review done on Feb. 1 2012-02-12 … and they have said this m4 SSD has been on the market for 9 months (as of 2/1/12) ……   so there is a lot known about this SSD , and most if not all issues solved in FW 009.  http://www.storagereview.com/crucial_m4_ssd_raid_review    

MY  clean install went VERY smooth with NO issues.   

I  bought a - two(2) SSD -  3.5 to 2.5 inch Bay Converter on Amazon for $8.99 and Free shipping.  Love this two(2)  SSD Bracket .. because I plan on  buying a  SSD  Disk Cache, more on this latter)  and I will need the slot.              http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002BH3Z8E/ref=oh_o00_s00_i01_details

This is the boring (sausage making info)  part …    on this DELL i7  I clean installed the  OS with the original DELL install disk.  Which I know had all the drivers (with all my acc. like my eSATA external hard drive ON and plugged in) .

Started with VISTA 64-bit,  then to Win7 64-bit home, then finally Win7 64-bit PRO SP2 .  Did the Windows Update.  ZERO problems.   I just plugged in the SSD and used the install DVD to format and load the VISTA 64-bit OS (to start).

After all the updates I did a TRIM check.    Fyi: here’s how Set / Check , in Win7 (which supports TRIM)

Locate CMD and Run it as Administrator (Right Click CMD, Run as Administrator)
On the Command Line … type out

C:\Windows\system32>fsutil behavior set DisableDeleteNotify 0

DisableDeleteNotify = 0

Once the value of “0” is set for this parameter, TRIM is enabled. And, that is all there is to verifying that TRIM is set for your SSDs. By making certain that your SSDs are being maintained by Microsoft’s TRIM function, you are guaranteeing that your system will operate your solid-state drives at their highest level possible.  In Win7

Another thing I did was make sure my Windows  Swap file is on the C:  SSD drive.  And my PS CS5 Scratch disk.  Also moved my Lightroom Catalog to the SSD drive.

Windows Experience Index "Disk Data Transfer RATE" increased from 5.9 to 7.3  … the  rest of my system is at 7.5.

AFTER the SSD,   Lighroom v3.6 is about as fast as I can expect. There is a clear improvement. Even Brushes in Lighroom work better and has stopped hanging on me on heavy use.  The CTRL+E to CS5 really POPs. CS5 noticeably opens faster.

The SPEED increase you will really notice, and you do not have to take out your stop watch to measure.  You KNOW!  There will be no doubt.

Programs open faster.  There is a POP to it.

Yes, Win7 64-bit PRO opens faster  … but,  for me it does not matter  …  most of the time I have this computer running.
2/6/2012 UPDATE:  Just noticed on a  large number of Export to JPGs from DNG/PSD in Lightroom v3.6 that it was "noticably" Faster.  I did a multi-thread Export, by doing two parts.  First one was 177 files to full res JPG, the other part was 47 files to full res JPG. I have done the two part Export to JPG before , but this time it was faster. fyi

Of all the upgrades I have done …  this  us$ 329  Crucial m4 FW 0009   256gb SSD to my OS drive has  “Clearly”  given me the biggest SPEED INCREASE !

NEXT  is to fill that empty SSD bay on my two(2) SSD bracket  with my next upgrade …   an SSD disk cache.     This will give you a easy and low cost SSD boost to your large 3TB  spinning 7,200 rpm drive.   Imho, SPEED  / Performance  is the most important factor on this buy.  And it’s  caching SOFTWARE  will probably play a big role (to make sure you get Maximum hits to the SSD cache drive.   Cost will probably be relatively low because they will be using  128 or 64gb  SSD drives as the cache.    Look for them to ship soon.  Two companys  OCZ  and Crucial.  I am leaning towards the 128gb OCZ disk cache.  But, a  reveiw compairing the speed will be important.

Hope this helps someone,

Ross D. Hamamura

The Tourist of Light

www.RDHphoto.net

Dell i7 Quad Core Studio XPS 435MT Thermaltake TR2 600w Power Supply

It seems I have been doing a lot of Upgrading on my Dell i7 Quad Core XPS with two(2) 7,200 Hard Drives.

First let me save you some money :).  

IF,   your  Dell computer does not boot up ... the Fans do not  turn (or just wiggle, like they might be struggling to turn on) ... the green ON button might blink green a little ... and your computer is  over 2 years old.   First thing you should "TRY" is  changing the Power Supply to a New one.

Over the years ,  I have had  over  5 Dell computers  ... and if  they have no problems in the first few months  ...  basically the only problem you are "Sure" to have is the Power Supply dying on you.  And if you are a Business user you can almost bet it will not boot  within 2 years.  (or should I say , right after the warrantee runs out lol).

6 months ago I had a hard time finding a replacement Power Supply for the Dell XPS 435MT ... besides the lame Dell one with only a 1 year warrantee.  Now, when I Google you can find all kinds of cheap ones.  * I was looking for  a  good one with a LONG Warrentee.

fyi: MY Dell i7:  Win7 PRO 64bit , 24gb tri-channel memory ... two  Fast 7,200 SATA Hard Drives  with 64mb cache Barracuda XT , just upgrading my Data drive to the 3TB  version (more on that in a future blog , after I have run it for a while in PS CS5/LR) ... and will swap out my OS (C:) drive to a 256gb SSD drive ... run four USB stuff plugged in , and have a eSATA/USB  3.5/Laptop  HD reader (so, at times I run 3 Hard Drives and a External NAS HD) (though I need to say, this DELL in Win7 64-bit does NOT have the eSATA external port working, it's basically Dead, with no solutions on the web , yet) ... BlueRay/DVD Burner , APC UPS linked via USB ... AND  I never turn my computer off. 

Have been buying a  lot at Best Buy  (because it's close to me, and cheap)  ... picked up the Thermaltake TR2 600W  for  $95  , which also has a 5 year warrantee.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Thermaltake+-+600W+TR2+ATX+Power+Supply/9827268.p?id=1218179699692&skuId=9827268&st=thermaltake 600w TR2&cp=1&lp=1

There is a lot of PLUGS  ... My personal preference would be a  "Modular" Plug design.  So the Case is cleaner and you ONLY use the number of Plugs you NEED.  In a small XPS case it helps with the Air Flow. (though, many times I will have the case open)

* What is important to know is (and I wish someone had told me) ...  That this  Thermaltake TR2 600W Power Supply works "Easily"  with the Dell 435MT.  Basically Plug and Play.

All I had to do is take out the OLD , put in the NEW  ... plug in  (wrap and find a place for all the extra plugs/wires)  ... Boot up and it works!   NO Compatibility issues.

I have been running this TR2 600W  Day and Night for the past 3 months.   I even shut down at least 3 different times to make sure it could boot up again.  Even in a small office it is quiet.  imho. Cool  (at 600w , what I am running is probably not a strain for this PS)

Love this Thermaltake Power Supply TR2 600w ... but like I said ... wish  Best Buy had "this one" in a Modular design. 

p.s.  ANYONE  that has got this Dell 435MT  with Win7  PRO 64-bit ...  that  has there eSATA "External" port  working ... please let me know HOW?
Maybe a  32bit (Vista driver) ?    and how would it perform.    and can it revive a dead eSATA external port.
*** 1/27/2012 UPDATE:     I finally got my eSATA "External" port working again ,  IN  Win7 PRO 64-bit.
So, now I know ... it's NOT  Win7 64-bit  or PRO that's the issue (as some have said on some forums).
How did i find out?   I bought a new 256gb  Crucial SSD drive (It is the single thing you can do to make LRv3.6 and PS CS5 run faster , noticably so ... particularly LRv3.6 ... more on that on a future blog, and a future SSD disk cache, which will kill the need for RAID on your data drive, and will be faster)  ....   
Well  I decided to Clean install my OS on the C: SSD , BUT  to start with my Original  DELL  VISTA Home 64-bit  install disks (which has all the original DELL drivers).    I made sure I had the dead eSATA  external port hooked up to my "turned ON"  eSATA  Reader. 
Well,  as soon as the VISTA install was finished.  I noticed the  eSATA external Reader/drive was reading my drive in it!!!
Then, through out the installs ,  Win7  Home 64-bit , then Win7 PRO 64-bit  ... on each step the eSATA external port continued to work!
imho,  it's interesting that if you did not run the eSATA external port  before Win7 64-bit ... Win7 will NOT  see it and will not install the Driver for it.  Strange.
So, NOW  I have a really FAST  eSATA external port for my   eSATA  reader that I can plug in any eSATA "BARE"  internal Hard Drive (2.5" or 3.5")  and use it for back up, or to transfer files over that I need from my "Users" directory, some I needed when doing a clean install.  
Particularly  LR files  (there is so much work there that I did not want to redo, like Saved Import settings, Default import by Camera/ISO settings, Pre-sets etc)

Hope this helps someone,

Ross Hamamura
The Tourist of Light
www.RDHphoto.net

Joby Gorillapod Focus / Ballhead X combo & BlackRapid RS-4 camera strap.

Joby Gorillapod Focus / Ballhead X combo  & BlackRapid RS-4 camera strap.

While on my recent trip to New York , I made my  First trip to B&H Photo.

When you buy  On-Line,  you never feel the need to actually visit the store.  But, because of all the raves on line / camera forums  … I had to put It on my must do’s on this trip.

The store is HUGE!    And the best  Camera/Photography store I have ever seen.   And as a X-Buyer I could not help doing some of the math on what their sales volume must be “just” on the IN-STORE sales.  If, you add up how many Salespeople (probably not all B&H) , Cashiers , stockpeople etc.  it takes a village to run that store.   And it is like a factory.  The sales volume at B&H must be scary.  And this is probably why there stock is  Fresh.

A side note:  I have never seen so much promotion in a store (all over the store)  for a  Camera  System (Nikon 1)  “quite like” what was in B&H.   Wall billboards , & Kiosk’s everywhere.   A  V1 and J1 on “each” of the 4 sides of the Nikon  bank.   They also did  a very “Costco” thing , by putting  some Nikon 1  Kiosks with salesperson in some locations where you would not expect.

So, while I was there … of course,  I  had to impulse buy something lol.

1)      Joby Gorillapod Focus with Ballhead X  $ 112 :

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/680973-REG/Joby_GP8_BHEN_Gorillapod_Focus_Ballhead_X_Bundle.html

Have not bought a Gorillapod till now.  Love this one!   

A  PRO quality Gorillapod. This is a solid piece of Kit.

The “Gorillapod Focus” in Black/Gray is the first one I have seen that does not look like a toy. And is solid enough to hold a D700 with a 70-200mm f2.8 VRII  lens , this was a surprise to me! ( I mount directly on the rotating Lens mount) So, a 24-70 f2.8 is no problem.  You can put it on a table and it stands by itself.  You can put it on a rolled down window.  Or a  Rail or Pole.   Imho, a great  small Travel tripod, that you “could” use for product as well (more or less).   But, the cool thing for me is I can use it to mount my sb900 in some different places “easier”.  This dual ability makes it a keeper in my travel bag.

The Ballhead X is surprisingly Solid / Good  for the price, and would not have any problem also using it on a regular TriPod.   The quick release is a nice feature,  but what makes it GREAT is that you can use an RRS “L” bracket with it!  And a lot of other plates and Acc.  from others.  AND the head allows for 360 deg. Panning and has markings for it.   Wow!  Joby really thought this one out.

2)      Own the Blackrapid Double strap and love it. So, this purchase was a no brainer. BlackRapid RS-4 camera strap (single) $53.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/645426-REG/Black_Rapid_RS4_1RB_RS_4_Camera_Strap.html

Bought it because I only brought one camera D700 + 24-70mm f2.8 lens to NYC. This strap does have a Zip pocket for biz cards ,

and will hold the BR Joey J2 Pocket acc. $ 21  http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/664879-REG/Black_Rapid_RMJ_2BB_JOEY_J2_Pocket_Medium.html

Fyi: this pocket is large enough to hold the large 4.5 inch Samsung Galaxy S II (without any case)

Used this BR RS-4 strap to walk around all over NYC  with the D700 + 24-70 f2.8 hanging from it , UNDER my  ¾  length Overcoat.   It really worked for me.  And was great for street shooting.

Hope this helps someone,

Ross Hamamura
The Tourist of Light
www.RDHphoto.net

Best Working Photographer Shoes (boot) for Hawaii

Red Wing Men's Hiking #8691 in Black, Review

After killing two of my favorite  Ferragamo dress shoes at  wedding beach shoots,  I started to hunt for the “Best”  Working Photographer Shoes.

And I finally found one  … the  Red Wing WaterProof Work shoe that looks like a Hiking MID Boot  in Black (NO aluminum Toe). It is actually a new style  , # 8691 Men’s Hiker $ 180.00 + $ 8.00 to ship to Hawaii  : http://www.redwingshoes.com/red-wing-shoe/8691-red-wing-shoes/8691-red-wing-mens-hiker-black

It also comes in a  true work boot style with aluminum toe  … but that is another style number.

For me, this shoe  had to be:

1)      Comfortable.  It always surprises me how much time in a Photogs  life is spent standing and “waiting”.   And if shooting Events, Sports : Add Walking , and semi-running.

2)      Waterproof.  This has floated high on my list.  In Hawaii,  you will end up at the beach doing a shoot.  And maybe even walking across rocks.   For sure a beach Wedding.   And you don’t want to  look like a total  wimp,  by screaming and/or running  like a baby when you are surprised by a large wave on shore.  Or cry out loud when your  $400 shoes gets wet.  (tearing up a little is understandable)

3)      Durability.  This kinda  relates to the  Rocks at the beach thing , above.   Beach rock is very hard on shoes.    And it’s nice when a work shoe lasts , to add value.

4)      MID.   it needs to be a  slightly higher  MID boot design so  SAND from the beach does not go into the shoe when walking on the Beach.   I did not realize how important a feature that was until I started shooting Weddings on a beach, and saw another  Wedding photog with Hiking MID boots on.    

5)      Black.  Most  hiking boots are brown.   In order to disguise  this WaterProof Hiking boot as a dress shoe it has got to be at least BLACK, preferably all black.

The Red Wing  #8691 Men’s Hiker  in Black  meets all requirements!

Have been wearing it for over a week now.   Shot a number of events (with a lot of standing and walking)  … it is so comfortable, even my  Nike  running shoes and my Rockports  will sit on the shelf unused from now on.  The shoe holds my heal snuggly like a good running shoe and even has a wide base like a running shoe.  A moderate arch support (the Merrell  Pulse II Waterproof is slightly more comfortable, with more arch support),  and though I bought it in Normal (D) the width and toe space is roomy , I  do what I normally do, and bought a half size larger , for airlines travel  (Normal width, they call it D … note: the Hawaii Red Wing store only carries Wide and in this style only Brown , so I had to special order in D / Black … it only cost $8.00 more and took only one week to get to my home)   In fact on a upcoming trip to New York City  (a city of walking)  I plan to ONLY bring this Red Wing Hiker (no dress shoes).  (well, along with my fav slipper  Reef Mick Fanning -02 :  http://www.amazon.com/Reef-Mens-Fanning-02-Sandal/dp/B001PTHDF0)

Fyi: the shoe is made like a TANK!   And the sole is like truck tires.  But, it also has a slightly bouncy/Airy feel  (similar to my Doc Martins, but more comfortable, durable and better looking …  those Doc Martins are only for  yard duty now).   Have a   “Beach Home” Wedding on the North Shore to do this week  … so, it’s  SAND , Rock,  WaterProof ability will be tested.

* 9/23/2011 update:  Did that North Shore wedding ... and of course as I was shooting them walking down the beach I got hit "good" by a wave.  Talking pants all the way up to my knee wet (lined wool pants).  The Red Wing #8691 never really felt wet on the inside (like any of my previous shoes would).  AND it kept the sand out.  And did not feel uncomfortable the rest of the night (even after the wave hit me, I did not take the shoe off that night).   The sand and water pretty much fell off by the end of the night (terminator style), and it did not have a wet feeling inside. My pant was wet , but it did not feel like the inside of the shoe was really wet (though my socks did get wet).     After getting hit by the wave, it did destract me enough that I forgot to take a  bride "single" shot at the beach (hate when that happens). :)  ...   I don't think anyone really noticed I was wearing a hiking boot until I layed down on the floor to take a shot, and a Bridesmaid "exclaimed" out loud ,  he is wearing really heavy duty  Hiking Boots! ... LOL ,  you will only know why when you actually see this shoe, from the bottom. *

Shot this week a  “Business Dress”  Event at “The Modern Honolulu”  (formally the Edition Hotel) , and  “The Plaza Club” in Downtown  with this  Red Wing #8691  with  a black wool dress pant  …   it  seemed to disguise well as a dress shoe  …  No one  kicked me out for  not having a dress shoe on (or looked at my shoe strangely)  , LOL.

10/28/11  ...  found out on a trip  ... that this shoe , even though it does NOT have a aluminum Toe  ... does have metal in it  ... it set off a alarm when I walked thru a metal detector.
* Also, found out that if you go to the RED Wing store (in Aiea) and have your foot measured ... the size is pretty true.   When the store measured my foot I was a  Regular width which I special ordered (the store only stocked Wide)  ... But, I also bought my normal  1/2 size larger  ... so it would be easier to take on and off at the Airport. (and if my foot swelled on a trip)
This "might" have been a mistake with this shoe because it  probably would have fit perfectly if I bought my correct "measured" size.  I think this heavy shoe actually had a pretty good fit at my "correct" size.
*** This has become my BEST Work shoe  EVER !
Next test will be  Nov. in New York  (maybe in the snow) :).

This all Black shoe can be worn with  wool pants or Jeans.   Nice!

I have found the Perfect   Photographers  Work Shoe/Boot !   The WaterProof  Red Wing Hiker # 8691 in Black.

I plan to wear this shoe “Everywhere”  …  and will probably end up wearing less  Dress shoes in the future.

11/30/11 Update:  Just came back from a  10 day New York trip ...  30-40 degree cold, Rain , NYC sidewalks and roads , puddles   ... 
* This Waterproof  (and slightly heavy)  8691   really  shined on this trip. and it was the ONLY shoe I took in this trip.  
I am talking over  100 NYC blocks of walking  and two  rainy days that was not higher than 40 deg. ... walking quickly thru puddles, bad roads and sidewalks. 
This shoe PASSED with flying colors !  
Can you tell this is now my favoite shoe "Ever".       Now, I am wondering if I will ever bother to buy another Feragamo , ever.   (I might try a  Merrel Pulse II  if they ever do a black   lol)

Hope this helps someone,

Ross D. Hamamura
The Tourist of Light
www.RDHphoto.net

Flash Strip Softbox , on the Cheap (as of this date , at least)

First,  this is a GREAT Value!  could not find anything better at this price. and I do NOT regreat my purchase.
Would recommend buying it, but you also need to know the rest of the story.

After a long search, I bought two(2) of these,   us$79.99 + ship each.
Even AB (Paul Buff strip box is $119 and it does not have a a Bracket for Flash, or Grid)

http://www.amazon.com/Off-camera-Photography-Fancierstudio-SB1036-speedlight/dp/B0056C5QH4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1315278238&sr=8-2

It arrived pretty quick , and the shipping to Hawaii added about $30 each.

VALUE is how I would describe this.

1) The Soft box looks pretty durable
2) It comes with a Grid!  and inside diffuser ... and bag
3) The Flash bracket seems pretty heavy duty for a "strobist" Flash solution ... and it seems you could probably load your studio strobes on it.

The BUT:

1) It looks more like a Strobe set up that was altered for Flash ... now depending on your point of veiw this could be good or bad.  imho, it is NOT as "Elegant" of a Flash/Strobist solution as my FourSquare Flash Softbox ... in fact my Four(4) Flash Softbox solution is "way" Lighter than this one(1) Flash strip softbox ... and Faster and easier to Set UP.  and the FourSquare Packs for Travel a lot smaller, WAY smaller.

* For what I wanted to use this for , it is a bit of a problem ...  a FourSquare , Two Flash Strip Box would be less than half the weight and size , IF they had one. (but there FourSquare Grid is way too expensive, imho)

2) The Speedlite bracket L on this is designed WRONG !  and at "first" you will not get WHY they included a picture of the Speedlite bracket "T" ... but, when you start using it with the "L" bracket with this Strip Softbox .. you realize quickly that this "L" design was a mistake!

So, YES  I bought two(2) of the Speedlite bracket "T" and extra $30 Free ship ...  * at about $130 total I still concider this a VALUE. TOTAL is:  $79.99 for the original Strip box , Grid and L flash bracket , add $30 each for shipping , then add another $30 for the "extra" T flash bracket (which I like better) ..  That gives you a TOTAL cost of  $ $139.99 each for this (and you have an extra L bracket).

http://www.amazon.com/CowboyStudio-Calument-Travelite-Speedlight-Bracket/dp/B004UAWRCU/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1315279525&sr=1-2

Want to know why I bought the "T" bracket even when the "L" bracket is OK?

* Well, When you set up the Strip Softbox Vertical (which I will probably do most of the time) the L bracket does not easily allow you to keep the Flash vertical with it.  Not a big deal really cuz you can work around this ... but, it is bad enough that there is a Hot Spot in the center that with one flash is hard enough to avoid.

* But, that's not all ... you cannot move the Flash  Deeper into the Strip Softbox  ... after a while you start to realize there is benifits to this :) ... and you get pi$$ed that the picture of the "T" bracket solves this.

I think the Hot Spot can be helped a bit by putting on a Diffusion dome on your Flash ... and moving the Flash more inside the Softbox , then the Silver Reflector on the sides can help bounce the light around more and not have it in such a strait path to the center of the box.

It also helps if you have a sb900 where you can flip the Wide angle diffuer down and have the sb900 automatically go to a 17mm wide zoom , combine this with the dome and it really evens out the light on this 36" strip box.  Or as best that can be expected with one Flash

* The other benifit of paying extra for the additional "T" bracket is ...  the  Softbox "Swivel"  will work as it should ,  keeping the the strip and the flash , vertical with each other

* now this whole bowens softbox screw on bracken , T bracket ... starts to get heavy , and less "strobist-y"  ...  probably best as a studio set up , vs a Travel, On-the-Go ,  GUN and RUN Strbist Set UP.

BUT, it is the Cheapest , Flash Strip Softbox solution I have found , so far.  
Well,  at least until  Foursquare can make a two(2) Flash Strip Softbox

p.s.  Did I say that this Strip Softbox comes with a GRID ?  :)

Hope this helps someone, looking for a Flash Strip Softbox.

*** anyone wants to buy two(2) New / Unused  Speedlite bracket "L" ??? 

email me  ...   If I get  $20  each on these I will be happy.

Ross Hamamura
The Tourist of Light  :)
www.RDHphoto.net

Fashion Photographer, Guillermo Velez - STUDIO Workshop JUNE 18th , BEACH Workshop JUNE 19th (two separate workshops)

6/15/11  Update:  For those that want to know ...  Yes,  I will be there helping my friend, the beautiful and talented photographer  Tracy Wright Covo ,  to  asst.  Guillermo  at the Workshop.  

On both workshops.

 

6/2/2011  Update:  It was reveiled to me today  the  Pictures of the Confirmed Models  for the Workshop  ... and who will be asst.  and doing Makeup.

Here is the  info:

Note:  Studio workshop will have 3 Models ... and the next day Beach/Swimsuit will have 2 Models

The Below  Model information tells you which days the Models will be there.

Also has the  Stylist  and MakeUp  artist info.

One of the goals for the day should be,  to add to your portfolio. :)

Guillermo Velez will have  TWO(2)  Separate  Workshops in Hawaii.

1)  STUDIO Workshop on  JUNE 18th  SATURDAY

2)  BEACH Workshop on JUNE 19th  SUNDAY

Just got a  new Flyer  for  the  6/19/11 SUNDAY  new added BEACH Lighting Workshop

Interesting,   there is now a second separate workshop on SUNDAY, a   Beach / Swim   Workshop.   Nice !
I am just saying ...  it's Hawaii after all  :).


The STUDIO Lighting Workshop is still on JUNE 18th SATURDAY  ... it is a Separate Workshop

Ross Hamamura
The Tourist of Light
www.RDHphoto.net



=========================================

4/24/11 Update on the Workshop ... above/side are two flyers I will be printing (at Costco, luster :) ... ) and bringing to the Monday 4/25/11 EOH (Eyes of Hawaii Photography Club meeting, at KCC) ... for those that want to see a print of the Model Guillermo Valez will be bringing with him.
Pics of her are in the two(2) flyers.

* When I get pics and info on the Local Hawaii Model that will be the "other" model at the workshop ... I will post it. :)




* Note: on the Bottom/Right of the PDF there is a BUY NOW button that will allow you to pay via charge card.

Click on the link to register and reserve your spot (PDF)http://www.gvphotos.com/WORKSHOP2011.pdf

Another way to make payment and register is by going to his website and click under workshops for the PDF there. www.GVphotos.com

Or, you can email him: info@GVphotos.com

Those of you that have been wanting a Studio Lighting workshop/shoot with "Real" Models? Well, this is it.


Hope this helps,
Ross Hamamura
The Tourist of Light
http://www.rdhphoto.net/








(from past blog)

Fashion Phototographer Guillermo Velez is having a workshop in Honolulu, Hawaii on 6/18/11 10am - 6pm
Complete with two(2) Models (one Guillermo will bring with him, the other from Honolulu) and a Make Up Artist.
With Studio Lighting gear provided by Hawaii Photo Rental.
* Location is most likely going to be 1013 Integrated

4/15/11 update: here is some pics of the main Model he will be bringing with him for the Workshop.

Look at the flyer and his web Link to get more info ...
* This should be interesting !!!

All you have to do is look at Guillermo's site http://www.gvphotos.com/ to know it should be on another level of what might have been done before.

Those of you that have been wanting a Studio Lighting workshop/shoot with "Real" Models? Well, this is it.



Hope this helps,
Ross Hamamura
The Tourist of Light
http://www.rdhphoto.net/

Most Flashes fired by one person, Guinness World Record attempt

So, I got this email from Radio Poppers. :)   (below)

And you might be asking ... why post it ?

Well, the funny thing is   ...  in the past week  another High School (Moanaloa High has purchased already, for there lighting class, both the RP JrX and the LP160 flashes) and a  local photog  has asked me about the Radio Poppers.

Being a proud owner of both  Radio Popper JrX and the LP160  Flash  (also own the RP PX TTL triggers)   ... I can tell you , from experiance  ... that this combo will  have  "NO Problem"  triggering  Every Time. :)

AND it's not a very expensive combo.

Now if  MPE  can  just develope a   LumoPRO  LP160  that the Radio Popper JrX  can control the "Power Level"  remotely  ...  that , would be really Cool.
Hint:  they told me they are working on it  :)

GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ Attempt "The most flashes fired by one person to create a photograph" In less then 72 hours at After Dark Cincinnati, photographer Jason Groupp will be attempting the world record for "The most flashes fired by one person to create a photograph." How many flashes? Well that is top secret. But we can tell you the flashes used will be LumoPro LP 160s provided by Midwest Photo Exchange, and to ensure every flash fires, each one will be triggered with the RadioPopper JrX. Attendees of After Dark Cincinnati will be able to purchase World Record Edition RadioPopper JrX Receivers with custom "World Record Edition" badging in gold leaf. It is a public event with tons of activities so come be a part of all the action on Sunday, May 8th. Following the world record excitement there will be a shindig with live music and the official awarding of the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS certificate. Check out all the details here. See you there!