Ask Newman
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Resident photographer Richard Newman answers your photo
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 I shoot a lot of events in clubs and since most of them are not well lit, I shoot with open aperture with my SB-800 with SC-29 cord or SB-800 on the Nikon D70. I have noticed that with my Nikon 18-70mm DX f/3.5-4.5 lens, pics shot at 18mm f/3.5 are really out of focus. It's the same story with my Nikon 17-35mm f/2.8 lens shot at 17mm f/2.8. Also, I lock the focus when I recompose the shot. I tried shooting with my Fuji S3 and the results are the same. I tried shooting both in the dark and with decent ambient light in the room for the examples above. One way out is to focus at the tele end and zoom out to the wide angle or maybe shoot at really high apertures. But is it a real issue with D70 or the lenses or am I missing something? Specs: D70, AF-illuminator on and the camera is on single area AF (center). -Hari
 Focusing at the widest angle on the lens and the widest aperture is sometimes adds some "personality" to the photographs. It's the hardest thing the lens, camera and auto focus have to do together. Adding low light into the situation is like throwing gas on the fire. To me, it sounds like you are doing everything correctly. I'll add a personal experience here. I spend a ton of time in the darkroom and used to own a Leitz V-35 with the lens (the enlarging lens cost 1K). I was making very long exposures on slow paper and I used the lens wide open. It's from Leica, so it should be sharp, right? It was just awful. But when I closed down one stop, it was so sharp I couldn't believe it. I got the opportunity to ask one of the engineers about it and he told me that was the way it was designed to work. Huh! Low-light photography with digital still isn't quite where I'd like to see it, for sure, but I wouldn't be surprised that if you closed down one stop, you might be a lot happier. |
I am about to purchase some monolights and am considering Calumet Travelites. How do the reflectors and accessories attach? Is it a sturdy bayonet-type mount that can withstand the weight of a large soft box? Are Travelites built tough enough to stand up to real commercial use? -Martin
I've shipped and used my Travelites all over the world. They are tough and stand up against a lot. The connection is a bayonet type with three "keys" for a very secure fit. I have had a 54 x 72" softbox on them with no problem at all. I also use a Fresnel on them with no problems. |
I want to take photos and transfer them to a CD or DVD instantly. This would be in an assembly-line style. I would take five or 10 photos of a person, then five or 10 of another and so on. I need the photos to be transferred to the CD/DVD as quickly as possible, so I don't have to slow down. I need them to be professional-quality photos and I would like the customers to be able to swap the backgrounds on the photos. I assume I need to use a green background to take the photos. Now my question is what equipment do I need? Including camera and so forth. -Buddy
To begin with, you need to look at an 8MP digital camera. Check out the Canon 30D (item number EC2731). You'll most likely want a tripod (item number CK6011) for the camera. You'll want to capture in the RAW format while tethered to a computer, such as an Apple G5 (item number IM11036). You'll, of course, need a monitor and other essential computer gear. The capture of the photo would go directly into the computer. You would have to open the photo in a program such as Photoshop CS2, size it and burn it to a disk. I think you are describing a two- or possibly three-person assembly line here. If you were to deliver the disk without the backgrounds being taken out, you would be asking the customer to be fairly sophisticated with image-processing software, like Photoshop. Chromagreen is the paper you'll want (item number CS2354). This is just the beginning, but it should get you started. |
I am a longtime amatuer, more creative than technical at that and I would like to get into studio photography, portraits, headshots and fashion work as well. What equipment would you suggest, up to say $2,500? And why? Also, what is the real difference between shooting with umbrellas and softboxes in studio photography? - Mr. Longtime Amateur
That's about the right amount of money you would need to really set yourself up. Look at the Travelite 2250w/s Three-Head Studio Kit (item number CE1454) on our website, and then add some accessories to really give your light a personal quality. Umbrellas, softboxes, grid spots, are all tools to create certain effects. For example, a silver umbrella with add a little contrast to the image while a softbox will create smooth, even light. Also, take a look at a new DVD from Calumet (item number CE9907) with Bobbi Lane and myself. We run through a whole lot of different accessories and really demonstrate the difference along with giving you a great basic education on getting started in studio lighting. Good luck, add your personality to your photographs and have fun, you'll get far better results. |
I own a Nikon D80 and was wondering if you could do infrared photos in black-and-white? If so, how? - Russell
Your camera has an IP filter in front of the chip. You would have to remove this. In other words, you would have a camera that only took IR photos. So, you will need Photoshop CS or NIK Software (Color Efex Pro 2.0 for Mac and PC, item number IM1646) which has an IR effect in it. |
Please excuse my ignorance in the world of photography, but my question relates to my search for someone who can produce slides from photographs. I know it's usually the other way around, but I have a big event coming up and I need to include a small slideshow presentation. I only have photographs of the images I want to project and wonder if there might be some other way of projecting these images onto a screen or wall if slides are not feasible. - Duncan
Most any professional photographer should be able to do this for you. It requires a copy stand and a manual camera. The process involves photographing the art or photographs without glare and then having the slide film processed. If you have a scanner, you could scan the images and then use a program like Powerpoint or Keynote to create a slide show. You would project them through a digital projector. |
I have one of the first Minolta Maxxum 7 cameras that was made. I have three different lenses for it. Of course, it's heavy and it's a film camera. In doing my research looking for a Maxxum digital camera, I have found that Sony has bought out Minolta and the Sony A100 DSLR will accept my current lenses. I am not sure if that is correct information, and if it is, are there any other Sony cameras that will use my lenses? They are AF bayonet style. I have seen the camera as just the body and with lenses, too. I do not own a wide angle lens, and thought I would purchase one with the wide angle lens. Can you tell me if what I have found out is correct, and if it is, help me pick the right camera? I LOVE my camera, but due to its age, and perhaps my ability to think I can switch to digital, it's a dream to me to know that I can use both cameras without the investment of all new lenses. At my age, I probably would not invest again. Also, do the new lenses weigh less than the old? I tend to shake my camera now, which is part of my reason for looking at digital cameras. - Sharon
Sounds like you have the correct ticket here. You're older lenses will work with the new Sony camera. Lens weight is dependant on the aperture. If it's a wide aperture such as a 2.8 fixed, those lenses weigh a bunch, but the designs are not necessarily heavier. They are sharper though, because of the new designs and technology. |
I have a Canon XTi camera and want to know if I can use my older Novatron studio flash with it and also my Metz 60CT4. - Terry
I would NOT use your Novatron strobes without a Wein Safe-sync (item number CG1121). The trigger voltage of your strobes could fry your camera. Your 60CT4 should be fine, but most likely you will have to use the flash on manual. |
I have the Rebel XT camera and would like to upgrade to the Canon 30D. Is there enough of a difference in the two cameras to do this? - Karen
The real upgrade for you would be to the Canon 5D (item number EC2675), but the 30D has a much larger viewfinder and less shutter lag. |
Kodak Canada has referred me to you! My question to them regarding 3200 ASA film was, "How effective are lead bags when handchecks are no longer available, as is often the case and most recently going through London?" Is there a brand you would recommend? I have also read that when the bag/container is opaque, the x-ray operator just cranks up the machine (I have no idea if this is possible). Many countries do not carry this particular film, as you are probably aware, so purchasing it and trying to get it processed is not an option. - Christine
We live in very difficult times for photographers to move film. Yes, they will just crank up the machine. The best choice is to use Fed-X with your film both to and from your location. That's the safest and best alternative. Sometimes you can request a "Red Bag" which means that your film is not x-rayed but is put on another plane. This is risky and a little scary to me, but it still might be an alternative. You can check with the TSA as to the most current regulations. |
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