The Ultimate Upgrade

[photo_chick]

Where have I heard a similar line....



Oh yeah...

Sarah - "Ovens don't just clean themselves"

Father - "...And they probably never will."

Just remember, the future is unpredictable. I happen to think the D7000 is going to be the future wherein the camera will start making all the difference. All I'll have to do is sit back and reap the rewards!

Self cleaning ovens have been known to burn down houses.

I'm just sayin....

 

[MarkBarbieri]

The one seminar I try to attend (hoping to get back in March) is Photoshop World. Whether you're an accomplished post-processor or not, you're virtually guaranteed to find people there who know more than you do, and you'll learn a great deal. I always come back with the fires of my enthusiasm well-stoked. You'll meet lots of photographers, and you can take classes from some great photographers as well. And Scott Kelby will be there as one of the instructors. I've been seven or eight times over the last 12 years, and couldn't recommend it more highly. There are two Photoshop World events each year in the U.S., one on the west coast and one on the east coast. The next one is at the end of March and is in Orlando -- now how can you beat that? I think there are some other places in the Orlando area that we all might be interested in visiting while there, don't you think?

I'd like to do PS World someday. My problem is that going to something like that is essentially a use of vacation time for me as it has no job relevance. I'm pretty limited on vacation time and prefer to spend it with the kids while they are still at a fun age. I probably won't get to PS World until they are older. We'll see.

OT- can somebody please tell me which tripod will also make all the difference? Thanks in advance.

You want the Linhof Profi III. With anything less, you'll get camera shake, even shooting with mirror lockup. You may have to go to 8x magnification to see it, but it will be their and your clients will notice the difference every time. To get accurate framing, you'll need a good head too. I wouldn't settle for anything less than the Linhof Precision Micro Cradle Head. You can try to buy something cheaper, but you'll eventually toss it and by the LPMCH anyway, so it's actually cheaper to start there.

Don't worry about the cost. You have to keep in mind that a tripod will last you for generations. I know someone using a tripod from the early Renaissance. They were built much better then because they had to keep your canvas rock steady for hours or even days while you painted. Sure, it cost the equivalent of $20,000 back then, but spread over 400 years, that works out to barely $4 a month. That's like one coffee a month...a steal for a really good piece of gear.

 

[Experiment_626]

I'd like to do PS World someday. My problem is that going to something like that is essentially a use of vacation time for me as it has no job relevance. I'm pretty limited on vacation time and prefer to spend it with the kids while they are still at a fun age.

Understandable. You would have the advantage of being able to spend some time at WDW, but most of the day would be taken up with sessions.

Photoshop World is job-related for me. But with the budget crunch of late, I haven't been able to go for awhile. In fact, I was laid-off back in May -- but my former co-worker then retired earlier than expected, so I was recalled early this month to take his place, thank goodness. So, I'm going to start lobbying to go the next PSworld. I love it so much that if it makes a difference as to whether I can go or not, I'll pay part of the cost out-of-pocket. Since it is only about 300 miles for me, I can drive, which saves a lot of money. I don't feel compelled to stay at the official convention hotel, either, so I can use Priceline and stay pretty inexpensively as well.

 

[Todd_H]

Anyone done Ziser's current "Capturing the Light" workshop?

 

[Todd_H]

You want the Linhof Profi III. With anything less, you'll get camera shake, even shooting with mirror lockup. You may have to go to 8x magnification to see it, but it will be their and your clients will notice the difference every time. To get accurate framing, you'll need a good head too. I wouldn't settle for anything less than the Linhof Precision Micro Cradle Head. You can try to buy something cheaper, but you'll eventually toss it and by the LPMCH anyway, so it's actually cheaper to start there.

Wow. And I thought the RRS tripod & ballheads were outrageously priced.

 

[AndrewWG]

Anyone done Ziser's current "Capturing the Light" workshop?

I am going to go to the one in Boston next month. Can't wait to see how it is. For $59, I won't be able to complain either way. Call them to get a promo code.

 

[JoeDif]

I am going to go to the one in Boston next month. Can't wait to see how it is. For $59, I won't be able to complain either way. Call them to get a promo code.

I just signed up for the Philly seminar in October. Here is the promo code for $20 off: CBLDPT10

 

[MarkBarbieri]

I went to the Captured By The Light seminar here about a week ago. It was good. If you've read the book, it's almost all the same material. I found it to still be worth going because I learn best from a combination of methods. Hearing him lecture was a great addition to the book.

That said, if you don't like the book, don't bother with the seminar. It's fairly wedding focused and I HATE shooting weddings. Much of what was said also applies to general portrait shooting, so I found it useful.

I'm going to see McNally tomorrow. I'm really jazzed about that.

 

[AndrewWG]

Ok, so I know that I said that for $59 I couldn't complain about the Ziser workshop. Well, I was wrong about that one! I have wasted more time on stupider things in my day but this one takes the cake as far as photography related wastes is concerned.

In a nutshell, you sit for 5 hours listening to Mr. Ziser hype up the products that he has to sell. Examples are given on the screen as to how these products will help you get better shots (portrait/wedding shots) and then he is off and running on the next product he has to sell. Honestly I feel like I spent $59 to watch a live infomercial. There may have been a couple things that I took from it that MAY help me get better shots. Only time will tell. There are a couple software programs that would have been nice to buy but in order to get the "discounted price!" you have to spend $250 on his videos. I really don't have $250 to waste on someones videos to begin with, but finding the 40 hours to watch them all would be a totally other issue.

I think that Mr. Ziser should have spent a bit more time showing exactly how he got different shots BUT then he would have given away all the secrets that he is trying to sell in the back of the room.

Total waste of my time. I would have rather been at work.