What is in your bag, on your shoulder, in your pocket, at your hand, in your mind?

 (This small article has been inspired by the interesting and nicely done video by Take Kayo from bigheadtaco.com: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BccQl5Qq2G0   )

Can you see the "bag" back curve?
Photo Manon Paquette

Everybody is really curious about what, how and why the others are doing things. And as photographers are basically curious people (I hope so!)  It is very intriguing to know what are the contents of these magic gadget photo bags. Yes things are changing especially from the past era of heavily loaded photographs with a plethora of equipment to be used primarily or as backup and backup of backup.

Film era

At the beginning of the film era it was impossible to be certain of the final result of your photographs until it has been fully processed and printed (or projected). So most photographers who pretend to be serious in their involvement to the medium were sharing a certain amount of insecurity regarding the use of their equipment. In that regard, many were bringing with them a lot of items. Only so call “ordinary” people never care about this and were using a single camera to register their souvenirs.

A camera for each different purpose!

It brings me back to my own beginning in professional photography as a way of living ($$$) and of doing something that I was passionate. At that point the photo equipment and the different type of films used have strong technical limitations. If your needs were diversified in term of subjects or types of output generally speaking most photographers were using at least two or three cameras bodies and an array of different fix focal length lenses. Just reminder those emblematic magazine reporters with their Domke bag filled with Nikon F cameras like the actor Nick Nolte into the “Under Fire” 1983 movie.

Lowepro Magnum First generation in gray presentation 
( Web  Picture )

For my part my Lowepro Magnum “grey” reporter bag was including 2 Nikon F3 HP, 1 F2AS as a back up, Nikkor AI-S 24mm, 35mm, 55mm, 105mm and 300mm lenses, a Metz 45 CT1 handle flash unit, a Sekonic light meter and many films, filters (mainly for color or contrast corrections plus the polarized) and others little parts. My other Lowepro Magnum “blue” studio bag was containing a Mamiya RZ67, three lenses (wide, normal and telephoto), waist level and prism viewfinder, a Gossen exposure meter, two roll film backs, a Polaroid back and plenty of accessories. After several years of that regime my back had enough of all this overcharge equipment. (Small note: I was hiring an assistant only in very specific situations on location or studio shooting)

I love the Fujifilm interpretation of photo evolution 
( Fujifilm Corporate Advertising picture )

With time I have learned that the over equipment phenomena is inducing mismanagement of their functionalities, great fatigue and more important great loss of photographic opportunities. You have to be selective if you want to really take control of your creative output. Yes you can have at your disposal a lot of different parts but you cannot use them efficiently at the same exact moment of time. So you need to be selective and learn to better apprehend your subject or context to photograph.

Digital Age

What advantages the digital age has offered to us compared to the film era. Firstly no more films had to be selected in terms of color or B&W, or different ISO, or different final supports (Negative or slide), or length (12, 24, 36, even 250 in 24X36mm format).

Secondly the instant verification of the output that helps to pinpoint the good combination of adjustments to do with the equipment and … the subject. So no more back up pictures and no more back up of back up as we use to do.

Thirdly the super in-board post treatment will optimize the lens performance by preventing aberrations of every type.

Fourthly even if the automation trend has started during the last decennials of the film era, much automatic functionality such as autofocus and auto exposure have been greatly improved in the digital age. Auto-focus anticipation has never been so efficient although it stays a difficult task. The same can be said for the in-board exposure metering.

So what is in the “digital” bag? For many of us a lot less in term of equipment but as a result a lot more output and that is the real victory over the dark ages of the film era…

The concept behind the Lowepro Passport sling bag 
 (From Lower Web site )

My today bag (which is also my travel bag) is very small and light.  It may or may not contain a lot a different things depending the context I am anticipating to use it. But you will find at least one camera device (mainly a mirrorless model equipped with a versatile fix or zoom lens plus a small telephoto) and the indispensable accessories such as a spare full charge battery, an additional memory card, a lens cleaning kit, a small battery charger, my mini iPad along with the SD card reader adapter, the ac adapter and my earphones, a small notebook, a pens, a bottle of water, a nutritive bar, a cleaning towel and my Swiss knife if I can find it.  To fulfil all that my favourite bag of the last 5-6 years is a Lowepro Passport, first generation. On travel I will usually add a very small compact camera with a wide-angle zoom lens as a backup. Sometime I will bring also very light clothing and some personal care products for an emergency or a short stay-in. I prefer a shoulder bag for its immediate access and its less evident showing.

Photo Manon Paquette

For sure the best bag will be the one that doesn’t interfere into your activity and inspiration. So its dimension and internal content is more a personal choice. There is a multitude of interpretations on “What can be in your bag?”.

Photo Manon Paquette

The other bag
But I found much more interesting to know what is in your “virtual” bag. I mean your experience, your motivation, your inspiration, your enthusiasm, your creativity, your openness, etc. As we do love photography it’s our passion that drive us to go further to find the “next” picture.

The Fujifilm X-T10: Are you serious?!!!

(This is the second version of a previous text that has been accidently delete to my great despair…)

The Fujifilm X-T10 is the diminutive and compact version of the Fuji X-series X-T1 camera that can be regarded as the flagship of this category. It represent a smaller, simpler, lighter package equipped with the same 16MP APS-C image captor of the other Fuji APS-C models with the exception of the newest Fujifilm X-Pro2.

The EVF  (Electronic ViewFinder) of the X-T10 is located on the axis of the taking lens like the bigger X-T1 compared to the off-axis viewfinder of the Fujifilm X-E1/2(S) or the X-Pro 1/2 that got also the OVF (Optical ViewFinder) option and  is assimilated as a hybrid camera. On-axis viewfinder has the advantage to give you a slightly more adequate position to anticipate your final taking angle of view in comparison with your own sight.  For their part the rangefinder style cameras tend to be more discreet devices in relation with their subject(s). I have worked over the years with success with ether on and off-axis type of viewfinder.

Today EVF viewfinder surpass OVF:

It may appear controversial but the point is that EVF viewfinder should be  today the first option of serious photographer. EVF allows us an instant view of the imagery result. It helps to do your composition, to fine tuning your focus, exposure or other special effect controls. It secures your results and increases a lot your efficiency. The days of film blind photography are gone and today new technology has liberated us in many ways of wrong guessing. As an ex-corporate and sport professional photographer I would have liked to work with digital cameras equipped with the most recent EVF.

Because it is a compact version the Fujifilm X-T10 is a narrower camera and like I use to comment for compact cameras it induce some sort of design compromise namely less space for the handling of the camera and for positioning the function command dials and buttons. To counteract that fact you can add an optional grip if this solution seem to improve your own handling of the camera.

A clean design that recall classic SLR film camera

Interesting points:

Speaking about the viewing option, working with the EVF give a nice representation of your final picture result even when you are wearing glasses like me. For myself I prefer to shut down the automatic brightness adjustment and manually set it. The automatic horizontal/vertical swift of the viewfinder indications is a nice touch too. The LCD back screen tilt able is also very handy to use as a waist level viewfinder or for tripod or tabletop work. Lastly on the EVF subject I must mention the very interest EVF switch-off option that will help to save your battery duration as for the nice automatic switch-on LCD screen option when you are reviewing your taken pictures (As I have firstly discover with the Fujifilm X-30 model).

The access to a distinctive shutter speed and exposure compensation dials are a very fine photographic features as for the aperture ring present on the XF version of the Fujinon line of lenses. Separate Automatic Exposure and Focusing Locking direct buttons are another fine touch for the user. The Quick menu is also a faster way to reach critical exposure adjustment without extendedly searching in the full menu.

Since the Fujifilm X-T10 is a simpler camera, it lacks some of the direct function buttons present with the others more advanced Fuji APS-C. This is partially compensated by clever use of the two front and rear command dials of the camera. I recommend you to consult a tutorial on how to handle the model such as the YouTube Fuji Guys.

To Be Improve Features:

There is no perfect camera in this world or should I say every model got its own personality. I definitively dislike the location of the Review and Trash buttons on the left side of the body. If you are a kind of one-right hand main user for holding and operating the camera, these particular buttons locations prove to be annoying and is asking you a less efficient procedure for reviewing your last results. The lack of signalisation for the functions buttons located around the Menu/OK button will also ask you to assimilate their respective value.

On-Board Flash.

The Fujifilm X-T10 is equipped with an in-board tiny flash that represent a nice fill-in flash option that can be used as an accent light. I must add that finding in the deepest of the menu the power flash output fine-tuning represent a challenge. Fuji designers have rightly maintain the flash hot shoe that allow us the addition of an external flash with more output, more flexibility and better height.

The Fujinon XC 16-50mm OIS II: a typical urban lens.

The Fujinon XC 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OIS II Lens combine offer is a departure from the usual one of the XF 18-55mm lens with the other X-Series ILC cameras with viewfinder. The interest point of this XC 16-50 is mainly its 16mm focal length setting that gives a real wide angle of view compared with the 23mm, 27mm and 18-55mm lenses options. At 16mm the larger angle of view facilitate the creation of more contextual picture with close foreground subjects. For street photography this lens can be very creative. On the other end (50mm) of the XC zoom lens the telephoto option stay modest with a smaller maximum aperture  of F5.6 that prevent more shallow deep of field for portrait. In that case you may select one of the prime focal fix Fujifilm XF lenses with maximum aperture of F2.0 or F2.4 at least .

The Fujifilm Film Rendering Master Ability:

Every time I have returned using Fujifilm cameras after trying other maker models I always noticed how the Fujifilm image rendering is an always-pleasing experience. Because I am working mainly in JPEG format file I appreciate a camera maker that give us directly usable results at a professional level.

When I have started with digital camera I was amazed by the inability of many camera makers to produce repetitive image results. Posts processing of the time have been developed with a graphic technical bias that prevent photographer to correctly translate the traditional notions of imagery. Yes that language gap between photographers and software producers has been narrowed with time but more than that the camera makers like Fujifilm are now offering products adapted to photographs and with in-board post-processing very competent at the start.

There is something special with Fujifilm products because photographic technicians specialized in image rendering design them. And it shows I can testify. In fact Fujifilm is the digital successor of the Leica tradition of quality imagery.

Black and White is alive and well:

If you like B&W (Black and White) photography, you will be delighted with all the Fuji X-Series products. Their B&W rendering are simply rich and wonderful. If you process afterword your Fuji color picture in B&W you will get similar results without problems. But the ability to directly see your B&W rendering into your EVF/LCD screen is awesome. I think that products like Fujifilm X-series is recreating B&W popularity among photographs and the great public.

On the Fujifilm X-T10 you have the possibility to fine tune your B&W rendering by using the filter option that will increase contrast in discriminating certain colors/grey tones.

To conclude I would say that the Fujifilm X-T10 is the best entry option to the Fuji X-Series ILC camera without any image quality compromise.

Have you finish? Let’s take a nap!

Photo Basic Instincts

What is the best camera for you? For sure the camera you bring with you and take pictures with it!

It may be common sense to bring a camera with you and to take pictures but it is not by far always true when you are observing all the so-called photographers. Many love to play and pretend to be great photo artist and like to flash with expensive pieces of equipment. That last two or three-decade tendency had flourished around the world at a point that real “day-to-day” photographers seems to be an animal in process of extinction with the exception multi-phone snap shooters mostly self shooters.

Urban Sky Scape

Cameras are nice media expression tools and as a tool intended to be used on the main purpose of taking pictures. And take pictures must have some kind of purpose by itself (to look at them, to show them, to share them, etc.) So it bring us back to a debate not on to select or use a camera but when you will use it except for showing to the other fellows (camera shops, clubs, schools are good for that!).

No technically perfect but perfect expression!

Good habits

Learning to interact with your camera will help you a lot to mastermind the medium and will become a second nature to do photography. Take time to play with your tool, to try the functionalities and to discover the full potential of it and there is a lot in it. Go see some “users” reviews that are presenting interesting results obtained during photo sessions. Keep your camera “on sigh” and it will be easy to fulfil most of your photo temptations. Take pictures of your surrounding to find angles, moments, compositions, or exposures that will reinvent the interpretation of your day-to-day world.

Digital is cheap

Yes digital photography is very cheap even if you want to get first class equipment. You just have to watch and wait for the best opportunities to buy products (see my other article about this: http://photodanielm.blogspot.ca/2015/11/over-paying-for-novelties-or-sub-paying.html )

You can take all the pictures you want and keep them first on your memory card. For editing your computer or tablet will work perfectly. On a regular base you can duplicate your photo files to an external hard disk for future references. But remember the real pictures that are lasting are the one that are still shared and all the others are past and forgotten memories.

Museum are very special space to experiment

Experiment yes but better Persist

You have to experiment to find your own way of photo expression. It is true at first but you must also persist in your search to explore and refine the interpretation of your subject. Get a fine shot at first glance is lucky but it is very difficult to repeat this everyday and everywhere. You must understand in your way how you can reproduce the process of doing the pictures that are pleasing to you and your public. So take pictures, take pictures and retake pictures, again and again.

Edit a presentation and share it

B&W add a lot by graphic expression

So you have a lot of provoking pictures. What is the next step? The next basic step is to encourage yourself to do more photography and as humans we need human reconnaissance. To get that the only way is to present and share your pictures with others. Put pictures on your walls, share over social media, open a Web account, create your own blog, and share your experiences with forum, other blogs and public photo files. Get reactions from others that will motivate you to follow your own path in accordance or not with the public eyes.

And don’t forget that you are a kind of unique person that cannot please to everybody.

Be ready, be interest and press the shutter!

Explore the medium, the subject, the mood

Photography is a medium among other forms of expression. The great artistic representations are the one that the subject transcends the medium. By seeing a picture you trigger a psychological process that will initiate a minded personal quest. So you have to consider things or subjects over the photograph by itself. It is asking a more fundamental task regarding the purpose of doing photography or other forms of expression.

find your own way, explore, repeat, share...

and more important have fun!

The Twin project

Only a vision of twin duality of time and thinks...