Author Archives: tyson robichaud photography

*Expert Shield, all your screens are belong to us!

by in General ramblings, Photography gear | 2 Comments

expert shield

One very cool thing about writing a photo gear and tutorial blog is that I get asked to review cool products. While perhaps not the most glamorous of topics, screen protection is one that can make a lot of practical sense. For a minimal investment, you can insure the longevity of your screens, protecting them from other things in your pockets, camera bags, backpacks, purses, etc. With newer technology, and seemingly everything with a screen at this point being touch capacitive, keeping screens clean and scratch free is harder than it’s ever been. Enter Expert Shield, the company aiming to provide the best screen protecters in the biz. C’mon in to find out more…

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*Alien Skin Exposure 5, the best keeps getting better.

by in Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Exposure 5

There are quite a few film emulation plugins to choose from.  Looking at the sheer multitude of cross processed filters or “film” replications on offer from different plugins can be daunting.  To me, the difference is in the details, and none does a better job in my opinion than Alien Skin’s Exposure has.  When choosing a plugin, the biggest and most important features lie mainly in interface, tools available and when discussing a film replication, the actual grain structure and implementation is key.  Like past Exposure releases, Exposure 5 gives you a full library of Black and White as well as Color film filters.  Many plugins emulate a similar result, but none has paid as much attention to detail, grain reproduction and fidelity as Alien Skin Exposure 5 has, to my eye.  With Exposure 5, the new release adds a new user interface and some sweet new controls.  Read on for some of the details…

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*Olympus 75mm f/1.8 vs Canon 135 f/2 L

by in Photography gear and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 40 Comments

the showdown

***I’m selling off some gear, the killer Olympus 75mm f/1.8 lens is up for sale HERE***

One of my absolute all time favorite lenses has been my EF 135mm f/2 L USM.  Before I’d acquired this lens, I was looking for a mid range tele lens that I could use for portrait work as well as use for events, sports, etc.  The 135L a few years back cost me exactly as much as the Oly 75mm f/1.8 does today.  Yes, the Oly uses much less in the way of materials, far less glass, and is actually a 75mm lens, not a 135mm (or 150mm to be more accurate) lens, but, for the Micro 4/3 format, it is as close to that magical piece of glass that the 135L is for the Canon system.  Both are metal, neither are weather sealed and they’re each their own system’s mid-tele master.  Even with the extra glass, the 135L is a noticeably faster focuser (I’d assume largely due to the USM focusing motor and a superior PDAF in the EOS DSLR’s) but as to the quality of the actual images…

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*How to shoot HDR Composite imagery with people

by in HDR 101, Lighting tutorials, Photography tutorials, Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

indbeautyhdr

Sure, we’ve all seen the images that have been run through an HDR-like tonemapping, contrast increasing filter, making the grungy, saturated and contrasty images we’ve all come to accept as HDR, or at least, HDR-like shots.  While the “HDR” look can bring about photographic debates bordering on political or religious polarity, there is a way to actually capture and process the actual dynamic range of a scene, not just try and make it look like a processed, HDR image.  If you’re not a fan of HDR, by all means, feel free to ignore this post, but to and for me HDR can be a very useful tool, and one that, in this particular situation can help stretch a limited budget by being able to get a good range of exposure for a dynamically diverse scene without tons of lighting.  Now, the trick here when wanting to do this with human subjects is that you’re needing to take multiple frames at differing exposure values, which means, in short, a person or people would need to stay statue still to make it work, right?  Not so.  C’mon in and I’ll show you how to get around this unfortunate challenge…

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*Brand New Topaz Clarity Announced, discounted until the end of the month!

by in Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

IMG_6634

Just announced, and available HERE, (use code “claritynew” for a 40% discount!) Topaz Clarity is a new plugin that helps further define detail in your images. I’ve been playing around with the Beta version for a while and just got my hands on the full plugin last night. I can say that it is going to become part of my workflow, especially for landscape and interior work. Read on for examples and more details on this new, cool, affordable plugin…

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*My, how the mighty (prices) have fallen. The GX1, best bang for the buck?

by in General ramblings, Photography gear, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

GX1 on sale!

I’m sure there are new cameras on the horizon.  With every camera manufacturer pumping a few new bells and whistles into newer body styles and wrapping it around warmed over sensor tech, those among us who play the patient opportunists really benefit.  I held off on the GX1 when it was released and opted for the G3 when upgrading from my GF1.  I gained the beautiful EVF, and at the time saved about $500 (when looking at the GX1 + add on EVF).  I’ve since been running a two camera setup (much as I do with my full frame work setup) as it allows me to always have a backup as well as be able to eliminate much in the way of lens changes.  Because I use the Olympus OM-D E-M5 as well, and I’ve recently traded my G3 to my brother in law for favors yet to be determined, I felt I could justify a compact body, sans EVF again.  Enter the GX1 which is now down to only $250 just about everywhere!  (it’s available at B&H – CLICK HERE – with 2% reward and free shipping).  C’mon in to see a couple shots of and with the GX1…

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*Moving upward and onward!

by in General ramblings, Photography gear, Photography tutorials, Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment
backyard shenanigans

don’t worry, there were no kids harmed during the photoshopping of this image.

Hello everyone!  You may have noticed that I’m quietly adding content to the site.  This is being done to try and make a more complete resource for those visiting the site to reference specific tutorial articles or find gear reviews, etc.  The biggest changes are the new “Tutorial” “Review” and “MyGear” pages up at the top of the page.  I will be trying to catalog the more popular tutorials and reviews for easy reference, and the new gear page has allowed me to link certain cameras, lenses and miscellaneous gear that I use to my affiliate links at B&H.  Yup, you read that right.  I’ve finally succumbed to the monetary necessity of trying to make a little coin to keep the site going.  Read on for my reasoning and ever cheesy gratitude…

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*Happy Mother’s Day!

by in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

mothers day

 

As I’m sure many of us are aware, being a parent is a lot of work.  Joyful work much of the time, but work nonetheless.  Today is a day to celebrate, remember, cherish and love all those ladies who brought us into this world.  Mom, I love ya.  To Mrs Squeeze, you continue to amaze me.  Thank you for all that you do and for the two bundles of pure energetic, chaotic and undying love you have brought into our world.  I love you.

 

Happy Mother’s day to all the moms out there.

 

All the best,

tyson

*Dear Adobe, what in the world are you thinking?

by in Uncategorized | 10 Comments

Seriously?

The web is abuzz with condemnation of Adobe’s choice to force users to subscribe to a monthly cloud based service with its newest upgrades which sees the long standing Creative Suite at the end of its life. No longer will you as a consumer be able to choose to purchase upgrades based on features, but rather you’ll pay for whatever upgrades Adobe chooses to include (or doesn’t). I’ve yet to find one person that is actually excited by this move. Sure, some have listed the potential merits of a monthly charge, but none that I’ve found have come out and said, this is by far the better way to offer software and service. Is there someone out there that feels a solely cloud based solution is the best option? If so, I can’t help but feel you’re not only in the minority, but you’re on a crazy little Adobe island with the few that felt this was the best business move. A few more thoughts after the jump…

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