July 2009: Canon Rebel T1i

A few weeks ago I gave in to my desire to buy a digital camera and went with the best camera for my budget. I bought a Canon EOS Rebel T1i. Now, before anyone says "A Rebel? That's for beginners!!" I guess I should first explain my criteria.

I wanted to wait for the price to go down on full framed, film comparable sensors. (For explanation read the second paragraph down here.) But my finger was twitching to take photos and my pocket book was hurting from film costs and development costs. So I needed a camera priced low enough to buy the body and two lenses (28mm-55mm & 70mm-300mm) for under $1000. Unfortunately the Nikon D3x was out of my range. I knew I wanted Nikon or Canon as they are the leaders in quality DSLRs for low prices currently. Aside from the price, overall quality, and (as close as I can get to a) full-framed sensor, there were a few other things I wanted in my camera.

I was spoiled by my Fuji Velvia E6 film and my two manual Canon SLRs. I had beautiful colors that worked wonders on my nature photography. In order to compensate for this film I needed a camera that could go down to at least ISO 100. I also looking for a camera that could function close to a manual Canon camera like the Canon AE-1 Program. With this camera, and my T-90, I could completely adjust my zoom, aperture, and shutter speed but also place the camera on auto to do the work for me (except zoom). After looking through all of my choices I went with the Canon T1i Rebel.

The T1i is a nice camera for a DSLR consumer level camera. Yes, it isn't as nice as a Mark II or 3x, but it will do the job. The sensor is fairly large and is 37% smaller than a film sensor and reads a good amount of information at 15.1MP (effective). The camera can also emulate 100 ISO film. I found that with a little bit of practice I can manipulate the camera into acting very similar to my film cameras. I can use a manual zoom by flipping a switch on the lens. There is also a mode called CA, which allows me to play with exposure settings. I'm not going to touch the auto settings they give you like portrait or landscape. Their settings make the colors appear unreal and I can't change anything on the preset settings. But I will use the CA setting which allows me to get the exposure I want without too much fuss. The true manual setting will be hard to get used to as I havn't figured out how to utilize the light meter while in this setting, so for now the CA setting is as manual as I will get. (Read Adorama's new review for more info)

With the RAW + JPG format I will be able to fix any colors the camera does not correctly represent with its preset settings given in CA mode. So I should be able to get around fairly well, concerning the lack of film. Nothing compares to the colors you get from the chemical reactions on different types of film from light. Thank goodness for Corel Photo Paint or Photo Shop.

As I play around with the camera and finish reading the manual (I'm at page 74) I'll post more photos. For now here is an example of Landscape mode, but using the RAW version because the JPG had unnatural coloring. Maybe I'll post an example later...

Deepwood Mansion

This week I found myself and a friend's digital camera out in the unstable weather that Friday brought to Salem. The brewing storm clouds and intermittent sunshine made for some nice black and white photos of Deepwood Mansion.
© Lisa Miller-Brousil 2009 All rights reserved www.obsidianphotography.com

June 2009: Film or Digital, That Is The Question

Slowly, but surely, my small camera and lens collection is becoming something that would be a nice edition to the Smithsonian. My Canon AE-1, what was once the camera of choice for all SLR beginners, is older than myself and my Canon T-90, the former choice of professionals for its tough exterior and tank like integrity, has been replaced by the digital age. In addition, film and film processing has become scarce and/or expensive, unless you own a darkroom.

I have a small budget for my photography. On average I run through 10 rolls of film every six months and have them processed in small groups at mom & pop photo stores. Recently, I have switched from Fuji Velvia slide film to Fuji Reala negatives due to the demise of reliable in-house A-6 processing. Soon, I may have difficulty finding reliable negative processing stores as well.

On my last trip to a photography store, which happened to be in Virginia, I was told I either needed to give in and buy digital or learn to process the film myself. The guy's reasoning was that digital is cheaper. In a sense it is, but first you need to jump an hypothetical 100-foot-high hurdle, the equipment price. To purchase the camera equivalent to my Canon T-90 set up, I would have to shell out around $5000 dollars or more. Yes, there are used options, but no option as of 2009 which has the film speed equivalent of Fuji Velvia 50 and the correct size of imaging senor to equal 35mm film. I won't even get into the issues of lens quality, non-manual focus and other capabilities.

Digital has its perks. Its so easy to pick up a camera, take 100 pictures, delete 80, plug in your camera, and upload your favorites to the web. I find I steal my family's point and shoots or cheaper SLRs more than I pick up my own cameras these days. Its sad really. But the reality is, if I pick up my camera I will suddenly have film that needs developed and scanned. The longer I wait to pick up my highly technical cameras, the more out of practice I become. The more out of practice I become and the harder it is to get a good picture out of a roll of film. I use more film to get a good picture and it costs me more to process. Its a downward sprial that I can never seem to stop.

So here I am, at an impasse. My last 6 rolls of film have not been website worthy and my best picture this year was taken with a 5MP Canon point and shoot. Do I take the plunge and rely upon the ever-changing digital techonology? Or do I keep waiting until affordable digital reaches the point where it is equal or superior to film?

It will be hard to leave the manual focus and hand crank. Film is a quickly dieing art form that I hate to see vanish. I know the chemicals are not friendly to the environment and digital is much "greener". Still, its difficult...

I am an artist. The film is my canvas, the sunlight my paint and with my 20+ year old Canons camera as my brushes I know how to make art. Is this how painters felt when plastics and acrylics moved in? Did they feel as if the world was against them? I will join the digital age eventually, but I will not forget my love for film.

May 2009: A Well Needed Intro

Hello all! As you can see there is not much on this blog. Before, the website was the main attraction, but now I would like this to be a monthly photography blog, that just happens to be attached to a photography website. For those of you who don't know me, I am very passionate about photography. I am an Oregon native (please excuse the first year of my life where I lived in south west Washington). My travels have taken me all over the US, as well as many gorgeous places in our own state.

Since photography is a hobby (right now) I have the challenge of balancing time, funds, and energy with the rest of my real life. I hope to write about topics pertaining to those of us serious hobbyists with limited time and money as well as photography topics I find intriguing. I hope to make new like minded friends and have some fun along the way. Please join me in this exciting journey.

I've finally joined the 21st century. Previously, my news and updates section was cumbersome to update, but now that I've added a real blog I can update more frequently. Next task is to add new photos. My last outing took me to Haystack Rock on the coast. It wasn't a beautiful day, but I feel I had a few good shots. I also took a digi point & shoot through the Salem Capitol Mall while the cherry trees were in full bloom. They were breathtakingly beautiful which only added to the sadness felt as the blossoms melted away last week. My shots can be found at my flickr page.

I just recently got married! I believe that is a great excuse for not updating for over a year, don't you? James and I were married in Aumsville Oregon, in the beautiful garden of a family friend. Pictures are posted on my Flickr account. James and I have gotten out a few times to take pictures in DC and Maryland, such as to the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Even with the erratic weather it was a site to see!
The MAILING LIST is still up and running so, click here to join!

Sorry about the wait! I have been toying with a new hosting service and learning the ropes to my web site. Yes, I had some help getting this thing up and updated, but now it is all me!! I have not gotten anything new scanned BUT! there are some shots that never made it to the web site that I feel are worthy to be shown. As I learn to manipulate the existing html you may see these never-before-seen shots appear. Virginia is full of awesome places to shoot. Yes, you hear me right. Virginia. I am slowly making my way to every coast in the nation (West, Great Lakes, and now the East). I will hopefully get out this summer, after we have adapted to East Coast living.
The MAILING LIST is still up and running so, click here to join!