Short night… BJ’s pizza, comedy club, home. The feature act was my favorite (over the headliner), but that is par for me at those joints. I have an early morning drive, so I’m off to bed. I’ll try to catch up mañana.
15mm f/2.8 EX Fisheye
Snapped this on the bayou on the way home from a nacho feast at Armadillo Palace… home of the best nachos I’ve found… ever. Looks like I made it home just before the skies greyed and the rain returned. Another hour and a half of work and the weekend is officially here. Yay!
Barrett’s birthday dinner yesterday was thwarted by the intense rain. He called around and let people know it was rescheduled for next Wednesday. I wasn’t feeling well anyway, so it looked like everything was working out toward a nice evening at home with early sleep. Right. So, I’m finishing the work day and I get an IM from Jennifer (Barrett’s bride-to-be) about sneaking into town and surprising him at dinner. Even though it wasn’t “the” dinner with his whole family, she was taking him out somewhere close to their place for his birthday. Of course I said yes… and because I have a big ‘ole truck, I offered to ferry our mutual friend Georgia as well should she want in on the surprise. That’s how it started, but it ended up being everyone that was going to the original dinner sans grandfather. For an inpromtu surprise dinner, it was a smashing success. There were mariachis, sombreros, and margaritas galore. I’m sure there will be evidence photos turning up somewhere. I even received a very cool b-day gift last night too. Georgia had a star named “Sir Henry” for me and gave me all the charts/starmaps and certificate last night. I’m certain Henry would be much more interested if it were in the “cookie constellation”, but I thought it was super cool.
Guy Forsyth was playing at The Mucky Duck last night. I didn’t go due to the dinner conflict, but I love seeing him perform at that venue. I’ve stated it several times before, but it’s one of my favorite pubs in Houston. I did lose a couple of cool points however, when I found out they used one of my photos without permission on their live music calendar this month. This one actually:
I ran some really quick lens tests before heading out last night and I’m pretty sure at this point that the IR hotspot issue only manifests during long exposures. I took 3 lenses reportedly “bad” for infrared due to the center spot phenomenon and tried them on the converted body. You be the judge.
EF 50mm f/1.4
EF 85mm f/1.2L
EF 200mm f/2.8L IS
I had a meeting downtown yesterday morning, so I dropped my truck off at the dealer and asked them to look into why my back window would no longer roll down. I can hear a faint click as if the motor is trying to engage when I depress the button, but it just doesn’t work. They proceed to tell me it will be $91.00 for them to look at it… that is their “check out” fee… you know, to check stuff out. /sigh It’s highway robbery, but whatever. I need to get it done. Mid-day, they call me to let me know I need a new motor and the part plus labor was $586.00. Fucking hell! I’m already into for almost a hundred bucks so I tell them to go ahead and do it if they can have it done by five pee emm. At four o’clock they ring me back to tell me that they quoted me the wrong part and that the correct part was not only out of stock, but a couple hundred dollars more. They could have it there in the morning, but the total was now just shy of $800. I’m mildly frustrated at this ridiculousness. I tell them I need the truck back for the evening and I’d just plan on bringing it in another time. I wasn’t happy about losing the $91.00, but at least I know what is needed, right? Riiiiight. So then, just before I hang up… after I’ve decline continuing down the path of replacing the motor (because they said it needed to be replaced)… the guy says, “Well, it’s working now. Our service guy beat on it a little when he was checking it out and it started working… been working since. Maybe it will stay working.” Sonofabitch. He was leading me down the $800 service path knowing full well that the issue was corrected. I don’t care if it isn’t permanent, he has a duty to not withhold information like that from customers. I am completely at his mercy being the “expert” and leveraging that position inappropriately is just… unacceptable.
Anyhoo, I am out of caffeine. I am going to run down to the store and get some coffee. I think the day will be a lot more pleasant when that happens.
I guess this is where I post my test results and everyone is happy. Ooooooor, this is where I fuck off and go to bed piss drunk after a night of trying like hell to impart my extensive self experience on those still on the journey only to find my words falling on deaf ears. Nothing changes really… ever. I am going to bed. I’m tired… amongst other things, but we’ll just leave it at that to keep this blog rated fucking ARRRGH.
Piss off.
When shooting digital IR, certain lenses produce a “hot spot” in the center of the frame. For a long time I thought this was solely due to the lens elements and had no relevance to the type of camera. Recently, I read an article that supposed the hotspot was due to some reflectance between the sensor surface and the lens element… which might be complete bullshit… but it got me thinking that the susceptibility of a lens/body combo to IR hotspotting might be directly related to exposure length. That being said, a “normal” hand holdable shutter speed (like obtained with a permanently converted body) might eliminate the hotspot effect… or at least make it so subtle it is a non-issue. I know for a fact the EF 50mm f/1.4 has a HUGE hot spot issue when IR exposed on my 1-series body with a Hoya R72 attached, so I’m going to try to shoot some test frames with it on my 5D to test this out and I’ll let you know how it goes. Here is “the list” again (I have only personally tested a couple of these… most are from Internet sources):
Suitable for IR (no or minimal hot spot):
Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5
Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L
Canon EF-S 17-85 f/4-5.6 IS USM
Canon EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L
Canon EF 28-135mm/3.5-5.6 IS
Canon EF 28mm f/2.8
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 MKI
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 MKII
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS
Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 IS
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4-5.6 L IS
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro
Canon EF 135mm f/2 L
Sigma 400mm f/5.6
Tamron 28-300mm XR
Not suitable for IR (hot spot):
Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 fisheye
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L
Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6
Canon EF 20mm f/2.8
Canon EF 20-35mm f/3.5-4.5 USM
Canon EF 24/2.8
Canon EF 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5
Canon EF 28-70mm f/2.8 L
Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5
Canon EF 35mm f/2
Canon EF 35-80mm f/4-5.6
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4
Canon EF 50mm f/2.5 Macro
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS
Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8
Sigma 30/1.4
Tamron 17-35mm
Tamron 19-35mm
Tamron 70-300mm Macro
Tokina 12-24mm
Police Constable Nicholas Angel: born and schooled in London, graduated Canterbury University in 1993 with a double first in Politics and Sociology. Attended Hendon College of Police Training and displayed great aptitude in field exercises, notably Urban Pacification and Riot Control. Academically excelled in theoretical course work and final year examinations. Received a Baton of Honour, graduated with distinction into the Metropolitan Police Service and quickly established an effectiveness and popularity within the community. Proceeded to improve skill base with courses in advanced driving and advanced cycling. He became heavily involved in a number of extra-vocational activities and to this day, he holds the Met record for the hundred meter dash. In 2001, he began active duty with the renowned SO19 Armed Response Unit and received a Bravery Award for efforts in the resolution of Operation Crackdown. In the last twelve months, he has received nine special commendations, achieved highest arrest record for any officer in the Met and sustained three injuries in the line of duty, most recently in December when wounded by a man dressed as Father Christmas.
Nappy headed ho. I need more sleep. So last night, I *finally* got to see Hot Fuzz. I hope Edgar and Simon put some effort into getting BluRays pressed because I’d like to add their stuff to my ever-so-small collection. I have to take my truck in for service this morning. I always hate doing that because it inevitably means money will flow from me to them for shit I didn’t even know what wrong. The primary reason for the visit is to fix the rear window motor. Anything that requires disassembly makes me uneasy at the service center. I wish I was less computer geek and more lumberjack. My head is hurting a wee bit this morning. I was trying a variation on the “Pom Bomb” and I usually don’t drink anything sweet. I have a low tolerance for sweets of any sort, but sweet drinks are especially hard. It’s ironic that I can drink neat scotch, bourbon, martinis, et al with no hangover issues, but throw in a sugary cocktail and I’ll be sporting a small cement demolition crew in my head the next morning. I plan on experimenting more with the IR cam this weekend and next. There is a trip to the Texas hill country coming up soon as well. Happy birthday, Barrett. All these August birthdays are starting to make me think turkey is a powerful aphrodisiac. “Hey lady, want a leftover turkey sandwich?” *ber chick wow wow* Heh. I fully expect condom commercials to run during the Thanksgiving Day parade. Be responsible and adopt a little Cambodian kid with tapeworms.
Yesterday sucked. I can’t even remember a time I was so completely alone and depressed on my birthday. Seriously.
So my birthday present to myself arrived today (a day late) and I had to run out in the yard and try it out. Henry was being a bitch about posing, but I finally got him to sit still for a second. You can see the disgust in his face. Basically, I love it… not my baby boy being disgusted, but the camera. I found this optics place out of the northeast that has a clean room operation and specialized in converting digital SLR’s into infrared-only bodies by surgically removing the IR cutback filter before the sensor and replacing it with a filter attenuating visible light, but letting IR through (somewhere around 715 nanometers or so). The result is the ability to shoot infrared handheld without the excruciating long exposures of traditional non-modified SLR bodies sporting a Hoya R72 or equivalent.
In other photo news, I was watering my plants this afternoon and found a gianormous spider in the eve at the corner of the house. I haven’t shot macro in a while and I’m definitely rusty.
nightmares and dreamscapes
Also, when I was in L.A. this weekend, I shot a dark alleyway off the side of Sean’s building to experiment with HDR processing. I’m on the fence. The more I look at it, the more I don’t like it. It has its place, but I prefer using it sparingly in natural shots rather than industrial (see 22P image for comparison in line).
Mmmmkay. I also (very, very quickly) pulled the walk-about-town shots off the CF card and have posted those below. Not typical for me, but it was just the mood I happened to be in that morning.
I have some practicing to do before I feel decent behind the camera again. I’ve been so tired recently… deeply. I can’t catch up. Anyhoo, I didn’t have anything to say. I just wanted to post that crap and go sit on the couch. Cheerio.
bedhead
Friday morning’s fresh outta bed walk around DT as seen through a polished standpipe control valve cover. It smelled urban and the air was filled with bugs. So, my Sunday started at Jason’s father’s home near the beach where he poured some of the most delicious bloody marys ever to cross my lips. He makes the mix fresh from scratch and won’t share the recipe, but I can tell you first hand that it r0x0rs. Jason and I did the Temescal Canyon loop afterwards. Man, do I need to get in shape. It was hot, dry, and brown, but the view was spectacular. Next, we headed up the PCH through Malibu towards Ann’s condo so I could shower. There is just no way I was flying home after that hike without some fresh clothes. One last stop at In-N-Out before LAX and I was off to H-Town. The flight was full and unusually warm. It felt so good to be home. I’m working today, so this will be short because I’m swamped… just wanted to say I was back and still breathing despite being a year older this morning. Toodles.
We ended up at Manpuku Tokyo BBQ in west LA for Sean’s birthday exstravaganza Friday night. Tim, Ben, and Jason all were there too. Everything was delicious barring the boba tea afterwards at the tapioca place next door. Saturday was a flurry. We started by meeting up at The Pantry for breakfast. I was intrigued by the line wrapping around the block of eager soon-to-be customers. Apparently, it opened back in 1924 and has never closed… ever. The idea of a diner being open 24/7/365 for the last 83 years is amazing to me. After gathering my things back at Sean’s loft downtown, Jason and I headed to Torrence for a stop at his place before visiting the Marine Mammal Care Center at Fort MacArthur where his girlfriend, Ann, has been a long time volunteer in the care and rehabilitation of local seals and sea lions. Lots of adorable, but very sick, critters there… sad. She had an elephant seal to tend to, so Jason and I took off. We skipped through Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach… lots of very fit, pretty (and presumably well-to-do) people. There was one quick stop at the Redondo Beach Brewing Company, but we eventually met up with his dad and step-mom for drinks at Delzano’s off the Redondo Beach pier. Enjoying a mild summer afternoon stirring a tasty bloody mary while watching a sea lion play in the marina was a moment easy to get lost in, but we had to be at the Rose Bowl for the DCI world championships soon, so we tipped our hats and made our leave. We’re meeting them at their house to pick up where we left off later this morning. DCI was pretty good, but my mind was elsewhere. A bunch of Jason’s old friends were there (in scattered seating), so we decided to meet up at the Yard House in Pasadena for libations after the final performance. Sean drove down and joined us. I’m a little tired due to the time difference… going to bed later, waking sooner, yadda yadda… but overall, no worse for wear. Jason’s house is quiet this morning. Everyone is still fast asleep. I can’t wait to see my little babies at home tonight. More later…
“Walkin’ in LA… walking in LA… nobody walks in LA.”
My flight was delayed last night, but I made it in just fine. Jason snatched me up from LAX and we met Sean and Ben over at the Salt Creek Grille for some viddles. My favorite were the Kobe Sliders. Think White Castle, but made on fresh rolls with ground Kobe Beef, Humboldt Fog Cheese & Foie Gras Butter. They seriously kicked ass. Sean was out the door to work before I woke this morning, but I managed to fill my day walking around downtown Los Angeles with my camera. I didn’t bring a laptop or any way to process the RAW files, so I’ll have to develop them when I get home. Sean’s two baby kittens, Oreo and Tyler, are little hellions. We’ve been playing all afternoon. Sean’s new apartment is the bee’s knees. You know those warehouse lofts you see in the movies that are all open… high ceilings with exposed plumbing, vast concrete floor, windows down all the walls. That’s him. He has a corner loft in the old San Fernando building off Main. It is a photographer’s dream. He’s still getting settled in and a lot of stuff isn’t even unpacked yet. I had to unwrap the iron to flatten a shirt for tonight, so I’m going through and ironing all the shirts in his closet while I’m at it. I want to say happy birthday to Georgia… sorry I couldn’t be in town for your shin-dig. I must also, of course, say happy birthday to Sean! Big three six! That’s part of the reason I’m in LA this weekend. There will be birthday festivities tonight! I’m headed back to the ironing board. Ciao.
The problem with going out to play on a school night is that work is never far behind. I feel remarkably rested given the little sleep actually obtained. I have booked a second shoot in August, so between that and the trip to the hill country at the end of the month, I should at least have something to share. I reactivated my OMP account for professional contacts and have decided to use MySpace more for TFP bookings because is seems to a better conduit to amateurs. I’m still on the fence about whether I should take a camera to L.A. this weekend.
In other news, I just ordered a IR converted EOS 5D to use as a dedicated body for infrared photography. I’m sure I’ll be super excited when the sticker-shock subsides.
I bought a gigabit ethernet switch today for the home office to support file transfers, but despite the bigger pipe, Vista seems to blow at anything TCP/IP. Par for the course with Microsoft. I Google’d it and found several articles where techies would dual-boot into Linux for any file transfers across the network and then reboot into Vista after the deed was done. How fucked up is that?
Umm… I went out tonight. Tonight was “National Night Out” where you are supposed to go out and hang with your neighbors. I did. I met a lot of new people from my immediate section of Suburbia. They were all happy with 2.3 kids and a dog. It was nearly unbearable. I managed though… barely.
I ended up bailing and heading for a tall glass of liquor and a crowded social environment not made up of white-picket-fence-America. I met a lot of people… strangers. I talked to everyone about everything. I met a girl whose ex-boyfriend convinced her that he could pierce her hood. They drove to Walmart to buy needles together to do the job. He succeeded and she showed it all to me in a public crowded place. Vaginas are cool… no doubt about it. The whole thing (people too) was completely reality fucking TV worthy white trash. As an observer, I dig that shit. It’s like I went to an all American pep rally and a circus broke out… clowns and all. They served liquor at both. Several women scribbled their phone numbers down on napkins for me and I never showed interest or asked. It was like the good ‘ole days. I’ll never call any, but it doesn’t make me feel old and fat.
I’m going to bed.
I walked out of my office today to see this parked in front. My eyes are burning. Fortunately, I had my camera in tow so you get to share my pain. Barry and I grabbed some fish tacos at Berryhill for lunch. It was the only slow part of the day. I have no idea where all those other hours went.
Zoom.
lamb wrestling - march ‘76
I feel like the weekend was merely a blink of the eye. Where has it gone!? I miss my puppies. They are staying with grandma at the moment due to my travel schedule this week. I’m no hunter… in fact, I am against any form of hunting that is not for the sake of gaining food to eat. However, the same camo gear, blinds, stands, calls, etc. that hunters use to sneak around their kill happens to be the same gear photographers use to sneak around their subject. That being said, I went with Ed to the 2007 Hunter’s Extravaganza last evening at Reliant Park. It’s a big hunting show put on by the Texas Trophy Hunters Association. All I can say is… wow. It was the largest bunch of “good ‘ole boys” I’ve seen in a while. Afterwards, we went for dinner and drinks and ended up finding trouble. Later, I drove Ed back home because he had one too many and from the looks of my wallet this morning, I had something to do with that so my couch was the least I could offer. It’s the second time in a few weeks that someone has crashed on the couch for the same reason. Hmmm. Better to be safe… that’s what I say. The weather is sunny and dry today. I was thinking of heading out for a shoot or maybe going for a daytrip on the bike, but I’m feeling like a nap. Naps are a good thing.
I finally went to sleep around 3:00, but had to be up around 7:00 to head over to Miranda’s to drop her off at the airport for her Florida trip. I was doing some surfing while finishing my coffee back at the house and finally watched the Starcraft II cinematic trailer. It’s really well done. I loved Starcraft, so I hope it’s successor can fill the shoes. I’m happy with the way Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars kept the same look and feel with just more advance graphics and content, so hopefully Starcraft II will be a similar progression but not loose too much of that winning combination of gameplay that launched it’s namesake to the top. Just a year-ish after The Burning Crusade, Blizzard announced the second WoW expansion yesterday: Wrath of the Lich King. Along with the addition of Northrend to Azeroth, they are raising the level cap to 80, adding the first Hero Class character (Death Knight), and throwing in BC style profession, quest, ability, loot, etc. changes. I haven’t been playing much World of Warcraft these days. A lot of it has to do with work, but mostly it is due to focusing on other hobbies… like my desire to get back into shooting more regularly. Since my wildlife photography is largely dependant on the climate and landscapes require me to book travel, those areas of my portfolio refresh will likely be more slow going. I will probably revert to more time in the studio in the mean time to get my chops back up… portraits, fashion, glamour, product, etc. I’m so rusty. I remember a time when I could pick up my camera body and it felt like an extension of my arm. Manipulating settings to set up the shot was second nature and sometimes I didn’t even think about it. I’m far from that today. I just need to start spending more time behind the lens. I have a shoot with April 2006 Playboy Playmate, Holley Dorrough, later this month. I’ll be sure and share some photos for your critique. I’m also going to the Texas hill country to photograph deer in three weeks on a high fenced ranch… white tail, black buck, axis, sika, etc. Weather permitting, I should get some decent stuff on that trip. Back on the gaming front for a moment, you should really check out EVE Online. It’s not for everyone, but I like it. Sean calls it “a damn spreadsheet with a GUI” and I’ll admit it is very geeky and extremely complex, but that adds to the potential for gameplay imho. There is sufficient PvP and non-PvP content to cater to various playstyles and it is well developed and maintained. I think it is a hidden gem in MMO’s. Another draw for me is how it is completely different than most MMORPG’s out there today by being completely strategy Sci-Fi based versus hack and slash Fantasy based. Anyhoo, I’m out of coffee. Ciao.
