Slight Update to the Sony A7r Review

I added a few thoughts halfway down about the A7r vs. the A7II over on the Sony A7r Review. In short:

This is a tough question! I do have both, and I still use the A7r for most of my landscape shots because of the 36 megapixel to 24 megapixel advantage. If you’re shooting on a tripod, like I often do, then you’re better off with the A7r, I think. The A7ii REALLY shines with handheld shots because of the stabilization, and that is when I often switch to the A7ii.

Having said that, if it is the stark middle of the day and quite bright, I don’t think image stabilization gets you anything because your shutter speed will be so fast anyway. I think the A7ii is best for medium and low-light situations when handheld camera-shake becomes an issue. But then, you see, we have yet another variable in the equation, the A7s, which is undoubtedly better than the A7ii in low-light situations. But that drops us down to 12 megapixels. Anyway, there’s almost too many variables to consider for any waking mind.

Two passports

I’m looking forward to getting my New Zealand passport in a few years! I find that going some places with a US Passport can be a bit problematic. Not everyone seems to be the USA’s #1 fan, so I’ll probably use the NZ passport in those spot

Daily Photo – Stuck In Customs in Botswana

Yes, I was actually Stuck In Customs once again! I was not allowed to fly from Maun, Botswana to Cape Town, South Africa because they said I needed a full blank page in my passport! What a mess. I did have room for 5 more stamps, but just not on the same page. This woman was a real stickler! It really harshed my mellow.

So that meant I had to fly to Gaborone to go to the US Embassy. While at the Embassy, there was a huge alarm that went off and everything got locked down! I had just gotten my extra pages sewn into my passport, and I was quickly escorted out. My driver was out there, but he was illegally parked by this huge barricade and security was all around him, making things very crazy! I think he could have been the one to set off the alarm! Anyway, I got in the car and told him to get the hell out of there… what a mess. We went straight to the airport, and then I took this photo.

Stuck In Customs in Botswana

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-10-05 01:04:03
• CameraILCE-7S
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/4000
• Aperture
• ISO100
• Focal Length
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramProgram AE
• Exposure Bias

Street Shooting Tip

It’s very hard to shoot on the street when things are moving at f/1.4 if you are doing manual focus. So, one thing I try to do is stay up at f/2 or f/2.8 because you have a bit more margin for error on the focus. But, if you are a fixed distance away from your subject (like when I was following the gentleman below), you can go ahead and open it up as high as it wide as it will go and take your time. Not all street photography has to be rushed.

Daily Photo – Little Streets in by the Li River in China

I was mostly down in this area to try to find good vantage points on the river. But when you go along the river, you pass through tiny town after tiny town. I was on foot most of the time, so I would just try to feel my way from one side of the town over to the other side. I felt like a rat going through a maze trying to find some cheese! Anyway, while getting all turned around and going through the tiny streets, I got behind this old-timer here… I set my focus manually and just walked behind him at f/1.4.

Little Streets in by the Li River in China

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-06-03 13:18:17
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/1500
• Aperture
• ISO500
• Focal Length
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramShutter speed priority AE
• Exposure Bias

City Shooting Tip

The default compositional style when shooting cities from up high is to do the basic wide-angle landscape orientation. But I’ve been trying more and more to remember to go into portrait mode and zoom in a bit. Like this photo below, for example, was taken in this orientation at at 70mm.

Daily Photo – Exploring Tokyo Tower

The first time I saw this tower in Tokyo I did not like it. I thought it felt a little ugly, or maybe like a cheap version of the Eiffel Tower, but it has really grown on me. Especially at night. I really like the look of its starkness and warm shape against the blueness of the rest of the city.

Exploring Tokyo Tower

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-03-19 22:13:13
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time3
• Aperture5.6
• ISO100
• Focal Length70.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias

Low F-Stops on Star Shots

Veterans already know this, so you guys can just skip over this part! But if you’re just starting to get into star photography, one of the most important things is having a low f-stop on your lens. This means a LOT of light can get in over the exposure. For example, this was taken at f/1.4. The downside to this is that these lenses often tend to be much more expensive! But, then again, you can end up with shots like this one below! 🙂

Daily Photo – The Milky Way over Milford Sound

My friend Cliff and I stayed out late one night in Milford Sound to see the Milky Way. We were not disappointed! Sometimes it gets pretty cloudy over here, and there was just one night, so we were hoping that karma paid off, and it did!

The Milky Way over Milford Sound

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-08-15 23:48:56
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time25
• Aperture
• ISO16000
• Focal Length
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramManual
• Exposure Bias

Save 35% on all Presets, Tutorials* and eBooks

This Black Friday sales begins NOW and ends on Monday, December 1st

All the cool kids are holding Black Friday sales so we thought we would join the fun! Stop by the Stuck in Customs store and save 35% on all Presets, Tutorials* and eBooks! No coupon code is required. We have a variety of different tools and learning resources perfect for any skill level, from amateurs to professionals. See you there!

Hey what’s up with asterisk on the Tutorials? Well we JUST launched a brand new Textures tutorial a few days ago. We priced the tutorial and the 170 high-res texture pack at a super low rate already so we decided to keep them out of this Black Friday sale.

Use the code BlackFridayPrints to save 40% on all Prints

This Black Friday sales begins NOW and ends on Monday, December 1st

The Prints will make perfect gifts for friends, family or even yourself! You can view my entire portfolio over on SmugMug. Click on an image you like from the Portfolio section and then click on the green BUY PHOTOS button just above the image. The prices displayed will be the standard price. You can enter the Coupon Code “BlackFridayPrints” during the check out process to save 40%! Act now because this special 40% discount ends on December 1, 2014.

You can also save 35% on ALL eBooks over at Flatbooks.com

Head on over to Flatbooks.com for a HUGE collection of amazing eBooks from many different authors. The 35% discount will be applied upon checkout. You gotta hurry though! This sale ends on December 1st.

Additional Sales from our Friends

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Portrait Orientation and Composition

There is a rule that is sometimes okay to break that you should not put the subject in the middle of your composition. Well, when you switch into Portrait-orientation, all those rules go right out the window! You’re fully allowed to plop things (like the tree below!) right plum in the middle of the frame.

Daily Photo – A Quiver Tree Stands Alone

These trees are unlike any other tree I’ve ever seen! They are spread all around many desert-y areas of Namibia, and they are often quite spread out from one another. Each one has a totally unique shape, and you’ll never see one that will be mistaken for another one. I’ve never seen individual trees that can look so unalike their neighbors… I’ll post more of these in coming weeks and you’ll see what I mean!

A Quiver Tree Stands Alone

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-09-21 05:53:34
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/5
• Aperture8
• ISO125
• Focal Length17.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-1

EXIF Info

Remember, there are two ways to see the EXIF info for each of my shots. You can hover the mouse over and see them, or if you click through to SmugMug, you can click on the little “i” and see this information! BTW, I don’t even know what some of that means… like “Brightness -24026/256”??? Maybe one of you smarties can tell me what that means!

Camera SONY ILCE-7R (Sony A7r)
ISO 800
Exposure Time 25s (25/1)
Name The Bungalows at Night.jpg
Size 7837 x 5884
Date Taken 2014-06-29 19:55:35
Date Modified 2014-07-04 08:47:18

File Size 23.88 MB
Flash flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
Metering pattern
Exposure Program manual
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Exposure Mode manual
Light Source unknown
White Balance auto
Digital Zoom 1.0x
Contrast 0
Saturation 0
Sharpness 0
Color Space sRGB
Brightness -24026/256

Daily Photo – Another Night in Bora Bora

Was every night in Bora Bora this pretty, or just the ones where I took photos? It was EVERY NIGHT! It was so pretty every night, how could you NOT go out and take photos? With that mountain and the amazing architecture over the water… it was so awesome and a real treat to be here.

Another Night in Bora Bora

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-06-29 19:55:35
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time25
• Aperture
• ISO800
• Focal Length
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramManual
• Exposure Bias

Five Days of New Tips/Tricks Videos on the Blog! Day Four!

Let me know if you have any questions… happy to answer!

This was shot inside the Beijing Planning Museum. This sounds like a boring place eh? But it’s not! You can see how I chose to compose this shot…

Processing like Cooking

I had a great time processing this photo. I had no idea what I was going to do with it and started with half an idea. I’m not sure I could ever process this photo exactly like this again… I try new stuff all the time. I was thinking that processing photos is a lot like cooking food in that you never get exactly the same dish twice. But maybe my processing is much more extreme than that! I dunno… anyway, perhaps it is an apt analogy.

Daily Photo – A Pair of Winter Trees

I don’t know what drew me to these trees! I was driving around with some friends and suddenly I pulled over and jumped over a fence to go to these trees. I’m sure my friends thought I was crazy! Maybe it’s because I’ve been looking for an interesting pair of trees by themselves for so long. Anyhoo, I was obviously super-happy to find these two!

A Pair of Winter Trees

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-08-10 14:18:30
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/1000
• Aperture8
• ISO100
• Focal Length13.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias

Sony A6000 Review!

Come see the new Sony A6000 Review! I’ll keep adding to it as the weeks and months go on, but I thought you might enjoy an early look! 🙂

Five Days of New Tips/Tricks Videos on the Blog! Day Three!

Let me know if you have any questions… happy to answer!

Here’s some behind-the-scenes from our recent autumn workshop! Don’t forget to check out the New Zealand Photo Adventure page to find out more about that upcoming event! It’s the only thing planned now for 2015… it’s gonna be another great one! 🙂

Daily Photo – Autumn Awesomeness in Queenstown

Even though I’ve been here three years now, I have only experienced one proper autumn! I travelled too much in previous years, so now I’m going to make a point to stay home more to be sure to get all these amazing colors. Amaze-maze I say! There is so much to explore and see and do around here in the Autumn. It’s just Spring now here, so I’ve got another five months or so to wait! But Spring and Summer ain’t so bad either!

Autumn Awesomeness in Queenstown

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-04-21 12:32:21
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/6000
• Aperture
• ISO100
• Focal Length
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias

Here’s a collection of behind-the-scenes videos from Morocco. I started at the Mausoleum of Mohammed V in Rabat them moved on to Fes when I was at Ryad Alaya (highly recommended – thanks Hassan!)

Using many different cameras!

I’ve been using a bunch of different Sony cameras lately! While in Africa, I used a Sony A7, A7r, A7s, and an A6000 (come see the new Sony A6000 Review!) Whenever I get some time, I’m gonna write up a few more reviews… they are all cool and interesting in their own way! I don’t want to make it over-complex, of course… Naturally, you can always check out the Camera Equipment page where I have recommendations.

Daily Photo – Approaching Aït Benhaddou

What an amazing spot this is! After spending about three weeks in Morocco, I finally approached this incredible fortified city. It is right in the middle of a caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakech, which is the same route I was on! This place is mostly abandoned, but there are still eight families that live on the inside…

There have been many famous movies made here including The Last Temptation of Christ, Kundun, The Mummy, Gladiator, and The Prince of Persia. There were even a few scenes from Game of Thrones shot here!

Approaching Aït Benhaddou

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2014-03-11 00:34:33
• CameraILCE-7R
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/3000
• Aperture5.6
• ISO400
• Focal Length300.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias