A Picture's Worth

The stability of the camera is one of the perennial problems experienced by both filmmakers, photographers and videographers. A video or film that has a shaky picture will undoubtedly disorient and confuse audiences who are viewing them. That is why videographers, photographers and filmmakers look for ways to maintain the steadiness of their DSLRs while taking photographs and videos. And while this problem can be easily addressed with the help of a tripod, an entirely different solution will be needed in the case of a moving subject. Thankfully, using a DSLR shoulder rig will do just the trick and will allow their cameras to remain stable even while they are capturing moving subjects.

As its name suggests, the shoulder rig for DSLRs are mounted on a person’s shoulder or their chest by using several straps. These straps that keep the unit close to the person’s body will prevent it from shaking even as the person handling it moves to capture the moving subject.

These shoulder mounts also have front handles that allows the videographer or filmmaker to see the monitor of the DLSR even when it is strapped to them. This will allow them to see their progress and keep track of how their video would appear on the screen. By using the shoulder rig, people can now take videos of moving subjects such as moving animals, people talking while walking down a street, and even fast subjects like moving cars.

But aside from providing stability for the camera, another way that people can use the shoulder rig will be to mount it on the shoulder of the subject himself or herself, and take a video from the perspective of the subject. This is an experimental technique that is especially used by filmmakers and videographers when making music videos and films.

It is no secret that most of the accessories for DSLRs are expensive, and the shoulder rig is no exception as it can normally costs people hundreds of dollars. Most shoulder rigs are priced at $200 and above. Shoulder rigs for DSLRs can be bought from either physical stores or through several websites on the internet that are in the business of selling accessories for cameras.

However, people who wish to save money from purchasing a shoulder rig for their digital camera have the option of building one for themselves, which can be done using materials that can be bought from hardware stores. These do-it-yourself shoulder rigs are tricky to construct although the materials that will be used to build them cost only about $20-25, which means that people will potentially save hundreds of dollars of they successfully build their own rigs for their DSLR.

For filmmakers and videographers who want their videos to be stable and clear, purchasing or making their own DSLR shoulder rig will certainly do the trick and ensure that the videos that they will produce will be clearly viewed and understood by their audiences.

Written by Iain D

Lanparte is a Hong Kong based technology company. Their primary focus of production is products related to photography. They are aimed at providing quality products at affordable prices. Among their most famous products are DSLR accessories and rigs. They also have sliders and equipment for stabilization.

At present, the company is focusing on developing their current products like the slider, aiming to produce a computerized version of the slider. They are currently the leader in supplying camera accessories. Their products are made of high quality materials and are processed with excellent technology. They have also been noted for supplying parts for helicopters and race cars. Over their years of experience, they have proven themselves to be leaders in this area of industry.

This Hong Kong company is also known for rendering good quality customer service. They can provide their customers with exactly what they need. They can also turn customers’ comments and suggestions into concrete products. Furthermore, they give excellent support to their loyal consumers. The company also ensures not only good quality services but excellent products as well.

There is a wide variety of Lanparte products. One of the most common products is the portable battery for cameras. It comes with 4 pieces of original battery. Photography can now be effortless because you can bring your portable battery anywhere. Aside from that, they also have rod clamps, which are helpful in raising your camera to higher levels.

The company also sells baseplates. With the use of baseplates, you can adjust your camera’s height. Furthermore, the company is not only concerned about how you get your pictures taken but they are also concerned about the safety of your camera. That’s why they also produced a safety case. It is waterproof to protect your camera from all sorts of calamities.

To be able to maneuver your camera better, the company can also provide you a camera handle. It is also made from excellent quality materials. This accessory provides cameras with stability. Aside from those, they also have a matte box for better lighting effects and filter. The materials used in the matte box are durable.

Shoulder mount rigs can also be purchased from this company. Their shoulder mount rigs come with a follow focus. They also have accessories for better grip such as the universal grip. And aside from a follow focus kit, this grip also comes with a shoulder pad.

This isn’t all that Lanparte offer, but rest assured, that which they do sell is quality gear.

Written by Iain D

A DSLR Matte Box is among a photographer’s best friends. It is a device attached to the lens to decrease the entry of light. This reduces the glare, functioning like a shade. A matte box also acts as filter for the lens, functioning like a shield. So basically, it is like a shade and shield for the lens.

But as a photographer, do you really need a matte box? To get a better answer to this question, let’s go into the details of the uses and advantages of a matte box. Being a shade, a matte box prevents too much light from every angle. If, for example, you are situated against the light, there is no need to worry because it will shade the image you capture. You won’t need to move about to get the best lighting, the matte box will give you that.

You can also load filters to your camera through a matte box. There is another camera accessory that has the same function with matte box. This is the screw-on which enables you to install as many filters as you want. However, screw-on filters will form a vignette if you place too many of that. Because of this, a matte box functions far better than a screw-on and is even more convenient.

A DSLR matte box also plays an important role in filtering. It holds the filters therefore it acts as a shield providing good quality picture. It provides photographers the best photo image possible. This way, you can save up your effort and time for editing pictures. You can get the best image even during filming the actual footage or previewing the photgraphs.

Moreover, using a matte box will make you look like a pro! If you have it on your camera, you give the impression to those around that you know exactly what you’re doing.

Though it looks like a mere square or box, it comes with a very high price. People often mistake its price because of how simple it looks and are shocked or put-off by how much a matte box costs.

Well, high quality gear is expensive, that’s the way of the world. The use of the matte box is not common. But those who use it are only the high profile photographers and film makers. Because of that, the demand is low, and therefore, the price is high.

Generally one will set you back anywhere from a couple of hundred dollars to a couple of thousand. So make sure you really need one!

Written by Iain D

The development of the digital single-lens reflex camera which is more popularly known as the DSLR has certainly revolutionized the fields of photography and filmmaking. Gone are the days when bulky cameras that used spools upon spools of film were the primary choice of filmmakers for their film projects. But despite their efficiency and portability these types of cameras also pose its own set of problems for filmmakers. One of these problems is the fact that it is difficult to detect framing and focus problems because of the small size of their built-in monitors. And in order to remedy this problem, a good solution is for people to consider purchasing a DSLR monitor that addresses this exact problem.

Using a monitor for DSLR cameras is one good way for filmmakers to properly observe the quality of the videos that they have taken, which is otherwise a difficult thing to achieve with the aid of only the small LCD or viewfinder that normally comes with a unit of this nature. The larger image output of the monitor will likewise enable several people to view the video at once instead of only a single person seeing the video from the camera. The greater number of people viewing the same footage is better, as they can point out errors in framing or in the focusing which were not noticed before, when the size of the video was not yet enhanced through the aid of the monitor. It’s also always better to get another person’s perspective on things.

People who wish to purchase monitors for their DSLRs also do not need to worry about the potential space that the monitors will take, for they can be easily attached to the units themselves or to their railings or cage that support them. The size of these monitors ranges from five up until nine inches, and while that does not seem big enough for some people, it still has a huge difference over the two or three inch screens of conventional DSLR cameras.

Regarding the matter of the price of one of these monitors, there are many people who find it a tad too steep and out of their budgets. The usual price range of monitors for digital single lens reflexes is around $2000-$3000, but despite the fact that these monitors are more expensive than other equipment and accessories for DSLRs, they are a huge investment that can improve the quality of the video being shot by filmmakers and videographers.

A DSLR monitor, despite its hefty price tag, can allow filmmaker to check several aspects of the videos which they have shot and address these problems. By using these types of monitors, filmmakers do not have to rely on their own eyes when checking their videos and they will have more certainty that the video that will be their final product will be free from any focus, resolution, and framing problems.

Written by Iain D

 In fact, developing a movie has now grown much easier than ever before and is no more an intricate job. Filmmaking requires a technologically advanced equipment of top-notch quality that can certainly meet all the constraints of standard movie. A broad spectrum of high-quality products used for filmmaking involves cine jibs, dollies, cine microphone, shoulder support, Matte Box and DV rain covers. Amongst them, most popular, amazing and widely used product is follow focus.

Follow focus is actually a focus controlling mechanism used for film-making with the use of a film camera. This mechanism makes it easy for filmmakers to make desired changes on the focus ring of a camera lens. Before you plan to makes changes, it is essential to understand that this unit does not make changes in the functionality of camera. In fact, follow focus is an ergonomic modification that permits users to move focus rings more smoothly. High-quality film-making cameras and DSLR units requires you to spend thousands of dollars but you can also try to make out at the price of sandwich. Just by accumulating a metal clamp, few nuts, bolts and some other pieces around the focus ring can help you move ring with great accuracy.  I wouldn’t recommend this course of action however unless you really know what you are doing.

A standard performance is of great value to film-makers when they consider choosing a camera. A new array of film-making cameras come in a comprehensively designed unit that ensures incredible performance. DSLR kits and rigs combine some of the unique features with innovative additions, which can efficiently gratify the most demanding traits of any production team. New advanced and modular follow focus devices propose a reasonably priced double-sided option, which can be added to your camera at anytime. Standard follow focus is normally made of powerful aviation aluminum that is lightweight yet strong enough to deal with the requirements of clear and sharp images.

Unique and innovative damping design of aviation aluminum open up great opportunity for accurate focusing. Moreover, users can mark focal points by a marker on a follow focus beforehand so that they can easily achieve focal spot switches. A premium and standard camera usually has two additional rings that support lenses of DSLR and film cameras. This unit is helpful in augmenting the film-making applications of single lens reflex units and these multi-faceted and tailored cameras are equipped with a number of worthy attributes that enable DSLR users to get different shots easily for making commercial as well as professional movies at bargain prices.

The foremost purpose behind the use of film-making cameras is to provide maximum flexibility to operators during their indoor as well as outdoor shoots. A decent follow focus gives explicit mounting support to film camera while decreasing the shaking effects of cameras. Every individual wants cameras to be extremely portable and handy that can be mounted on a tripod with ease so always look for the smallest, yet best parts.

 Written By Iain D

The world indeed is a beautiful place that has numerous beautiful sights, some natural while some man-made. With photography it is now possible to capture this beauty with a camera.

With the advent of technology, photography enthusiasts have been able to improve the quality of the pictures they click. One such device that helps them to do so is an intervalometer, which is basically a device plugged into a camera for counting intervals of time. In photography time is of essence. The quality, creativity and aesthetics of a picture depend on whether a picture was taken at the right moment. A delay of even a split second may cause a photographer to fail in capturing the right moment. These devices are usually used to indicate or signal other devices to start an operation at specific time intervals. For instance an intervalometer might activate another device after every thirty seconds. It finds ample application in various fields that even includes military operations.

As far as photography is concerned, these devices are mainly used for bringing out exposures, usually in a time lapse series. Exposures are basically the quantity of light that is allowed to fall on each unit of the area of the medium being photographed, typically an image sensor or a photographic film, during the process of taking a photograph. More often than not, the objective of using this device is to cut down on the resources one requires to either take a picture or to post-process it, as similar photographs can be obtained by enabling the camera to take photographs as quickly or fast as possible. The use of an intervalometer allows the restriction of the photographs taken to only those which have the required content. This does away with the need for resources such as storage media like a memory card.

Apart from being used for triggering exposures, these devices are also used for various other purposes in photography. To start with, people can shoot images for stacked compositions with it. It can even be used for capturing blurred images with long shutter speed.

For taking delayed shots or even creating self portraits where the camera takes one picture every 1.5 minutes or even every second, exactly like an iPhone’s Photobooth app. For that matter, as usually DSLR cameras are confined to shorter exposure of roughly thirty seconds or even less, they use an intervalometer to take shots with exposures of longer than thirty seconds, with the ‘bulb’ in the device. In fact, very long exposures can also be managed to take shots at night and create effects like star trails, animation or even astro-photography to showcase the effect of heavenly bodies in the sky at night like a nebula or a galaxy. These devices also find application in aerial photography which includes delaying the time required to take a picture by an unattended camera of a moving vehicle or body.

The intervalometer has, undoubtedly, improved the scope of photography by leaps and bounds.

Written by Iain D

Those who are in the profession of still photography must know what a dslr matte box is. It’s a tool generally used to block sun rays or any other source from which light can enter inside the camera. Matte boxes carry out the similar function as lens hood. They are also used to hold plastic filters or glass intact. These days, matte boxes are often part and parcel of HD cameras. A few of them are even supported by rods that run the entire length of camera.

If you want to become a videographer, then these are essential tools to have. The matte box is an essential accessory which is generally attached to the end of the lens and checks any glare of light striking on the surface of the lens. A matte box is more or less similar to lens hood and hinders the path of any light source reaching to the lens. With the help of matte boxes, artificial glares can be prevented and therefore the final image produce is absolutely seamless.

The box is basically used to protect the camera from the direct glare of light. It serves dual purposes. It helps in keeping the lens of camera in shade so as to ensure that you do not get lens flares and it also enhances the ability of the lens to tackle contrast. If you are a film maker then you need to move your camera through a number of light trajectories and matte boxes are helpful in doing away with the consequences of moving camera.

Prices of the matte boxes can be high to the average consumer but the prices vary and depend on the brand of the box and its size.

Matte boxes with low price either do not have slots or have only one slot whereas costly matte boxes have two slots for holding filters. Therefore any assortment of filters can be used here such as color filters, ND filters, polarizing filters etc.

Also, sizes of matte boxes differ greatly. Sizes of matte boxes vary and the fixtures of these boxes depend on their size. Some of them are fixed to the end of lens while others on the rod support system.

Apart from this, matte box is also used to maintain consistency in scenes in case of outdoor shooting when the camera has to be rotated in all the directions.

In all, this simple little (sometimes not so little) device can be termed a luxury, but if you need one, then it becomes a necessity. And not just for professional film makers. The enthusiastic amateur, or those who want to capture their memories properly, will really need to think hard about how far they want to go to attain perfection.

Written by Iain D

In recent years, many DSLR cameras featured with high-quality HD video have been launched in the market to diversify the requisites of customers looking for manual control, focusing options and extended frame rates. Digital single lens reflex cameras have transformed the approach of independent film-making. The most attractive feature of this kind of camera is its relatively low price that can probably go up if you started adding rigs. For expanding the capabilities of your camera without affecting your pocket, users can put together DIY setups for productive results. In this cutting-edge competition, it is imperative to come up with a rig that is reasonably priced and presents the same performance level.

DSLR rigs are normally used in studios or photo shops but many photographers overlook its usage because of its high price. In contrast to offline stores, many online stores can help you grab the best deal at a competitive rate. DSLR are lightweight such that they do not even move like film cameras. When hand held, digital single lens reflex cameras jitter like consumer camcorders that can instantly mark the shooter as an amateur. Customers willing to buy a DSLR rig of top-notch quality are advised to carry out a thorough research of reputed online stores. If you are working as a professional photographer, then your search for standard quality gear can be demanding.

When it comes to extremely portable and handy kit, DSLRs are most apparent and ideal choice of myriad professionals. Modern and tailored DSLR rigs are designed specifically to meet the needs of videographers willing to shoot videos. Users are required to follow a two-step process for transforming your DSLR into handheld video recorder. You cannot use viewfinder for pressing camera against your face for the third point contact that you often use for shooting stills.

Beginning from scratch to the final creation of the rig, every single step entirely depends upon the basic requirements of customers. The foremost step involved in the modification of a rig comprises of changes in offset rig to an inline rig so that users can use the external monitor. In general, these are used for creating smoothness so that every shot is incredible.

With a DSLR rig and kit, you can make your shooting and video production smooth, accurate, enduring and comfortable. Handles and rubber grips of your equipment rest your arms when you are busy in shooting commercial as well as professional movies. Depending upon the combination you choose, you can stumble upon a wide array of rigs that are very decisive for videography and photography studio.

As a matter of fact, users can acquire every item at a discounted price that can surely help you save a considerable amount.

Written by Iain D

If you are a sports fan, you know what it means when a team goes into a “rebuilding year”.  It is just when the owners or coaches decide its time to train new members and correct bad habits in others.  And invariably, what team leadership says when they go into such a time is that they are going “back to basics.”

Sometimes it’s good for us as photographers to go back to basics.  And, of course, if you are just getting started in the world of photography and want to learn “the ropes”, the basics are a natural start.  But you want the basics of what the professionals know about the craft of photography.

Anybody can take a picture.  I attended a wedding reception where the wedding party left a disposable digital camera on each table at the reception for guests to snap photos.  Before the evening was over, it was the children who were running around taking pictures of everything from the dirty dishes to their own underwear.  These were not photographers and while those pictures will no doubt get a few chuckles, these are not the kind of professional pictures people want for their long-term memories.

Obviously, the cornerstone of the basics of photography is the camera.  When you see a camera geek walking around with enough equipment on his neck to launch a space shuttle, you get the impression that cameras are phenomenally complex, more than mere mortals can grasp.  But look at the professionals and you see them working with portable, relatively easy to operate cameras.  That is because the basics of running a camera come down to aperture and shutter speed.

Now don’t get nervous about fancy terms.  Aperture is just a term for how wide your camera lens is open to let in light.  And shutter speed is just how long you let the light come in to affect the picture.  For getting a shot of a fast moving event, you want a wide aperture to let in a lot of light but a short shutter speed so you capture the event quickly and close the window so the picture is caught before more light hurts the quality.

Photography is really all about light.  You can and will get learn a lot about lenses and flash photography and other ways to turn the control over the lighting of a shot to you.  So add to your core skills of photography a willingness to never stop learning.  The better and more sophisticated you get in your ability to work with the equipment, the more you will learn and the more you will want to learn.

You can get a greater control over these basic controls of the camera such as aperture and shutter speed by learning how to switch from automatic settings to manual settings.  The automatic settings of any camera are just there for the general public who are not interested in learning the basics.  So they give you some basic settings like landscape, portrait and sports settings.  By switching to manual, you can learn what settings work best in different situations.

And that takes us to the most important basic about becoming a great photographer and that is practice.  Take some time with your equipment and play with it.  Take it to situations and take photos with different aperture and shutter speed settings, in outdoor and indoor settings and different orientations to light.  Don’t get upset when some shots don’t work.  That’s part of the learning curve.

By learning by doing, you will build your confidence in your work and eventually become a great photographer.  But don’t get cocky, there is always more to learn.  And that is one of the fun things about photography, isn’t it?

The controversy about whether photography is art is one that has been raging in the art world for a long time and we are not likely to totally solve it here.  But it can be an important decision you have to make if you are considering a career in photography with the goal of producing quality art works.  If that is where you are, the idea that someone would say “That’s not art, you just took a picture” is pretty disturbing.  So it’s worth looking at the question from several different angles before we pick which side to weigh in on.

Of course, art is a subjective thing.  Many people would look at a Jackson Pollack “splatter” artwork and determine most definitely that modern art is not art because it “doesn’t look like anything.”  And if you spend any time in the modern art world, you will definitely see something at some time along the way occupying space in a perfectly respectable art museum that, to you, could never be considered art.

So is it just a matter of opinion?  To some extent, yes.  But there is an art world and an industry behind it that depend on there being some standards upon which art is judged.  One such standard is the intent of the artist.  If you produce a photograph or an art work derived from a photograph that is intended to be viewed as art, then the viewer is obligated to try to see the artistic merit in it.  Whether the viewer sees that merit or not may depend on the viewer’s abilities, how good you are at getting your artistic message across or many other factors.

But just wanting something to be art doesn’t make it art does it?  As a layman in the art world, I sometimes go with the “I don’t know art but I know what I like” system of evaluating pieces I see.  Art, after all, has a tendency to touch us in another place that is above and beyond the image.  It is an emotional place, a place of reflection and understanding.  Maybe we would say it touches our “soul”.  For a work to be art, there should be a message, a feeling, a reason the artist made the work because he or she wanted to say something, even if how I interpret the statement is different than what the artist meant.

So that might also be an evaluation of a photograph as to its artistic merit or not.  Now the primary objection to whether photography is art sometimes is that a photograph is often a realistic depiction of a moment taken with a machine and some would say that “anybody can take a picture.”  The implication is that the same mechanical skill it might take to paint a picture of sculpt a statue is not needed for photographic art.

It’s true that the mechanical skill that the guy at Wal-Mart might need to take baby pictures may be the same as a great photographic artist might need.  But the objection doesn’t hold up because the same human language is used to create great poetry as it takes yell out obscenities at a baseball game.  So it isn’t the skill that makes it art.

Good evidence comes from the credit some great art experts have given to photographic exhibitions in the fine museums in the world.  The very fact that photography is considered art by those who know may be evidence enough.  So the conclusion must be that because the arguments against the artistic value of photographs are weak and people who know consider photography to be art, then we are safe in viewing what we do artistically too.  And that opens up that side of your soul to express yourself through the medium you love the most – photography.