Category Archives: Photography

Photographs and photography.
Details about my photographs.
Photography tips, tricks and tutorials.

The Ghost Tog Strikes

By Scott | Published May 14, 2013

One of the many fun things you can do with long exposure photography is to have people partially in your photographs.

Take a look at the photo below.

ghost-tog-strikes

If you look to the far right, you will see a camera sitting low on a tripod. look closer and you will see the Ghost Tog, also know as Gevon. I was out shooting some long exposures with Gevon and Daryl and at the same time as a ship going by (on the left), Gevon decided to re-frame his camera.

My exposure was at 75 seconds, so boat movement was blurred, water was still but Gevon’s time framing his camera resulted in what we are terming Ghost Tog.

Ghost Tog

noun: a person who takes photographs while photo bombing another photographer during a long exposure.

At this point you may be wondering why I decided to leave the ghost tog in the photo, and share this with you. I personally find things like this more realistic. It proves that there was movement in the scene, that there was life where I was, and things going on.

Have you captured a photograph with a ghost tog in the frame? If so, please comment and share so I can see it. Sometimes they’re creepy like in my photo, but sometimes they cause a good laugh.

Thanks for reading and happy shooting,

Scott

long-exposure-workshop-asbury-park

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Long Exposure Photography Workshop in New Jersey

By Scott | Published May 10, 2013

Come one, come all – well 15 people that is. I am happy to share the first NJ photography workshop of many to come.

My friend Joe and I have partnered to offer a fun, educational and engaging long exposure photography workshop in New Jersey.

long-exposure-photography-workshop

The workshop will be taking place in Asbury Park, NJ in a venue directly along the lake, and walking distance from the boardwalk for beautiful ocean photographs.

Please join us on June 29, 2013 at 10am for an interactive day of learning, sharing and growing as photographers.  The workshop is $150.

Here is how it will work:

  • 9:45am: Students arrive at the classroom.  Enjoy some coffee and snacks on us.
  • 10:00am: We will begin the workshop with a presentation about long exposures and neutral density filters.  After the presentation there will be time for Q&A.
  • 11:00am: After questions have been answered, we will go out to the lake and start photographing some long exposures.  During the time on the lake, Joe and I will be helping each person with their questions.
  • 1:30pm: We will head back to the classroom for lunch, which we are supplying. (details on the workshop page)
  • 2:00pm:  After lunch we will spend time in Lightroom processing your new long exposure photographs.

The workshop concludes at 3:00pm, but that does not mean you have to stop taking pictures.  Feel free to head back to the lake and/or beach to get in some sunset long exposure photography.

To reserve your seat in the workshop, please click here and fill out the form. Payment for the workshop is securely made via PayPal.

Thank you and see you there,

Scott

Note: We are not responsible for loss or damage to any of your equipment, nor injury, personal or otherwise. Please read the liability statement (linked on event page) prior to registering

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Bluetooth Remote Camera Trigger With An iPhone

By Scott | Published May 9, 2013

Zesty Accessories is a company out of Japan that makes bluetooth dongles that attach to your camera for remote triggering with an iPhone.

I have been putting the trigger through tests and am happy to share that the ZGR-2a which I tested has been working flawlessly.

Before I get into my tests and results, check out this preview video I recorded when I first received the device.

As you can see, the dongle connects to the camera through some type of connect. On my Nikon D800, it connects using the 10-pin connector that Nikon’s cable release would use. However, on different brands and models, the USB port would likely be used.

Features

  • The combination of SmartShutter & the dongle means you can use your iPhone’s GPS to geotag your photographs
  • The app contains single shot shutter release and a hold switch for long exposures
  • The app also has a timer feature so you can set your desired shutter speed
  • There is an ability to turn on/off shake and volume button shutter triggers
  • There is also a compass and sunrise feature in the app

Now that you have the rundown on the device and app, let’s talk about my one and only complaint about the system and then get into my testing and final review.

Complaint

As you can see in the photograph below (courtesy of Zesty Accessories), the dongle does stick out quite a bit from the camera. It cannot be turned and what this means is that if you have a L bracket on your camera, it runs the risk of getting in the way of portrait crop framing.

bluetooth-remote-camera-trigger-iphone

 

Testing

My initial testing, while sitting in my office, went very smooth. The app and dongle performed perfectly. However, I wanted to test his in the field so I brought the dongle ZGR-2a to Boston with me during my recent trip there.

I knew I would be shooting in large rooms full of debris, brick and metal. So I figured it would be the perfect place to test the range and reliability of the bluetooth device. As it turned out, it triggered every time.

So my next test was to see what would happen when doing long exposures and leaving the app to check email or send a text message. I was not expecting the result. The app kept the time going while I had it closed and was doing other things on my iPhone. It handled the timed exposure perfectly and still geotagged the photographs.

The dongle angle causes it to stick out on the left of the camera (photographer’s left, not subject left). That is the same side that L brackets sit. So with the dongle in place, I could not use the L bracket. However, when using my Nikon 70-200, this was not an issue since the lens gets mounted on the tripod instead of the camera.

Review

Zesty Accessories makes SmartShutter compatible devices for Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Sony and Pentax cameras. With them, you can wirelessly trigger your camera, do long exposures and geotag your photographs. The device connects to your iPhone through bluetooth and uses its data and GPS service.

I am a huge fan of this device. However, I cannot get over the angle of the ZGR-2a. It just gets in the way with the L bracket.

If you are considering this device, go for it if you do not use a L bracket. I know I would!

In the end, I would give this a score of 83% because the inability to use my L bracket seriously hurts.

Thanks for reading and happy shooting,

Scott

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