Video: Filters

As promised I was going to do a video on the different type of filter systems you can have and some of the kinds.  Also as I mention in the video this will be my last video before I go to Arizona so you might not hear from me in a week or so.  However once I get back I should have a bunch of photos and will finish my last filter video and then probably a couple on doing a photography road trip in AZ.

http://youtu.be/hQZ40VI0BUg

Hope that helps!

Video: Lee Filter System

Hey,


Soon I will be taking a trip to Arizona to photograph the southwest's epic landscapes.  I decided for this trip to invest in a filter system so that I can hopefully get better shots by being able to properly expose the sky with the amazing scenery.  


While I was researching what filter(s) and filter system to get I found there was a lot of confusing information and a lot of it was not easily found in the same place.  So I started to make a couple of videos to try to help anyone out there better understand the filters and filter systems if they are in the market for them.  So here is my intro : http://youtu.be/_2o34zKkevo which is basically what I covered here but still worth to watch since I outlined more things in it.


I also made a video on my filter system setup I got and I cover how it works and a couple other details, however I will make more videos to cover what I didn't cover in my setup video.  So if you want to see how the Lee Filter System is set up, here is the my video: http://youtu.be/v8cwTp_8w8U.


Hope that helps and stay posted for the other videos!

Video: 105mm f/2.8 Micro (Macro) VR Review

Video: 105mm f/2.8 Micro (Macro) VR Review

Here is my video review of the 105mm f/2.8 Macro VR lens on my Youtube channel.  I know I already have a blog post reviewing this lens so check it out here and I will put the video link on that blog post as well.

Here is the video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfbknCpkio0

Hope that helps!

Video: Lens Review: 85mm f/1.4 D

Video: Lens Review: 85mm f/1.4 D

Hey,

So here is the link to my review of the 85mm f/1.4 D lens on my Youtube channel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQHJTsaDo0M

And here are the photos that I used in the video just incase you wanted to see them larger than in the review:

Portrait - 85mm f/1.4 D

Portrait - 85mm f/1.4 D

Flower - 85mm f/1.4 D

Hope you liked my first review on Youtube and don't forget to subscribe!

Video: What's In My Bag?

Hey,

Made a what's in my bag video and tossed it up on Youtube so you can go check that out if you are interested in the gear I have.  Next I will probably review the 85mm so stay posted for that!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxgrQswS0G0

Hope you guys enjoyed that.  Only messed up a little haha.  I think I am getting better at this video making game.  So please subscribe and I hope that helps.

Update: Youtube

Hey,


I posted my first Youtube video to my new Youtube channel!  I will still use my blog to keep people notified for my photography however I will be doing more videos for larger posts like reviews and such.


So I did my first video just as an intro and my next one will be about what is in my bag/case.  I have a new addition so you should definitely stay posted (or even subscribe to my channel).  I will probably redo all my reviews for my Youtube channel as well as doing all my future ones in video.


Furthermore I hope putting my face and voice to my blog works out.  Personally when I look up photography things for myself I usually go to videos first so I thought I might as well make videos.  I hope you guys follow my channel and here is the link to my first video that is just an introductory video.  Shortly I will have my "what's in your bag/case" video just so everyone knows what gear I use.  I feel this video will sort of act as my introduction to gear reviews.


http://youtu.be/VyBFwzz53AQ


Again please subscribe and I hope so see all of you following my channel like you have done my blog!


Tom

Photos: Lock Shoot

Hey,

The rest of the photos are up now from my last sneak peek I posted.  Hope everyone liked them as much as I did.  I thought these were amazing photos are a great shoot.  So please go visit my site, www.tomhoustonphotography.ca and check them out!  Here is another photo that I really liked from the shoot:

Portrait - 17-55mm

Hope you like them!

Photos: Sneak Peek

Hey,

Just did an amazing shoot on tuesday, had a lot of fun and here is the sneak peek from the shoot.  Below is one of my favourite shots form the shoot and there are two others on my website at www.tomhoustonphotography.ca in the new arrivals gallery.  The model was great and did a very good job even though by the end of the shoot her heels were soaked from standing in puddles for most of it.  Really like these shots, hope you do too!

Portrait - 17-55mm

Don't forget to go see the other photos on my site and I hope you like them!

Photos: New Series - Fine Art

Hey,

I have very exciting news that I am semi nervous about. So I have posted my latest series of photos I have done recently on my site now (http://www.tomhoustonphotography.ca/#/galleries) . They went straight into a new gallery called "Fine Art" and not the new arrivals gallery. I am a little nervous how these photos will be received so any and all feedback is welcomed. So please, if you like them let me know and share the photos with friends etc.  Here is one of the photos and I hope you go my site and check out the others.

Fine Art - 35mm f/1.8G

Yes, I know it is a bit of a 180 from my other photos however I do think they are just as good as my other work.  


Hope you agree

My Lens Ratings

Hey,

I decided it would be useful to create a rating system for my lenses.  I will add these to the bottom of all of my Lens Reviews as well as have the links for them in this post.  I kept it a little basic and out of 5.  So 1 being an awful lens you should never buy and 5 being perfect, and I would change nothing about it.  I broke the rating into an overall rating and other categories best suited to what I have used the lenses for.  I thought this made the most sense since I won't rate it for doing something I don't use the lens for.  The overall rating I take into account everything about the lens beyond just the focus of what I use the lens for.  For example how well built it is etc.  Without further adieu, here are the ratings of the seven lenses I have owned:

#1: 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6 ED VR DX

Rating: Overall 3/5

For a beginner kit zoom lens: 4/5                                                                      

Overall lens: 3/5

#2: Tokina AT-X 11-16mm f/2.8 Pro DX

Rating: Overall 4/5

Landscape Lens: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

#3: AF 50mm f/1.8 D

Rating: Overall: 4/5

Portrait Lens: 4/5

Low Light Ability: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

#4: 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor

Rating: Overall 4.5/5

Macro Photography: 4.9/5

Portrait: 4.5/5

Overall: 4.5/5

#5: 50mm f/1.4 D AF

Rating: Overall 4.5/5

Portrait: 4.5/5

Low Light: 4.9/5

Overall: 4.5/5

#6: 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX Nikkor

Overall: 4/5

Full Body Portraits: 4/5

Low Light: 4/5Overall: 4/5

#7: 17-55mm f/2.8 IF ED AF-S DX 

Rating: Overall: 4/5

Landscape: 4/5

Portrait: 3.5/5

Events: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

Best lenses I own in my opinion is the 50mm f/1.4D and the 105mm Macro VR.  Could have called that one haha.  I love the 17-55mm however being a zoom, it is versatile however it doesn't compare to the 50mm or 105mm.  However I would only sell it if I went FX/FF for the 17-35mm.  I am headed to Arizona soon and it might be the only lens I bring and I know it won't disappoint me.  Anywho, those are my ratings of the lenses.  Hope that helps!

If you want an in-depth review of the above lenses please click on the respectively lens and you will be linked to the its lens review post.  Also if you want to see my best work/portfolio please visit my site, www.tomhoustonphotography.ca.  Also it would mean a lot if you signed the guest book under the connect tab.  It would be neat to see where everyone is visiting my site from!  Also I don't mind if you sign it in another language other than english.  My french and spanish is alright and if not I will translate it somehow.  

THP Tip #6: Gear Tip #1

THP Tip #6: Gear Advice #1                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

So to recap:          

THP Tip #1: Portrait Photography and the topic was Bokeh.

THP Tip #2: Portrait Photography and the topic was on making your model/subject/client comfortable.

THP Tip #3: Portrait Photography and the topic was on communication.  

THP Tip #4: Portrait Photography and the topic was on being professional.

THP Tip #5: Getting Known (Web)    

Hey, 

I just thought I would share some advice on gear since there are many thoughts, opinions, and questions out there on this topic and I hope I answer some of them.  I decided to break this topic up a little and therefore make each tip shorter, and easier to understand.

First off I guess I should say that having "the best" gear isn't always the key for getting the best shots.  There are some specialty lenses that help you best capture the scene/subject etc, but won't guarantee good photos.  You can't give a beginner or amateur a pro body and pro lens and expect their photos to exponentially increase in any area other than maybe resolution due to more MP, maybe. However, I think there is one disclaimer here.  If you are a good photographer, and know what you are doing, gear upgrades can help sometimes.  I will give an example from my personal experience before people start disagreeing with me haha.  My first lens was a 18-105mm Nikkor lens.  I could zoom to 105mm and try to do "macro" work however it would never be true macro.  Here is an example shot with my 18-105mm: 

18-105mm - Pasque Flower

So it is a lovely shot of a Pasque flower.  I really liked shooting flowers in my mom's garden and other places however they weren't quite up the the standard I wanted.  Then one day I borrowed my godfather's Tamron 90mm Macro and took this:

Tamron 90mm - Pasque Flower

As I am sure you can see, one has definitely a little more punch to it.  So I think that yes, my 18-105mm kit lens can do the job and take a nice shot of a flower however, a macro lens can just do it better.  If you don't know how to take good shots of flowers and were given a macro lens, that might not actually help.  So this is a semi-rare case where gear can take a better shot if you already know what you are doing.  Now what I mean by better here is what I was judging the photo on.  I am sure with the 18-105mm, you can take an even cooler shot of a flower however a macro lens just takes a better photo of a flower for what I personally wanted in my photos.  For instance it got a tighter shot, had better colour rendition, better detail, and better bokeh.  So if you want your photos to have other qualities other than those, then I am sure my "better" won't match yours. 


Anywho, there are rare cases where have a better lens/gear actually helps.  So don't think if you upgrade you will therefore get better shots all the time.  This also includes people just buying the best gear thinking that will make them a good photographer.  The camera/gear doesn't make the photographer, however it does help, but it the gear are only tools and you have to know how to use them.  Sometimes better tools help, but you can still do some photos with the "best" lens or another lens.  


So to sum this tip up, I think that no, gear does not instantly make you a better photographer.  However if you have used a lens/gear to it fullest ability and you still don't capture shots the way you want, like my macro example, then upgrading might work.  This doesn't mean, "ahh dang, I took a shot and it didn't look good... I need a better lens."  When I got new lenses, one example is the Tokina 11-16mm because 18mm was not wide enough for my landscapes that I wanted.  18mm was just a snapshot of what I saw.  Therefore it was a limitation so I got a specialty lens almost for landscapes.  The landscapes with my 18-105mm were not that much different in quality to my tokina however my tokina just captured the perspective I wanted.  Picture quality didn't drastically change enough that when I got the Tokina I just took better shots.  So to be a cost effective photographer, really think hard about what you buy and why.  This way you won't sell as many lenses down the road, and save money in the long run too.  We all know how expensive this hobby/passion/job/etc is, so if you can save money by not buying a bad lenses and having to upgrade them within a year, it is a good idea.  I would love to have bunch of lenses but I know I don't need them.


So be careful when you are deciding if you are going to get more gear/upgrade.  Think about why you actually need it.  Of course you want it, but why do you need it.  I knew a photographer, if I can call him that, who wanted to buy a 17-55mm and a 15-85mm along with a Canon 7D.  Hopefully you see that the 17-55mm, though better glass with the constant f/2.8, is completely overlapping with the 15-85mm.  You really don't want that overlap nor did this person "need" both those lenses.  Yes, I am being judgemental but it was also outrageously silly.  So my tip is to use your gear until it no longer can do what you want with your photography, then try to decide the best next step.


Hope that helps.

Photos: Orchid (In Colour)

Hey,

I wasn't only going to post the black and white photos I did of the orchid and here is one of the ones I kept in colour.  I have two more on my site that I think you should check out (In the new arrivals gallery) at www.tomhoustonphotography.ca.  Here is one of my favourites:

Orchid - 105mm f/2.8G VR Macro

Hope you enjoy theses.  I had a lot of fun taking these photos.

Tom