A Bright Orange Camera

 

If you read my previous post, you’ll know that I recently returned from attending the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Since the 1980’s Ive been attending CES which showcases many of the newest gadgets and products that are destined to be delivered to the marketplace.

At the Nikon booth a bright orange colored camera caught my attention. This was the Nikon Zf which was introduced last November (2023).

	The Nikon Zf is a 24mp full frame mirrorless camera that shares some of the looks of older classic SLRs – the familiar pyramid viewfinder, a circular shutter dial, an independent ISO dial. I was told that it’s able to capture 11fps stills and handle 4K video at 30fps. The autofocus tracking can recognize nine types of subjects. The image stabilization is linked to the AF point. The rear screen is fully articulated. The camera also features several dedicated black and white modes. For the fashionable photographer the Zf is available in six different colors. The price is about $2250 with 40mm f/2 lens.
	After speaking to the Nikon rep who explained the camera’s features, he walked me over to their in-booth photo studio for a demonstration. I registered my name and email address and found myself in line to have my picture taken. Here the photographer was using the Zf camera surrounded by a set of lightboxes. After sitting for a series of six photos I walked over to the nearby monitor where the artist assistant showed me the resulting pictures. Whatever the artist did, the portraits turned out better than my real life visage.

Later in the day, the images from the photoshoot arrived in my email box. Here are a couple of the portraits taken with the Nikon Zf.

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My thanks go to the people from Nikon for a new set of portraits and for showing me another one of their newest capable cameras.

 

 

Turning on the Studio Lights

 

It’s been a couple of years since I’ve used my electronic studio strobes. I wasn’t even sure that they were still working. So I asked my favorite lovely model if she would pose for a few photos and she kindly accepted.
 
On this day, the outside sky was overcast there wasn’t much light coming through the windows. So I went to work moving the lights into position for the quick shooting session. I was using only two lights – one main light, slightly to the left of the subject and about ten feet away and a second light positioned low and the the right of the subject to illuminate the background.
 
Here are a few of the photos from this session.
 
To see more detail of the lighting and coloring, click on any of the images.

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	The above photo was taken at a different time using an IR (infrared camera that removes all of the color.

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There was nothing exciting about my quick session, but I did enjoy working with a model who made these couple of hats look nicely perched.

Written by: Arnie Lee
 
 
 

With the naked eye, it’s often difficult or impossible to see the detail of smaller objects.
Most modern cameras and cellphones have lenses that can focus close enough to capture some of this detail.

When shooting up close I try to have good lighting, careful focus and a steady hand (or better yet a tripod) to keep the images as in focus as possible.

Below are some of the pictures that I’ve been able to photograph up close without using any special camera equipment.
 
 

 
Whatever type of camera that you’re using you’re probably equipped to take close ups. It not only interesting to see your subjects up close with lots of detail, it’s fun too.
 
 
Written by: Arnie Lee
 
 

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