Travelling Light – Photographing Light
It is a feat of some endurance to get to Cofete – 20km of rough track including a substantial climb over the ridge that runs along the Jandia peninsular – but it is worth it as the view from Punta de Vista Sober Puerto de Montana as you cross the ridge is certainly the finest in Fuerteventura with the Playa Cofete (Barlavento) and a substantial part of the west coast of the island stretched out before you. This really is a Good Place to Stand.
The church of Nuestra Señora de Regla in Pájara town has interesting sculptures of sun pattern, snakes, panther and birds above the main entrance. It is thought by some specialists to show Aztec influence.
Continue reading “The Church of Nuestra Señora de Regla – Pajara”
Casa de los Coroneles is a stately home in the northern province of La Oliva on the island of Fuerteventura. It was once the seat of the island’s colonel and now is the location of an art gallery.
Patterns in nature and man made can make great photo opportunities – here are just a few spotted when out and about.
My first attempt at a landscape with the G9 and PL 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 here yielded mixed results, all be it in rather tricky lighting. My major concern was the amount of noise apparent in the shadows even at base iso of 200, my conclusion was that in such circumstances it is critical with the G9s relatively small sensor not to underexpose.
It’s almost de rigeur to test a lenses bokeh in a trendy coffee shop – not wishing to disappoint I have given it a go. All with the PL 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 hand held. Quite pleased with the results – the coffee and cake were good too.
Not the most obvious location for a wildlife safari but when needs must the migrant photographer must make do with what’s around.
After yesterday’s sports horror show it’s time for something more……well arty farty. So how about some gritty black & white. WARNING if you are a pixel peeper that doesn’t like grain then look away now.
So yesterday I decided to do some more long exposure photography and push the boundaries a bit with really long exposures of several minutes, so with my Lee Super Stopper in hand I trotted off to the Faro de El Toston (Lighthouse) which I thought would make a good subject with the clouds skudding overhead.
So far so good with the new G9 – however there may be trouble ahead. This image was taken at 60mm on my new PL 12-60mm f/2.8-f/4.0 – this was the first time I have tried the lens at this focal length and I am more than a little concerned.
A very quick and non-scientific test of the Dual2 IS on the G9 with the PL 12-60mm f/2.8-f4.0.
All images taken hand held no other support i.e no leaning on anything. Three images taken at all shutter speeds and best image selected, all images taken in single shot mode at 12mm.
A trip down to Bexhill on Sea today to give the G9 a run out.
The De La Warr Pavilion is an Art Deco grade 1 listed building buit in 1935 – it makes a fine photographic subject.
As a mirrorless camera the G9 has an electronic viewfinder (evf) – in the case of the G9 this is a 3,680k dot OLED panel.
Panasonic have clearly spent a lot of time working on the ergonomics of the G9 and it really shows. They have managed to squeeze into a relatively compact body the best features of both m43 and DSLR formats. In the hand this camera feels superb – it is as good if not better to handle than any other camera that I am aware of and feels exceptionally well built. For me it is neither too big nor too heavy.
There can be no doubt that moving to a m43 system can lead to a very significant reduction in the weight that you will be carrying, particularly if you need a wide range of focal lengths. At longer focal lengths the weight advantage is very significant indeed.
Quite a lot to digest !
I received a call from Park Cameras yesterday to say that my new G9 had arrived and was ready for collection.
A mirrorless camera from Sony with one of their great sensors is surely the way forward – that was my initial thought based on all the talk about the size advantages of such cameras. But here’s the thing – the Sony mirrorless cameras are in essence just like any DSLR but without the mirror, the lenses are to all intent and purposes the same size and weight as my Canon offerings, so yes you can save a few grams and centemeters on the camera body but in the overall scheme of things little is to be gained.
So what to do ?
The older I get and the more I travel the more I realise that I need to slim down. It has become increasingly obvious to me that humping around a full fat DSLR and everything that goes with it is a young mans game, a game that I can no longer play. Furthermore it’s a game that many airlines are no longer supportive of, more of that later.
Well the new year is here and like many my mind has turned to the matter of weight. Over the years my photographic journey has lead to ever increasing weight gain – gear weight gain that is. A Full Fat (Full Frame) diet with increasing consumption of bloated f2.8 lenses has seen my “camera bag” now routinely hitting 15kg and at times well over 20kg.
This blog will be about my journey in a new world of low calorie photography and a reinvigoration of my photographic spirit hopefully in a far more manageable way.
A Good Place to Stand 