"Whether you're an aspiring photographer or assistant, If you're looking at http://www.photoassistantbootcamp.com and wondering if you should sign up....get off the couch and just do it. You will not regret it!
I've had the pleasure of working with James quite a few times on different shoots. I know nothing about assisting but James and the photographer were kind enough to take me under their wing and make sure I didn't blow up any of the equipment or myself. You'd think that after working with James on quite a few shoots, I wouldn't need to take the PABC Workshop. Well.....you're wrong.

I was lucky enough to have assisted James on a shoot that was in a building that hadn't been opened to the public for maybe 20 years or a fashion shoot on the busy streets of New York, or right in the middle of Times Square, a simple studio shoot for an ad campaign, and few others. All these shoots have one thing in common......"NOTHING"!

The equipment was always different, the lighting was different, the pace of the shoot was different, the PROCEDURE in assisting was different, even what we wore during the shoot was different.
So I signed up for the workshop and never looked back. James experience in the field is absolutely priceless.
This class is not just for assistants, it's for aspiring photographers that want to go pro.

If you're wanting to become an assistant, this workshop is definitely a must. James vast experience in the field becomes obvious as soon as he starts the workshop. He'll give you hands on experience with the equipment that you'll encounter on the set of a professional shoot. He'll also give you hands on experience with the different ways the equipment may be used all whilst listening to his different experiences and scenarios will help you troubleshoot when you find yourself in a similar situation. He'll give you hands on experience on lighting a subject the way the photographer would want it lit. He talks about etiquette on set to ensure you will be hired again by the photographer. James will be able to help you anticipate what the photographer needs before the photographer realizes it himself. This all helps get you hired again and again, which thus helps you start your business.
James will go over simple techniques that will make a huge difference on lighting. None of these techniques are obvious, again, all through his experience of what works and what doesn't, is passed down to you. Everything you learn in this workshop will help you get hired over and over again.

If you're an aspiring photographer, this workshop is invaluable. If you're starting to build a book, unless you have your own equipment and studio space, you'll need to rent. Most studio spaces rent equipment as well. This workshop will help you walk in any rental studio and use any lighting equipment the studio has to offer. This in itself helps you conceptualize your shoot. Through James' vast experience in the field, he will go through lighting with you. Show you the most efficient way to make the lighting work. What tools you will need to get the lighting you want whether it be a light modifier or a specific color temperature, he'll give you hands on experience on how to accomplish it. He will introduce you to lighting equipment you may never have thought of using. He had a notebook full with notes from past shoots that was being passed around. I couldn't stop reading it. Every page had diagrams, power settings, distances, etc etc etc with Polaroid's of the actual results, this to me was a goldmine. "

Rico - 08/10/2012

The following is from Vincent Lafort's blog, and as he is probably the most well informed when it comes to motion capture these days I feel it is well worth the read.

Canon just announced the EOS C100 today – the little brother to the C300 if you will – and it is scheduled to be available in November.    

I think this camera will likely put a noticeable dent in the use of mid- to upper- range HDSLRs for video production such as the Canon 5D MKIII and Canon EOS 1DX given that the C100 meets a lot of the ergonomic needs of filmmakers that HDSLRS lack (EVF, LCD, Built in ND) and a superb sensor behind it that generates an extremely sharp, wide dynamic range, and low noise image at high ISOs,  off of a super-35 size 16:9 sensor.

We now have 3 Canon  "C" bodies to choose from and here’s a basic recap of where each camera stands:

At the top of the food chain is the Canon C500  - 12 bit, 4K, 4:4:4 MXF Codec or Full RAW up to 60p  (via external recorder) EF and PL versions, HDMI and HDSDI (x2) out, Canon Log Gamma, Records to dual CF Cards or external recorder – $30,000  (Now scheduled for an October release.)

In the Middle the Canon C300 – 2K 50 Mbps MXF 4:2:2: Codec format up to 30p (from the same sensor above) EF and PL Versions, HDMI and HDSDI out, Canon Log Gamma, Records to dual CF Cards – $15,999

And now the Canon EOS C100 – 1080p 24Mbps up to 30p  AVCHD MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 codec,  4:2:0, 15% smaller than the C300, EF mount version only, locking HDMI out, Canon Log Gamma,  Records to dual SD Cards – can also output uncompressed digital HD to an external recorder… $7,999 (Note: some sites are already listing the price at under $6,700.)

Please follow this link to read the full article.

My friend James Weber has been itching to play with large format photography for some time.

Recently he went way back to the beginning of large format photography and has gotten into Wet Plate Collodion.

I’ve been a professional photographer for around 18 years now.  In that time, I dedicated 6 wonderful years in the U.S. Navy as a photographer.  This is truly where I fell in love with photography as a process and an art.  Back then, it was all film.  Black & white, color, darkrooms, chemicals..it was crusty and dirty, but it was fun! 

The processes were harder to do, but really satisfying when it was done right.  When I was in the darkroom and I saw the image coming up from a print in the developer, it really was magical.

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Vintage - Currently the most over used word in photography & Fashion

Current meaning - take a photo, add a filter that is: 20 pts. yellow, green or blue, add vignetting and call it vintage.

Real meaning - am image or elements in an image that are older than you.

Chelsea Hotel NYC - Location over view of Chelsea Hotel roof top.

The Chelsea Hotels long history of being the playground and home to the artists of the past and those to be determined in the future are now long gone.

The hotel has changed hands yet again and is currently being completely renovated.

The art and images that had previously adorned the hotels enterance are gone.

The footage of the roof top in the coming months will no longer be valid as the development company has plans to strip all of the existing 'Character' of the roof in order to bring in a more corporate presence on 23rd street.

If anyone has any desire to shoot at this location you had better do it soon; before the remaining elements of this historic Hotel are stripped and sold off.

Here is a lighting setup we used on the roof of 5 Beekman St. for 1 of 40 we did on Saturday.

Strobe was around 1 stop over ambient to give that dark background look. This effect is best done using a camera with a leaf shutter but can be achieved with any DSLR with a flash sync of 1/200 sec. or better. A Pola filter will enhance this effect.

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Total Control from Capture-to-Delivery

The new Leaf Credo lets you shoot anywhere.

Featuring a high resolution 1.15 MP, 3.2” touch screen, Leaf Credo enables you to view, inspect and edit your images under all kinds of challenging lighting conditions, both in-studio and outdoors. Its powerful processor allows you to verify fine details instantly with excellent color rendition and tonal gradations with 16 million colors.

The touch screen's wide format aspect ratio allows plenty of space for histograms, highlight warnings and to display EXIF data right next to the image.

Its touch screen is extended and covers a larger area beyond the LCD, giving a new innovative handling experience, which enables precise control without touching the actual display area.

The Leaf Credo series of digital camera backs deliver legendary Leaf image quality along with speed and versatility that are second to none.

Available in 80, 60 and 40MP versions.

The Leaf Credo 80 offers the best price-performance ratio of any 80 MP single-shot capture device, allowing you to take your photography further by capturing the highest quality, single- shot images possible. The sensor provides the ability to record the finest detail, eliminating the need to use cumbersome multi-shot solutions.

Click here for more information on the Leaf Credo.
Click here to book a hands-on demonstration or to learn about upgrade offers.

Free Webinar

Two sessions are available:
Wednesday, January 11th

Session One - 9 AM Pacific Time Register Here
(10 AM Mountain, 11 AM Central, 12 PM Eastern, 5 PM GMT)

Session Two - 11 AM Pacific Time Register Here
(12 PM Mountain, 1 PM Central, 2 PM Eastern, 7 PM GMT)

Join Vincent Versace, best selling author and internationally recognized pioneer in the art and science of digital photography for this webinar co-sponsored by X-Rite and Nik Software. "Oz to Kansas: The Black and White on Black and White Conversions" is the evolution of thought that began with the chapter in his first book "Welcome to Oz: From Oz to Kansas. How to convert an Image to Black and White Without Ever Leaving the RGB Color Space." This webinar takes a practical applications approach to when, why and how to convert an image. In it, you will learn which methods give you the best results and when to choose a simple or a complex solution.

Some of the topics covered in this class are:
- The only soup to nuts overview of the Silver Efex Plug-in. How to use it and when.
- The importance of color management particularly to black and white.
- When and why you should and should not use global de-saturation.
- Split Channel conversions - what they are good for and a way to get the same effect with a file two thirds the size.
- When to use the Black and White adjustment layer to bring out and separate the tones in a color image.
- Multiple Channel mixer black and white conversions that replicate the physics of film.
- What is "Faux-infrared" and a look at how to convert files to black and white from digital cameras that have been modified to shoot Infrared.
- When and how to most efficiently use the Gradient tool for black and white conversion.

Who should attend this webinar:
- Photographers who enjoy black and white photography
- Digital photographers who want to understand black and white conversions
- Anyone who wants to print black and white images

Learn more about Vincent Versace at versacephotography.com.
We hope to see you there!

Free Webinar

Two sessions are available:
Wednesday, October 5th

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Leaf Capture Version 11.5.2 is now available.

Key features:   New user interface and firmware update for Mamiya DM digital backs.

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