Weddings, Relays and Traveling...Oh My

This coming Saturday, May 21st, I will be the second camera for Jaci Clark at a wedding in Youngstown, Ohio. Really excited as this will be my first "official" wedding event. In the past I have shot quite a few wedding related events, but not as the official wedding photographer. So this will not only be a great experience (because I will be working with the awesome Jaci Clark) but also a chance for my work to be part of the formal portfolio.

Now the sad part is I will be missing the Franklin Regional HS Relay For Life, which is 9am Saturday to 9am Sunday. My niece is part of the organizing committee and I wish I could be there to capture the activities. Since non-participants are not allowed in late night (which is when I will get back from Ohio), I may still try to get there bright and early Sunday around dawn to see if I can find something interesting to capture in the morning light.

Speaking of which, have you donated to Relay For Life this year? It's a great cause and it makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside. Well maybe just the first part, but you get the idea :) The best part is you can make a one time donation or set up monthly donations in any amount, which you can also cancel at any time. So much flexibility!

So, a short post, but after this weekend I will update this blog with my experiences. Hopefully I have good things to write about. My goal is to never post about negative experiences (unless they are educational), so if you see nothing from me, chances are I had nothing positively interesting to report :)

Till next time...Thanks for reading!

6th Annual King Edward Medical College Retreat

This past weekend (April 29-May 1) I had the pleasure of covering the 6th annual retreat/convention of the King Edward Medical College Alumni Association of North America (KEMCAANA). The location was Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square, New York City. 


Besides always being the hub of activity, this weekend was also the taping of TLC's Royal Wedding fashion show and the EIF Revlon Run/Walk NY. Fortunately my hotel room on the 19th floor overlooked Times Square so I could see the start of each of these events, but unfortunately since I was there to cover the convention, I could not go out to photograph either of these events.


Friday night was the Harbor Cruise. A fairly windy night, coupled with a chilly temperature made for a brisk on deck experience. Luckily dinner and music was inside the comfort of the main cabin so the evening was enjoyable overall. 


Since the boat stayed more toward the center of the channel, photography was a bit challenging. Keeping light on the subjects while also keeping visible the distant shore lights was difficult. I will experiment with a portable constant light solution to see if that works better in such situations.


Below is a slideshow of the pictures from the cruise.

Saturday night was the formal banquet and people were more dressed up. While I tried to do as much posed photography as possible, most people were not aware they could ask for their pictures to be taken. After the fact people came up to me and expressed regret at not knowing. One couple did ask me to do an impromptu sitting and you will see multiple sequential shots of them in the slideshow below. Hopefully if I am invited next year people will have advance knowledge and grab me to get snapped. Regardless I think I captured some nice moments.

The musical program was great and lasted past midnight, but I did not stay till the end as I had been up since 6am and midnight was my limit. I heard from the president's wife that they were looking for me to have pictures taken with the artists, so I regret that missed opportunity.

All in all this was a good experience and something I'd like to do again. However, next time I cover such an event, I will have to pace it better so I don't exhaust myself.

Thank you for reading!

Spider Holster Review

Recently I began a search for a more comfortable way to carry camera equipment around on walks and shoots.  Since I have two Nikon D700 bodies and prefer to minimize lens changes in the field, I end up carrying both bodies, one on a strap and the other in a sling bag. Carrying a D700 with even a mid sized lens for the better part of a day was putting a strain on my neck and I was looking for something to make life easier.

After much careful deliberation and research I decided on the Spider Pro Dual Camera Holster System. This is a belt based system that allows the camera(s) to hang off the hip(s). This not only lowers the center of gravity but leaves the upper body completely free of any weight.

You can read the details about the system on their website so this review will focus on my experience.

The Single Camera System has an integrated pad on the right side and comes installed with the required hardware. The Dual Camera System is basically a Single Camera System with a separate pad and hardware that needs to be installed on the left side. It took me a bit longer than necessary because I did not look up the online instructions (none were included). I basically figured it out through trial and error but it should not have been that difficult.

Once everything was in place I tried it on and with both cameras hanging off the belt it seemed very comfortable, providing complete range of motion. I tried a few placements but the most useful for me was on the outside of the hips. All that was left was a field trial.

That opportunity came this past weekend when I went to the Pittsburgh Comicon. So as not to appear overzealous, I only took one camera body with a flash and an extra lens in a messenger bag. With the camera hanging off my right hip I walked around the convention center without a worry. When I needed to use the camera it was a simple one-two and I was ready to shoot. Replacing the camera in the holster was a simple one-handed slide and click. During or after the few hours I spent there, I felt no fatigue or stress on my upper body.

At the end of the visit, the only hitch I found was I could not sit in the car with the holster in place (even without the camera) due to the length of the pads. But it was only a matter of taking the holster off and I was good to go.

So if you are in the market for a new way to carry your camera(s) I highly recommend this device.

Pittsburgh Comicon

Went to the Pittsburgh Comicon today to check out all the awesome art work and of course the characters. Got there just in time for the costume contest. The contestants were grouped into kids, teenagers, adults and groups. There were some really great outfits and some of the contestants even role played on stage. All in all it was a lot of fun and the participants seemed to really enjoy it.


Some pictures of the character contestants:

The Kids' winner with some other contestants

Science Fiction Winner

Anime Winner

Teen Winner

Group Winners

Overall 2011 Pittsburgh Comicon Costume Winner

True Love

All the contestants

Till next year...