Cropping

Posted on January 20, 2010 by Jorge

The Culling

The internet is a great place. People who use it can be unbelievably supportive; perhaps too supportive.

Posting my work onto Facebook seemed like a good idea, but I quickly learned that it wasn’t really beneficial to me. There was the whole issue of ownership of images, for one. There was also the issue of the lack of truly beneficial feedback to my work.

This is going to sound horrible, but sometimes generic compliments don’t really help one grow. That is a great photo, is something you see a lot (not just for me, in case you are about to pop my seemingly inflated ego with that pin in your left hand), but how much does a compliment like that really help?

  • Why is the image good?
  • Is there something that the photographer could have done better?
  • Is there something in particular that speaks to you? Something that you would like to share?

After I pulled my “professional” photos from Facebook, I started working harder on populating my photography blog. Quite a number of images went up, all with their own stories and documentation about what settings I used.

And then I stopped, for various reasons.

When I recently started up again, I thought I would regret the hiatus; however I am really glad that I had that break. Being away for a while has given me a fresh perspective, and to that end I have been going through my portfolio and getting rid of images that may only be there because of a newbie’s enthusiasm: the fire of excitement stoked by compliments from very nice people.

To date I have removed about 40 images, with more in the queue for evaluation. I suspect that the portfolio will probably lose about 10 to 20% of its content, and this is just fine with me.

As a friend told me, you want to show people the best of your best work. I completely agree.

It is my sincerest hope that none of you that read this piece are offended in any way. You all help me by keeping me excited about the art that I like to pursue in my spare time. I truly do appreciate kind words you all spare. I just feel that, despite all the kind words, I can be a better photographer. Hopefully this isn’t all bluster and that I can blow you all away with even better images in the future.


Filed under: General Dialogue, Interest, Photography | Tagged: , , | 2 Comments »

Evolution

Posted on January 9, 2010 by Jorge

Tough Call

Back in 2001, Mrs. Jorge gave me a most generous engagement gift. It was a Canon EOS Elan 7E; a wonderful SLR with the ability to track your eye to focus on various parts in your field of view.



Canon EOS Elan 7E.
Click to Enlarge…


It was a great gift. It was an expensive piece of technology that was very much worth it, as it granted a great deal of control over composition. It was also something that I had wanted for a while, and was carefully saving up for (I ended up buying another lens for it later on with part of that savings money). It really helped me grow as a photographer, as it was a challenge to learn how to use properly (I still don’t know if I ever managed to use it to its full potential), and it gave me more confidence to know that I had really great optics at my command.

I used the hell out of this thing. I have been very meticulous about keeping track of all of my negatives, scanning them for printing and filing them in protective sleeves and storing them chronologically in binders. I entered exhibitions and photography festivals, knowing that this camera would help me capture what I saw with my eyes and share it with people the way that I wanted to.

But nowadays digital photography seems to be far more popular than film. The place where I used to take my film to be developed (Film processed, copies on CD, index print, uncut negs), has changed their hours. I also find the quality of negatives coming back from most places increasingly poor. Streaks on the negatives, lots of fingerprints, scratches and the like. It’s as if nobody really cares about film anymore; it seems like nobody cleans the machines. Even scanning the photos with the dust/scratches filter doesn’t compensate for that sort of thing.

The last straw was when I was doing a shoot for a friend. The photos were good but the negatives were covered in streaks. I had to spend quite a lot of time in Photoshop cleaning it up, which was very frustrating as I took great care when I took the photos to do my best.

So this week, after saving my pennies, I now have a new addition to my camera family…



Canon EOS 50D.
Click to Enlarge…


This thing is incredible. There is so much functionality built into it that it makes one’s head spin. While not a 5D or a professional camera, it will allow me a high degree of control and creativity with my shots. The bonus, of course, is that the viewing screen built into the back will give me the chance to review the photos that I take and make any corrections if necessary.

It also came with a 17-85mm 4-5.6 IS lens. The Canon IS (Image Stabilized) lenses are awesome. While not eliminating the need for a tripod, for those of us with steadier hands it is a powerful tool. I tested it out by shutting off my flash and opening the aperture as much as possible to take a photo of a friend’s painting in a dimly lit room. The results are breathtaking.

It has been a very hard decision. On one hand, the camera that Mrs. Jorge gave me was instrumental in my development as a student of photography. However, it is harder and harder to justify paying for film when the results are not as good as they used to be. Also, the inconvenience of developing film is very apparent when you have a child. In 2009, I took 5 rolls of shots. For those who know me, this is definitely below the average.

I am looking forward to getting acquainted with my new acquisition. I am very sure that this will bring back the means by which I can pursue something that I am very passionate about.



The Camera Shelf.
Click to Enlarge…


Filed under: General Dialogue, Interest, Photography, Ponderings | Tagged: , , , | 3 Comments »

New Photos? Believe It!

Posted on October 5, 2006 by Jorge

Updated!

After far too long, I have updated my photography blog.

Mind you, there are only two new photos.

Updating takes time because I have to go back and make sure I note the technical specs, as well as the story behind the photo. I have so many in my portfolio at home that it becomes hard to choose.

So why not let me know what sort of things you’d like to see, and I’ll seeif I can accomodate you? Feel free to leave it in the comments section, or e-mail me.


My Latest Addiction

Don’t laugh…



Believe it! Click to enlarge…


I bought Naruto: Clash of Ninja for my Gamecube.

It’s actually a lot of fun and the characters have a lot of personality. So much so that I checked out a couple of episodes of the Anime.

Now I’m hooked.

I recommend it to anyone who is a sucker for a great story. Most people don’t like watching animated shows because they are considered to be for kids. However, quite a lot of work that comes out of Japan is meant for a more mature audience, due to the subject matter and complicated plots.

Filed under: General Dialogue, Interest, Photography | 17 Comments »

Early Kung-Fu

Posted on October 2, 2006 by Jorge

Early Day

My day started pretty early yesterday (04:00) due to the fact that I was invited to take photos from a unique vantage point.

Pending permission, I will post photos on my photography blog.

Actually, I’m a little behind in keeping that site up-to-date. I’ll be posting other new stuff as well as some older images in the next few weeks.



Everybody was Kung-Fu Fighting

Well, not really.

My friends Dave, Nick and Andrew were grading for various levels of Black Belt in Karate yesterday. They all did extremely well.


More of a quick update than anything else.

Filed under: General Dialogue, Photography | 8 Comments »

Gone Trippin’

Posted on August 2, 2006 by Jorge

Gone Trippin’

Well, not quite yet.

Remember this?

Tomorrow we will be heading out to the awesome Algonquin Park for our annual interior trip. It’s going to rock something fierce.

This year, I will be taking up some 100 ISO slide film*. I’m hoping to capture some interesting images. If any of you have some suggestions for subject matter**, please let me know.

So far, I am going to try and shoot…


  • A sunrise
  • A perfect leaf
  • Ripples in the water
  • Reflections


These will most likely show up on the Figtography Blog at some point after the trip.

You can also expect some interesting stories when we get back. Dave and I usually cover all of the good stories from the weekend.

Hope everyone has a great weekend***



* – This film makes for great enlargements.
** – Mind out of the gutter, people.
*** – For those of you in Ontario, have a great long weekend!

Filed under: Friends, Photography, Special Events | 12 Comments »

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