2013 in review

I'm a week late in writing this, but as I always say, better late than never right?

So what happened to me in 2013? I always say this and i'm sure everyone says it too, but 2013 sure went fast. For me it was a whirlwind year, one minute I was celebrating new years eve at my girlfriends house with her family and our friends getting drunk and eating too much food and then suddenly I was covering floods during Australia day, bush fires in winter, fatalities, murders, birthdays, grand openings and everything else you can think of.

I was enjoying myself in Gladstone, I had completed my cadetship, I had made some fantastic friends, was doing a large chunk of the photography at the paper and doing what I loved, taking photos everyday.

However, despite all this, a part of me wanted to leave and find a new challenge. Towards the middle/end of 2013 I had nothing more to learn, I had peaked, learning wise and was starting to plateau, starting to get bored and feeling unchallenged with what the Observer had to offer me. I wanted more responsibility, but I wasn't allowed, so for me, I knew it was time to leave.

Unfortunately for us photographers, jobs do not grow on trees and a good job comes once every few months (if that even) and you need to grab them as soon as you can. The market is over saturated with photographers and companies constantly under valuing photographers by advertising volunteer, part time, casual photography jobs hoping and knowing some sucker will apply and do it just to get their name out there in the market. I'll admit, when I first started I thought having my name out there would kick start my career as a famous photojournalist. I was wrong.

I lost track of how many jobs I applied for and I was getting disheartened in the hope of ever finding a new job. My biggest fear was to be stuck in central Queensland forever, never being able to find a job. 2013 was full of frustration and anger. I wasn't getting the jobs I wanted, constantly falling short of the finish line. Sure, I could've worked at any old photographic joint and made some decent coin, but i'm fussy, I needed to work for a paper, it was either that or nothing at all. Luckily I landed a gig in Wollongong. How I got it, I really don't know, however, this life is full of luck and sometimes things just go you way.

 So looking back on the year that was, I thought the best way to sum up 2013 was to go back and find my 12 favourite photos of the year, not necessarily my best photos but my most memorable ones. So without further adieu...

 - January - 

When I think of January 2013 I think of the Australia day floods. To say it rained in central Queensland is an understatement. It rained like I had never seen before. It was my first time cover floods and not gonna lie, I had a blast going out there seeing flood affected areas.

- February - 

We continued our coverage of flood affected areas in February. What I remember most was going to the Boyne Valley region, completed isolated and cut off from everyone during the floods, the town was left to fend for itself with limited food and water. One of the main sources of income for the locals was dairy production/farming and when the floods hit, many people lost a lot of cattle and farm animals. The town was littered with remains of dead cows. Many cows had become displaced and were left wandering the road.

- March - 

It was still wet and raining in Gladstone in March, but we had a little break from all the wet weather stuff and I went to my first dog show. Had a blast! I love dogs and animals in general and I thoroughly enjoyed walking around taking photos of all the different types of dogs. It's true, some dogs really look like their owners..

- April - 

We did a story about this guy who opened up his own tattoo parlour working from home. Bazaar, he worked from his garage which, as you can see, was very colourfully decorated. 

- May -  

How a car flips upside down I have no idea, yet these guys managed to do it after hitting a pole in a 60km/h zone.

- June - 

We went to the Ubobo fair, where they opened up time capsules buried 25 years ago. There was a series of them buried, all to be opened at 25 year intervals. I don't remember why this guy was there, but he was..

- July - 

Gladstone had a big concert/play organised with the Queensland theatre of arts - or something along those lines - and we had to photograph the different characters in the upcoming play. This shoot was with a bunch of stepford wives dressed up in cool 1950's clothing. I had never done anything like it before and was really happy with the results. 

- August- 

It was quiet for me in August as I nicked off on holidays for a month, so it was pretty slim pickings for August.

- September - 

This was my last photo for the Observer and it could not have ended on a more perfect note than it did. At the Observer we covered a lot of cooky crazy stories and this one was definitely up there. Old mate wasn't happy that he couldn't spend less than $5 on eftpos at a tool shop so he came to the Observer and filed a complaint. He wanted 2 or 3 screws but was denied when he was told that there was a card limit when purchasing goods. Apparently this was news worthy and that my friends, is how I ended my career at the Observer.

One of my first photos at the Mercury. Iron Jay is a wrestler who goes to events and stuff and runs a wrestling for kids kind of activity fun day. Turned out better than I thought.

- October - 

This was the first time I had photographed a dolphin. It just happened to be a dead one. 

- November - 

Like Gladstone, Wollongong is situated on the ocean, however, surfing is a lot bigger here than it is in Gladstone. This was the first time I had photographed surfing and I was pretty happy with the results. I have no idea what makes a good surfing photo  - in terms of surfing technique and such but aesthetically, I just like this photo. 

- December - 

Wollongong has opened a whole new world of opportunity for me in terms of learning as well as photographing new things that I had never done before. I had shot basketball in the past in Gladstone, but never had a shot a sport that was on a national level. Wollongong is home to the Wollongong hawks - my newly adopted favourite basketball team - and shooting a proper NBL game is pretty damn exciting and super fun. This wasn't the first NBL game I shot in Wollongong but this was one of, if not, my first photo to be published on the SMH site. chuffed. 

Ok, well, that's it. I've rambled more that I wanted to, but that was my year in review, I hope you enjoyed, i'm sure 2014 will be bigger and better than the last!

Chris.

Port Kembla + Bulli

The last few days have been busy for me, not with work but shooting landscapes everyday after work. Why? i'm not sure, I just had an urge to get back out there and shoot some landscapes. Wollongong is lucky enough to be on the east coast, surrounded by beautiful and picturesque coastlines which make for wonderful photo opportunities.

The usual set up was used for these photos, trusty nex 5n with the pretty average SEL16 which unfortunately is not very sharp, especially in the corners where it starts to smudge and get pretty average. However, stopping down to about f8 makes it relatively acceptable. I'm not a pixel peeper so to me, they're ok. Not sure how they'd look blow up to large size prints, but certainly online they're fine.

Anyway, short and sweet. enjoy the photos.

Bulli pool. 

Initial impression: SEL35F18

I've had my eye on this lens for a long long time for the simple reason that the 35mm gave an equivalent field of view as a 50mm on a full frame camera. The 50mm is my favourite focal length and find it almost natural to compose and shoot using just that one lens.

There aren't that many reviews on this lens which surprises me honestly. I spent the last few days trolling through the interweb trying to find as many reviews as I could on this lens before biting the bullet and actually purchasing it. From the few reviews I read, I got mixed reviews, some said it was soft some said sharp. To me, personally, I don't pixel peep or look at photos of brick walls. If they look sharp then it's good enough for me. I'd resisted buying this lens for a long time now solely because it's not cheap. $420+. I was lucky enough to find a second hand copy in mint condition for a LOT cheaper than that. I was torn between the Sigma 30mm f2.8 or this lens, but in my opinion, 2.8 is just too slow for my liking.

I've already got a few 35mm lenses for the NEX system, the Fujian f1.7 and the MIR24n f2.0, both lenses are wonderful for different reasons, the Fujian gives a swirly almost dream like look to it and the Mir24n has beautiful smooth bokeh as well as the ability to focus ridiculously close to subjects. So why would you buy another 35mm if you already have 2? Here's my reasoning:

1) Autofocus - Don't get me wrong, I love manual focussing, in fact, my most used lenses on the Nex system are in fact MF lenses, the 35's for example and the Minolta 58mm f1.4 are my most used lenses. However, there are times when you just want the ability to have AF, know that you're going to hit your subject. Although manual focus does make me slow down and almost make me feel nostalgic - like i'm shooting film - it is frustrating at times trying to nail focus and being slightly off every now and then. Having a lens that just works, takes one thing out of the equation when trying to get the perfect shot. On that note, there are times when you pass the camera off to other people to take a photo of you/for you. A lens that auto focusses makes that a lot easier as well.

2) (probably most importantly) Corner Sharpness - The issue with the Fujian and Mir is that they suck in the corners, simple as that. The Fujian - if you're shooting subjects further than a few meters and not in the centre, forget about it. Distant objects are not sharp, corners are blurry and smudgy - basically unusable if not centred. The Fujian does give fantastically sharp images and can create some beautiful portraits/pictures only IF you're after that dreamlike look. 

As you can see, the corners swirl and give off that dream like look, it does add to the effect if you're after it and honestly, I don't mind it, except for the fact it restricts you to shoot in the centre. As you can see, the Fujian IS as sharp as a razor if you nail the focus - not bad for a $30 lens hey?!

The beauty of the Nex system is the ability to adapt lenses of virtually any make to the camera and use them as dummy lenses (full manual). The problem I find, is that, unless you spend a LOT of money on quality glass, I mean in the thousands, generally lenses are going to be a little softer and have smudgier corners when used on the Nex system as opposed to being used on their native bodies. Although adapters are made so that lenses of any brand can be used on the Nex system, there are bound to be minute intolerances in the adapters that will surely reduces contrast and sharpness etc in the lens. Buying a lens made for the Nex system shows off the sensor to its true potential. 

And here it is. Small, compact, sharp. In the centre and corner!

So what are my initial thoughts on the lens? i've only had it for a few hours - literally - and so far i think it's absolutely fantastic! small, compact, light. The lens feels solid, metal construction but not heavy at all. The black in my opinion is damn sexy and makes the camera look schmick! The autofocus is surprisingly fast. Not DSLR speeds fast, but fast enough for the type of shooting I do with then Nex system. I was initially a bit worried about the AF speed on the 5n as there have since been 2 later models of the 5 series that have added the phase and contrast detection on the camera sensor that in theory, gives the camera faster AF and more accurate whilst tracking subjects. I read somewhere that the new improved AF is almost negligible when it comes to use with the 35mm, so that's a win to me for using an older model camera!

Excuse the boring photos but I only had a few hours before it got dark, but I think they clearly demonstrate the abilities of this lens. (Most shots if not all are at 1.8)

@f1.8 - sharp!

@f1.8 

@f1.8

At f1.8 the lens does a pretty good job at isolating the subject from the background even if you're not super close to your subject. The depth of field is greater than it would be on a full frame camera, it's probably closer to 2.8 on a full frame.

Again, pretty dang sharp @f1.8

One thing that sets this lens apart from the other 35mm lenses for mirrorless cameras, is that this is the only 35mm with built in VR, IS or OSS as Sony likes to call it - image stabiliser. I've never needed an image stabilised 50mm lens before so to me I didn't think it would be very useful, however, after using it tonight, i've changed my mind. I'm glad it's there! I did some quick and dirty hand held tests to show the effectiveness of the Sony OSS.

ISO1600, 1/250th @f1.8 

ISO1600, 1/10th @f8.0

ISO1600, 1/4th @f14

Now i'm no pixel peeper, but if you were to ask me, these results are pretty damn impressive! To hand hold a shot at 1/4th of a second with minimal motion - what's not to like?!

So I guess that kind of wraps up my quick initial impression on the lens. So far - very impressed and one of the best lenses I have in my Nex line up. I can see this lens never coming off!

Settling in

When I first came to the Mercury I had a pretty hard time adjusting to a new camera system, coming from Nikon my whole life, i'd probably only handled a Canon camera less than half a dozen times - really.  I was pretty annoyed when I was forced to use Canon cameras, a lot of it had to do with not knowing how to use the damn things. However, things have changed and i've gotten used to it pretty well - I must admit i've learned to like the damn wheel on the back of the camera...

I've always been a lover and user of using flash photography, in particular, off camera flash. When I came to the Merc there was no trigger for me to do my off camera flash firing. They gave me 3 flashes where I could master one of the flashes to slave the other 2, however, this only worked sometimes if lucky. It required a direct line of sight from the master flash to the slaves but wouldn't work if the slave was out in the sun, where the sun would confuse the flash so it wouldn't fire - worst.  Learning a new camera system and not being able to use off camera flash like I wanted to, I think, made the first few weeks the hardest for me as I wasn't able to get the shots that I had so clearly imagined in my head. In Gladstone I had my setup, sure it was crude and crummy but it worked, I was comfortable, here at the Merc, I had none of that. Long story short. I bought some wireless triggers for the flashes and damn! can I say it's made a world of difference, not just technically, but creatively as well.

Long story short - I went and bought some cheapo chinese radio triggers. I have nothing to say about them except, they just work. period. I might do a review about them next week - actually I will. But in the mean time here are some photos I took in the past 2 weeks using the triggers. Enjoy.

So NRL is a pretty big deal around here, this guy's meant to be alright. I wouldn't have a clue who he is. It's definitely going to be interesting in the future when I meet NRL stars and have no idea who they are. #victorianproblems #aflisbetterthanleague 

So last week i had the tough job of photographing surfing. I know, tough, but someone has to do it. I'd never done it before and I went out with the 600mm lens. That thing is stupid big and stupid heavy. I didn't take a monopod because i'm an idiot. Anyway it's pretty fun, but it makes it hard when you don't really know anything about surfing, but, not bad for my first try I reckon.

Okay, short and sweet, just the way I like it.

Until next time,

Ciao.

New paper!

I always say this but i'm horrible at blogs, i don't even know why I bother sometimes, I can't ever seem to be consistent and update frequently. Anyway, it's been a busy few months, left and old job and get a new job at a new paper in a new city, new state.

I said goodbye to Queensland at the end of September and started my new life in New South Wales, it's very different, that's for sure. So the new paper is nice, different, more professional but i'm still learning the ropes and trying to feel my way around. Unfortunately I don't shoot as much as I'd like to, it's just the way it is around here. The standard is definitely higher and i've learnt more in 6 weeks than I did in the two years I was in Gladstone.

I took this job looking for a new challenge and looking to improve my skills and learn more about the industry, i've certainly done that since moving to Wollongong. The Illawarra Mercury is a good paper with high standards in their photographic department. I'm the first NEW full time photographer in 20 years.. I know right! The photographers here have been here for years, 20+ years would be the average i'd say, and I don't blame them, good location, why would you ever want to leave?! 

Enough talk, here are a few photo's i've done in the past 6 weeks. Like I said, I don't take as many photos as I used to - or would like to to be completely honest - but it's a start. Coming from Nikon and being forced to shoot Canon was a bit tricky to start with but i'm slowly getting the hang of it..

So that's pretty much all i've done in 7 weeks.. Like I said, i don't shoot as much as I'd like to, but at a bigger paper like the Mercury there are days when you don't shoot as much as you'd really like - just the way i is. The standard here is ridiculously high and the photographers I work with are all phenomenally talented. I have a long way to go.. that's for sure..