My YouTube channel

So in the last few months, I've started a YouTube channel.  Haven't really done anything photography wise.  Just uploaded a few videos showing off some fireworks and a few shorts where I get the majority of my views.  You can view the channel here.

I want to get my Google AdSense back so I'm hoping more and more people visit my blog and subscribe to the blog and the YouTube channel.

Shooting with the Sony A7R II and the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM

I picked up the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens today to complete the Sony setup.  I have the Sony a7R II body which has the 42.4 megapixel sensor.  I really didn't get to test it out today as the conditions weren't right.  High winds and hardly any light.

I have to say I am impressed with the Sony a7R II body and the 24-240MM lens combination.  The files sizes coming out the camera are spectacularly huge.  I am shooting uncompressed RAW files.  They are coming out at roughly 85.6 megabytes.  Those are huge files.  The dynamic range is just amazing.  I can hand hold the camera at 1/5 of a second and the pictures are tact sharp.  The colour science is just as good as any other camera brand although I find Canon's colour science just a tad ahead of Sony although I think Sony is catching up quickly.

I have to knock the image back a bit in jpeg format to 99% quality to get it just under 25 megabytes.  At 100% resolution, the JPEG file is about 42 megabytes in size.  

Tomorrow (March 14, 2020) is supposed to be nice and sunny with a high of 2 degrees Celsius.  I think a trip to either Algonquin Park or Parc Omega is due.  The only reason I want to go to Parc Omega is to go do some photography and got some fresh maple syrup right out of the trees.

I think I will have to take 2 128GB SD cards with me tomorrow.  I have to learn not to spray and pray  with the photography.  The early 2013 MacBook Pro can edit the photos easily.  I'm going to test editing the photos on my Windows 10 machine as well along with the 2018 Apple iPad Pro.

More Parc Omega photography with the Sony RX100 Mark VII

So I took a day off from work last week to go to Parc Omega for the day.  We got our first snow fall of the season and I wanted to photograph some animals in the fresh snow.  I’ve been trying to convince myself that I need a full frame, high megapixel camera and a really fast computer to do landscape and wildlife photography.  That just isn’t true.  I’ve been using my Sony RX100 Mark VII camera and a 2018 Apple iPad Pro with the 12.9” screen and a 512GB hard drive for the past six months to do all my computing and photography work.  If I didn’t say what equipment I was using no one would know unless they asked and I told them what I was using.  It is not the equipment, but rather the photographer.  Photography is pretty easy to learn.  Anyone can shoot decent photos.  You just have to have an eye for it.  You have to see the composition.  You just have to take the camera with you.

The above photo was taken at Parc Omega in Montebello, Quebec.  It was taken with the Sony RX100 Mark VII, edited on a 2018 Apple iPad Pro in Pixelmator Photo.  Literally just one click and voila.  Does not take much.

Back to using Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic CC

So after several months of using my 2018 Apple iPad Pro 12.9" with the 512GB hard drive, I am back to using my 2013 Apple MacBook Pro with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic CC.  It is totally frustrating.  I've been using my Sony RX100 Mark VII as my main photography camera.  Apple has not updated the RAW engine so my photos are incompatible with iPadOS.  They are incompatible with Windows 10 as well.  Recently Adobe released the RAW software for the Sony RX100 Mark VII and the Sony AR7 Mark IV.  I absolutely love my Sony RX100 Mark VII.  It's my go to camera/camcorder.  I know the 2013 Apple MacBook Pro can handle editing pictures and 1080 video from the Sony RX100 Mark VI and VII.  Just takes a while to edit 4K footage.  

I was at Mud Lake for a bit today and I was thinking that I really want to use the photos from the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  I read somewhere online that Adobe finally updated the RAW plugins for its software suites to finally use the Sony RX100 Mark VII.  I'm going to use Lightroom Classic CC on my MacBook Pro for a while.  

I really wanted to use my iPad Pro with the iPadOS but iPadOS and the photography software is just not there yet.  Maybe give it another year and it'll be there but it's not there yet unfortunately.  The apps I use have to be fully upgraded for use with iPadOS and external hard drive support.  I'm just going to use Lightroom Classic and Affinity Photo even though I do have access to Photoshop.  I like Affinity Photo much better.

More pics shot with the Sony RX100 Mark VI

I know a few photographers who would bock at using a point and shoot camera.   Apparently it’s not professional enough.  Can’t control any of the settings on the camera.  That is nothing but snobbery and purely uneducated B.S.  You can control your ISO, f stop and zoom.  The camera has internal stability to take care of camera shake at 200MM.  Yeah it’s not an interchangeable lens camera but it’s not meant to be.  The Sony RX100 Mark VI and VII both come with a 24-200MM lens which is great for wide landscape and up close and personal.  If you need to get closer to a subject, use your feet.  If you want a more panoramic shot, take 2-3 shots and stitch them together in Affinity Photo.  Don’t make excuses for your photography.  Work with the equipment you have.  Adapt and change.  Photography is not static.  Shoot out of your comfort zone.  A few years back, I would not even shoot video because I thought I just wanted to be a photographer.  One day at Parc Omega, I shot a video, edited it and uploaded it to Shutterstock.  It sold within a week for $120US.   That is when I started shooting footage as well.  Money.  Money.  Money.  

Our trip to Algonquin Park

We wanted to go see some wild moose and Algonquin Park is a great place to go and see them.  Within 5 minutes of entering the park we got to see this yearling and it was the only moose we saw the whole day.  Not even a fox, coyote or anything.  It was a dreary day anyways and I got to fly my drone too.  So it was a good day.

Actually spent a day...

...doing some photography.  The day began at a local service listening to our church guy talking about the gospel.  I am non religious but the girlfriend is into it.  Then spent about 2 hours at a local coffee shop just talking about stuff.  After the 2 hour talk, the girlfriend and I took a drive up to the Ottawa valley to visit her parents grave site.  Then the rest of the afternoon was spent at Calabogie lake taking a timelapse using the Sony a7ii with the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-200MM lens.  Then dinner at Big Bone BBQ in Kanata.  Love them wings and ribs.  Then filled up the car with car and then home.  Now I have the Sony a7ii setup on the balcony doing a time-lapse of the sunset.  I think I will sleep well tonight.  Pictures to follow.

The Sony RX100 Mark VI

 

Have I mentioned that I absolutely love the Sony RX100 Mark VI as a camera and a video camera???  It's an awesome pocket point and shoot camera.  Much better than any cell phone camera.  Of course it costs more than any cell phone and that is why it's a better camera.  If you think you're a photographer carrying around an Apple iPhone or a Samsung Galaxy or any other phone, you're not a photographer.  You're someone who just takes snaps with your cell phone.  That is it, that is all.  Sorry, not sorry to disappoint you.

Some shots from Parc Omega

Just a sample of my day at Parc Omega this past Tuesday.  Wish I could get out there more often but work gets in the way.

Niagara Falls in black and white

One of the many shots from the previous weekend.  Saturday was really nice.  Sunday turned out to be really windy with 125KM wind speeds.  A tour of a chocolate factory was in order instead.  Shot this with a Sony RX100 Mark VI.  And just used Apple Photos to do some light editing.  Not that much.  I hope you enjoy.

So the new year is coming

2019 is here in a couple of days and I cannot wait.  I haven't done much photography this year but that is changing.  I've told the girlfriend every Saturday this year is mine and mine alone to do what I want to do.  So I will be doing photography every Saturday this year.  No matter where it is, it will be photography.  I'm planning on going to Parc Omega every Saturday until the end of March until we leave for Calgary.  Even out west, every Saturday will be mine to do photography.  It will be luckily in the mountains out west.  

I need to do more photography for my sanity.  It's the only thing that brings joy and peace into my life.  I work all week and don't do much on weekends.

The lake

This past weekend my girlfriend along with her sister and I decided to go out for a drive to the country.  I haven't been here in about a year or so.  It's about an hour west of where I live.  It's really peaceful and quiet.  Gives us time to think and relax.

And I thought October would be a good month

And I thought October would be a good month on Shutterstock.  3 videos sold in a span of 2 days and now we're back to one or two photos a day at just thirty six cents a day.  Luckily the month isn't over yet and isn't even a third of the way done.  I hope that I sell a few more clips on Shutterstock and a few more on Pond5 and Videoblocks.

After work I took my drone out to fly for about half an hour.  Got the footage and shots I wanted.  It was actually a pretty good day today to take photos and videos.  It was very foggy this morning and I got a few shots I wanted including the parliament buildings in the fog.  I just have to edit and upload them to my three favourite micro stock sites tonight so they'll be available for sale in the next few days.  

On a side note, I'll be going back to my previous employer starting next week to finish off a contract. I honestly do not like working where I am right now.  The red tape is just amazing there.  You can't fart without having a meeting about it.  

The girlfriend and I will be moving at the end of the month and saving up money.  April 2019 our plan is to move out of Ottawa.  Neither of us speak French so getting a descent job is out of the question.  Last year, I was in Calgary on a contract and I fell in love with the Rocky Mountains.  I think our plan is to either move to Calgary or Kingston, Ontario.  I prefer Calgary as there is hardly any French out there and the mountains are 45 minutes from the city.

So if anyone needs a full time photographer and you pay well, let me know.  ;) 

Back at Parc Omega

I went to Parc Omega over the weekend and got some good shots.  They are upgrading some areas of the park.  It's still not as good as it was when I first started going there.  The fences are higher making photography more difficult.  I don't like having fences in my photography.  It distracts from the animals and footage I am trying to photograph.

This upcoming weekend, the girlfriend and I are heading up to Algonquin Park to see the tree leaves turning colour.  It's going to be a gong show with all the tourists from the Toronto area.  I've been going there for the past three years and it's always a gong show.  This year I want to bring my DJI Spark to get some arial footage of the trees and the natural beauty of the park.

One of my better shots

A lone Arctic Wolf showing its fangs.  I absolutely love wolves.  My favourite type of wolf is the Timber Wolf.  Their fur in the winter is just amazing.  Absolutely love wolves.

Out west

I really, really want to move out west.  Not to Bring Cash British Columbia but somewhere near Calgary, Alberta.  I was there for four month last year on a contract and I fell in love with the ruggedness of the province.  From Calgary, you are about 45 minutes from the mountains.  I absolutely love the Rockies and the lakes within the mountains.  Calgary is also much closer to the American southwest where I was in 2016.  I totally love the wilderness of the western U.S and Canada.  Being in Ottawa is crap.  I've been here for 35 years.  I am so bored here.  There is absolutely nothing to do here.

 

The girlfriend and I will be looking for a place to live and of course jobs out there.  I would love to get a full time photography gig out there.

$50 off on my Pond5 portfolio

Yes, you read that correctly.  Since it's my 43rd birthday tomorrow, I'm taking $50 off on everything in my Pond5 portfolio.  All photos and footage clips are $199 until the end of the month when the go back up again.  Purchase today!!!  Do not wait.  Just click on the link here.

Butterfly

I decided to go to the Experimental Farm yesterday to see if there were any nice flowers being grown.  I think it was too hot during mid day to capture anything nice.  Due to the extreme heat this summer and lack of rain, the flowers were a bit wilted.  I did manage to capture a nice butterfly.  Photography and taking videos for sale makes me happy.

No Social Media

I finally shut off my Facebook account today.  Instagram and Twitter were completely useless as far as marketing my services go.  Never ever made money with social media.  All I got was trolls and spam email and requests to send money to someone in Nigeria.  

Those platforms never really did work as I only upload my photography and footage to sites like Shutterstock, Pond5 and Videoblocks.  I've recently started to blog in the hopes people find my photos and footage appealing.  I think it also helps people to know me a little better.  

Facebook and Twitter for me were very polarizing.  Especially over the past decade or so with what's come out about Facebook and Twitter, with what they've being doing and trying to do in recent elections.  There is a lot of fake news and a lot of propaganda which is dividing people against each other which does not help.  I don't want my blog to be about politics, censorship or anything of that nature.  I want my followers to be constructive when criticizing my photographs or videos.  Don't make hateful or offensive comments.  It does not add to the discussion but rather detracts.  I am open to ideas.  Good and bad.  I am willing to help and learn.  I want to teach what I know.  I want to learn from other people.

I find social media makes people very anti-social.  Smart phones are making people not so smart.  Growing up, we did our own research.  We did not have Google.  We actually read books.  That's where we learned from.  Now you can find everything on Google or YouTube.  Well almost everything.  I hope that people actually use less and less social media.  I hope people instead go for walks and drives out into the country.  Take their cameras and camcorders with them.  You actually have a device that fits in your pocket that does both.  Actually talk to each other.  More importantly listen to one another. 

Been away for a while

The Rockies in B/W

I have not posted in a while.  I have been extremely busy since March.  Also, a lot has changed in my personal life.  First off, back in March 2017, I left for Calgary for what I thought was a three month contract with the National Energy Board.  Turned into a four month contract.  I also started dating a wonderful woman back in January 2017.  I am still with her and we actually moved in after I came back from Calgary.

I spent a lot of time in the rocky mountains on my weekends when I was out in Calgary and I have to say I fell in love with the environment when I was out there.  I took roughly ten thousand photographs while in Calgary.  I traveled to Vancouver, Seattle, Tacoma and back to Calgary while out in the wild, wild west of Canada.

A lot has changed in the past 8 months.  All for the better I think.  Got a new girl.  Got some new digs.  Got some new photography and video equipment which I will talk about in a later blog.  Needless to say, I am back in Ottawa looking for a job.  I am still doing a lot of photography.

I will be updating the blog more often now.  Stay tuned!