More photos for sale

 

Last night, someone bought a picture of a timber wolf I took several years ago at Parc Omega.  Fine Art America just paid for itself and then some.  Thank you to the buyer in Colorado.  

 The above photos were taken in the Ottawa Valley on October 10, 2020.  No one around and it was very peaceful.  Even went out for dinner.  Considering Ottawa is in another lockdown, we had to go out of town to get something to eat.  Gotta love the draconian levels of government in Canada. 

Both pictures are available for sale here and here.  Hopefully they'll be approved on my Adobe stock portfolio and my Deposit Photos portfolio.

Finally found the music site

So I finally found the site to get free music for my YouTube channel and it was right in front of me.  I hate the sound of my voice and I hate being in front of the camera.  So I’ll be creating videos for YouTube that I shoot and just put them together and add the music.  I have a few videos on my YouTube channel and they seem to be doing ok.  I have just one subscriber right now but I’ve only been adding a one video a week for the past couple of weeks.  I think I’ve been doing the YouTube thing half-heartedly for the past couple of weeks.  Now that I’ve found the right songs for my videos, I’ll be adding more and more videos to my YouTube channel and hopefully it’ll grow.  So check it out and subscribe here   

Fall is here

 

I went to Mud Lake today to do some photography.  Also needed the walk.  This was the only usable photography I got today.  I was just thinking about setting goals and finishing goals.  I don't want my life to be meaningless.  Just like a leaf in the wind.  Just set one goal at a time and complete it.  Don't worry about the money.  Money will come if you enjoy what you're doing.  75% of people hate what they do for a living.  I am one of the 75%.  Photography is what I love to do.  I saw a very inspiring video today by a former California governor.  I think he's a RINO but this is not about politics.  It's about setting goals and finishing your goals.  It's a short video.  Worth your time. 

So done with Shutterstock

 On June 1st, 2020, Shutterstock pretty much screwed over their contributors.  I used to make a minimum of $0.36 a download for any picture.  I used to make a minimum of $15-20 for a video download.  Now, it's $0.10 for a photo download and $0.34 a video download.  So basically getting screwed.  Under those new sales figures, I'd cash out maybe once every six months.  If I was lucky.  I disabled my portfolio immediately on June 1st.  Shutterstock basically became iStock which won the race to the bottom.  I even made a video which is published on YouTube.

If you are a contributor on Shutterstock, please consider disabling your portfolio until Shutterstock reverts its payment plan to contributors.  I had 15,600+ photos and 1,560 video clips.  6 years of hard work shooting, editing and uploading.  Shutterstock needs to understand that I do this as a passion. I love photography.  I love shooting video.  If Shutterstock doesn't change, I hope they go down in flames.  In the meantime, if you need photos, you can go to my Adobe stock portfolio.  If you need video, you can go to my Pond5 portfolio.

Why I love Sony mirrorless cameras

 

I've been shooting waterfalls the past couple of outings.  Ever since I got the 9 stop ND filter, I've been shooting long exposure waterfalls.  And I love it.  All my shots are taken during the day.  At least 6 second shots a ISO 50 and higher than f9.5.  Gotta love it.

Shooting long exposure photography

 

Some weather rolling in

 

Shot these photos off of the balcony on the 9th floor of our building.  We were supposed to get heavy rain and tornadoes but not even a drop of rain.  The sky was rather interesting non the less.  Both shots were shot with the Sony a7RII handheld.  Both will be available for sale on my site soon.

Time to go back

The above shot was taken last week at the 5 Span bridge in Pakenham, Ontario.  It was a warm and sunny Friday with a lot of people out cooling down in the water.  I was hoping there was no one there but there were maybe about 75-90 people there cooling off in the water.  Today is a hot and sunny Monday.  But it’s a Monday so I’m hoping I’m there alone so I could take photos of these little waterfalls from a different angle.  I really like shooting with the Sony A7R Mark II and the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens and the 10 stop GOBE ND filter.  I can take really long exposure photos during the middle of the day and get the silky, smooth water.  The above photo was shot at ISO 50, f16 and an 8 second exposure.  Long enough for the water to freeze in motion.  Today I am hoping I can be there alone and take my time to find better compositions.  I’m hoping I can vlog it as well.  I hate being on camera and doing it in front of people whether I know them or not.

What are your Pro Photographer moves?

So what are some of your pro photographer moments?  Forgetting the lens cap on your lens?  Dead batteries in the camera? Forgotten batteries at home?  Full SD card?  You forget your SD card at home?  It’s all happened to everyone at some point.  Part of the job right.  Tell me what else has happened to you while you’re out with the camera.

The above shot was taken with the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Long Exposure photography with the GOBE 10 stop ND Filter

I really, really enjoy using this GOBE 10 Stop ND filter.  The above shots are ISO 50, f16, 13" shots of the 5 span bridge in Pakenham, ON and the waterfalls are located in Almonte, ON.  If you asked me to do this 15-20 years ago, I'd tell you it's impossible to shoot a 13" shot in the middle of the day.  But now with the 10 stop ND filter in front of the lens, anything is possible

I hope next year, my fiancee and I could go to Florida and see a SpaceX rocket launch and I could shoot the launch with the ND filter during the day.  This is one of the many reasons why I love photography.  I.T. can suck it.  LOL

Rainy day photography

I wanted to do some more long exposure photography with the GOBE 10 stop ND filter.  Today was a dark and dreary day.  Perfect weather for some long exposure photography like the picture above.  This small waterfall is located in Britannia Park located in the west of Ottawa.  I had forgotten about this park for about 5 years.  Rediscovered it a few weeks back Nd I wanted to photograph it again.  It’s really a small, beautiful and pleasant park with not too many people around.

I’ve had pretty much nothing to do since I can’t go back to my job because of the Kung Flu virus.  I’ve uploaded both of the above pictures to my own personal website.  Both pictures are available for sale there.  I’ve also uploaded both pictures to my Adobe Portfolio.  They are waiting for moderation. What I like about both shots is how crisp and sharp they both are.  I used ISO 100, f8 and a 30 second exposure.  Both were shot with the Sony a7R Mark II, the Sony f3.5-6.3 24-240MM lens and the GOBE 10 stop ND filter.

Hi If you are located in Ottawa or in the Ottawa Valley and would like to learn how to use your DSLR, give me a shout here.  I charge $50/hour.  If more hours are needed to learn your camera, we can come out to a deal.  I started doing pro photography back in 2008.  I graduated from Algonquin College as a pro photographer in 2012 and I’ve been shooting ever since.

Gobe 10 stop ND filter

I’ve been wanting to do some long exposure photography during the day with my Sony a7R Mark II camera for a while now.  I’ve been looking for a neutral density filter that is reasonably priced and does a solid job.  I found the Gobe 10 stop ND filter on Amazon. I bought this filter for $60 Canadian and I am extremely happy with this filter.  It arrived within 4 days and I got to test it this past weekend.  The above shot is shot at ISO 100, f16 and a 6 second exposure.  You read that right.  Six seconds shot at roughly 4:30pm on a really sunny day with some nice clouds in the sky.  The above shot is of Calabogie Lake in Calabogie, Ontario.  There are a few waterfalls in the Ottawa and Ottawa valley that would be nice to photograph during the day and evening.  That will be my goal for this week.

Comet NEOWise

Got this photo last week off my 9th floor balcony looking northwards over Gatineau, Quebec.  Hopefully this Saturday it will be nice and clear so I can go out of town to get a better photo.  I want to go to Moosecreek and get better photos and videos of the comet.  The photos are available for sale on my own website.  It’s also available for sale on my Adobe stock portfolio.  Since this is my only form of income right now, please consider purchasing something from either site.  Thank you and I appreciate it.

My only setup for now

2018 Apple iPad Pro.  Check.  Apple Magic Keyboard.  Check.  Apple Magic Mouse.  Check.  Sony a7R Mark II.  Check.  Canon Vixia HF G50.  Check.  Canon G7X Mark III.  Check.  Joby Tripod.  Check.  Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max (64GB model).  Check.  Apple EarPods (v. 2).  Check.  Best photography setup.  Check.  Apple SD Card to USB C adapter.  Check.

The 2018 Apple iPad Pro is an amazing device.  Edits my Sony a7R Mark II 85 megabyte files with ease.  Edits the Canon Vixia HF G50 4K 30fps files easily.  I do not have one complaint about this setup at all.  Extremely portable.  Once we’re allowed to travel, the iPad Pro and the Canon G7X Mark III will be my go to devices.    Just the iPad Pro and the small and powerful Canon camera.  Dream devices.

Oh how you disappoint me Shutterstock

Shutterstock!!!!!!  What did you do????  And why did you do it????  I think I known what the answer is.  Greed.  Pure greed.  Lowered our licenses to 10 cents a photo.  You have become the iStock of the micro stock world.  Shutterstock, I will no longer upload any photos or any footage.  I will go exclusively with Adobe Stock and Pond5.  I will be disabling my portfolio as soon as I can on Shutterstock.  $0.10 a photo download is insulting.  Apparently I made it to level 3 today where I get 25% of the download which works out to about $0.12 a photo download.  Considering I was making $0.36 a download before this hair brained scheme, this new scheme is a kick in the ass.

For any new contributor, do not even upload to Shutterstock.  It is not worth it.  Even living in a third world country, $0.10 a photo download is an insult.  Hardware, software, travel, editing, time.  Not worth the measly and paltry $0.10 a photo download.  I haven’t sold any footage yet under this new payment scheme and I hope I don’t.  All contributors should disable their portfolios immediately to send Shutterstock a message.