Canon vs. Red

I always imagine the possibilities. Being able to do whatever I dream. The problem is that my dreams are more like fantasies created by kids from watching to many cartoons growing up. I ofttimes live in a world where the skies are so blue that the color cannot be reproduced by any solution available today. Don’t even ask me about the clouds. To document and or story board the multitude of ideas bumping around in my  head will take a lifetime. I am a photographer by love and with the advent of cinema dslr’s I am extremely excited about my new workflow.

We are at war and it’s not just one. There is the internal fight between Canon and Canon as well as the external fight between Canon and Red. (When I think about it, it’s kind of funny. Canon and Hasselblad used to do battle too!) The war comes in the form of our cameras for the absolute position of supreme rule over all things imaging. We are artists starving to show the work we create either to self or public. We create for the love of creating. The tools we utilize builds upon the old adding new and desirable features to stimulate our workflow and creative prowess. As a public we ask for things. Sooner or later, what we ask for comes to fruition in the form of an object completely out doing its competition. This is where the problem comes from. These tools we use to create carries a certain expectation backed by the name of companies with a long standing history to produce a product with proper functionality and vitality.

I am a Canon guy. When I dove head first into the art of photography in 2005 my first camera was a Canon 10D, six months later I bought the 20D, 1 month after I picked up the Hasselblad H1 and Leaf Aptus 22 digital back, within that same month I bought a Canon 1Ds MK2. Thats a lot of cameras to purchase within a year. But for me they all served different purposes. I sold the 10D to a buddy looking to learn about photography and my 1Ds MK2 was stolen on a shoot. Thats when I learned about proper ways to insure your gear. I went through Statefarm Insurance to cover all of my lighting and photographic stuff. I was distraught after the loss of my Mark 2. 8k down the drain. I was so trusting then. Fast forward 4 years. My 20d is functioning superbly with it’s Digic 2 engine chugging 8 megapixel images without effort. My Hasselblad H1 Leaf digital is so temperamental. I wish it had more functionality than it does. But again it serves its purpose  Even though I am rocking a 22 megapixel medium format camera I patiently waited for the next 5d to make waves. With all the rumors floating around dealing with specs and processor I was already sold. Again what we ask for, companies will develop for a price. With the 5D Mark 2 the price was right. Full Frame 35mm HD video 24p/30p/60p oh my Digic 4 processor and 22 megapixels, extreme light sensitivity. This camera was going to be a monster. So began the wait, visits to Canon Rumors and UK commercial photography – Northlight Images became a daily ritual. To have that camera was to have a tool that would redesign my workflow into something that I craved for years. I was so excited. Then it came, Nikon released their D90 with HD 720p and a frame rate of 24. Big grins came across the faces of many in anticipation of Canons response. I knew the monster was about to be set free. Hundreds of people were on the waiting list at Penn Camera, but I had my back up family owned camera shop I’d go to tucked away in the heart of Falls Church, VA. Dominion Camera & Photo Lab is my knight in shinning armor when it comes to getting the Canon bodies I need. They also sell Nikon stuff too.

Then the announcement was made. The rumored camera finally made real. Excitement was in the air but the specs didn’t match up to our expectations. No manual control! No 24p! Hey what’s going on here! I bought the camera anyway. Functionality that was to be included would be later available through firmware update. OK, I will continue to wait and use the camera for my fashion, beauty and portrait work. No worries.

A firmware update was about to be released. Again all the forums lit up like a Christmas tree from the speculation of manual control and 24p. Did we get what we wanted? Yes and no. Manual control was the first. Very exciting but we still felt slighted. We have to have the film look! Again I continued to wait. Not using the camera for its added purpose of video. That’s when a I took more notice of RED and it’s forthcoming Scarlet and Epic modular solutions. From the design to the spec’d functionality. 1 million configurations and it shoots at 6k.

What a monster. My initial thought was “Why didn’t Canon do this first?” I already knew the answer, but the question still had to be posed. Canon is a HUGE company. They have products in development that only the top-dogs know about that will revolutionize the industry as we know it. But they are out to make money. So when you think about it, to now include video functionality for their dslr’s after they noticed what consumers were doing was a business move on there end . Even with the the inclusion of that feature it was still considered a taste. Canon did not really know how this new feature would have been received. Its like the case with Apple and their software leaks here and there to the torrents. What better way to evaluate impact with consumers and end-users than to give them crumbs. Inexpensive bites followed by surveys on what can be done to make the mixture better. This is business 101 people!

Red was and still is a small tight-nit group with ginormous goals. Goals and ideas they follow through on. They also have a following in which they keep in strong contact with. That alone makes them a stark contender for the best imaging solution.

I am a full believer in the underdog. Again look at Apple vs. Microsoft. Everyone knows I am an Apple guy! Yes their products cost more, but you definitely know what you are getting. A product that lasts for years and is supported by updates that improve functionality and software integration. I did buy Snow Leopard and it does ROCK!

I believe RED follows a similar work ethic. Build something that works and functions better than anything else on the market, ensure stability, be attentive and they will love you for it. Remember the difference between smaller companies and big ones is communication and a belief in how these corporations think consumers will approach their product!

This May Very Well be a Life Lesson…

I’ve taken some time out from this world to think about my existence and to truely find out what this life means to me. It’s interesting when you think about it. I’ve always thought about purpose and direction ever since I could remember. In fact, there is one memory that stands out.

It’s gray outside. The streets were wet and flooded in some areas due to sewage drains clogged with trash. It’d been raining all week and to make matters worst, I acted up that day which means my dad spanked that ass and punished me to my room. That’s why I’d been staring out of my window upstairs in my corner bedroom. The window was surrounded by an old wood frame that had been painted over to many times for anyone to count yet it still was splitting and splintering. I used 3M tape to cover up the cracks; Dad hated that. Yeah, that was me, the kid that always had crazy plans that were more trouble than what it was worth. That particular day however, questions kept running through my head. As a kid, there was only one that I really gave thought to, “Why Am I Here!”. I really never had a real answer then but, if thought was put into it, the answer would be based purely on cartoons that I had been watching that day. My imagination ran in circles even when I slept. I could have been cited with Attention Deficit Disorder but lucky for me that phrase wasn’t coined yet.

Until I found the truth, that question – Why Am I Here! stayed a lingering uninterrupted flow of chaotic energy. It was so distracting. Taking from everything that I held close to my heart. My direction changed like the wind. Never having a hold on anything that really mattered I moved aimlessly through this life. Well, that’s until I went through my awakening season. Everyone in some part of their lives be it young or old connects with their inner truth; it’s usually the latter though. This truth is a core set of rules that indirectly governs their life and the paths chosen throughout. Unless we are truly mature, we can not recognize or identify with this truth. It’s hidden from us. Left alone to be discovered like buried treasure lost at sea by those who hunger for knowledge on a quest for subsistence. My quest began just about 2 years ago. I was lost, angry, confused, directionless and purposeless. Daunting none the less, I was starting back at square one, well actually below square one. I was a wreck! and everything around me was well, what could I say except for, chaotic. So 2 years ago I asked myself not – “Why am I Here?” but instead, “Where do I Begin?”. The best answer for that was the obvious; at the beginning.

I can honestly say that I had rage burning in the core of my spirit. I was unbalanced energy attracting that same energy into my path. It was concealed at best through a mask of fantasy. This mask being drawn together to ease the burden of excuses that had been built up like a wall so great and a density so thick, that not even the purest force could corrode. This began my introversion. Because this was the beginning walk on my path to self discovery I felt like Alice in Wonderland falling deeper into the rabbit hole with no visible end in sight. As I continued my descent I combed through a range of discord. My life became boring and work-filled. Day in and day out it was the same thing. Wake up, brush teeth, bathe, get dressed, feed cats, go to work, come home, turn on the TV (preferably CNN), eat dinner, fall asleep in the big chair, wake up, brush teeth, bathe…. you know the rest. This went on for months. Then, one morning when I was sleeping Phoenix pounced on my chest and started playing with my face as if she was shadowboxing my cheeks. Phoenix was one of my cats. She had a sister named Lexi. Now Lexi was the younger of the two. She was very light hearted, timid and clumsy not like Phoenix who was the direct opposite. She had a presence of royalty. They were deep grey colored Burmese cats with white socks and white covered tummies. I love my kitties. They were beautiful creatures and excellent companions. They insisted my fall down the rabbit hole come to an end. That’s when I finally reached the ground.

I disliked being filled up with this randomly fluctuating ball of chaotic energy. I needed a release. The first step was to get my mind and body in-tuned with a flow that was uplifting and strengthening. It was time to absolve this draining routine and begin something new. I remember being handed a gift, a small nugget of information that made sense. I was told, “You are what you attract!” . However, I fought that statement with blinding force when I first heard it. Making excuses for the people I deemed close friends. I thought that trying to help others in my circle attain focus and clarity would help them reach whatever goals they set. But how could I help someone attain such clarity when I had none? Have you ever taken a step outside of your ego to view everyone around you. I did! Thats when I started to realize the truth. That’s when I started to gain a few pixels of clarity. It was small at first but everyday it grew. It did not happen overnight. This was a process of months. I took notice of the energies that were a constant in my life at that time and surmised they were not forces that added to my existence. They actually subtracted from it, through lying, cheating, manipulation, corruption. All in an effort to gain some sort of sanctuary under my wing. Was that me? Was I all those things? Remember, you are what you attract! I realized there has to be distance. I inferred change. I began to shed my old skin and with it random acquaintances as well as those I considered longtime friends whom I only saw with arms stretched out and palms facing the sky. I confronted head-on everything that carried chaos energy and extricated it. Finally, a veil had been lifted. I remembered the moon being so close, with the night sky clear and colored a deep purplish blue. I did not mind the glaring Burger King lights across 118. I just appreciated being able to see the moon with all its imperfections clearly at that moment as I stood naked on my porch on the second floor of my apartment complex in Germantown with a glass wine, nothing fancy Robert Mondavi Nappa Valley Merlot Vintage 2002.

Now that my question -“Where do I Begin!” has been answered. I moved back to the persisting question “Why am I Here?”. This question became comprehensible only recently. If we are energy moving along a distinct path attracting like energies how do we improve upon what’s already there? Easy, we shape ourselves to be better than we were. This can only happen through constant growth through seeking knowledge and understanding. Reading, researching, discovering, learning, doing, being passionate in your progression. Being Present!!!

Why am I here? I am here to create. I am here to live a life of purpose and meaning through constant learning and a belief that everyday we need to be absorbed in learning something new so that we maybe better than we were the day before.

~gabriel

Blurring the Lines!

Photoshop  is not the end all, be all tool when it comes to delivering a spectacular image. But it is what’s needed for the market today. Understanding this and applying to your workflow can thoroughly improve upon a photographers work. Enhancing an image slightly, fixing color, dust particles, pimples, etc. is what one must do when creating a piece. This is what is included in a workflow.

Workflow is an order to things. It is the steps taken ,which helps the artist create an image from start to finish. Without it your lost! I am constantly reworking mine. To become better than I was the day before. I believe in that! Photographing and retouching  are separate talents combined to form a finished product. As an artist, your finished product is what you envision in your head.

For this shoot, we came up with a vision inspired by the fictitious characters of anime. We applied our spin to it and came up with this:

I am not a fan of blurry skin. Overly processed Gaussiened out like a porcelain doll. I hate it! Really! I believe in perfect skin to a point. It has to be natural. Clean and dewy. That is the sweet spot. Specular highlights. Ummm pours, unclogged and yummie. Create realism…