Tag: photography

Photography-related posts. I talk about inspiration, settings, gear, other photographers, etc.

A-Z Challenge – U

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U stands for “Upgrading”

We are constantly urged by ads and marketing to upgrade everything we have. For instance, phones, software, cars, gadgets, etc. In photography, we’re presented with new cameras and technology every year. The camera you just bought will be “obsolete” as soon as next year’s model comes out. There’s more and more megapixels, better high ISO sensitivity, faster AF… the list goes on and on!

When I bought my Fujifilm X100T last year, it made me realize that I didn’t have to upgrade my camera gear to improve my photography, or more importantly, get more enjoyment out of my hobby. I became more aware of the concept of “good enough” and the “satisficers” vs “maximizers” and found myself falling into the camp of the satisficers. This camera had less megapixels than my dslr, didn’t have as high a burst mode, and the video quality was worse. But it was definitely good enough, and the advantages of small size, low weight, simpler controls made it a far more enjoyable experience for me. “Good enough” actually brought me more joy than “maximizing”.

So, now I ask myself… why must I upgrade to the latest and greatest? Phones for instance… I find a low to mid-range smartphone good enough for me. I don’t have the urge to upgrade. Also, I use Adobe Lightroom every day, but I decided not to upgrade to the latest “Cloud” version… for me, version 5 was good enough. If I had the CC version, it would probably force me to upgrade my computer to keep up with the more powerful features that are regularly added. I don’t want to get forced into this cycle of upgrading!

It used to be a huge temptation for me to keep upgrading my things. But these days, I find happiness in settling for the “good enough” items, and I do not spend cycles worrying or researching to make sure I am at the cutting edge. For me, it’s a more satisfying way to live, and I can spend my energies elsewhere.

Bright day

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Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/15 sec, ISO6400
 Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！ How’s it going?

Today I spent the first half of the day at the baseball fields watching Koa’s team play back-to-back games in the bright morning light. It’s only April, but the Texas sun is already strong. In fact, I got a nice sunburn on my arms! Koa’s team lost both games, but they had fun and scored a decent amount of runs. Tomorrow, Koa is playing in another one… the All-star game! ⚾️ He was one of the players chosen to represent his team, so that means 3 games in two days. And on top of that, Monday night, he has another regular game! so 4 games in 3 days. It’s crazy! Normally there are not so many games in one stretch, but there were a couple earlier games that got rained out, so these are make-up games. I think Koa is going to be one tired player!

Today’s photo is of my latest Instax prints and the cool set of markers I use to take notes on them. I love the Instax prints so much. They have a wonderful charm about them… Even my mediocre photos look nice when printed on instant film! ☺️

I am about two-thirds of the way through Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City, and I am enjoying it a lot! It’s interesting and fun… a nice light YA read, and great for a change of pace. I recommend it. In fact, I am going to read more right now before I sleep.

おやすみなさい and take care!

– B Barron Fujimoto

Grey day

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Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec, ISO1250
 Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！ Good evening!

Right now (9:50 PM) it is raining outside ☔, and the forecast according to Bay is for heavy downpours starting around midnight. I like the rain but I am hoping that Koa’s baseball game tomorrow evening will be unaffected by the weather.

Tonight’s photo is not grey like the weather, but pretty colorful owing to the fact that I used the Velvia film simulation on my X100T, and the Instax prints have deep, rich colors. I really love the look of the Instax film… there is a nice depth to them. Almost 3D. And I love the little dark vignette-like border around the edges where the color meets the white border. It really looks like you are peering into a window or down into a pool! (ok, use your imagination a little!)

Tonight, one of Mariko’s friends came over to watch a Japanese horror movie called “Tomie Unlimited”. I don’t usually like horror movies, but I watched the first 15 minutes or so and it was fun! There was a kind of gory part at the beginning, but it was so over-the-top that it was funny. I’ll have to finish watching the movie soon. (I had to take Bay to his piano lesson so I couldn’t continue the movie)

Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/10 sec, ISO3200
 Cedar Park, 2016

Well, time for bed!

おやすみなさい！

– バロン Barron Fujimoto

 

Finding a style

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Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/60 sec, ISO3200
 Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！ Hello, how’s it going? Enjoying the warmer weather? It’s been in the 80s here in Austin this week. Lots of sun! ☀️

I read a lot of photography blogs and listen to several photography podcasts, and one theme that comes up often is that you should find your photographic style, and not have such a wide range. I don’t know how important that is to an amateur photographer like myself, but I can see the logic in that philosophy if you are running a photography business.

However, I think I have found an aesthetic that I really like, and I have been using it a lot lately. It is kind of simulating the look of film, with a nice grain to it, and also not super-sharp. I have been experimenting with creating presets in Lightroom so I can get a consistent “look” to my photos. It is still early on, but I am enjoying using it! Basically, one preset adds a certain amount of grain. The next preset adds a slight “S” tone curve. And finally, my blur preset adds two gradient adjustments to de-sharpen the entire image. (If there is a better way to do this in LR5, let me know!)

In the photo above, I have applied all of these presets, plus added a black border which I love (Nik Analog efex 2). I am also using the Fujifilm Velvia film simulation here. I think it is a good start in defining a consistent style. I still enjoy both black & white and color images, so I can’t really make a choice. I mean, I need to take my sushi photos, and they just won’t look so great in black & white, right? 🍣

Well, as you can see from the photo, we had sushi at home for dinner. While it was super-delicious, eating so much sushi-rice makes me so thirsty… I’ve had three large glasses of water already tonight!

Have a great Friday everyone!

おやすみなさい！

– B Barron Fujimoto

Wow, I’m tired

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Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/300 sec, ISO400
 Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！ Hello! As you may have noticed, I’ve been working on the A-Z Challenge, and thus, I am actually wondering what to write about in today’s regular blog post. I put a bit of thought into “D”, and spent a decent amount of time editing and rewriting it. It’s actually a lot of fun to do that! I know that I am not very skilled when it comes to writing, but I enjoy doing it anyways. I just didn’t know that it is tiring, but it makes sense. I mean, you are using brain power and oxygen in thinking, and that must cause some mental fatigue, right?

But, just like the exhaustion you feel after a good run, the mental exhaustion feels kind of good. As long as I know that it’s almost bedtime! If I had several hours left in the rest of the day, I probably wouldn’t have such a positive mindset! 😆

Today’s photo is of Lani waiting to go outside. We are trying to get her to not bark so much if she wants to go out, so now if she is loud, we stop in our tracks until she quiets down. I think she is learning slowly that in order for us to let her out quickly, she needs to not bark. But she’s so full of energy it must be difficult!

A couple other things about this photo is that I am trying to use a consistent look to my black and white photos, and have started making some presets in Lightroom so that I can produce the same look. This includes film grain, tone curve, and slight blur. Also, I’ve been getting into the 4×5 format. I’ve normally used a 2×3 format, or the square format, and never considered 4×5. But I kind of like it!

Well, it looks like I did find a few things to write about tonight, huh!

おやすみなさい！ Take care!

– B Barron Fujimoto