In this article, I'm going to share with you some buying tips and guide you on how to select your first external flash gun for your photography lighting needs.

I'm going to provide some tips and advice when you're shopping for that first camera flash for your DSLR. Here are some of the common key terms you'll encounter when reading a flashgun's specification sheet. The items listed are the specs you should put more consideration to when comparing products:

Why Should I Get an External Flash and Which Flash Should I Buy?

Just to recap. An external flash gun is a very powerful piece of equipment that opens up a lot of photographic opportunities and improves your resulting photos particularly when available ambient light is unfavorable. By having the option of adding your own light, you can control exposure, contrast, motion, lighting pattern, and ISO noise control as well. Continue Reading

(All brands and trademarks mentioned in this article are the property of their respective trademark holders)

In one of the forums that I frequently visit, there have been quite a few threads popping out asking about diffusers or light modifiers for on-cam flash guns, and you'll read about some posters highly recommending one over another and pretty much all are denouncing the use of the flashgun without a modifier of some sort. Sadly, many after-market diffuser users are fed with marketing hype that feed on some buyers' inadequate knowledge in flash usage, and mainly, how light works, in general.

Truth to be told, many flash modifiers work well when you have no surface to bounce the light off or you're forced to fire it straight-on. However, almost none of them are worth their cost as you can make your own for just a few bucks or tinker with your flash's power output and built-in diffusing panels to get the same result. Continue Reading

For those of us who shoot with off-camera flash while using a light modifier such as an umbrella or softbox, we're bound to encounter the issue of having the flash not on axis with the modifier. Oftentimes, the bracket that holds the flash and modifier together are separated by at least 4-6" of vertical space with the flash firing downwards at an angle towards the umbrella.

If we're using a large modifier, such as a 60" umbrella, the problem is less pronounced, or if the flash is far enough from the area where the light will be reflecting on. However, with smaller (<40") umbrellas, the discrepancy of light hitting the top and the bottom of the umbrella will be quite visible. Continue Reading

Technorati Tags: off-camera flash, umbrella

I trash my items quite often and I think the new year is a good time to start a new resolution of giving the cosmetics of my gears a little bit more care and protect it from my rough handling.

A gaffer's tape is a cloth-based tape that is frequently used in theaters, tv production studios, and movie sets for various purposes such as marking stage positions for actors, holding cables down on the floor, taping things together, etc.

Gaffer tape leaves no sticky residue when removed and can be teared cleanly by hand, unlike duct tape. In addition, gaffer tape doesn't damage the surface you're removing it from, which makes it ideal when dealing with expensive equipment.

For photography, gaffer tape is often used to act as a sacrificial layer that protects the cosmetic surfaces of cameras and lenses. Some wildlife photographers use camoflage-pattern gaffer tape on their lenses to protect the lens against the constant contact from the outdoor elements.

Anyway, let's get started. As always, I have to put in some disclaimers; 1) I'm a LOUSY arts & crafts guy, I can't draw a straight line with a ruler, and I totally can't cut straight. 2) Results would be much better with a cutting mat and razor/Xacto blade. 3) If it was up to me, I wouldn't have bothered with stenciling the tape and just stick pieces of rectangular tape. Continue Reading

Let me start off with one fact. I did not discover this and frankly, I'm surprised with how common this solution is for the pros yet I haven't stumbled upon the solution myself until recently.

I'm here today to talk about camera straps. Personally, I don't really like them. I use an Op/tech Pro Loop strap on 2 cameras right now and both of them are not connected to the neck strap as the strap can be disconnected via fasteners. Continue Reading

by David Tong

It's been a while and I apologize for not updating the site as often as I should. My computer died after the holidays and I'm still using a loaner right now. Anyway, I'd like to start the new year with a common question asked by new camera/lens owners - how to clean smudges and grime off lenses.

While many of you know that I'm not the obsessive-compulsive type when it comes to camera equipment, however, the lens surface is the one surface I religiously keep clean after every use. I rarely end the day not cleaning my lenses (at least blow any dust off) if I used the camera.

I'm not one of those guys who wipe their lens filters every 2 minutes, though. When I'm out shooting, I don't clean my lenses unless they're splattered with raindrops or someone accidentally smudged the lens. You'll scratch your filter or lens much more easily if you keep wiping your lens down every few minutes. Continue Reading

Just like the Nikon post that I had a few days ago, here's to help you decide which Canon dSLR and lens to buy.

To compare Canon EOS dSLR bodies, visit the Canon Resource and Learning link. Or the Camera Advisor page.

For the Canon EF Lens Work III book that lists all the current EF lens catalog and their MTF charts, download the whole document here (32MB). (Please host the PDF for redistribution if you have a self-hosted site to save bandwidth). The files were merged from 11 separate PDFs freely distributed by Canon.

Technorati Tags: Canon, lens, buy, Canon EOS, Canon EF Lens Work III

Many might think that this is a Canon-centric site, it's not, it just happens that I use a Canon personally, and I don't get a lot of Nikon loaners.

In any case, if you're confused on what Nikon to buy (or buy next), Nikon published a wonderful document for your comparison and reference. I found this from a friend's website, if you're in the Philippines, get your Nikon from Jerry Tieng.

Download the Nikon DSLR Comparison PDF.

Hope you find the document useful.

Oh, if you are a Canon user, you might want to read "Which Canon to Buy?", instead.

Technorati Tags: Nikon, what Nikon to buy, comparison, Nikon DSLR Comparison