GARY FONG LOVES THE 20D !

"PixelPix" wrote in message
oups.com...
On Jul 29, 7:18 am, Rita Ä Berkowitz ritaberk2O04 @aol.com wrote:
Matt Ion wrote:
The idea of flash diffusion is not patented, but the individual
device design is.... so I think the Larry Thong Light Bottle is
safe.... however the name may be a bit of an issue. LOL ;-)

Not to mention, the thing looks mildly phallic. Might not go over too
well for kiddie events or model shoots.

Yeah, like walking around with a Lightspere isn't going to get you sneers
and ridicule? I can see it now. "Hey, what's that ominous looking thing?
It sure looks like a buttplug for a rhino!"

Rita

In my opinion the LS does not produce any better results than a dozen
other "attachments" that photographers have been using for years,
provided that the photographer uses the chosen device effectively (be
it tracing paper, bounce card or plastic bottle)

The secret (well it's no secret really) to good soft lighting is a
combination of large source, multi-direction and/or a mix of flash and
ambient.

Now the LS itself, although larger than many attachments, is not large
enough to provide direct "soft" light at normal working distances for
portraits etc. (for direct soft light you would need something the
size of an umbrella or softbox)

Therefore it relies on reflecting the light off walls and ceilings,
yet this can be achieved with a host of items not nearly the size of
the LS, as these "one light" setups all get their best results when
ambient light is added to the mix.

In Gary's own videos he suggests to shoot at wide apertures and he
does this for one reason only... because it will allow ambient light
to have a greater effect in softening the overall lighting and this
naturally makes the LS seem more appealing. (...OK perhaps there are
two reasons)

In Bret's most recent uploads (Family Portraits...) you can see
evidence of the flash/ambient mix with wide apertures that I am
talking about. When Mr Div's is photographed with exposures of 1/60s
f/2.8 at iso400 and 1/125s f/2.8 at iso800, the lighting results are
soft and appealing.

But look in the same thread and you will see Buster photographed with
an exposure of 1/250s f/4.0 at iso100 and this image has much more of
a "flash" look about it. This is because the ambient light effect has
been reduced buy the fast shutter speed and lower ISO.

So it doesn't matter if it's a LightSphere, LightBottle, bounce card
or tracing paper.... all are capable of achieving good results in the
right hands, using the right technique and in the right environment.
No one of these items or techniques should be ridiculed and if one
wishes to spend the coin on the more expensive ones then that is their
deal.

Having said that, I also think that no one of these items should be
raised on a pedestal as if it's some "new, never been done before, all
conquering, must have gadget", as each one is simply a variation on
something that photographers have been using effectively for years.

The ultimate lighting would be an infinite number of light sources, each
with zero output.....The same way they found out that a sports stadium is
better off served by many low wattage speakers rather than one huge driver
located beneath the press box. But if that is impossible, then several
diffused flashes is a good alternitive.......

On Jul 28, 6:46 pm, "William Graham" wrote:
wrote in message

ps.com...
On Jul 28, 5:16 pm, Rita Ä Berkowitz ritaberk2O04 @aol.com wrote:

wrote:
If it made Bret happy to buy it, then leave him alone. His bills are
paid, food is on the table and all is well at home. As for using the
money for something else, such as a lens, he knew his options and made
his choice. Judging by his work with it, I say it's a damn wise
choice. You can't take money with you, so seize the day while you
can.

Hmm, what makes you think I'm bothering Bret? I realize that he's on a
tight budget and I want to see him maximize his bang for the buck factor.
Sometimes people get caught up in buying all these feel-good-snake-oil
gimmicks because they don't know any better. I like Bret's work and I
know
he can do so much better if he had some real equipment to use. Just
trying
to help, no harm meant.

Rita

IMHO Hell will freeze over before he ever goes the Nikon route. He's
a devoted Canon user. Bret has very good judgement and a great head
on his shoulders. He can tell a feel-good-snake-oil gimmick a mile
away. Trust me, he knows.
I know you don't mean harm Rita. Sometimes I get too defensive. Life
is too short to be serious all the time. But I'm getting better. I
let my hair down a lot more and enjoy each day as if it were my last.
Helen

Bret could do just as well shooting Nikon gear.....But why would he? - If
you've got several thousand dollars invested in Canon glass, there is no
reason to switch.


I agree Bill!
Helen

"Alan Browne" wrote in

Slight of hand wins. Your generation, William, is getting the gravy.
Following generations will not fare nearly as well. Read up on
demographics and the economy.

I agree with that, but for a different reason. It was the Democrats that
started socialist, give-away programs and deficit spending back in the 40's.
We are still waiting for it to catch up with us. The only thing that can
even begin to save us is competitive business, but today, it has to compete
with places like China and India. It can't do that if the government taxes
the hell out of it to foot the bill for their give-away programs.....Hillary
just can't wait to get her mitts on all that money...

A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, which debt
he proposes to pay off with your money.
-- G. Gordon Liddy

William Graham wrote in part:

Hillary just can't wait to get her mitts on all that money...


Nor the mind-boggling near-unlimited executive authority precedents
established by your boy Dubya and his Freakshow Junta. Have fun in hell,
brainiac.



C.

--
It Came From Corry Lee Smith's Unclaimed Mysteries.
http://www.unclaimedmysteries.net

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 17:21:50 -0400, Alan Browne
wrote:

smb wrote:

He's not my boy, but he's a sight better than any of the alternatives
that were running at the time! It's a shame that he turned out to be
not the conservative that he was elected to be.

Elect Hillary or Obama or Edwards and you can guarantee your
disposable income will shrink, so buy those toys now while you can,
and thank Mr. Bush for making it possible while it lasts.

Just 'cause you can't see it on your books, does not mean that the debit
column assigned to you via Bush deficit spending is not real.

Surely you aren't so naive as to think that any president is
responsible for that. Go back to your high school government classes
and you'll recall that spending is controlled by Congress, not the
Executive Branch.

Of course, now that the Democrats have control of Congress, their
approval rating is the worst in history, even lower than that
president that you love to hate so much.

But any chance you guys get to put the blame on Bush for something, go
for it! It makes you feel better, so it must be good therapy for you.
:-)

Steve




Slight of hand gets the suckers every time.

Under Bush, the total US Fed deficit will have grown a staggering 50%,
or 3 Trillion dollars.

(Hint: notice how the US $ has fallen against every other currency).

smb wrote in part:

But any chance you guys get to put the blame on Bush for something,
go for it! It makes you feel better, so it must be good therapy for
you. :-)


Uh, no thank you. I'll pass on taking any advice from dittohead
supporters of this Republican organized crime gang masquerading as
elected officials.



C.

--
It Came From Corry Lee Smith's Unclaimed Mysteries.
http://www.unclaimedmysteries.net

In a time of deception telling the truth is a revolutionary act. -
George Orwell

Unclaimed Mysteries wrote:
William Graham wrote in part:

Hillary just can't wait to get her mitts on all that money...


Nor the mind-boggling near-unlimited executive authority precedents
established by your boy Dubya and his Freakshow Junta.

aka the "Banana Republicans"


--
-- r.p.e.35mm user resource: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpe35mmur.htm
-- r.p.d.slr-systems: http://www.aliasimages.com/rpdslrsysur.htm
-- [SI] gallery & rulz: http://www.pbase.com/shootin
-- e-meil: Remove FreeLunch.

"Unclaimed Mysteries"
the_letter_k_and_the_numeral_4_doh@unclaimedmyste ries.net wrote in message
hlink.net...
smb wrote in part:

But any chance you guys get to put the blame on Bush for something,
go for it! It makes you feel better, so it must be good therapy for
you. :-)


Uh, no thank you. I'll pass on taking any advice from dittohead
supporters of this Republican organized crime gang masquerading as elected
officials.



C.

I have to believe that Bush is not going to leave Iraq to perish in their
own religious civil war.....If he does, it will be because he has to, forced
to do so by the Democrats, and he will go down kicking and screaming,
knowing that it will leave the Middle East a miserable and dangerous place
for another 30 years at least. Personally, I have come to believe that we
would be justified in staying in Iraq for another 10 years or more, even at
the cost of 1000 American lives a year.....The alternative is a million or
more Iraqi deaths, even if we somehow manage to keep Syria and Iran away
from Israel's throat. Democrats have such a short memory and attention
span.....Especially when the man in office isn't a Democrat.......

On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 15:35:59 -0700, "William Graham"
wrote:


"smb" wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 28 Jul 2007 06:34:17 -0700, Annika1980
wrote:

On Jul 28, 7:29 am, smb wrote:

Besides, if more of your democrat friends get elected next time, you
won't have any money left to buy those new lenses and gadgets! :-)

Steve

Yeah, your boy, Bush, and his crooked cronies are doing a great job.
****ing idiot.

He's not my boy, but he's a sight better than any of the alternatives
that were running at the time! It's a shame that he turned out to be
not the conservative that he was elected to be.

Before throwing out the crooked crony card, be sure you first justify
the cronyism of the past democratic administration. Don't throw
those stones when you live in such a dirty glass house.

Yes. They bitch about Libby, but Clinton pardoned over 140 people (some of
them really bad crooks) during his last week in the White House. At least
Bush only eliminated the jail time (and not a full pardon) and did it while
he still had over a year to serve.....Clinton never had the guts to do
that........



Yeah, but I'm disappointed that Libby didn't get the full pardon he
deserved. Anyone with half a brain knows that his prosecution was
fully political, a scalp taken by the Left in their attemp to "get"
the "evil" (in their mind) Dick Cheney. Libby was sent up the river
over a crime that never happened, nobody was ever prosecuted for the
phoney "outing" of what's her name. Shame on him for not being
honest with the grand jury, but the fact is that no crime was ever
committed. It was all smoke and mirrors, and unfortunately he took
the bait and got burnt.

As you pointed out, Clinton pardoned real criminals, INCLUDING
terrorists.. who conveniently were of the same political pursuasion
and nationality that weighed heavily on getting Wifey elected to the
Senate on the carpetbagger ticket. Hmmmm... cronies? Nah...


Feel good about yourself, Bush Bashing is a wonderful hobby!

It's all the Democrats have....They sure haven't accomplished anything else
since they took control of congress......

Well yes they have. Reid has shown himself multiple times to be an
ineffective partisan hack, and Pelosi got herself named as one of the
"beautiful people" on the Hill. It's amazing what a facelift will do.
But that's all the Dems have to work with, appearances and feelings.





Meanwhile, the economy is booming in spite of an expensive war and
record government spending... tax revenues to the governnment are way
up in spite of tax cuts "for the rich" (duh) ... There hasn't been
another terrorist attack on our soil since 2001...


Haven't you heard? - There was never any terrorist threat to begin
with.....Those 3000 people who died on 9/11 were just imaginary
people.......

No, they were real. Haven't you heard that it was the Bush
administration that brought down those buildings with controlled
explosives? The Muslims are our friends. They would never dream of
harming us. The only real threat to our country is global warming. And
by golly, I'm going to reverse it single handedly by driving a Prius
to work in spite of Al Gore's carbon footprint.




Unemployment is
lower than at any time during the Clinton administration... Things
aren't as bad as you think! But I'll grant you that you can always
find things to pick on regardless of who is president.

Elect Hillary or Obama or Edwards and you can guarantee your
disposable income will shrink, so buy those toys now while you can,
and thank Mr. Bush for making it possible while it lasts. But at
least we'll have universal health care, if you don't mind being on a
waiting list to see whatever government-appointed doctor can see you
in a reasonable time.

And, if you don't mind paying for someone else's health care as well as your
own.....



Including the health care of who knows how many illegal aliens!!!!!



But regardless of your political views and eloqent colorful liberal
f-ing language, it's still about the images, not the camera! So get
in your SUV, go out and shoot some pictures!


Steve


Hear, hear! - An excellent post......


Just common sense, that's all. :-)


Steve

On Jul 28, 7:39 pm, Rita Ä Berkowitz ritaberk2O04 @aol.com wrote:
Bret's at the crossroads where it would be
monumentally stupid to buy any Canon glass shorter than 500mm.

That's about the first friggin thing you've ever said that made any
sense.
I pretty much have everything else covered with my current lineup.
Starting with the 17-40L, which as you know is the equal of your
hallowed Nikrap 17-35.