Nikon D700 Pre-Launch

I was kindly asked by Nikon Australia and Camera Action here in Melbourne to be an integral part of the Nikon D700 Pre-Launch that was held here on Thursday night, 24/7/08. It was a great evening and a great event to launch a great camera. I cannot say how impressed I am with this latest Nikon offering.
Grabbing a D700 from the guys at Camera Action, I walked across Lonsdale Street and into a local cafe. It was quite dark by now, the sun having well and truly set in the wintry Melbourne sky. So, naturally I ramped up the camera's ISO setting to 3200.
The guys in the cafe were happy to oblige me, posing behind the counter for their portrait.
And here it is, fully sized at 3200 ISO. Click on the picture yourself and see if there is enough noise to worry you. It certainly wouldn't worry me. I have seen more noise at 800 in other DLSRs!

What a fabulous beastie this is...
Can't wait to get mine!

Wedding Photography Workshops

I have been looking forward to running my wedding photography workshops at Montsalvat for a long time. Being able to photograph an actual wedding at Montsalvat is a treat in itself, but its never enough. So, teaching wedding photography and being able to do as I pleased was fantastic!It was great to have a few people there who had been to my previous workshops and of course its always lovely to meet new people too. I hope you all had fun and learned more about the fine and complex art of wedding photography!

Nikon's new D700.

Those who know me know that I do love my Nikons. With the release of the latest in their line of fabulous DSLR's comes the new Nikon D700, complete with what Nikon call their FX sensor. This is a 35mm sized sensor that they have correctly referred to as FX and not 'full frame'. Every sensor is full frame. Its just that the size of the frame varies.
I have been kindly asked to host a pre-launch of this fabulous camera in Melbourne and as such have been asked to show how brilliantly the sensor in this camera provides accurate skin tones and how incomprehensibly well it handles in low light. This image was captured at ISO 3200 and, apart from sizing it down, is straight from the camera.

This is a close-up, showing the lack of noise at 3200 ISO.As you can see, there is such little noise that it took me quite a bit of zooming before I encountered anything worth mentioning.
It is said that photographers who have purchased the Nikon D3 rarely see the need to rate their ISO below 800 as it makes little difference to the human eye. That is quite something. I varely rarely like to rate my D200 anywhere above that, with noice becoming quite evident at around 800.
I will be getting a D700. No doubt about it.
For me, a person who likes to 'find the light and put 'em in it', it is an ideal choice of camera. In the brief time I have had to use it I have found that it prepares jpegs with accurate colour and perfect metering, meaning that with the hundreds of images I capture at each wedding there will require less time for post processing, such as white balance and colour corrections. It will save me much time and produce images that can be used straight from the camera. As yet I have not seen a camera produce such beautiful jpegs as I have from the D3 and the D700.

James and Elise

Well, its an odd time for weddings in Melbourne, it being so cold and wintry here. That didn't stop James and Elise from getting married however. Young love...who can stand in its way? Neither rain nor hail nor sleet nor wind...And here here I say!Actually, it wasn't that cold for a June Saturday. The main problem was how short the day was, leaving us little time for photography in Melbourne's lanes and streets. By the time we actually arrived in Brighton for the reception the sun had set completely. However, don't let a little thing like lack of light stop a keen photographer. That's why I have and use the Nikon CLS Flash system!This was the second wedding I had my son assist me on. The first was when we travelled to Edmonton, Alberta Canada together to photograph Tyler and Leanne's wedding. I am hoping Nathan wants to keep coming so I can train him up for a photographic future! He has a great eye and the perfect personality for people photography.

Congratulations James and Elise! Thanks for the honour of being a part of your wedding day. I had too much fun!

Creative Flash Photography Workshop 21.6.08

They say that 'those who can't do, teach.' If that is true, then I am in a quandry.

Why?

Because I love to teach.

I hope, however, that I can actually DO at the same time!
I had the rather exhausting pleasure of running my Creative Flash Photography Workshop at Montsalvat on Saturday. My flash workshop is perhaps the most difficult to run, seeing as there are only a few flashguns that can be accessed off camera and some rather eager photographers wanting to take as many photographs of our models as possible. But all seems to go well enough and everyone gets their share of a good time and good photographs.
I have more workshops to come at this fabulous location so let me know if you want to come and join the fun!

To see what some of those who have come accomplish, come to the Flickr site dedicated to my workshops and to those who attend. Click here.

New Workshops announced

I have a new series of workshops announced.

For more information, click here or email me directly.

Imaging and Technology Expo 2008

Well, after much work and preparation, the 2008 Imaging and Technology Expo in Brisbane is over. It was in 1997 that I first came to the Expo as editor of a magazine, and 11 years later I am still in that role. Although this year I must admit to being able to shake alot more hands than I did in 1997. I suppose over that period of time you get to know a few people and you get to be known. It has been an interesting 12 year ride since it all began.
I was pleased to be able to present a session for the Photo Marketing Association and three tutorial sessions for the public. We were able to convince several people to become a member of our Five Minute Photographer family and of course we gave away about 1000 copies of Total Image, Better Pictures and PhotoPlus.

I wonder what I will be doing there in 2009....
I suppose we shall just have to wait and see...

If Only I Could Keep It!

While running yet another workshop for Croydon Camera House over the weekend, I had the immense pleasure of shooting with the Nikon D3. Let me tell you, I love this camera. It was an absolute pleasure to use and the images straight out of the camera are wonderful. For photographers who have cut their teeth on film and who are skilled enough to get their images right in camera, the images straight from this machine are simply spectacular. The tonal range, the skin tones, the white balance, the sharpness, etc etc.
I love this Camera! Look out Nikon Australia.. I am headed your way looking for a deal! Apart from resizing for this blog, the image above straight out of the camera. Click on the image and see for yourself! It was shot using a Nikkor 180mm lens at f2.8.

Creative Flash Photography Workshop

Well, despite the rain and the cold, the Creative Flash Photography Workshop went ahead at Montsalvat over the weekend and our models, Soph, Elise and Melissa were absolutely wonderful. They worked in the cold to provide us all with subjects for our indoor and outdoor flash techniques.

What a get together! There were about 6 or 7 members of the Five Minute Photographer family and of course many others who came from the ad one the Camera Action site. Others attended who are familiar with me, having attended my workshops previously.It was great to have you all there. I want to thank all who attended for coming to what are now apparently being referred to as 'SheltonShops'.
While I didn't get the chance to take many photographs it has to be understood that I need to at least take some to explain what I am teaching and of course to get a few in the bag.

Speaking and Shooting in Lismore

I was honoured to be invited to speak at a recent convention of camera clubs in Lismore, New South Wales. It was a gathering of members from the Northern part of New South Wales. I spoke on both days on the subject of People Photography and then held a workshop on the Sunday afternoon, putting into practice the things I had been teaching during my two presentations.
Interestingly, after the sun had set, I was also able to teach a little off camera flash photography. Using a little bit of orange cellophane on the flash we recreated the glow of the late afternoon sun, as both of these images bear out.In reality, the sun had already set behind a distant hill...

I should just get used to it...

I mean, how long have I been in this trade...and it still surprises me. Let me explain.
I received a call from a long time friend and client. She has been organising a large display stand for her client. Everything is done. The design is approved, the size, the build, the colours, even the image.
Did someone say Image?
Oops? Has someone actually taken the photograph?
Um..(the sound of crickets...)

"HELLLLLP !" comes the cry from the client. "We need a photograph, yesterday, of a girl standing in a blank context pointing to her right...You don't happen to have one in your stock images, do you Shelton?"

"Um..no, but I can take one."

So, I call my good friend Jessica, who is not only the wife of my very good friend Dogface, but a girl I have known almost since she was born. She is now a woman of 30 and such a lovely person. More than that, her look was perfect for the nature of the shoot. Despite having the flu and a sore back, she came to my rescue - again! We had the shoot done and the image uploaded to the client within hours.

Thanks again Jess!

Another weekend, another workshop

My Creative People Photography workshops have been very popular, with another being organised immediately and three under the belt. My most recent workshop was held on Saturday -once again at the fabulous venue of Montsalvat here in Victoria, Australia.
I was once again happy to work with models Melissa Cresp and Elise Dobson. Elise's cousin Rebecca also joined in the fun and was a real sport. Its not an easy thing to take direction from a dozen different photographers at the same time!

My next workshop to be held at Montsalvat is already oversold. But don't worry! We are organising more as we speak! It is my Flash Photography workshop in which not only will we discuss the basics of understanding how flash works, but also how it can be creatively used in lighting images both on and off the camera. I am really looking forward to running that one! Here is a taste of what we will be doing at that workshop.