Minimalism

Life if complicated. Or is it?  Perhaps, life is what you make it. I think I heard someone say that once. So which is it?  Which statement is true? In order to find out I'll most definitely need to do some research. Maybe compile a list of the 10 most successful people, and correlate it …

Hi-Tech vs. Classic (Camera Pouches)

Don't get me wrong - I love modern hi-tech. design and material: Polypropylene, PU coated nylon, ballistic nylon, closed-cell foam, Gore-tex, Polyurethane coating, dry-flow air mesh, and the like. But there's just... something... about the classic materials: canvas, leather, brass buckles, etc..  There's a 'je ne sais quoi', a timeless-ness. And a certain tactile quality. For me, both designs (modern …

Meeting Ben Lowy

At a recent Sony street photography meetup I had the opportunity to meet one of my favourite photojournalist and Sony Artisans, Benjamin Lowy. Ben is a New York based photographer who has spanned the globe to bring us images from some of the most dangerous places imaginable including Iraq, Darfur, Afghanistan, and Libya (where he travelled with Tim Hetherington). Having considered …

The Toronto Honda Indy 500

I love visiting Toronto in the summer - it seems there's always something going on. This past weekend (June 13th and 14th) was the 29th annual Honda Indy. While I don't really follow motor sports, hearing the 'rrrrrrrrrrrrrr..... zoooooom, zooooom, zooooom' of the Indy cars flying by at over 300 KM/h on the Lakeshore made …

Sometimes You Just Get Lucky

I spent a beautiful day recently hanging out in the 'Riverside' area of Toronto. This is an area I hadn't explored much in the past, and has seemingly changed drastically since the last time I was there. Once a 'gritty' lower income area of Toronto (this area is the 'vibe' that the television series 'Degrassi' …

Who Are Your Influences?

Do you know who your influences are? I thought I did; my high school art teacher who taught me the basics, my friends who went to art school and who showed me the much deeper world of art, friends I met through Flickr whose work inspired me, people I've met at photography events whose words …

Wide Thing, You Make My Heart Sing

When the discussion of wide-angle comes up, I've often heard it said "I don't need a wide-angle lens because I don't shoot landscape". Or "Wide -angle lenses have too much distortion for my taste." I can relate. Landscape photography isn't really my genre either. Get up 3 hours before sunrise and traipse through the woods …

Caturday Confessional

Forgive me Vint Cerf, Father of The Internet, for I have sinned. Tell me, my son. I... I... I'm sorry, Father... I can't. I thought I could, but I just can't. My crime is so horrible, so heinous... There, there, my child. This is The Internet. We do not judge here. Please, unburden yourself. Well... …

The Best Camera

It's been said that 'The best camera is the one you have with you'. But is that true of Night Photography? Many specialized genres of photography call for specialized equipment. Using the right tool for the job certainly makes completing a task easier. But we shouldn't confuse 'ease' with 'necessity'. Nor should we shy from …

The Ideal Travel Kit

--- PART 1 ---- THE IDEAL CAMERA DEFINED Just what is the 'ideal camera'? The very un-sensational answer is... that "it depends". Primarily, it depends upon the intended use. The camera is, after all, a tool.  And that old adage 'the right tool for the right job' applies to the craft of photography just as …