Matthew Botos

This week’s Assignment: Sharp on DPS made me realize that the resized photos in my gallery always loose the sharpness they originally had. Thankfully, that problem has already been solved in Gallery2; this post explains how to automatically sharpen images on resize. Once that’s in place, you can dump the cache of existing images by deleting your g2data/derivatives folder.

Here’s a quick example of a normal and processed resize using the 0.2 setting from the above post:

Studio photographers and even the mug shot artists at the DMV shoot tethered to a computer, so why can’t you with your fancy DSLR? Here’s a rundown of some options for Mac users and their performance:

Canon’s included software does allow for remote control of a tethered camera; control the settings, click the shutter, and the file immediately downloads to the computer. Or at least as immediately as USB 2.0 allows: roughly 8 seconds for RAW and 3 seconds for a large, high-quality JPG. The complimentary Canon image viewer will watch the incoming directory and display a thumbnail; clicking that gives you a medium-size preview, which can then be maximized to fit the screen with more clicks.

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Sustained $4 a gallon gas is one of the new signs of the apocalypse, meaning it’s time to question the ancient Japanese wisdom of my Maxima’s owner’s manual: “Premium fuel recommended”.

My now vestigial mechanical engineering degree had been able to follow the logic: a high compression engine needs purer fuel to run at peak efficiency, otherwise the engine electronics would just dial it back to a less efficient level. Cheaper gas would just be offset by fewer miles per gallon.

As much as love watching my holdings in energy stocks go up, I decided it was time to put this to the test: would I really get fewer miles out of non-premium gas? My admittedly loose testing methodology: two tanks of typical driving measuring cumulative miles per gallon on a ScanGauge.

The results: 22 mpg on premium, 21 mpg on regular. That 1 mpg is well within my margin of error, particularly given that I did more highway driving on the premium tank. I’ll keep watching the numbers to see if there’s a longer-term decline, but for now regular fill-ups are going to ease the pain at the pump a bit. How does your mileage vary?

Here’s a video of a fun talk photographer Joe McNally gave at Google:

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Having spent all my money on a big lens and flash, I could only afford economy-class transportation for Catherine’s graduation.

Photos by Michael Botos, headline pun inspired by Prophotolife.

I know a few people in the market for their first DSLR, so here’s my take on where to start. It’s easy to spend a lot of money and still not get the photos you want, so here are two sayings to consider:

1. It’s not the camera, it’s the lens.
2. It’s not the lens, it’s the light.

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I had a blast photographing the 2008 Rally in the Valley last weekend; mountain biking gatherings are always fun, and so is capturing them in photos.

Preparation was easy for this one since I’ve volunteered at the event before and ridden the location many times. A test ride with all my gear in the backpack was enough to convince me I wanted to do minimal shuffling while loaded down like a sherpa, so I picked a few spots within a mile of the start off the main trail.

Another useful activity was making up signs; one saying “Smile! Photographer ahead.” and a few more letting people know where to find my photos on the web. The smile sign really worked; people actually looked at the camera, smiled, and gave thumbs up, peace signs, wheelies, & jumps!

Since the leaves on the trees haven’t come in yet, there was more light than I expected. It was enough to get fast shots along Forbidden Drive, though people’s faces still ended up in the shadows sometimes. On the trails, flash was more of a necessity, but took a bit of trail and error to dial in manually. I think the truth of event photography is that you have to have an automatic, through-the-lens (TTL) metering flash.

I found I took wider shots to make sure I got people in motion, then cropped them down afterwards. As the day went on, though, it became easier to get tighter, more emotive shots.

With so many people around, it was also great networking. I met a few fellow photographers, both beginners and established pros, some potential customers, and got a few ideas for new opportunities.

Other useful odds and ends: bungees to tie signs to existing posts, water and snacks, hat, music for the slow spells. Given my minimal riding, street clothes and shoes were definitely the way to go. Wearing my IMBA jersey even prompted someone to ask me if I had flown out from Boulder for the event. Maybe they’ll come next year, after they see my photos

See the 2008 Rally in the Valley Photos

I met a cool bunch of guys from Eastern Woods Research at the Rally in the Valley. They’re local Pennsylvania frame builders making steel hardtails, with a 29er version in the works. The bikes look great; here are a few more photos.

Get your bike and legs ready; this Saturday is the 2008 Rally in the Valley at Wissahickon Park! All funds raised go back into the park and the trails - and it’s a great chance to get out and ride, regardless of your skill level. And don’t forget to smile on those climbs; I’ve volunteered to provide photo coverage of the event and make an additional donation from the print sales.

Whistler felt like the first big trip I did as a more serious photographer, and I really enjoyed it that respect. Lugging a ton of gear, standing outside in the morning cold, and being perched on the finish line of a race course all added focus to both the trip and my photography.

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