Portrait - In the Park

I am starting to offer photography lessons (In English!). I'm still "in Beta" right now, so the lessons are one on one. Here is a shot of one of my first students:

70-200mm f4.0 - Some Thoughts

Over a month ago I sold my old 70-200mm f2.8 IS lens and picked up a used f4.0 non IS for a good price back in Canada.

It was hard to give up my 2.8, at the same time, I was glad to have my bag a little bit lighter.

So, some initial thoughts on my new telephoto:

1. The Weight. Wow, is this thing easier to carry around! The weight (my main and really only complaint other than price about the 2.8 IS) is a big difference. I can barely feel the thing in my bag anymore. It's also much easier to shoot with since it's easier on the arms and well, easier to keep steady too. I feel that because of how light it is I don't need IS (Image Stabilization) with this lens at all anyway.

2. The Pictures. Nice crisp images. This shot taken from a bumpy fast-moving boat of a moving target turned out great. (more here)

3. Responsiveness. Maybe it's just because it's easier to hold, but I feel like it's autofocus is better.

4. The Money. So I barely lost any money selling my 2.8 (I bought at a good time, took good care of it and found a buyer that was looking for a pristine quality product). So I had more than enough to buy a used f4.0 and now I also have enough left over I can buy another new toy! I am thinking either the 45mm tilt-shift or the 135mm f2.0.

So, bottom line - I think I made a good decision. I do miss having those extra stops. But the 5D Mark 2 has fantastic ISO levels so even this shot at dusk turned out pretty good at very high ISO levels.

Old Town Portrait Shoot

Another Rainy Day on Servette

Wake Boarding / Kite Boarding

I spent the day out on Lake Leman today shooting some wake boarding and wake kiting. The weather kept shifting from sunny to doom and gloom. It made for some interesting backgrounds though.

The Cat in the Window

Raining on Servette

Shot from my window on a stormy night