fall CAMERAMA show tomorrow!

is there a Minolta in your future?

Toronto. Member Gary Perry sent me an email last Monday reminding me that his fall show was this Sunday.

Gary writes, “Please be advised of our next camera show is coming up on Sunday September 23rd, 2018. It will be held again at the Edward Village Hotel (185 Yorkland Bl.).   The show will run from 9:30am – 2:30pm. Admission is $7.00 ($5 for Students).

I did an earlier post back on July 20th with the poster and more details. And Clint did an announcement both at our executive meeting and Toronto meeting this month. Come on out and add a bit to your collection or swap some items!

Posted in fair | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on fall CAMERAMA show tomorrow!

a&l seminar on using photoshop

Jack Gilbert by brother Al

Toronto. My thanks to long time PHSC member Laura Jones, of Baldwin Street Gallery fame for this announcement. Jack Gilbert’s father had a famous portrait studio here in the city, now operated by his older brother, Al Gilbert. Jack is well known in the city as a lawyer and a photographer. He recently joined the PHSC.

On October 19th of 2018 at 7:00 pm the Arts and Letters club downtown on Elm Street is hosting a seminar taught by Jack. It’s an informal (Ad Lib) event about  photographs before and after they have been photoshopped. Feel free to bring your own before and after images to share.

As you will recall (or not) Adobe Photoshop is the earliest and best known of many apps that can correct and change an image after it was taken. Remember that the Friday evening  events are held in the 3rd floor studio and are very informal and participatory.

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on a&l seminar on using photoshop

instagram – yes or no?

an example of the Instagram account @insta_repeat image showing the similarity of shots (courtesy of Globe and Mail)

Toronto. To Instagram or not, that is the question to paraphrase the Bard’s words in Hamlet. In Wednesday’s Globe columnist Dave McGinn raises a timely question: Is Instagram ruining travel photography?

McGinn discusses the pros and cons of social media in its impact on travel photography. He notes that the proliferation of smart phones and the popularity of social media has pushed amateur photographers to take photographs that generate the most “likes”. To do this tends to mean the most popular kind of shot at any given location is snapped endlessly by amateurs, restricting the creativity of them and professionals.

He found an Instagram account that groups all like taken photos so you can draw your own conclusions.

Posted in photos | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on instagram – yes or no?

shooting stars – Rock On

Rock On exhibition at Brigitta’s in the Beach

Toronto. Long time PHSC member and professional photographer Harold Staats dropped me an email on Monday to say his photographs of well known Rock Stars will be on exhibition at Brigitta’s in Toronto  at 1899 Queen St. East, M4L 1H3 (in the Beach) from September 27th through October 30th, 2018

The opening reception will be held Thursday, September 27th from 7 to 10 pm.

For his biography, Harold wrote, “I first got interested in photographing musicians from a Czechoslovakian friend, Henry, that I used to work with, who was a very talented jazz photographer. I helped him out occasionally with setting up his equipment. I went to his home once and he showed me his hallway filled with beautiful black and white photographs that he had taken of famous jazz performers, Louis Armstong and Ella Fitzgerald among others. Although I’ve been interested in photography and taking photographs from a young age his work inspired me. So for more than 40 years I’ve been photographing rock, blues and jazz musicians.  Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on shooting stars – Rock On

unintended consequences

de Silva boy c1961 by Gordon Parks

Toronto. Last week’s Globe and Mail carried a column by Rachel Wine on the exhibition at the Ryerson Image Centre (RIC). The exhibition is the photo essay Gordon Parks did in 1961 for LIFE magazine called The Flávio Story. It tells of the de Silva family in a hillside favela (slum) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

For 20 cents US, you could buy a copy of the June 16, 1961 issue of LIFE magazine about 57 years ago and read the story. The RIC exhibition runs from September 12th through to December 9th of this year. The RIC is downtown at 33 Gould St. Take a look.

.

Posted in activities-other | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on unintended consequences

all a-twitter

our first twitter posting

Toronto. I had an email Sunday from Sonja and John, our PHSC graphics duo. John writes, “The THA (Toronto Historical Association), of which we happen to have bought a membership, has a Twitter account. They offered to post our tweets. To that end I have made up a graphic that is common to the layouts for Twitter. It’s been forwarded to them.

“The graphic is attached. The website and Facebook can also use the image if they wish.

In the middle of summer, Clint brought in a communications consultant who explained that we must expand beyond our website, emails, and Facebook to attract younger people interested in photography and its history so I was delighted to see us take advantage of twitter in this fashion. See you Wednesday!

Posted in program | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on all a-twitter

computational photography

Latest Apple iPhone can adjust depth of field look – Phil Schiller.

Toronto. When photographic processes were announced in January, 1839, they were slow, monochromatic, and demanding of both the photographer and the equipment. Over the years we saw the processes “simplified” and incorporated (or as Kodak famously said, “you press the button, we do the rest”), sped up, changed to full colour, and become ubiquitous. In the first half of the last century, the amateur fraternity expanded as cameras, films, and processing became off the shelf items.  Professionals focussed on industrial, portrait, news, and marketing disciplines where proper lighting and/or immediacy demands had to be met.

When digital arrived, it was either expensive and crude high end technology for the news photographers fighting tight deadlines with little need for high quality or resolution, or cheaper technology and speed for the well-heeled amateur. By this century the prices had fallen and the quality risen to the point where a thousand dollars or less would buy anyone decent resolution and speed compared to film. Continue reading

Posted in camera | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on computational photography

PHSC News 18-03 for September, 2018

Vivex Tri-Plate colour camera c1936

Toronto. Another nifty page turner produced by our Sonja Pushchak. This delightful issue weighs in at 11 pages. The lead article on Cruise Queen ties in an early use of colour photos in commercial advertising with the illustration of a Vivex 3 plate colour camera.

Sonja’s  husband, John Morden,relates that, “The Vivex Tri-Colour camera held 3 glass plates behind filters of green, red and blue mounted on the two sides and top of the camera. This allowed the three negatives to be exposed simultaneously. Exposure required 50 seconds in full sunlight. A unit weighing six kilos, the Vivex was made from 1931 to 1939, after which the company closed due to war labour shortages.”

In the pre-Kodachome days, the tri-plate camera was the only way to get reasonably accurate colours and decent resolution for publication. Page 2 announces our speaker for this month. Following that are many gorgeous articles including David Bridge’s Equipment Review. I too once used Paterson tanks and the back-and-forth movement to wind the unprocessed negative strip into the reel. An earlier use of the FR tank used a outside-in loading of the reel and the cupped (crimped) ordeal to load 120 film strips and some times 35mm from the centre out causing some strip touching and developing issues.

We are introduced to a new team of flappers in “Ask Vi & Dot” who take over answering the mythical (and informative) questions. All the usual columns are included too. Just click the icon above or here for this issue

 

Posted in newsletter | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on PHSC News 18-03 for September, 2018

are you going to Scarborough fair?

Vancouver Camera Swap Meet

Toronto. Simon and Garfunkel had an LP with this song on it. I used to listen to the LP in the mid 1960s when I was in the Western Area Engineering department. The LP became a large part of the sound track for a movie called The Graduate.

Tonchi Martinic in Vancouver emailed our editor that the BC camera club plans to hold its next fair September 30th this year. Just click on the poster at left to see a larger rendering with times and location shown.

If you plan to be out west at month end, drop in and say “hello”. You just might find some bargains to add to you camera and image collections!

Posted in activities-other, fair | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on are you going to Scarborough fair?

sayonara dslr?

NIkon Mirrorless cameras

Toronto. Single lens reflex cameras were around for over a century. The smaller 35mm versions emerged in the 1930s offering larger, brighter views than the squinty viewfinders for box, folder, and rangefinder cameras.

When digital came along, the massive DSLR style camera became the darling of the professionals. When the full frame sensor was developed these brutes became the work horses of the profession. Pros touted Canons and Nikons and to a lesser extent Sony cameras. All others seemed to fade into niche markets.

The early mirrorless cameras were a huge innovation allowing most of one’s collection of older film camera lenses to be used once again via a simple conversion tube. The 4/3 sensor became popular. Late arrivals chose to go a different route, using the larger APS-C sensor. Recently some marques have offered full frame sensors for their amateur mirrorless cameras.

I see that Nikon is now touting a new series of what look to be professional mirrorless cameras. The models tout the ability to use the famous Nikon F lenses with a simple adaptor. Is this a precursor to the end of the line for professional DSLR designs?

Remember that the small amateur “point and shoot” digital cameras have all but disappeared, replaced by the cameras in the ubiquitous smartphones, cameras that are improving daily – prompting the old adage that the best camera for the shot is the one you have with you….

Posted in camera | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on sayonara dslr?