Don't Cry for Me My Cantina

This happened this morning.

There's a myriad of coffee shops, restaurants and boutiques  in Beaufort St Mount Lawley. After ambling past four or five I settled on Cantina. Good choice! Warm relaxed ambience, attentive staff, free newspapers and really top coffee. The sun was shining, birds were tweeting, I had enough money for coffee and nobody was shooting at me. This was going to be  a good day. At least that's what I thought.

Alston's cartoon in the West made me chuckle and I was two sips into my long macchiato when my mobile rang. Whoops! Long lost girlfriend was calling.   In my eagerness to answer I stood up, rattling the table and clean bowled my coffee over the paper, the table and a friendly lion. (not so friendly after the coffee stains).

Who said men can't do two things at once? I was simultaneously chatting to long lost GF and apologising to coffee shop staff and tentatively dabbing at the soggy lion. Maybe this won't be such a good day.  The lion's boyfriend did not look happy. As I chatted to my confused ex GF a young waitress cleaned up the mess and promptly returned with a replacement long macchiato. Lion was weeping brown tears.

By the time I had finished my second long mac and the call from my ex GF my pulse rate was back down to 190 beats a minute. I approached the counter to pay for two coffees at $4 each. The cherub-faced waitress had Marilyn Monroe style,bouncy blonde hair, bright red lipstick and smile like a Kimberley moon. She leant over and whispered secretly,
 'Tell me about your girlfriend'
'It was a long, long time ago; more than fifty years ago'
'That's soooo romantic' she gushed.
''Oh is it? How much for coffee?'
The smile broadened - I'm sure she could have done a Pepsodent commercial with no rehearsal.
'No charge, its on the house'

I was walking on sunshine, feeling so good. I glanced sideways.  The lion's boyfriend looked a bit dark.
Oh well, nobody's perfect.

Nikon D600 VS Pentax K-3 - what the Ad didn't tell you!

Pentax K-3

The back page of The Weekend Australian Nov 16-17 2013 carries an impressive full page advertisement for the new Pentax K-3 DSLR camera. The ad does what all good ads do in promoting the features of the camera. That's fair enough. However, it draws a direct comparison between the K-3 and Nikon's D600, suggesting that the K3 is the 'Leader of the Resolution'. I'm sorry to say that nothing could be further from the truth. The facts plainly don't support Pentax's claim. The ad would be more aptly headed the 'Leader of Deception'

Nikon D600

Let me be clear at the outset. I'm not bagging the K-3. I love Pentax. But I am questioning both the accuracy and the ethics of the comparison. I'm still the proud owner of two grand old Pentax 67 film cameras and half a dozen magnificent Pentax lenses. The Pentax 67 is not a 'pretty' camera. Its a classic old vintage model, born of an era when they made 'real' cameras - heavy, solid, simple, virtually foolproof, bombproof, thoroughly reliable performing for more than 30 years. (A bit like the author)

Now back to the problem of the misleading advertisement. What the ad does NOT tell you is that the sensor in the K-3 is APS size and the Nikon is full-frame. Sensor size is the single most important factor in determining image quality. The K-3 sensor measures 366.6 square millimetres and the D600 measures 861.6 square millimetres. In other words the D600 sensor is 235% larger than the K3. That is a massive difference.

Now, here is where the problems really start for Mr Pentax. Because they have packed 24 MP into an APS sensor the K-3's pixel density* has sky rocketed to 65,466 pixels per square millimetre. Whereas the pixel density for the D600 is only 27,855 pixels per square millimetre. In  fact the K-3's pixel density is higher than the tiny Panasonic TZ40 compact camera!

The ad also fails to mention that the Nikon D600 gives you 900 shots from a  fully charged battery while the K-3 can only squeeze out 560 clicks.

The K-3 also has a multiplier of 1.5X on all full frame lenses which further complicates achieving a true wide angle lens result. If you buy APS lenses for the K-3 you will have lost a lot of money when you decide to upgrade to a full-frame camera.

The advertisement is big and impressive and I'm sure Pentax will sell quite  a few cameras. However, the ad is deceptive and misleading suggesting that resolution is superior on the K-3. The facts speak for themselves - the D600 eats the K-3 for breakfast, with hardly a burp.


*The higher the pixel density number the lower the camera's performance.

Join Dale Neill during the UWA Summer School Workshops and find out what makes your camera click!
Talking of clicking, click HERE for details.

Down Memory Lane - The Hill Trolleys

Out of the history book - one of the very first photos I ever took in my life circa 1953 (yse 60 years ago).
In our backyard at No 2 Marlow St Wembley our pride and joy our hill trolleys. My mate Peter and I built them and terrorised neighbours by ploughing through their garden beds and racing them down Reabold Hill against the traffic.

In the backyard is our cubby house built by my Pop (grandad). You can see the chookyard and lemon tree in the background. Over the back fence is the Brigidine Convent where I attended school for three years with the Brigidine nuns. I still remember getting bthe 'long cane' from head nun, Mother Joan for letting down the tyres on Terry and Brian Burke's tyres. Some might say I should have let down more than their tyres but I would never say that.

You may have noticed the photo is not all that sharp; the main reason for this was I was perched atop a six foot step ladder balanced on the thick couch lawn to get a better view. Things were shaky and I am not all that great with heights. About that shadow; all I can say is it wasn't there when I pressed the shutter on my Pop's Brownie 620.  

Seven hot tips to save money on your next overseas trip

1. Use a travel money card - you pay no commission and you can 'work' the wthdrawals to profit from currency fluctuations.
2. Claim your TRS on departure
3. Check best baggage rates with airlines
4. Turn off International Roaming on your mobile
5. Keep a small amount of overseas currency from previous trips
6. Use a travel agent who monitors air fare fluctuations - even after you book and pay deposit!
7. Most importantly - get the very best guide you can and talk to them prior to journey. They are worth every cent. They will take you places average guides won't and will save you heaps.

Our guide Yomna in Egypt at the Great Pyramid of Giza

Three session Travel Photography Workshop at UWA Extension: 

Click HERE for details.

Unravelling Sensor Sizes

If you've ever been confused about the way sensors are named and their sizes, join the club! It looks very much like it was organised by a circle of confusion in a Siberian gulag. I mean who would have thought that there are 5 different versions of APS-C sensors!!

I've just spent a day, armed with a calculator and Excel spread sheet calculating the pixel densities for new camera recommendations. Really tedious but, believe it or not, very useful. DP Review used to publish pixel densities but they stopped several years ago. So, I've taken on the task as a labour of love.

Simply put, having a whole bunch of megapixels in your camera does not guarantee a top camera. Its like a farmer who owns 20 million sheep. The farmer has to have space to put the sheep, otherwise the sheep starve, get skinny and die. So a moderate number of sheep in a big paddock is the way to go. Then all the pixel sheep are fat and smiling and happy. And you have a top camera!

From a photographic perspective, noise reduces, tonal values improve and you get improved skin tones. Even sheep would be happy.

There are some really poor performers when you get into the so-called compact mirror less cameras. Some have sensors slightly larger than match heads with results that should be lit with a match.

As a  Nikon owner, I was surprised but honour bound to report that the top performing camera based on pixel densities is the Canon 5D MkIII. It narrowly edges out theNikon D600.

There are a dozen other factors that influence image quality. However, pixel density is one that is often overlooked when choosing a new camera. And nobody publishes the specifications!!

To see what workshops I'm running for UWA click HERE.

RETROSPECTIVE - Looking for Inspiration

Looking for Inspiration - RETROSPECTIVE

As rare as hens' teeth or steak tartar

RETROSPECTIVE Seminar Series, showcasing the winning prints from past winners of the WA Professional Photographer of the Year Award. Many of the winners will be on hand (or foot) to speak about their prints, their work and their perspective on the industry.

• Steve Wise
• Dale Neill
• Vic Natoli
• Lynette Hewitt
• Simon Westlake
• Tony Hewitt

When: Fri 21 June

Where: Moores Building 46 Henry St Fremantle

Time: 2-5pm

Cost: $20

Bookings: Click HERE 

Under the Big Tree

My Dad drove taxis in Perth for 20 years. He loved his clients and he enjoyed every mile he  drove. But in 1960, after a  short illness, he took a break. He rented out his cab and took on the lease of a parking area immediately east of the Cloister's Building, at the intersection of St George's Terrace and Mill Street in Perth.

At the time I was 16 and still in fourth year (year 11) at school. Even though I didn't have a drivers licence I helped Dad park cars when he was busy and ran the car park two or three nights a week on my own.

The Cloisters was an historic red brick building, used as an Anglican School for boys, then later girls and then as a boarding school. Further along The Cloisters was used by the University of Western Australia.

Despite being an imposing building, the major landmark was the Port Jackson Fig Tree which dominated the parking site and was a landmark in St George's Tce. The huge canopy of branches and leaves gave us relief from the summer heat and was our umbrella in winter.

I soon learned how to start, stop and park every make and model of car. I learned the tricks of reverse parking cars into the tightest spaces. Our yard was licenced for 65 cars but we often squeezed in 80 or even 85 cars.

It cost drivers two shillings (20 cents) to enter and two and six (25 cents an hour) to park. Drivers simply pulled in, hopped out and handed Dad or me the keys and headed off to work, shopping or His Majesty's Theatre.

One afternoon a farmer from New Norcia (VP number plates stood for Victoria Plains) drove in with his yank tank. After an hour he returned, owing us 4/6 (45 cents). He fumbled in his pockets and wallet and declared he had no money but promised to post us the money. He jumped in his car and drove off leaving Dad and I standing there.

Dad grizzled about  rich cockies  driving big flash cars and not being able to pay their parking fees. Dad kissed goodbye any thought of us ever seeing the cocky or his money.

Four weeks later the postie pedalled his bike into our carpark. He handed Dad an envelope that was stylishly handwritten.
It simply said

The Car Park Man

Under the Big Tree

in St George's Tce

Inside the envelope was a 10 shilling note (one dollar). It was a lesson in life for both my Dad and me.

The 'big' tree is still there today. She is contorted and squashed between tall buildings like an old lady squeezed into a tea chest. No longer majestic, no longer a landmark; her leaves dulled and her branches lopped. She remembers the building boom when bulldozers and cranes arrived and how The Government Barracks, and the Adelphi and Esplanade Hotels gave way to glass and steel high rise.

Perhaps, just perhaps, if her memory is good enough, she can hear a school bell ring and the sound of boys' and girls' laughing.

To read more about the Cloisters click here.

Not all weddings go to plan 1

Back in the late 1960s and early 1970s I was a stringer for a well known Swiss wedding photographer based in Fremantle. For newcomers a stringer is a  bit like an assistant except that a stringer shoots independently.

Every Saturday at about midday I would drop into the bosses office about midday and he would hand me a piece of paper with the name and address of the bride and groom and five rolls of film. I'd head off, shoot the five rolls and drop them back to the boss. All very impersonal but highly efficient.

My boss, Walter had about five or six stringers and, being a 'ladies' man, he flirted with all the Italian and Greek women in Fremantle and dominated the market. The brides would swoon as Walter kissed their hands and danced with them. 'Oh, Walter did my wedding', they said through starry eyes. In truth I took 180 shots and Walter took two but they only remembered Walter.

One Saturday I was given a piece of paper with the name and address of a Greek girl living in Spearwood. 'Maria' spoke no English, was of solid build and couple of olives short of a Greek salad. But it was Maria's special day and i was determined to do my best.

After taking a few shots of Maria and her bridesmaids in her parents fibro home in the market garden I noticed that not only hadn't Maria spoken a  word but neither had she opened her mouth. Ia asked one of her bridesmaids 'Can you please ask Maria to open her mouth and smile?'

My shutter finger suddenly developed paralysis when I noticed Maria had a gaping black hole right in the front. One of her front teeth had gone AWOL. I tried not to overreact to the black cavern which seemed to have a suctioning effect on me. I rattled off two or three shots pretending not top notice.

I turned again to the bridesmaid 'Can you ask Maria to close her mouth again'. I was puzzled by her appearance and, at the first opportunity whispered secretly to the bridesmaid, 'What happened to Maria's tooth'

'Oh, Nikos, he came here last night and knock it out' she said casually.

Holey shamoley, so the groom decided to visit his fiancee the night before and knock out her front tooth. Asa I dove to the church I pondered on Nikos' display of affection for his new bride. Was this some sort of Greek tradition like breaking plates at the wedding breakfast? Was it to be a lucky charm to be worn around his neck? Or was it simply a rush of emotion the night before?

Anyway Maria married Nikos. I did the photography. There were just three shots of Maria with her mouth open.

Want to discover my Ten Tips for Survivng a Wedding? Join me for my next 'So You Want To Turn Pro' course at UWA on 14 July 2013