Gear to put on your Christmas wish list… |
A fun step by step guide for lovers of photography |
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| Step1. - The inspiration |
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Study your subject. A good starting point is the ILEX The book opens with a good introduction, which includes advantages and drawbacks of shooting digitally. Roderick mentions that one drawback is the cost of a digital camera and that you need a computer to do your work - funny I never needed a darkroom to shoot Polaroids. I would have assumed that anyone buying a topic related digital photography book will have the gear. The book continues with choosing the right camera and basic photographic techniques. The next section, which deals with models and locations is excellent. There are plenty of practical tips on finding a model, model release forms, fees, props, locations, composition, posing, lighting etc., All are superbly illustrated. The remainder of the book is devoted to getting the best out of the images through image editing applications - sorry, that should read Photoshop. There are plenty of good tips, but the manipulations border on basic rather than advanced. The 144 page book concludes with a section on Showing and Sharing your pictures - do you really want to share pictures of your girlfriend or wife? An excellent book, with good photography throughout, although I would have liked some more eroticism rather than a "camera club safe" approach. My wife also mentioned that this book lacked guidance to photographing the male nude. For this, I thank you Roderick. A good read - highly recommended
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| Step 2. - The Hardware | ||
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Need something slim, stylish, and sexy? then look no further than the Canon Ixus. This 5mp camera is available in four finishes, but if you want to impress, then the Bordeaux Red is the one to choose, especially on Valentines Day - she will love you for it. The IXUS i 5 isn't just a pretty face; with style also comes substance. The camera boasts an array of features to make your shots picture perfect every time. A 6.5x digital zoom brings you intimately close to the action, whilst 180 second video clips with full sound and playback enable you to capture those memorable moments - need I say more. The Print/Share button allows one touch direct photo printing to a compatible PictBridge printer (just make sure her mother doesn't find the evidence, or yours for that matter). The IXUS i 5 is available in four colours including: Storm Grey, Midnight Blue, Classic Silver, and Bordeaux Red |
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| Step 3. The Softwear | ||
Don't let your model freeze Treat her to some special softwear (or treat yourself for that matter!) Red is the flavour of the month. Check you have enough red ink in your printer. Featured on the right is French Dot (no relation to our Ask Dot) La Senza has a fabulous range of Lingerie with many Valentine's Day offers - check it out if you need to do some research, but we think this will be a smart investment. |
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| Step 4. - The props | ||
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A nice touch A beautiful bouquet of red roses from John Lewis shows that you really care. You can also use them to test your macro lens. Price £35.00 (just click on the rose) Pricey? Yes, but it will get a better reaction than some red carnations bought at the local petrol station. If you're feeling extra generous throw in some Godiva Chocolates and wash them down with a bottle of Bubbly. With a bit of luck she will share them with you. Attention to detail matters. |
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| Step 5 - Hard Copy | ||
Memories may fade but the prints won't Now you have taken your pictures, you will want to show your mates just how good your camera and printer combination is. What better printer than the Epson PictureMate? This small printer will produce a wallet size print in 114 seconds. The PictureMate will also take most popular memory cards, with CF adapter, and is PictBridge compatible. The PictureMate uses Epson's own six colour pigment ink pack, which will guarantee your prints won't fade for 104 years. Together with a 2.5 picolitre droplet size for lifelike photo quality, Epson PictureMate 6x4 inch prints are the next best to the real thing - well, nearly, my models are 5.5ft tall.. (The ideal choice for the photographer who needs to be discreet with images) Price £125.04 from Amazon
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