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Episode #0010 – Convention Photography 101

Donald Burr — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 21:58:57 +0000

No, unfortunately, this isn’t Part 2 of “Anime on the Cheap” that I’ve been promising. Things have been just too hectic and I haven’t been able to finish the research for this. However, I think you’ll like this just the same. Think of it as a special Winter Holiday Season present from us to you.

We’re coming up on a new year, which means of course a new year of Anime Conventions! And what do we like to do at anime conventions? (Besides the obvious of course) Take PICTURES!!! To that end, friend of the show Dave “KirinDave” Fayram and I, being enthusiastic amateur photographers, decided to get together and share some of our favorite tips and techniques for getting those awesome cosplay shots that everybody fawns over.

Speaking of conventions, Anime Los Angeles is coming up real soon now… Friday through Sunday, January 8-10, 2010, to be precise. Perhaps I will see you there? (look for the clueless looking guy handing out Otaku no Podcast business cards…)

Today’s Theme: “Shutter Speed” by Shinkichi Mitsumune (opening theme for the US release of Speed Grapher) (Fun fact: the ‘real’ theme for Speed Grapher is “Girls on Film” by Duran Duran; however, FUNimation was unable to secure rights to the song for the US release of Speed Grapher.)

Cameras:
Point and Shoot – Canon PowerShot G11, Panasonic Lumix LX3, Sigma DP2
DSLR – Canon Digital Rebel XS, Nikon D40
Micro 4/3 – Olympus E-P2

Lenses:
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Nikon 50mm f/1.8D
Canon EF 35mm f/2
Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S
Tamron AF 70-200mm f/2.8 Di LD IF (for Canon) (for Nikon)
Photojojo Fisheye Lens Adapter

Flashes:
Canon Speedlite 580EX II
Canon ST-E2 Speedlite Transmitter
Nikon SB-900 AF Speedlight Flash
Orbis ring flash

Bags/Straps/Etc.:
Domke F-5XB
Blackrapid RS-4
Scott E Vest photo vests

Books:
The Digital Photography Book, by Scott Kelby. A good book about digital photography, done in a “cookbook” style – rather than going into lengthy discussions of exposure theory and ISO and whatnot, a particular type of picture is presented with the “recipe” (type of lens, camera settings, any special gear required, etc.) for getting that type of shot.
The Digital Photography Companion, by Derrick Story. A good general purpose digital photography book.
The Hot Shoe Diaries, by Joe McNally. Joe McNally is one of the premier authorities on the use of small strobes for creative lighting.

Websites:
Photography Exposure Basics
Strobist – another excellent resource for those interested in exploring the creative lighting possibilities of small off-camera strobes.
LensRentals.com – one of the best gear rental sites I’ve found. Great selection, great prices, absolutely stellar service.
One guy’s outrageous portable lighting rig
CHDK – free third-party firmware for many Canon point-and-shoots that enhances their functionality by adding many controls such as shutter-priority, aperture-priority, RAW, live histogram, and more

Our Picks:
Me – The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye, Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (season 1) (season 2), Denno Coil
Dave – Time of Eve, Kurosaki Corpse Delivery Service

Our Links:
Me – DonaldBurr.com, Twitter
Dave – Flickr, Tumblr, Twitter, XKCD Explained

Anime Expo 2009 photos on Flickr

Donald Burr — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 10:53:38 +0000

Friend of the show Beep has set up a Flickr group to share your photos from Anime Expo 2009. A few of us have already started posting pictures there. If you’ve got pix from AX’09 you are welcome to share them as well. Or just click the link and check out all the cool cosplay.

Photos from Comic-Con

Donald Burr — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 06:36:35 +0000

Friend of the show Dave “Paradox” Fayram (no, he hasn’t been on the show yet, but he is still a friend of it) is attending San Diego Comic-Con and has started putting up his pictures. Check them out on his San Diego Comic-Con Flickr set. Looks like he’ll try and upload new ones every day, so check back often!

New Feature: Photo Gallery

Donald Burr — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 04:22:08 +0000

The server oompa-loompas here at Otaku no Podcast have been busy. Their latest achievement: a new Photo Gallery section on the website, where I will post pictures from the various anime conventions and events I have attended. I’ve already started uploading some pictures from FanimeCon 2009, and will shortly upload my Anime Expo 2009 pics as well (as soon as I have finished going through them, fixing white balance, etc., which could take a few days). I’ll also upload older pics as I find them. So definitely check this section often!

Episode #0004 – JTAF 5 Review

The Ghost in the Machine — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:53:39 +0000

If you are a new listener, and heard about us through either the Feeble Force network of podcasts, or Allison Sheridan’s excellent NosillaCast… welcome! Thank you for taking the time to download this episode, and we hope you stick around for many more to come!

In this episode, I discuss my review and impressions of the JTAF 5 (formerly JapanTown Anime Faire) anime convention, held November 10-11, 2007 at the Fort Mason center in San Francisco, CA. On the whole it was an enjoyable convention, but had some notable problems in terms of location and crowd control. Sadly, JTAF is going on hiatus, and have put all plans for next year’s JTAF on hold until further notice. I certainly hope this does not spell the end of what I consider a very friendly and fun convention.

Pictures from the event can be found on my Flickr page, and a highlights video will be posted here soon.

We also discuss some of the latest news in the anime and manga community, including the following stories: