Kia ora tatou:

I was in the middle of writing a post about Lightroom vs. CS3. I still am.

For your information, Adobe today released version 1.1, which purports to allow muti-computer syncing, improved noise reduction and sharpness control, and Windows Vista support .

It is a free download for those of you who have a kosher copy…and even for some of you who do not..

Ka kite ano

Kia ora tatou:

The Christchurch Press are running a Heritage week competition at the moment, in a number of categories, both amateur and professional. Boris, one of the posters for this ezine, has an image entered. I know Boris ( real name withheld), would love you to vote for her entry (oops). You can do so here.

Dear reader ( I always wanted to say that too; it’s so Dickensian) has also entered the same competition, in the professional category. A vote for this and this would be appreciated…

NB, not all of us are of sufficient maturity ( read: olde enough) to know who the avatar is. It is the late Sir Robert Muldoon, once an NZ prime minister and a master at blatant self-promotion.

Kia ora tatou:

About once a week I get asked if I am going to upgrade my EOS 1D MkIIN to the latest model ( 1DMkIII) . Here are some good reasons why I am in no hurry…..

“when the light is especially bright and the temperature is warm, the camera’s autofocus performance drops like a stone. Yes, you read that correctly. On sunny, warm, beautiful days - the sort of conditions in which autofocus usually thrives - the EOS-1D Mark III’s ability to make in-focus pictures of still or moving subjects is greatly reduced. “

If you shoot birds or sport, you may want to wait a while for Canon to sort things out….

Kia ora tatou:

If you are interested in the idea of framing and photography’s place in the depiction of reality, you may want to read this essay.

As thre authors say,

Photography, Painting or even Cinema, have a limited capability of saying anything meaningful about reality. Their value as artistic mediums isn’t in their descriptive or prospective capabilities

Ka kite ano

Kia ora tatou:

1.  The perceptive amongst you will have noticed  a new addition to the Sites-I-Like section of the blog. I think you should check it out. Mary Macey Butler was a student on one of the Freeman workshops we taught this year.She showed me some of her images at the time and I was stunned. What, I thought, is someone with the sort of talent that should be in a prestigious New York art gallery doing on a workshop in Martinborough? I never really had that thought answered…. She emailed me last week to let me know of her new website.It really is worth a loooong look. A very long look.
2. My apologies for the dearth of articles on anything. If you have been checkingthis ezine over the last week, you may have noticed that there hasn’t been much posted. The server has had indigestion, or is that the website? Anyway they have had a falling out. That should all be fixed now, and there should be more regular posts coming your way.On the subject of which… it is time for a review fo what I have posted and some feedback. Please let me know what works for you and what you would like to see more of. Also what doesn’t work. I promise to read it… and maybe even take notice. The last time I did this, I promised a limited edition  print to the person whjo came up with the best article. It was MaryJo Bedford.I will do that again. One limited edition print ( value $800) to the person who gives the most helpful answer.Hell, you can even choose it!Thelines are open…
3. I have had a number of queries lately from the students I have taught about whether they should buy Lightroom or CS3.My answer at first was that they should go for Lightroom. Then I upgraded to CS3-and changed my mind. CS3 is more than a facelift, like the latest Corolla. It is a quantum leap. It is much more user-friendly than CS2 (if you could ever call PhotoShop user-friendly!)- and more stable. In addition to that Adobe Camera RAW has had a serious facelift; actually it is more of  total transplant. It has some huge new functionality that lifts it into a league well beyond Lightroom.Now I tend to think that you should consider both ( if you have the budget). They are two complimentary animals rather than competing products. I am in the process of writing a comparison review of the two, and why should look at them as a pair. Look for it.
4. There are still some place left on the second Wedderburn workshop.If yoy want to spend a week in a fabled landscape, making great photographs, working with other people passionate about photography and looking at your own photographic direction ( individual mentoring seesions are part of it) then get in touch. I will be doing sessions, showing some of the amazing new techniques  CS# has to offer. Oh, and did I mention Central Otago wines?……

Ka kite ano.

I have seen

Summer’s fire slump slowly sideways,

slide into the cooling embers of the year.

I have witnessed

The last fragile fingernail of autumn’s grasp,

A red-rimmed leaf,

Release its grip,

Slip slowly to earth and lie smiling,

Face-up under the yellowing sun

Coming later each day around the corner of the house.

I have heard the birds that daily

Wake the sleeping trees

Struggle to arouse and enthuse them

As they calmly wrap winter’s damp mantle around themselves

And retreat into their memories.

And all the time the wind

Is coming from further and further

to the south.