Photochrome Camera Club

Back in 2005 ‘podcast’ was THE buzzword with the promise of a anyone being able to create radio-like content and distribute it. For a moment everyone was trying to be the internet’s answer to John Peel or Ira Glass in their own niche. The subject of photography was not neglected which is surprising since the accepted truth has always been that talking about photography is like dancing about architecture.

The problem with all this noise is that anyone with a DSLR and a microphone could claim expertise and establish themselves as THE expert. The accepted format for the longest time has been the TWiT format: two or more people sitting around a mic’ or connected via Skype wittering on for an hour with little clear direction and full of speculation and conjuncture rather than unique, informative content. Post-production seemed to involve slapping on some intro and outro music, adding a plea for sponsorship, donations or you to buy their book/DVD/training with no one even listening to the body of the piece before releasing it never mind actually editing it.

Once the novelty of listening to a ‘radio show’ about photography wore off the repetitious  and bombastic nature of these shows quickly became tiring. Perhaps you stopped listening to these kind or shows years ago; perhaps you never listened to any photography podcasts but it is a now a good time to tune in to some of the better photography shows that are well made and have worthwhile content and I’m here to share my favorites. A quick disclaimer, this short list is about photography podcasts, not camera podcasts: if you want to listen to people arguing about if Nikon or Canon is better or guessing what the new release from either will be capable of you should look elsewhere.
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I’ve been asked by club members a couple of times about advice for buying laptops that you can use for photography when travelling. A lot of photographers use a desktop as their main digital darkroom because of their power, the ability to add extra hard drives and to accurately calibrate their screens among other reasons. However, when we’re travelling we want a PC to take with us. So what should you look for?

To begin with, if the laptop is not going to be your primary machine I don’t recommend that you spend too much. You don’t need to buy a top of the line business or gaming laptop if you just need it for your vacations, browsing the Photochrome website in front of the TV, or doing your email away from your home office. Laptops take a beating from being carried around and I’d much rather buy a cheap, new laptop every 3 or 4 years than an expensive one less often than that.

Secondly don’t buy a larger machine than you need. Some laptops have monster 17″+ screen which are great for editing photos on but you won’t want to carry them very far and their battery lives are generally worse than their smaller siblings. That said, I would recommend a 10″ netbook. Netbooks are small, cheap laptops that have become very popular but I would avoid them for photography because they don’t have the hourse power or real estate needed for editing photos even casually.

My preferred laptop screen size is about 12″. At this size the screen is usable if a little small but the machine is small enough to carry without breaking your back. If you’re going to travel with it I wouldn’t recommend a machine with a screen bigger than 15″.

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With a little fiddling I can compress movies to put them onto my iPhone.  This allows me to always carry a movie or two around with me one of which is always War Photographer.

Why?  The fact that it is a great documentary is one thing.  The fact that it is about a talented, eloquent, dedicated, mysterious and moral photographer is another.  However, if I had to pop this in the DVD player I would have watched the movie only a couple of times.  The fact that I carry it with me almost everywhere means that I have seen it many more times than that in small chunks.

If I’m feeling uninspired I’ll sometimes find a quiet corner and watch 10 minutes to get fired up.  If I think I’m getting too big for my boots I’ll watch another 10 minutes to remind myself how much work I still have to do.

I don’t want to be a war photographer or even a photo-journalist and yet I learn something every time I take a few minutes to watch a clip.  It’s not the technical stuff but the attitude, drive and commitment of Nachtwey that makes me want to watch this documentary over and over.  It is interesting to watch a real professional move and work in the field from a camera’s eye view.  It is also interesting to see how those captures become prints with a photo editor, or images in a magazine or on a gallery show’s walls.  The draw for me is Nachtwey’s utter conviction, commitment and sacrifice to what he does.  He shows the western world the uncomfortable truth about what is going on in the world.  To do that he has given up a normal life and normal relationships.  He has had success but the movie shows that what he has seen has changed and molded him.  Remarkably he doesn’t seem to have become a cynic and he’s not an adrenaline junkie but there’s something behind those eyes, something that makes those pictures, something created by the suffering and inhumanity Nachtwey has born witness to.

If you haven’t seen War Photographer, especially if you have an interest in photography, make time to watch this documentary.  It is the best film about a photographer and/or photography I have seen bar none.  I cannot recommend War Photographer enough but be warned, it doesn’t make a great date movie.

Want to check out the SFMOMA permanent collections but just can’t make the time to go there? Turns out, you don’t need to physically go the museum to see the collection. Point your browser at Artscope and you can see many of the works.

Looking for a new place to capture that award winning shot?  Here’s a couple of resources:

Check out Bay Nature magazine.  You might some find new places and ideas. The most recent issue has short articles on Roy’s Redwood, in Marin, Leona Canyon, in the East Bay, Lands End, in San Francisco, and Sierra Azul, in the South Bay.

If you’re looking for more urban shots, check out San Francisco Chronicle writer John King’s guide to public places in the City.  It’s not clear if cameras/tripods are allowed in these places so be aware that you might be asked to leave.