Randomness from the Past Couple of Months

Like I mentioned a few days ago, I posted some 35 pictures on my Flickr page, but I decided to post only 10 here, the ones I consider the better ones of the bunch.  There's nothing particularly special about any of them, they're just nice.

I will mention the 8th picture down, of the gentleman on the table looking like he has a headache.  He did not like me taking a picture of him.  He didn't say anything but he looked at me really funny.  I'm actually surprised he saw me.  I was in front of him, but he seemed in his own little world.  In any case, it's probably my favorite picture of the past few months, so at least this guy can feel good about that.

Here goes:

I woke up one morning and just couldn't really see the parking lot 150 feet down.  Maybe Tux had better luck.

For some reason I like these kinds of shots.  It's been edited to look contrasty and somewhat sharper than it was, but I like the texture and feel of the shot.

I'm not sure what kind of story this shot tells you but it says something.  I suppose, taking it again, I'd want to get something in the background because as is, it doesn't really situate the beer can anywhere.

Some people waiting for the bus in a dark, dark bus stop.  One guy pulled out a fantasy book of some kind, the other just sat on the chair.

This picture is better if it's a bit smaller.  Why are clubs so dark?  I like the idea of some random guy looking at these two girls getting freaky on the dance floor.  That stupid Rickard's sign blocks out some of the scene, but hopefully you get the idea of what's going on, anyway.

More waiting at a bus stop, this time at a different stop on a different day.

Wide-angle lenses are pretty nice.  I took this with the Canon S100. I was actually walking on the sidewalk and managed to get these two people looking over the river, with the 24mm-ness (equivalent) wide-angle end of the lens.

Regardless of what this gentleman thought of me, I love this shot.  I just like him looking the way he does, with the two birds going about their lives, not really paying attention to him.

I found it funny how people were using this building to advertise this movie.  It's also interesting because, say it was a dictator's place, it would definitely be private property and you wouldn't be able to trespass on it.

Last of the bunch for today.  I was walking around the Market and it was fairly dead, but I did catch a few shots, this being my favourite of them.  Just a guy playing guitar, busking for money.

I hope you enjoyed these, and there's hopefully going to be more coming soon enough.  I don't have much of a backlog, but I might go through my archives and post things I haven't touched in a while.  We'll see.

Mini-reviews: Canon Elph 320, Olympus TG-820 and Nikon P510

It's been forever since my last post, but because it's much nicer outside now I'll hopefully have more to post.  I should have a few pictures up in the next few days, but here's something a little bit different: a few mini-reviews.  I suppose I should call these mini-overviews, given I can't really talk about the picture or video quality; I played around with the cameras, but didn't really have the inclination to put in a memory card to see what the results would be.  In any case, here are my impressions of these cameras.

Canon Elph 320

This is Canon's touchscreen camera model and, quite honestly, the touchscreen isn't very good.  Sony does it much better with their T/TX series.  Sony's screens are simply more responsive, which, what with the screen being touch sensitive and all, is the most important part.  There are no issues with the layout and interface on the Elph 320, but the screen seems a bit stiff, especially compared to the Sony TX10 or T110.

The 320 has wifi capabilities, and these two features (touchscreen and wifi) are what distinguish this model from the Elph 110, because other than those, both cameras are exactly the same.  They both have the same 16.1 MP sensor, Digic 5 processor and 5x optical zoom.  The addition of wifi is nice, but the only interesting feature is being able to send pictures from camera to camera, though I'm questioning the practical use of this option.  Standard options like emailing and sending pictures to Facebook and Twitter, videos to Youtube, are also included.  Samsung seems to have better wifi integration, and allows you to control the camera through your smartphone (provided you've downloaded the iOS/Android app), whereas Canon only allows you transfer files and send them to various services.  Samsung also allows you to send your photos to (among others) SkyDrive if you use that, whereas Canon only allows their Canon Image Gallery.

The camera comes with all the Canon bells and whistles offers, like a million different filters (B&W, sepia, vivid, super vivid, and the like), all the effects you can imagine (fisheye, miniature (still and video), colour accent, among others), as well as Super Slo-Mo video, shot at 240 frames per second.  This comes standard with all the cameras boasting the Digic 5 processor.  This mode is not very practical, but playing with it is definitely a lot of fun.  Standard video shooting is 1080p, and Canon has enabled all 2012 models to zoom while shooting video, which is something they should have done a little while ago.

All these features are a nice inclusion and won't be of any surprise to any longtime Canon user.  Also not a surprise is probably going to be the image and video quality, which I'm assuming are going to be great.  Canon has always had great processing and the Digic 5 processor is very strong.  The files out of my S100 are terrific and though shouldn't be compared directly with any Elph camera, they're a nice indication of what the Elph cameras should do.

Quite honestly, as far as a camera goes, the Elph 110 is a better deal.  The wifi integration on the 320 is nice to have, but people wanting to send pictures and videos to whatever website they want will generally take pictures and videos with their smartphone instead, and not be limited by access points and such.  The 320's touchscreen is its downfall, honestly.  I like the UI, but, with Canon, I'd rather have buttons to use.  If you can get past those, this seems like a nice little compact camera.

Olympus TG-820

Since last summer, I've only mentioned Olympus when talking about their scandal, but they've also been releasing cameras since then!  The OM-D is well-reviewed and I'd love to be able to play with it.  The TG-820 is now their mid-range tough camera (replacing their 6xx/x series), and I can say it's well-built.  I find the TG-810 slightly more solid, but the 820 has the same specs when it comes to toughness ratings.  Waterproof down to 10m, shockproof up to 2m, freezeproof to -10 celcius and crushproof up to 100 kg, this will definitely be able to withstand whatever you do with it.  Indeed, I've dropped it and stepped on it a few times and not even a scratch.

What's new to this camera is a CMOS sensor and based on what the OM-D can do, I'm really curious at the low-light/underwater quality of this camera.  The camera also has a 5x zoom, but has this intelligent digital zoom feature (also seen in Sony and Panasonic cameras) that allows you to zoom out to 10x, while still keeping full 12 MP resolution shots.  In a pinch, it's a nice option to have, but because the camera has to interpolate pixels, I imagine the image isn't as sharp as an optical 10x zoom.  Olympus isn't a leader in video, but I'm sure there's nothing wrong with the 1080p video quality.

Not only does the TG-820 have standard effects/filters (B&W, fisheye and the like), it also has some very interesting retouching features I've never seen inside a camera before.  After taking a portrait, you can go in and tweak the smile, skin, eyes and facial features to improve that portrait.  It's like having a mini-photoshop edition in your camera.  The changes are not drastic, mind you, but the subtle changes can take a nice picture and make it just that much better.  One nice filter they added is called 'Fragmented' and I like the look it has.  It takes your picture and breaks it up in small, offset squares, giving, well, a fragmented look.  I thought I'd mention this because I like it.

The one thing Olympus took out from last year's model is the GPS, which, for a tough camera designed for hiking and travel (and especially coming from Olympus), is pretty much a necessary inclusion at this point.  Olympus's flagship tough camera, the TG-1, will have it, but they should have also included it in this model, as well.  All in all, this seems like a respectable camera if you want a tough camera.  It's well-built and has a very nice set of features.

Nikon P510

Just to get this out of the way first: yes, this has a 42x zoom, which is insane.  Moving on.  This zoom is going to be the main reason the general consumer would buy this camera.  Most people don't seem to care all that much about many of the bells and whistle that companies cram in their bodies, so they'll look at the zoom, because most people want a quick, responsive camera that will perform well in the dark and that has nice zoom.  I have no qualms about this camera's responsiveness, provided there's enough light, obviously, and, to be honest, though I trust the JPEG engine on the Canon SX40 a bit more, the P510 has many terrific features that the SX40 does not.  The P510 comes with a 16.1 MP sensor, and, somewhat disappointingly, only an Expeed C2 processor, instead of Nikon's new Expeed 3 processor (or a variation thereof).  (The Canon SX40 has a Digic 5 processor, the first camera along with the S100 released with this processor.)

The first feature I noticed was the intervelometer setting.  This is actually the one feature I'm most excited about, though most people don't seem too keen to embrace.  The ability to do time-lapse photography in-camera is relatively rare, especially on non-pro cameras.  If I owned the P510, this is pretty much the only feature I'd use on it.  Other than that, the SX40 also lacks GPS capability, which the P510 has.  Again, for a nice travel camera, this inclusion is thoughtful.  The camera also has the standard array of filters and effects, such as black and white, fisheye and miniature effect.  However, the colour accent mode in the Canon cameras is a bit better thought out.  In the P510, you have to choose from specific colours (ie. light blue, blue, light red, red, etc...), whereas in the Canon cameras, you have the freedom to choose any colour you can see through your screen.  Having said that, the panorama mode in the P510 is a motion-type panorama, where you drag the camera across the scene and all the stitching is done in-camera.  The Canon panorama mode is a lot more involved and pretty archaic.

A few cons on the P510 to finish off.  The screen on the SX40 flips to the side, and rotates 270 degrees.  This is a nice feature if you want to turn the camera on yourself, as you can see what you're shooting.  The P510 screen tilts up and down and that's it.  It adds a nice level of flexibility to shoot over and under things, but it's not as useful as the one on the Canon camera.  The last thing I'll mention (and the first thing I noticed when turning on the camera) is that the menu system is a bit clunky.  This isn't usually a problem, as Nikon menus are not too complex to begin with, but because the P510 has so many features, it may take a little while to figure out how all the buttons work with the menus and dials.  This is a small gripe, but for most consumers that want an easy camera to use, it may be slightly irritating.

This is a nice bridge camera.  It's not my favorite type of camera.  I don't like too much zoom, but the features are nice.  It's a solidly-built body, and it's not a bad choice.


I might add more small reviews like these ones if I get the chance to do it.  I might attempt to get sample shots and videos next time, but I don't know possible that is for various reasons that aren't really important to expand upon.  In any case, I'll have new posts up soon!

Didn't make the cut.

Because I found them on my computer, here are six random pictures that didn't make the project.  There are definitely more of this type of photos, but this is what I easily found.  They were nice, but better ones were simply taken during that day.

Here's the first one.

I would've liked having a wider-angle camera, but the S100 wasn't out then.  It's a nice shot, but I think the reason I didn't post this one is because it looked too much like others I'd taken before.

Next two.

I passed on these two in favour a blurry shot of my cat looking inside a cereal box.  I don't know if I would have made the same decision now, but at least now you can all see these shots, as well.

Next up is from Winterlude.

I believe the reason I didn't pick this shot is because it's not as crisp as I wanted it to be.  It does, however, look pretty nice in a smaller size.

Next up is a shot from Valentin's Day, but doesn't really have any romantic appeal, really.  Just a frozen river.

I took a shot of the Peace Tower in Ottawa for the project, but that's only because I've taken too many of this river.

The last one of my favorite of the bunch.

I found it strange there was a baseball cap in the middle of the street and wanted to focus on it.  The sensor in the X10 also allows for a blurrier background than normal compacts, so it gives the shot a, well, blurry feel, except the baseball cap.

In nay case, here are a few shots that may or may show my choosing process.  I'll have new shots as soon as it's not too cold to walk around without gloves on.

First post, post February. High ISO Comparison.

Most people think I'm crazy for owning more than one camera.  I generally have either 2 or 3.  This hobby gets kind of pricey, so I don't usually get too many cameras.  I usually buy cameras only if I can get something out of it (big surprise, I know).

In any case, my constant conflict between having many cameras and having useful cameras means a couple of things: I wish I had access to more cameras than I do, and also, I'm able to compare anything that comes across my apartment.  A few weeks ago before getting rid of my Canon 7D, I compared high ISO performance between the Canon 7D (with dual Dig!c 4 processors, released Q3 2009 (somewhat important)), the Canon S100 (with single Dig!c 5 processor, released Q3 2011) and the Fujifilm X10 (with single EXR processor, released Q4 2011).

Now, this is only an ISO test.  It's not supposed to determine the best camera, which is very easy to figure out just by looking at the price tags.  Given the sensor size differences, these are three very different cameras with very different purposes.  I just thought it might be interesting to see how these cameras handle noise.  It might be slightly unfair to test out these 3 cameras together, but I had them in my apartment, and I was actually curious to see how a tiny 1/1.7" sensor would hold up to a much bigger APS-C sensor.

All three photos were shot at 35-ish mm (given how tricky it was to pick an exact length, though I did my best to have equivalent focal lengths on all cameras), at ISO 3200 (the highest the X10 can shoot without compromising resolution), at F/4 (the aperture of the 7D's kit lens at the focal length) with a shutter speed of 1/60 of a second.  I took the RAW files out of each camera and synchronised the white balance on all three files (3100K in case you care about this stuff at all), and exported the files as is.  The white balance adjustment is the only editing I did, in order to get the most accurate colour and noise representation possible.

Before showing the pictures, a few interesting facts (well, interesting for me, anyway): all three cameras use CMOS sensors, and all three cameras were the first to use those particular sensors.  The 7D was the first Canon SLR to use the APS-C 18MP sensor later found in the T2i, T3i and 60D; the S100 is the first to use the 1/1.7" 12MP sensor (and the way things are going, it'll be the only camera to use that particular sensor given the new G1X uses something slightly on the more massive side); and the X10 uses a newly-designed 2/3" 12MP sensor later found on the Fujifilm X-S1.

So, finally, the 7D shot:

It looks pretty good.  To be as fair as possible, I used the EF-S 18-135mm kit lens.  Given you can't change the lenses on the compact cameras, I thought it only fair not to use my L lens here.

Next, the S100.

Also looks good.

Finally, the X10 shot.

Unsurprisingly, also looks nice.  What I find really strange is that the 7D and S100 files are 8MB and 7MB, respectively, while the X10's file size is only 4MB.  I'm not sure how this happens because it seem to  have pretty much the same colour and range as the, say, the S100.  

In any case, at this size, the files all look more or less the same.  So, let's crop.

The 7D.

Good.

The S100.

A bit grungy-looking.

The X10.

A bit grungy-looking, as well.

So, even at 2 1/2 years old, the 7D easily has the best ISO performance of the bunch.  I really wish I'd taken shots at ISO 6400 and 12,800 to compare, but I didn't have that foresight for some reason.  The 7D has much bigger sensor, with a pixel size of 4.3 micrometers (whereas the S100 has a 1.86 micrometer pixel size, and X10 has, I think, 2.09 micrometer pixel size).  Not only that, the dual Dig!c 4 processors are able to handle anything captured by the sensor very easily.  The 7D has the best dynamic range and clearest ISO performance.

The tougher decision is whether the X10 or the S100 has the better ISO performance.  The X10 seems to have a bigger noise pattern than the S100, which, in cleaner areas, like the white part of the Blu-ray cover, gives the pictures a neater look, though makes the busier areas, like the battery and coins, look a bit blurrier.  Looking at the speaker part, though, on the bottom right, the X10 definitely has better dynamic range, with deeper blacks and more detail in the shadow areas.

It's a tough call, and maybe my shot isn't the most representative.  In terms of practical use, though, the X10 can go to higher ISO 6400 and 12,800, though only at reduced resolutions (6 and 3MP, respectively), while the S100 can have full 12MP shots at ISO 6400 and be quite usable.  I think pushing these cameras more would be pointless, as nobody really pushes these cameras to their limit except idiots like me.  

It's a tough call.  What do you guys think?

"Everyone will take one great picture, I’ve done better because I’ve taken two." - 365 Project, Day 366

So this project has officially come to an end (as official as it can be, considering I'm running this myself).  Here are a few statistics, as I promised in my last post.

Obviously these numbers change daily, but as of today, of course, in the past year:
- this blog has seen 4053 page views, which turns out to being roughly 11 views per day.
- this post from November 11th has seen the most traffic, with 35 views.
- this blog has gained 2 followers, but one or two others (or possibly more) visited regularly.
- there have been 1088 photos uploaded to Flickr, and about a dozen more uploaded to blogger itself (don't ask why I uploaded to two different places, it makes sense to me).
- our pictures have been viewed a combined total of 15 751 times.
- this shot has been viewed the most times, at 410 views (it was picked up by a French online magazine).
- 55 photos have had no views, which means that 1033 photos have been seen by at least one person, 6 of which have had more than 100 views.
- that I know of, about twenty pictures have been taken by various blogs, online magazines and shops for publication.
- 20 photos have been favorited by random viewers.
- the picture that has received the most attention is by far this one.  It doesn't have the most views specifically, but I assure you it has easily been seen by the most people, as it was the duchess's Wikipedia picture for a long time.
- the most pictures I've taken in a day would be roughly 860, for a wedding I helped shoot.  The most pictures I've taken in a day  not shooting a wedding is about 350.
- I've taken roughly 7300 photographs (it's only an estimation because exact numbers are virtually impossible to figure out), which is probably less than what most people will take in their lifetime.

I started the project with the Canon S95 and the Canon 7D, with the kit lens and the EF 50mm f/1.8.  I now own the Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L lens and have neither of these cameras, owning the Canon S100 and Fujifilm X10, with the intention of buying the Canon 5D Mark II replacement, whenever that goes on sale.


As has been going on in the past year, here is my picture for the day.

Whatever happens, I know I'll always be taking pictures.  Maybe more than I have in the past year, maybe less, but I'll keep taking shots of whatever I find interesting.  This spot, in case you don't recognise it, was the exact spot where I shot my first photo of the 365 project, from March 1, 2011.

Again, thank you to Frank, Mandy and Shannon who joined me for this project, and stay tuned to see what I'll do next on this blog.

That's been my photographic life in the past year, as far as I can remember.  I hope you've enjoyed it, and it's not even close to being over.  I have a lot more pictures to take!

"A snap shot is a two-dimensional piece of paper. A photograph is a three-dimensional work of art." - 365 Project, Day 365

Technically, today is the last day of the project, given it's the 365th day, but there is one more day to February, being a leap year.

It's been a great year, trying out new things and taking tons of pictures.  I'll have all the weird stats tomorrow, but for today, it's more an impression of the project as a whole.

It was nice to have a few people try it out with me, though we lost a couple in the process.  I half-expected this, but seeing the support and creativity come out, even if it was only for a short time, was a very educational experience.

It was also nice to see everybody trying out new types of photography and going out of their general comfort zone.  Everybody tried landscapes, like sunrises and sunsets, but everybody tried macro-ish stuff, and even candid and street photography.  There was also studio-type stuff, with placed elements here and there.

I've really enjoyed doing this, and not only because I can say I did it, but also because, for the most part, I did learn a lot and I feel I have grown a little bit about being a photographer.  I do edit my shots more, and I do pretty only only shoot in RAW right now.

Thank you, Frank, Mandy and Shannon for joining me in this endeavour, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Here are our non-last shots for this project.

Frank

His note: Car wash curtain.

My shot

I just liked the colours in this kind-of sunset going on.  I've also tried to take a shot with a reflection in the building, but I'll settle with the colour reflecting on the side.

Onto tomorrow!

"Maybe, the greatest art discovery within hundred years from now, would be our grandparents' photo albums!" - 365 Project, Day 364

I'm sure family albums have a lot of generic, boring pictures, but I'm sure a few shots are pretty nice and different, as well.  Vacation shots are by and large nothing special.  How many times has the Eiffel Tower been shot with someone standing in front of it?  However, I'm sure there are some really different and creative shots out there, also.

It just takes a bit of thought, and and interesting angle, and you have a nice shot.

Here's what we have today.

Frank

His note: My very first car, 1973 SuperBeetle!

My shot

Just another generic street shot, a few people walking home in the snow.  There's nothing special about this shot, but then again, there was nothing special about this day, either.

What's tomorrow?  It's day 365!

"My artistic eye is black and white. I’m used to seeing and visualizing in black and white and have only one way of taking pictures." - 365 Project, Day 363

Shooting in colour takes a certain eye, but by the same token, shooting in black and white, or shooting for HDR, takes a certain mindset.  The tones and highlights are different in all these types of photography, making you look differently at the same scene.

It's not that tough to train your eye to look at a scene for a specific type of shot, it just takes a certain amount of practice.

Here are our scenes.

Frank

His note: Don't ask I have no idea what this is either.

Myself

Yes, this is a shot of my cat.  As much as I wanted to go out side, it was cold and windy.  Tux was sleeping and looked at me strangely when I took a shot of him.  I don't think he cared much about what was happening.

Onto the ending, coming very soon.

"A technically perfect photograph can be the world’s most boring picture." - 365 Project, Day 362

I saw a music video the other day.  It was someone mixing dubstep with classical violin.  The best I can say is the video was crap, but the song sounded nice.  However, the dubstep was very... clean.  There was nothing particularly bad about the song, but it was very clean.

By the same token, I'm also on 500px.com, and a lot of the shots are very, very nice.  However, they all look the same in style: all perfectly clear with nothing grungy at all about them.  It's all very sterile.

Having said that, my shot today is very weak, but it's all I had given the day wasn't all that nice to go out walking.

My lonely shot for the day.

Pat

My friend went snowboarding today so in her honour, I took a shot of Mount Vanier - some random snowbank on the end of someone's driveway.  Actually, the most interesting thing about this picture is that it's actually about 15MB, when the RAW file is 18MB, which is pretty rare, if you edit files at all.

We're entering the last few days now.  We'll see what happens tomorrow.

" A photograph that has not been shared or at least printed is almost an unexistent photograph, is almost an untaken picture." - 365 Project, Day 361

I remember seeing a series of photos someone took, and the angle was that the photographer/artist took out all advertising of any kind.  So, billboards were empty, company signs were empty and the like.  The photos had a very odd look to them.

The point of the series was to show how used to advertising we've become, and it definitely proved its point.  These photographs looked a lot stranger without the companies and ads in them.  What does that say about us as a society?

What we saw today.

Frank

His note: The beginning of the snow storm from my balcony.

My shot

This is more or less day two of this insane storm.  You can see the results here.  You can hardly see past the parking lot, and it was pretty much like this all day.

"My goal is, with each use of the camera, to strengthen my intution and deepen my insight." - 365 Project, Day 360

There's always a chance to make the most out of an unideal situation.  It got pretty snowy today, and instead of hunkering down and trodding to work, I knew I had to get a shot of something.  Luckily, there was someone walking down the street to create a reverse-eerie look to the empty street I was travelling down.

This just goes to snow that there's always the possibility of taking a nice shot in any situation.

Our shots.

Frank

His note: Futile attempt at reproducing the Olympic logo.

Pat

When I left my place it wasn't so snowy, but halfway to work it got pretty thick.  I accidentally overexposed this shot but I really like the whiteness of it.  I suppose it enhances the snowy feel, which is pretty much the effect I wanted to get before taking the shot.

Hopefully we can make the most out of tomorrow, as well.

"No one moment is most important. Any moment can be something." - 365 Project, Day 359

I live my life believing that life is generally one big Monty Python sketch.  It's served me well so far, and I don't see things changing too much.

Not all photography should be serious.  It's nice to have grand landscapes and poignant portraits, but not all life is like that.  There are always lighter moments that make you laugh and make you forget the other moments.  I suppose I could have edited my shot to make it seem more punchy, but it's not that type of shot.  It's simply to show how well people follow rules.

Here are today's memories.

Frank

His note: Getting ready to start my next painting.

Myself

I just couldn't resist taking this shot.  It's silly and simple but I find it funny.  Besides, I did move around a fair bit today, but nothing caught my eye.  I'm hoping tomorrow will be different.

I don't think tomorrow will be tremendously eventful, but I might be wrong.

"I am sure the next step will be the electronic image, and I hope I shall live to see it. I trust that the creative eye will continue to function, whatever technological innovations may develop." - 365 Project, Day 358

Yesterday, I got to shoot with a Nikon F2.  It was my co-workers, and a gift from her father.  It's the first time I shot film since probably 2004 and the first time I shot a non-digital SLR since, uh, 1993, I think.  In any case, it was a pretty different experience from shooting digital.  I'd forgotten how different.

I was at the time shooting on a Canon T3i with a 50mm f/1.4 lens and was enjoying it.  My co-worker came with her camera and enthusiastically showed me the three lenses she had, a 28-80mm standard lens with a macro setting (strange but true), a 50mm f/2 lens and a 135mm f/2.8 big boy.  I immediately grabbed the 135mm and shot a few portraits with it, and enjoyed every second of it.

It was fully manual focusing was interesting, to say the least.  The viewfinder on the camera is so much nicer and brighter than the T3i's, and, for that matter, the Canon 7D's.  There wasn't really any issue in focusing after I got used to the feel of the camera.  Because it was fully manual, it was tricky figuring the exposure, as well.  There was a light meter in the camera, but I ended up getting a basic idea for exposure with the T3i's metering and shooting with those settings.  It was also very odd looking at the back of the camera after taking a shot and not seeing anything.

I would definitely shoot film if I wasn't lazy about getting my film developed (and if it didn't cost me money every time I wanted to take pictures).  I also take too many photos and it would end up costing me too much in film and processing.  I suppose I could figure out a way to process my own stuff, but, again, chemicals and other equipment would end up costing me too much.  Lightroom is also slightly more convenient in coming up with a shot I like.

Obviously, the pictures I took aren't in this project for a few reasons, but I'll hopefully be able to get a hold of one or two in a little while.  Here, instead, is what we shot today.

Frank

His note: Took this shot and decided it was too plain so rotated it counterclockwise 90° and it gave the picture a whole different feel.

My shot

There are usually tons and tons of snowbanks in various spots across the city at this time of year.  This is only part of one, though it doesn't really look like one.  It's been one of those days, as well, and didn't have much to shoot.

I'm hoping tomorrow is going to be somewhat picturesque, though I can't promise anything.

"Photography begins with an "f" sound that stands for fiction, fake or forgery. And that is the original sin of photography. Only the most untainted purists (and the pedantic New York Times) seem to be unaware of this." - 365 Project, Day 357

My picture today is the perfect example for this quote.  With the photo's title and its content, there are various things that could be said about paying for it:
- too much beer this evening and the morning after is painful
- too much food eaten and the bill is way too high
- someone simply paying for their bill

I could tell you anything and you'd have to believe me.  Photography, as much as it is, is a replication of what happens in real life.  Add to that and explanation of what you're seeing, and that reality becomes questionable, as you were not there, and the storyteller may not be one to trust.

To find out what happened, read my photo description.

Frank

His note: I know I shot this one not long ago but the way the sun was shining through it today made it sparkle.  Very cool.

Me

I like my title for this picture, as it can mean a few different things.  However, the real story is that we simply paid our bills and left.  There was nothing extravagant in the prices or consumption of various foodstuffs.  One can imagine anything one wants, though.

Here's what will happen tomorrow: I'll wake up, do stuff, post my blog entry, and go to bed.  How's that for exciting?

"The photgraph that I call my best from a sitting is not always the clients favorite but it is the one that gives out the most emotion to anyone who looks at it." - 365 Project, Day 356

I've mentioned this before, but this is all about context.  My shot today is nice, if a bit cheesy, but nobody will care about it as much as I will.  Whenever I see it, I'll remember a few things, one of them being how much fun I had.  Now, you may say that a good shot will also convey that fun.  However, I have the jokes and laughter behind that shot, so even with a bit of fun in the shot, nobody will be able to fully appreciate it in the same way I will.

A second thing this shot will remind me of is how tough it was to choose the colour scheme.

Here is today's entry into the project:

Here's where it gets tough.  Look at the black and white version of the same shot.

To me, this is a tough choice.  The reason I went with the coloured shot is that I like the colours and, oddly enough, I also like the muddy greens in the pool table.  This is a limitation within the camera's dynamic range capability, but I really like the mushiness on the left, right and bottom of the shot.  It's funny and not something I'd usually enjoy, but it just seems to work in this shot.

Other than that, I wish there would be more balls, or the balls would be in more aesthetic positions, but I'll take this shot.

See what will work tomorrow.

"Photography appears to be an easy activity; in fact it is a varied and ambiguous process in which the only common denominator among its practitioners is in the instrument." - 365 Project, Day 355

I thought it only fitting to have a quote by Mr. Cartier-Bresson.  Street photography is somewhat tougher than other forms, because you need to be very quick, and not really care about upsetting or annoying certain people.  Under certain conditions, I can be like that.

Getting the best shots also involves knowing when and where to be to get the best shots.  I spend an hour or so walking around in a busy part of the city at the perfect time of night to see random people doing random things and am very happy with the results I got.  Thankfully, it was a great night to be out - not very cold and busy enough for different things to happen around every corner.  I'm hoping to do more of this type of things soon.

Here's what we got.

Frank

His note: Just havin fun.

Myself

I went out with friends and ended up walking home (which, in case you're interested, was what I wanted).  I saw this couple and they inspired me to take a detour, avoid my place for a little while.  I got some nice shots.  The Market is generally busy enough on Friday nights and it was pretty warm outside.

I had a great time today.  Here's hoping to the same tomorrow!

"The camera is a fluid way of encountering that other reality." - 365 Project, Day 354

That other reality is the one through the lens.  Things are different: they have edges, they may have different colours (or no colours), they are bound by simple moments and don't have any movements.  It's a funny thing, but it can be magical.

This other reality creates terrific moments in time that allow us to look at life and criticise, contemplate and enjoy.  They can be simple or complex, but they always make you think and look at reality.

Here's what we captured.

Frank

His note: I liked the texture of the wet stones.

My shot

This is another entry into my address photography nonsense.  The texture created by the wood its juxtaposition with the smooth metal of the mailbox..  I wish the mailbox were bigger, but I wanted the door handles in the picture, as well.

I'm patiently waiting for tomorrow.

"Ultimately, my hope is to amaze myself. The anticipation of discovering new possibilities becomes my greatest joy." - 365 Project, Day 353

I keep walking around in the same streets, but yet I generally something I want to shoot.  Now, that something may have variable levels of quality and interest, but at least I shoot something.  My goal is always to shoot something I'll like, at that is the point of any picture I take (and any picture I've ever taken).  There's no real point in taking  a picture you're not going to enjoy in some way or another.

When I think I have a great shot, I always get a little pang of excitement as I check the back of the camera to look a the shot I've just taken.  It's somewhat of a silly feeling, but when I know I have a great shot, I like looking at it.

Here's out inspiration today.

Frank

His note: Darn puddy tat put me in jail!

Pat

My note: Sitting down is generally not how one waits for buses in Ottawa in February, I'll tell you that.  I also like the fact that you just see this lady's legs.  In fact, I didn't know it was a lady until I walked right next to her.  It would have been nicer if the bus sign would be a bit more visible (or any kind of visible), but I'll take this shot anyway.

My 7D is now officially gone.  I simply have to play the waiting game for now, until Canon decides to announce new things for me.

What will happen tomorrow is only going to be determined tomorrow.  Head back to see what did happen.

"Photography has increased my awareness." - 365 Project, Day 352

This is a simple but apt line.  It not only awareness of what goes on around you, but also of how do shoot the same thing but making it look interesting in different ways.

Unless you really know where I hang out and walk around, there's probably very little chance of looking at my picture from today and a few previous pictures and knowing they were taken from pretty much the same spot.  That's partly because I don't walk around different places sometimes, but it's also because I try as much as possible to use different angles and editing to mix things up. 

Our shots.

Frank

His note: Lamp and tree near the apartment bulding. Looked a little eerie.

Myself

This is really the first time I kind of repeat myself (other than shots from my own balcony).  I think I have a shot taken from pretty much the same spot I took this one from.  This is different in that I wanted to look for a saturated look.  It looks kind of fake, but that's exactly what I wanted.

Here's what I'm going to do tomorrow: take pictures.