Food Photography Tip of the Week |22|

What’s inside my camera bag?

When I was just starting out learning photography—and really still today—I was always interested in the gear other photographers were using, especially which lenses. One things for sure, camera gear is expensive. My collection has been s.l.o.w.l.y. growing over the past 5 years.

It all started with a bunch of gear Chris bought. I’m sure you’ve read the story but here’s the Cliffs notes version. Chris bought an entry level dSLR and 4 lenses to start learning photography when we lived in Charlotte. After moving to Denver and starting Edible Perspective I basically hijacked the camera after previously swearing off ever learning how to use it. One of the lenses he first bought was the “nifty fifty” which is the Canon 50mm 1.8. It’s basically the lens everyone buys because it costs $125 and takes pretty dang good photos.

I rolled with this setup for about 2 years:

Canon Rebel xti [they don’t currently make this model]
Canon 50mm 1.8
Tamron 28-75 2.8 [the earlier model was much cheaper]

I then upgraded to the Canon 50mm 1.4 which may seem kind of silly after already having the 1.8 but it’s a much higher quality lens and is still fairly inexpensive [$399]. The quality of the lens body is more durable, the lens is noticeably sharper, I felt the colors were a bit more vibrant, and it also operates much more smoothly and quietly when hunting to focus on the subject. Plus you get a little boost in aperture capabilities going from 1.8 to 1.4. The 50mm 1.2L jumps up significantly in price [$1550] which wasn’t in the cards at that point.

I pretty much stopped using the Tamron because I wasn’t impressed with the sharpness and only used the 50mm 1.4 for about 1.5 years.

The Rebel body was limiting, though, with the max ISO at 1600 and really only usable to 800. It was great to learn on but I needed an upgrade. About 2.5 years ago I researched and bought a refurbished Canon 7d body and used that with the 50mm 1.4 until March of this year when I bought the Canon 35mm 1.4L [it was $100 off at the time for $1330]. My first L-series lens! I landed a sizable freelance job and made the purchase immediately after deciding that was the next lens I wanted.

My current body + lens setup:

Canon 7d
Canon 35mm 1.4L

[I also have the Canon 600EX Speedlight flash for wedding photography and I’ve also used it for product photography.]

Pretty dang simple.

Since buying the 35mm lens I have yet to put the 50mm back on. The sharpness and wider frame are such a huge upgrade that I’ve never had a reason to switch it back. Plus, the 35mm is awesome for portrait photography. The wider frame makes a big difference and you don’t have to stand back nearly as far to get your subject in the frame.

I absolutely love the Canon 7d but would love the extra ISO boost [among other features] with the 5d Mark iii. That’s still a ways off, though.

So what other gear is stashed in my bag?

This shoulder sling camera strap is amazing. The camera hangs right at your hip and you can easily slide the camera up to your eye. I don’t use this much at home but when I’m out or shooting families, weddings, etc. it’s a mush have.
Memory cards [compact flash] – You may not need a 32GB card if you’re just taking food photos for your blog but that one is a must have for wedding photography. I think the 16GB and 8GB are good to have for food and general purpose. I always role with the SanDisk brand and have never had any issues with them. I always reformat the cards after uploading to my computer.
Lens Cleaning Kit – You’re bound to get dust and smudges on your lens or lens filters. Never wipe them with a towel! The air blower [not pictured] is key to blow dust particles off so you don’t brush them into the lens glass.
Extra batteries – I have 3 batteries which I always have rotating in the charger and ready to go. It’s the absolute worst if you’re in the middle of a shoot and your battery is dead with no backup. I’ve had really good luck with the off brand battery I linked to.
Camera Level – This is such a useful tool when you’re using a tripod! It slides right into the hot shoe slot.
Remote Shutter – I talk about this awesome tool more in this post but it basically lets you activate the shutter away from the camera, which is super usual for motion shots. Be sure the remote shutter you buy is meant to connect to your specific camera.

I’m still using the original tripod Chris bought years ago. It’s a Velbon brand tripod, but I can’t find the exact model.

So what bag do I put all of this gear in? When I’m traveling or doing a simple portrait photo shoot I usually roll with the bag below. I found this on Etsy years ago and it has held up amazingly well. It’s very comfortable to wear and not at all cumbersome. I absolutely love it!

There are two pockets [in the back and front] to hold small items like batteries and memory cards and then 3 areas in the center to hold a camera with a smallish lens on and 2 other lenses or lens and flash, etc. It’s also great at holding 1 camera and a lot of airplane snacks.

When I shoot weddings the Domke bag below is what I use. Chris bought this for me about three years ago. It’s not as “everyday” as the bag above but is meant to serve a different purpose. It can hold 1 camera body with 1 lens, a second camera body [I rent a second when shooting weddings], 1 more lens, and external flash. The thick canvas material is super durable and although larger it’s still comfortable to wear.

So what’s next on my gear wish list?

Canon 5d Mark iii
Canon 24-70 2.8L
Canon 100m macro 2.8L

What’s in your camera bag or on your wish list?

Ashley

Food Photography Tip of the Week |21|

How to change your background color in Lightroom and Photoshop.

Do you remember a few weeks ago when I showed you how checking the “soft proofing” box in the “develop” mode in Lightroom turns the background to white instead of gray?

Food Photography Tip of the Week - background display color | edibleperspective.com

That little tip received so many comments! Many of you were ecstatic to hear you could change the background color to white after being frustrated editing against a gray background. It’s much more difficult to gauge the colors temperature [in my opinion] when editing on a gray background. Using a white background allows me to tell when the photo is too warm or too cool. This helps avoid having to re-edit photos when I bring them into my blog post and see them on a white background for the first time.

But recently, I discovered something even better.

Simply RIGHT CLICK on the background and a box pops up with multiple color options.

Yes, it’s that easy!

You also have a choice of background texture.

Checking the soft proofing box will turn the background white but that tool is actually used to help determine how a photo will look when printed. If you check the soft proofing box you can then look in the “histogram” area on the top right which will now read “soft proofing.” This shows you which areas of the photo are outside the appropriate range for print or for viewing on your monitor.

You can definitely still use the soft proofing box to change your background display to white but I think the right click method is the more correct way to go about it.

You can also permanently change the background color in Lightroom by adjusting the option in your “preferences” menu. Simply change the “main window –> fill color” to white. Now your background display will always be white.

Now guess what else?

You can do the EXACT same thing in Photoshop! This has bugged me for years and I was never able to figure out a solution. Whenever I tried to check Google for the answer it always led me to how to change background colors when editing photos, not the actual background in PS.

When I realized you could do this in LR I gave it a try in PS and was dumbfounded. And in Photoshop you can select the custom color of your choice! Just right click and choose “custom color” and the box below will pop up. Or select from the menu choice of colors. I always stick to white.