I took an evening and updated the entire blog, minus the header, and the demo reel. When I return to Michigan, I will have the demo reel replaced with a 2012-2013 version. Everything else, information wise, has been reviewed and updated.
If you see any spelling mistakes or anything please tell me so I can fix it. I’m not an error free human, I do make mistakes.
There’s a saying out there that goes, ” You are only be as good as your equipment is.” I highly disagree with this statement but it brings up a good topic, when as an artist do I upgrade my equipment? My answer is, the best time to upgrade is when either society demands you to upgrade or when you need to upgrade to make artistic change. I guess the only way I can explain this is by giving examples of when I actually upgraded my equipment.
I first made videos on my parents’ Sony Cybershot camera that recorded in like a 360×280 setting which I uploaded and edited everything on an old desktop computer on Windows movie maker. A majority of these crappy videos that I made are private now on Youtube but all the equipment was perfect for the time being. I was solely making videos for fun and didn’t need anything special. You first have to determine what you need as oppose to what works for you. If everything runs perfect why would you ever upgrade?
You begin to upgrade when you know modern technology is beyond you. The age of high definition cameras were coming out and I finally had some birthday money saved up for an HD camcorder. I had a desire to make my videos higher quality and to make them better and more enjoyable. I watched thousands of videos on YouTube studying what camcorder I wanted and finally purchased a Canon HF20 over a Canon HF10. I still use the HF20 today whenever I’m on the go and don’t feel like using a dslr. Switching from a camcorder to a dslr wasn’t really a hard upgrade thanks to many resources such as Dave Dugdale that help you understand dslrs. I knew the benefits that dslrs had over camcorders but the reason I got a Canon Rebel T3i was because my HF20 was acting up and I needed a camera for a job. A need.
The issue I’m finding now is when do I upgrade my lenses? I got a perfectly good Canon 50mm f/1.4 lens off ebay for $160, the kit 18-55mm lens and a 55-250mm lens. When I upgrade lenses will I go full frame and get a 5Dmark III? I probably will once the raw video gets figured out completely with magic lantern because that quality rivals the Black Magic Cinema Camera . I do think that will be my breaking point where I’ll upgrade again and start to buy L lenses. Once all my lenses from my wish list are purchased I’ll probably go for a red epic or scarlet with a Leica Noctilux 50mm f/0.95. Who knows…
I think that it’s important to realize that once you’ve maxed out your potential with your equipment then I think you’ll be ready to upgrade to make a better artistic change to better yourself. My T3i and I have a long way to go still but below is my wishlist for the future when I get more money.
Cameras:
-A Canon 5D Mark III for quality boost, low light performance boost, and full frame. I’ve played with one and they are nice.
-A White Canon EOS M w/ 22mm lens for convenience with EF Mount. I fell in love with the white version of this camera. It’s so cute for a nice date camera. A T3i or 5D Mark III would be crossing the line a little bit on a date.
-GoPro Hero 3, I’ve played around with a GoPro Hero 1 and now with the Hero 3, I’m excited for the boost in quality and everything.
Lenses:
-A Tamrom SP 24-70mm f/2.8 DI VC USD Lens for walk around. All purpose travel lens. The image stabilization/ vibration control makes it worthy.
-A Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM Telephoto Zoom Lens. For sports, nature, and animal photography. One of the best on the market.
-A Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM Lens to replace my f/1.4 lens.
-A Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM Lens. Known as one as Canon’s sharpest lenses. Could get into portraits or just about anything.
-A Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L IS USM Macro Lens. For Macro Photography.
-A Canon EF 8-15mm f/4 Fisheye USM Lens. Fisheye, a toy lens for fun.
-A Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L Lens for landscapes and nature.
I’m working again at Sonlight Christian Camp this summer in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. There are tons of new faces working this time around whom I’m positive I’ll be making lifelong friendships with. We just finished up our staff training and I thought I’d share with you a little story about my adventures in the mountains this past weekend. I could have died so it’s pretty interesting I guess.
A group of about 12 staff members planned on going up a mountain ridge about 12,000ft above sea level where they would camp in a meadow near a lake, summit Pagosa Peak, roughly over 12,500ft, and then hike back down the next afternoon. I heard some news that it would be below freezing that night in Pagosa Springs, roughly 7,000ft, and I couldn’t imagine sleeping in a place where temperatures could be even colder. I told my friend Grant that I wouldn’t go but as staff members began packing up their items, I fell into a slight bit of peer-pressure and I ended up going up the mountain.
As we packed our backpacking bags, I knew my little 30 degree temperature sleeping bag wouldn’t be enough so I rented out a mummy bag from one of our camp buildings. I had roughly 25 pounds in my backpack as we began our accession up the mountain. Not very much camera stuff but clothes, lots of warm layers and some food that we purchased before we made it to the trail head. Around 8:30pm, the sun was setting and our group was just getting over the ridge. Our front leader said there was only ten minutes until we reached our destination but she didn’t factor in snow. If a path isn’t cleared, walking on snow and ice can lead to your death if you slip and slide right off the mountain. I was using my monopod as a walking stick when I walked over the snow so even if I slipped my monopod would still be caught in the ice. With the snow it would have taken us another 30 minutes to reach our destination if we continued our hike but we didn’t. At this point in time I couldn’t see our leader in front of us. It was pitch black, and windy I immediately began putting on warmer layers. It was so numbingly cold I couldn’t feel my fingertips.
We were about halfway through the snow when someone suggested that we head back, away from the wind and sleeping on the trail. Everyone agreed and began rushing over the snowy paths to find a spot to warm up at. Everyone moved so fast we didn’t realized half of our group was missing when we made it back to the trail. I gave a walky-talky to someone in the group that was split up from us but the communications were jammed. We didn’t hear from them for about 30 minutes. During this time, one of our staff members from the other group was sliding down the snow but was caught by another staff member. People were freaking out but others were confident that they would return to the group. I was with the group that made it back to the trail and I was in my mummy bag with my legs sweating. Mummy bags are surprisingly very warm and you’re even encouraged to sleep naked so that you can be warmer in your bag. If I wouldn’t had grabbed that bag however I may have gotten hypothermia.
Everyone cuddled together between two logs while I laid on the trail with two other guys. The trail was not flat and it was not soft. I slept for maybe 2 hours on and off but a majority of the group had the same if not less sleep. One amazing thing that I took away from this experience was the view of the night sky. Not once in my life have I looked up at the sky to see so many stars. I didn’t take any photos of it because my fingers were numb but it was definitely a sight I won’t forget. Below is a picture of the mountain range that my group of 13 people slept on. I left with a bunch of bruised shoulders, hip bones, and another crazy backpacking story to add to my memories.
There’s probably a ton more unreleased John Mayer songs out there on the internet. If you find any let me know:
http://youtu.be/xSNE3tw0Nao
http://youtu.be/Qwzo1klbIyY
http://youtu.be/rDi1pa3TWAw
http://youtu.be/lXByinFmjYU
http://youtu.be/romLxA7NEyQ
http://youtu.be/SMaNgeB66Es
http://youtu.be/fkvkST67kFM
http://youtu.be/gTsBaIgE4Ts
http://youtu.be/L4TRP8PJKoc
http://youtu.be/Z7EirzYiiIQ
http://youtu.be/HGC0U6Gb760
http://youtu.be/m9VEAwvU19Y
http://youtu.be/Om9HMlswZoo
http://youtu.be/r77Uv5au1r0
http://youtu.be/6aGWEKaYATk
http://youtu.be/z0oHle0lSGs
http://youtu.be/anfz8CGS_Bg
http://youtu.be/_IB79rKQ5dw
Ryan Rakowski 