Capture Integration in Carmel

March 1, 2010 | Guest Writers, News

Last week, Don Libby of Iron Creek Photography in Tucson, AZ and Ken Doo Photography of Carmel, CA co-hosted the 2nd Annual Capture Integration in Carmel medium format digital workshop.  Capture Integration in Atlanta, GA and Miami, FL is a Phase One Dealer of the Year, and is widely known for its customer service and knowledgeable staff.  Stemming from its previous year’s activities, the informal and light-hearted workshop is also known as the 2nd Annual Pigs in a Blanket, where unbeknownst to most participants, last year Don Libby ordered everyone Pigs in a Blanket for breakfast at the Wagon Wheel Restaurant in Carmel Valley.  And a monster was born.

The workshop is primarily for those interested in medium format digital photography.  Participants are able to use the latest technology, such as the Leica S2, Leica M9, Cambo RS, Phase One P65+, P40+ and P45+ digital backs, and a host of the latest lenses from Rodenstock and Schneider, all of which were graciously provided by Dave Gallagher of Capture Integration (CI).   Although the focus of CI in Carmel is on landscape photography, many of those attending are also photographers that work in other fields, such as weddings, portraiture, commercial, and fine art—those that demand the finest in image quality for their clients.

Read More about Capture Integration in Carmel

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Cambo Wide RS w/ Rod. 40mm TS

February 9, 2010 | Guest Writers, Tech Features

Editors note: If you have any interest in landscape photography, traditional or alternative film and print processes, or enjoy photo forums but find yourself sometimes turned off by the typical forum-bickering-and-posturing, we strongly recommend the GetDPI.com forum. They provide a positive environment for the discussion of photography, aesthetics, techniques and gear. The members are very knowledgeable and helpful and the discussions are very often the best place on the web to get advice.

Further Editors note: GetDPI also runs some of the best photographic workshops in the world. They have one spot remaining in their upcoming Salton Sea workshop starting Feb 28.

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By Jack Flesher of GetDPI.com

Thanks to our good friends at Capture Integration, I was able to borrow their Cambo W-RS tech camera with a Rodenstock Digiron HR lens mounted in a Cambo TS lensmount for a quick field test.

Some background. I have avoided investing in a tech camera kit since one of the main features I wanted was separate tilts and swings up front with rise, fall and shifts at the back, and only recently has that option become (readily) available. Sinar released the Arctech about a year ago, and to date I have not been able to even look at one, though I understand there are a few floating around. Arca recently introduced their RM3D tech camera that incorporates a front standard tilt with rear rise/fall and shifts, all while using a dedicated focusing helical on the camera for all lenses. Without going into laborious detail, both of the aforementioned solutions will accomodate my desires, but if I understand their operation correctly, require some added camera gymnastics to get a combination of swing, tilt, rise and focus at the same time. For me, that trio is an often desired combination of movements when photographing three-dimensional subjects with broad near-far subject distances. Which brings me to the main feature that intrigued me about Cambo’s TS lensmount solution — it allows separate tilt and swing adjustments up front on the lens axis while allowing rise, fall and shifts at the rear. (There are a few excellent view camera choices which offer all of these movements, even independently at both ends, which is an obvious advantage for precise adjustments. However a view camera makes for a significantly larger package to transport, is more complicated to set up and use, and is virtually impossible to use hand-held, so I leave them out of the tech camera discussion.)

So armed with the Cambo and 40 HR, I mounted my P65+ back and set out to photograph a decent test subject. In this case, an old passenger train car. I’m going to get straight to picture examples showing results, and leave out all the preparatory discussion on how to use a tech or view camera. While the how-to portion is a worthwhile discussion, it’s lengthy, and most folks considering a tech camera purchase will already know the basics of working them. For those of you who don’t, you’ll hopefully at least be able to see why a camera with movements is worth considering.

Click on the images below to view at 100%.

Here’s the “normal” shot. For this one, the Cambo is leveled and zeroed, meaning no movements of any kind have been made:

The first problem we note is my shadow is in the image, which is an absolute no-no. So the first movement I make is rise, or back fall. Here I used 5mm rise, and note it has the effect of moving the camera to a shooting position several feet higher — note that the camera has not moved at all, the only adjustment is 5mm of rise:

Note that my shadow is gone, and I have more room over the train car, all good things. The three red squares indicate where I’ll be pulling crops from. The far left is the “near” subject point, the center is the “focus” point and the far right is the “far” subject point. Our goal is to get all of them into acceptable focus. I shot all of these frame at f10 as that is near the ideal performance aperture for the lens before diffraction starts deteriorating the fine detail. Here are the crops from the frame with no tilts or swings and only the 5mm rise:

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Capture Integration Brings the P65+ to Carmel

March 11, 2009 | Guest Writers

Excellence is not cheap.  And neither is medium format digital photography.  But for those that seek the ultimate in image quality, Phase One offers many different medium format digital back solutions.  The latest iteration from Phase is the recently released P65+ featuring the world’s first full-frame 645 digital sensor and an incredible 60.5 megapixels.  What sets this digital back apart from previous generations is the proprietary Phase technology behind the Dalsa sensor.  Phase One calls it Sensor+ technology.  By default, the P65+ captures images at its full 60.5 megapixel resolution. Sensor+ technology, however, gives the photographer the option to shoot at 15 megapixels, and with pixel binning, use higher iso speeds with lower noise by utilizing larger 12 micron pixels during image capture.  In essence, the P65+ is like having two medium format digital backs in one.  For the ultimate in image quality, the P65+ is currently the pinnacle of excellence.  Did I mention that excellence is not cheap?

Deciding to Buy the P65+ or How One Loyal American Stimulated the US Economy

Continue reading Capture Integration Brings the P65+ to Carmel…

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Cambo RS 1000 – A User’s Report

January 2, 2009 | Guest Writers

Moving Platforms

I had a conversation with Chris Lawery while on the way home from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon recently; part of the conversation centered on my thoughts and feelings of Cambos newest technical camera, the RS 1000.

I’ve recently made a move from what was my primary camera kit, Phase One AFD III and P30+ to a technical camera. I was able to test the RS this past October while at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and the test, as short as it was sold me on the camera.  Coming back home to Tucson I returned the test camera to Capture Integration and immediately ordered one along with a 35mm lens.

I’ve had my RS now for just shy of 90 days and while it’s a short time I will state that I believe it to be one of the best landscape kits I’ve ever had the pleasure to either own or use.

It’s the end of December now and as I’ve already said above, I’ve used the RS1000 on two different trips, both to the Grand Canyon and on numerous occasions around Tucson.  The next major trip for me is at the end of January 2009 when I travel to Crescent City CA to photograph the giant redwoods and do some coastal imagery as well.  I plan on using the RS in the redwoods and probably switch to the Phase One AFD III for the coastal shots.

In moving to the Cambo RS1000 I also had to make a move from the digital back I had previously used, a Phase One P30+.  The P30+ had served me well during the time I had it allowing me to capture stunning landscapes throughout the Southwest as well as our recent trip to Alaska however it just wasn’t suited to be mated to a technical camera.  I had originally looked at and almost brought a Phase One P45 when I was researching my first digital back but for whatever the reason had decided to purchase the P30+, a move I never looked back on nor regretted.  Now with making the move to a technical camera I knew from my research I would be faced with either keeping the P30+ and buying another digital back – a move that just wasn’t financially smart or using the P30+ as a trade-up for the P45+ which I did.  Speaking of digital backs, yes the P65 looks great and yes I’d take one in a heart beat if given one (okay there’s a big hint Phase One) however there’s that financial thing again.

One last comment about the Phase One P30+ back as I don’t want to give the impression that it failed me in any way.  This back allowed me to produce a 2-shot image later merged into one panorama at 30×60 which is stunningly clear in ever aspect.  The image is so well regarded that it only hung on display at our gallery for one week before it sold.  And yes I see the same level of detail in the images taken with the P45+.  So here’s the end of this part – if anyone is thinking of buying a P30 or P45 my suggestion and recommendation is do it!  And to be completely honest and aboveboard you need to contact Capture Integration and no I don’t work for them nor do I own any stock in the company.

Continue reading Cambo RS 1000 – A User’s Report…

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Foundry Works

October 10, 2008 | Guest Writers, News

We’re very proud to announce that today our customer Michael Schultz’s book has been released.  The images in Foundry Work are a mix of 35mm and Phase One P45 shots. You can learn more about his book at his website below.

www.michaelschultzphotography.com/publication.html

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Iron Creek Photography – Don Libby’s images and inspirations

August 7, 2008 | Guest Writers

I primarily do landscape images; notice I said images instead of photography. I want to present what I felt more that what I saw at the time the photography was taken.  It is my firm belief that just about anyone can take a photograph be it a tree or rock or even a fig and it will come out looking like the object what was taken.  In other words here’s the tree or meadow I saw isn’t it nice?  What I want to convey is the emotion, the emotion of what made me capture the image as well as instill a level of emotion into the viewer.  I heard once that good photography incites emotion; that emotion can range from disgust to wonderment.  I hope my landscape invokes more of the wonderment side of the scale.

It takes a lot for me to take an image.  In some cultures it was once thought that you capture the soul of a person when you take their photograph; in some ways I feel the same way when I do my landscape images.  Standing at the edge of a canyon or in a meadow seeing what very few people have the privilege to see and experience is to me very moving experience.  What I attempt to do when I capture the image is not only take a decent photograph but know what I want to do with it once I have it.  Bottom line for me is that I want to pass on the feeling that I experienced standing there.  I want the viewer to feel the soul of image not just see yet another landscape.  I want the image to speak out and in some cases shout out to them to the point where the viewer wants to see the location for themselves and experience it first hand.   I have a small blog connected to our website and have had many visitors comment that while they may never been in the position to visit the Southwest or for that matter anywhere we photograph, they nevertheless thank us for sharing the beauty and experience.  I’ve had people see finished work that hangs in a local gallery at home state that our landscape images invoke emotions and memories that they had long lost.  That’s what it’s all about.  I consider myself an artist first and photographer a close second.

More images and workflow after the jump.

Continue reading Iron Creek Photography – Don Libby’s images and inspirations…

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Terra Incognita: Photographers of America’s Third Coast

May 9, 2008 | Guest Writers

Update: Richard Sexton has been featured by Phase One. Download the Phase One Richard Sexton PDF.

A Seamless Film to Digital Transition

In mid-summer of 2005 I made a proposal to my primary publisher, Chronicle Books in San Francisco, for a fine art photography book of black and white landscapes of the gulf coast. I’d been photographing the gulf coast since 1991 and had built up a sizable body of work on the region. Though Chronicle was enthusiastic about the images in this series, they had doubts about the viability of the subject as one of national interest and appeal. However, they were willing to at least consider it. Then in August and September, hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the gulf coast. Suddenly there was unrelenting national interest in this region of the country. Whereas the national focus was primarily on the devastation to the city of New Orleans, there was an underlying interest in the geography of the region and particularly how increased storm activity and global warming were impacting the gulf coast. Not only was the climate changing as it pertained to weather, but the book publishing climate was changing as a result of Katrina. Chronicle agreed in the fall of 2005 to publish Terra Incognita. However, the project was only about two-thirds complete in terms of principal photography. There would need to be new photography, particularly post-Katrina imagery, to complete the photo essay.

More from Richard Sexton after the jump.

Continue reading Terra Incognita: Photographers of America’s Third Coast…

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Multiple Strobe Pops for Interior Lighting with Phase One

March 4, 2008 | Guest Writers, Tips & Tech

This article is was contributed by our valued customer, Jeffrey Totaro. You can check out his website at www.jeffreytotaro.com. If you are a customer and have a technique to share with the community please contact Doug Peterson.

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Digital photography provides many excellent solutions to photographic challenges. But coming from 4×5 film I missed one previously film-only technique: multiple strobe pops while shooting interiors. I have developed a unique switch-box that brings the multiple pop method to Phase One digital backs. The device is built by Kapture Group, and available for purchase from Capture Integration. The device can also be used for other long-exposure and multiple exposure techniques.

Continue reading Multiple Strobe Pops for Interior Lighting with Phase One…

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IAAP and Capture Integration team up

March 4, 2008 | Guest Writers, News

Editors Note: This article was contributed by Thomas Bliss, the president of the International Association of Architectural Photographers. Steadily Capture Integration has been proving itself as the authority on specific markets in our industry. If a product doesn’t exist to solve a photographic problem Capture Integration will develop one, thus establishing our branded line of exclusive products. The combination of high ideals, customer service, and the superior quality of the Phase One line of digital backs has been integral in establishing Capture Integration’s reputation as the #1 source of information for the discerning photographer. Our expertise in the Architectural market has lead us to partner with an organization that is like minded. We look forward to a long relationship with IAAP and its members.

The International Association of Architectural Photographers was first launched by founder and “emerging” architectural photographer Thomas Bliss on January 1st, 2003 as NAAPA. The name was changed in mid 2003 to the IAAP to reflect a growing international membership.

Continue reading IAAP and Capture Integration team up…

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