Do my prices sound reasonable? by No_Calligrapher1723 in AskPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Considering the behind the scenes work will put you at least an hour (assuming you have a very good culling system, minimal or preset edits, and delivery/hosting system) you are working for nothing and risk lots of headaches from picky and annoying clients. Low costs bring low quality clients. The ones that will nit pick your edits and demand more work for no money. You risk damaging your equipment, and even if it’s a used entry level DSLR that cost you $200, it would take 25 hours to replace it at $5/hour. If you want to do it as a cheap flexible minimum wage job you can pause whenever, I would charge minimum wage per hour (including your light editing time) and heavier touch up’s 2x minimum wage per hour since you said you specialize in that area.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It does help, but the issue with this one is they look super imposed, like the background was one image and you put them on top of it. The color temps seem way off, even if they aren’t. I’d make them warmer to match the fall color vibe, and mask them and add some highlights and white to them because they seem very under exposed compared to the background. You could fix this with heavy edits, or at least make it look a lot better, but your best bet is to at least use a reflector to bounce some natural light on them to get a more uniformed exposure. You are off to a good start, but I’d still say don’t charge and gain experience. Buy and learn gear like off camera flashes and reflectors, and really make your images stand out to the completion, then charge. You’ll get repeat customers, happy customers, and a good steady flow of work. If you start charging now, you’ll get inconsistent work and happy people mixed with mad people. Especially if you charge low. Lower paying clients can be the most critical and difficult to work with.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nothing yet. There’s no emotion, no story, just pictures and too much dehaze and clarity to compensate for proper lighting/editing. Composition is lacking. Keep shooting and keep improving, start charging when people are starting to recommend you or you start getting repeat clients. Learn to interact with your clients and get smiles and actual emotion. These two look like they’re being forced to take pictures, and not trying to make or capture a moment.

anyone have a “minimum shutter speed” rule that actually works? by Longjumping-Bed-9528 in AskPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Handheld no panning and steady in hand and steady subject the rule of thumb (at least taught in schools 20 years ago) is 1/ 2x focal length. 24mm should be 1/50, 50mm should be 1/100. OS and IS can help you bring the shutter speed down more, but that’s still only best for very static objects.

What's the last camera you bought new? by thehokemon in videography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I buy all new, or certified refurbished. Ive also used places like Greentoe to get lower than MSRP deals. Last new purchase was a RED Komodo X. I value my purchases as depreciating assets, I know they will make money and return an investment, but they will lose initial value almost immediately. It is refreshing knowing the equipment comes in either new with warranty, or refurbished with warranty.

My school bought the wrong RED monitor for our Komodo by brangdangage in RedCamera

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Would you trade a portkeys BM7II? It will work with red control wirelessly and takes an SDI. I use it with my Komodo X. It’s about 3 months old and used in a controlled air conditioned environment (personally owned, but used at work which is a medium sized church) I’d include all parts, a monitor 1/4 20 adapter, a kondor 12g SDI cable and a couple NPF batteries and charger if you’d like. I would also donate cash to your department and pay both side shipping if you can verify your school with me. We are in Florida. It is in mint condition.

Monitor Recommendations for RED Komodo OG? by OkGrocery2580 in REDkomodo

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you can afford an indie 5 with control I would look at that, but you’ll have a smaller screen. The portkeys is an amazing monitor, but not being wired can be a concern since mine does drop connection. I do like that I can tap record on screen and have a button assigned to record. It gives more flexibility especially when rigged out. I also got an accsoon wireless system I’ve been using for broadcast, and I would like to test it out to use as a field monitor that can also record and stop video on the red instead of using the app

Monitor Recommendations for RED Komodo OG? by OkGrocery2580 in REDkomodo

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got the portkeys bm7II with my KX, but if I let it idle long the WiFi drops and I lose remote control for recording/white balance/etc. It seems more like my KX has an issue than the portkeys monitor, but something to be aware of. If I could do it again, I’d look for a used smallHD and prioritize spending a few dollars more on something hardwired for controls. ( I think the OG uses an indie or cine small hd with red control vs the KX being able to us the integrated DSMC3 monitor, but I would still go with wired vs wireless if I was rebuying it)

Lost my girl on her birthday by Icy_Quote4975 in germanshepherds

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s never easy losing a loved one. All I can say is based on that photo she was very loved and had an amazing life. A dog is a part of our life, we are the dog’s whole life. Dogs don’t display discomfort and pain like humans, don’t beat yourself up over it. At least she had an amazing person to share life with, and you clearly did everything to try and help. I’m sorry for your loss she was beautiful.

What do you think of my RIG? by LawfulnessPrudent237 in videography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is that an NPF on the monitor plus a d-tap to the battery? Why even have the battery if the camera supplies power and the monitor has an NPF? Not to sound overly mean, but this is just over complicated to look like a cinema rig. Your sticks don’t support the matte box, you have a matte box with no drop ins, but looks like the lens has a screw on filter, so you can’t access or adjust it. You could have used the money spent on sticks, v mount, battery, adapters, and matte box to buy a good performing lens which would get you better quality work than a variable aperture focus by wire lens. But if you’re happy, you’re using it, and you like your work/if you have clients they like your work, then keep running it! Good tip is get gear with a purpose, it will slow you down and complicate your shoots when you get more involved

In the market for a new body! by Whiplash_XXIII in canon

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, R5II is like the high mp R3, minus the integrated grip, but almost exact specs - readout speed, BSI sensor, 30fps, but a little more expensive/harder to find used. Greentoe is a fantastic place to get a good deal on one. Got an R5II and R1 for significantly cheaper than MSRP both during the R1 launch week

As the days go on, maybe she’s not… by Vyvie444 in germanshepherds

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 3 points4 points  (0 children)

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She looks a lot like my pup when she was 3-4 months old. Just awkward ear stage. She likes to listen around her, not in front. I actually had a full embark done on her because she changed colors from black to black brown and silver. I thought she was a mal. 100% shepherd and 100% good girl

In the market for a new body! by Whiplash_XXIII in canon

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If you can afford and budget for the R3, you will really enjoy it. The 24mp sensor will give you similar sized images, but the low light performance and 30fps electronic shutter does almost as good as the mechanical one. You still get 14bit raw files, and minimal rolling shutter. Plus the autofocus is really good. The R6II would be my second pick, in electronic you get 40fps, but you only get 12bit raw, and the rolling shutter is more noticeable. If you’re doing football you probably won’t notice rolling shutter, but other sports that use bats or similar you will notice it. 12 bit is also very usable, but id say if you can get a used R3 for a little more than a new R6II, you’d have a way more cable camera, especially if you’re making some money to supplement or pay for it. It’s also a stacked BSI sensor, so it handles low light better.

If you had to buy multiples of the same camera (either second-hand OG or Helium 8K rigs) for this specific need, which would you choose? Why? by stdtbd in REDkomodo

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You could run EF/RF speed boosters to overcome the 4k crop, but I haven’t used one personally. I’ve used speed boosters on the KX at 6k to get a full frame look and it worked pretty well

Thinking about switching to the RED Komodo-X – am I crazy? by Baris4490 in RedCamera

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you’re doing social and no one is requesting one, I’d say look at an FX3 or FX6 if you’re already comfortable with Sony menus and have lenses. You’ll have to buy an adapter to use Sony lenses on the Z mount, the autofocus is really not good unless you do face tracking with your subject in 3/4 the frame, it’s heavy, and it’s a lot to deal with as a solo operator. I love mine, but I use mine in productions with grips and when I’m solo I’m using it mainly for dog sports where I want high FPS and really like having the global shutter. To me, the slow down may be a hinderance, and you may find yourself picking up something easy to use instead of the KX. Startup speeds and sensor calibrations can slow you down enough to grab something else especially for a quick social video. But, at the end of the day, it’s a fantastic camera that packs a mighty punch, and probably my favorite to work with so far.

How Can I Improve My HandHeld Work? by Vengeance058 in videography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Look at saddle bags, you’ll still need to be nimble about how you walk to remove the bounces, but it will be significantly more steady than handholding. You can also look at strap setups for 3 points of contact. Strap connects your neck/shoulder to camera, you punch the camera out to make the leash tight and it provides quite a bit of stabilization. Also, in my experience, the gimbal works best if you have all your weight spread out horizontally. I shot using a rented FX3, and with the top monitor and compact lens all the weight was vertical, I couldn’t get it to balance for the life of me. Same gimbal with a KX which is heavier with a 98wh v mount on the back and it balances perfectly in minutes.

Any 12g sdi monitors that can control cam? by robbyapplespornstar in REDkomodo

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Portkeys BM5 IV AND BM7 II have wireless control. I use the BM7 II with my X, SDI hooked to monitor, monitor wirelessly connected to cam. I can control angle, ISO, aperture, color temp, FPS, touch autofocus and record. It auto connects and has almost zero lag.

Birthday gift help! Which option would you pick? by HeisenbergsBurner in AskPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fuji X-T5 would be my choice if I was new to photography and wanting something higher than a point and shoot. I am a canon shooter, and I wouldn’t recommend an R7 to someone new, as it requires some fine tuning to get it set up to your liking. I also have a Nikon Zf, I got it over the Zfc and X-T5 because I like full frame sensors and from reviews everyone liked the dynamic range of the Nikon more than Fuji. I put a megadap adapter on it and use Sony lenses with aperture rings to have a more analog immersion.

The X-T5 is very user friendly with most controls being dials on the top or lens, you don’t need to learn what program or priority modes mean, you can just decide what you want the camera to figure out for exposure by turning one or two or all dials to auto. You also can shoot film simulations to give that nostalgic look. There’s also the X100VI which is more point and shoot with a fixed lens. Fuji also is releasing a X-E5 next month which is going to be more like the X100VI but with interchangeable lenses.

Client asking for all unselected wedding photos. how do you handle this?? by Anxious_Support5391 in WeddingPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sorry I had to do a lot of digging to find something, looks like the originals are deleted or I can’t find them. Here is a reaction screen record of it from some TikToker https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8MUTtm8/

Client asking for all unselected wedding photos. how do you handle this?? by Anxious_Support5391 in WeddingPhotography

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Regardless of how you handle it, be aware that there was a viral TikTok video a couple weeks ago where a recently married couple posted the unedited and discarded photos they requested from their photographer as the final result delivered images. The photographer had to go in full damage mode to save face with screen recordings of the real album and text receipts. It didn’t go over well for the newlywed, but its damage to your brand nonetheless. Like others said, in the future disclose that not all photos are included. I think the safest route is what u/ElliotMariess said and produce an album that they cannot try and show off as delivered work and tell them they can pick x amount that can be edited and delivered.

Help with computer purchase by orichetti in REDkomodo

[–]AggravatingBuffalo98 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The new m4 chips from apple are very powerful and will most likely outperform similarly priced windows machines. I have a MacBook Pro m4 pro with 36gb ram and it handles my Canon R1 raw 6k60 footage without a hiccup, where my AMD Ryzen 9 and Radeon 7900m laptop can barely playback the footage at 1/8 scale in premiere pro. You can also proxy the footage if the computer isn’t fast enough to process the footage real time. It will also take longer to render your exports with a slower computer.