The Moment It Clicks

Reply to Probable heresy in this group but...

nobody@flickr.com (Dan Bachmann) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 15:21:59 -0700

I also found this book a disappointment; however, I loved Hot Shoe Diaries which I read when I was just getting into working with lights out doors.

Reply to Two Day Intensive Lighting Workshop with Joe McNally coming to Portland - July 31st/Aug 1st

nobody@flickr.com (tvphoto) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 16:45:27 -0700

tvphoto posted a reply:

wow, what an opportunity. But for that price, I can buy 8 new flashes or 2 alien bees and a ranger pack. Hmmm...

Reply to Tell your "Moment It Clicks" Story behind a one of your photos

nobody@flickr.com (CannyPhotography) — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 07:17:40 -0700

CannyPhotography posted a reply:

One of our first really nice spring days. I had knee surgery (torn ACL and meniscus) about 6 weeks prior. I was free of crutches and more mobile again. So, basically itching to get out and shoot and enjoy the weather. This was the last stop on my journey. You can often see kayakers and college row teams practicing from this this bridge. That and the near by abandoned tannery were my hopes for shots. When approaching this bridge I passed some skaters and this girl in the shot. She had really cool pink hair. Not that pink hair is really rare anymore, but the way hers looked....it was just really cool looking and I wanted to shoot her candidly. She was standing talking on her phone. Of course, as I lifted my camera to shoot her, she starts moving. Only got one shot off and it wasnt great. But then she and the guy in the shot start walking towards me to go across the bridge. Oooooh, new shot. So I start clicking away, different distances, some had a jogger in it, landscape all of them. Then it dawns on me, I should take a vertical shot. I just clicked it quick. Ends up being the best shot of the bunch.

Two Day Intensive Lighting Workshop with Joe McNally coming to Portland - July 31st/Aug 1st

nobody@flickr.com (NXTFoto) — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 23:57:31 -0700

NXTFoto posted a new topic:

For those of you that loved the book and can't get enough of Joe's teaching, I got good news for you. Joe McNally will be teaching a two day lighting intensive this summer on July 31st, August 1st, in Portland, Oregon.

This workshop is going to be amazing, and is limited to just 15 people to give you a change to have personal instruction and practice with Joe. Instruction will be split between working in a classroom setting and working at two on-location shoots.

Full details and registration available at:
www.nxtfoto.com/joe-mcnally-workshop/

Reply to Probable heresy in this group but...

nobody@flickr.com (josh.webb) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:22:05 -0800

josh.webb posted a reply:

To each their own. Some people really enjoy printed work, while others would be satisfied with text on a Kindle or audio version on their iPod. If you like it great. If not, don't worry about it. I like it. I have a few of Kelby's books, 2 McNally's, a Kirk Tuck, and a couple others.

Reply to Probable heresy in this group but...

nobody@flickr.com (DanDiMuzio) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:44:06 -0800

DanDiMuzio posted a reply:

I can't tell you you're wrong to feel the way you do, but how you judge what you get out of this book is dependent on what you were expecting.

I think Joe was pretty open about whose writing technique he was using in this text -- that of Scott Kelby. The thing that had maybe kept Joe from writing and publishing an entire book about flash photography before was how impossible it may have seemed to get everything organized and explained adequately in less than 300 pages.

Scott Kelby more or less suggested that he not look at the whole project as if it needed any logical structure or rigid organization, but rather to just present brief descriptions of various scenarios he's faced and then explain in simple terminology how he addressed them, usually in just 3-4 pages per scenario.

If you've ever read one of Kelby's "Digital Photography" series of short how-to books, you might recognize a certain similarity in presentation. He starts with a joke or maybe a story, then proposes a problematic situation many beginners run into which can't be referenced or resolved in a minute or so by most photography books. Scott then gives you maybe a 1 to 3 sentence explanation of how to find a solution -- a specific setting on a camera menu, what lens to use, how to aim your off-camera flash -- whatever.

You can groan at Scott's stories or roll your eyes at his corny jokes, but his simple, situation-specific recommendations are easily understood, and they allow beginners to go out and risk "failure" at something that they otherwise may never have attempted. Then they learn a little, and their curiosity about "exposure" or "f-stops" may lead them to research or texts where concepts are more thoroughly explained.

I'm pretty sure Joe just borrowed Scott's pedagogical style (at Scott's own urging) to construct this book. If you want longer explanations of theory (which is entirely reasonable), this book might not do the job. But if you're a flash newbie (like me), Joe's stories -- which can be very funny and entertaining -- are just one small part of a book that helps amateurs (and prospective pros) get over their fear of flash.

BTW, I think one reason for the book's higher-than-usual cost might be its extensive use of large, full color photos. Believe me -- the costs associated with publishing a book are very much increased by such a factor. Also -- Amazon has it for about 35 bucks now.

-- Dan D.

Reply to Probable heresy in this group but...

nobody@flickr.com (TVGuy) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:11:42 -0800

TVGuy posted a reply:

I have to agree as well... great shots in the book, but most of the Yoda-like wisdom wasn't really helpful... sentences in the book like "I've always had a good relationship with the people who run the Empire State Building" just serves to distance Joe from the rest of us.. it's a lot easier to get the great shot when you work for LIFE, Sports Illustrated, etc... and have assistants, tens of thousands of dollars of gear, and most importantly the Opportunity that just about all of us won't have...

Obviously a great photographer, but the only thing we have in common in the world of photography is opposible thumbs.... just my two cents..

Greg

Reply to Mods please clean the pool.

nobody@flickr.com (Scott Cowlin) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 09:13:36 -0700

Scott Cowlin posted a reply:

Thanks for letting me know, i will take a look.

Reply to Mods please clean the pool.

nobody@flickr.com (HK Buckeye) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 20:11:24 -0700

HK Buckeye posted a reply:

Will Do, thanks John.

Reply to Mods please clean the pool.

nobody@flickr.com (John Groseclose) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 19:26:35 -0700

John Groseclose posted a reply:

When you see those, go to the user's Flickr account page and click the "Report Abuse" link at the bottom of the page.

That'll get the entire account killed, not just the porn skimmed out of the pool.