Blog | 41 - Dumps & Drains
| bokeh photographic (Alistair Grant): Food & Drink Photographer; Commercial Photographer, Product Photographer & Packshot Photographer; Event Photographer; Portrait Photographer; Corporate Photographer & PR Photographer; Engagement Photographer & Wedding Photographer and Photography Training Courses in Cambridge, Huntingdon, Peterborough, Bedford, St Neots, St Ives and London. Freelance Photographer & Freelance Photography Services in Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and across the UK. | |||
 
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Alistair Grant Freelance Photographer Cambridge & London |
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bokeh photographic: Blog No: 41 → TIP: Click any image to view in LightBox |
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Dumps & Drains If you have attended any of my Photography Training Courses you’ll probably recall me stating how one of the most delicate components of any camera is the sensor. There’s a very good reason why the sensor is tucked away at the back of the camera other than the most obvious reason! Although the maxim that the wisest photographers invest in glass as opposed to camera bodies holds true, it is also accurate to say that the very latest generation of sensor technologies perform far better (in extreme conditions) than sensors in older cameras. Generally speaking, for the reasons explained in Blog 25, full-frame sensors also perform better (again, in extreme conditions) than crop sensors although note that’s not the same as declaring full-frame cameras are the only worthwhile kit. One of the real keys to good photography is understanding how far you can ‘push’ the ISO on your camera before the noise-to-signal ratio renders unacceptable levels of noise in an image remembering crucially that different cameras (including those that are the same model) have different noise signatures. I get asked a lot of questions when running training courses. If I don’t have an answer I’ll research the topic and get back to whoever posed the question as soon as is possible. This also holds true for the photographic ‘controversies’ that pop-up from time to time. In fact, very little in photography is black and white (excuse the pun) and often there are multiple ways of achieving the same outcome. However, there remains one question I haven’t been able to find a (satisfactory) answer to. The conundrum is why battery power diminishes so rapidly when shooting bulb exposures (a special type of long exposure). Consider this: although the camera is obviously switched on the shutter curtains are not moving (i.e. the shutter remains open for the whole exposure as the shutter time is typically minutes rather than seconds) and there is no motor activity in terms of autofocus – another sure fire way of exhausting a battery is to use a super-telephoto lens or a weighty piece of glass such as Canon 85mm f/1.2 L II USM as the power needed to move the elements quickly drains power. Despite these facts bulb exposures really drain camera batteries. Of course, the answer lies somewhere in the dump of information to the sensor as the camera processes information from the exposure. The CPU capabilities and thus power demands of modern cameras are impressive and of course there are thermal issues to take into consideration which may also affect battery performance. However, why the rate of battery discharge should be so extreme has not been satisfactorily answered despite my requesting explanations from both Canon and Nikon. If anyone would like to proffer an explanation answers on a postcard please! Incidentally, this shot is a bulb exposure of the conjunction of Venus and Jupiter from a few years back – in fact, as far back as March 2012. Electronic geeks may recognise the building as the old Enderby’s Flour Mill in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, one time HQ of Sinclair Radionics (i.e. one of the companies of Sir Clive Sinclair of ‘C5’ fame) where the pocket calculator was developed. And just to prove my point about bulb exposures draining batteries; the intended shutter speed was 30mins in order to best capture the tracking of the planets in the sky and as reflected in the River Great Ouse but the exposure was truncated at 1196sec (i.e. 19minutes and 56 seconds) because the camera battery ran out. Admittedly, this wasn’t my first shot of the night. I had taken a few exposures previously but not a number that would seemingly drain a fully-charged battery which provides many thousands of shots when I shoot using any other camera mode. |
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Call Alistair Grant on 07775 365507, Email [email protected] or click Booking Enquiries if you have any questions or would like to make a booking. |
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bokeh: "the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image produced by a lens" Freelance Photographer offering Food & Drink Photography Cambridge; Commercial Photography Cambridge, Product Photography Cambridge & Packshot Photography Cambridge; Event Photography Cambridge; Portrait Photography Cambridge; Corporate Photography Cambridge & PR Photography Cambridge; Engagement Photography Cambridge & Wedding Photography Cambridge and Photography Training Courses in Cambridge. Also covering: Huntingdon, St. Ives, Ramsey, St. Neots, Peterborough, Bedford, Stamford, Newmarket, Sawtry, Alconbury Weston, Brampton, Hartford, Warboys, Houghton, Wyton, Godmanchester, Hilton, Hemingford Grey, Hemingford Abbots, Fenstanton, Whittesley, Yaxley, Needingworth, Somersham, Chatteris, Ely, Bar Hill, Grafham and Buckden. |
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bokeh photographic - Alistair Grant | Freelance Photographer | Cambridge, London, UK Food & Drink Photography | Commercial Photography & Product Photography | Corporate Photography & PR Photography | Portrait Photography (inc. 'Active Portraiture', 'Naturally You' & 'Poptraits') | Event Photography | Engagement & Wedding Photography | Photography Training Courses & Camera Tuition | Videography & Film Production Tel: 07775 365507 | Email: [email protected] |
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