Wow, time flies when you are busy… Thankfully things have calmed down a bit, and life in starting to get back in order. So many things to post, so here are the highlights of the past month.

Old vs. New

So while I was at RMR filming the Genesis being built, Cole went to the swap meet in Huntington Beach and came across these gems:

Old Camera Gear

Okay- so maybe just the ones on the right… What are they you ask? Well the camera is a Kodak Vigilant Six-20.  Some of the info:

“medium format camera was manufactured between 1939-1949 and originally sold for US $38 (about US $560 in 2007).”

Some more photos:

Quite a contrast from my new Canon 5D Mk II..  More on that later…

The other find was a General Electric Dw-58 light meter:    Made around 1946 and at that time sold for $26.50.

Once again- quite a contrast between that and my Sekonic L-358 meter.  I have yet to try them out side by side, but from what I can see, the GE meter is still in working condition, just like the camera.  Thank you Cole for such an awesome purchase…  I can’t wait to load it up with 620 film and shoot some interesting pics.

OK- now for the new toy- the Canon 5D Mk II.  Wow is all I can say- for so many reasons: razor sharp photos, 1080P HD video, HUGE file sizes and being able to see down to people’s pores when  you take photos.  It is seriously amazing…  One major gripe- the old 5D battery grip does not fit this cam, and the batteries are different too.  Oh well, get to drop $400 on new batteries and a battery grip- but one problem…  The batteries are not available anywhere…  :(  I feel awkward shooting vertically with my hand twisted all around- yes, a stupid complaint, but once you are  use to having the vertical grip, its hard to go without it.

Here are some shots from a recent shoot for Hyundai of the cam in action:

Here is the first video I put together using the 5D Mk II and a 70-200 2.8L- IS.  Nothing special, but the video I am putting together as we speak will show some cool depth of field and crazy fisheye shots.

Speaking of new video- another piece of gear that I got to help out in the video making process.. Sony HXR-MC1

Got a chance to use it at Formula D Long Beach and testing at El Toro.  WOW this thing is awesome.  Full 1080 video and it records onto Memory Stick Pro cards.  I will splice some of this video into the new cut as well.

Ok- time to get back to work.  Hopefully I will not neglect the blog like I have been…

Yep- end of year spending- at least thats my excuse… 

I have been doing a lot of reading on a method of photography called “Strobist.” Essentially people that use their speedlites in lieu of a portable lighting kit like a 7B kit or something like that. Its a way of moving the light away from the camera and getting very interesting results. Here is a link to the blog that started it all… strobist.blogspot.com

New Gear

Here is what I got:

PocketWizard Ultra II Transcievers x2
Westcott 43″ Shoot Through Umbrella x2
Manfrotto 001B Nano 6′ Lightstands x2
Manfrotto 026 SWIVEL UMBRELLA ADAPTR x2
Manfrotto FLASH SHOE f/MAGIC ARM x2
Paramount MINIPHON -HOT SHOE FEMALE

Oh- and 1 item for my video gear- a SOLID head for my tripod:

Manfrotto 501HDV PRO FLUID VIDEO HEAD

All kinds of new gear that will change the way I am able to take photos… SOOOOOO excited to get out there and use it… I already had a chance to use the stands and Pocketwizard on the Motoworks Shoot- I don’t know how I have been a photographer for this long and not had them in my gear bag…

The same day I also got another shipment- a new Forum Lander 160 snowboard from Sierrasnowboard.com for $200 shipped! What a steal- time to head up to mammoth!