Mocking Bird » What’s In Your Kit?

What’s In Your Kit? with Olga Bennett

Amanda — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 16:08:32 +0000

Olga Bennett is a photographer whose work is dripping with the kind of light that all good photographs should be made of. Her work is very raw and uncomplicated, yet strikingly beautiful and serene. A wonder with her Hasselblad medium format camera, she creates timeless, classic pieces that tell real stories….still lifes that look as though someone just walked out of the room. Olga has had recent success with the launch of her book, Environments and is based in Melbourne, Australia. She was so sweet to take part in the What’s In Your Kit? interview. Welcome Olga!

MB: What is your camera of choice and why?

Olga: Hassleblad 500 C/M with a newer 80 mm lens. It makes me slow down, pay attention, and seem to hypnotize my subjects. I’m joking of course, but people often love the look of the camera and forget to be self-conscious in front of it for some reason. :) The sound of the shutter is magical.

MB: Which are your favourite lenses to work with and why?

Olga: 80 mm on Hasselblad, it’s magical and makes simple things look incredible, especially in low light. I also use 50 mm on Canon 5D most often, I prefer to move around my subject and come closer if I need to. I think when shooting you have to think of so many things – expression, light, focus – I’m not sure I have time to change between lenses much.

MB: What equipment do you prefer to use to shoot portraits?

Olga: Definitely a Hasselblad, but all of the above, really.

MB: Name a camera that you just love to have fun with.

Olga: Nikon N8008, a 35 mm film SLR with a roll of Fuji film in it and 50 mm lens.

MB: What do you carry your equipment in?

Olga: Most of the days I use Domke wraps and carry a camera in my normal bag. I’m yet to find a bag that I really like.

MB: Is there one piece of equipment/set up that you would recommend to a newbie shooter?

Olga: Any film camera with manual settings. I think it’s much more satisfying and makes you appreciate photography so much more!

MB: Film or Digital or both and why?

Olga: Both! I would love to say I only shoot film, but I appreciate digital, as it allows me to work on many smaller commissions that otherwise would not be possible due to the cost of film and processing.

Olga, thank you from the bottom of our camera loving hearts. Your photography is stunning and we know you have an amazing career ahead of you.

You can see more of Olga’s fabulous photography on her website, read about her Environments book here and check out her blog over here!

What do you think? Isn’t her work beautiful?

What’s In Your Kit? with Cindy Loughridge

Amanda — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:00:44 +0000

I first discovered photographer Cindy Loughridge quite a few years ago now and have always been a huge fan of her beautiful portraits and stunning still lifes. There is one element that Cindy always nails in every single photograph and that is light. She knows how to find the light all photographers seek and uses it amazingly well no matter what camera she is wielding. I love her intimate, personal work and have a great fondness for her San Franciscan windows. The light, oh the light.

Cindy is a lifestyle and wedding photographer from San Francisco and just between us, she’s pretty much a flickr superstar. She also produces some beautiful actions which you can find on her website under Cinnamon Rose Actions and Presets. Cindy was kind enough to answer the Mocking Bird What’s in Your Kit? questions.

MB: What are your cameras of choice and why?

Cindy: I have many cameras, but my go to cameras are the Nikon D700 for client work and Hasselblad 500cm for personal work and I think it’s one of the easiest and most fun medium format cameras to use. I love the heavy “thunk” sound the shutter makes.

MB: Which are your favourite lenses to work with and why?

Cindy: I absolutely love the 50mm for ease of use, size. It’s just perfect. The 85mm for portraits, and it’s perfect for street shooting, without looking completely obvious. 35mm is great for wide shots and it doesn’t distort like some other wide lenses.

All these lenses, I shoot on my D700 or F100.

MB: What equipment do you prefer to use to shoot portraits?

Cindy: The D700 and 85mm. I can get close to the subject without sticking my camera in their face.

For film portraits, I absolutely love the Contax 645 with the 80mm f/2 lens. The portraits are so dreamy with this combination. When I shoot clients, I love using the D700 and 85mm. I can get close to them without sticking my camera in their face.

MB: Name a camera that you just love to have fun with.

Cindy: The Fuji Instax 210 – it’s the wider format of the Instax family. It’s great outdoors and at parties. Actually, it’s great anytime.

MB: What do you carry your equipment in?

Cindy: I use the Emera camera tote during the work week, there is at least one camera with me at all times. The tote is perfect for the extras that I like to take with me, folders, magazines, iPad. On the weekend, I carry the new Emera Messenger bag; it is compact and will easily fit 2 cameras and a few essentials.

MB: Is there one piece of equipment/set up that you would recommend to a newbie shooter?

Cindy: For newbies, I really recommend they use the 50mm lens, instead of the kit lens that come with most digital camera packages. I also recommend, they should shoot every day, shoot everything. Practice. Learn everything about their camera. Try film.

MB: Film or Digital or both and why?

Cindy: I’m love both digital and film. Digital because the results are immediate, it satisfies that instant gratification some of us crave or are used to. Film because it’s not immediate, you have to slow down a bit, load the film, read the exposure, make the adjustments, complete the whole roll, develop the film and the thrill of anticipation when you finally get to see your images.

Cindy’s gear. That’s one sweet load.

Thank you for sharing all your equipment secrets with us, Cindy! It was such a pleasure to have you here on Mocking Bird.

Go here to check out Cindy’s portfolio, blog and flickrstream.

What’s In Your Kit? With Sacred Lotus Photography

Amanda — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 14:00:20 +0000

What’s In Your Kit is one of my favourite Mocking Bird features in which I interview photographers about their photography equipment. So far we have had interviews with One Love Photo, Canelle Et Vanille, Lisa Warninger, Elizabeth Messina and Brian Ferry. Today I would like to share an interview with the photographer behind Sacred Lotus Photography, Nicolle Null.

Nicolle is a photographer living in Portland, Oregon who shoots both digital and film. She shoots families and captures children in their element- just having fun! Nicolle is a wonder with a Polaroid and draws a lot of inspiration from the beautiful environment around her. She also runs the popular blog, Sacred Lotus and has a recurring column where she talks about photography on sfgirlbybay.

I asked Nicolle about her equipment choices and why she chooses them.

MB: What is your camera of choice?

Nicolle: Nikon D300

MB: Which lenses are your favourites to work with?

Nicolle: My D300 kit came with a Nikon 18-135mm f 3.5 it’s a good standard zoom lens and can be used for many situations but honestly my heart belongs to my Nikon 50mm 1.4D prime lens. It’s my all time favorite. It’s fast enough to shoot in almost any lighting situation, gives great control over DOF (Depth of Field), takes awesome portraits, and you can always get amazing bokeh from it. Basically it’s the one lens I feel I can’t live without.

MB: Name a camera you love to just have fun with.

Nicolle: Polaroid SX70

Even though I’m mainly a digital photographer I really love shooting film especially Polaroids. It’s an expensive habit so I don’t get to shoot with my Polaroid cameras as much as I would like to but when I do get the chance it’s like making magic. It’s just so much fun hearing the sound of the SX-70 spitting out the photo and watching it develop in front of my eyes.

Catching that moment in a little square I can keep forever is priceless. I’m really looking forward to the release of new Polaroid film by the Impossible Project. I think 2010 is going to be an amazing year for instant photography!

Thank you so much for sharing your equipment choices with us Nicolle! It’s great to see people using both digital and film and seeing the beauty in both.

Check out some of Nicolle’s Polaroid prints in her store here.

What’s In Your Kit? with Brian Ferry

Amanda — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:47:02 +0000

This week’s What’s In Your Kit features talented film photographer, Brian Ferry. Brian used to live in New York but currently resides in London and thankfully for us has continued shooting with his film cameras and sharing them on his blog, The Blue Hour.

I first discovered Brian’s work through his blog and was instantly blown away by the power in his low key images which focus on the details and intricacies of everyday life. His images are full of the most delicious tones and textures and he manages to find light that bounces of his subjects in all the right places.

Brian answers my Kit questions below.

MB: What is your camera of choice?

Brian: A Pentax K1000, hands down. This was my first 35mm film camera, and it has been such a pleasure to shoot with … it’s the reason that I shoot mostly film these days. The K1000 is a tank, and I love the deep ‘click’ of the shutter and the heft of the camera in my hands. It’s also quite a conversation-starter; I’ve been stopped many times on the street by people with fond memories of this camera.

MB: Which lenses are your favourites to work with?

Brian: A prime lens of any sort, especially the 50mm f/1.7 lens that I have for the K1000. The fact that you have to physically move around with a prime lens (closer or further away from your subject) makes me feel more engaged and mindful of the photo I’m taking. I also love the depth of field I can get.

MB: Name a camera you love to just have fun with.

Brian: Right now, I’m having fun with a Lomo LC-A that I recently purchased on Ebay. I am still figuring out how to work it, but it’s compact and light, and the photos it takes have the best tones.

Thank you for sharing your equipment with us Brian. Another user of that popular camera the Pentax K1000!

You can see more of Brian’s work at The Blue Hour, his portfolio site and purchase his book here.

What’s In Your Kit? with Elizabeth Messina

Amanda — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:00:50 +0000

Dream like, magical and yet like nothing you’ve seen before is how I would describe Elizabeth Messina’s wedding photography. Any girl would die happy to have Elizabeth shoot their portrait and to have her present on your wedding day would be absolutely dreamy.

Not only are her portraits incredible but she shoots weddings with a story telling vibe and captures all the little details with care and the perfect light. She writes the gorgeous blog, Kiss The Groom where she shares her latest wedding sessions. I can get lost on Kiss The Groom for hours and I always leave wanting to go out and buy a fancy pair of heels. She shoots the hell out of heels! Elizabeth’s stylish work can be found in many wedding and style magazines.

I was so happy when Elizabeth agreed to share her equipment with us.

MB: What is your camera of choice?

Elizabeth: Contax 645

MB: Which are your favourite lenses to work with?

Elizabeth: I always like to be close to my subject. On my Contax I prefer the 80 mm Zeiss lens. It’s perfect.

I asked Elizabeth which lenses she likes to shoot for portraits and she said she likes the 80mm mentioned above.

MB: Name a camera you just love to have fun with.

Elizabeth: I have a wonderful collection of film cameras. Some of my favourites include my Holgas, Polaroid sx70′s, Lubitel’s, the new Fuji Polaroids.

Film is so beautiful…so luminous. I love the mystery of film. Film is an intrinsic part of my style & imagery.

Thank you so much for playing Elizabeth! To hear that some of the best photographers in the business are still shooting with film makes my heart sing.

You can find Elizabeth’s work here on her portfolio site and of course at Kiss the Groom. Get thee there now to leave her fabulous comments of love.

What’s In Your Kit? with One Love Photo

Amanda — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 21:13:46 +0000

Do you ever look at a photograph and wonder what kind of camera or lens the photographer used to create such beautiful work? I often do and love finding out about what equipment other photographers carry around with them on a daily basis.

In “What’s In Your Kit?” I will be asking photographers to share what equipment they like to use and why.

What better way to start off than to introduce you to one of my favourite wedding photography companies, One Love Photo. Heather and Jon are a photography team who shoot weddings in Seattle. Heather and Jon’s work is a little bit special because they shoot a lot of film and most of the shots you see won’t be the typical, cheesy pics that many wedding shoots end up being. I just adore their work and was so happy when Heather answered my questions.

MB: What is your camera of choice?

Heather: Hasselblad

MB: Which lenses are your favourites to work with?

Heather: I love the 80 2.8 that came with my Hassy, although I often wish there was a faster lens for this camera. I would love to have a 1.2 on my Hassy, that would be something. I also enjoy using the proxar close up filters for tighter shots. When I am shooting with my Canon 5d I love the 35mm 1.4.

MB: Name a camera you love to just have fun with.

Heather: I think the Holga is a hoot and I love my bright orange Black Bird for travel pics.

Heather: I like the process of focusing a camera myself. I think it is during this focus process that I make important choices about composition. I use a waist level finder and enjoy looking down, since I photograph people it’s nice to not have the camera blocking my face while I photograph them. I also enjoy looking through the viewfinder and seeing the world backwards. I think it helps my right brain engage immediately.

I also just really love SQUARES, I just seem to have such stronger compositions and framing when working in a square format. I am not sure why, I guess some of us are squares and some of us are rectangles (kinda like apples and oranges). I also like waiting for the film and not having that immediate gratification.

One of Heather’s favourite quotes:

“I never have taken a picture I’ve intended. They’re always better or worse.”

- Diane Arbus

Heather has written some fabulous posts about her photography process:

Why She Loves Film

Film Is Not Dead

They Even Make Their Own Lenses

Check out their portfolio, blog, flickrstream and a little article written about their work here.

Go visit the One Love Photo blog and give them some love.

Thank you so much for sharing your equipment and love of film photography with us, Heather. It was so great to read about your work with the Hasselblad, a Mocking Bird favourite!