Colin Smith of PhotoshopCAFE teamed up with Adobe Principle Creative Director, Russell Brown, and the Canon USA team to photograph the solar eclipse in Casper, Wyoming. In the nearly 16-minute behind-the-scenes video, we get to see some of the equipment Canon Explorer of Light Ken Sklute was using to capture the eclipse with the rest of the Canon USA team.
There’s an incredible amount of excitement going into next weeks solar eclipse here in the United States. If you’ve been planning to watch the eclipse yourself and have “solar eclipse” glasses that you bought from Amazon, then check your email. TechCrunch is reporting that over the past 24 hours, Amazon has sent out recall notices to tens of thousands of buyers of the glasses because they were not able to verify the glasses were safe and met the certification standards to view the eclipse safely.
So you want to create images and travel to gorgeous and beautiful places but how are you going to afford to travel several days or weeks and still pay for food, a roof over your head, and the costs to go from point a to b, c, d, e, etcetera? Well, do you like to camp? For those photographers where money is tight or who just want to have the most flexible arrangements possible, camping is one of your best options to get to out of the way places and still get some rest in between your photographic pursuits.
What’s holding you back? Is it work or responsibilities? Is it just life getting in the way? Is it you making a commitment to taking that next step? This morning I was overlooking the Rio Grande into Mexico and I thought that there's no place I’d rather be than right here in this moment. This is what getting out of your own way feels like. It’s happiness and adventure and exhilaration. It’s when we’ve overcome ourselves and have accepted the fact that we just have to move. We have to pick a direction and go.
We all have or will want to buy gear that is out of our price range or that we think doesn't have enough value compared to another competitor's products, and we'll choose what we can afford today over what might be a better piece of equipment bought later. I'm certainly one of those photographers that learned what I value after committing to several manufacturer's products over others that I tried and had to abandon due to their workmanship, cost, or my actual need. Maybe you are going through this internal debate now with a lauded piece of equipment that will be a benefit to you and your work, but the price exceeds its perceived value to you. Do you really need that equipment or is there a cheaper alternative?
The Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM ART Lens is one of the most exciting lenses for astrophotography enthusiasts in recent years and here are some of the first real world Milky Way images taken with the lens that also answer the big question: How's the coma?
