For these shots we had a super simple setup with just a 44″ softbox umbrella with a Blackbelt Lighting BB560 speedlite in it set to 1/2 power. With the camera set to 1/250th, ISO 100, f/5.6 we were able to pull really nice light. The softbox umbrella was mounted on a lightweight boom arm so that the umbrella was positioned about 2′ above the model and about a 45 degree angle up from their face.

Part of the goal of this shoot was to try out some new modifiers from one of my favorite companies FJ Westcott. The two main products that we were working with were the 7′ White Reflective Umbrella and the 43″ Orb Softbox.

After using these two products for a day of shooting they are my new favorite modifiers. The light quality from these large modifiers is super smooth while still being controllable.

Here is a setup shot showing just the 43″ Orb being used to light the model. Because of the Orb’s large size, we only needed this single modifier. In this case we were using an Alien Bees AB1600 on only about 1/32 power with the camera on ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/250th second. This gave us super fast recycle times with enough power to still use a very low ISO setting and avoid any digital noise in the image.

I will be doing a complete review of these products on Camera Dojo soon so stayed tuned for more information. To see more of the images from this shoot, visit my SMUGMUG site at http://kgarrison.smugmug.com.

We finally relocated into a dry parking structure for some more shooting and I chose a spot with almost no ambient lighting so that I could have total control over the lighting.

In this shot, I used a single 24″ softbox from BlackbeltLighting.com and had Amanda turned directly facing the light. This harsh angle provided a nice soft light on her face while illuminating the back wall at the same time.

In this next shot, I had pulled the softbox about 15′ away from the wall so that it wouldn’t light up the wall and then used a second flash with the same 1/2 CTO gel as before pointed at the side of his head to create the hair light.

With Kelsey, I didn’t want the lighting to be quite as dramatic so I placed a third light to camera right with an ExpoImaging Rouge Flashbender as a basic fill light. I still had the 24″ softbox and gelled hair light in the same position as the shot of JK above.

Moving the gelled light from the side to directly behind Kelsey’s head. we got a completely different look with a dramatic rim light effect.

To see more pictures from the event, check out my SmugMug Gallery.

Packing for this week’s trip I wanted to see what see how much I could take with me easily with the new bag. Here is the correct. Peter list of everything that I packed into the bag.

• Sigma 24-70 2.8
• Canon EOS 7D with 50mm lens and battery grip
• Canon 70-200 2.8 IS L
• Canon 580 EX II
• Lensbaby Composer Pro w/Sweet 35
• Lensbaby Edge 80
• Dell XPS laptop
• Motorola Xoom tablet
• Vanguard GH200 Pistol Grip ballhead
• Extra pair of glasses
• Cell phone

Also notice the tripod sling built into the front holding a Tonaex Kerry Garrison Signature tripod

That is one heck of a lot of gear and the camera is all set and ready to pull out and shoot. I am will see how it goes working with the bag this week. One downside…the bigger the bag, the more you can stuff in it, and the heavier it will get. I’m glad I didn’t get the Heralder 38, I would have it too heavy to carry.

This one was recorded in our cargo van so the noise reduction makes it sound pretty tiney. I apologize for the poor audio quality.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydenIRIsUrY

Host: Kerry Garrison

Sponsors: GoPro, Blackbelt Lighting

Click here to subscribe via iTunes

The Rotor Concept HPQ-1 is a big step up from the AR Drone in that it has a lifting capacity of a full pound. With a GoPro camera weighing only 3.3oz and even larger camcorders weighing in around between 9-14oz, the HPQ-1 can be used to lift a wide variety of small size gear.

Their larger HPQ-2 can loft up to three pounds which is enough for small DSLR’s and Compact sized cameras. Rotor Concept was selling the HPQ-1 for only $299 instead of their regular $499 price and they were flying off the shelves (pun intended). For a few extra bucks you got nice aluminum case with custom designed foam for the copter.

While I did a quick test flight just to make sure everything was working, its sitting for a few hours while I am charging batteries and I put some Loctite on the propeller shaft screws as directed in the manual. I will get out for a test flight in a bit and see how she flies.

The past few months I have wanted to get back into radio control helicopters (of course with the excuse of mounting cameras to them). I bought a small 450 sized helicopter and started practicing on a simulator (this is a required step in my opinion). The problem is, I can’t just run out to the backyard and fly it, it needs some good space devoid of people and I find it hard to make the time to head over to a safe place to fly it. I also have access to a monster sized heli I can use for aerial photography should the need arise, but it takes even more space and is quite expensive should an accident occur. So while I enjoy them, it really isn’t something I can just “go do” for an hour and then get back to work, so I was off in search of something else.

What I found was the Parrot AR Drone. The AR Drone is a quadricopter but what is really unique is that it is controlled over WiFi from an iOS or Android device instead of a traditional radio controller. This difference means you get FPV (first person view) as you fly it around as well as real-time telemetry such as altitude and battery level. Given my slight obsessive compulsive disorder, I went in search of all the information I could find to maximize my experience with it and, to my surprise, there was actually very little info about it other than some forums with some posts. So what am I to do with my background in developing websites, a great new gadget I am having a blast with, and a few evenings free over the holidays. Well, time to create a website about the AR Drone and within a few hours, AR Drone Tips was born.

Now I am not suggestion you all go find a new gadget and in a matter of days create the top fan site for it, but I am suggesting that you follow my lead a little and find a hobby that you can go do, go play, go enjoy, and use to turn off your day to day grind if for only 30 minutes a day or so. The trick is finding something that requires very little time to get going so if you decide I need a break right now that you can go do it, and when done, get it put away in just a few minutes. If you take on a hobby like painting, there is just too much time to do the prep and the cleanup. Not that painting is a bad hobby, its just not a good “I need a 20 minute break” hobby.

I find that something like flying the drone or working on the AR Drone Tips website is a quick little distraction that I can go do quickly and then when finished, just pop it on the shelf and throw the battery on a charger. Have a little fun in your day with some quick distraction and help keep yourself from burn-out.

What I like about the GoPro is that it is very lightweight so it shouldn’t be too hard to get something to be able to lift it up to do aerial photos and videos. Down the road, I want to have much higher end gear and offer aerial photography as a service.

My first attempt to loft the GoPro used a Blade 450, a 450 sized electric helicopter. The main problem is with vibrations. Using the GoPro’s mount attached to the helicopter’s chassis, the vibrations cause a “jello effect” rendering the video pretty much useless. In order for this to be a viable solution, I need to come up with some kind of mount that absorbs the vibrations  Secondly, a 450 heli is not the easiest thing in the world to fly. While I am quite capable, the added weight does make it more unstable making it quite a chore to fly well. A much more suitable helicopter would be a 600 size or bigger. While I like flying helicopters, their unstable nature and potential problems in a crash is simply too dangerous to fly anywhere near people. Add in the fact they even the electrics are not very quiet and you have a flying platform that you would never use near a group of people like a wedding reception or party.

Over the holiday season I decided to try out theParrot AR Drone. While the AR Drone is considered a toy, many people have successfully flown it with a GoPro attached. With the four rotors, the AR Drone is very stable and is super easy to fly and you control it with either an iPhone/iPad or Android device. I use my Motorola XOOM Tablet. The AR Drone broadcasts a WiFi signal that your device connects to, and then an app on your device allows you to control the drone.

The problem with mounting the GoPro is that it will hit the ground as the legs are not long enough. To solve this I added ping pong balls to each leg and used a foam pad to mount the camera.

While the drone flew great and stable, the camera angle was not ideal as it was pointed down too much. Even though the video didn’t turn out as good as I wanted, as a proof of concept, it was a complete success. The reason I say this is that attaching the GoPro via a foam block would certainly help vibrations, the foam block was attached to the bottom navigation plate which itself has vibration damping so the footage is not great from a subject matter point of view, but there is no visible jello effect.

What’s Next

Next on the agenda is to redesign the camera mount so it points more forward than down but the problem is that even with my ping pong ball leg extensions, the GoPro will hang down too far. The solution will either be a way to extend the legs further, which is problematic as that will make it easier for them to show up in the shot, or find a different landing system. The latter may be a better solution since the GoPro is facing backwards, a different landing leg on the front might be easier to fabricate.

Stay tuned for more progress on this project as it evolves and I figure out ways to make it work better. When its all finished, then the final build article will be posted at CameraDojo.com, until then, all of the progress and testing will be posted here.

Resource Links

• GoPro – http://www.gopro.com
• Parrot AR Drone – http://www.ardrone.com