Chester Academy Evening 19th August 2010

[Lee Iggulden]

Academy Evening: Chester.
Location: Days Hotel Chester North, Sealand Nr Chester, Flintshire CH5 2HX .
Evening Leaders: Adrian Wilson / Eifion Williams
Date & Time: Thursday 19th August 2010. 6.30pm – 10.00pm Supper at 8.00 – 8.15pm
Price: Academy Member £15.00
Non Academy Member £20.00

At this Academy Evening we have a special treat for you. Adrian Wilson will be showing you how to use use creative lighting techniques and your camera to make superb Automotive Images.
We have a Ferrari California Spyder, Honda Civic Type R (limited edition in champagne white) and an Astra VXR for you to capture in camera.
This will be an outside event so please bring appropriate clothing. We will be eating as normal in the hotel.

Welshot can not guarantee that this event will be run at the Anglesey or Llandudno Academy Evenings due to the nature of the vehicles.

Supper is included.
You must register online to confirm your attendance by using this link http://www.welshotimaging.co.uk/academy/workshops.php?id=38 before Tuesday 17th August

[markcarline]

nice one! - Just booked ;)

[Lee Iggulden]

Look forward to seeing you again Mark. Welcome to the Academy as a Member too :)

Lee :)

[JohnTudor]

Thanks for today, good meeting you at the Welshot office, I've also booked for Chester, see you there, JT.

[Lee Iggulden]

Great stuff John and I am glad you found yesterday found yesterdays meeting usefull. Thanks for the email as well :)

Lee :)

[Andy Sharp]

Hi Lee,

I have booked for tomorrow night. I have not got a Flash unit yet but could do with a bit of advice on which is the best. I prefer outside shots, not been in a studio to work yet, will I get some advice on this tomorrow and will not having a Flash mean I won't get that many good shots, suppose it will give me a chance to try out the new noise reduction process that Canon have built into my kit.

[Paul Smith]

Lights will all be supplied so don't worry about that Andy. I'm sure Eifion and Adrian will be able to suggest an appropriate flashgun for your set up and requirements.

For canon the 430 and 580 are both fine flash guns, you wouldn't use many of their features tomorrow night though as off camera flash is all done in manual mode with you setting everything how you want it.

[Andy Sharp]

Cheers Paul.:thumbsup:

[markcarline]

Hmm - What time does it start ? - Just that the OP above says 6:30 and the note on the main page says 6:00:
http://www.welshotimaging.co.uk/academy/workshops.php?id=38
quote:

Thursday 19 August 2010 from 18:00 to 20:00 Days Hotel Chester North CH5 2HX

Guess its not too much to be worried about but there maybe a few people earlier....

EDIT: Just spoke to Lee and shes confirmed its 6:30pm start ;)

[Lee Iggulden]

Hiya All.

I have changed it on the website, it was just a typo sorry. Always a 6.30 registration for a 7.00 start. If you turn up earlier we would have been there anyway and the bar is always open ;)

See you there, it looks like we will be having good weather

Lee :)

[markcarline]

.....it looks like we will be having good weather...

Oh dear - you've done it now.. (rain coats at the ready!)

[Andy Sharp]

Just been past the hotel,

Lee I hope you've brought that wet weather gear you mentioned last month.

[Anthony Smith]

thanks for another fun evening,I know the weather didn't play along with us, but it was still a great evening.

thanks to the car owners for bringing them along.

all the best to you Lee and the team, speak soon

Junior

[Andy Sharp]

Thanks for a great night last night. I have a bit of a problem. Where the external flashes that we used EX series Speedlite compatible? I have got my camera manual out because the in built flash will no longer pop up. I tried to get into the built in flash settings menu and it won't display the menu saying that there is an external flash fitted, and when I try to clear the external flash settings it says that it is either incompatible or the power is off. Of course the power is off I am now miles away from it. If you just let me know what types they were, I will try to see if I can get any joy out of canon. I can't afford to loose my camera this month as we have an assignment to do for colledge. Help!!!! I would copy this as a PM to Eifion but he's in Beaumaris isn't he. Anyone else help please.

[Lee Iggulden]

Hey Andy.

I will see if I can get someone to help you here. I have just spoken with Eif on the phone (sorry, yes he is on a job) and he said that the flash guns used last night were not connected to the camera and were not canon units but would not have affected the camera as they were not connected.

As you know the only part connected to your camera was the trigger. Which we use on a regular basis and everyone used themselves last night.

Did you do what Eifion suggested last night and push in the flash button, lift it up manually to let it breathe in case it had a bit of moisture in it.

Lee

[markcarline]

......flash will no longer pop up.....

Ah i remember now! - When I had the Canon 450d I attached one of those spirit level things onto my hotshoe socket only to them discover that the inbuilt flash wouln't pop up and the camera thought that an external flash was connected.

It seems there is a very small microswitch inside the hotshoe that can become stuck down thus making the camera "think" that it has a flash attached. I sorted my 450d out by using a pin and just moving the tiny metal plate thing back up again.

When I googled it at the time it seemed to have happened to alot of people with the 450d - Seems like the 550d might have a similar issue (but a very rare one). It only happned once and never happened again.

EDIT: i also remembered that this can happen if you try and attach the trigger back to front (which I think I did see somebody do). heres a couple of threds about the issue:
http://www.flickr.com/groups/canon450d/discuss/72157606017408885/
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=237177

this one also has a picture.....
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=528005

[Lee Iggulden]

Hey thanks Mark for all your help and I should say a big HUGE Thank you to as well.

It was Mark that was instrumental in us having the Ferrari last night at the Academy. So a big Thank you to you. Something I will never forget.

Lee :)

[Anthony Smith]

another option, have you tried to remove the batteries? Leave them out for about half an hour, and then re insert them, and see if it resets the camera?

On my 40d, there is an option to clear all custom functions. There is also a clear all camera settings too.

That may also be worth a try.

[Andy Sharp]

Thanks Mark, yep someone did put the trigger in backwards in his 550D :blush:. I am now going to search for that microswitch, it's probably on that link with the picture cheers.:thumbsup:

[Andy Sharp]

Cheers Anthony,
I was looking at the clear all camera settings, but was a bit worried about what it would do. I am trying the battery thing now. I tried it for 15 mins earlier with no joy. The manual if great on this thing, it says if you use anything non-Canon it may malfunction. :annoyed: but cheers :thumbsup:

[markcarline]

Cheers Anthony,
I was looking at the clear all camera settings, but was a bit worried about what it would do. I am trying the battery thing now. I tried it for 15 mins earlier with no joy. The manual if great on this thing, it says if you use anything non-Canon it may malfunction. :annoyed: but cheers :thumbsup:

I dont think you'll need to change or clear any settings on the camera - Is the metal strip lodged down at all as per the images in this thead:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=528005

If your feeling confident (and do it at your own risk) it is possible to un lodge it using a tooth pick if you have one.

Might even be worth poping it into the place where you purchased it from - i am sure they have seen this before.

[Anthony Smith]

I'll second Mark's idea, pop into the shop, they will probably sort it within a few seconds too.

Good luck Andy.

Anthony

[Andy Sharp]

Thanks for the help guys, I sorted it, it was the Micro switch, needed to put my reading glasses on. I bought it on line, so back to the shop isn't an option, it was like £50 cheaper from Argos and I got a lens thrown in for free, (I only paid for the body but they probably only had the kit in stock) but I think that the hot shoe might have been bent when I got it, I didn't notice until last night, I had to do a bit of a jemmie with a screw driver job on it to open up the slot so that I could get the remote in in the first place :P, that might have pushed the micro-sensor in. I didn't even know it was there at the time. Thanks Mark spot on, and cheers Anthony & Lee too. :) :)

[markcarline]

cool glad you fixed it.

I did some looking around last night when I got home about some of the lighting techniques that Ade was talking about and discovered this link which looks long the same lines as what he was explaining:
http://www.professionalphotography101.com/portrait_lighting/lighting_names.html

Also just ordered this book from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1584281251/ref=oss_product

maybe as the dark nights come in we could perhaps cover all these different styles one evening ?

[Paul Smith]

Can't see why not. we'll be doing a studio night in the next few months so we can certainly tweak it to demonstrate a few of the standard lighting setups.

[Andy Sharp]

Hi Mark,

I have a huge reading list for college, but that book looks quite good. I tried to see if I could get it FOC in E book..... no such luck. But there are loads of pages of Photography, lighting and all sorts on Scribd.com, wher you can download loads of stuff free. I am going to be a student, strapped for cash, well that's my excuse! :)

[markcarline]

Just finished processing the images from last night and posted them on a FlickR set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/markcarline/sets/72157624644589287/
and also created a thred on here for C&C:
http://www.welshotimaging.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?294-Car-pictures-from-the-19th-Aug-2010&p=1202

Thanks!

[Lee Iggulden]

Great set of images Mark. Thanks for posting them.

Lee :)

[Andy Sharp]

Here are 4 of my pics of the cars from the August evening.
Don't think I will be able to make the September meet, sorting out stuff for college.

See you October hopefully.

Andy