Creative: Pounding Forties

I have a new project idea. A good one, actually. And it will force me to use every single arrow in my creative quiver. My best guess is a two-year timeline, but chances are, it will take even longer. I will share all the juicy details in good time people. I spent a few hours compiling thoughts and notes earlier today, so the superstructure is taking shape. I have questions and I have doubts, as I always do, but the foundation has already begun to emerge.

The project will be a chance for me to really use my equipment for the first time in years. I mean really use it. These modern cameras are capable of so much more than I am. Most of the time, my photographic commitments are fairly tame, but this project will test my ability in a way that hasn’t happened in over a decade. (I have a great job, so I’m not complaining.)

Over the past few days I’ve been making a few pictures here and there.

I’ve been using the 26-megapixel camera for my motion needs. Granted, after lingering C19, snapped ribs, a concussion and a stomach bug, my time behind camera was limited, but in between the moments of utter misery I was able to snap a pic here and there. The rest of my work has been reserved for the 40-megapixel camera. I wanted both of these bodies for several reasons. One, I always work with two bodies when on assignment. That doesn’t mean I use them both at the same time, but I at least have ONE spare body at all times. Not doing this is considered unprofessional. If you are working for a client and your lone body goes down, something I saw happen a lot back when cameras were $15,000 a piece, your client can turn on you in seconds. Better to have two.

But I also wanted both cameras because I was after higher resolution for my still photographs. This project I mention just might allow me to make a kind of picture that could potentially have legs in the print world. Not the photography industry print world, or the art world print world, just the civilian print world if you know what I mean. So, the higher megapixel count was interesting to me, and after my brief but entertaining chance to use the damn thing, well, I can say the images look damn good.

Fuji color is unique, as are Canon and Nikon and all the rest. There is a certain out-of-the-camera look, and Fuji happens to have a really good one which is one of the things that drew me to the brand in the first place. I always tweak this look but that’s just me and my preferred way of seeing the world. I don’t feel there is a right and wrong with how work looks, contrary to what my instructors in photography school told me. (They also consistently gave me an “F” when it came to grading my prints.)

I’ve been using my limited technical skill to admire these new 40-megapixel files and they are impressive. And all of the long lens images you see where made with a 2x converter, not a device known for great sharpness regardless of brand. Had I just used my straight long lens, these images would be even sharper. I think that 40-megapixel is a good sweet sport for still images. I know where are advantages of much larger MP counts, but for most of what I am doing forty should be just fine. And for other work, 26-megapixel is more than enough.

The project I mention is intended for print. Book form to be exact, so my file sizes aren’t that critical outside of making a full double truck in a 6×9 trim size, something that could be easily handled with a ten-year-old camera. But where else the work may end up is the mystery I do not yet know, so having a little in reserve is a nice feeling. And the beauty is that both cameras work the same, so there is no change from grabbing one or the other. Stay tuned.