Portrait of Tony

 (Mike Padua/Photo by Mike Padua)

Tony at Lucca Bar & Grill in Benicia, CA. Shot for kicks. Pretty sure this was with a Canon 5D.

Posted in Personal, Photography, Portraits No Comments

Lens Preview: Fujifilm XF 35mm f/2 R WR

Fujifilm XF 35mm f/2 R WR is a weather resistant normal focal length lens for the Fujifilm X system. It’s thought to be a refresh of the f/1.4 lens that came out at the introduction of the X system, but it’s actually quite superior in (almost) every way. The only place where the newer lens doesn’t win is with the maximum aperture. Other than that, it’s faster to focus, it’s quieter, it’s sharper from edge to edge (although admittedly I don’t care about how sharp the edges of my pictures are). Images are razor sharp, but then again almost all modern lenses are sharp “enough.” But as far as sharpness goes, this lens gets very sharp. It’s also smaller than the f/1.4 version.

One area where I think this f/2 lens is really strange is the shape. It’s a weird shape with a taper towards the front element. It just looks really weird, and as of right now, I think it’s kind of ugly. And even though it is fairly compact and thin, it’s just long enough to de-balance the X-E1 and X-E2 bodies I shoot with. I much prefer the pancake form factor of something like the 27mm f/2.8 or the 18mm f/2.

Let’s talk about the lens hood that comes with it. It’s super dinky, all plastic, round, and it makes the end of the lens look like a suction cup. I see it breaking within a few months with regular use. There’s also this odd thing where, when you try to screw it off but you’re gripping it too tightly, it warps and causes the threads to lock up, and it gets really difficult to remove. You have to use a light touch when you screw it off.

I’m also not much of a fan of the 50mm-equivalent focal length for general, everyday use. I’d much prefer something like a 35mm-equivalent (like the 23mm on my X100S) or even a 28mm equivalent (I own the 18mm Fuji as well). I’ve always liked to shoot wider and get closer. The 50mm equivalent is a little too long for me for recreational use unless I’m specifically shooting a job that calls for that focal length

My preferences aside, the lens renders beautiful images with great detail, and is super fast and quiet. The last couple days have been overcast so I haven’t been able to put this thing through it’s paces in some sunlight yet, but I look forward to doing that as soon as possible. I will continue to shoot with this as extensively as I can for the next few weeks so I can try to get comfortable with this focal length and put together some more in depth thoughts.

Buy one here.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Cameras, Digital, Hardware, Lenses, Photography No Comments

Fuji’s XF 18mm f/2 Lens: Unpopular and Awesome

I’ve always loved the 28mm focal length. Never a fan the “regular” 50mm, which I always thought was too long for general everyday use, I always gravitated to wider focal lengths because I like to get close but still take in a lot of the scene. I can shoot with an equivalent 28mm or 35mm for the rest of my life and be happy.

When I got a chance to get my hands on Fuji’s 18mm f/2 lens for the X-system at a good price, I had to try it. It has a bit of a reputation for being one of the weakest of Fuji’s lineup of primes. From what I read, the biggest complaints are color fringing and some poor edge sharpness.

I’ve had it for a couple of days now and while I haven’t done any professional shoots with it, I’ve shot it on walks around the studio so I can judge the quality of the lens myself.

This lens is very light. It’s even lighter than the Fuji 27mm f/2.8, which really surprised me. I also really like the square shaped lens hood. Some people think it looks strange but I think it’s quite handsome, not to mention compact–nothing like the more common petal-shaped hoods like the one found on the Fuji 18-55mm, which adds a lot of size to that particular lens.

I also think the image quality if great. I’ve never cared about edge sharpness. I’m not a landscape shooter and I have never scrutinized the edges of a photo for sharpness. My eyes just don’t go there. As for color fringing, I really put this thing to the test and shot it in some of the most difficult situations I could find that would normally give lenses problems with fringing. While I saw some fringing, I only saw it because I was looking for it. In practical use, there wasn’t enough to bother me at all.

I’m really growing fond of this lens. It’s small, light, has an aperture ring unlike the 27mm, and it clicks in 1/3 stops which I love. The image quality is wonderful and I could shoot at 28mm all day, every day. The fact that it is a bright f/2 lens is a huge plus, too. It’s a keeper for me and will probably live on my Fuji XE-2 when I’m not shooting portraits on location or in the studio, and I’m sure it will start sneaking into my studio sessions soon, too.

Posted in Cameras, Digital, Personal, Photography No Comments

Headshots for Actors

One in a series of 23 headshots I took for Missouri Street Theatre. One hour to light it, one hour to shoot it…for all 23 people! Book your headshot session by clicking here.

Company portrait of Aris Roberson for Missouri Street Theatre's production of "Once Upon A Mattress." Photo by Mike Padua.

Company portrait of Aris Roberson for Missouri Street Theatre’s production of “Once Upon A Mattress.” Photo by Mike Padua.

Get social with me!

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Actors, Cameras, Digital, Headshots, Lighting, Musicals, Photography, Portfolio, Portraits, Production, Promotion, Studio, Theater, Theatre No Comments

Headshots for Actors

One in a series of 23 headshots I took for Missouri Street Theatre. One hour to light it, one hour to shoot it…for all 23 people! Book your headshot session by clicking here.

Company portrait of Kirstin Pieschke for Missouri Street Theatre's production of "Once Upon A Mattress." Photo by Mike Padua.

Company portrait of Kirstin Pieschke for Missouri Street Theatre’s production of “Once Upon A Mattress.” Photo by Mike Padua.

Get social with me!

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Actors, Cameras, Digital, Headshots, Lighting, Musicals, Photography, Portfolio, Portraits, Production, Promotion, Studio, Theater, Theatre No Comments

Headshots for Actors

One in a series of 23 headshots I took for Missouri Street Theatre. One hour to light it, one hour to shoot it…for all 23 people! Book your headshot session by clicking here.

Company portrait of Ethan Bell for Missouri Street Theatre's production of "Once Upon A Mattress." Photo by Mike Padua.

Company portrait of Ethan Bell for Missouri Street Theatre’s production of “Once Upon A Mattress.” Photo by Mike Padua.

Get social with me!

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Actors, Cameras, Digital, Headshots, Lighting, Musicals, Photography, Portfolio, Portraits, Production, Promotion, Studio, Theater, Theatre No Comments

Headshots for Actors

One in a series of 23 headshots I took for Missouri Street Theatre. One hour to light it, one hour to shoot it…for all 23 people! Book your headshot session by clicking here.

Company portrait of John Ewing for Missouri Street Theatre's production of "Once Upon A Mattress." Photo by Mike Padua.

Company portrait of John Ewing for Missouri Street Theatre’s production of “Once Upon A Mattress.” Photo by Mike Padua.

Get social with me!

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Actors, Cameras, Digital, Headshots, Lighting, Musicals, Photography, Portfolio, Portraits, Production, Promotion, Studio, Theater, Theatre No Comments

East Bay Comic-Con, Part 2

More pictures of the East Bay Comic-Con in Concord. The first post featured photos taken using 35mm film. This post is the digital stuff. 50mm is a little too long when you get in tight spots at a convention, so I had to take along the Ricoh GR, which has an 28mm-equivalent lens and a big APS-C sensor, despite it’s small size. Really great, unassuming little camera.  Great time at a great con.

Get social:

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Cameras, Digital, Personal, Photography, Portraits 1 Comment

East Bay Comic-Con in Concord, CA – 35mm Film

I can walk around a comic book convention all day. Today, I did just that. Soaking in the beautiful art, toys, and comics amidst a thousand other like-minded people makes the day go by so fast. At today’s East Bay Comic-Con in Concord, CA, I shot pictures using my Olympus OM-G, an all manual 35mm film camera with a a 50mm f/1.8 lens, using Kodak UltraMax 400. I shot some digital stuff too–but I’m putting that in another post. I really do still prefer the look and the process of shooting with film, so the film stuff gets it’s own post. I scanned with an Epson V500 flatbed scanner, and read comics with the negatives scanned.

See the second post with the digital photos here.

Get social:

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Cameras, Digital, Film, Personal, Photography, Portraits, Technology 3 Comments

Hawaii in 35mm, Part 2

Kauai, Poipu Beach.

35mm Fujicolor 200 film loaded into a Fujifilm Klasse S.

Get social:

twitter-logo-square-black-white

facebook-blk

See more work on my website.

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Cameras, Film, Personal, Photography, Travel No Comments