And you know what the most annoying part of this is? Most of the time, these photographers are technically better than me, have better lights and don’t have to borrow their backdrop from their neighbor (thank you Simon!). The reason they failed to satisfy their client is that they can’t listen to their client’s needs.

I am serious! Here is a recap of my last shoot: the clients just got their second baby and hired a photographer to shoot her and have some family portraits. The client wanted the focus to be on their new girl but the photographer decided to focus on their first daughter because she was older, ridiculously cute and loves to play the model.

The result? The clients did not get what they wanted. They are happy with the pictures they got, but their expectations were not completely filled, which is why they came to me.

While I had a lot of fun doing the shoot, photographer #1 could easily have prevented this by asking about the client expectations and listening for the answer.

I have many similar stories: photographers who over-process images (heavy skin airbrushing should be discussed with the client first!), don’t shoot pictures of guests or are too “artistic” for the clients tastes.

Asking about expectations takes a few minutes and ensures you will be working toward your client satisfaction.

Don’t be a bad photographer, ask the client!

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The Solutions

Zacuto released the pincher a few weeks ago which solves the issue and now it is Lock Circle which is coming up with their proposal: the LockPort. I really like their solution. While Zacuto went for the ‘you will never have to worry about this ever again‘, the LockPort went for the practical solution.

Look at this beauty.

Note: you can find more images on the website.

There is a lot to love about this product, here is what the press release has to say:

• Fits the RedRock Micro DSLR Baseplate with original screws and pads.
• Saves the “expensive to repair” mini HDMI port on your 5D camera.
• Full-Size HDMI output allows you to use stronger standard cables.
• Standard size HDMI plugs locks securely in the socket – no signal loose!
• 90° FRONT or REAR output editions.
• Gold plated contacts.
• Rock solid clamp.
• Better cable layout on your rig set-up.
• Fits the RedRock Micro DSLR Baseplate with original screws and pads.
• Instant reverse output direction set-up.

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First on the list is my Zacuto Striker kit. You can see pictures on RigsEnvy, note that I am only selling the Striker, not the rest! I may throw in a Z-Finder (first version) too if you are interested.  Price: 750$. This is mostly a deal for  Canadian buyers since you wont have to pay the ridiculous custom (I had to pay over 250$ in customs fees when I ordered my kit!)

I am also selling my Canon 400L5.6. Old but still in very good conditions. 1100$

I am looking for a 90mm tilt-shift or 85L1.2. If you have one of these two for trade, lets talk!

As I am cleaning up my basement, I may add more gear to the list.

I would rather deal with people form the Montreal area but will ship (at buyer expense) pretty much anywhere.

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It has to be the most useful app on my computer. The thing is, their free plan is limited to 2GB which may looks like a lot but isnt once you start to use it to backup pretty much everything and I am not quite ready for the paying plan.

Fortunately, there is a way to get more free storage: by inviting friends! For each invitee, I will get 250 more megs, up to 8gigs.

Registering does not cost anything, you end up with a true off-site backup solution and I get some more space. It is a win-win situation! So if you are interested, here is the link!

Register using this link

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Knowing where you’re going greatly increase your chances of getting there.

and loved the idea of setting yearly goals. Since posting them on the internet would increase their odds of success, here is my list for 2011:

Double daily traffic on this blog

While this blog has a steady flow of traffic, I would love to see it grow even more. As most of you know, traffic is the name of the game in the blogosphere and having more of it can’t hurt!

Give another HDSLR conference

I have given a few private classes in 2010 which were very well received but I would like to talk to a bigger crowd. As far as I know, it is the fastest way to connect with people and make new friends!

Release another successful HDSLR related website

This goal feels a bit like cheating since I started to work on the site in 2010 and it is almost ready for launch but…

Publish an art book

I have had this idea stuck in my head for over a year now and 2011 will be the year I finally commit the required resources and time to do it. This is a personal project involving hundreds of hours and an undisclosed amount of money (in case the wife watches the blog…). Good luck guessing what it will be about!

Shoot way more stills

The switch to video really hurt my production of stills. In the last year, I shot less than 100gigs (which includes 2 weddings, a trip to Iceland and a newborn baby!) and I really miss it.

Shoot/Edit one (very short) movie every week (!)

Impossible? I will see. I really want to improve my edit skills and track the progress of my baby girl so why not mixing both and do short clips of her evolution?

At least my wife supports me at 100% for this one!

That is it!

This will not be easy but what fun would be if it was? Some of these goals can only be reached with your help so I really count on you guys!

Any of you have some photography/videography related goals for 2011?

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When I initially saw the teaser video, I discarded it has some hoax and did not act on it, given my very bad track record with rumors.

Then got this tweet:

Then another one from PlanetMitch asking us to join in the conversation in his chat room. One thing leading to another, I ended up watching a uStream conference with the developer teasing us with his hack.

Teasing is the keyword here. We did not learn much and did not see any proof of the hack other than the menu.

I understand the guy wants to create some excitement about the release (scheduled for Jan 1st) but, without a proof, it is hard to trust him. Thank god there is only two more days of waiting before we know the truth!

While I really wish for this to be true, there are a few elements making my hoax theory plausible:

The 6 seconds 4K recoding limit

Maybe this is just pure coincidence but the first person who talked about a maximum recording time at 4K of 6 seconds was ME as a joke in the planet5D chat room. Some people missed the joke part and start asking about the 6 seconds limit in the uStream chat and the developer went with it as if it was an official number. Wow, what a coincidence!

Changing the line skipping procedure

Maybe I am wrong here but I am pretty sure all the procedures used by HDSLR to read data from the sensor are not managed by firmware but are strictly hardware for efficiency reasons. But hey, I am a web programmer, not a hardware engineer.

Portable to all Canon HDSLRs

The other thing I found weird about this hack is how easy it seems to port the code on the various Canon HDSLRs. Within a month, the code is supposed to work on the Rebel,  5dMrkII and 60D to name a few. I find it very hard to believe all these camera share the same architecture or have, miraculously, in common the required elements to make the 4k hack work.

All of this being said…

I know a lot of top programmers/hackers/geek and I can usually tell within a few seconds if someone has the geek gene or not and this guy does look like a geek. So, maybe, he really found a way to hack the hell out of the camera and if so, I would be very interested in knowing how!

We will know very soon…

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Red Rock Micro – Micro Remote/Sonar

When it was first presented, it was an instant hit. We all wanted one, at least everyone I know. Right off the bat, I knew designing such a product would be a challenge because of the wide variety of lenses one can mount on a Canon HDSLR and each lens requires calibration to work with the system.

It was supposed to be available in Fall 2010. Fall is over and we are now very close to 2011. Will this product be the Duke Nukem Forever of the HDSLR world? I seriously hope it wont be vaporware because I need it! Actually, I hope it will be a major success so other manufacturers will invest time and money to build competitive products. Until then, we are all waiting…

Red Rock Micro Electronic View Finder

RRM surprised us all with the announcement of their EVF. Again, they were innovative and proposed an elegant solution to a real problem. I really love the small form factor which make it perfect for anyone who goes shooting with minimal gear.

At least, this time, they learned their lessons and did not publish a shipping date. My expectation is that it will be available at the same time as the Zacuto EVF.

Zacuto Electronic View Finder

Speaking of the Z-finder EVF… Zacuto approach to the EVF problem is quite different than what RRM is doing: a two pieces system which offers a lot of flexibility to cover pretty much every potential use case but at the cost of size.

Since both Zacuto and RRM products are still in development, it is hard for me to say for me which one I prefer. But since I already own a Z-finder and I am a big fan of Zacuto attention to details, I would tend to favor the Zfinder EVF until I can hold both products in my hands.

I invite you to check their product website and watch all videos. They explain in details the reasons behind their design choices.

Jag35 Electronic Wireless Follow Focus

I love Jag35! Their goal is to provide good gear at reasonable price. In December, they released their Electronic Follow Focus kit (I ordered a kit!) and plan to release a compatible wireless kit in 2011. This is big news because: 1) it is quite cheap, 2) it is the first product of its kind targeted at the HDSLR market.

Wireless focus/zoom control is a big thing and open up a lot of framing opportunities for the creative minds.

5D Mark III

The internet loves rumors and the 5DMrkII had such a big impact on the market that everyone is waiting for the third iteration to come out. Blogs and forums are already filled with rumors about this camera and I have a gentleman bet with my friend Robert about its release in March.

While I dont have any insider information, it is relatively safe to say that it should come out in 2011 but don’t hold your breath. I dont expect it until the end of the year. Why? There is no need for Canon to release it since the 5DMrkII is still selling very well and still has no competitor. Maybe the arrival of the Panasonic AF100 will prove me wrong…

Red

It should be out in 2011. Then again, I think I said the same thing exactly a year ago about 2010…

Final Cut Studio 4

FCS4 is coming out in early 2011 and expectations are high. With so many people ready to switch to CS5 (or even CS6?), Apple has to make FCS4 a worthy upgrade. I previously talked about my vision on the topic and I still think Apple will deliver. If not, CS6, here I come!

Conclusion

While 2010 was a good year for HDSLR users, I am confident 2011 will be even better. HDSLRs gained a lot of mind share among the pros and production companies in 2010 and every single new project I am hearing about these days involve HDSLRs.

I see 2011 as the year when big players (Apple, Canon, etc…) recognize these cameras as pro tools and offer us what we need without compromises!

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I picked each of these movies for a specific reason, so while some may not be scariest, I think they will all worth your time. So here is the list, in no special order.

Coraline 3D

This is a stop motion movie with a very unclear audience. The look is a bit childish but the mood and story is way too scary for a kid (IMHO). It is very well made and refreshing to see how stop motion is still in use. Best seen in 3D.

The Mist

This movie really deserves better exposure. I love it because of the WTF is going on / end of days mood it creates. There is a lot of mystery in the movie and the ending has to be one of my favorites. I highly suggest you get the DVD and watch the directors comments, lots of interesting info about the story and the issues they had with the fog. If you read the Stephen King novel from which this movies was inspired from, know that they changed the ending.

Saw (original)

Every time someone ask me for an horror movie suggestion, this is my first one. Unfortunately, most of them reply they dont want to see a gore galore. Then, no matter how much I try to tell them that there isnt that much gore in Saw 1, they dont believe me. It is sad because Saw has everything to please the horror fan: good actors and very good storyline/scripts. And I repeat: while the series follow up are a gorefest, this one is not! It is an excellent thriller (fast forward the first scene if you cant stand it, the rest of the movie is relatively safe).

While watching the directors comments, something I found interesting is how they came up with the story. Instead of starting with an idea and working the story form there, they started with a constrain: budget and tried to find a scenario which would use as few locations as possible. The result: two guys stuck in a room.

Also, if you are into the horror genre, all posters in the Saw series are real work of art. At least from a technical perspective.

Paranormal Activity

Speaking of low budget film, this one has to be the champion in return on investment. Costing around 15k$, it made a return of over 10,000%. But that is not what make this movie great. What makes it great is how realistic it feels and how the story feeds on our most inner fear: what happen when we sleep?

Great movie and probably one of the scariest I have seen in my adult life.

Zombieland

If you are not into horror movies or find all the previous titles too scary, you have to see this one! Everything about this movie is fun: the dialogs, the story, the zombies… It should be in the comedy section but hey, it includes zombies so it fits in the horror genre too! It also includes a set of very informative and useful rules in case of zombie invasion! Because you know it could happen, right?

Special mention to the very cool high speed footage used in the intro and the well placed motion graphics.

Dawn of the Dead

While Zombieland takes a funny twist on the end of the world by zombies theme, this one stays in the horror section.

I was watching this last night with my wife and she came up with a very good question: how could the zombies plague spread oversea when people are turning into zombies this fast? Anyone has an explanation?

Silent Hill

While this movie has some flaws, it has some very original monsters and the build-up to horror scenes is extremely well made. Best watched on a blue-ray, huge tv and good sound for the best experience.

And finally, a book for all zombie lovers:

Zombies: A Record of the Year of Infection

bought this last Christmas for myself and loved it.

Anyone has suggestions that should be added to the list?

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I need your help. I am planing to visit Iceland (exclusively to shoot video/photo) at the end of April. I have a few questions regarding travel in your gorgeous homeland, the first being how I am supposed to pronounce ‘Reykjavik’!

For your troubles, I will bring you a (real Canadian) beer or can of maple syrup!

You can find my contact info in the about page of this site.

Thanks!

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