Shooting time..........

20 May 2010
Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

it was an experiment..... just wanted to see how difficult it may be to shoot a product against a complete white backdrop....... I've never shot such things, so it was a challenge...... wrist-watches became my subjects..... I had several considerations...... first, I knew I had to use a tele to flatten perspective and to bring the background to a minimum..... but when I put the 70-210 on my camera, I straightaway knew that I needed a macro to do this..... close focus was the second key thing I discovered...... I put on the Sigma 150mm macro and things began to improve...... I had to go as close as 1.75ft of the subject to get a decent crop...... third, I found that I needed another light source coming from the back to blow the surface into complete white..... so, I ended up with three flashes; two with shoot-through umbrellas and one with a home-made diffuser...... the settings apparently worked.....





settings.......

Freezing action against dark background......

17 May 2010
Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

after capturing some glimpses of Lamisa, there was enough time to do some experiments..... my wife gave me the vital boost..... she reminded of the various experiments that we used to do together; especially during load-shedding hours.....

the idea was provided by my wife..... she persuaded me to spend some time to capture a nice action-type strobist shot.... and there we go..... the effort was big, really.... with a child to take care doing all these wasn't an easy thing..... still, she was able to give me enough time to come up with at least something.....

the biggest problem was the background..... it was very difficult to prevent light fall-off on the background..... I didn't have a dark backdrop, so, had to improvise.... I tried with high-sync, but the balls became too few to be of any value at that shutter speed..... a lower shutter speed increased background light fall-off..... ultimately, I was able to find an angle where I could use a background that wouldn't have a light fall-off problem..... this allowed me to use much lower shutter speed, keeping more balls in the frame...... I also experimented with wider lens, to get reflections on the glass-table.... but the reflections caused another problem..... to get the reflections, I needed to widen the snoot, which ultimately again increased light fall-off..... so, I had to be satisfied with this......


Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D
70mm, f7.1, 1/100sec, ISO 200
Strobist info: One SB-900 on camera left at the same level as the glass table; TTL mode; shooting through a makeshift snoot made of newspaper; triggered by the built-in flash of Nikon D700

Capturing Lamisa on the move!!

17 May 2010
Mohammadpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh

its become really difficult now-a-days to capture some glimpses of Lamisa...... she's so active and also, so fond of seeing pics on camera LCD that shooting some decent pics of her has become a real challenge..... the 70-210mm f4-5.6D lens that I've acquired just days ago, seems to be a perfect lens to get some portraits of her..... fixed lenses have become almost impossible to use, as she runs towards the camera the moment she sees me...... the zoom is super convenient and lets me stay put and compose before she eventually closes the gap with the camera...... 50mm-85mm lenses are now most inconvenient......

and did I say that the lens is excellent is focusing speed?..... boy!! its focusing performance is really superb and it rarely misses focus event when the subject is moving...... the 85mm used to miss focus quite often on my D90 as well as on my D700..... this 70-210 doesn't miss focus, honestly........ and all the pics are tack sharp!!...... this has been a great investment for me....


D700 + Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D + SB-900 @ TTL mode, on camera, bounced from ceiling
210mm, f6.3, 1/125sec, ISO 400



D700 + Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D + SB-900 @ TTL mode, on camera, bounced from ceiling
180mm, f6.3, 1/125sec, ISO 320



D700 + Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D + SB-900 @ TTL mode, on camera, bounced from ceiling
170mm, f6.3, 1/125sec, ISO 360

Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D...... first impressions..

15 May 2010

just got my hands on this lens...... I had been looking for a general purpose convenience lens for portraiture for a while..... the 70-300 G lens had been a disappointment all throughout, though I do have some nice memories captured with the help of it...... but I did require some sharpness for portraiture.... and its focusing speed was horrific to say the least.... I persuaded myself to stay away from the pro 70-200/80-200 range lenses for several years...... the need for such a lens was quenched by the Nikkor 180mm f2.8 in the past, and now, by the Sigma 150mm f2.8..... there was also the 85mm f1.8 that helped me on crop frame...... but the convenience was lacking in many occasions when I didn't actually require f2.8 or f1.8..... and in any case, I was not shooting at such extreme apertures most of the times....

now, the opportunity came to get this need for convenience fulfilled at a reasonable price and weight..... the 70-210mm f4-5.6D is reputed to be one of the sharpest lenses in this category..... and its focusing speed also wasn't terribly slow.... I thought I could live with f5.6 at 210mm......

the lens impressed me in the first attempt..... its sharpness is remarkable, even wide open..... and stopped down, its even sharper!!....... the focusing speed isn't something to write home about, but its not irritating either.... the only thing that requires practice is the push-pull zoom system..... this is my first experience with a push-pull zoom..... tried out the Canon 100-400 and found it inconvenient enough.... also, once looked for the Nikkor 35-70mm f2.8 for mid-range portraiture, but shelved the project in favour of 50mm..... the build quality of this lens is superb, really..... the 62mm filter matched with my 85mm f1.8's and so, I mounted the HB-23 on it...... perfect match!

anyway, lets see how this new lens (well, new in my hand at least) holds in the long run...... the lens had been discontinued for a while, but I found it in really mint condition.....




D700 + Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D + SB-900 on camera @ TTL mode
190mm, f5.3, 1/125sec, ISO 560



D700 + Nikkor AF 70-210mm f4-5.6D + SB-900 on camera @ TTL mode
180mm, f7.1, 1/125sec, ISO 400


100% crop of the above shot....

Thirsty Dhaka......

14 May 2010
Rayerbazar-Basila, Dhaka, Bangladesh

it was another morning walk with a camera in hand..... its become almost a weekend aim for me if there was nothing else to tie me up.... and like most other times, Gazi Bhai accompanied me..... we woke up at 6:00AM and went up to the Beri Badh area of Mohammadpur and started walking towards the Third Buriganga Bridge at Basila..... the weather was mild enough because of the overcast condition from dawn..... but unlike the northern parts of the country, there was no rain..... some people were still at their sleep when we were crossing them..... the overcast condition helped them somewhat I believe....

From Rayerbazar-Basila, 14 May 2010

idle morning.........

From Rayerbazar-Basila, 14 May 2010

the struggle for the basics......


the city dwellers have struggled, especially the ones on the edge..... this struggle includes the scarcity of basic necessities..... clean water has always been one of the toughest elements to get for them, especially during the dry months of April-May..... we found evidence of this struggle at a road-side water source...... slum-dwellers had been queuing up with all their pots to get water...... the source is a deep tube-well, setup by some local influential.... he's been selling this service to the people at Tk 100 per month per family.... the families can take an unlimited amount of water, but their have to stand in line, and have to wait for the time when the services are provided...... the tap is open from 6:00AM to 12:00PM, and again, from 3:00PM to 6:00PM..... we found the line small enough to get some snaps at ease..... this is the time when most of the people are off to work.... the queues usually start to reach their limits during the afternoon, when most people come back from their jobs...... we've seen that kind of snaps in newspapers..... this is where the the people on the edge get pushed overboard!!

From Rayerbazar-Basila, 14 May 2010

elements......

From Rayerbazar-Basila, 14 May 2010

king of the desert!!

we continued to walk towards the Buriganga bridge........ this is a road that we've strolled many times....... the scenes are no surprise.... yet, we always see different things; at least, I have..... the mark of a drought was frequent and visible.....

From Rayerbazar-Basila, 14 May 2010

the old battle-lines......

we stopped our journey on the bridge...... again, this wasn't something new..... also, the boats at the Basila end of the bridge were also not new..... just that their number seemed ever so smaller...... the motor-boats were still surviving because of their unique offers...... the above picture has a motor-boat at the top end of the line....

on board the bridge we called it a day..... the photowalk was hardly for a couple of hours.... it was short, but refreshing.... and also, a learning, as always....

Baliati Portraiture Version ii, May 2010

08 May 2010
Baliati Palace, Baliati, Saturia, Manikganj, Bangladesh

we were almost dying to make yet another visit there....two visits in recent times couldn't quench my thirst...... it was the same for most others as well..... the place is full of fun and it has become almost mandatory for most of us to find a way of the ever-tiring Dhaka City.... there were almost too many signing up for this recurring, but interesting venture...... we were calculating a total of almost 100 people... but as we've seen in the past, 100% presence usually doesn't happen.... eventually, the total number of below 100, but it was the largest photowalk ever organised by TTL.... it was a great effort from the organisers of this wonderful group....

though 9:30AM was supposed to be the original starting time from Farm Gate, it was not until around 10:00AM, when one of the two buses picked me up from near my home.... but we were never in a hurry..... it wasn't a plan to catch the morning light.... so, a more leisurely start wouldn't have hurt anyone.... the journey was a pleasure, meeting so many new faces.... though the weather was relentlessly warm, it couldn't weaken our spirit.... we had too much hope in front us to make us feel tired!

anyway, it was almost 12:30PM when we ultimately reached Baliati Palace gate.... it was a Saturday, which happens to be an off-day for the sight-seeing there... but we've done it in the past, and have done it this time as well..... our previous relationship with the palace guards paid off.....

for those who went there for the first time, it was time for discovery...... and for the others, it was time for invention..... the limitless bends and rooms there hold so much potential for cool portraiture that it becomes almost overwhelming for anyone to select a few places to settle down..... the last time, I shot mostly outside the palace..... this time, my aim was to shoot inside, utilising the texture, and play of lights and shadows there.....

my first experiment was to utilise the door openings to create sort of a cookie.... the outside sunlight was never enough to make these cookie prominent.... so, I set up a flash outside the door to create slanted late afternoon sunlight inside the room..... once with the help of Monir Bhai, I was able to make the theme work, I looked for a subject to fulfill the picture.... called Munmun from ground floor to be a model for the photograph...... and the great Faisal Bhai volunteered to control the flash..... I had to use radio triggers to make the flash work, as my camera didn't have any visual connection with the flash.... after quite a few efforts, we were able to create at least one decent picture.... after this, I tried to improve upon this shot...... more opportunities came by and Faisal Bhai was again there to help me out..... Lina became our model this time, though being with us for the first time in a PW.... the session was a learning for all of us...... I was happy that I was able to create what I had set out to achieve..... now, the rest of the pictures would be bonuses....

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: munmun
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 20mm f2.8D
f5.6, 1/6sec hand-held, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 outside the door with warm gel filter on voice-activated tripod (Faisal Bhai); full power; manual mode; triggered by Elinchrom Skyport radio trigger.

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: lina
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 20mm f2.8D
f5.6, 1/4sec hand-held, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 outside the door with warm gel filter on voice-activated tripod (Faisal Bhai); full power; manual mode; triggered by Elinchrom Skyport radio trigger.



we found Avik Bhai after a while...... and his comeback from Malaysia was the reason for this particular date for the PW..... he featured in some nice available light shots..... harsh sunlight coming through big windows reflected from the floor created a nice fill-light on the textured wall..... and that was that....

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: biju, picklu, avikbangalee
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 20mm f2.8D
f5.6, 1/6sec hand-held, ISO 200


after a cozy lunch, we posed for a group shot..... Avik Bhai became the organiser of this tough task..... making that many people listen was something.... but we ended up with a shot that proved the size of the group..... after the group photo-session, we continued shooting.... I, along with some others shot some portraits in front of the main building..... the sun was barely there, I used available light for some shots inside the arches...... the arches acted as giant softboxes..... it was natural light at its best!!

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: hameem
Nikon D700 + Sigma APO 150mm f2.8 EX DG HSM Macro
f3, 1/320sec, ISO 200


then I switched on my new home-made gadget, the diffuser-cum-reflector..... it was made barely the night before..... and I was just itching to make use of it.... I played the assistant for a while to make this new thing useful.... the fabric gave just enough light to be a reflector, but it certainly was far from being an efficient design..... its off-white silk fabric produced a slightly warmish tone.... but wind was constantly blowing it away and we had a hard time holding it....

when the sun went away, it was time for the strobe to come to the scene once again..... I had a plan to illuminate at least half-body...... and to achieve that, I set up an SB-900 to shoot into the reflector...... two of our friends made the cumbersome reflector work...... it wasn't throwing up enough power, so, we had to bring it as close to he subject as possible..... but because of the stairs, we couldn't position the reflector above the head of the subject...... the light source was from somewhat below for all shots, which didn't really please me..... I had been planning for a boom for some time, but haven't really found a portable solution to it so far..... a boom would've helped for sure..... anyway, we shot away quite a few frames with quite a few models out there..... experimenting all the way.... I switched to 150mm lens to flatten perspective..... that allowed me to cover a very small background and still fill the frame in a full-body shot.... use of a big aperture let me reduce ambient light, underexposing the context a little.... the fill-light from the SB-900-reflector combination illumined the subjects just enough and separated them from the underexposed background..... at least, that was the idea.....

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: biju and hameem
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 50mm f1.4D
f4, 1/600sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 on camera right on tripod shooting into a 4'x4' home-made reflector, hand-held by two friends; TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: shabbir ferdous
Nikon D700 + Sigma APO 150mm f2.8 EX DG HSM Macro
f3.2, 1/1,000sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 on camera right on tripod shooting into a 4'x4' home-made reflector, hand-held by two friends; TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.

From Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

model: biju
Nikon D700 + Sigma APO 150mm f2.8 EX DG HSM Macro
f3.2, 1/1,000sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 on camera right on tripod shooting into a 4'x4' home-made reflector, hand-held by two friends; TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.


although we planned to leave the place by around 4:00, it wasn't until around 5:15PM when we finally drove off...... we packed our gears almost in a hurry, utilising every minute we could..... and yes, every minute was a learning.....

it was no short of a great tour...... it wasn't just a huge group, it was a huge entertainment..... a refreshing break from the hectic life.... and as I said many times, the place simply couldn't satisfy me..... there are simply too many bends left undiscovered for me.... I would spare no effort revisiting there until I've touched all the shadows in all the rooms and alleyways......

please don't forget to visit the whole gallery:
Baliati Portraiture Session 2, Manikganj, May 2010

A morning stroll....... after a while......

its been a while since I last went out in the coolish morning hours..... its no longer that cool though.... 6:30 means quite a bit of sunlight.... yet, the urge to go out with the camera no matter what, was too much for me.... after all, it was weekend..... mostly lost the weekday effort and this weekend outing is all that is left now..... hardly managed a partner when Tahsin Bhai called late and got tagged the night before..... but at 6:30AM, I was the only one walking with my camera in hand.... Tahsin Bhai was only on his way, having missed the flight due to some important late-night friendly debate!!....... I walked with the camera in hand...... took the Ring Road of Mohammadpur.... the slanted morning warmth was still hitting me when Tahsin Bhai at last arrived.... it was barely half-an-hour's walk.... though short-lived, I enjoyed this coming back to life.... and the subsequent adda with Tahsin Bhai was a delight..... it was a really enjoyable morning, truly different from a typical morning with eyes closed.....

From Mohammadpur, 07 May 2010

king of his empty world.......

From Mohammadpur, 07 May 2010

wheels........

From Mohammadpur, 07 May 2010

securely unsecured!!

From Mohammadpur, 07 May 2010

future tycoon!!

From Mohammadpur, 07 May 2010

just for a piece of smile......

Aftab Nagar Strobist Meet, 01 May 2010

after a heck of a lot of debate, we finally were able to go out with our cameras..... the whole of Friday went through debates and counter debate before it was finally canceled..... it then became sort of a mandatory thing to make it on the 1st of May.... being a government holiday, things became much easier for most..... though we again struggled to confirm the venue and also struggled to find enough confirmed participants.....

the decision went in favour of Aftab Nagar...... the place, being on the eastern edge of the City, provided us with some open space, which has become so rare now-a-days..... though I'm sure that that open space would get concrete pillars drilled in soon enough..... anyway, we were so happy seeing that open space..... the weather was pretty warm though..... we waited for the afternoon sun to shine with all its warmth..... and then we began to bring our gears out of our bags.....

we started mostly with available light...... but soon figured out that we were not getting enough separation of the subject from the background..... we shaded the sun with a scrim and went on, but needed to set up some flashes to get the separation...... the idea of shooting a biker among the tall grasses was grabbed by others very quickly....... Hameem had the ultrawide to do the job..... I played as assistant holding the scrim..... others held flashes..... using warm gel on the flash also paid rich dividends......

From Aftab Nagar Strobist Meet, 01 May 2010

model: hameem
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 20mm f2.8D
f8, 1/800sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 on camera left with warm gel filter on voice-activated tripod (rakib); TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.

From Aftab Nagar Strobist Meet, 01 May 2010

model: rezwan
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 20mm f2.8D
f2.8, 1/2,500sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 on camera left with warm gel filter on voice-activated tripod (rakib); TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.



anyway, I also tried out the same frames I tried a while back; but this time with a flash...... the sun was well on its way down..... so, it wasn't producing enough pop to separate the background..... the flash with warm gel did the trick...... the same trick applied for another close portrait..... the sun was replaced in the sun-glasses with the flash..... the original sun was too low down at that time and was featuring too mildly in the on the sun-glasses....

From Aftab Nagar Strobist Meet, 01 May 2010

model: sadia
Nikon D700 + Sigma APO 150mm f2.8 EX DG HSM Macro
f3, 1/640sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 on camera left with warm gel filter on voice-activated tripod (hameem); shooting though a white shoot-through umbrella; TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.



the last individual shot for me was with a tele..... the idea was to utilise some nice warm clouds in the eastern sky..... the sun was already down, so needed another flash to get the separation..... set-up an umbrella to get the light to soften.....

From Aftab Nagar Strobist Meet, 01 May 2010

The Koba Squad!!
Nikon D700 + Nikkor AF 20mm f2.8D
f8, 1/30sec, ISO 200
Strobist info:
One SB-900 each on camera left and right on tripod; TTL mode; triggered by SU-800 on camera.



the last effort of the day was a group shot...... it became sort of a pain to trigger the two flashes with the SU-800.... the angle was consistently becoming too steep..... anyway, we ended up with a decent shot to call it a day.....

just a couple of hours' effort..... life has become too hectic these days to manage more time than that..... for me, this has become the difference between being in photography and getting out of it...... I'm blessed with quite of lot of friends at TTL, who are helping me to keep in photography...... missed some regular fellas who had kept the strobist spirit alive..... Faisal Bhai, Biju, Tahmid, Saif Bhai jumped off the team at the last moment.... hopefully they will be there for the next meet..... may be another weekend...... lets just hope for that day everyday during the whole week!!

for more shots, please go to the gallery:
Aftab Nagar Strobist Meet, 01 May 2010