Category : Hardware Tests | Capture Integration

The Continuous Light Advantage in the Studio

Posted on 2020/05/22 9:22 AM by Brad Kaye

The Background: I’ve been a strobe guy since around 1989 when I got my first Novatron 600 watt second power pack, and through the years and through the upgrades to Speedotron and then to Profoto, the workflow has remained essentially the same… I share my workday with the whoosh-hum of fans, the bright pops of light and the confirmation beeps of the packs/heads in order to expose the scene I … Read More →

IQ4-150 Frame Averaging for Noise Reduction

Posted on 2020/03/02 11:29 AM by Brad Kaye

It’s no secret that I’m an absolute fan of Frame Averaging on the IQ4-150, not just for creating mid-day motion blurs without Neutral Density, but for noise reduction captured images. I now shoot a Frame Averaged base layer to every shot I do, whether it’s purely a natural light environment or a scene I’m about to light or paint with light. Having this base layer gives me wonderfully recoverable shadows … Read More →

Powering the Phase One IQ4

Posted on 2020/01/28 9:35 AM by Brad Kaye

The IQ4-150 represents the highest fidelity capture of any digital back available today and within it resides the most powerful computer that Phase One has ever shoe horned into any of their digital backs. Touted as being 10x more powerful than the IQ3 series it replaces, battery life is a concern on it like no other digital back we’ve worked with so far. I’m not going to paint the battery … Read More →

Fuji vs. Phase One: How good is your glass?

Posted on 2019/09/10 6:59 AM by Dave Gallagher

The old adage of “you are only as good as your glass” rings as true today than it ever has in the past. We are in the age of smaller and smaller pixel widths combined with sensor resolutions yielding higher quality than 8×10 film. The demands on today’s optics are changing with every improvement in sensor design. Lenses that performed beautifully at 30mp resolution are falling apart at 100mp resolution. With this … Read More →

Light Painting with the ALPA Silex Mk II

Posted on 2019/09/03 11:41 AM by Brad Kaye

The methodology of Light Painting exists in various forms for photographers. It can be used in the studio or out on location, and can be produced from constant lighting like a flashlight, a Hosemaster, a LED panel or a strobe modeling light in an umbrella or soft-box. (one of my favorites, see my When 150mp isn’t Enough blog for the subtle light painting down the firetruck in the final shot to … Read More →

Phase One IQ4 – Long Awaited Frame Averaging

Posted on 2019/06/29 3:17 PM by Brad Kaye

Amidst the announcement of the Phase One IQ4 150 last year and the many substantially upgraded and new features, one of these stood out as a bit of a wild card. That was the “Phase One Beta Labs”, which promised regularly downloadable feature firmware updates, similar to the ones the XF camera has seen. The first of these was to be the ability to produce Frame Averaged captures in camera. … Read More →

Phase One IQ4 USB C Charging in the field

Posted on 2019/04/11 3:43 PM by Dave Gallagher

One of my favorite places to visit in the US is the desert of California. I find it amazing that one state can have so many terrains within a short drive. CA is truly a photographer’s dream in many ways. This year I had the chance to finally take the new Phase One IQ4 150mp Achromatic into the field to learn how to use it properly. We have had … Read More →

Phase One IQ4 ISO Testing

Posted on 2018/11/15 1:16 PM by Dave Gallagher

Whenever a new product is released it is our job to test it, push it, to know where it succeeds, and know where it fails. How would it be possible to talk intelligently and honestly to our customers if we don’t know this product inside and out? And this isn’t just exclusively our tech department, our full team pitches in and completes these tests. We pride ourselves in a full team … Read More →

IQ4-150: The BEST digital back EVER for Technical Camera use

Posted on 2018/11/05 5:05 PM by Brad Kaye

Bold blog title, I know, but let me break this down, because it is that exciting. The IQ4-150 by model number alone alludes to a new pinnacle of image gathering potential, with it’s 151 megapixel sensor gathering 16-bits of color across 14.5 stops of dynamic range, but there is far more story to be told about this industry leading medium format digital back when it comes to technical camera use. … Read More →

ALPA SILEX MK II – The Technical Camera Powerhouse

Posted on 2018/10/24 5:16 PM by Brad Kaye

As covered previously in Copal Shutter Care & Alternatives, we are at a turning point for the use of the Schneider & Rodenstock optics used on technical cameras, with their purely mechanical Copal-0 shutters working like little gear & spring timepieces that are now (and have been) out of production and are in dwindling supply for new installations and repairs, forcing us to contemplate what’s next in technical camera shooting. A … Read More →