Making the Most of Elopement and Micro Wedding Photo Sessions

Micro weddings and elopements are more popular than ever, but smaller weddings can be just as memorable and beautiful as huge, extravagant events!

LENS EXPLORATION: 85mm F1.4 DG HSM

What’s bright, gives wonderful, round bokeh and is perfect for portraits, sports, street and product photography? Give up?

It’s Sigma’s 85mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM lens. This beauty fits on both full frame and cropped sensor cameras.

The ideal portrait focal length is said to be twice to two and a half times the normal focal length. So before diving into the 85 let’s take a look at focal length and what it means in regards to sensor size. First, here’s a definition or two.

Prime Time: Focus on Fixed Focal Length Lenses

Prime lenses are designed for exceptional imaging at a single focal length. Unlike zoom lenses that easily span a given focal range and variable field of view with a twist of the zoom ring, the field of view and focal length remains constant. If you want to take in less of the surroundings with a given prime lens, you’ve got to physically move closer, and to take in more of the scene, you’ve got to back up. But of course, as you move, the angle of view remains the same all the while.

Exercise your Creativity with Prime Lenses

More and more I find my self shooting one of three Sigma prime focal length lenses in the studio… the 50mm f/1.4, the 85mm f/1.4 and the 150mm f/2.8 OS macro. I noticed that zooms were making me a bit lazy. Hey! It’s a lot easier to twist a zoom ring that it is to move a 300 pound studio stand even if it is on wheels. So why do I do it? A couple of reasons. Perspective, perspective, perspective. I shoot full frame Canon cameras. Their normal focal length is almost 50mm. That’s about the same angle of view as we see with our eyes. I use the 50 mainly for full length photographs.

Sigma SD1: On Location with Robert Lopshire

by Jack Howard A while back, I had an idea for a blog posting involving models, the Sigma SD1, social media connections, and a Sigma fan who’d never touched the Sigma SD1 before. I wanted to see what sort of…