Category: Instructionals

Using Godox with the Sony A7iii/A7riii

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Introduction

I’ve written this article as there seems to be a gap in the information provided by Godox specific articles, videos and Sony flash articles with specific reference to the Godox system and how to use it with Sony cameras. Like any camera system, there are unique ways the lighting system works and this can be confusing for many people.

I’ve noted this is specific to the A7iii and A7Riii, however, this is due to these being the only two Sony cameras I have. As a result, I can’t test it across the entire range of Sony cameras. It may or may not be applicable, feel free to try it out, it won’t break anything.

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Solving ONA’s glaring omission

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We all know ONA bags. Awesome, incredible, beautiful, I have the Prince and Bowery in antique cognac and I love them. The craftsmanship is amazing and the leather is beautiful.

But water doesn’t love them. Leather and water is always a bad combination, like mixing medicine and heavy machinery, or alcohol and skydiving. If you want to destroy a leather bag quickly, take it out into the rain. I have no doubt your equipment will survive, the leather is thick and it will take a while for the water to penetrate, but that’s only part of the problem. When you are paying the sort of money you are for ONA bags, I expect the bag to survive unscathed as well.

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A7riii Settings Spreadsheet

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You have to love the internet, it’s become a treasure trove of information and people create and share content all over the place that they have taken the time to create. The best part about it, is that the majority of this content is free, you just have to decipher between the bull#$%@ (like some of the youtubers who have absolutely no clue).

I can’t claim the credit for this, it came complements of someone by the name of Dennis from Florida (included a screenshot) from DPreview who has created a spread sheet which covers every single setting on the A7Riii along with links to the help files for the various settings, along with some links to videos from the likes of Mark Galer. File is downloadable.

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How to carry a Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 or Sony 100-400mm (or any other brand for that matter)

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Introduction

I often cringe when I see the responses to a forum post on how to carry a Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 or Sony 100-400mm. People seem completely oblivious to the damage they are doing to the mounts on their cameras. Worst yet, they are happily advising other users to do the same.

How do you know whether to reconsider how you carry your camera/lens combination? If it comes with a lens collar that allows for attachment directly to the lens, the rule of thumb is to use the lens attachment as these lenses are likely to be heavier than the camera body.

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How to get Fujifilm classic chrome with a Sony A7iii or other Sony Cameras

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When I first made the shift to Sony, one of the concerns I had was about the loss of Fujifilm’s Classic Chrome, one of my favourite film simulations and probably the only one I use on a regular basis. It wasn’t a show stopper, but I really like the subdued colours for days where I am shooting in midday sun and can’t avoid it.

Fortunately, moving to Sony doesn’t mean the end of Classic Chrome, or many of the other simulations, which can be replicated in some form. Obviously it’s not a perfect science, but I thought I would would put out something so other people don’t don’t through the process as well:

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Godox – An easy way into lighting

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Pre-Note

I’m going to be adding some photos to this shortly, I just haven’t got around to take photos when I wrote this, so I apologise if it is graphic free. I’ll update it as soon as I get time.

Introduction

In the past, the Chinese brands were guilty of copytetion, taking copies of established brands products and pushing them onto the market. In some cases, you picked up reasonable quality gear at a budget price if you couldn’t afford the expensive stuff, in other cases you picked up poor quality copies that last a matter of months or weeks before dying and leaving you out of pocket with no warranty.

Godox is one of these brands that is really starting to impress me. They started off with good quality copies, but these days they are innovating with their own solutions. Lighting solutions, like the AD200 are a good indication of Godox doing good things differently and right.

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Taking photos of your children

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Introduction

Taking photos of your children is probably one of the easiest and hardest things to do. It’s easy to take photos, but it’s difficult to take good photos. At the time of writing this article, my kids are 6 and 4, two of the most beautiful girls in the world and they certainly know how to wrap Daddy around their finger. On occasion I like to combine my favorite hobby with my favorite girls and that has provided a big learning curve for me.

There are a couple of reasons why working with your own children is difficult:

1. Children don’t listen to instructions in the same way as an adult. They aren’t being difficult, they’re being children and accepting that is important.

2. Children have a very short attention span as you are probably aware. They can spend an hour playing with something obscure and 2 minutes playing with a toy that you spent a small fortune on.

3. You don’t have limited control over the background when taking photos. You can’t decide when and how your children will be cute. They do that on their own and it tends to be where they want, when they want and how they want.

4. Photos with children are often unplanned. I.e. they do something cute and you try to grab the camera as quickly as possible, hoping that the lens is appropriate.

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