Faisal is a San Francisco based lifestyle photographer who currently shoots with a Leica M 240 rangefinder camera. These are his thoughts.
Street Shots - 2/2/17
A collection of photos taken while grabbing lunch during the workday.
Fuji X-Pro2 with XF 23 F2. All shot with Acros and unedited.
Winter in San Francisco
Here's a small collection of photos taken over this past Winter in San Francisco. I hope you enjoy them.
Embarking on a Safari with Fuji
After receiving questions and comments about traveling with Fuji gear and about my editing process, I thought it would be helpful to dive deeper into those aspects of the safari. Over the years, I've shot with almost everything available to me — Nikon, Canon, Sony and Leica. My most recent GAS (Gear Aquisition Syndrome) has landed me with Fuji, specifically the X-Pro2.
I recently published a story on Exposure highlighting my recent safari in The Greater Kruger National Park in South Africa. The story went into depth about the logistics of the trip itself, along with information on the reserve and lodge that I stayed.
After receiving questions and comments about traveling with Fuji gear and about my editing process, I thought it would be helpful to dive deeper into those aspects of the trip. Over the years, I've shot with almost everything available to me — Nikon, Canon, Sony and Leica. My most recent GAS (Gear Aquisition Syndrome) has landed me with Fuji, specifically the X-Pro2.
Naturally, the Fuji X-T2 came to mind. By sticking with Fuji, I'd be familiar with the results, the editing process, the controls, and I'd also be able to use my existing lenses on the new body. I decided to rent the X-T2 for the trip as it made little sense to go out and buy another body. The X-T2 is also hard to find at the moment because of its high demand and because of the earthquake that struck Japan that year.
After researching what gear to take with me on the trip, the consensus was to take the longest lens you could afford. Thus, I also rented the Fuji XF 100-400mm OIS lens, which pairs beautifully with the X-T2. I skipped on the external grip because I didn't see much value in it and preferred not to have additional bulk.
Once arriving at the lodge, I quickly realized that I didn't need the 6 batteries I took with me. Because I had a Watson Duo Dual Fuji Charger, I was able to recharge a battery for each body during the downtime between the game drives. Each battery was more than enough for the 3-4 hour game drive, even on with the cameras on High-Performance/Boost Mode.
The comparison between the X-Pro2 and X-T2 is interesting. They're very similar in specs and performance, but vastly different in operation. The autofocus systems on both cameras allowed me to take the photos I wanted, and the EVF was excellent in the rapidly changing light conditions. The differences lie in the different form factors, with the X-Pro2 favoring more deliberate and creative shots while the X-T2 has the ergonomics and controls focused toward performance and fast-paced shooting. In summary, I had a great experience with the gear I took and the cameras served me well.
One Year Later
A few words reflecting on one year of photography
Twelve months, eight lenses, five cameras, and two tripods later, I've finally crossed one year of photography. Having gone through most of the major camera brands — Nikon, Canon, Fuji, and Sony — I've come to the simple realization that I'm addicted to buying and trying the latest gear. Technology is what keeps me up at night. I love reading about and experimenting with the most cutting-edge technology available. This addiction is what led me to ditch DSLRs and adopt mirrorless technology.
Because of my background and work experience with software, post-processing is what I look forward to the most when it comes to photography. Computers have always been second nature to me, so naturally, post-processing is just an extension of that. My editing process consists of Lightroom 6 and VSCO Film. I have a custom import action that applies the correct lens profile, my standard VSCO filter (this changes every few months), and sharpening settings. I then tweak exposure and white balance to my liking. That's pretty much all I do in most cases.
In more extreme cases, where the results are not up to liking, I'll usually drive deep into the HSL panel and refine individual colors. The most common scenario for this is adjusting skin tones. Because VSCO Film does not officially support the Sony A7II yet, there aren't any custom camera profiles to match the custom filters, so occasionally I'll end up with some really orange skin tones. Adjusting the luminance and saturation of orange is a simple and quick fix.
Now
One Year Ago
If you have any feedback or questions, please feel free to contact me or leave a comment. Thanks.
A Photographer's Guide to San Francisco
When it comes to landscape and urban photography, San Francisco is an endless oasis of opportunity. From the famous attractions, such as the Golden Gate Bridge, to the more grungy local spots, such as Clarion Alley, SF has something for everyone at any time of day. Here is a list of a few of my favorite attractions to capture.
Bay Bridge
Golden Gate Bridge
Land's End
Downtown from Coit Tower
Potrero Hill
Chinatown
California Street
California and Jones
Broadway Street
Palace of Fine Arts
Twin Peaks
Clarion Alley
Dynamic Range on the Sony A7II
In photography, dynamic range refers to the ratio of light intensity captured by a camera's sensor (whites and blacks). For landscape photographers, dynamic range plays a huge role in the craft because it lets photographers capture a huge range of color. This gives the camera the ability to capture detail in the sky while also retaining detail in the shadows (a common scenario is a sunset picture).
In photography, dynamic range refers to the ratio of light intensity captured by a camera's sensor (whites and blacks). For landscape photographers, dynamic range plays a huge role in the craft because it lets photographers capture a huge range of color. This gives the camera the ability to capture detail in the sky while also retaining detail in the shadows (a common scenario is a sunset picture).
My Canon 6D had great dynamic range and I had no complaints, however after using my Sony A7II for a few days, I’m amazed by how much more room there is to play with. With the 6D, I wasn't able to bring the shadows up as much as the Sony can without introducing noise artifacts. I also notice greater highlight retention and recovery with Sony's RAW files.
For the following pictures, I exposed for the highlights, which means the foreground is underexposed. I did this in order to preserve detail in the sky and in the clouds. By using this technique, I’m able to have a detailed sky and I can recover detail in the shadows by lifting them via post processing.
Click the images to see the originals.
