tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89313255139916789252024-10-09T12:13:03.975-07:00I am an avid photographer, motorcycle enthusiast, amateur CNC machinist, home owner, wood worker, audiophile, computer programmer, tango dancer, tango DJ with an advanced degree in electrical engineering. And I'm frugal.Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-78604744628471501982011-02-24T12:11:00.000-08:002011-02-24T12:17:45.989-08:00

You decided to develop your film yourself to save some money. Now you need a whole bunch of things, like the Omega 11113 Non-Weighted Stainless Steel Film Clips 10-Pack for which you will pay $49 for 10 clips. That would be if you only want to develop AND dry just 5 films at a time (you need one on the bottom to keep the roll from curling). Or you can get a bag of 25 clips (Clip It Up Additional

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-73350683136168063232011-02-14T06:38:00.000-08:002011-02-14T09:17:06.627-08:00

For a project I researched lightproof material. The absolute cheapest option I found was the "Blackout Drapery Liner" found in most fabric stores. My tests show that is 100% lightproof (though you may want to test for pinholes, just to be safe). The one I tested is Roc-Lon but the one linked to the left is less expensive and just as good.

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-36054498089871378742011-02-09T14:06:00.000-08:002011-02-09T14:08:30.011-08:00

... if your darkroom has fluorescent lighting. All you need to do is wrap this tape around a (low power) bulb and you are all set. Alternatively, you can use it to cover a flashlight (or any LED or fluorescent light) and you have an "instant" safe light. JVCC LITHO-1 Lithographer's Tape: 2 in. x 72 yds. (Red) Obviously with a single roll you can make many safe lights, so you can split the

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-42674227210621485482011-02-09T11:41:00.000-08:002011-02-14T06:39:37.758-08:00

Update 4pm : It's a trick, they will charge shipping cost for each roll of film! If it's too good to be true, it probably is not true... I just stumbled on these, I think they might be either short dated or expired, but who cares, B&W film is good for a long time. Clearly they are not going to last long, so if you want them, get them now! On the Amazon page if the listed price is higher,

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-45019914445115708812011-02-07T09:17:00.000-08:002011-02-07T09:19:24.638-08:00

It is astounding how many people are ignorant about what gas should they use in their vehicle. A lot of people will keep putting high(er then necessary) octane gas in their vehicle (at significantly higher cost) thinking it's "better" or it will make it go faster (or smoother) etc. Nope, you are just throwing money away! Your car has a User Manual. Find it, see what is the recommended octane and

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-78202145403735788522011-02-05T10:26:00.000-08:002011-02-06T09:07:12.371-08:00

Using reflectors is a very inexpensive solution for portrait/product lighting. In some cases, using a flash to fill in shadows is impossible if you want to use a fast lens wide open to blur the background, because of the limited sync speed most SLRs have. So reflectors may be the only practical solution. They cost $20-60 and you can use them in all sorts of ways to enhance the portraits/products

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-87131446325191424622011-02-03T13:48:00.000-08:002011-02-04T07:24:38.526-08:00

Audience : SLR/DSLR owners (Nikon/Pentax/Canon/Sony/Olympus) who want to shoot in low light and/or with very narrow depth of field. I REALLY, REALLY like fast lenses. I have a 30mm f1.4, a 50mm f1.4 and both of my zoom lenses are constant f2.8. But I've been drooling for a fast 85mm lens for a while now. But a 85mm f1.4D Nikon Nikkor lens sells (now) for $1175 !!!!! and the similar lens for

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-15217000132070811152011-02-02T11:25:00.000-08:002011-02-02T11:30:24.889-08:00

If you are a bit serious about photography, you know you need a Grey Card for a number of reasons. What I can't quite digest is paying $10-20-40 for what is essentially a small piece of cardboard. So, if you want a free alternative to a Grey Card try a Glidden Seal Grey paint sample card (GLN46) from Home Depot. It's 3" x 5", matt (non-reflective) and free. It's precise enough for most

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-47002536727772878592011-02-02T06:36:00.000-08:002011-02-02T06:36:58.846-08:00

So you went and got yourself a 40 inch plasma TV and you paid $700 for it. Now the sales person is trying to convince you that you need a $200 HDMI cable to take advantage of all that HDTV resolution. Don't be an idiot. If it seems wrong to pay 1/4 of the value of a 40" TV for a cable, it's because it is wrong. First, the exact same cable purchased online will likely be 25% of the local store

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931325513991678925.post-51307541887360021222011-02-01T08:53:00.000-08:002011-02-01T09:15:00.127-08:00

You just auctioned off your first born, got yourself an awesome large format camera (or a very long and fast tele lens for your DSLR or a macro lens) and went out to shoot some killer  landscape or macro shots. And you soon realized that camera/lens is worth diddly-squat without a rock solid tripod. So you went, researched and found that good rock solid tripods will require you to action off

Sorinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02550848418513002853noreply@blogger.com0