PhotographyBanzai.com

Last year, I went to an anime convention called Uchi-Con that's at a university in downtown Chicago. I wanted to see if I could take and post photos directly from the camera without editing. After each convention it usually takes me multiple days of editing, so I'd like to avoid as much extra work as possible.  For this event, I was using the Nikon Z5 and the Nikon 40mm f/2 lens. The reality is that the editing process afterwards is a massive amount of work. Ultimately, having ready-to-post photos right out of the camera would be a huge time saver, but as we will see throughout this article it isn't realistic without using your own lighting.  I adjusted the photo afterward so that the cosplayer is brighter. The main issue I ran into was white balance. At least on Nikon Z5 camera I was using, the auto white balance just did not seem good enough to handle the varied lighting environments all the time. Though, being true-to-life of the environment and getting a look that feels...

In this project, I am going over the process of scanning my entire photo and video archive, which sits at around 22 Terabytes, using ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate 2026.  ACDSee has sent me codes for this program in the past, but they have no relation to this specific project. I was simply curious to see how the AI keywords and face detection features would function when processing and using a large archive. As it turns out, it was quite the process getting this working and fulling scanning my ~22TB archive. My local setup using a small dedicated monitor to check the server computer locally. My goal here was to create a client-server environment. Rather than running this compute heavy process on my main computer, I wanted to offload the work to a separate machine with one of my archive copies attached. Obviously, scanning this volume of data takes a long time, so separating it from my main computer seemed like the best approach. The Software Setup: TightVNC and Remote Ripple To make ...

I've been working a bit on my hands-on video recording setup again. It's a simple mod, but every little change helps refine how well it works in practice. Let's take a look in this article! The packaging for three USB extension cables. The package included five hook-and-loop straps, which is always handy for cable management. There are three cables in total. You'd think 3 or 6 ties would make more sense than 5, but whatever. The hook-and-loop straps. I've been using a shorter USB extension cable to power a AA to USB battery power adapter for a microphone that I use with my camera setup.  My camera setup with a microphone, monitor, and various accessories. The connector on my old cable wasn't super long, so I was looking for something a bit longer. My Old USB 3.0 extension is much shorter than the new USB 2.0 cables. These new cables should do the trick. This will allow me to rotate the camera more freely without being restricted by the cable length. The side vie...

Lately, I've been shifting more towards Sony equipment for my video work, and there are a few key reasons behind that decision. Let's talk about it in this article!  A close up of the video rig. I initially tried using the Nikon Z30 as a replacement for my Canon EF-M equipment I sold a while back. While I knew of users saying the Z30 can overheat, I wanted to test that for myself so I gave the camera a chance.  Unfortunately, it consistently overheated after about 25 minutes outputting 4k through HDMI. That's with no internal recording and a DC coupler instead of a battery. The Canon M6 Mark II camera had no issue outputting 4k through HDMI, but would overheat doing internal recording, so I thought the Z30 might be similar. Sadly that's not the case.  The Sony ZV-E10 with the Atomos Ninja V. It's a problem when I'm filming longer videos, like detailed lighting equipment reviews that can take an hour or two. Or filming multiple hands-on equipment videos. So I...

I'm always looking for ways to upgrade my camera gear without the hassle of selling it myself. Recently, I decided to try something different: swapping my old equipment for new gear with MPB and getting some cash at the same time. I've used them to purchase equipment in the past, but this was my first time trading in. In the video I explain how it went, and I'll walk you through the entire process, from getting a quote to unboxing the new-to-me equipment.  It's a simple concept: you send them gear, and they send you stuff back. In this particular case, I even got some money in addition to the equipment because my trade-ins were valued higher than what I wanted at the time.  Why go this route instead of selling equipment directly? For me, it all comes down to time and convenience. The entire process, from shipping my gear to receiving the new equipment, took 11 days. They received it, assessed everything, sent me a final quote, I approved it, and then they shipped the n...