My first day of of photographing the awesome beauty of Slovenia meant hiking up a steep trail before sunrise on a very cold morning.  And yes, the 25-pound backpack and tripod worked on my legs.  If I had known then how well the Canon Powershot G10 could capture that wonderful morning light, no doubt the 25-pound backpack would have stayed in the car.

And as the days go by, I am more and more impressed with the capabilities of this wonderful new tool. In fact, increasingly I just leave my 1Ds Mark II in the backpack, preferring to use the G10.

These shots were processed from JPEG files on a laptop, so please don’t judge them critically.  Now, back to the colors of Slovenia.  And, pray that the rain soon stops!

Michael Reichmann has just posted a wonderfully interesting article about the Canon Powershot G10.

See:  http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/kidding.shtml

Reichmann’s observations are enlightening.

He reports that the Canon G10 images he has made are comparable with images made by medium format cameras costing $15,000 or more!

Reichmann’s article makes me wonder when we will reach the point when our equipment has surpassed our ability to use it effectively? I use perhaps 5% of the capabilities of CS3. I use about the same with my 1Ds Mark II. And, I frankly admit that I have never seriously considered what these tools can produce if I took the time to master just one of them.  Now that tools are available for $500 that rival tools costing tens of thousands of dollars, one is left with an important series of questions.

Perhaps we whine too much.

Perhaps we should stop and look more often for the special grace that light often provides us; it is a trait that I am learning from other photographers whom I admire and respect.

And I wonder, would it have made any difference to van Gogh if he could have bought modern brushes and paints instead of having to make his own? Would his art have been any better?

So, while we applaud the new technologies that come our way, the real quest is how we might use them to improve the human condition.  After all, our work should be about the art form and less about what tools we use to interpret what we find.

The idea that we can produce outstanding high-quality images with inexpensive cameras is revolutionary because it means that tools heretofore not available to many are now within the reach of anyone who desires to explore the photographic art form.

Note:  I have comments turned on, but my access to the Internet will be limited during the next three weeks.  If your comments don’t show up for a while it is because I can’t approve them constantly.

I was a bit surprised by the number of visitors who read my initial review of the Canon Powershot G10, and I especially appreciate all the comments and questions that visitors have made.

Ralph Says Hi to the G10

Let me sum up some of the goods and bads of the camera thus far.

Noise

As with the G9, the G10 displays unacceptable amounts of noise in images shot at ISO 400.  In fact, I would not likely shoot at higher than ISO 100 when using the camera. (With the caveat that it is possible to shoot at ISO 400 and use some magic in photoshop to reduce noise to acceptable levels.)

Read more »

(Note, my final review is here along with lots of shots from my recent trip to Slovenia and Scotland.)

As an avid user of the Canon Powershot G9, a camera that I said was the perfect travel camera, I had high hopes for the Canon Powershot G10.  See my detailed review of the G9 here.

When the G10 was announced, I was especially pleased that Canon had changed the lens to 28-140mm instead of the 35mm-210mm on the G9.  I found the 35mm limit of the G9 very restrive when doing landscape photography.  Although, I must admit, I did make some fantastic images with the G9.  Like this one:

Click on Image to See a Larger Version

Others liked the image too, it won Elements of Human Kind Image of the Week at Nature Scapes Net.

So, I bought the Canon Powershot G10 when it became available locally.  My first camera had a hot pixel and I had to return it for exchange, the one I have now is fine.  Please note that I buy cameras that I review, unfortunately Canon and Nikon don’t send me stuff to test like they do with the better known camera review sites.  And, please note that I do not bore you with totally technical stuff.  If you want that kind of information about the Canon Powershot G10, you can read the press release at Canon here.

With camera in hand and tripod set up, I took my first photograph with the G10 yesterday morning.

Click on Image to See a Larger Version

Unfortunately for me, a RAW plugin is not yet available for use with Adobe Photoshop, so I had to use Canon’s DPP software to process the shot.  Thus, my normal workflow was totally different, and the subtle things I can do with Lightroom and Adobe RAW processing are missing from the shots you see here.

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I bought a Canon Powershot G10 yesterday and took some photos with it this morning.  I am impressed with the quality of the images, it is as good or better than the Canon Powershot G9.

To see a larger version of this photograph, click on the image.

One great advantage to the Canon G10 is the 28mm wide angle lens, far superior to the 35mm lens on the Canon Powershot G9.  Those of us who want to use the camera for landscapes will find this especially pleasing.  And, given that the quality of the images I have processed so far is equal to the quality of those from the Powershot G9, I think it is a winner.  Some have said that boosting the megapixels of the sensor would result in poorer quality images.  So far I don’t see that.

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So, why would I write about coffee since this blog is about photography?

Simple,  at 0400 hours, when all others in the world are asleep, or should be, I am awake, sorta, and all I can think about is going to the john and then finding my coffee.

Starbucks is my standard.  It is the best coffee in the world, despite the recent test that showed some coffee drinkers prefer MacDonald’s offerings.  Rubbish.

I am up at 0400 hours because the light will touch the land within two hours, maybe sooner.  And most likely I have a drive and hike to do before I find the right spot for setting up my tripod and camera and praying the light will touch my subject gently.

So, coffee is a must, because it awakens my soul.  Breakfast at 1000 hours, coffee at 0400 hours. An old Army habit.  Course the US Army never found coffee good, just cheap, but I still remember the days in a jungle in Panama when that cheap coffee was a god-send of delight. Amazing how the plain stuff tastes great when it is all you have available.

I digress.

Starbucks.  Yep.  The best of the best.

I grind it course and use my French brewer to make it right, I use bottled water, and stir it after boiling it well with my water heater.  Yep, it is a ritual.

And, I must tell you, that after a cup or two and a long hike, the light is better.  Absolutely better.

Excellent coffee is essential to great photography.

It’s a fact.

Just last week while on a trip to North Carolina I found it necessary to have the oil changed in my van. Getting your oil changed is often a boring experience, especially when waiting in an automobile service center.  I detest TV and usually look around for something to read.  In this instance there wasn’t much available.  After skimming through the magazines available, I found one on building and architecture.  At least the photos were well done.

At just the point when I was about to toss the magazine aside, I saw an article that interested me.

And, within it, this quotation by Jim Rohn: “Don’t spend major time with minor people.”  In context, meaning, spend your time with those who inspire you and uplift you, not with those who tear you down and sap your energy.

The thought behind the quotation suddenly applied directly to my photography.  How many hours have I spent uselessly on some photography forums, bantering with others who haven’t got a clue about creativity or excellence, reading comments that have nothing to do with my photographs?  I would guess I have spent thousands of hours at such places.  DUH.

On the other hand, how many hours have I spent with other photographers who have inspired me?  Certainly not as many hours as I should have.

Likewise, it is time I spent more time with those who look for inspiration from me.  After all, mentoring others pulls the best out of you.  It forces you to think clearly about what your work is about.

In sum, spend your time learning from those who uplift and challenge you, and spend more of your time uplifting others.  Two ideas worth thinking about every day.