Monthly Archives: April 2024

Adding a rubber lens hood to my M.Zuiko 12-45mm Pro lens.

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Photography equipment, Travel and tagged , | 2 Comments

Fully Retracted

Fully extended

Hi,

I’ve had a couple of these screw on 58mm fit three-stage collapsible rubber lens hoods laying around for ages, so long in fact that I can’t remember what I bought them for. 🙂 I thought I’d try one with my M.Zuiko 12-45mm zoom lens. The advantages over the proprietary lens hood for me are two-fold. First it enables me to easily rotate the attached slim-fit CPL filter with a hood attached and secondly it works very well in conjunction with my camera rain cover which has an elasticated fitting at the lens end. I tested and, importantly, when fully collapsed, it doesn’t vignette at the wide angle end of the zoom range. Purely to save space in my bag whilst travelling I’ve left my Olympus hood attached in the reversed position at least temporarily, to act as a backup hood should I get any issues with the rubber hood. It won’t last forever but, at about £3-4 UK it’s cheap to replace when I need to and I already have a spare. I’ve tested it out on a couple of recent outings and it works well.

I paid about £17 UK new for this rain cover on Ebay a few years back. They’re made by a UK company that also make all sorts of rain covers for baby buggies etc.. So I thought they’d know more than a bit about keeping things dry and if they can keep someone’s baby dry from the rain then they can keep my “baby” dry 🙂 and it does so. It’s turned out to be the best I ever used, very quick to fit with an elasticated front end which stretches over the hood to fit and can’t slip off and a draw string at the camera body end. Roomy enough to take my longest lenses and very easy to turn a zoom ring through the fabric, sometimes the simplest things work the best. Having a weather-sealed camera and lens isn’t reason enough to get it soaking wet if one has the means to keep it dry. I regard camera weather-sealing a secondary line of defence against water ingress and not a primary one.

By-the-way the camera half-case, stylish as it is, isn’t there purely for cosmetic reasons. It adds a bit more grip and protection to the camera and, having had a broken latch on the hinged battery access cover in the past before I replaced it, the flap with side fastening popper holds the battery snuggly in place should it ever fail again. Lastly, the base of the camera has a push-fit rubber cover which covers the contacts for the optional grip when not fitted. Although not overly prone to doing so it cannot fall off and get lost with the half-case fitted.

Kind regards

Leigh

Dual battery and multi memory card box.

by in photography, Photography equipment, Travel | Leave a comment

Hi everyone,

These look interesting, I’ve ordered one up to try out, hopefully should fit my batteries and hold 5 SDHC cards. Time will tell but the clips and hinges look a bit sturdier than the ones I’m using. You can’t see in the picture but, underneath the two batteries there are foam pads. I suppose that one could also use one of those adapters from micro SD to normal size SD card and thus increase the card storage by another nine if one so desired!. I don’t have an immediate use for the two flip-up compartments but, knowing me, I’ll probably find one. 🙂

Kind regards

Leigh

Four easy cheap tips.

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Photography equipment, Travel | 3 Comments

Hi,

I thought I’d post a few of my favourite tips.

  1. I usually find space for one or two of those cheap slide-lock clear freezer bags, These have two uses the first of which is to put wet items such as rain covers in when they go back in my bag. It doesn’t make sense to put wet items back in an otherwise dry bag. With the rain covers inside one can roll the bag so as to squeeze out air inside the bag and compress the space it takes before closing it up. The second use is, when out in the very cold and coming into a warm environment where water condenses on one’s gear. Put the camera and lens in the bag and close it up whilst still in the cold and then the water will condense on the outside of the freezer bag when you come back into the warm and not on one’s camera. Additionally I pop one of those small silica gel sachets inside the bag before closing it up. Size wise this is suited to smaller cameras and lenses which works for me as I don’t use large cameras and/or very long lenses.
  2. I always number my batteries so as to tell them apart using my Dymo label gun and I also put an arrow symbol on them which makes getting the battery the right way round very obvious when changing batteries in a hurry.
  3. Use cheap centre pinch lens caps rather that the costly to replace camera manufacturer’s ones. Another nice thing is that, with a bit of searching around one can find different coloured ones which stand out better if you drop one of them.
  4. Apart from the well know rubber band or filter wrench methods of removing a stuck filter I prefer using a different method. I cut squares from a hard fronted neoprene-backed mouse mat to fit the largest of my filter sizes. One then simply presses the neoprene side flat against the front of the filter and uses an even force whilst unscrewing the filter. This has never let me down. In a pinch one can use the rubber sole of training shoes etc. preferably not after trudging through a muddy field, along a dusty track or sandy beach etc.!!. 🙂

A fifth bonus tip 🙂 sometimes on longer journeys where available I use the USB sockets in public transport buses and trains to charge/top up my mobile phone or camera batteries using one of my USB camera battery chargers, well why not it’s free!. These sockets are vey often located at about ankle height. As I don’t want to put my phone or battery charger on the floor I make sure that I have a 2 Mtr long USB charging cable with me then I can put the device on the seat next to me or a tray table etc.. 🙂 Although I’m pretty standardised on USB type C connectors on my devices one can also get small push on adapters that convert from micro USB to type C and vice-versa to suit whatever type of USB cable your using and thus you have the best of both worlds and, if you have devices with both types of connection, one fewer cable.

I’m always keen to learn new ideas so if anyone has any that they’d like to pass on please let me know in the comments.

Kind regards

Leigh

Carousel

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Travel | Leave a comment

Hi everyone,

Carousel, Worthing beach. Olympus 9mm body cap fisheye lens with a little editing, mostly sharpness and saturation. One can get some nice results from this tiny lens if one plays to its strengths and as it’s a fixed f/8 lens it needs good light and a little work in post but on a bright day it’s surprising what results can be had and it’s a lot of fun to use.

Best wishes,

Leigh

Rain Gear

by in photography and tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Hi everyone,

Along with my self-confessed obsession with lightweight camera gear goes my, borderline paranoia about keeping everything, including myself, dry in inclement weather. Okay so I guess my motto could be “be prepared” although I was never a Scout which says considerably more about me than the Scouting movement, as Groucho Marx famously said “I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member” 🙂 but, moving on. Rain protection is one of those things that you either have with you and the weather turns out beautiful and you’re stuck with carrying around all day or you trust to luck and leave at home and end up cursing having done so,

One doesn’t live in the UK without possessing at least one rainproof garment and, in my case, currently, three and last Winter and this Spring have been so wet it seems like it’s rained at some stage every day since about last October. Here comes the proverbial dilemma, unless it’s raining heavily when I set off I don’t want to be stuck wearing a bulky and, should the weather turn out to become nicer, uncomfortably hot rainproof jacket. Bare in mind that I’ll be on foot most of the time and therefore there’s nowhere else to store it but on my person or in my camera bag and, however small the compact pack-a-mac type things are they’re always somewhat bulky and hard to accommodate.

So here’s my solution, some while back I bought a pack of five of those disposable plastic rain ponchos. They’re sleeved with a draw string hood and elasticated cuffs so I don’t know why they describe them as ponchos. They certainly don’t bare the slightest resemblance to the kind worn by Clint Eastwood in the Spaghetti Western films. I can keep one of them in my camera bag along with my camera and bag rain covers and it doesn’t take up any appreciable space nor add any weight. That way I have everything with me to keep myself and my gear dry if caught out by the weather, The only downside is that they make one look like a real complete and utter prat but, when it comes to such things, I have no shame! and my trendy clothing days are, I’m sorry to say, well and truly behind me so I’d rather look like a dry prat than a drowned rat, 🙂

I’m impressed!  Manfrotto Compact 1 Advanced Shoulder Bag for CSC in use.

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Photography equipment, Travel | Leave a comment

Hi everyone,

I’ve now taken my new camera bag and my gear on three local trips to test it out for weight, compactness and convenience. I’m impressed, it fits my needs extremely well. Over the years I’ve owned so many camera bags that I’ve long since lost count. Along with my choice of camera gear my experiences have also informed my choice of camera bag, what works, what doesn’t and why. What I’ve constantly been looking for in a bag is low weight and size, good quality manufacture and ease of access to my gear. This is where having a good number of compartments comes into play but they have to be readily accessible. Some stuff I need quick and ready access to eg. a spare camera battery and rain covers for both the bag and my camera need to be accessible without having to open the main compartment especially in heavy rain and that’s where the top compartment on this bag is really useful to store such items.

Then there’s the main compartment, obviously it has to be large enough to hold my choice of camera gear but having two additional small velcro-fastening pockets on the underside of the “lid” is handy for smaller items such as filters (approx. 58/62mm size or smaller or thereabouts) , lens wipes, microfibre cloth and lens brush. Lastly the back zip-up compartment although shallow is also handy for more smaller items. This compartment is pretty stealthy and I guess you could put a small wallet, purse or loose money/cards in it as it’s not very obvious as it sits close to one’s body. Personally I don’t do this, nor do I habitually put my mobile phone in my camera bag. If there’s one thing worse than your camera gear getting snatched it’s also loosing your wallet and phone especially when travelling. A good idiom when travelling that I’ve always adhered to would be “never put all your eggs in the same basket” 🙂 . Likewise never readily believe anyone saying “there’s no problem with mosquitos here”, eaten alive by vicious, insatiable Tiger Mosquitos in Rome, or “it never rains here at this time of year”, soaked to the skin in Corfu Town in peak season, as the saying goes, “one lives as one learns” or, to put it another way, isn’t hindsight a wonderful thing. 🙂

For more info on the bag see this post: https://leighkempphotoblog.co.uk/2024/04/04/papas-got-a-brand-new-bag/

Kind regards

Leigh

Pier (2024)

by in HDR, Landscape, Leigh Kemp, Paintography, photography, Travel | Leave a comment

Hi everyone,

A new work of Bognor Regis Pier

All the best,

Leigh

Duracell Olympus BLN-1 replacement battery.

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Photography equipment, Travel | 3 Comments

Hi everyone,

As my Olympus BLN-1 batteries are ageing I thought I’d treat myself to a couple of these. As Olympus want £53 UK each I thought I’d try these instead. If one buys them from Duracell Direct online one pays £22.99 each but as they have a buy one and get a second at half price offer I ended up paying £34.49 inc. V.A.T for two with free 3-day courier delivery. Got to be worth a try out, they have a slightly less capacity than the Olympus one’s, 1140 mAh vs 1220 mAh but, at this price it’s worth it and it’s at least a brand name that one’s heard of and they should know a thing or two about battery manufacture by now methinks 🙂 . I’ll post again when I’ve given them a thorough test and they come with a two year warranty. I’m sure that they do them for other makes and models of camera.

Kind regards, Leigh

Update: I just charged them both up in one of my dual USB camera battery chargers with no problems.

I love it when a plan comes together.

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Photography equipment, Travel and tagged , , | Leave a comment

Hi everyone,

I’ve managed to solve a dilemma I’ve had for a while now. When I start thinking about travel landscapes, all that lovely blue Mediterranean water and skies and sunshine (whatever that is) :), bring it on! 🙂 I also start thinking about using one of my various CPL filters and just maybe occasionally an ND filter. What often deters me about using a CPL is that one has to tediously keep removing and re-fitting the lens hood on the go which doesn’t suit my walkabout style of working else it’s very fiddly as there’s not enough room inside the manufacturer’s lens hood to get one’s fingers in and turn it and even with my slimmest CPL filter it still vignettes at the 12mm (24mm equivalent) end of my zooms with the hood fitted. I’ve tried various after-market hoods to no avail and finally found one that works with my 12-60mm Lumix f/3.5-f/5.6 zoom lens which doesn’t cause vignetting at the 12mm end. As it turns out it was a humble metal screw in 58mm wide angle lens hood that I’ve had kicking around for years which I had somehow overlooked. This means I can leave my 58mm Marumi DHG Super CPL filter mounted and just turn the hood to adjust it, quick and effective, which was exactly what I wanted to achieve. 🙂 Trying to remember of course to turn it clockwise else it’ll be a case of “it came away in mi ‘and guvnor!” 🙂

Happy Days 🙂

Best wishes,

Leigh

Papa’s got a brand new (camera) bag :)

by in Leigh Kemp, photography, Photography equipment, Travel and tagged , , , , | 8 Comments

Hi everyone,

Apologies to the late and great James Brown, I couldn’t resist it 🙂 . For my next trip I was looking for another small, lightweight bag with an extra bit of storage when compared to my older Manfrotto bags. I like the Manfrotto bags as they’re lightweight, compact, well designed, well padded and rugged. Another good thing about their bags is that they do a mind-boggling range which seems to be continually changing so one can pickup their previous generation designs at a fraction of their original price, I paid £19.99 UK for my new bag. The model number is Manfrotto Compact 1 Advanced Shoulder Bag for CSC – Black (MB MA-SB-C1). Outer dimensions – ‎26 W x 12 D x 18 H centimetres. weight – 0.54 Kilograms according to manufacturer’s specifications. Important to note that the 18cm height includes the top compartment. I’m happy to say that, unlike one of my other Manfrotto bags, they have included a rain cover that doesn’t require having to detach the bag strap to fit/remove it every time one wants to use it, nice touch! as everything can get very wet very quickly whilst faffing around detaching the strap, threading the cover through and re-attaching it if one’s caught out in a sudden heavy downpour as has happened to me on occasions. I also noted that the bag’s fabric is smooth and not coarse like my older bags so water should run off it and it should be fine in all but heavy rain.

Here’s a few pictures, the first a size comparison with one of my older, smaller bags, a shot of the back of the new bag and, lastly, a shot of the bag’s main compartment. It has a top zipped compartment in which I’m stowing two rain covers, the one supplied with the bag and another for my camera with enough room left for my mobile phone and case. The main compartment comes with two dividers and I’ve packed my OM-D E-M5 MK II camera with Lumix 12-60mm f/3.5-f/5.6 zoom lens and hood fitted on its side, my Lumix 20mm f/1.7 lens and hood. two JJC battery/SDHC card boxes, each of which contains one spare camera battery and two SDHC cards and lastly one of my dual USB camera battery chargers and one of my Anker 6700 mAh USB power banks. There are also two small velcro-fastening pockets in which I put a microfibre cloth, several Zeiss lens wipe sachets, an extra filter and USB charge cable. Lastly as shown in the shot of the back of the bag, there’s one additional shallow zip-up pocket big enough to store my very small table top tripod and a lens pen. All the zip pockets open from the back so, when the bag is hanging from one’s shoulder or crossbody, (my preferred method as it’s less easy to snatch), they’re against one’s body, a nice feature to help prevent pickpockets gaining access to the bag contents, the main compartment opens outwards away from one’s body. The supplied shoulder strap has a nicely padded shoulder pad and not the rigid plastic/rubber type which cuts into one’s neck when wearing lightweight summer clothing and I like having a grab handle on the bag. I always like to try and accommodate a USB camera battery charging solution in addition to the charging gear I pack in my hold-luggage as, if the latter goes walkabout, I can still charge camera batteries or my mobile phone at least for a while and also as a backup camera battery charger should the other one fail or get damaged.

All-in-all another nicely designed Manfrotto bag that accommodates all the gear that I want/am restricted to having to take with me as hand luggage eg. rechargeable batteries and still small enough to fit under the seat on an aircraft. Also worth noting that, if you register your purchase online it comes with a 60 months warranty. Whether it’ll be my go-to travel bag in five years time only time will tell but for now, it ticks all the boxes.

Kind regards

Leigh