02.10.09 - GOYA?

been trying to get up and just walk for a bit in the morning just to get my blood flowing... i saw this outside of the classroom before class... and if you look here you can see the rest of what I saw. (If you click on the link soon, if you click on that link a week from now you will see new stuff that I shot and things won't make sense.)

i'm going to stop signing my name all the time...

eh maybe not,
jim baker

02.08.09 - most viewed picture on flickr

there it is... with over a thousand views...

guess i should just throw the towel in start shooting indian food all the time

my next closet photo... 270 views



which is my only picture to have actually made it and stayed in explore...

i guess i just need to keep linking to these pics instead of posting them on here and maybe that will give me some more hits...

anyway... go look at pictures on my flickr OTHER than the indian food one...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimbakerphotography

in other news... i was trying to reformat my blog cause i was thinking i should use it as a real blog and got motivated started moving things around and deleting them... and then decided forget it... but in the mean time i lost everyone that i had linked... if you still read my blog and have a blog leave me a comment

cheers
jim baker

01.16.09 - some tests on gear...

So the nice thing about staffing a photography school is I'm are surrounded by passionate photographers, which in turn inspires me to get out and shoot. And also... there is a lot of gear around for me to borrow and test. Which sometimes causes me to covet... but at least I am seeing what is out there.

My first test was with the 40d. I have a Canon 20d and I wanted to see how much better the 40d handled noise at high iso levels.

I would post the results but you can't really tell unless you are zooming in at a 2:1 view. But the 20d actually handled noise better. Which is quite nice, because otherwise I would want to dish out the cash to buy a new camera body... its good to be content with what you have.

Second test... the 70-200f4 IS... i have the 70-200 non IS. Both shot seconds apart on my 20d from a standing position. This one is humbling.

IS - ISO 400 - F4 - 1/40s
(notice the sharpness in the text even though handheld with a slow shutter speed)

non IS - :( - ISO 400 - F4 - 1/50s

The 70-200F4 IS is selling new at BH for $1025.00

jim baker

01.10.09 - Start of SOP I and Famous Landscape Photographers

so now I'm staffing the School of Photography I in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
These are the guys in the school. From left to right.

Dustin (canada), Jake (US), Max (UK), Charlie (US), David (Canada) and me.

Here's MY blog from when I was a student in SOP I in 2008.

This morning I took the guys out for small group and went to see the Peter Lik gallery.

His work was absolutely amazing but as we walked away from the gallery we all started to feel sad for him. 50 years old, rich, single and living in las vegas. The gallery directory told us that this guy was so motivated that if you got in the way of a picture he'd take out a knife and stab you. (Was he being dramatic, probably...) The volcano shots he got he paid someone $1,000 to take him out where he wasn't suppose to go. Doing anything to get the shot.

Then some of the class went to see Jennifer Wu who is sponsored by canon. We heard a canon rep speak and then heard Jennifer speak about her work as well. It was very informative, and motivating me to go out and shoot again.

People ask me how we "incorporate Christ" into this school. Since its being taught at a Christian university. We aren't just teaching photography and then making it Christian... and there's no clear cut answer to this question either. Our aim is to disciple people, who have a different worldview, a different set of values, different motivations. Very early on in the school we look at Christ's characteristics and talk about how that should play into our photography. I'm not condemning Peter at all... but I don't envy him. There is enough people in the world that will run over others to get whatever they want. I don't want to be one of those people.

If becoming a "master photographer" takes me sacrificing everything else and running over people to get there, then I don't want it.

jim baker

12.13.08 - a few more

jim baker

12.09.08 - I'm still alive... sort of

sorry its been like 6 months since i updated last... since the last post, I spent some extended time in upstate NY and now I'm back in Hawaii... i've been shooting some portraits as of late here are a few...

i update my flickr a lot more check that out for recent stuff.

Troi

Sheena

Kerry

robbie and ariel

devin and sammy

pz
jim baker

05.22.08 - last night in MD

15sec exposure with an infrared filter (thanks to Mike Shoemaker) on my 20d

tonite is my last nite here in MD. I leave for upstate NY tomorrow morning. Then i'll spend a bit of time in Nashvegas with some amazing photographers, Hannah and Jesse. And then I'll be working at a camp all summer.

I said I was going to streamline all my blogs... well it never happened, and as I'm packing for this summer, I'm realizing how I want to live a much simpler life. Packing everything I own clothing wise is pretty easy, but I think I have more digital things than I do anything else. I always said I wanted to come up with a small travel rig. I think an iphone would do the trick. Or maybe a Canon G9 and an ipod touch. Any ideas on how to get files from my camera to the ipod touch if I ever end up going that route?

I have to many websites that I try and keep up with... so latley i've been uploading most of my stuff to my FLICKR account. If i get something real tasty I MIGHT put it here but don't count on much this summer.

bless you guys,
jim baker