The Perfect Frame Size

About two years ago I bought a photo printer and before printing and framing my first prints, I had to answer one important question: what size prints would I generally make and which frames would I choose.  The Epson 3800 can print 17″ wide (43 cm or DIN A2+), so I could have easily decided on that size, but there were three reasons to go smaller: (1) I don’t have hanging or viewing space for such large prints, (2) the costs for ink, paper and frames would be very high and (3) my camera at the time had resolution only for prints of size 16,5 x 24,7 cm (at the native resolution of 360 dpi of the Epson driver).

I knew that I can scale the images up quite a bit, but I didn’t want to stretch it that much, so I settled down on A3+ paper size (33 x 48 cm or 13 x 19″).  For whatever reason, at that time I was only concerned with prints with aspect ratio 3:4, and prints with size 30 x 40 cm would fit very nicely on that paper.

As for the frames, I was looking for a very flexible solution: good for color and black-and-white images, horizontal and vertical orientation and suitable for frequent image replacement.  After a bit of looking around I settled on 50 x 60 cm Nielsen C2 aluminum frames  in soft frosted gray and white mat boards.  Still thinking of my 3:4 aspect ratio, the boards would be 50 x 60 cm with 30 x 40 cm cutouts.  I was very happy with the results and since then had no need to change a thing.

But I’ve recently had an offer to display some prints in a large office, and I decided to go with ten images from my Faces that Tell a Story portfolio.  So I will have to buy additional frames — no big deal.  But guess what?!  The ten images have different aspect ratios: 2:3, 3:4, 4:5, even 10:11, so what to do?  Well, here comes the really good part — Nielsen sells custom-made mat boards, so I can still use my DIN A3+ paper and 50 x0 60 cm frames.   I’ve printed the images with 2:3 aspect ratio as 30 x0 45 cm, the ones with 3:4 ratio as 30 x 40 cm, the 4:5 have come out as 32 x 40 cm and that last one, with 10:11 will make a nice 32 x 35 cm print.

He-he, I like it when everything works out nicely… 

Here is what the framed prints look like (aspect ratios 2:3, 3:4 and 4:5):

Looking for Ideas and a Companion for my Next Photo Trip

I’m feeling a gentle photo-itch in my hands, so I imagine it’s probably time to start thinking about my next photo trip.  I know I don’t have to travel far (or even at all) in order to make great images, but I do like to travel far and to take part in the lives of people who lead a much simpler life.  The whole thing started three years ago when I visited India together with a tourist group and came back with some very nice images.  I then made two more trips, this time alone and totally immersed in photography.

Traveling alone has the advantage of being totally flexible, but it’s a lonely 10–14 days in a foreign culture with no related soul to share your experiences.  Plus it’s surely better to have someone to divide the practical chores as well: finding the right bus or hotel, planing the route for the next day, sharing the cost of taxi and hotel, carrying just one soap or tube of sun cream, and not to forget, simply watching each-other’s backs.  But while it would be great to have company along, it is my impression that a photo trip is not really compatible with vacation and relaxation.  So it’s not terribly practical to have friends along who simply want to relax and have a nice vacation.  They will want to hit all the tourist attractions whereas a photographer will usually stay away from just those places, which are actually worst for mingling with typical locals or experiencing “real life.”  Furthermore tourist-friends might want to travel and sleep “western class” whereas a photographer might prefer more typical accommodations in order to stay focused and connected with the country he is visiting.

So to me the solution is to travel with one or two other photographers.  The advantages are numerous: common goals and interests, sharing ideas, talk about the images on a daily basis, lend each-other equipment, carry just one tripod, one laptop, etc.  Well great, but unfortunately I don’t know any other photographers who have similar interests or enough free time.

So how about this?  Is anyone “out there” interested in joining me on a photographic trip? I am very flexible, so feel free to suggest a destination, time-line or mode of transportation.  I’m really ager to hear from you!

Just to get the ball rolling, here is what I have in mind, roughly:

• A trip to a relatively safe “third-world” country, e.g. Thailand, Vietnam, Nepal, China.  I’ve visited India for three years in a row, so let’s choose a different country this time please.  And it doesn’t have to be a country in South Asia.  Africa, Central or South America, Central Asia or the Middle East are all interesting to me.  It would be great if one can get by with English there, or if you speak the language of that country.  As a very different alternative, how about a “winterly” trip to Sweden, Norway or Finland?
• A trip of roughly two weeks, probably some time in Jan-April 2010.  Less than two weeks is just too short to get into the “photo zone,” at least for me, and longer than two weeks requires too much of my precious vacation.
• The photographic opportunities should be centered around people or landscapes.  I’m just not very experienced or have the fitting gear for shooting wildlife.
• Let’s not make it a luxurious trip.  Since we are talking about “back to the basics” countries, I like to travel, eat and sleep in relatively modest accommodations.  These should still be quiet, clean and tidy, just not 4 or 5 star hotels with room service and fancy restaurants that serve continental breakfast.  I like to get to know the life of the locals, and simple surroundings get me in a more appropriate mood photographically.  I would prefer to hire a car, if possible, however.  On my second trip to India I did so, and it cost me 280 EUR for 10 days.  The car was driven by a local driver who was able to suggest hotels and places to eat.  And it was enormously practical to stop and leave wherever or whenever I pleased.  I was thus able to visit remote villages and non-tourist places as much as I wanted to.

That’s it basically.  If anyone is interested in coming along or simply has a suggestion on when or where my next trip should go, I’d very happy to hear from you.

2x Spain in Hamburg

Last night I saw another great concert at the Fabrik club in Hamburg: Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke and Lenny White.  I like all three of them and I wanted to photograph, so I was at the Fabrik an hour early.

Normally this is early enough in order to get a spot directly at the stage with no one in front of me, but last night the crowd was so big, that the best I managed was second row.  However, and luckily so, during that one hour of waiting for the concert to begin people go to get a drink, go to the toilette, etc. and with this natural movement, I was able to get a position all the way up front.

The stage at the Fabrik is so small that people with front positions are no more than 2-3 meters away from the artists.  This is really great since you don’t have to use a tele, and as usual I only had my 40D with a 50/1.8 and 17-40/4 with me.

It’s not easy to shoot at the Fabrik: the light is fairly low, so I have to go to ISO 800 with the normal lens and ISO 1600 with the zoom, the DOF is very shallow and the AF of the 40D is really at its limit.  Add to that my three moving subjects and a club owner, who allows photography only during the first music piece, and you get the picture.

Since photography is not my main concern during a great concert, I mostly forget about the camera and just enjoy the music.  But every 15 min or so I think about it, take the camera out from underneath my coat and sneak in a few frames.

Last night I went home with about 90 frames and here you are seeing the top six.  I didn’t do almost any editing: slight crops, a bit of of recovery to tame the highlights and a tad of clarity, all applied in about 15 seconds each.

And the music?  Great!  Among other things we were treated to two very different renditions of Spain, one during the main concert and one as encore — both superb.