Sony Diaries #924: Swimmers

October 18th.

The Sony Diaries - the latest reincarnation

When I started my Diaries Series in November 2009, it was known as the iPhone Diaries to reflect the smartphone I had at the time, a 3Gs. Briefly, it became the (Samsung) GalaxyIII Diaries, the LX3 Diaries, the BlackBerry Diaries, and now currently, the Sony Diaries. I suspect it will have a long run as the Sony Diaries since I feel that the Sony Xperia Z3 embodies the ideal marriage of a celiphone to a camera.

My initial description of the "best camera being the camera that you have with you" still applies.

A back-to-basics, less-is-more, photographic project. As photographers, we are inundated (and jaded) by the plethora of digital devices, the latest ones promising (but not delivering the goods) more megapixels and the latest super-ultra-extreme-XLT processor to (potentially) allow everyone to be the best photographer that they could be.

The most popular camera used by Flickr uploaders is the cameraphone (the Canon Rebel Series comes in second). For me, using my cameraphone is an exercise in purging the mind of clutter, as well as in actually shooting on a regular basis, as opposed to "binge" shooting (1600+ clicks on a typical wedding). The limitations imposed by the cameraphone (low resolution, fixed lens, severely reduced dynamic range) forces me to work within these parameters. For example, I have to use my feet to compose the image; I don't have a zoom lens. I am now a slave to how the camera thinks; I can't adjust the exposure to suit my needs. This is the digital Polaroid.

The best camera in the world is the camera that you have with you and that you actually use. The best advise for the "artist" is to practice their craft on a consistent basis. Sketch if you're a painter, sculpt if you're a sculptor, shoot if you're a photographer.

So I leave the 21MP FF Canon with the L lenses at home; I use my iPhone whenever I can.

the Sony Alpha Diaries becomes the Sony Diaries

At the start of this photo/video project, I meant to showcase images taken with a Sony Alpha-mount (a99 and a57), with an occasional guest appearance by video taken with a Sony CX900 and a Sony NX30 (since sold). To accomodate images taken with other Sony products, I've decided to rename this series, the Sony Diaries.