Philip Bloom Florida Meetup !

Fellow HD Dslr shooters gathered together at Pass-A-Grille Beach tonight shooting sunset time lapses with cinematographer Philip Bloom. I could only describe the Philip Bloom Florida Meetup as a HD Dslr circus. All the cameras were lined up along the beach of Pass-A-Grille in St. Petersburg, Florida capturing the eloquent sunset.



Philip Bloom is in town for the Filmmaker's Intensive Workshop, a two week training in the discipline of film making. The HD Dslr community of the Tampa Bay area welcomes this influx of cinematic culture with open arms!



Philip Bloom finally meets Chad Soriano PhotoBlog. I also met a handful of wonderful people who shared the same passion for photography and video including fellow blogger from GetawayMoments. He is a big fan of sunset time lapses. The sunset soon turned into lightning charged clouds that gave us a spectacular show and a small sense of fright!



This was another successful Philip Bloom Meetup! The Tampa Bay area HD Dslr community thanks you for your wonderful visit to sunny Florida.
You can see more photos in the Philip Bloom Florida Meetup 2010 Gallery.



My fellow blogger Getawaymoments posted this video of the event while I was snapping away pictures of the mayhem. Watch the sunset timelapse on his blog, you will not be disappointed.



I had the pleasure of meeting another east coast blogger from DSLRHD.com and he captured video of the event also. It was very nice to meet you Adriel and Juliana. Our HD Dslr blogging minds will meet again...

iPhone 4 Experience !

4 hours later I finally made it to the final stretch of inside the store to get the long awaited and anticipated Apple iPhone 4. There is way too many to list but the major features I was looking for are the HD 720p video, 5mp camera and the amazing Facetime feature.



My wife was taking the last round of iPhone 3GS photos before its deactivation and posting them on Facebook. My son and daughter were also drooling over the iPhone 4 as well.



The one thing I did bring with me for this 4 hour adventure was my Canon EOS 1D Mark IV. I snapped some shots and recorded some video of the iPhone 4 unboxing. With a quick edit with iMovie'09, I created a 1080p video of my iPhone 4 experience.



You can view photos and videos in my iPhone 4 Experience Gallery.

Positively Positano !

There was rarely a moment during our Italian family vacation my wife did not reference the movie "Under The Tuscan Sun" with Diane Lane. I smile and nod my head accordingly when she says "remember that in the movie when..."



I would like to remember our arrival to Positano after a long 6 hour drive from Florence as "Under The Tuscan Moon". The drive was a bit rainy through the mostly single lane road along the Amalfi Coast but I was more than entertained by the spectacular views when the night sky cleared.



It did not take long before my son befriended the local canine population of Positano. We would travel to the beach, get off any bus stop and walk down almost any flight of stairs and my son's "Puppy-razzi!" appear to greet him with licks and whimpers. I guess they could sniff my son's chocolate and fried food aroma from a mile away.



You view more photos in the Canon EOS 5D Mark II Positano, Italy 2010 Gallery.



You can also view more photos shot with the T2i in the Canon EOS Rebel T2i Positano, Italy Gallery.



This Positano video inspired me to produce another sights and sounds of Italy immediately. It uses both the Canon EOS Rebel T2i and the 5D Mark II cameras as well. Shot in sunset and evening of Florence and Rome. Consider this a video preview of my next Italian PhotoBlog post. Enjoy!

Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS Video Test

In anticipation of the Apple iPhone 4 arriving June 24th, I wanted to test the HD video capabilities of point and shoot digital cameras. What makes the iPhone 4 so amazing is the new 5 megapixel camera and the HD 720p 30fps video. Steve Jobs does it again with another record success with a new Apple product.
Most of the new Canon Powershots have HD 720p video and most importantly with H264 compression. After a quick read of all the Powershots, I decided on the entry level Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS Digital Elph with 14mp CCD sensor and 720p H264 video in a very thin form factor.



A quick stop at the local Steak & Shake for dinner with the family provided another great opportunity for a HD video test of this $200 plus PowerShot. I am used to HD Dslrs with 1080p video mated to Canon "L" glass, so I was not holding my breath on spectacular eye popping video. I ordered my usual Steak & Shake fare and I captured video and pictures with glee.



So what is my evaluation of this entry level PowerShot? I am very impressed for a camera for the size and the price point. The HD video quality out of the tiny CCD sensor is grainy but I expect that out of such a tiny lens. The still picture quality is up to par with the many PowerShots in the Canon lineup. The one drawback to such portability is the lack of stability with such a small form factor. Keeping the camera steady with my "sausage fingers" was a challenge. I definitely recommend this point and shoot to anybody who does not want to haul a bulky Dslr or refuses to buy anything Apple. Until the iPhone 4 comes out, this amazing PowerShot will satisfy my HD video needs.



You can view more pictures and videos in my Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS Gallery.

Fantastico Firenze !

Florence, the birth place of the the Italian Renaissance. Micheangelo and da Vinci roamed these cobblestone streets in pursuit of their artistic masterpieces. The Soriano family journeyed across the Atlantic Ocean to seek out fine Italian leather goods,gelato of many flavors and HD dlsr photo and video comparisons.



Florence was our first destination in our Italian itinerary. After a good sleep to burn off the jetlag from the six hour difference, we hit the streets to absorb all the Florentine culture. First stop, gelato. Second stop, the Duomo of Florence right in the front steps of our apartment.



You will soon learn that there is a Duomo in almost every Italian city. Some are bigger and more grandiose than others but they are still Cathedrals. The more famous ones feature artistic masterpieces as well as the burial site of a legendary Italian artist.



You can view Florence in my Canon EOS 5D Mark II Florence, Italy 2010 Gallery.



You can also view Florence in my Canon EOS Rebel T2i Florence, Italy 2010 Gallery.



Positano, Italy is our next destination and upcoming PhotoBlog post. We loaded up our Ford Fiesta and drove 6 hours south on the Autostrada to the Amalfi Coast. It was well worth the 4 Euros for a liter of gasoline and the one lane road with hairpin turns!

Viva l'Italia !

Bless me Father for I have sinned, it has been 23 days since my last PhotoBlog post. My hiatus may have puzzled my PhotoBlog followers on my whereabouts. There is no need to worry, I have been on a family vacation in Italy.



Our journey began with a transatlantic flight to Rome and a fuel efficient rental car to pursue everything Italian. The odyssey started with Florence, Pisa, Positano, Capri, Pompeii and finally Rome.



With the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and the Canon EOS Rebel T2i HD dslrs on my shoulders, I was on photographic and video mission to document the sights and sounds of Italy. I failed to mention one more item to my mission statement. Eat everything I can get my hands on.



Food was only secondary to my vision quest. My back and shoulders were sore from all the gear I was carrying because I wanted to have an informal and practical test and comparison of these very capable HD dslrs. In one hand, you have the Canon EOS 5D Mark II with its astounding full frame sensor. In the second hand, you have the remarkable entry level Canon EOS Rebel T2i with 18 megapixels and fully manual 1080p video capabilities. Both very excellent HD dslrs at very different price points.



This initial PhotoBlog post kicks off my photo and video series of the sights and sounds of Italy. Over the next couple weeks, I will have links to 5D Mark II and Rebel T2i video and photo galleries for everybody to view.



Over 1300 raw photos and hours of video between two cameras, I have much work ahead for me. Do not panic! I can appease the impatient with another Canon EOS Rebel T2i video test. Shot with the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens and edited with Final Cut Pro 6. It is a 1080p video compressed to 400mb h264 video file.