Starting Photography by Michael Langford (Focal Press)

Starting Photography by Michael Langford on Focal Press as reviewed in The Technofile by rapper comedian DJ producer & journalist MC Rebbe Whether you’re completely new to photography or someone who already has some experience, but who needs to gain a deeper understanding in order to improve their ability and results, this book is for you.

Written by Michael Langford, a former photography course director at The Royal College of Art in London, whose books are required reading on practically every photography course in The UK, Starting Photography covers everything from the basic principles of how an image is formed on film/a digital sensor all the way through to putting together a portfolio of work. Continue reading “Starting Photography by Michael Langford (Focal Press)”

© 2004 – 2010, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

Something to Shout About!

Apple Logic Pro 7.0 discussed by MC Rebbe The Rapping RabbiA few weeks ago, Apple released the latest version of its flagship midi+audio sequencer, Logic Pro. A multitude of new features and functionality has been added including support for both ‘Garage Band’ and ‘Apple Loops’, but the most significant new feature has to be support for ‘nodes’.

Nodes are one or more additional computers (a minimum of G4s, but preferably G5s) networked (via Ethernet) to a main computer, which then seamlessly harnesses the collective processing power of these nodes for use by Logic and this is something to shout about from the rooftops…with or without accompaniment from a fiddler (just don’t shout too loud or you might end up with nodes). Why? Because it marks an important midpoint in the evolution of computer based digital audio production and also seems to make its and Apple’s future direction (both of which now seem to be inextricably linked) pretty damn clear…as I’ll explain, by way of a little history lesson. Continue reading “Something to Shout About!”

© 2004 – 2010, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

Education! Education! Education!

I looked o’er tech mag land and what did I see? An unholy obsession with the latest software and hardware. Now I’m as guilty as the next Jew of wanting to know how many mega pixels? Does it do 192(Khz)? When is the next version going to be released? etc. But unlike some, I’m just as concerned with the creative process as with the processor, and it’s high time (and there’s nothing like high time) that everyone else was too. Of course it’s not the tech mags that are to blame, after all they are just filling a hole in the market (and there’s nothing like filling a hole), so good luck to them. Continue reading “Education! Education! Education!”

© 2004 – 2010, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

Belkin 800VA Universal UPS

Belkin UPS reviewed in The Technofile by MC Rebbe The Rapping RabbiDirty can be good and dirty can be bad. When it comes to women, it’s generally very good but when it comes to electricity it’s always very bad. You see electricity supplies are supposed to deliver a constant voltage (110V in The US and 220/230/240 Volts in Europe) but they rarely do. Instead they tend to fluctuate because of spikes, surges, brownouts and even disruption by lighting strikes, all of which can play havoc with your equipment. So if your electricity…like your woman, is bad, you’re best off with protection. Continue reading “Belkin 800VA Universal UPS”

© 2004 – 2010, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

Spirits of Salts

Spirits of Salts reviewed by MC Rebbe in The TechnofileAnyone whose ever read more than a couple of books about photography will know that most photographic manuals have one thing in common…they’re boring! ‘Spirits of Salts’, however, is anything but. In fact, it’s positively entertaining.

So what’s it about? ‘Old’ aka ‘historical’ aka ‘alternative’ photographic processes….let me explain. Most of you will know that prior to the advent of digital photography, everyone used good old film, which, after being exposed has first to be developed into a negative and then printed as a positive, using a chemical process. Less of you will know that this neg/pos process has been with us for approximately 170 years, since its invention in the 1830s, by William Henry Fox Talbot and probably very few of you will know that over these 170 or so years, as photography has continued to…develop (sue me), various chemical process have been experimented with, both to create different looks (much as one might nowadays with Photoshop) and to refine the technology of the medium. Continue reading “Spirits of Salts”

© 2004 – 2010, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.