Category: Uncategorized

My Camera Equipment Rides in its own Seat – What The?

Posted in Equipment, Media, Travel Photography, Uncategorized2 Comments

Well… put this one squarely in the truth is stranger than fiction category. With my Iceland trip now only a matter of weeks away I have started to stress just a little bit about the weight of all my camera equipment (as if I wasn’t stressing enough about the Volcano screwing up my well laid travel plans) and the thought of having to again deal with the airlines  somewhat inflexible rules for carry on luggage. This time however, I decided the best defence was a good offence and contacted my carriers for this trip to make them aware of my desire to carry on all my camera equipment – all 25+ kilograms of it. I wont belabour the point, but after quite a few phone calls to various numbers, several messages to staff at various locations around the world I finally managed to get hold of someone in London who could assist.

After much to and fro email with said individual from Iceland Air this evening about the weight of my camera equipment and my express desire NOT to check my very expensive equipment into their general baggage hold I have been presented with a rather amusing solution. Iceland Air’s carry on luggage is strictly enforced at five kilograms (that is barely enough for a large laptop, bag and accessories); which sees me a good twenty plus kilograms over the limit. Checked luggage gives you twenty kilograms, but I am not checking my camera equipment – end of story. Here is where it gets interesting : You see, it costs nine United Kingdom Pounds per kilogram for ‘checked’ excess baggage to fly from Heathrow airport in London to Keflavik airport in Iceland one way, but only one hundred and forty quid to book another full return seat on the plane – do the math (I did and had a good chuckle). So, yes, my camera equipment is now riding shotgun to Iceland with me in its own fully paid for window seat (I have ordered the Kosher meal for it and requested an OJ on arrival *cheeky grin* ).

In all seriousness however, what this means is that with another full seat at my disposal from Heathrow to Iceland I can now take even more equipment with me (See my entry about what to take to Iceland). The Canon 300mm F2.8L IS Lens is now back on board for the Iceland trip; and I may just take the 85mm F1.2L MKII for the hell of it and probably the Canon 5D body as an additional back-up. I will be sure to get a picture of my Lowe Pro camera bag enjoying its meal on the flight…

Canon Travel Thermos

Posted in Equipment, News and Updates, UncategorizedLeave a comment

For the life of me I could not find my favourite small coffee thermos the other day – in frustration I gave in today and ordered one of these Canon Travel Thermos from Canon Mugs. These are apparently exact copies of the promotional thermos that Canon gave away at the Winter Olympics earlier this year. From what I can tell from the limited reports online these are quite good quality and are stainless steel lined. I normally get a little nervous ordering online from China (you really never know if anything is going arrive), but in this case its not a lot of money and you can pay via PayPal which is generally quite secure. I will report back when it arrives.

Wildlife Portraits Project – Mandrill

Posted in News and Updates, Photographs, Uncategorized, Wildlife Photographs1 Comment

The fifth photograph in my Wildlife Portraits Project  is of a juvenile Mandrill taken at the Melbourne Zoo. This was shot with the Canon 1DSMK3 and 300mm F2.8L IS lens wide open at ISO800 through a pane of glass on a very overcast day (with very low light levels).  The 1DSMK3 and the 300mm F2.L IS is an amazing camera/lens combination. Even wide open this lens is about as sharp as one could want on the full frame 21.1 mega pixel 1DSMK3. In this instance, the camera has nailed focus right on the eyes and provided a silky smooth bokeh to separate and isolate the Mandrill from his surroundings. I really like this photograph for the ‘madness’ in this critters eyes and that ‘just groomed’ look to his hair. The small twig he is chewing on adds a little more interest to the photograph than if he had just been sitting there and completes the composition to my eye.

Time Lapse of the Eyjafjallajokull Volcano in Iceland

Posted in Iceland, News and Updates, Travel Photography, Uncategorized1 Comment

Sean Stiegemeier has posted a really stunning time lapse video of the volcanic eruption in Iceland. The video is from a number of different locations around the volcano site so you get a really good impression of the surrounding landscape – its both beautiful and haunting. I cant embed the video because its on Vimeo and for copyright reasons, so just click on the link in this post to be taken directly to the video. Well worth a couple of minutes out of your day to enjoy.

iPhone / iTouch / iPad Website

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The internet is a rapidly evolving beast. The idea that we would be browsing web pages on our phones and other small handheld portable devices was science fiction only a few years ago. Fast forward to 2010 and its the norm to check everything from the weather to stock prices to our favourite websites and blogs on our phones and other portable devices. To this end my primary portfolio website is now available in a friendly iPhone / iTouch and iPad format. Just go to my normal site at www.jholko.com on your mobile device and you will be automatically redirected to the mobile site. Enjoy.