We are always looking for ways to make unique images for our clients. With this in mind, a few years ago, I had one of our digital cameras converted to be only sensitive to the IR part of the spectrum.

This has turned out to be a great success. Not only has it allowed us to capture some really different images of much photographed locations (such as the Bedford Village Inn in the middle bottom image here) it is also great fun to do. I’ve found that IR brings some of the mystery back to my photography – when I press the shutter I don’t 100% know what I’m going to be getting.

I’m always looking to be able to make images that are better and more creative for our clients and for this wedding season we have some new tools in our kit that are going to let us explore new ideas.

Nikon 50mm f/1.2 lens

The fastest lens in Nikon’s collection, the 50mm f/1.2 AI-S has been in production since 1981. The craftsmanship that goes into this little gem is outstanding – none of the modern lenses come close. What is quite remarkable is that the optical quality still compares very favorably with the best modern lenses Nikon makes.

Being an AI-S design, the lens works perfectly on most modern cameras including the D3 that we use. It’s a manual focus lens so you won’t see me using it when trying to capture fast action. I do expect to get a lot of use from the lens for portraits and when the light levels are really low however.

RadioPopper Wireless TTL

Nikon has a fantastic wireless system for the SB speed-lights called Nikon CLS (Creative Lighting System). CLS does a great job of allowing a number of different lights to be controlled at one time, but it is a line of sight system – the transmitters and receivers need to see each other to work. This means that while the system sometimes works really well, it can be unreliable at times.

Enter RadioPopper. This is a small company that has come up with a solution for turning Nikon’s line of sight signals and turning them into radio transmissions that work close to 100%.

We are still learning how to get the most of this technology, but see a lot of creative opportunities for engagement sessions, portraits and at the reception.

Every year we work hard to get our work to a higher level and I’m excited about 2010!

So now it’s official – the 5DMkII has been announced and will be avaialble before the end of the year.

While some Canon users seem to be a bit unhappy with the specifications (they were looking for a completely new camera rather than an update to the existing) the 5D2 offers some really compelling features at a price of about $2,600 (for the body only) which is a great deal.

The main upgrade is the new 21 MegaPixel image sensor which (according to Canon) is likely to match, or exceed, the high ISO performance of the Nikon D3/D700. The 5D2 is certainly going to provide good competition for the Nikon D700, currently the best semi-professional camera on the market.

Oh, another Canon product announcement yesterday was for a new 24mm F1.4 prime lens. Now that is something I really wish Nikon would produce as well.