Downsizing A Camera Kit, Continued

The combination of the Fuji X-70 and the Q20ii proved to be a useful pairing when I photographed Carnaval in San Francisco. The two bits of kit fit neatly into a fanny pack, along with some extra batteries for the camera and the flash. I will be looking for a compact selfie stick, preferably one that will fit in the pack, in case I need a little more height.

Key Light: For this shot, the flash serves as the key light. The flash was held high overhead to provide some modeling on my subject. The subject is backlit, and the costume completely blocks any sunlight from reaching the face and body.  The camera was at eye level, and the flash held overhead. Exposure was determned by trial and error.

1/1000 second, F 5.6, ISO 400, Cloudy White Balance

Simplified Guide Numbers: For the mathematically inclined, a Guide Number is assigned to a specific ISO sensitivity by the flash manufacturer. To determine the correct aperture, you would take the GN and divide it by the flash-to-subject distance. I decide to set the camera to the specific ISO / Shutter Speed / Aperture setting that will give me a proper exposure for the sky. For these trials, I choose ISO 400, 1/1000 of a second, and F 8.0 as my base exposure. Next, I stood ten feet from these Birds of Paradise flowers, and fired three shots: Full Power, Half Power, and Quarter Power. You can see the exposures here. In these samples the flowers receive no direct sunlight, although there is some illumination from the open sky.

From this tryptic you can see that at full power, the flash can barely achieve a proper exposure at ten feet. 

Moving up to five feet, you can see that at a quarter power, there's still plenty of light to achieve a good exposure. 

Starting Point: One can conclude from this simple test that at a Subject To Flash (STF) distance of ten feet and the output set to Full Power, there is barely enough light to provide a proper exposure. When one changes the STF distance to five feet, the quarter power output setting is more than enough, if not a bit too much. Now all of this can be influenced by a number of factors. First, the photos were made in an area where the "floor" was dark and non-reflective. Taken on a concrete sidewalk, the light reflecting from the ground will add to the exposure. second, the leaves were dark to begin with, so exposures of fair-complexioned subjects may be a bit overexposed. 

Output Control. On the Q20ii flash, output is adjusted by using an Increase and a Decrease button (lightened). The are easy to adjust by poking the desired button with my thumb, a quality shared with my gold standard Nikon SB-800. Now when I shoot, I adjust the output based on the STF distance, which is so much simpler.

Estimating Distance: Here are some simple methods for estimating distance:

• If you hold out your arms along your left-to-right axis, the distance between your outstretched index finger tips will be equal to you height.
• If you stand facing a wall and point your arm directly in front, the distance will be about 20% of your height.

Exposure Fine Tuning: Understand that when using a 28mm equivalent lens, I am working at relatively short distances. The upside is that small changes to the subject-to-flash distance can have a big effect on the exposure. Too bright? Hold the flash farther from the subject. Too dark? Move the flash closer. If you're using  mirrorless camera and preview the image immediately after you make the photo, you can fine tune your exposure without taking your eye from the camera. Just tell your subject that you're going to make three exposures, so they don't leave before your satisfied with the results.

Fuji X-70, 1/1000 second, F 8.0, ISO 400, supplemented by a FlashQii 

Fill LIght: As you can see from the samples, an STF distance of ten feet is barely enough to properly illuminate a subject when your flash is the primary light source. However, at distances between ten and fifteen feet a full-power blast can provide a satisfactory amount of fill under the proper circumstances. Here, this dancer was already illuminated by sunlight coming from on high and camera left. The flash added light to the sun's, while boosting the existing, open-sky fill light. The dancer stands out from the background because she's brighter, thanks to that bit of flash fill. Grab shots can be lucky accidents, but "opportunity favors the prepared mind," so if you have a basic lighting strategy, those "accidents" can, more often than not, give you some very pleasing results.

Useful Additions: Since Carnaval, I added a few things to this compact kit. First, I added a small notebook and a pen, just in case. I also added two white 6" ball bungee cords I purchased from Amazon. I bought a bag of 50, which might seem excessive, but allow me to discard them, without remorse,  if they start to get a little grody. Besides, this is Amazon, the Costco of on-line retailers. Of course you will be forced to  buy more than you could possibly use. 

Bungee Jumping: Here is the FlashQ mounted on a light pole using two six-inch ball bungee cords looped together to get some additional length. I mounted the flash mounted upside-down so I could tilt the head downward if I need to redirect the light.

I'll follow up with a few selfies that show some of the unique capabilities of this small camera and this smaller flash.

Downsizing A Camera Kit

Carnaval, San Francisco, 2024. Fuji X-70 Camera with Q20ii Flash held high overhead, 1/1000 second, F 5.6, ISO 400

I have been carrying a camera on my morning walks since the start of the Pandemic, which is to say early 2020. I have several routes that I normally take, and consequently visit the same "photo venues" multiple times during the week. In short, I've pretty much run out of interesting plants, homes, and garden gnomes to photograph, and as a consequence, feel a little let down when I carry a (relatively heavy) mirrorless camera and have no images to reward my efforts.

Lately I've been examining my small camera options, and found two contenders in my collection. Both had APS sized sensors and an equivalent lens focal length of 28mm.

• The CoolPix A: The camera was  introduced in 2013 and had a MSRP $1,100.00. I believe this camera was introduced in the hopes Nikon could  get on the "premium compact" camera bandwagon created by the introduction of Fuji's X100. The Nikon's price was very close to that of the Fuji, but was way behind on features and never gained a significant following, even after dropping the MSRP to $699.00 in 2014, and even included an accessory optical viewfinder. Unfortunately, I had already purchased a used one from Fireside Camera. Oh well. To add insult to injury, my camera had a distinct dust spot on the sensor, which I paid Nikon to replace. They claim they did, but the d#&n spot was still there, so I just decided I'd live with it. It only shows up whenever the background is mostly blue sky, and since I know where it is, I can easily find it and clone over it in post production.

• Fujifilm X70: The camera was introduced in 2016 and had a MSRP $800.00. I wonder if the Nikon's 2014 price drop had anything to do with the X70's pending introduction. At any rate, the Fuji had everything my CoolPix A had, plus a folding LCD panel and the Fuji Film Simulation Modes. It too was purchased used from Fireside Camera. I liked it because it took the same batteries as my X100S. Unlike the Nikon, it has an external aperture ring and shutter speed dial.

Photo Source: Click Nikon CoolPix A or Fuji X-70

One Over The Other: Both cameras have some strong and weak points. The  Nikon has a telescoping lens, which means it is very compact when turned off. It also has protective blades that close to protect the lens, making it a little better for pocket or pouch carry.  Unfortunately,  the telescoping lens makes it difficult to attach filters or lens accessories. There is a special lens hood/filter adapter which allows the use of 49mm filters, but it adds considerable bulk to the camera. The Nikon also lacks a shutter speed dial and aperture ring, which means you must rely on counter-intuitive, external control wheels. Its interface reminds me of the one used by Canon on their point-and-shoot cameras, which is not a compliment. 

The Fuji, on the other hand, has an external shutter speed dial and a lens mounted aperture ring. The Fuji's lens does not telescope, which adds slightly to the thickness of the camera, but it can be easily modified to take standard 49mm filters, which I'll discuss in a minute. It can also accept a bulky wide angle lens adapter that converts the lens to a 21mm full-frame equivalent. And the accessory optical viewfinder is much less expensive than the Nikon's.

I bought mine here.

Part Of The Family: First the good news: Fuji has adopted a standard 49mm thread for attaching lens accessories. The bad news is that the lens mounting sports male threads. (You access them by removing the bezel ring on the lens mount.) This is compatible with Fuji specific accessories such as OEM and knockoff lens hoods, many of which can accept filters with the industry standard 49mm male threads. To reduce bulk, I would need an adapter with 49mm female threads at both ends. By simply Googling "49mm female female adapter", I found one on eBay. I was reminded by one vendor that these can be called "gender changers", as it does indeed change the male threads on Fuji to a female thread ready to accept standard photographic filters, in addition to inexpensive plastic center-pinch lens caps. This will ease my anxiety about losing those expensive OEM metal caps that rely on friction to prevent loss. 

There is one more advantage this simple conversion can provide. A while back I purchased a  Nisi Filter Kit specifically for the Fuji X100 series of cameras. I plan on trying it on my X-70 on the next sunny morning to be sure it works without vignetting, since the lens is wider than that on the X100 cameras. I wrote about this a while back, so you get some technical information by clicking here.

My next post will be a re-introduction to the Q20ii Flash, and working with a wide angle lens camera with a built-in leaf shutter.