We recently saw the Kodo Drummers–it was a Christmas gift for the family, so we splurged on great seats. It was a wonderful performance, though the segment where they wailed on the big drum went on just a bit too long. I’m sure my perspective on the duration is tainted by the fact that the drummers were wearing sumo-wrestler style attire–call it a thick g-string–and nothing else. For American sensibilities, it was just a bit too much man-ass. Yes, I get that it is a cultural experience and all, but still.

Anyway, the attire of the drummers really isn’t the subject of this post. The subject is the common prohibition of photography. I’ve ranted about the before, and I still think event promoters are incredibly short-sighted in declaring that photography is 100% verboten. Allow me to demonstrate just how different the world is right now from what it was just a few years ago. Perhaps you’ve seen this picture:

This is a comparison between 2005 and 2013 papal introductions, and the difference is striking. Today, EVERYONE has a camera with them, all the time. And people LOVE to take pictures of the things that are important to them, and share those pictures with everyone they know.

Clearly, this kind of scene would be distracting at a performance like the Kodo Drummers. So I’m not arguing that people should be allowed to take pictures in any way they want. I’m suggesting that rather than having an announcement (and prominent signs) saying “Photography is not allowed” and “Cameras Prohibited” (which they didn’t attempt to enforce on cell phone holders), they should say something like “There will be an opportunity to take pictures at the end of the performance. As a courtesy to the performers and other audience members, please do not take pictures until that time.” Then, during the bows and the encore, let people take pictures, encourage it, and even suggest hash-tags. Then it won’t be a big deal what kind of camera someone uses, because EVERYONE will be taking pictures.

Yes, I broke all the rules by taking the picture that leads this post. But because I was doing it surreptitiously, with my phone, I got just one or two frames, and the result is pretty crappy. On the other hand, one of my coworkers, to whom I had attempted to describe the performance before we went, told me that he really appreciated this picture because it helped him understand what I was talking about.  Considering that the theater was only about 70% capacity, wouldn’t it be a good idea to have your audience do as much marketing as possible?

But, no. The prohibitions and policies are stuck in 2005 where “camera” was understood to be a stand-alone device, and few people carried one everywhere. Today is very different, and event promoters are foolish to ignore that difference.

Today was my first time ever at Ohayocon, well, sort of. I went to check in on my daughter, who has been completely obsessed with the convention for a while, and of course, I took my camera. Above, the scene in the convention center, that was not atypical for my time there. It was a constant crush of people, most of whom were in costume. To say that it was a target rich environment would be putting it mildly. And for someone as obsessed with meta-photography as I am, it was just over the top. People were clearly dressed up to be seen and appreciated. Everyone was getting stopped for pictures. And the people wearing the better-done costumes were getting stopped constantly. I took a few pictures of people taking pictures, but that wasn’t really my main point in going.

My primary plan, in the 60 minutes I allotted for myself, was to find a location to shoot some quick portraits. My ideal location would be a) near a flow of traffic, b) be somewhat out of the way so that I didn’t obstruct anything, and c) have a blank wall as a background. I found my ideal spot, set my camera, and started taking pictures.

Chris, above, was absolutely tickled when I asked him if I could take his picture. I think people had probably passed him by, afraid of how to interact with someone with special needs. I had a great time talking to him, and making a nice portrait for him. His friend has my business card, and I really hope he sends me a message so I can give him this shot.

I’m not sure if this guy was in costume (I think so), but when he came up to me to chat briefly about photography, I couldn’t resist getting a shot.

At one point, some people had noticed me working with subjects, and they started coming up to me, asking if I would take their picture. This young woman had walked by me as I worked with another convention-goer, circled back, and asked me to take a picture. “I noticed that you actually have lighting, which most con-photographers don’t have.” Yeah, that’s me, taking myself just a little too seriously.

And then, my taking-myself-too-seriously came to an end. An older gentleman, not in costume, approached me with an authoritative “You can’t do that.” Uh, what? “You can’t use professional lights. That’s against the convention rules.” I tried, briefly, to make a case that I wasn’t using professional lights (whatever those are), but he insisted that I could not use off-camera flash (though he didn’t use those words exactly). I hadn’t read any attendance rules before going, so I didn’t have a leg to stand on.

Now, I’ve read the Ohayocon rules. Fascinating: no mention of photography at all. OK, perhaps, as my wife mentioned, it was a convention center rool. Interesting possibility…

In order to provide a safe, secure, and enjoyable environment for all of our guests, we ask that the following code of conduct is followed at all times. Violators will be asked to leave the building.
The following are prohibited on Convention Center property:

[long list of stuff that generally makes sense]

*The unauthorized distribution of literature, offering items for sale, soliciting guests, conducting surveys, videotaping, or photography

So videotaping and photography (in general) are lumped in with other forms of solicitation. And did I mention that EVERYONE was taking pictures of EVERYONE? Of course, photography isn’t prohibited–there’s NO FREAKING WAY to enforce that.

And that’s not what I was told I was doing wrong, anyway. It wasn’t the fact that I was using a DSLR camera–it was that I was using wireless flash, and that I had a flash on a light-stand. I was specifically told that I could keep taking pictures, but no flash-on-a-light-stand.

Right. Rules. I don’t really mind following them. But they gotta be made public.

And here’s a hint for organizers of events like this–enforcing a ‘professional lights’ prohibition is terribly murky. How about ‘no tripods’, because those could actually get in the way of traffic and accidentally injure someone. I would have still been in violation, but the reasons would make a lot more sense, and would have been much clearer.

ISO 6400, f/3.5, 1/60s

Previous posts: First Impressions, Second and Third Impressions.

Today I returned the Fujifilm X-E1 to Midwest Photo Exchange (who took it back with no problems at all!). I wanted to like it. I really did. I made some really beautiful images. But it struggled to obtain focus in low light, especially if the subject was closer than about 6 feet. Even with the AF Assist lamp enabled, and shining brightly on a child’s face, it wouldn’t focus–it would hunt the whole range and refuse to lock.

I knew most of this going into the Christmas festivities. But I decided to give the camera its final chance to shine–family events in warm settings with beaming kids. The good images have been posted to Facebook, and above–an image from the really-freaking-dark chancel at the beginning of the Christmas Pagent.  Before I share a couple of bad images, I fully acknowledge that it didn’t have problems focusing every time, and in the best conditions, it did focus quite well. The problem was that I couldn’t quite figure out where I crossed from “great focus” to “no way”. I’m not a big fan of using an AF assist lamp, but if I do, and I’m attempting to capture a human face, I expect the camera to reward me.

Instead, I got many moments like these, and many more where it wouldn’t even pretend to lock focus.

At one point last night, I had to stifle some cursing as a direct result of the focus problems. I stopped taking pictures for a while so that I could focus on family rather than the camera. When the battery died last night, and I couldn’t milk another picture from it, I was actually a bit relieved. Phew… no more struggling, I thought.

Other thoughts and rationalizations… These affected my overall perspective, but could have been overcome had I not had such challenges with focus.

• The size was just too small for my hands in normal usage, and just too big to be highly portable. My right thumb was frequently hitting the wrong buttons, and despite the smaller size, I still had to have a camera bag.
• I never tried the goofy lens hood on the 35mm.
• I disliked the card slot location in the battery compartment. It felt awkward every time I pulled it out, or put it in.
• It wasn’t going to be a full replacement for my Nikon DSLRs. I found myself wondering when the rumored replacement for the D7000 would be released, when I should have been diving headlong into the X-E1.
• The lens mount is designed to be operated in hands opposite of the Nikon. I’m left handed, so living in a right-handed world I tend to be somewhat ambidextrous. When I change a lens on my Nikon, the lens is in my left hand, body in the right, and my right thumb presses the lens release button. I think the X-E1 mount is designed to be handled with body in the left hand, lens in the right because of where the button is, but I never did adapt, opting instead to wrap my right fingers awkwardly under the body to press the release button. The process always felt weird, and I was especially worried about damaging camera, lens, or sensor every time. And since I knew it wouldn’t replace my DSLRs, I never allowed myself to adapt my lens changing style.

As such, I’ve returned the X-E1 kit and the 35mm f/1.4 (which is still a stunning lens by any measure). What I’ll do next, I don’t know.