Beads, Photography, Migraines, BORING

Greetings Readers! It wont let me put up a picture today - must have something stuck in its craw.

Since my last post I had two more torch sessions, both of which yielded little joy. But thats the way it goes sometimes.

Then I got a migraine, just mentioning it as it came on about two hours after I took a solemn oath to blog at least every other day. Kinda figures doesnt it?

Anyhow, I didnt let it keep me horizontal. Yesterday I photographed the new beads, and some older ones that I found about the place, and today loaded up my site with them. Feels good to have something there again!

My camera is a Kodak DX6490, and I can get some amazing shots with it, but generally it requires a monumental effort on my part. The most bothersome of its quirks are: 1) it is incredibly light hungry - you just cant give it enough! And 2) When photographing beads I often take three shots at each exposure level I think it needs, (which seems to change from day to day, although my set up is exactly the same each time.)

It is not unusual for each of those three shots to show a different colour 'cast', one pinkish, one yellow, and one greyish. ITS MADDENING!!!! All four of the lights I use to illuminate the photo tent are daylight balanced, and although Im aware that all lights 'flicker' to some extent, well, I just cant account for this wild variation in colour from shot to shot.

Quite by accident, one shot I took had my finger in the frame - across the top of the photo. When reviewing the shots I noticed that this shot had the best - (read that "nearest to white") colour balance. So I went back and shot some more, all with my finger covering the topmost few millimetres of the lens. These shots were the best of the lot. Now, honestly, it doesnt make any sense to me. Is there some sort of conspiracy at Kodak to drive me insane?

Ergo: I do not recomend the Kodak DX6490 for bead photos. And as a bonus cautionary tale to those looking to buy a camera for bead photography, remember: just because the salesman insists that the unit has a macro - that that dont necessarily make it so.

Oh well, I lived to fight another day. But it looks like it is time I upgraded to Photoshop, from my dinosaur PSP6.