I recently shot “backstage footage” for Directions Media who was producing Struts, the end-of-year fashion show for International Academy of Design . Directions has produced this show for the last five years, and I’ve been a part of two of them.
This year, I helped set up the video side of things and then shot time lapse, stills and hi-def behind the scenes video.
The stills I shot can be seen here .
I shot these with my new lens . I love it. It’s fast, its got gyroscopic image stabilization, and its’ bokeh is so soft and loverly.
Previously, I was shooting candid photos with the stock 16-55mm lens from the Digital Rebel 300d kit. That’s a decent all-purpose lens, and I used the heck out of it. When John from Directions offered me the chance to shoot for this event, I immediately knew I needed better glass.
This purchase was an extreme – if justified – version of “buy what you need.” Over the past few years, both via my own experience and learning from a good friend, business partner and fellow technician , I’ve learned that you should buy new gear when you need it, and amoritize the cost of that new gear from the shows you’ve already booked to pay for it.
That last bit is the important part – all too many techs will buy the shiny toy and anticipate they can sell it after they own it. That might be the case, but it’s fraught with risk. Better to book the event first, and then buy the gear with the expected proceeds from the booking.