Corrugated Plastic Sheets

Concept: 3 out of 5
Execution: 2 out of 5
Yeah, but: Not to be confused with chloroplast.

The Long Version: I have to admit that I love this stuff. True, like most plastics it's a massive environmental problem and the scourge of marine environments everywhere, and its ubiquity for cheap advertising signs makes it an urban - and suburban - blight as well, but it's also extremely handy. 'Coroplast' is the Xeroxed Kleenex of the corrugated polypropylene copolymer world, and since that's what the sign said where I bought mine, that's what I'll call it here. Other companies do make it, and call it different things, but who has that kind of time?

It's lightweight, rigid, and cheap. Right there we know that politicians and advertisers are going to flock to it, so it's a staple for lawn signs and anything else that needs a weatherproof printed surface. It comes in more colours than a CRT-iMac, and can be used for all kinds of interesting things. There's low-cost greenhouses and office dividers, but also for all kinds of DIY projects like model airplanes and small animal cages. Who knew? But by far the most interesting thing is how handy it is for photography.

I have a large sheet of translucent white Coroplast that I'll use as a background or a diffuser, and a smaller sheet of opaque black that I'll cut up for black cards. My most inspired move was to stack and bundle the black plastic to make a grid for my SB600; the initial proof-of-concept hack job has been so effective that I haven't bothered to make any others. (For anyone who's wondering, it's being held together with my favourite adhesive.) The photo above is being lit by three strobes, with one on the camera and another underneath the white plastic to brighten it up a bit. Thanks to the marvel of Nikon's AWS/CLS speedlight integration - similar abilities can be found in many Olympus cameras and a mighty one Canon product - this is an incredibly easy way to create a simple light box. That's how I took all of the product photos for my 20/1.7 review, like this next one that would have illustrated a part about using the lens with a three-stop ND filter.

The biggest problem with Coroplast can be finding it and getting it home. Most craft and art supply stores in Toronto seem to be selling it these days, and if they don't, there's always sign supply places. The real trick is to find it in pieces smaller than thirty square feet, but the good news is that a simple knife can solve some of the transportation problems. After that, it just takes a couple of light wipes to get rid of the ever-present dust and it's ready to go. It's light, rigid, durable, whiter than foamcore and more cleanable than bristol board. It's not the only thing I need for my home studio, but I use it for a huge amount of the photos that I take for these reviews, even if you can't see it.

Chicago: Preparations

The Long Version: I really like the idea of road trips. There's a long tradition of photographers getting into cars and driving all over America just to see what they could see. There's Robert Frank, Steven Shore, and William Eggleston, to name just a few. But I'm a working photographer - at a day job, like the vast majority of us - and I can't just head down the road to places unknown for as long as it takes me to get there. And even if I could wander for months, I have a family that I'm not willing to leave; there's also the practical matter of my never learning how to drive.

So instead I take the bus, and go for the weekend.

Last fall, I did a 24-hour round trip to Ottawa, which is about six hours away from Toronto. That was a test run, like doing a 5K before attempting a marathon, and now I'm using what I've learned to prepare for my next endeavor. This weekend will be the true challenge: sixteen hours to Chicago, incoporating a 4 hour layover in beautiful late-night Detroit, nineteen hours in the city, and then back on the bus for twelve hours to get home. While I'm there, I want to ride the "L", take an architectural tour or two, and visit the Rothko painting and William Eggleston exhibition at the Art Institute. And, needless to say, I want to take a lot of photos, capture some video, and record enough audio to create a couple of A/V works from my time there.

Hit the ground running way too early in the morning after a lousy night spent barely sleeping in a cramped and uncomfortable seat. Spend the day trying to make the best use of my time without having a clear objective or knowing enough to make informed choices. Plunge into a situation where I need to perform without knowing what tools I'll really need, and having to carry everything with me all the time. What's not to like?

I've been debating and deciding what to bring for at least two months, so here's the list:

• Camera: Panasonic GH1, 7-14, 14-140, and 20mm lenses. Several extra batteries and 32GB of memory cards. A 46mm ND filter for the 20mm lens. Manfrotto 345 tripod, Colorchecker Passport.
• Audio: Sony PCM-D50, Rode windscreen. Giant Squid powered omnidirectional stereo microphone. RM-PCM1 wired remote.
• Extras: Leatherman S2 flashlight, Blackberry, iPod Classic, Fuelcell booster battery, and earphones that will also be used with the audio recorder. Maps printed on 4x6 photo paper with interesting addresses on the reverse. My skinny new Mighty Wallet. Peanut M&Ms, and 8oz Stanley flask for water.
• All of this will fit in my Billingham Hadley Pro, which is small enough that it won't need to be checked at the art gallery.

So that's where I stand right now, thirty-eight hours before I leave - or eighty-five hours before I'm back. Ten of my named items have already been written up; I'll be using four different things that I expect to write reviews for. Chicago will be the proving ground for my Panasonic 7-14mm lens, like Ottawa was for my Nikon 105VR, and I'm also hoping to review some of what I see while I'm there. And as soon as the travel trauma wears off, I'll be writing a 'what worked' recap of my trip to give a general overview of what I discovered about the concept and execution of the entire weekend.

See you next week.

Elmer's Tri-Fold Foam Display Board +AirHogs Apache

(clickable thumbnail, so you can read the data)

Concept: 4 out of 5 (for my intended use)
Execution: 3 out of 5
Yeah, but: A little lumpy

The Long Version: I got this neat foamcore presentation board a few days ago and finally tried it tonight.
I like how it is more compact when stored than it's total area, and is bigger than the poster board I previously used for product/macro photos which allows larger items and more generous cropping.
It's very well made, sturdy, and most importantly is free-standing on floors and tables and even on carpet.
And the wings can be used to block your side light sources from hitting the background, which is great.
For tabletop use you can turn it 90 degrees and use one wing underneath smaller subjects.
I'll be getting a white one soon, and looking at the other color choices next time I visit Office Max where I got this for half of it's $14 MSRP due to a savings card.
Pretty sure it's also available at Office Depot, Staples, and other stores of that type.


Let's look at my initial results:


My new AirHogs™ Apache helicopter is flying fairly close to the Elmer's background here, and the light is coming from a flash suspended just above and in front of it, which is the worst case scenario for any background material.
You can also see one of the "hinges" quite plainly.
Seamless paper it isn't, but neither is the price.


With an extra foot of subject/background separation there is much more smoothness due to the background blur nature of zoom lenses used in this range of close work.
(I was using a Sony 18-70mm 'kit' lens on my Alpha 300 DSLR, and was zoomed to various points in the middle of it's range while at approx. 2 meters from the background for all photos--the copter's distance varied).

I knew I would like this product, and all testing thus far confirms it.
A horizontal test will be performed soon.
Hopefully a big lawn/leaf garbage bag can be used to keep it free of dust and scratches when not in use.


If the remote controlled Apache helicopter has caught your interest, a full review can be found on my main photoblog:
Views Of Texas
The middle photo over there shows the 'copter even closer to the camera for an even smoother background.
There is still some texture visible but I attribute this to the angle of my off-camera flash--the Elmer's background's surface is much smoother than cheap poster board although it's definitely lumpier than standard foamcore.
But it's bigger and more convenient to use, so just light it more carefully.