Art happens while doing something else entirely (but that's not why I'm here).

Tethering issues have traditionally been the bane of my (studio) photographic existence. Between synchronized strobes, uniform wattage, radio transmitters, camera outs, tethering cables that get stepped on 20 times a day, computer ports, program/OS compatibility, and batteries of all things, there are countless reasons why I may release the shutter resulting in absolutely nothing happening. It's especially painful when in the company of clients, with art directors. And stylists. And models. And I'm furiously clicking away as if it's going to help. (All of this of course has nothing to do with the other 90% of whats required to take a good picture).

But every so often I'm forced to take a step back and really appreciate the fact that I rely on things which I can never truly hope to control, at least not all at once. Today was one such moment.

Mathematically/statistically speaking a normal tethering failure occurs at such a point where you either get no image at all or you can't even press the shutter, but today I was given rare witness (I assume) to such a drop occurring while the information was actually in transit from the camera to the computer, resulting in the above image. Cool huh? But that's not why I write.

I write because I need answers to my own personal unsolved mystery (much love Robert Stack): does this image give any possible clues at to why this failure occurred? Does it point to the computer or the port or the cable or camera? And just what is going on here technically speaking? Man I'd love to know. Please write/respond if you feel so compelled.

******

Side note: my OTHER pet peeve is snarky/angry/dick photographers who comment on other photographers posts, so here are details relating to the above image (for nerds like me only, all others will get bored and return to Gawker (as you should)).

This is an imported JPG from a Lightroom RAW file. I had a develop preset of (around) +60 sharpening and -30 black levels as well as a custom white balance, (around) 5250 and -10 tint. I was shooting with an 85mm TS lens which required a certain working distance PLUS my client didn't desire focus stacking, so don't give me shit for the ring being so small in the frame. I needed a decent DOF without the diffraction of an f32 aperture after all. I placed a one-pixel black box around the image in case the white/non-info area bleeds into my website background.

Glass domes and Profoto B1/D1

For my fellow gear hounds and pixelpeepers.

Unscientific yet real-world. Same umbrella, same everything.

Profoto B1 without glass dome.

Profoto B1 with glass dome.

The glass dome requires a 6/10 increase in power, but definitely spreads the light better. I found it to be less noticeable when using standard, white interior softboxes though I don't have photos. Domes used were the standard frosted glass variety.

SLPRJCTS what?

Polite Sleeper was my baby. We made some great music and shared it with a lot of people, and we were very much a DIY operation. Sleeper Projects came about as an umbrella for my ventures into recording, screen printing, drum building, and photography. Over time as I began to focus in on a career in photography I felt my brand needed to reflect that, so this website was born. Sleeper Projects, or SLPRJCTS for short, will remain my overall house of all things art and design.