The Stalman Podcast

It’s easier than ever to make podcast, but telling a great story will always take hard work and skill. Mark Bramhill’s show Welcome to Macintosh brings the power of narrative storytelling to a topic he and I are both passionate about: Apple. We talk about his creative process, story telling techniques and a little about computers. Special Guest: Mark Bramhil.Links:Welcome to MacintoshShure Beta 87A Handheld Condenser Microphone | SweetwaterPodcasting Microphones Mega-Review – Marco.orgBeyerdynamic T90 HeadphonesThe Menu Bar: Ep2 - The Experts Have Taken Over, With Bob Burrough13: Let it Beep | Welcome to MacintoshTyler's iPhone X Review - YouTube

We have guest Cameron Whitman, professional photographer and photo editor at Stocksy United, and we packed as many pro tips as possible into one hour. These are the lessons we wish we had learned earlier in our photography careers, and some mistakes we want to help you avoid.Special Guest: Cameron Whitman.Links:Our Salty Kitchen - Daniel & Cameron's food blogStocksy UnitedUnderstanding Histograms in PhotographyUnderexposing vs. OverexposingShutter Speed vs. Focal Length RuleBack to Basics - ApertureWhy Leveling the Horizon in Photos Isn't Easy

I brought my oldest friend (and older cousin) who runs the agency Brandsmith to talk about running a small creative business and our favorite iPhone apps. Then I talk to a developer behind Spark Camera, one of my new favourite apps for quick video edits. Special Guests: Dominique Yahyavi and Shea Kerwood.Links:Spark Camera - Easy video editorBrandsmith - Elevating Brands, Calgary Alberta

We start off with some basic tips that can make any video feel way more cinematic, without spending a dime on gear. Then get some ProTips from YouTuber Brandon Havard who is known for his gorgeous tech reviews, and has shot video for top YouTubers like MKBHD and Jonathan Morrison. Lighting, lens choice, camera movement, shot planning, we cover a lot a of ground here.Special Guest: Brandon Havard.Links:Dracast - LED Video LightsBrandon's iPhone X reviewBrandon's Pixel 2 ReviewTyler's iPhone X review (4K)101 Things I Learned in Film School: Neil Landau, Matthew Frederick: 8601406529557: Amazon.com: Books

I had the very exciting surprise of being invited by Apple to a private workshop in New York. We were about a dozen creative professionals that got to spend some quality time app developers and professional photographers to learn how to get the most out of the iPhone when we shoot Fashion Week. I’m going to share what I learned with you guys. Then we talk to The Brotographer, Ross Thomas, who has been doing extensive testing of the most hyped camera of 2018, the Sony A7R III. Specifically he’s been testing a lot of the autofocus features and how it performs Canon, Sigma and Tamron lenses. Special Guest: Ross Thomas.Links:Spark Camera@jessedriftwood on InstagramLightroom CCFilmic ProThe Brotographer | Photography Reviews, Tutorials, StyleSony A7RIII eye autofocus with Canon L series lenses - YouTubeSigma China Confirmed Sony FE Lenses Soon

Choosing a camera is not only hard because there are a ton of options out there, there’s also a ton of GREAT options. All the big camera manufacturers are making great products but they still have specific strengths and weaknesses depending on what your photographic needs are. 

To dive into this in extreme detail I sat down with Chris Niccolls from The Camera Store in Calgary, or as you probably know him, host of The Camera Store TV. I’m pretty familiar with the cameras I own, but TCSTV put every camera through serious real world tests, so I always look to their opinion before I buy a new camera. Entry Budget If you’re moving up from a phone to camera for the first time you probably don’t want to spend too much until you figure out if this hobby is going to last or not. A few years back it was easy to spot the lower image quality from a cheaper camera, but thats no longer the case. A few hundred bucks can buy most of the image quality you would find in the gear pros use. As you spend more the difference of image quality starts to be smaller, and lot of what you’re paying for is improved usability, for example autofocus and ergonomics. 

But if you buy the Nikon D3400, Canon T6i or Sony A6000 you can take photos that no one will know aren’t coming out of a $10,000 system. 
Compact Cameras Smart phones have sucked all the air out of the room for smaller format cameras, but they still have their place. If a big camera feels like too much of burden, you can still get a slight quality boost over your phone with little pocket size cameras like the Panasonic ZS100, Canon G5X or Sony RX100 IV. Because of their small sensor size, they can more easily offer a bigger zoom range that’s harder to achieve with larger sensor cameras, great video quality, image stabilization and raw support. Micro Four Thirds This in-between sensor size has really come in to it’s own lately, with minimal trade offs in quality and huge advantages in cost and camera size. The only things you’re really giving up are extreme low light performance (although that’s changing with the Panasonic GH5S) and you’ll have a harder time getting bokelicious blurry backgrounds. Check out the Panasonic GH5, Olympus or Fuji XT20 to name only a few of this versatile format. APS-C A lot of people look down on any sensor that is smaller than full frame, but don’t forget that many hollywood films are shot on almost example this size of sensor/film, but the cinema version is Super35, which is obviously a way cooler name. In this category image quality is getting close to the plateau, with tons of dynamic range, impressive low light performance and a more affordable selection of lenses than it’s bigger brother, full frame. Some cameras to look at are the Canon 80D, Nikon D500 and Sony A6500, which have different strengths but will all make your photography look professional. Full Frame 35mm is most commonly used format for professionals of all time. This is the size of the film you used growing up, it what most of the top of the line lenses are optimized for, and I promise you will love shooting on it. You’ll notice a bump in quality from APS-C when you compare dynamic range and low light noise, but let’s be honest. You probably want it to get a sexy blur in the background. Every brand has an affordable way to get started, just a buy a 50mm from Canon, Nikon, Sony, or whatever brand you go with and open that aperture wide. If sharp critical focus is important to you try a long lens, like the venerable 70-200mm. 

I have a lot to say about camera in this range, since that’s typically what I buy, but for now I will just direct you to the Canon 5D IV, Nikon D850, Sony A7RIII and Leica M10. You can get lost all day researching these beautiful machines. That’s it You’ve got your work ahead of you! I just pointed you in a few directions, but now the fun part is scoring the internet for reviews, samples, and tests to find exactly the right match for you. I strongly recommend DPReview for their incredibly in depth camera reviews, and for lenses go to ImagingResource where they do really helpful comparisons. Special Guest: Chris Niccolls.

It's taken a decade for podcasts to earn their place as a leading form of media, but this is the time for them to take their place as a leading form of media. Ray Ortega is the perfect person to talk to everything you need to know about creating a podcast. He has two shows to help podcast creators, The Podcaster's Studio and Podcaster's Roundtable and is also happy to answer your questions on twitter where he is @PodcastHelper.Special Guest: Ray Ortega.

It was a great year for gadget lovers, with every major smart phone manufacturer bringing their best game to the table. Let's talk about three of my favourites, the iPhone X, Pixel 2, and Galaxy S8Links:Best Phones of 2017: iPhone X vs Pixel 2 vs Galaxy S8 - YouTube

We are now mid-saga and seeing a very new direction for Star Wars. Rain Johnson is taking us in a bold new direction and has fans divided about whether this is the best or worst Episode yet. Special Guest: Rob Mitchelson.

Another episode from the Stalman vaults, we talk about s Star Wars storySpecial Guest: Rob Mitchelson.