Paul Crespel

A reminder that this thread is meant to be about the subject material rather than the actual photographs... to provoke discussion about subjects that we photograph in public places, and how we handle situations that some people may feel uncomfortable with. Breastfeeding by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Banging The Bishop (Anglo-Saxon humour) if you don't understand, ask Banging The Bishop by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

The Milan exhibition has now closed, after 18 months and over one million visitors.

Ok, let's return to the 9 year-old violin player. I was hoping that by now somebody would have looked at his minder's rucksack, strangely worn in front of her. Doesn't it appear that holes have been cut out, and it's hiding a loudspeaker? If you can't see these things in other people's photos, how can you possibly see things that you choose to photograph? Here is a 100% crop of the rucksack taken the same day showing an MP3 music player connected to an amplifier and speaker in the rucksack:

Playing with aerosol Playing with aerosol by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Sharing Smoke Sharing a Vape by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Thanks for that clarification Flysurfer, I had an idea it might not be fixable, but thought it was the sensor, not the processor. No point, then, continuing to ask Fuji to fix it, if it can't be fixed by firmware. We will just have to upgrade our cameras when the new ones come out and hope, as you say, that the EXR III might have a pleasant surprise.

Hi Madmaxmedia, I believe the X-A1 and X-M1, all the later Fujis, have the second generation sensor. So far, despite many complaints in many Forums, Fuji has declined to comment, and declined to fix the issue. My guess is that they can't, or don't know how to, which is why they are working on yet another sensor. I think the extremely blotchy noise, and even solarisation, is part of the problem.... I am fairly certain it's caused by the sensor, and cannot be fixed with firmware.

madmaxmedia, agreed.... I had the X-Pro1 and the original X100 and they were great. The appearance of the second generation X Trans sensor saw the arrival of the wax effect. Fuji have never commented on the wax effect, despite numerous complaints since the X Trans II sensor came out, so it is possible that they screwed up on the design and perhaps it cannot be corrected. Perhaps the problem is caused by the sensor design, and not by the firmware. As Fuji have refused to comment or correct in all this time, it is possible that the sensor design is flawed. I guess it may be fixed with the new sensor that is rumoured to feature in the yet-to-be-announced X-Pro2 and X-T2.

jimphotos.... don't you mean: Dear Fuji: FIX THE WAXING! Leaving everything alone will simply leave the problem unresolved

Chrisgilesimages, I'm older than you, and started my career in photography in 1975, so I remember film well... but.... Canon, Nikon, Sony and others now produce cameras that go up to over 50k ISO, and although they produce grainy images, which is to be expected, none of them produce the wax effect. The wax effect is exclusive to Fuji... perhaps they've even patented it... but if all the other manufacturers can avoid the waxing, then so can Fuji. Technology has moved on, and we make use of it. We can now shoot in the dark with most cameras and smartphones, but Fuji is the only one that has wax effect. Just a thought, maybe Fuji waxes because it's aimed at the Brazilian market :D

Sharing a Vape Sharing a Vape by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Hi Clinton.... have a read of this.... it was published last year, and created quite a bit of controversy, I'm on a lot of people's hit lists as a result... but nobody actually argued with what I stated. The article is not to insult, but rather to provoke people to start thinking instead of just snapping away at anything they see. Give it a try It was only written and published to provoke thought and discussion. PAUL CRESPEL PHOTOGRAPHY ARTICLE

.... again, I'm not sure if this is valid... aesthetics aren't something I really "see" when I take a photograph, so maybe this one doesn't qualify here: Infinity by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Stefan, I'm not sure if this one fits your idea of aesthetics... the lines are all there... just 3 teenagers hanging out in town. It was the girl's boots that attracted me to take the photo Young Italians by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

They all fall into many categories, the first three might be aesthetic, but also street, architecture, even possibly a bit abstract.... different things to different people. We all see the world in different ways, which means we all produce images that are very different to each other... except in camera clubs, where sadly many people can end up shooting the same photos as everybody else. I feel a bit of a fraud posting images here, because I was a photoreporter for 23 years, and my photos were used in newspapers all over the world, but hopefully I can encourage younger photographers to think and use their brains when they take photos.... you don't seem to need that encouragement, Stefan You're doing great.

Nice work Stefan I have a few, but aesthetics isn't really what I go looking for... but here are are a few.... you may find others on my Flickr page or website. Loggia del Consiglio Verona by Paul Crespel, on Flickr @ by Paul Crespel, on Flickr Innsbruck Shopping Mall by Paul Crespel, on Flickr Night Train by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Hi Stefan, thanks for your comments Finally somebody has thought about the images! Ok, here's my reply: The 4 guys behind the bench were not posed. None of my photos are ever posed, nor are they cropped, straightened or manipulated in any way. Those guys were sheltering from the snow under a tree, behind a bench. I had passed that bench hundreds of times and never seen the graffiti, because there were always people sitting there. I saw the guys from 50 metres away, and as I drew level I turned, went down on one knee, and shot... and at that moment I saw the graffiti for the first time. The graffiti is a protest against the metal bars Verona has placed on all benches to stop homeless people sleeping on them. The bus and the wheelchair.... the bus won, the driver refused to move to one side, and the pavements were too narrow for Cristian to mount, so he had to turn around and exit the road with the bus following. At that point, to add insult to injury, a police woman on point duty, held her hand up and made him stop to give way to traffic coming the other way.... I have that photo too The old man sitting in the street was not a performer. He was very still, and the people didn't understand, and they believed he was dead.... so the photo shows human reaction... instead of trying to help, they all just stared at him with disgust / horror / fear. Dumitru, shaving in the park, is Romanian. He comes to Italy for 6 months every year. He has a nice house and family in Romania, but he chooses to live rough in Italy for 6 months and busk with his guitar and send the money he earns home, where it keeps his family in luxury, and where it will support him when he returns for the winter. Those buskers earn between 100 and 200 euros a day. Nutella. Cause and effect. Instead of selling the fried donuts, she was eating them. Nun kissing priest, full on the lips, for over 10 seconds - very early on a Sunday morning, very few people around, two other priests seemingly looking out for them. The boy playing the violin.... Patrizio.... 9 years old. I asked his "minder" why he wasn't at school, and she told me that he has to work because he is clever, and can earn more money than she can. They are Rom. He was capable of playing 40 seconds of one classical work, and then demanding money. It was slave labour. I spoke to both of them, the woman was proud of what she was doing, but Patrizio wasn't happy. In this series, the only truly homeless person is the lady with the blankets. It was taken on a Christmas eve morning, very early, in Verona. I didn't speak her language, and she didn't speak any of mine, but she enjoyed a good breakfast, and hopefully had a better Christmas than she was expecting. It's nice to finally see people think about the images, thank you

Spiderman eating ice cream - Ferrara Italy Gelato Spiderman by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

You can't use RAW over 6400 ISO. For those who want to shoot in very low light, at 12800 or 25600, it is a problem.

Ferrara Italy - Stairwell @ by Paul Crespel, on Flickr Innsbruck Austria - Shopping Mall Innsbruck Shopping Mall by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

If you make a 27mm f2.0 it will be more than double the physical length of the current 27mm pancake, and will contain larger glass, so will weigh more and will cost more. The negatives far outweigh the positives. If you want a pancake lens, which is compact and light, you have to accept a slightly slower lens. The absolute minimum aperture I would ever consider using for documentary or street photography would be F4, but that would have to be exceptional circumstances. F5.6 is my normal lowest. I'd rather use f5.6 and raise the ISO than use a larger aperture and leave too much out of focus. For street photography, reportage, documentary, holiday photos etc., what use is F2.0? Does anybody actually use such large apertures in these fields of photography? Certainly nobody I know

Chinese tourists having lunch in Verona with their Panda Panda Verona by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

The following photo was taken with an X-Pro1 and the 18mm lens. The lens is great, it focusses fast enough for street and documentary photography. Newer lenses are faster, because technology improves, but the 18mm can now be bought for very low prices, which makes it good value. It's small, unobtrusive, and produces great images. The only well known issue with the 18mm is the "dust" (metal filings) that accumulate on the internal glass elements. That dust makes no difference to the photographs, but I've dismantled and cleaned my 18mm twice. I'd buy another if this one broke down, especially now as prices are less than half what I originally paid. Great lens, and much lighter and less obtrusive than a zoom that covers that length. Verona Curiosity by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

No Horns-1 by Paul Crespel, on Flickr