Fuji X100 - Very low mileage with only 1200 clicks this was a very gently used camera. SOLD!

Yes there are swimming pools in Central Havana!! and not just at the tourist hotels. Join us for an unforgettable week in the REAL  Havana. See Havana with a small group of like minded photographers.

Visit us at www.havanaworkshops.com

Profoto 600b LiFeP04 Battery

My portable Profoto 600b takes a lead acid battery.  Their new 600b2 AirSLiFe takes a stronger, lighter, much improved Lithium Ion battery. The battery alone is $600 and does not function with the old 600b pack. So, do I toss my old pack and buy the new one for $2500? Nooooo... I found a Tenergy LiFeP04, 12.8v 4.5Ah battery at all-battery.com and IT WORKS IN MY OLD PACK! All the benefits of the new 600b2 AirLiFe but at a cost of only $75usd. It gave me 187 full power pops which is comparable to the new Profoto AirS LiFe battery which is rated at 'up to 200 full power pops'.

So I just saved myself a bundle.

The battery indicator light doesn't work with this battery and the old pack but I can certainly live with that.

Dan Callis Photo

Please give a big thanks to your photographer, as the poster turned out so wonderful because we had those beautiful raw photos to work with. The expressions and body language of the actors was captured wonderfully.

Who was the photographer for that shoot? I'd love to keep him or her on file to recommend to other film makers in the future. :)

Cheers!

Bridget

Bridget Jurgens

Principal/Managing Director

DOG & PONY

Jacobson Sound Blimp for Sale

I have two Jacobson Sound Blimps for sale. Both for Canon. One is for a Canon 1Ds or a 5D with a piece of foam support on the bottom.  The other is for a Canon 1n film camera with motor This one could easily be modified for a digital Canon. I also have for sale a Canon 1n film camera for that blimp.
Contact Dan Callis at dan.callis@ns.sympatico.ca

HARD DRIVE - The Movie Poster   dan callis photo

Click for: Havana Workshops slide show

Dan and Phill's excellent adventure

It happens to every traveler at some point. Its important to be prepared and eat as safely as you can when you're on the road. Bottled water, no run down restaurants or street vendors. In Cuba, its hot and refrigeration isn't always great. If you go often enough you're going to get hit with it. Always uncomfortable, if it does happen the best thing you can do is take an antibiotic like Cipro. You need a prescription for Cipro and I recommend you get one when travelling to Cuba, just in case. Pepto Bismal before meals might help. Dukurol is a good idea. 

Phill got hit with travellers diarrhea and had nothing but a few Pepto Bismal after the fact. After a few days we went to Clinica Central Cira Garcia in Miramar to get some antibiotics for him. We arrived and he was seen immediately. The staff and english speaking doctors were fantastic. His doctor said he was going to send him for a cholera test just to be safe. There had been a few cases in Cuba recently, the source being some Cuban aid workers who were in Haiti. The doctor said he'd send us in one of their ambulances so we didn't have to call a taxi. We both hopped in the back and after a bit, Phill said, 'well, I might as well have a lie down' and lay on the stretcher for the ride. We arrived at the hospital and Phill did his cholera test which of course was negative. He was given antibiotics and we followed the helpful administrator to her office where the bill was to be paid. $25 for the consultation, $2 for the cholera test and $3.30 for the antibiotics. I guess the ambulance ride was included in the consultation fee. All in all a surprisingly efficient experience.

Follow safe food and water practices:

• Boil it, cook it, peel it or leave it!
• Always wash your hands before eating and drinking.
• Only eat food that has been well cooked and is still hot when served. Avoid uncooked foods, especially shellfish and salads.
• Drink and use ice only from purified water that has been boiled or disinfected with chlorine or iodine, or commercially bottled water in sealed containers. Carbonated drinks, including beer, are usually safe.
• Brush your teeth with purified or bottled water.
• Avoid unpasteurized dairy products.
• Avoid food from street vendors.
• Avoid swimming, wading, bathing or washing clothing in polluted or contaminated water.

My new congas in Havana!

Photographed in the living room of HavanaWorkshops home base. The balcony overlooks the very busy Calle Neptuno.

Canon's new 600exrt flashes ROCK!

Just your basic corporate portrait you say…. well what's different here is that I didn't lug thousands of dollars of Profoto strobes weighing what seems like a ton. I used just 3 Canon 600exrt flashes on this shoot. These are new radio transmitter flashes and I LOVE them! Three soft boxes and small light stands, this is the lightest kit I have ever owned. I like to shoot at wide apertures and these canon's allow me to do just that.