Bob Crum

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As I go lightly into lenses, a caveat: There is not much here of interest this week if your camera is a point-and-shoot type with a fixed lens. But if I've got you so excited about photography that you're ready to step up to a dSLR interchangeable lens camera, pour some tea and let me entertain you!

There are essentially five types: Standard zoom, super telephoto, wide angle, macro and prime. Also various levels of quality within each class.

Prime lenses have a fixed focal length. Because they don't have moving parts they generally produce higher quality photos. But primes are not always the best choice. You, or the subject, has to move in order to fill the frame meaning your feet do the zooming. That's not quite doable while shooting a mountain goat from a cliff edge.

There are standard zooms and super telephoto zooms. Standard zooms like a 24-70mm are considered walk around lenses. Super zooms range from 55-200 and 150-600mm. I have photos of mermaids on Venus shot with a super zoom. But I digress. Note that I would not own a telephoto zoom lens that didn't have image stabilization (IS).

A popular lens category is wide angle. The smaller the number for focal length, the wider, i.e., 15mm is super wide. Any wider is considered a fish-eye lens. Macro lenses discussed another time.

I own only five lenses which are: Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, Tamron SP 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di VC USD, Tamron 16-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD and a Tokina ultra wide AT-X 116 PRO DX, 11-16 F2.8. All have IS except the Tokina. I use my Tokina lens a lot for landscapes. The 18-135 works well for my Sespe Creek mermaid boudoir photography.

Good as they are, I don't own a prime lens. Because of the challenges of photojournalism, i.e., nothing is within my control except my camera, I have to have the flexibility of zoom lenses. Lenses are tools and your specific needs (and budget) should dictate the best lens for the job.

Canon and Nikon are the lens behemoths but there are many great third party lenses. Tamron, Sigma and Tokina produce quality lenses of great value and often fill a void left by the big two.

Budget wise, a general rule is when funds are tight buy the best quality lens you can afford. A quality lens will generally outlast 2 or 3 camera upgrades. However, my lens collection does not include of top-of-the line lenses. Call me frugal if you will, but I'm about value. If a lens is reasonably well built, produces quality images and reasonably affordable, it has a place in my camera bag.

When not sure about one lens vs another, rent them first. When I shoot an air show, I rent a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II. A great lens that costs $2,200.00. A tad too much to spend for a lens I use only 4-5 times a year. Rent to try then buy it if you like it.

Also, research before you buy. There are many reputable websites that test photography gear. After checking a few websites, you'll know whether or not the questionable lens will fulfill your expectations and needs. BTW, all lens have some distortion of some type. Most times not noticeable so don't obsess about it.

When you buy a new lens, please don't buy and use a cheap "UV" protective filter. It will not only degrade your photos, they're useless for digital cameras. Secret: I have “clear” glass protective filters on all of my lenses.
Happy photoing!

Email comments, suggestions or questions to: bob@fillmoregazette.com

Hello all FHS Alumni.
Many classes are having a class reunion this year. Just to mention a few, we have the class of ’67 (50th), ’72, ’77, ’82, ’87, ’92, and ’97. If you’re in any of these classes, or even if you’re not, please email the Alumni Association and give us your current mailing address. Some classes are mailing out flyers containing specific information about their class reunion and if you haven’t updated your mailing address, you won’t receive the information. Email the Alumni Association at staff@fillmorehighalumni.com including your name as you were known in high school, and your class year.
Thank You,
Mark Ortega,
FHS Alumni President

The cause of the Sunday morning fire at the Christian Evangelical Church has been determined to be accidental. The pre-dawn fire started near its heating unit and quickly set the steeple in flames. The steeple and bell crashed directly down into the main body of the church. The church itself was a total loss.

Fillmore Fire Department

Fillmore Fire Department would like to remind you that it is daylight savings time on Sunday March 12th at 2am and that it’s time to Spring your clocks forward one hour. It is also time for the seasonal safety check on your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors, the easiest way to check your smoke detector is to press the button and make sure it sounds if it hasn’t been replaced in more then ten years then it is time for a new one. We recommend replacing smoke and carbon monoxide batteries twice a year so celebrate the time change on Sunday with fresh batteries all around.

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Videos by Sebastian Ramirez.

The Soroptimist Club was presented with recognition from the City of Fillmore for promoting its "Stop Human Trafficking and Sexual Slavery Awareness Day." A long list of the sexual crimes they seek to make America aware of was read from the proclamation. The Club was congratulated for their important work on this issue.

At Tuesday's regular meeting, Joanne King spoke to the City Council about the annual flower show and the considerable voluntary work it entails. She thanked the council for providing the use of the Active Adult Center to stage the show, but "was dismayed by the sudden imposition of sign permits and paperwork required this year." According to Mrs. King, signs and banners are the most effective way to advertise the event. She asked the council for a waiver for city grant organizations to use banners and signs with less regulation.

Lisa Mahoney and Joe Bebe were appointed to the Public Arts Commission. Apparently neither of the new commissioners were present for recognition or a photo.

Options for authorizing a memorial for former Fillmore Fire Chief Rigo Landeros were discussed. Two bronze plaques were authorized to be placed at the Fire Station.
Mid-Year financial report.

A mid-year financial report for FY 2016- 17, approval of supplemental budget requests and review of the MID-YEAR accomplishments were presented, but the Gazette received no details. Mechanical problems caused difficulties with projection focus during the meeting. Details will be published in the next edition.

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) has awarded the City of Fillmore with their Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its budget.

This award represents a significant achievement and reflects the commitment of the city council and staff to meeting the highest principles of government budgeting. In order to receive the budget award, the City had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation.

This is the first time the City has received this award. “Receiving this award is another step in our continuous improvement efforts. Gaylynn Brien, Finance Director and her staff have done a wonderful job” said David W. Rowlands, City Manager.

The GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards Program is the only national awards program in governmental budgeting.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office has released its 2016 Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) crime statistics for Part 1 Crimes (Homicide, Rape, Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Burglary, Theft and Arson).

The data represents the information collected from the five contract cities where the Sheriff’s Office provides police services and the unincorporated areas of the county. Those cities are Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Moorpark, Fillmore and Ojai.

Overall, reported crime is down 1% when combining all of the Sheriff’s jurisdictions. However, overall Part 1 Violent Crime increased by 1% or 6 total crimes. The increases in violent crime were reported in Rapes and Robberies. Only the city of Fillmore showed a decrease in violent crime (-49%). All the contracted cities and the unincorporated area showed decreases in Part 1 Property Crimes, with the exception of the city of Thousand Oaks (+7%).

Although there was a very small decrease in reported Part 1 crimes in 2016, since 2014 the overall crime total has increased by 5%. This equates to over 200 additional victims in our county. The most dramatic increase has been in the violent crime category, which has increased by over 30%, equating to an additional 130 victims. It’s too early to determine if this crime trend increase after the passage of AB 109 (Prison Reduction) and Prop 47 is leveling out, but we will continue to examine the data we obtain.

Proposition 47, which reclassified a number of felonies to misdemeanors in 2014, was expected to reduce the prison and jail population statewide. While some county jurisdictions have seen modest reductions in their jail population, Ventura County has not. Our inmate population remains at pre-Prop 47 levels. Our justice system has reoriented itself to address an increase in misdemeanor court cases and a reduction in felony cases. This is the second full year of post Prop 47 releases of offenders and the reduction of certain felonies to misdemeanors. Sheriff’s Office statistics show that 42% (1,840) of convicted offenders have reoffended since their release from custody since Prop 47 was enacted. That is a 10% increase over 2015’s reoffender list. We continue to evaluate crime and arrest data in an attempt to definitively measure the local effects of Proposition 47, it certainly appears that a review of the logical progression of a downward trend in crimes since 2007 and now a marked increase in 2015 and a similar amount of crimes in 2016 would make us believe there is a direct connection. Additionally, these crime statistics do not take into consideration any impacts from the recently passed Proposition 57, wherein current prison inmates convicted of non-violent crimes would be considered for early parole, as there is no statistical information available locally or from the state.

We also continue to encourage people to actively report suspicious and/or criminal activity immediately by calling 9-1-1. Non-emergency reports can be made through our Sheriff’s Communication Center by calling (805) 654-9511.

Bob Crum

Two photos for comparison. A straight out of the camera unedited jpeg and my processed/edited RAW version of the same scene.
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Pardon me, again. The plan was to discuss lenses this week. However, recall my discussion last week about editing the Photo of the Week? That got an interesting response that you might find interesting.

Everybody knows that cameras, and cell phones, universally generate jpeg photos. Accordingly, there's a group of straight-out-of-camera (SOOC) jpeg shooters. Their creed prohibits tweaking or manipulating photos in any manner out of the camera. One of them took me to the proverbial wood shed. I'll call him Tasker.

Tasker said: If you got it right in the camera in the first place, you wouldn't have to twiddle and piddle afterward. Well, Sir, I would if I knew how! (I hate confessions.) Of course I know how but couldn't. You'll see why shortly.

Of course some things are best done in camera. Proper exposure is always good. Also focus because it can't be fixed in post processing. I know that for a fact but don't ask why I know it.

The technology of modern-day cameras, and many cell phones, is so good that they're capable of producing some pretty good jpeg photos. But jpegs straight-out-of-camera are not without inherent limitations. For example, in the process of generating a jpeg, the camera compresses the image file by discarding a percentage of image data. Nevertheless, the compressed, lower resolution 72ppi image is necessary for email and the Internet.

Conversely, other purposes for photos require a higher resolution. While a 72ppi (or 96ppi) jpeg is best for the Internet, it's woefully insufficient for most publications. Photo resolution of 200ppi is required of me for newspaper printing, 300ppi for magazines. Many of my other clients also require 300ppi images at specific dimensions. This means I need the 300ppi RAW file from my Canon 7DMKII camera at the outset.

Technically, a RAW image simply converted before editing looks worse than a jpeg straight out of the camera. But after processing/editing, an entirely different image emerges. After initial editing, I export the processed photo to either Photoshop or Photoshop Elements for additional polish and resizing as needed. Then, the finished high resolution photos that I submit to a client, or for publication, are finalized in the... ahem... ready?... jpeg file format. But my jpegs are quite different than any straight-out-of-the-camera jpegs. (see accompanying comparison photos)

All photographers are entitled to do as they please, but I have one other niggly issue with straight of the camera jpegs. Aside from content and composition, SOOC photos, in my opinion, are boring. Look at a bunch of jpegs straight-out-of-camera side by side and they all seem to have the same bland same-old look. Besides adjusting for exposure, the camera does all the processing so photographer creativity is virtually non-existent. Bland is the norm!

Forget bland. Obviously, millions of readers of this column, like you, are interested in taking photography to a higher level. So, even if you only intend to deal with SOOC jpegs (for now), you can still improve your photographs by post processing (editing). You don't have to be satisfied with mediocre photos.

I leave Tasker this thought: Even though I get it right in the camera, a camera merely generates a data file... I create the image. The RAW file that the camera gives me is the canvas upon which I create my photographic art! That's why, as a photographer, post processing (editing) is not only an extension of my creativity, it's a joy... not a woe to be shunned. Try it, you too might like it.

Happy shooting.

Email comments, suggestions or questions to: bob@fillmoregazette.com