Bellevue Studio-    113 E. Main St.     Bellevue, Oh 44811   419-483-5428   fax 419-483-3473

Sandusky Studio-  209 W. Water St.  Sandusky, OH 44811 419-621-5428                             

Digital Photography

When we first started our photography business, I knew that digital was where I wanted to be.  But back then, the only professional digital camera cost $25,000 without lenses. When we shoot a wedding, we have a 100% equipment backup policy and that would have meant carrying 2 of those $25k cameras around.  A little expensive and not a good idea.

Finally in about 2000, we purchased our first professional digital camera.  About $4000 and a total of 3 mega pixels.  Unfortunately, it was not good enough for weddings but could work for many studio projects.

About 2 years later, we were able to purchase the next generation of cameras with double the pixels and a much improved flash control system.  Now we started creating candid images (photojournalistic) with the digital camera instead of using 35mm cameras.  We still used the old workhorse Hasselblads for everything else though.

About 2 years after that, we purchased the latest cameras, with 12 mega pixel resolution built on a professional camera body.  Since then we have been photographing weddings with digital only.  We use up to 4 camera bodies, 3 different models and 2 manufacturers.  Each camera gives us something different in quality and performance.  Our main cameras were selected not because they were fast or popular but because they have the best color rendition of any digital cameras out there.  And yes, there is a significant difference in camera bodies.  These cameras also are able to emulate film in exposure which means fewer problems with burned out highlights.  We've all seen them, the hot spots on images where there is no detail.  Real common in digital photography.  

One day after using the new cameras for a while, I had the chance to compare our new images with those made from our film cameras.  I was surprised to see that in almost every way that the digital image was superior to the film version.  

Since we have been working with digital for so long, we've experienced all of the pitfalls that digital photography brings.  That's not to say that we're infallible.  Every once and a while an image trips us up and we work hard to make sure it never happens again.  

We're also very careful to completely test out a new camera, lens, or flash before using it on a wedding.  There is no second chance on wedding photography.  

This goes for our studio workflow too.  We back up our digital images 3 times including having a complete set of original images off site.  You couldn't do that with film!  In all of our 20 years of professional photography, we've lost around 8 images.  Quite a record if you think of the sheer volume of images we make every year.  Funny thing is that those lost images were all negatives and most lost by labs or delivery services.  To show you how important it is to be careful with your images, we can just about name every image we've lost over the years.  It really bothers us when something goes wrong.

Now you may be thinking, if they can make a mistake, what about  those photographers that are new in the business or just shoot weddings on the weekends?  Good question.  I'll leave it up to you to decide just how important your wedding images are.

Copyright © 2007 Firelands Photography  Thank you to all of our customers who allow us to publish their images.  If you do not want your image to appear, please e-mail us immediately.  Thanks!