Brad's Photoshoot with Adam McCabe & the Sony A6000

[@63MacGuy]

Hi Adam, I've been making my living in photography for over 20+ years and I love the way you are straight forward and describe your process in great detail. Thanks for sharing. And thanks for answering your comments!

[@BradZChef]

+63MacGuy Wow! Thanks SO much! I'm obviously NOT a pro, but I'm an enthusiastic amateur. I feel if I can clearly communicate my processes, then show results I'll help beginners have the courage to try new things. Also, folks can view my results and decide if they are "good enough" and save money with some of my DIY stuff, or decide it's NOT good enough and go ahead and buy "better" stuff- at least they'll only have to buy gear once! Thanks for the kind words!

[@63MacGuy]

+BradZChef I also shoot with the A6000. I sold my Canon 5D ll"s and went totally mirrorless in 2012. LOVE IT! . Sony's skin tones blow away my Canon stuff and the weight of APS-C mirrorless is incredible. I was going to get into the A7 series (i still might) but the cost and size of the lenses is turning me away. I got into these camera's, Olympus, Panasonic and now Sony, because of the size. Ive been waiting for the A6300 for almost a year now. i Wish it had IBIS and touch screen but the 4K looks amazing. Keep up the good work!!!

[@Sketchitforme]

This was one of the more clear to understand videos I’ve seen. Well done.

[@iwatchingyou68]

Ok thanks for your support!

[@richie007brown]

exellent video the a6000 really is an amazing little camera, i just bought the a6300 and cant wait to try it out

[@jimcullen2211]

Brad, very informative. I think I like your style because it closely matches my own. I have the same gear and approach to portraits. I really liked the last set with the dark background.

[@BradZChef]

+Jim Cullen Thanks so much!

[@miatared]

By the way, congrats on your series of videos - love them all. Keep up the great work.

[@coorsleftfield]

Can you do a video on your home studio ? what are you using for the white background? what softbox ? in other videos we saw fixed lights through the white umbrella when filming yourself. Love to know what gear is working for you besides just camera and lenses.

[@BradZChef]

+Brian Weaver That sounds like a great idea. If I don't do a dedicated video I'll do a better job of including that info in the videos I do make going forward. I tend to drone on and on and on and on about stuff (IOW I'm kind of a boring nerd- ha ha !) so I try to edit my video down to 3 or 4 minutes if possible so lots of stuff gets deleted.....I'll keep that info in the final videos going forward.

[@spotserafin]

Really cool video, learned a ton, no doubt im buying this can asap.

[@toddmoorephotography]

great video Brad..your video are very helpful..thanks for posting the BTS and DIY videos

[@dee-deeoverton1300]

Hi Brad, do you have a video for the setup of the a6000 using the Rokinon 85mm being that it is a manual lens?

[@iwatchingyou68]

Hi Brad. First thanks for all of your great videos! I'm really learning a lot watching them. I wonder if you can tell me if the a6000 photos get a little to much noise to early? I just got me a a6000 and sold my Nikon dslr. I'm really enjoying my a6000 but I'm a little concern to get noise in my photos at quite low iso. Is this normal for the a6000? I'm feeling that iso 800 is the upper limit to get clean photos? Thanks from Sweden.

[@BradZChef]

+Manuel Aspegren No short answer for this question. I see lots of posts complaining about noise at low ISO. Conversely- I see (and have personally taken!) lot's of great pics at ISO's 300, 6500 and even 10,000. Image noise seems to be very subjective. I've found that using the camera's HDR feature and experimenting with it's built in "high ISO noise reduction" features may solve your problems. I shoot Raw+jpeg and use the noise reduction sliders in LightRoom to process my images. I hope this helps....

[@Train1900]

Thanks sharing. You are a very good teacher. Do you use the 6000 for all your work? I was thinking of the a7. It seems that the 6000 is just as good but for less money. What do you think.

[@BradZChef]

+Creative One Any full frame camera would allow you to work closer to your subject and be beneficial in a small area like I have... My dilemma is that I just can't afford the full frame glass that I'd want. Before you buy a body- sit down and price out your "dream kit" of lenses and accessories you'll want to use with that body. When I did that I quickly realized I'd be real frustrated with full frame but could put together a really nice APS-C kit with the money I had available. The A6000 is my workhorse. I also have an A5100 that I bought specifically because its flip up screen make doing KZbin videos a LOT easier. I also use a little GoPro 3 Black. Hope this helps

[@Train1900]

Thank you. This information is very helpful. Good day.

[@coorsleftfield]

great work Brad . do you see much difference shooting with the Rokinon 85mm and the 18-105 set to 85mm ?

[@BradZChef]

+Brian Weaver I've observed 2 "differences". The 1st is the Rokinon allows me to open way up and shoot f/1.4, f/2, etc. The 18-105G's widest aperture is f/4. Once I quit shooting available light and switch to strobe (where I'm shooting f/8 - f/11!) the ability to use auto focus and Eye-focus makes the 18-105G a joy to shoot with. I'm not too much of a pixel peeper so I haven't done a bunch of strict comparisons on sharpness, etc. For me- it's all about workflow....

[@coorsleftfield]

+BradZChef I imagine the 1.4 maker better bokeh but at the same time such short depth of field makes eyeAF important. That's one thing that stopped my from picking up that 85mm is critical shot DOF focus on the eyeball that is required with such a fast lens requires. Are you able to tell when you have focus on the eye vs nose with focus zooming ?

[@BradZChef]

+Brian Weaver Yes, with peaking and zooming it's not difficult- it's just not fast either. If you have a methodical workflow you'll love it. If you like to shoot really fast- skip it.

[@mustk1000]

Thanks for the video Brad. Do you think is Sony 50mm f/1.8 or 85mm Rokinon f/1.4 lens more essential? I only have the kit lens and I want to get a faster lens for my a6000.

[@BradZChef]

+mustk1000 IMHO the 50mmf/1.8. It's a native lens, it has OSS built in, it's small, it's light, it takes FABULOUS images. I love the Rokinon in the studio. I find I'm shooting it at f/1.4 less and less and am using f/2.8 (? 2.8 or 2.4- I don't have the lens in front of me) more often. I use it for available light stuff. The minute I turn on the flashes I switch out to my 18-105G lens and stop down to f/8-f/13. This lens is smaller, lighter, and I can use the eye-focus and other auto focus functions speeding my workflow. I'm evolving to view the 85 as a "cameo" lens. This is a really personal decision. Others with different workflow requirements may argue passionately that you get the Rokinon! Enjoy your journey!

[@GregerBurman]

+mustk1000 The Rokinon is of course manual focus only. Get a cheap manual focus lens second hand and see how you like manual focusing, before you commit all that cash. I have the Sigma 60mm f/2.8 DN Art and I love it. Great for portraits. Cheaper than the Sony 50mm. The Sigma does not have OSS and AF-C only works in the center of the frame.

[@YanicaKnutsen]

Hi. I have a question about the rokinon 85mm lens. There's a red model, and a gold model. Which one is newer?

[@BradZChef]

Mine is relatively new and is red. All the ones on the B&H site are red. You may want to call B&H customer service and ask that question.

[@nguinsgethrost.j7464]

Anyone help me out please. I am currently using the Sony a6000 for the first time. I was shooting at the studio this morning my setting was 1/200 f8 ISO 100-200. I noticed when I look into the viewfinder or LCD screen I was not able to see the model. I managed to take the shot by placing the camera directly at the position the model was standing but exposure was on point. I would like to know if i have to adjust something in the camera setting. Thank you

[@BradZChef]

+N'GUINS GETHRO ST. J Go into your Menu and turn "Live View" to OFF

[@nguinsgethrost.j7464]

+BradZChef Thank you very much. It works I am happy now.

[@Guidrysphotography]

Hey brad! What are you using to trigger your flashes from the a6000?

[@BradZChef]

+DexisMoto I bought a package deal off Amazon that included 2 - yongnuo 560lV flashes and the yongnuo trigger for under $200. I bought the model for Cannon cameras even though the rep said it wouldn't work. Everything except the ttl function works for me.

[@Guidrysphotography]

+BradZChef thank you so much!

[@miatared]

+BradZChef Did you get the one for the EOS 5D, 1D, 7D.... just wanna make sure I have the right one.... they have so many kits...

[@BradZChef]

+Miata Red I went back and checked my Amazon order. Here's the details: 1 of Yongnuo YN560-TX LCD Wireless Manual Flash Controller + 2pcs YN-560 IV Manual Flash Speedlite Light For Canon EOS 650D 600D 550D 500D 450D 400D 350D 3. The seller said it wouldn't work, but all the manual functions operate fine. No TTL. BTW- I used to have (and love!) a red 2006 mx-5! Sold it to help pay for my daughter's wedding. I miss that car. The son-in-law is ok though.....

[@miatared]

+BradZChef Thank you, got it and ordered. Funny what we do for our kids... I too no longer have the Miata - I've had 2 over the years, a original 1990 and 2004, loved them too and still miss that car. Moved to a condo and lost a few parking spots 😊 No son-in-laws, but fantastic daughters-in-law 👌