Ok - as promised, no lengthy discussion about the details of TTV photography. We'll take a look at two recent TTV shots, and go through my usual critique of them.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D TTV Argus Seventy-Five, Tokina AT-X M35 Pro DX AF 35mm f/2.8 Macro 1:1, 1/50 sec at f/4. ISO 200. Monopod and handheld. Cropped in Photoshop Elements 8.0. Phipps Conservatory.

Why This Photo: The model railroad display at Phipps made for many opportunities that begged for the TTV vintage treatment, this shot would probably look incredibly flat and boring with regular photography, but pops with TTV.

What Works: The focus hits right on the house and the front of the engine of the train. With the distortion of the viewfinder, getting this right isn't always as easy as with a regular shot. The distortion and blurred edges almost allows this shot to be mistaken for a real scene as opposed to a miniature setup.

What Doesn't Work: This exposure is a little bright for my tastes with this style of photography, and the blown out hot spots along the top are a bit distracting. The area of focus may have been better suited if it were shifted slightly to the right to get more of the train in focus.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D TTV Argus Seventy-Five, Tokina AT-X M35 Pro DX AF 35mm f/2.8 Macro 1:1, 1/2 sec at f/8. ISO 200. Monopod and handheld. Cropped in Photoshop Elements 8.0. Phipps Conservatory.

Why This Photo: I liked the idea of old style photos of flowers - almost as if I was out on an expedition back when this Argus camera was just released and exploring and photographing this flower for the first time. I know - I have quite the imagination.

What Works: I love the balance the flowers give with two on one side and one on the other, and the colors really pop in this shot.

What Doesn't Work: The shot is way too over-exposed, and that is unfortunate because the long shutter speed of 1/2 second definitely added to the blur and lack of focus in the shot. Though the colors are nice, they're probably washed out because of the over exposure. The framing of the shot may have worked better to move the orchids up a little in the frame and reducing the empty space towards the top.

I still am just so pleased with this "new" style of photography, and am definitely looking forward to heading back out with this rig. But I do have a good handful more photos from this trip to Phipps, so I'll continue sharing them (I think I still owe you for that sleeper of a post yesterday! ;) haha!)

What do you think? Are you a fan of this TTV stuff? Drop me a comment and give your own critiques of the technique and these photos.

- Bill