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Ha! I really just had to laugh at this one…

As a lot of you know, I try to occasionally watch visitor paths, search engine referrals, and in general what are leading people to the site here..

This afternoon, someone Googled: “Ryan is awesome”, and I was/am the first site Google refers to… I literally laughed aloud.. Just thought I’d share that even Google agrees…… I am awesome! :]

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Just a random photo for today..

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It’s been a while since I’ve mentioned it, but I’m still in the running for the Best Photography Blog over at Bloggers Choice Awards.. As it currently sits, I don’t stand a chance at winning, but hey, it’s an honor to have been nominated and I’m grateful for the votes I’ve received which as of right now is 47.

To those of you who’ve already voted, thank you so much!!

Head on over and check it out, there are a lot of great blogs listed in numerous categories.

And feel free to vote for me here if you like… :]

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So, this week I have a birthday (Friday actually), and no, I am not saying how old…..

This year has flown by and again I find myself having to apologize for the slowdown in posting, and the near halt to stopping by a lot or your sites to comment.. I’ve just been overly busy..

I’ll be shooting more in the following months, and thus will be more active getting photos online.

I trust you all have been well. :]

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As promised, here are some photos from the trip up to Drummond Island over Labor Day weekend. I’m sorry I’m late posting these, but thought better later than ever.

We had absolutely wonderful weather and were able to spend a lot of time out on the boat lounging and fishing. The fishing wasn’t the most amazing, although we did manage to catch a few perch.

To get to Drummond Island, we headed North and crossed the 5 mile long Mackinac Bridge into the Upper Peninsula. From there you go east to the far Eastern tip of Michigan, then take a ferry over to the island!

So here are a few images from the weekend.. Keep reading →

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I‘m back from a little extended weekend getaway to beautiful Drummond Island, which is about a mile off the Eastern tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It was absolutely gorgeous.. I’ll get some photos posted later.

Have a great day everyone!!

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I‘ve always wanted to try this, and never really got around to doing it until recently.. I’ve always been a bit of a car nut, and really like those low angle shots showing the car driving with motion in the shot, while the vehicle is in clear focus. So, I set out on a self-assigned photo project…

Keep reading to see how I did it… Keep reading →

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Occasionally I give you all an update on the blog, so here it goes.. Although I have been a major slacker lately, and have been terrible at posting with any degree of regularity, a lot of you still check in daily, and I am as grateful as ever..

From the beginning of the year ( and the beginning of the blog) until now, Ryan’s Calamity has logged 13,009 unique visitors. WOW!

There was some great search strings that led people here, and I’ll have to update this later with some of the funny ones, but I’ve gotten a TON of hits on my Safrotto camera bag reviews.. So much so that Safrotto should send me a couple bags free of charge! Also, Gitzo, you reading this? I have raved about your tripods, and I am in need of a new one. :]

As always, to all my very faithful readers, I’m continually surprised and appreciative for your continued daily visits. Thank you..

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This is an update to a review on the Safrotto bag I posted a while back HERE

After roughly 9 months of daily abuse, this bag is holding up extremely well, and I’ve had absolutely no issues with it. Please keep in mind that as a professional photographer who does a variety of photo assignments from commercial to portrait work, I am very demanding on my equipment, and a months worth of use is probably equivalent to 5 or 6 months for the average hobbyist. This bag literally goes with me every day and sees constant use.

The Safrotto is very well laid out, with plenty of room for my Nikon D2h with my Nikon 70-200 VR f2.8 attached. The D2h is a huge pro camera, and the 70-200 is very large lens. Its a tight fit, but it works. There’s also room for my backup Nikon D70.

I always have my Nikon 18-70 lens with me, as well as a pair of pocket wizards, memory cards, SB-600 flash, extra batteries, card reader, credentials and business cards, pc sync cables, lens cloths and brushes, and my iPod for tunes on the road. I also occasionally bring a couple extra lenses, and my Kata rain cover when the weather looks like it may pose a problem.

The large padded “mailman’s” strap is just perfect. The strap provides plenty of padding and the bottom is a very grippy rubber, which ensures a non-slip grip on your shoulder.

I really can’t think of anything that I’d change with it. Its large enough to carry more gear than most would require, but is still very lightweight. The canvas it’s made from contours to your body nicely, while still doing a good job of protecting your equipment.

Shooting out of this bag has been great, and it look s like it’ll hold up to many years of abuse. If you’re in the market for a new bag and are considering one of the Domke jounalist bags, do yourself a favor and take a look at the Safrotto. Best of all is about half the price!

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