Archive for the Photo Gear Category

  • Playin’ Trains and Another New Lens - November 15th, 2008

    • Today was Steve Fisher’s annual “November is National Model Railroading Month,” and, as always, I go to help out.[Show as slideshow]

    It was also a great opportunity to test out the new (to me) Sigma 24-135mm f/2.8-4.5 lens I picked up as an eBay steal. It’s both wider and longer than my Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8, although [...]

  • Sigma 120-400 Impressive! - November 2nd, 2008

    • I wrote the other day that I would be testing the Sigma APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM lens, and I’ve been writing up my adventures on the CMPG web site. To say that I have been impressed with the results would be an understatement. I’ve included here some images made yesterday at the Sultana Down [...]

  • Testing the Sigma APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM - October 30th, 2008

    • I’ve received the rental Sigma APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM lens. I’ll be posting an ongoing users’ review on the CMPG web site.
    Read the review here.

    Post Revisions:
    30 October, 2008 @ 21:09 by Geren
    30 October, 2008 @ 21:07 by Geren
    30 October, 2008 @ 21:07 by Geren

  • Gimme Two Steps - October 28th, 2008

    • No, I ain’t talkin’ ’bout no country line dance …
    Step One:
    Today I initiated a support request with Canon to start the process of getting our two 70-200mm lenses “back focus” adjusted. I was amazed and impressed to receive a non-computer-generated response from Canon in less than two hours. My note to Canon was, apparantly, specific [...]

  • Probable Lens Solution - October 27th, 2008

    • After a great deal of research, I’ve finally decided what I want to do about my long lens situation:
    Get both of the 70-200mm lenses to Canon and get them properly calibrated. 
    Sell one of the two.
    Get a Sigma APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM.
    Get proper head for tripod.
    Try that with the Canon 2X converter II. If that [...]

  • Moving Onward - October 13th, 2008

    • Okay, the great lens debate is over. The one I have is wrong for birding. Once I figure out what I’m going to do, I’ll let y’all know. In the mean time, I’m going to stop boring you to tears with it.
    In other news, I decided to close AcoustiSound (for real, this time), and let [...]

  • Point of Comparison - October 12th, 2008

    • This morning, I went up to Conowingo. Fellow Canon-shooter Mark kindly volunteered to let me shoot one of his long lenses, just to verify that the lens is what’s at issue. Here are the results:
    First up, we have the Canon 70-200 f/2.8L IS with the 2X converter.
    Canon 70-200 f/2.8L IS + 2X converter on Canon [...]

  • The Bottom Line on my Bad Lens - October 10th, 2008

    • For those who have been following along all these past months as I’ve struggled over the issue of soft pictures from my multi-thousand-dollar lens-and-camera combination, I’ve finally reached what I think is the true conclusion:
    I’m using what is basically the wrong set of tools for the subject, and expecting miracles.
    [I should note here that they [...]

  • Canon’s New 5DmkII as a Video Camera? - September 23rd, 2008

    • One of the features of Canon’s new 5DmkII is the ability to record high definition video. I questioned how truly useful such a feature would be. Videographer Vincent Laforet had the opportunity to throw something together. Obviously, the video has been resized to make viewing on the web realistic, but, the quality looks amazing!
    From Vincent’s [...]

  • Coming to a Conclusion … - September 23rd, 2008

    • Over this past weekend, I made some time to run some more non-scientific tests on the 70-200mm lenses. I shot a whole bunch using Donna’s camera and Donna’s 70-200, with and without the 2X converter. I found the results to be fairly similar to what I was getting with my camera and lens.
    I also took [...]

  • Where Even Camera Bags are Fun - September 19th, 2008

    • I keep hearing about Crumpler bags, and wondered, “What’s the big deal?” I still don’t know what all the hoopla is about, though many of the bag designs look really nice. All of the bags are “modeled” on the site by the intrepid photog shown here. In this shot, he’s sporting a back-pack bag [...]

  • Sunrise on Canon’s New 5D MkII - September 17th, 2008

    • After much speculation, the sun has finally risen on Canon’s upgraded, mid-line, full-frame DSLR. All the poop can be found here and here, or at the dedicated web site, here. From the preliminary info found on Canon’s site, it offers many of the same exciting features as the new 50D — Digic4; big, new display; [...]

  • Canon Intros 50D - September 1st, 2008

    • Canon have just introduced the upgrade to the 40D, which was released last year. The new camera boasts a new 15.1MP CMOS sensor, DIGIC IV processor and a new, 3″ 920,000 pixel rear LCD display.
    Believe it or not, these are not compelling reasons for most people who own 40Ds to upgrade — at least not [...]

  • No Clear Winner - May 24th, 2008

    • Headed out today with the intention of shooting some comparative shots with regards to my continuing 70-200mm f/2.8L IS sharpness issue. Today, comparisons between a 40D body and a Rebel XTi body. I tried to shoot images that were as close to identical as possible.
      This image was made with the 40D, 70-200mm f/2.8L [...]

  • A Beautiful day in the Neighborhood - May 17th, 2008

    • We ventured over to Wilde Lake today for some shooting — twice, actually. I’m still having focus issues, mostly with the 70-200mm lens, and I wanted to run some tests. And, it was a lovely day and we didn’t want to be cooped up in the house for all of it.
    The tests were pretty [...]

  • Hello There! - May 10th, 2008

    • Okay, here’s the "more later" I promised.
    This photograph was made in what might be considered an unusual manner. But, I’ve stumbled on to something that really seems to work well — using a telephoto zoom in conjunction with an extension tube to allow it to focus super-close. In this case, the lens is my Canon [...]

  • And When It Is Good … - May 10th, 2008

    • It is very, very, very good!

    I took this photograph today using the 70-200mm f/2.8L IS that I’ve been off-and-on complaining about. We were at the annual Brookside Gardens Wings of Fancy event, and I was experimenting. More on that in a later posting, but I was so taken with this image that I wanted [...]

  • Autofocus Issues: This Never Occurred to Me… - April 30th, 2008

    • I’ve mentioned here and there (mostly on Flickr) that I’ve been having some intermittent focusing issues which were most noticeable when using the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS lens. I thought perhaps there was a lens issue of some sort, or user error, or both.
    However, someone else has mentioned having similar problems with their 40D [...]

  • Cleared for Landing - January 29th, 2008

    •  We trundled back down to the southern end of Assateague today to take more pictures at the wildlife refuge. Yesterday, I had been frustrated by all of my images appearing fuzzy on the LCD display on the 40D. I had been shooting RAW only, which has a JPEG thumbnail embedded for preview purposes. However, it [...]

  • The World’s Most Portable Monopod - January 25th, 2008

    • This video shows a really simple — and cheap — method of reducing camera shake:
    $1 Image Stabilizer For Any Camera - Lose The Tripod - The most amazing home videos are here
    This idea is, by no means, a new thing. This video just shows how to put it together very succinctly. Theoretically, [...]

  • (Most Of) A Day At The Faire - October 1st, 2007

    • We spent most of yesterday at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. We were supposed to spend the whole day, but some miscommunications caused us to have to leave earlier then we had planned. There was still time to get some good pictures, though, and we’ll be going back for a full day of fun and [...]

  • Canon 40D Update - September 4th, 2007

    • While we were away, dpreview.com got a preliminary review posted for the new Canon 40D. Included are some tasty sample pictures taken with a “beta” version of the camera. One word: Wow!
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • Nikon Says, "Me, too!" - August 23rd, 2007

    • Fast on the heels of Canon’s announcement of two new ante-upping DSLR models, Nikon cries, “Me, too!”
    Nikon’s web site this morning carries press releases for a new D300 as well as a new model D3. The specs on the D300 are skimpy in the press release, and those given don’t look particularly earth-shattering, especially at [...]

  • It’s Official! - August 20th, 2007

    • Yes, we’re back to a discussion of toys. But, if this site has any particular theme at all, it’s toys, I guess. And most of the toys are probably photographic in nature. So, here goes…
    Canon have finally put the 40D up on their web site. Of all the features listed, to me, the most [...]

  • Canon EOS 40D — Another Step Towards Reality - August 19th, 2007

    • Well, the much anticipated Canon EOS 40D looks to be another step closer to reality. Amazon now has a listing for the camera body, with a price point exactly as I anticipated — $1300.
    [EDIT - The link has been removed from the Amazon web site. Looks like someone released early!]
    [EDIT 7/20/07 - New links to [...]

  • 23 Online Retailers Canon Warns Against Using - August 9th, 2007

    • Recently, in a forum thread on a major photo site, a fellow posted a warning. He had ordered a Canon Rebel XTi from Broadway Photo (http://www.bwayphoto.com) for some incredible price. What he received was a Canon KISS Digital. Now, the KISS is the same camera as the Rebel XTi and the EOS 400D, but it’s supposed [...]

  • 40D Looks More Real Now … Maybe - August 8th, 2007

    • I’ll believe it when I touch it.
    I’ve been staying out of the Canon 40D rumor mill. Sure, I’ve been keeping my eyes and ears open. But, I’ve not really said much except that, with the release of the rumored camera pushed further and further out, we decided to get Rebel XTi bodies, and concentrate on [...]

  • Canon Publications On Line - July 31st, 2007

    • Canon in Europe have put up four sets of publications highlighting various aspects of photography. While they’re specific to Canon gear, many of the concepts in these little publications apply equally to all brands of camera gear. Two of the booklets, Using Image Stabilizer Lenses and Do More With Macro are included in the [...]

  • When Simple Works! - July 23rd, 2007

    • I’m usually not one to go ga-ga over a product (well, sometimes I do), especially when it’s as “simple” as this one. But, after this past weekend, I do believe that if you’re shooting weddings or location portraits, there’s nothing out there that can improve the lighting in your pictures more than this deceptively [...]

  • Summer Fun With a Big Lens - July 9th, 2007

    • This past weekend was spent at my parent’s place on the Eastern Shore, and, even though it was un-godly hot, we made a couple of trips over to Assateague to take some pictures. I’ve uploaded some pictures to a new set at Flickr, and I’ll be adding to this set over the next couple of days. [...]

  • Sigma UK Robbed - July 6th, 2007

    • The offices and warehouse of Sigma Imaging (UK) Ltd were broken into on the night of Friday 15th June.
    Click here to learn more.
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • Amazing … and Incredible - July 4th, 2007

    • Image stabilization … Yes, it’s a good thing. Maybe even a great thing, making the impossible, well, at least contemplatable.
    We went down to Penn Camera, and picked up a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lens and the related Canon 2X tele-extender for it. Yes, I know:
    $$OUCH$$ (But worth every penny)
    The picture at [...]

  • A New Religion - June 24th, 2007

    • I mentioned yesterday that we bought Donna all new kit, as far as photo gear goes. The most amazing piece of all that stuff is the Canon 70-300 f/4.5-5.6 IS USM lens. The key to all it’s photographic goodness are those two little letters, IS. Working with that lens allowed both of us to get [...]

  • Another Canon for our Arsenal - June 23rd, 2007

    • We made an excursion to see our friend Don at Penn Camera today, with the idea of getting Donna switched over to a Canon before our heavy (?) wedding schedule starts. The plan was to put Donna’s hands on everything — and mine, too — to develop a little bit of a strategy for future [...]

  • Feeding Birds, Revisited - June 7th, 2007

    • I went into Photoshop and tweaked up one of the birdie pictures from yesterday — a little more sharpening, a little more color balance, etc.

    The original posted image was processed in Lightroom, and some of the controls in that program are much more subtle (and maybe a little more refined) than those in Photoshop [...]

  • Reasonably Satisfied - June 6th, 2007

    • I may be getting the hang of this digiscoping setup. With the Casio, I’m able to get images that are consistently good enough for posting to web sites, and I’ve made a few that are printable, if only to 4×6. One thing that is bugging me, though, is that focus appears to shift a little [...]

  • Flutterings — In Motion! - June 6th, 2007

    • Okay, this is some funky video I made of the birdies at the feeder, through the spotting scope, using the little Casio digicam as a video recorder [NOTE: the quality was much better before YouTube got a hold of it! It looks fantastic on DVD!]. This is just too slick…
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for [...]

  • Testing, Testing … Is This Thing On? - June 6th, 2007

    • As I mentioned a few days ago, I dropped and broke my little cheapie point-n-shoot digital camera. It really wasn’t worth repairing, even though I did really like it. Because of that, I’ve been in the market for a nice little point-n-shoot that would make a nice picture, and that may even work well [...]

  • Portrait in Two Lights - June 1st, 2007

    • We made this portrait last night — late! — using only two monolights and a reflector. In all honesty, I could have used a third light, but at the moment, I don’t have one that I can easily slave to with the Alien Bees B400s.
    Believe it or not, as nice as the Nikon SB800, [...]

  • Digiscoping and the Canon Rebel XTi (400d) - May 31st, 2007

    • I just happened across a UK site authored by a fellow who uses a Canon 400d along with a P&S for digiscoping. From what he’s written, it seems my approach using the generic adapter will work okay.
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • More on Digiscoping - May 30th, 2007

    • I’ve pretty much figured out what I’m going to need to put this digiscoping rig together. It will not be the fanciest or most expensive in the world. It won’t have Nikon or Carl Zeiss or Swarovski optics. But, the scope and the camera attachments will be under $300, tax included. That money will net me an Alpen [...]

  • P&S Replacement - May 30th, 2007

    • One thing that I failed to mention yesterday or on Sunday was that I managed to drop my little Panasonic DMC-LZ2 digital point-and-shoot camera. Which is a real bummer, since it was a great little camera — and not a bad choice to use for digiscoping, which is something I’ve decided I want to fool around with. However, [...]

  • A Matter of Direction - May 29th, 2007

    • Back on Sunday, I wrote about my trials while trying to shoot bird photos with my 75-300mm lens. And, I mentioned a possible solution being to get a 70-200mm f/2.8 and a 2X tele-converter to come up with a 400mm f/5.6 lens. Realistically, though, 400mm is only a 25% increase over a 300mm lens — [...]

  • The Ones That Get Away - May 27th, 2007

    •  
    Yesterday morning, I went on a “bird walk” that was organized by our local wild bird supply store. It’s the place where we buy most of our seed and other goodies for the feathered friends who are not our pets, but still make a pretty good stab at eating us out of house and home. Anyway, [...]

  • An Intervalometer for the Rebel XTi - May 17th, 2007

    • One of the things I gave up when deciding to purchase the XTi over the 30D was the ability to use Canon’s TC80-N3 Intervalometer/wired remote. While there is another wired remote available for the XTi (and several other Canon DSLR cameras that can’t use the TC80-N3), the only way to do time-lapse photography with these [...]

  • Value(?) of UV Filters - May 12th, 2007

    • One of the topics that pops up on photo forums again and again and again is the relative merit of using a UV filter. Some people insist that you should always use one, if for no other reason than to “protect the lens.” But, putting a filter on a lens, no matter what the filter, [...]

  • More Bees - May 2nd, 2007

    • Yeah, I know there’s stuff I should be working on…

    Here’s another tricky one! This time, it’s an old pewter pitcher against the white background. I found that if I used the same setup from the previous shot, I lost all detail on the right side, except for the arc of the handle. So, I [...]

  • Shootin’ With the Bees - May 2nd, 2007

    • Our Alien Bees B400 monolights arrived yesterday, and I’m spending a couple of hours this morning working with them, just to get some idea of how they’re going to perform. So far, I’m pretty pleased.

    This image is a difficult one, and it’s what I decided to attempt first — a mostly black subject with [...]

  • But Wait, There’s More - April 26th, 2007

    • I finally got around to ordering/downloading/installing Adobe’s Lightroom program. I wanted to take advantage of their $100-off introductory pricing.

    After having played with the public beta versions, and even with the original trial version, I must say that the final release version is a vastly different program, at least under the skin. Loading and operating [...]

  • What’s The Buzz? - April 26th, 2007

    • As you know, we’ve been busy here, upgrading equipment for our photographic business, Orchard Studios. With a new camera, from Canon instead of Nikon, came the need to make a decision about new flash equipment. To this point, we’ve been using Nikon’s wireless “creative lighting system,” based around an SB-800 and a pair of SB-600 [...]

  • On Fire! - April 20th, 2007

    • Since it was such a gorgeous day (and since I’d just picked up a Tokina 12-24mm f/4 wide-angle zoom for the Canon), Donna and I decided to head down to Brookside Gardens after she got off work today.
    In honesty, the light was mostly too harsh, but, I figured I’d go ahead a shoot. It’s not as if I [...]

  • Given a Choice … - April 18th, 2007

    • I went down to Penn Camera today to buy a couple of new lenses, one of which was planned to be a Tamron 70-300mm f/4-5.6 zoom. I took my camera with me, so I could try the lens out before bringing it home. While I was there, I compared it against the Canon 70-300mm f/4-5.6 [...]

  • The XTi Report … - April 10th, 2007

    • The XTi is off probation, for sure. If you haven’t already, check out some of the images on this site or my flickr stream. I did find some of interesting things, though ….

    If you have the ISO set too high in bright light, the image will be horrible. In other words, shooting ISO 1600 in bright light yields a [...]

  • We Are Back … - April 10th, 2007

    • Well, folks, we are back from our trip to Williamsburg. We rolled in around 10:30 last night. I’ll try to get some “trip wrap-up” pictures posted today — I was just too exhausted to do it last night.
    The laptop (remember the laptop?) seems to have been able to get over at least some of its [...]

  • Colonial Statement? - April 6th, 2007

    • This was about the first thing we saw once we finally made it to the historic area of Williamsburg. A little odd, we thought, this being Easter weekend, and all.
    We wondered around the area, generally scoping out for shooting for the next couple of days. I pushed the XTi a bit, doing pretty much [...]

  • Nikon CLS v. Canon E-TTL II - April 4th, 2007

    • Previously, I promised that I’d comment on some of the tidbits I’ve gleaned from various documentation about Canon’s E-TTL II flash and the corresponding wireless control, and how it relates to the Nikon CLS system.
    From a basic standpoint, they’re pretty much the same thing. Both systems allow for wireless remote control of a number of [...]

  • Couldn’t Do This Yesterday - April 4th, 2007

    • I wouldn’t even have tried this shot with the D70s. This is a German Dwarf Ram swimming around in our aquarium. It’s not a perfect image, but, here are some particulars:
    f/3.2 at 1/125, ISO 1600, using available light. Lens is the Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 on the Rebel XTi.
    [Update: Forgot to mention -- this is [...]

  • Like an OM1, Only Digital - April 4th, 2007

    • Some of you may remember back to the early seventies, when Olympus introduced the OM1.  It was, very simply, the smallest 35mm full-frame SLR made.
    It was an excellent camera, coupled with superb optics that rivaled the Nikkor, Canon and even Leica lenses of the day. But, man!, was it small! When I chose my first 35mm SLR in the late [...]

  • Bounce Adapter for Sigma Flash - April 3rd, 2007

    •  This struck me as pretty funny. In an era where everything has to be fancy and expensive …
    This is the bounce flash adapter sold by Sigma for their 500-series flash units. According to the Sigma web site:

    Soft and natural lighting with a surface light source.
    A three dimensional effect is created, making this an ideal accessory [...]

  • If I Only Had A (insert gizmo here) - March 20th, 2007

    • My friend, Steven, sent me this What the Duck strip the other day.
    At first, I wondered to myself, ”What’re you saying, Steve?”
    Of course, this has come shortly after my commentaries on wanting to ”upgrade” from my current Nikon D70s camera to a Canon 30D — in the name of better image quality. I’ve done a whole buttload of [...]

  • Damn, Damn, Damn, Damn, Damn! - March 15th, 2007

    • With no announcement of a mid-line replacement camera for the Canon 30D, the prices have started going — back UP! Bah!
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • PMA Disappointment - March 13th, 2007

    • PMA07 is now over, and I must admit to being a little disappointed in some of the new releases, as far as D-SLR cameras are concerned.
    Canon introduced nothing in the middle- or low-end, instead offering up only a new top-of-the-line camera. With the 30D being on the streets for just about a year [...]

  • Shutter Lag in D-SLRs - March 8th, 2007

    • As you know, I’ve been doing a bunch of detailed research on D-SLRs for the past couple of weeks. One thing I’ve started to run across is a spec for shutter lag — the time between pressing the shutter button, and the time the shutter actually fires. With point-and-shoot digitals, this time is often excrutiatingly [...]

  • Following Up On Image Quality - March 7th, 2007

    • Some friends have been trying to convince me that my decision to switch back to Canon may not be the best one I could make. Of course, they are acting in my best interest — trying to save me from spending more money than I have to. And, I appreciate that.
    One has suggested that I examine [...]

  • Oh, How I Hate to be Wrong - March 4th, 2007

    • If knowledge can create problems, it is not through ignorance that we can solve them.
    — Isaac Asimov

    I generally pride myself of doing a fair amount of research before I make a major purchasing decision. But, it appears that, in the long run, I’ve done a pretty good job of mucking up when it came to deciding [...]

  • Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Finally Released - January 29th, 2007

    • After several months of the open beta test project, Adobe have finally offered Lightroom for sale!
    For a limited time, the software is available for 1/3 off! (only through the Adobe web site).
    New Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroomâ„¢ software is the professional photographer’s essential toolbox, providing one easy application for managing, adjusting, and presenting large volumes of digital [...]

  • I Must Be Crazy! - January 21st, 2007

    • Coming up in the next couple of weeks, we have consultations with two couples to shoot their weddings. This evening, Donna asked me in an e-mail if I thought we needed to buy a D200 to replace one of our D70s’s in support of these jobs.
    I told her no.
    Here was a chance to get a [...]

  • Tulip Deconstruction 1 - January 18th, 2007

    • These images (yesterday’s Yellow Rose Cavern, and today’s Tulip Deconstruction 1) are my first attempts at using extension tubes. Here’s the story.
    The van was in the shop yesterday — again – so I had to drive Donna to and from work. On the way home, we stopped into Harbor Freight Tools to get a heavy-duty cart [...]

  • Russian Camera Store - January 13th, 2007

    • Some folks have a penchant for Russian photo gear, and with good reason. Some of it is of very high quality, but at very attractive pricing. This morning, I have found a US store that deals exclusively in Russian import items. I know nothing about their reputation, but, you can check them out at http://www.rugift.com.
    I [...]

  • How to Read a [Camera] Manual - January 12th, 2007

    • From Lindsay Silverman, over at NikonNet: the proper way to read a manual.
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • Patterns of Nature - December 30th, 2006

    • We had a CMPG outing today at Brookside Gardens, in Wheaton. The folks there were nice enough to let us, as a group, come in an hour before opening time so that we could use our tripods in the conservatory (during regular hours, no tripods are allowed inside) and give us great access to the [...]

  • What’s in My Bag? - December 27th, 2006

    • We made another trip to Penn this evening …
    My regular photo “kit” now includes the following:

    Nikon D70s body
    Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 zoom
    Tokina 12-24mm f/4 zoom
    Tamron 70-300mm f/4-5.6 zoom
    Nikon SB-800 flash
    Extra battery and CF cards
    Cokin filters and adapter rings for Tamron lenses
    B+W circular polarizer for Tokina 12-24mm zoom
    Lens and sensor cleaning supplies
    Bogen 3021N tripod with Bogen 488RC2 [...]

  • Well, So Much for That - December 22nd, 2006

    • Yesterday, I wrote about not falling pray to the lure of all that photographic goodness at the camera store. Last night, we went to Penn Camera, to look at and possibly purchase a macro lens for Donna. She ended up ordering a Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro lens. In fairness, I did say that she probably [...]

  • DIY Ring Light - October 3rd, 2006

    • Have you always wanted a ring-light, but couldn’t afford one? Here’s an article at The Strobist that shows how to make your own and not break the bank. In fact, there are so many great lighting tips there that I’ve added a big ‘ol link to the sidebar, so you can’t miss it!
    Post Revisions:There are [...]

  • Canon ups D-SLR Ante - August 24th, 2006

    • Canon have announced thier newest D-SLR, in response to Nikon’s new D-80. The new camera sports a 10.1MP imager with a CCD cleaning system similar to that found on the latest Olympus eVolt models. Canon has chosen to stick with standard CF cards with thier new model (Nikon switched to SD cards), and has kept pricing [...]

  • More D80 Comments - August 9th, 2006

    • Thom Hogan makes some interesting comments about the new Nikon D80.
    However, in a couple of areas, he’s a bit off the mark. For instance, he asserts that there’s no reason to by a D70s, because “the D80 outfeatures the D70s in so many ways at not much more price…” I’m sorry, but a $300 price [...]

  • The New Nikon - August 9th, 2006

    • For the first time Nikon has launched a new camera without trademarking it…
    This new camera is the natural successor to the D70/D70s with a refreshed design, user interface and a wide range of new features. Headline improvements are; 10.2 mp CCD, new image processing engine, 3D Color Matrix Metering II, 11-area AF system, configurable Auto [...]

  • Prints Like Polaroid? - August 2nd, 2006

    • As some may know, I recently replaced yet another printer. This time, the new printer is an HP Photosmart 8250. I really like the print quality, the speed and the pricing. But, I’ve noticed a couple somethings that are a little odd …
    For test prints and “contact sheets,” I don’t really like to use the [...]

  • The D-SLR I’d Love to See - July 20th, 2006

    • With all the new D-SLRs out and coming out (Pentax has two new models, Nikon’s got a new one on the way), I’d like to comment on a boat I think has been missed.
    How ’bout a Pentax K1000D, a Nikon F2D or a Canon F1D? Some of you may not even recognized the lineage of [...]

  • Need aNother New Nikon Now? - July 20th, 2006

    • In just under three weeks, and hot on the heels of the D2Xs, Nikon will unveil another new D-SLR, suspected to be something of a “D80/90″, whatever exactly that is. Some of you may remember that we’ve just bought a pair of D70s’s.
    This, of course, has happened to me before. I bought the Minolta DiMage A1, [...]

  • Simple Softbox - July 10th, 2006

    • softbox
    Originally uploaded by Zepofan.

    Well, then, making a softbox just doesn’t get much simpler than this:

    Get a cardboard box.
    Cut an H-shape into the back big enough for your flash head to poke through. The “ears” become the way to attach the box to the strobe.
    Line the box with reflective material, such as aluminum foil, or spray [...]

  • Termination of Ponderance - June 29th, 2006

    • After a great deal of thought over the course of the day, and a little bit of “hands-on” at Penn Camera this evening, I came to a conclusion regarding the choice between the RB67 w/50mm lens, and the superwide zoom lens for the Nikon.
    The logical choice was the Tokina 12-24mm F4 zoom to put on [...]

  • Torn - June 29th, 2006

    • I’m torn. I’ve been pretty hyped up about buying a Mamiya RB67 medium format film camera, and a 50mm lens for it (about the widest they made, equivalent to about a 24mm lens for a 35mm camera). That 6×7cm image would yield, with my current scanner, about a 36megapixel image to play with. I can [...]

  • More on Nikon’s Creative Lighting System - June 9th, 2006

    • I’ve mentioned recently that the new Nikon CLS flash system is pretty cool. And, now that Donna’s got her D70s and an SB-600, I was able to really experiment with the system (using the on-camera Speedlight as the master control flash, and our two SB-600s).
    The setup for the three shots of Donna is pretty [...]

  • Photo Gear for Sale - June 5th, 2006

    • For those interested, I have a few bits of photo gear for sale, namely, the Minolta DiMage A1 camera, the DiMage A2 camera, the Minolta 3600HS(D) flash and a cable release that will work on either camera. I also have for sale a Promaster FTD7000 flash for use with most modern Nikon film cameras. All [...]

  • Welcome, Donna, to The Fold - June 1st, 2006

    • Two silver-and-red bags, holding two golden boxes later, and Donna is now the proud owner of a spanking-new Nikon D70s (w/18-70mm lens), a Nikon SB-600 flash, and most of the assorted gizmos to go with them! In the next couple of weeks, I too will probably be picking up one of the 18-70mm lenses — [...]

  • D70s First Images - April 2nd, 2006

    • D70s First Images
    Uploaded by gerenm.

    D70s First Images
    Uploaded by gerenm.

    D70s First Images
    Uploaded by gerenm.

    Here are a few of my first images with the D70s. The lens in use is a Sigma 28-135mm f3.8-5.6, and I’ve got the SB-600 flash with a [...]

  • New (Work)Horse in the Stable - April 1st, 2006

    • Oh, boy, did I ever do it today …
    Nikon dropped the price on the D70s by $200, and so, after a van-filling trip to Ikea, Donna and I rolled in to see John at Penn Camera. I came away with a D70s body, an extra battery, an SB-600 flash, Stroboframe, diffuser, off-camera flash cable and [...]

  • Sony DSC-R1 - February 17th, 2006

    • Sony DSC-R1
    Uploaded by gerenm.

    One very cool camera…
    This is a 10+ megapixel advanced compact digital camera, with a twist. Literally.
    The 2″ LCD display stores in the top of the “prism”, and can be turned, twisted and tilted to be viewed from just about any position. As shown, it’s very much like [...]

  • Bad Boy and the LUMIX DMC-LZ2 - February 16th, 2006

    • LUMIX DMC-LZ2
    Uploaded by gerenm.

    I was a bad boy yesterday. I went into the local CompUSA for a package of DVD+R media, and came away with a new digital camera.
    I’ve been wanting a fairly decent point-n-shoot digital for a while now. It’s nice to be able to “carry,” while not having [...]

  • Pentax Lowers Boom on D-SLR Pricing - February 4th, 2006

    • Pentax have dropped the price on their *ist-DL digital SLR camera by $200, making the street price, with 18-55mm (27-83mm equiv) lens only $599! Even their best current production model, the *ist-DS2 has a street price of only $750 (body only).
    Information on the Pentax *ist D-SLR cameras can be found here.
    I can only see a [...]

  • A True D-SLR with Live View LCD? - January 28th, 2006

    • Leave it to Olympus. They’ve introduced the new EVOLT E-330, a true D-SLR with live-view capabilities on the mult-position, 2.5″ rear mounted LCD.
    Very cool.
    I think it’s mirrors.
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • Konica Minolta to Call it Quits! - January 20th, 2006

    • Yes, it’s true. Konica-Minolta will cease to produce 35mm and digital camera products effective March 31 of this year. Much of their digital technology will be transferred to Sony. Details are here.
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • New Tripod - January 13th, 2006

    • One of the rewards of the recent photoshoot, and my upcoming birthday, was being able to get a new tripod. I’ve been using a set of Bogen 3011N legs with a Bogen 486RC2 ball head. The 3011N legs are excellent, but they often came up short — literally, they often weren’t tall enough.
    Sunday, Donna and [...]

  • What … A … Bargain !!! - October 26th, 2005

    • via Shutterbug e-newsletter
    There’s a blurb in Shutterbug’s e-newsletter this month about the new Olympus E-Volt 500 Digital SLR, which you can read here:

    Olympus has introducesd the new EVOLT E-500, a full-featured sub-$1000 digital SLR camera. Designed to be used by all photographers of any skill level, the E-500’s compact and durable body is packed with [...]

  • Round and Round and Round They Go - September 5th, 2005

    • I learned something new about my camera (the Konica-Minolta DiMAGE A2) today. It seems that if you rotate an image in-camera when previewing them, it will flag the image as being a vertical so that you don’t have to rotate the image when you copy it to the PC. So, providing I have the time [...]

  • Konica-Minolta Announce New D-SLR - August 21st, 2005

    • This may be old news to some, but, I recently discovered that Konica-Minolta have announced a new D-SLR — the Maxxum 5D, seemingly in answer Canon’s Digital Rebel XT and the Nikon D50. B&H list the body price at under U$800, and at just under U$900 with an 18-70mm lens.
    A quick review of the web [...]

  • Exploring Options - July 26th, 2005

    • The point of all this is that I’ve got plenty of options, and the experimentation phase will be interesting and educational.

  • Nikon Camera Information Source - July 22nd, 2005

    • In some research I’ve been doing, I’ve come across this great resource for information on older Nikon cameras.
    More to follow in a later post, sometime over the weekend…
    Post Revisions:There are no revisions for this post.

  • Matching Vests and Hiking Shoes - May 22nd, 2005

    • Noted nature photographer Timothy Edberg came and spoke at the CMPG meeting last week. The main point of his talk was on lens selection for nature and landscape photography, but he also shared with us some of his thoughts on gear.
    In a lot of ways, Tim’s pretty “old school” in his thinking — not that [...]

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