*OFFICIAL* general photography conversation thread

[Chewy734]

interesting article on lens genealogy.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by Weebl

Well then, that solves it.
Get another one.

Yeah yeah, that'll work with Wifey. I'll try that one out on her.

Better find a hotel room for the night first.

[Weebl]

Try NYC, Tim has some nice photos of it and you can try out some night time shots.
I told Wifey that I needed 750,000 pennies. She asked if it was for a penny drive and I said, "Uh, yeah!"

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by M_Six

Nice shots as always, Dave. I've been concentrating more and more on getting the shot right and not doing so much post. And even in post, I try to keep it to just tweaking a bit in ACR.

I learned today that the probability of a gorgeous sunset is the inverse of the probability that you have your camera with you. I grabbed the wrong camera bag this morning and this evening on the way home the sky was stunning. I opened the bag to find several lenses, but no body.

Thanks. I do very little post.

I've got an iPhone 4Gs on the way and plan to get more serious about using it as a camera for such occasions as your sunset. I'm going to use it instead of the dslr for some street photography, or such, to get used to it and figure out how to get good results, then when the opportunity presents itself, hopefully, I'll be ready.

[Chewy734]

To followup with my problems with Aperture 3.2...

Aperture 3.2.1 update just got released!

Apple's update for its pro-level photography editing tool resolves an issue that caused the program to quit unexpectedly on launch with Macs using Core Duo processors. It also addresses problems that caused the Crop tool to switch to an incorrect orientation or resize incorrectly and resolves rendering issues when cropping with Onscreen Proofing enabled.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

To followup with my problems with Aperture 3.2...

Aperture 3.2.1 update just got released!

Isn't it sad when we look forward to the release that fixes the last release that we looked forward to, which fixed the last release that...

[Chewy734]

yeah... fortunately this is the first time I've had this issue. And there was a temporary (but annoying) workaround. But now, all is good.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by dcstep

Isn't it sad when we look forward to the release that fixes the last release that we looked forward to, which fixed the last release that...

Yeah, Windows sux. You should switch to Macs. They never have problems.


Oh, wait.....

[panicos81]

hey guys, since you've been talking about computers... my laptop is getting pretty old, and with me taking much more photos trying to process etc. i will be needing a new computer.

do you think it would be better to build a pc for photo/video editing or i was considering the apple mini as well for its portability and limited use of space.. anyone has the mini? is it any good. i'm not much of a computers guy so i cant compare or choose by myself!!

[Chewy734]

If you want to use a Mac, then you don't have many options. If not, then building a computer is the way to go. I'm the owner of a computer company over here that does these sorts of things, so feel free to ask any specific questions you might have. Hopefully I can steer you in the right direction.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by panicos81

hey guys, since you've been talking about computers... my laptop is getting pretty old, and with me taking much more photos trying to process etc. i will be needing a new computer.

do you think it would be better to build a pc for photo/video editing or i was considering the apple mini as well for its portability and limited use of space.. anyone has the mini? is it any good. i'm not much of a computers guy so i cant compare or choose by myself!!

Remember, Apple is a software choice as well as hardware. You'll have to use their software or wait longer for the PC softwares to become available on the Apple.

That said, my yougest daughter is a professional techy (network engineer) and has been running three OSs on her MacBook Pros for years. She's very much admiring the Apple Air. You'll have to evaluate its suitability for your software choices.

On the PC front, Lenovo and HP have some excellent Windows 7 laptops with solid state HDs and great graphics card. Go ahead and get the 64-bit OS and as much memory as you can afford. Also look for USB 3.0 for fast transfer speeds to your next external HD. Programs like Photoshop, Lightroom, DPP, etc. are resource hogs. Going solid-state, 64-bit and generous memory will assure that you can operate for at least a few years before software advances overwhelm your hardware again.

Dave

[M_Six]

We use the Mac Minis at the school for classroom and videoconferencing. They're great for their size and portability and you can load them up with RAM and have a pretty powerful machine. That said, they cost quite a bit in comparison to PCs. For the same funds or less you can build a really nice PC or pay for a high end Windows laptop.

Of course you can run Windows on the Mac Mini as well, so having both OSs to choose from is an advantage. Just remember, if you go with the Mac Mini and lots of RAM and want Windows in Boot Camp mode, install the 64-bit version of Windows to make use of the RAM.

[Chewy734]

got a question for you guys... how are you tagging your photos with GPS coordinates? What program are you using? At what point in your workflow are you tagging?

[oneintheory]

i'm not (:

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

got a question for you guys... how are you tagging your photos with GPS coordinates? What program are you using? At what point in your workflow are you tagging?

I'm doing it when I upload ot Flickr, using their imbedded program. When I archive my Flickr photostream, that data is retained. The disadvantage is that the tag is not on my original file. I suppose that I could go back and add it, but I haven't been.

Dave

[Chewy734]

hmm... So, yesterday I went on a 6 hr drive touring the covered bridges of Ashtabula County. I took my little GPS logger and it worked great. Now, I'm trying to figure out how to tag the photos from my 5D2 that I've imported into Lightroom. What software should I use? When should I do it? Do photo exports retain the geotags? How do I share it with others?

[oneintheory]

if it's embedded in the metadata, then the geotag will remain. if not, you'll probably lose it.

[Chewy734]

That's what I figured. Thanks Josh. I think once I figure out the best way to do this, I'll write up something for everyone in the hopes that it might be useful to you too.

[Chewy734]

This news might make rodi cream himself...

The “Historic” November 3, 2011 Announcement

I was also told that we’ll see at least two compact cine lenses, and possibly a third. No focal lengths were mentioned.

More hints?

Price: sub $15,000 – possible down to $10,000
Image quality: Alexa good
SDI outs
XLRs (audio)
Piviting & detachable monitors and grips
PL mount and EF mount options
Resolution – 4k capture, 2k recording

[Chewy734]

Dave,

Out of curiosity... how do you reframe a shot with that 1 ton 500mm lens? Wouldn't you have to walk a couple hundred feet back and forth, and potentially miss your shot?

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

Dave,

Out of curiosity... how do you reframe a shot with that 1 ton 500mm lens? Wouldn't you have to walk a couple hundred feet back and forth, and potentially miss your shot?

I can select an AF point with my 7D, but usually I just try to keep the single, center point on the subject (eye if at all possible).

Carrying the thing is another thing. You literally do start in the weight room. Since I spent a lot of time, way back when I played football, lifting weights, it only took a few weeks of toating the 500mm before I build up my left triceps and biceps enough to aim. I trompted through the woods for tree-hours Saturday, holding it by the tripod-foot most of the time.

If by reframing you mean reposing, then that's the beauty (problem) with wildlife. They do the posing and it's up to you to catch a special moment before they fly or run off. I spent an hour under camouflage last night, sitting just off a deer trail with perfect sun at my back, hoping that a buck would wander so close that I'd shoot him with my 70-200mm. No such luck. Make's me think about going to the zoo...

Which reminds me, some nature photographers have used posed, captive animals as subjects and claimed that they were wild. That's a big no-no. If I ever shoot a captive animal I'll say so in the title and the tags. Also, I do very little Photoshopping because there are mixed views about that. It's ok to walk out and move a stick, but if you clone it out the firing squad may come and get you.

Dave

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by dcstep

I can select an AF point with my 7D, but usually I just try to keep the single, center point on the subject (eye if at all possible).

Carrying the thing is another thing. You literally do start in the weight room. Since I spent a lot of time, way back when I played football, lifting weights, it only took a few weeks of toating the 500mm before I build up my left triceps and biceps enough to aim. I trompted through the woods for tree-hours Saturday, holding it by the tripod-foot most of the time.

If by reframing you mean reposing, then that's the beauty (problem) with wildlife. They do the posing and it's up to you to catch a special moment before they fly or run off. I spent an hour under camouflage last night, sitting just off a deer trail with perfect sun at my back, hoping that a buck would wander so close that I'd shoot him with my 70-200mm. No such luck. Make's me think about going to the zoo...

Which reminds me, some nature photographers have used posed, captive animals as subjects and claimed that they were wild. That's a big no-no. If I ever shoot a captive animal I'll say so in the title and the tags. Also, I do very little Photoshopping because there are mixed views about that. It's ok to walk out and move a stick, but if you clone it out the firing squad may come and get you.

Dave

I always thought reposing meant the subject would move, and reframing meant the photographer would most-likely move... of course I could be wrong, since I've never taken a photography course.

You sir have a lot of patience... one hour just to maybe capture a deer?

I assume that's why cropping is such an important technique for wildlife photogs? So you don't have to switch lenses or move forward/backward dozens of feet, and potentially miss the shot?