***DSLR/Photography MegaThread***
- Thread starter nocturn
- Start date
FBJ is owning this tread as of late 
Nice shot of the mantissesesessi.
So in a splurge, I purchased my first studio strobe, an Alien Bees B800, stand, 60" shoot through umbrella, and a couple of the ebay radio slaves. This will compliment my 580ex which I have done the PC port mod on so I can use it with the radio slaves. I was really leaning toward going all the Strobist route and making my whole lighting kit with all hot shoe flashes, but I have found I don't travel around much with my flashes and most of the time when I need them I know I have to set up the whole kit anyway, so I opted for the bigger flash which will let me light the bigger umbrella.
Getting into lighting feels like a very slippery slope, when I was first starting, it was all about scrounging money for the next lens, now I find myself thinking about the next light modifier.
I'll let you guys know how the Alien Bee does, they are supposed to be pretty good for the very low cost, the biggest strike I see against it is it only has 5 stops of power adjustment (so only down to 1/32 power), hopefully that won't kill me.
Nice shot of the mantissesesessi.So in a splurge, I purchased my first studio strobe, an Alien Bees B800, stand, 60" shoot through umbrella, and a couple of the ebay radio slaves. This will compliment my 580ex which I have done the PC port mod on so I can use it with the radio slaves. I was really leaning toward going all the Strobist route and making my whole lighting kit with all hot shoe flashes, but I have found I don't travel around much with my flashes and most of the time when I need them I know I have to set up the whole kit anyway, so I opted for the bigger flash which will let me light the bigger umbrella.
Getting into lighting feels like a very slippery slope, when I was first starting, it was all about scrounging money for the next lens, now I find myself thinking about the next light modifier.
I'll let you guys know how the Alien Bee does, they are supposed to be pretty good for the very low cost, the biggest strike I see against it is it only has 5 stops of power adjustment (so only down to 1/32 power), hopefully that won't kill me.
Lighting is like Greek to me. That's something I'd really like to take a class on. One that specifically delves into using the hotshoe flash on your camera.
I do okay by playing with flash compensation values and bouncing the flash off ceilings or walls (which is how I shot the mantis above), but I'd really like to be given some instruction on how to light more dynamic scenes with my speedlight and maybe one other set up remotely as a slave.
I do okay by playing with flash compensation values and bouncing the flash off ceilings or walls (which is how I shot the mantis above), but I'd really like to be given some instruction on how to light more dynamic scenes with my speedlight and maybe one other set up remotely as a slave.
Bouncing is a good start. I know I have gone on and on about this Strobist guy, but I really learned a LOT from reading through his stuff and trying out the challenges he lays out in his lighting 101 and lighting 102. It's main focus is off camera lighting, but I think it getting cool looking shots is a lot easier with off camera than with on camera, and once you start to understand off camera, it makes getting cool looking on camera shots a lot easier.
One of the things that really helped me with my on camera shots was something like this Better Bounce Card. There are a lot of variations out there, but this is super cheap, you can make it yourself, it is very flexible in the quality of light you can get from it, and it is pretty unobtrusive. I would suggest not really watching his videos as they can be really long a boring, and not very informative, but they do at least show you how to use and make your own bounce card.
The SB-800 has a built-in bounce card that can be extended and retracted. It's not very big, though. I was thinking of getting a better diffuser for it for indoor shots.
Thing is, I don't do a whole lot of indoor stuff to begin with, but I would like to learn how to use the flash properly.
Thing is, I don't do a whole lot of indoor stuff to begin with, but I would like to learn how to use the flash properly.
Here is something for FBJ because you like planes and cameras. This is the Zenfolio site of a KC-135 pilot who takes a lot of pics while he is flying. He has some gorgeous shots, I would say you should try taking some along this line but I imagine SWA probably wouldn't take so kindly to you whipping out your D200 during rotation
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http://www.shopcartusa.com/P_Nikon%...uction)_Nikkor_70-200_2139/PT_Y/?ic_campID=98
Holy SHART! $1039 for the 70-200 f/2.8 VR Nikon?
I call bull****! It's GOT to be either a fake or a refurb. That's a full $600 less than it normally streets for.
Holy SHART! $1039 for the 70-200 f/2.8 VR Nikon?
I call bull****! It's GOT to be either a fake or a refurb. That's a full $600 less than it normally streets for.
Yeah, the Best Price Camera guys who are selling it for that price got a 0.51 out of 10 rating on resellerrating.com. Of all the guys on that list, Abe's of Maine is the only one I would even think about buying something from, and they are kind of a pain to deal with. For comparison shopping I would stick to either resellerratings.com or pricegrabber.com, and in the end after all the searching I seem to always end up just buying from B&H or Adorama (through Amazon to throw the wife off the track )
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I just ordered the TC-20E 2x teleconverter from B&H for a GREAT price of $299.
I can't find anything that will tell me the difference between teh TC-20E and the TC-20E II teleconverters, though. One is a newer model (the II) but I can't figure out the difference, spec wise. Price-wise, it's about $150, though.
EDIT: Found this:
http://www.momentcorp.com/review/nikon_tc-20e.html
"There is no optical difference between the TC-20E and the TC-20E II."
It says in that review that I'll lose some sharpness and contrast. I've not heard that before, though I can imagine this might be true since you're sending the light through seven more elements with the teleconverter installed.
Either way, I'll have the 70-200 f/2.8 VR or the 70-200 f/2.8 VR + 2x teleconverter (equaling 140-400 f/5.6). That's a digital equivalent of 105-300mm or 210-600mm!!
By buying the 70-200 lens and the teleconverter, I figure I've got more flexibility than if I were to buy the 80-400 lens by itself. The 70-200 will give me a consistent aperture throughout its focal lengths (instead of ranging from f/4.5-5.6 as the 80-400 will) and I've still got the vibration reduction.
I can't find anything that will tell me the difference between teh TC-20E and the TC-20E II teleconverters, though. One is a newer model (the II) but I can't figure out the difference, spec wise. Price-wise, it's about $150, though.
EDIT: Found this:
http://www.momentcorp.com/review/nikon_tc-20e.html
"There is no optical difference between the TC-20E and the TC-20E II."
It says in that review that I'll lose some sharpness and contrast. I've not heard that before, though I can imagine this might be true since you're sending the light through seven more elements with the teleconverter installed.
Either way, I'll have the 70-200 f/2.8 VR or the 70-200 f/2.8 VR + 2x teleconverter (equaling 140-400 f/5.6). That's a digital equivalent of 105-300mm or 210-600mm!!
By buying the 70-200 lens and the teleconverter, I figure I've got more flexibility than if I were to buy the 80-400 lens by itself. The 70-200 will give me a consistent aperture throughout its focal lengths (instead of ranging from f/4.5-5.6 as the 80-400 will) and I've still got the vibration reduction.
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The 2x teleconverter arrived this morning and after I got the kid down for her nap, I played with it a bit.
Of course, the bare lens has the f/2.8 as its largest aperture, the 2x teleconverter necks that down to f/5.6, which of course is two full stops and was as-advertised.
Here's a couple images:
First, the pic I took with just the bare lens (200mm at f/2.8 and 1/1000th):
Then, the one with the Nikon TC-20E 2x teleconverter installed (400mm at f/5.6 and 1/250th):
Both of these images were taken within minutes of each other at just after 1pm. The camera itself was in shade. I very much expected a noticeable difference in sharpness and contrast between the two pictures, but there doesn't seem to be any significant difference that I can see...at least not that can't be fixed in PS very quickly. In terms of brightness, there's a definite difference, but again, easily fixable.
I'm freakin' stoked with this new setup. Can't wait to try it out tonight at the Dodger game and Thursday at TSC. Oh and it's gonna be killer when me and Valleyfan head down to San Diego for Red Bull!
Of course, the bare lens has the f/2.8 as its largest aperture, the 2x teleconverter necks that down to f/5.6, which of course is two full stops and was as-advertised.
Here's a couple images:
First, the pic I took with just the bare lens (200mm at f/2.8 and 1/1000th):
Then, the one with the Nikon TC-20E 2x teleconverter installed (400mm at f/5.6 and 1/250th):
Both of these images were taken within minutes of each other at just after 1pm. The camera itself was in shade. I very much expected a noticeable difference in sharpness and contrast between the two pictures, but there doesn't seem to be any significant difference that I can see...at least not that can't be fixed in PS very quickly. In terms of brightness, there's a definite difference, but again, easily fixable.
I'm freakin' stoked with this new setup. Can't wait to try it out tonight at the Dodger game and Thursday at TSC. Oh and it's gonna be killer when me and Valleyfan head down to San Diego for Red Bull!
Here is something for FBJ because you like planes and cameras. This is the Zenfolio site of a KC-135 pilot who takes a lot of pics while he is flying. He has some gorgeous shots, I would say you should try taking some along this line but I imagine SWA probably wouldn't take so kindly to you whipping out your D200 during rotation
Heh...just saw this post. Thanks for sharing that!
I've actually had the camera along with me a couple times, though not as often as I'd like due to its size. There's some stuff on my flickr site. I have a lot more aviation-related stuff than is seen there, but because it has identifiable people in it, I've chosen to leave them off the internet.
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DeaderFan
Lurker
Where did you get it? I made up my mind today to get one too, but all the decent mail order places are sold out. Anyone around town have them?
I did manage to pre-order a D300 though
Man, I was off holding judgment on the D3 until I saw some pics from it to see if Nikon really did get their noise under control, and holy cow are they amazing! Canon is going to get absolutely spanked by this camera. Check out the 3200 and the 6400 iso shots, absolutely incredible. For Canons sake, the Ds MK III better have noise similar to this, and cost less than the $8K they want to charge for it.
Here is the link for the images
Here is the link for the images
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DeaderFan
Lurker
That's incredible! I preordered the the D300 because like the D200 you seem to get 90% of what the top of the line camera offers for a third the price. This is different. That ISO 6400 shot is amazing! I may have to seriously think about the D3. $5K is still a big pill to swallow though. Finally some relief from Canon-envy for us Nikon fans.
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DeaderFan
Lurker
You convinced me. I ordered one from B&H yesterday and can hardly wait! I've had the older 80-200 since my film days and thought I was happy with it. However, the faster and more accurate focusing of the 70-200 along with the ability to autofocus with teleconverters is too much to pass up.
You're going to LOVE it.
In case you didn't see them already, here's a link to the album that has pics I took with the lens at TSC last week. With the aperture at f/2.8, I could use a MUCH lower ISO (600) compared to my old 80-200.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/glenn_calvin/sets/72157601993631298/
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DeaderFan
Lurker
Your pictures look great. Good exposure and nice neutral white balance. I sometimes have color cast problems with those vapor lights when shooting at high ISO. Sometimes when I preset my white balance for one area of the ice I get a slight pink cast on in other areas. Still the brightness and color consistnecy at TSC is much better than most other rinks around town. Anaheim Ice is at least one stop darker, if not more. On the other hand, Staples is a dream. Probably a stop and a half brighter than TSC.
