The Photographers' Corner 2013-2020

[seraphim]

The video was kind of interesting, and kind of confirmed my thoughts on the Sony 6000

[mathjak107]

sony makes good cameras but in my opinion they drop the ball in the areas of service and professional help.

have a sony camera fail and you pack it up and send it off and you may see it in a month.

my experience with nikon has been excellent.

i had a trip coming up and a d300 crap out.

i spoke to them and they had me send it in , they repaired it in a week and while it was out of warranty for 3 months they repaired it under warranty.

every try to get sony to fix something a week out?


canon and nikon maintain a staff of real pros you can call and ask questions to about difficult lighting scenes while at the job and get thoughts and ideas.

i just find the level of expertise and service from the big two is far and above anything sony will do .

if you don't really care about the service end then by all means buy sony , they make excellent stuff.

[Theseus]

This mornings sunrise, captured with my Canon EOS Digital Rebel. Spectacular red sky lasted only for a few minutes.

[seraphim]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mathjak107 sony makes good cameras but in my opinion they drop the ball in the areas of service and professional help. have a sony camera fail and you pack it up and send it off and you may see it in a month. my experience with nikon has been excellent. i had a trip coming up and a d300 crap out. i spoke to them and they had me send it in , they repaired it in a week and while it was out of warranty for 3 months they repaired it under warranty. every try to get sony to fix something a week out? canon and nikon maintain a staff of real pros you can call and ask questions to about difficult lighting scenes while at the job and get thoughts and ideas. i just find the level of expertise and service from the big two is far and above anything sony will do . if you don't really care about the service end then by all means buy sony , they make excellent stuff.

But Nikon doesn't make a camera which fits my expectations for my son. I wish they did. I have an AW1 and a D800. I love them both for the niche they fill.

My second digital camera was a Sony 5mb camera which did me well for many years. When it died, I went to a D200. Both were new and cutting edge when I bought them lol.

But, to be honest, I've never needed a camera to be serviced. Guess I've just been lucky.

[ItDontMeanAThing]

Quote:

Originally Posted by seraphim Im avoiding a DSLR for him, looking for something more compact so he'll carry it. If he really gets into it, we'll consider something else down the road. But I doubt he'd get into carrying a large camera, as I do.

Carry it as in he'll have it with him only slightly less often than essentials such as keys, wallet, phone, etc? If so you might want to consider something I've seen in photographers of all talents and all ages: their concern for what other people think about their appearance. Always carry is a great idea for some people until they start to head out the door and wonder 'what was I thinking?' For example, a friend who sought camera selection advice is absolutely opposed to any 'always carry' camera if the only pockets which will hold it are on cargo shorts or pants - not because he doesn't own anything with cargo pockets, but because he'd never voluntarily own anything with such pockets.

[meierlde]

Quote:

Originally Posted by seraphim Im avoiding a DSLR for him, looking for something more compact so he'll carry it. If he really gets into it, we'll consider something else down the road. But I doubt he'd get into carrying a large camera, as I do. If he did, I'd probably go Nikon so he can have access to my old lenses.

Actually for a slightly lower quality most folks now carry a camera on their cell phone. So the question then becomes what quality does the always carry camera need to have? Obviously the optics on a cell phone are poorer than most dedicated cameras, but when are they good enough?

[RonBoyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by meierlde Obviously the optics on a cell phone are poorer than most dedicated cameras,...

Not to mention the shutter lag-time. Cell phones are really only good for up-close stationary objects. (Leaving Video out of the equation... but even then.)

[explanade]

I've seen some pretty well done photos and videos out of cell phones.

People are using elaborate rigs to film and edit videos on iPhones but that's obviously not representative of every day use.

You wouldn't obviously use a phone photo to make large prints but for snap shots or capturing something unexpected, they're kind of indispensable.

Remember those giant polaroids that insurance claims adjusters used to carry around?

But people used to take photos worth preserving with those brownies and Kodak instamatics.

I once saw an exhibition of photos taken over the decades by people in their homes in the '50s to the '80s or so. As cheap cameras became widely available, the kind of photos people took and keep changed in subject matter. Compare how in the old days, the only family photos people would have would be those posed in some studio, once a year or so.

Ubiquity of phone cameras make for even more candid photos. A contrast to the deliberative process taken by serious photographers but yet, capturing people in the moment in a way that those posed photos rarely do.

[Walt34]

If anyone is thinking of buying a X-Rite Colorchecker Passport they are on sale at B&H for $59, almost half off. I have one and it's great for setting white balance in Lightroom/Photoshop when the light sources are mixed, like in a room lighted with daylight and tungsten.

[Ronstar]

A shot from last week's trip to Nashville

[Ronstar]

Sue, a porter from Yazoo Brewing, Nashville

[ggbutcher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar Sue, a porter from Yazoo Brewing, Nashville

A porter definitely deserves B&W...

[meierlde]

Quote:

Originally Posted by explanade I've seen some pretty well done photos and videos out of cell phones. People are using elaborate rigs to film and edit videos on iPhones but that's obviously not representative of every day use. You wouldn't obviously use a phone photo to make large prints but for snap shots or capturing something unexpected, they're kind of indispensable. Remember those giant polaroids that insurance claims adjusters used to carry around? But people used to take photos worth preserving with those brownies and Kodak instamatics. I once saw an exhibition of photos taken over the decades by people in their homes in the '50s to the '80s or so. As cheap cameras became widely available, the kind of photos people took and keep changed in subject matter. Compare how in the old days, the only family photos people would have would be those posed in some studio, once a year or so. Ubiquity of phone cameras make for even more candid photos. A contrast to the deliberative process taken by serious photographers but yet, capturing people in the moment in a way that those posed photos rarely do.

In particular the arrival of digital photography has drastically reduced the cost of a picture. I have a folder from 2005 that suggests that slides cost about $.50 per slide back then (film and development). Now with digital one takes multiple shots and with zoom lenses at mulitple zoom levels. It would actually be an interesting exercise to look at minutes of work per exposure back to 1900.

[ggbutcher]

Here are pictures from about the same spot on the Oregon coast, first one taken with my work Blackberry Z10, second with my Nikon D50/18-200 zoom. I posted the full sized images, but the forum software cut them to size. These images are not post-processed in any way.

The Z10 has an 8MP resolution, the D50 is 6MP. But there is so much more to consider in each camera's translation of the CMOS array measurements into an image including a colorspace translation. So, one thing to consider is, from the D50 I can get the raw NEF to work with, but I'm stuck with BB's notions about translating that to JPEG. For web pictures, mox nix, but if you're gonna print...

But the main thing for me is the choice of lens perspectives. The zoom on the Nikon for me is more about selecting a perspective than 'reach'. 18mm on a DX sensor for the Nikon, I dunno what for the Z10. They'll have to figure out a better situation than 'bolt-ons' for cellphones for me to even start to consider tossing the DSLR.

[Jackanory]

I rather like these drone images: BBC News - The most stunning drone pictures of 2014 Though I think I'll wait 'till the legal situation settles down before investing!

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jackanory I rather like these drone images: BBC News - The most stunning drone pictures of 2014 Though I think I'll wait 'till the legal situation settles down before investing!

Impressive! Thanks for posting!

[RonBoyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar A shot from last week's trip to Nashville

Nice.

[explanade]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jackanory I rather like these drone images: BBC News - The most stunning drone pictures of 2014 Though I think I'll wait 'till the legal situation settles down before investing!

GoPro is said to be working on a model between $500-1000 for next year.

If that happens, there are going to be a lot more.

I think if you want to fly over some famous sites, your chances are better sooner than later, before the onslaught of cheaper drones fill the skies in these places.

EU is working on a rule and UK has some rule about not flying over congested areas or any sporting event or concert. So why wouldn't a lot of people fly over the Thames and Houses of Parliament? Unless by "congested" they mean all of central London.

[Mr. Paul]

Afternoon sunlight caught my eye today. Canon 5DKMKII, 24-70, iso 500

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by explanade GoPro is said to be working on a model between $500-1000 for next year. If that happens, there are going to be a lot more. ....

Yep, looks like just over $400 without the camera

Aerial Photography Aircraft | Buy, Compare & Review | Adorama

Could put those helicopter flight photographers out of business in a few years.