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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
04-07-2010, 09:58 PM
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I agree with some of the other posters - 50mm fixed can be a big pain in the neck when shooting indoor gatherings. I have the 50mm f/1.4 and use it as my primary lens, but in retrospect I wish I would have gotten something wider first, since I too like shooting indoor events and I get tired of feeling too close to my subjects. A good wide angle lens is next on my wish list. :D
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
04-07-2010, 09:50 PM
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Very cool shot! I don't think I have ever seen clouds like that before. I think the horizon being slanted (or appearing that way) kind of bothers me - but otherwise, I like the mood.
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
04-07-2010, 09:44 PM
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I really like the shot of Emily. I actually like the lighting and I know how tough it can be to capture a kiddo sitting still, so kudos for that! :)
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Forum: General Talk
04-07-2010, 09:25 PM
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I'll give it a shot. I tend to be somewhat of a lurker. This will get me out of my shell :)
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
03-21-2010, 08:41 PM
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Really nice. I definitely would have been pleased with these shots. Well done!
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
03-21-2010, 08:30 PM
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Just some shots of bath time I took the other night, while messing around with my new Metz 58 flash. My bathroom has very poor light and even when I crank up the ISO, the pics look crummy and racoon-eyes abound when just using ambient light. I was bouncing flash from the Metz in all of these shots. I'm REALLY enjoying this flash, despite the fact that I really don't know what I'm doing. :o
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
03-10-2010, 02:15 PM
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Yes! I thought my brain was going to explode yesterday when I was reading about and experimenting with outdoor fill flash.
So, am I understanding the basic idea correctly?.....A good place to start when balancing ambient w/ flash is to meter for ambient and then stop down the aperture a couple steps (so that if I just shot w/ ambient light, it would be fairly underexposed).....then.....hmmmm.....this is where I get confused.....Then, what do I do w/ my flash?
:o
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
03-10-2010, 12:55 PM
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Thank you! Makes sense to me now. :D
It's so funny....over this last year of owning my first dslr camera, I've been learning about aperture, shutter speed, focal distance, and ISO and how they all affect each other. I feel like I have a decent grasp of all of that. Now this flash thing is rocking my world and adds a whole new can of worms to the equation. :o
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
03-09-2010, 08:47 PM
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I am relatively new at photography and VERY new at flash photography. I recently purchased a Metz 58 af-1 for my k20d. I've only had it for a couple days and am making my way through the manual as well as experimenting with the flash. So far, I haven't ventured much out of PTTL, but I've had pretty decent results with the indoor shots with flash that I've bounced off of walls.
I am in the habit of shooting in Av mode on my camera, occasionally switching to manual. I noticed that when I am in Av mode on my camera and PTTL mode on my flash, no matter what f stop I choose, the shutter speed stays at a constant 1/60. Is that what is supposed to happen? I know - silly question - I am just making sure because it seems strange to me that the shutter speed would remain constant.
????
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
03-03-2010, 03:19 PM
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Lots of good info here - thanks!
Well, I took the plunge and ordered the Metz 58, but decided I would probably have to wait until later to get a stand/umbrella, and possibly some radiopoppers if I find the whole line of sight thing to be an issue. I am such a newbie w/ flash photography anyway....it's probably good that I get acquainted w/ the ins and outs of the flash mounted on my camera before I start messing around w/ off-camera flash. But all of this info is good to know for when I do get more gear! :D
Now off to start reading the metz 58 manual....
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
03-02-2010, 04:03 PM
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I think I already know the answer to this question, but I just want to double check before I order anything....
I am thinking about getting a Metz 58 and while I'm at it, maybe ordering a light stand and umbrella so I can mess around with off camera flash. I can just trigger the Metz 58 wirelessly from my k20d, without the need to buy radio triggers.....correct?
:o
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Forum: Photo Critique
02-21-2010, 05:09 PM
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I'm really trying to work on composition. Do you think I got these right?
Also, I'm trying to get the hang of manual focusing but it's frustrating. The camera will beep and say that the subject is in focus, but then when i view the pic later, sometimes it looks a little soft. :( Guess I need more practice.
ISO: 400
Aperture: f/3.5
Shutter Speed: 1/180
Focal Length: 50mm
ev comp: +1
ISO: 400
Aperture: f/3.5
Shutter Speed: 1/90
Focal Length: 50mm
ev comp: +1/2
ISO: 200
Aperture: f/2.8
Shutter Speed: 1/350
Focal Length: 50mm
ev comp: +1
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Forum: Photo Critique
02-03-2010, 06:44 PM
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Thanks for the input, guys! It really helps to "see" a pic through someone else's eyes. I've never posted a photo for critique before - I wish I would have started posting a long time ago because I can see how it will really help me improve.
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Forum: Photo Critique
02-03-2010, 02:56 PM
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My first time shooting in the snow. Any cc would be greatly appreciated!
ISO 100 F11 1/250s 50mm +1ev
PP in PS CS4: bumped up the exposure + .60 , unsharp mask, slight edge burn
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
08-12-2009, 09:27 AM
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Wow - really nice light in that last pic. Mind posting a pic of the new cone design?
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
08-11-2009, 07:30 AM
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I really like them all. The first is my favorite. Keep up the good work!
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
08-10-2009, 08:20 AM
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I kind of like the blue hues of the original - sort of a moody feel. ;)
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
08-07-2009, 04:02 PM
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As someone who is relatively new at this photography thing, I must say that the idea of photographs not necessarily having to be in focus to be pleasing to the eye is kind of freeing. It seems like I disappoint myself a lot when I sit down to look at the photos I took on any given day. I have this idea that everything has to be perfect or something. Maybe I should start taking a second glance at the blurry and out of focus shots before clicking 'delete' :rolleyes:
Here's a pic I took a few months ago that ended up pretty blurry. At first I was disappointed and almost chucked it. But then I couldn't make myself toss a pic of my little girl wearing my black heels around our front yard. I did add a little extra blur around the edges in PP.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
07-29-2009, 08:54 AM
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Wow, Mike - thanks!!!That really helps.
I think I might go for it if the seller calls me back. I think that $85 for both an sb-80dx and sb-400 (and he says they're in like-new condition and one of them he only used 9 times) is probably a pretty good deal. Seems that used excellent condition sb-80dx flashes are going for $100 or more on ebay right now.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
07-28-2009, 10:14 PM
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Guide numbers are usually at ISO 100, correct? I was reading the specs on the Nikon SB-400 and it says it has a GN of 98.4 ft at ISO 200. So should I cut that guide number in half when comparing it to other flashes? So that would make it a pretty weak flash, huh?
The reason I'm asking is, I saw a local classified ad for a used SB-400 and a SB-80dx together for $85. I was thinking I might be interested in getting them to use off-camera on stands w/ radio triggers, but not sure if the sb-400 would even be powerful enough. Still, seems like a decent deal.
Any input?? Thanks!
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
07-19-2009, 07:43 PM
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rense - thanks!
This image is really cool. I love the young faces behind the musicians.
Now that I have had a small taste of street photography, I want to get out there and do more....except I live in a somewhat rural area. We were just visiting Chicago when I took those pics. Wish I lived in a big city :) There is a college town about 30 minutes down the road, though (U of Arkansas...go Razorbacks!) Maybe I should walk around campus and see if I can get some good shots of people one of these days.
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Forum: Weekly Photo Challenges
07-17-2009, 10:18 AM
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Gorgeous photos, everyone!
Rense - those are awesome. And for a minute I was thinking that the bee in your first few pics might be the same bee captured in the spider's web but then I put my thinking cap on and realized the web would probably take longer to spin than the time you spent there taking pictures ;)
I've never posted to picture of the week. Here goes... :p
I just liked this one because my 2 year old absolutely loves bacon and I thought the way she was admiring the bacon atop her burger was funny.
We took a trip to Chicago recently and I took some shots of the skyline from Navy Pier. This was 5 shots frankensteined together in photoshop to make a panoramic view.
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
07-16-2009, 01:35 PM
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On the streets of Chicago a few weeks ago. I've never tried to capture a stranger before. It was fun! These were taken from my van as my husband was trying to find a place to park.
I think the sign in the 2nd picture is kind of funny, considering the blown whites :o
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
07-05-2009, 11:30 AM
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I think I disagree, speaking as a beginner, who has only owned my k20d since February and had no prior experience with anything other than cheap P&S cameras. I'm glad I opted for a camera that is a bit over my head because I feel that learning it and all its features is helping (and sometimes forcing me) to dive in and understand photography in a way that a camera more geared toward beginners probably wouldn't. It's nice to know that I have a camera that will grow with me as I learn and I don't need to upgrade anytime soon.
I think it just depends on how serious the OP wants to get about photography as a skill. Some people want to keep it simple and don't really want to learn all the ins and outs of photography and don't care about getting into all the technical knowledge and all the ways you can customize and tweak settings on their cameras, etc. But then there are beginners like me who do want to get that deep into it, KWIM?
Just my opinion ;)
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