mattwelsh

<p>Well, I read the original question so fast I overlooked that you disallowed the possibility of my solution :)</p>

<p>One little trick I've used for years is to carry a small eyeglass screwdriver and carefully unscrew the lenses and remove them. Place them safely so you can tell right from left when you put them back in.</p> <p>Done it many times and never had an issue with it...</p>

<p>I have used Bowens (Calumet 750s) monolights with the TT1 and TT5 for quite a while. On the Pocketwizards is a mini jack which I plug a short 8" cable into. On the other end is a large mono plug like you see on headphones. There's a jack on the flash head that it goes into. Put all the PW on the same channel and it works just fine! Any monolight you can plug a "mini plug to *insert your plug type here*" should work the same way. Much nicer that having a PC cable from your camera like the old days :)</p>

<p>Sorry about the duplicate post!</p>

<p>I have been to India for photography six times. Southern India is lovely and there's much to photograph there.<br /> A few notes:</p> <ul> <li>If you're in reasonable shape I advise you to walk as much as you can in the city. Make sure your camera is on a strap and hold onto it and any other gear is in a backpack that is closed, and you should be fine.</li> <li>Visit public parks, especially on the weekends. Photo ops abound.</li> <li>Visit local libraries. They are treasure troves of sites to see, and the folks that work there love to give you ideas.</li> <li>Carry some cash, but small denominations and only have a bit in your pocket at one time. Stash the rest, and don't flash large amounts.</li> <li>People in India LOVE to be photographed and only want to see the image on the LCD in exchange. It's very different from Europe or the US. Don't be afraid to make eye contact with people, nod at your camera to silently ask permission. Most of the time people will light up at the chance.</li> <li>Temples are beautiful and it's fun to visit, but be aware that as a tourist, they'll sometimes offer you a "tour" of even the smallest temple. That's for a price which is negotiated after the tour ;)</li> <li>Hire a driver when you're not walking and when you want to go to further destinations. Get friendly with them and pay them well and they will walk with you, and negotiate on your behalf. Pros call them fixers and experienced ones will know where the best vantage points are, and when the best light is. Often hotels can arrange them for you and I always tipped them *very* well at the end of each day. They appreciate it a great deal and will bend over backward to accommodate you the next day. One took me to his village to meet his mother who offered us fresh milk from the cow that morning. It was delicious and quite an experience to see a village home.</li> <li>Go to flower and meat markets. I spent *hours* walking around them and often visited the same ones repeatedly. So many amazing photo ops there and you get a real sense of how people live.</li> <li>If you get a chance, visit a mosque. I found several that were more than happy to have me visit, and I got invited to a muslim families home for a dinner. It was amazing.</li> <li>Bring candy for the kids and give them that rather than money. Often in parks I would be "swarmed" by groups of kids who are kept out of school by poor parents so that they can beg. Giving them money perpetuates the cycle. If you give them candy the kids actually get it and they are happy with it.</li> <li>Contrary to what others have said and warned, I vowed when I went to eat the street/diner foods, and to try everything I was offered. And I did. I never got sick on any of my six trips, but I have a pretty strong stomach. I did carry and drink bottled water, but mostly because it was hot as blazes there.</li> <li>On a related note before you go, visit a travel clinic and get an order of antibiotics in case you follow my advice above and it works less optimally for you.</li> <li>Wear good footwear. I am partial to Bates tactical boots. Also, take a hat.</li> <li>If you're in southern India, some destinations I can recommend include Bangalore flower market, Victoria Park on the weekends, pottery town and Commercial street (really a bazaar). I walked all over this city several times.</li> <li>Mysore about 1.5 hours from Bangalore and there are two palaces. There is the main palace and a tour is worth it, but be aware there's an entry fee and then a "tour" amount. You can do the tour yourself, but it's fun to have a guide. Just negotiate the price in advance. The second palace is the mistress of the ruler of Mysore. He built her a palace that he could see from the main palace. When my wife and I got to Mysore we wanted to stay in a hotel and finally booked one. It turned out to be the second palace which you can stay in. It was like being in 19th century India.</li> <li>The flower market in Mysore is fantastic.</li> <li>The silk refinery in Mysore is crazy; there's tons of vendors bringing in cocoons and selling them. They just let us right in to make photos.</li> <li>Beyond Mysore is Bylakuppe, which is the largest Tibetan colony outside of Tibet. It's an island of calm and organization in the chaos of India and well worth a day trip.</li> <li>The Dubare Elephant camp is very cool. You can wash an elephant.</li> <li>Hampi is north of Bangalore, but you really need to take a train due to weird roads. It's on the UNESCO world heritage list. If you're up for it, bicycles are the way to see it.</li> <li>Ask your fixer/driver to stop in villages so you can take a look around and make photos. Also, have them stop on the side of the road to photo the farmers. It's funny because they look at you like your crazy because they're just living their life and you want to take a photo. I got some awesome shots this way.</li> </ul> <p><br /> I have tons of other tips so if you'd like message me and I can give you more ideas. Most of all I would advise you to be bold, and really make the most of it; India is an incredible place!</p>

<p>Please let us know what you think of the mid-gloss when you get it Tom...</p>

<p>If you do want to avoid having to do it in post then what you describe is exactly correct however. Whenever possible I like to do as much in camera as possible, but Michael is correct that you can work on it in post as well if that's your preferred way to go.</p>

<p>I've used both Adorama and Bay Photo. I was pleased with the results from both, but twice Adorama had to do reprints from me because it looked like the prints had been packed by gorillas. Serious dents and bends both times.<br> I've lived in the Bay area for many years and had a studio in Scotts Valley near Santa Cruz and so had used Bay Photo for a long time for medium format film processing. They always did a fantastic job with my prints and they now offer aluminum prints that look simply great.</p>