hannu

<p>Teotihuacan is awesome and well worth the visit, if you are the least bit interested in (precolombian) history. It's not terribly far from the city so you will still have time to do sightseeing in the center on the same day. </p>

<p>Yes, it was only a question of diameter.</p>

<p>I don't have the f/4 version of the 28 pc so I can't comment on that.</p>

 

<p>Your picture isn't showing because your URL points to your own computer.</p>

<p>Anyway, I had the lens (reversibly) converted by a repairman. He took the old knob out and inserted a thinner one he made himself from plastic. Works, but it made controlling the lens more difficult since it's harder to apply the same amount of torque to a thin plastic knob.</p>

<p>I don't recall getting the colour shift with that particular lens, but some other lenses (e.g. regular 28/3.5) produced buckets of it. With 28/3.5 PC & 14n combination, at full shift you have to stop down heavily, as wide open the image quality in corners is very bad. But with a moderate shift and f/8 - f/11 the results are excellent as long as the light is good (the usual 14n behaviour)</p>

 

<p>Shun: that diagram in the thread you linked to shows the mechanism for a Nikon FE, not for a D200. Two completely different beasts, and why should we assume the mechanism would be the same in both? Indeed David Hartman says in the last post of the thread that the mechanism has been replaced in newer cameras by an array of electronic contacts.</p>

<p>I don't have a D200 anymore but as far as I remember it recognized and recorded to EXIF information lens aperture only by full stops, not even by half stops or thirds, not to say anything of a continuous value. My D700 works the same way. It does recognize the difference between 1.2 and 1.4 when using a 50/1.2 (when it knows the lens is indeed 50/1.2), but otherwise shows only full stops.</p>

<p>Would be nice to see a picture from a D200 service manual (or a dismantled camera).</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Behind the link is a 100% crop showing noise at ISO 200, the best example I could find (don't have the camera anymore). The picture is not in good focus because the shutter speed I could achieve (1/15) was too slow for a moving escalator, but you can see the noise. The picture was still underexposed, but I'm not good enough with photoshop to brighten it there without making the noise even more prominent. So, it was a useless shot.<br>

http://hannu.mallat.fi/scratch/kodak-noise.jpg</p>

<p>As I said, in good light the camera took wonderful pictures, but the downsides were too much for me. YMMV, and obviously does, based on the satisfied responses in this thread.</p>

<p>John, Dave,</p>

<p>I believe you're talking either of 14nx or 14n which has gone through a sensor upgrade (which AFAIK brings it up to par with nx). The camera I was using was a plain non-upgraded n version which had a base ISO of 80, not 160.</p>

<p>Here's an example of the "italian flag" syndrome: http://hannu.mallat.fi/scratch/italian-flag.jpg<br>

Note the magenta color cast at the top of the picture and green cast at the bottom. The lens used was a MF Nikkor 28/2.8. The effect varies from lens to lens, but in the sample it is quite unacceptable. The photo was imported to PS from Kodak photo desk and resized; no other processing. If anyone wants to see the original DCR file, let me know your address and I will e-mail it (not putting it on a server, too large for my available bandwidth).</p>

<p>I'll see if I still have an example of a noise on a hard disk nearby.</p>

<p>I used a 14n (not nx) for a while. While they say that the nx is better than n, take good care in evaluating if that camera is what you want, or you'll just be throwing money away. In my experience:</p>

<p>the good:full frame (obviously), excellent image quality *in good light*. I got some very sharp daylight pictures with good colours out of the camera.</p>

<p>the bad: dreadful image quality if you ever have to go beyond ISO 100 and/or longer than 1/2 second exposure. absolutely forget about anything beyond 1 second. the noise is just awful. horrible, horrible viewfinder. the "italian flag" effect (colour shift within the frame) with some lenses.</p>

<p>the ugly: slow. often does some long, mysterious calibrating when starting up. the body ergonomics are bad. the "leno chin" can get in the way -- for instance 28/3.5 cannot be shifted upwards because the chin hits the shift knob. don't be fooled to think it's a proper vertical grip either, it's not. I have large hands and still found it uncomfortable. poor, slow charger (btw original batteries are all dead by now, but there should be still some 3rd party offerings available). unpolished menu interface. </p>

<p>It's a camera for patient people who are willing to accommodate for its quirks (I was not, D700 kicks ass) and check before buying what you think of the long exposures if you're doing any evening/night work. Like I mentioned, they say the nx was an improvement over the n model, which in my opinion just couldn't do anything but studio/daylight outdoors.</p>

 

<p>Diane, from Lifepixel (www.lifepixel.com). Their tutorials are at http://www.lifepixel.com/IR.htm</p>

 

<p>I ordered a filter from them and installed it by myself on a D70, based on the DIY tutorial on their site. It was easier than I thought, no problems, although I guess the D70 is among the easiest cameras to convert, no soldering needed.</p>

<p>I'm usually much more apt at breaking than fixing things, so I was mentally prepared to have a nonfunctional camera in the end, but everything worked perfectly instead.</p>

 

<p>I could use a feature like this, too. I've noticed that it's not too hard to get acceptable results with handheld HDR: set bracketing to -2/-1/0/+1/+2, mode to Ch, and fire a one-second burst. Photomatix Pro is pretty good in aligning the images back together. Of course the slowest shutter speed still needs to be within reasonable limits.</p>

<p>Nine-step brackets use almost twice the space and might not be so easy to align (haven't tried yet, though).</p>

<p>I don't think there are any firmware hacks for D700. Does Nikon have any "wishing well" email address? They might add this into a future firmware upgrade, if there was one coming along ever.</p>

 

<p>If you have nice manual focus lenses, you should go for a used D200, as it meters with MF lenses without a hassle and the viewfinder is a bit better. I've got some very nice large prints (even 20x30 inches) with D200 and manual lenses, e.g., the 75-150 zoom.</p>

<p>I did buy a used D70 some time ago, but only to convert it for infrared shooting.</p>

<p>Both D70 and D200 viewfinders look small and dark compared to that of your FM2.</p>

 

<p>I was in Lisbon about one and a half years ago. There's plenty to see and photograph right in the centre or near it.</p>

<p>The public transportation works nicely and it's easy to get from A to B by metro or bus, but to get a more atmospheric ride, take the tram number 28! It's a classic ride through the city. Also, don't miss the "elevators" which take people up and down steep hills. Especially Elevador de Santa Justa is a sight in itself.</p>

<p>(by the way, if you walk, take note that Lisbon has several steep hills, which makes the going slower than you might expect)</p>

<p>David's suggestions are quite good, although Sintra may be a bit far if your time is very limited, you need a full day for that. It is worth going to in case you do have the time.</p>

<p>Alfama is a cool, messy district that has cultural sights like Sé (the cathedral) or São Vicente de Fora, several viewpoints (miradouros, perhaps the best view over the city is from the Castelo hill) and also a big flea market (Feira da Ladra).</p>

<p>The monastery and tower at Belém are very impressive and not to be missed, buses go there regularly.<br>

Go to cafés like A Brasileira (center) or a pastry shop like Pasteis de Belém (in Belém, obviously). They are often very nicely decorated and the small snack food, like shrimp pastries (rissois de camarao), is tasty.</p>

<p>Some pictures I took while there can be found at http://raaka.rikos.org/travel/lisbon07/index.html</p>

<p>Arsat 35/2.8 is probably one of the cheapest PC lenses, but it has become less cheap in the past years. Used to be $250 but is now $350 or so. I briefly used one before finding a bargain on the 28/3.5 PC-Nikkor.</p>

<p>Qualitywise it wasn't too hot at extreme shifts, but as I said, I only used it briefly.</p>

<p>Note that 35 isn't wide on DX. Especially if you're using a DX body, it might make more sense to do the corrections in postprocessing. The PTLens plugin for Photoshop is way cheaper than any PC lens. Depends on your standards, of course, but I've done 12x18 inch prints from D200 pictures I've put through PTLens and have been satisfied with the results.</p>

 

Get a MC-22, which has banana plugs, so you don't need to mess with the 10-pin connector itself.

Interesting. Have you had a look whether you can disconnect the other end of the cable (if I recall correctly, the cable you're having trouble with connects the sensor PCB to the bottom PCB)?

 

See also whether this link is helpful: http://www.irphotography.org/index.ir?showtopic=248

Heh,

 

just did this a few days ago. The ribbon cable connector has a locking lever (black) on top which you can lift gently with a small flat-tipped screwdriver, or maybe with a fingernail, and then the cable just slides out. See the closeup picture in the tutorial! Remember to lock the cable in place when reassembling.

 

IMPORTANT: before you unscrew the sensor board, mark the position of the board! Otherwise you might end up with a tilted sensor when reassembling. Lifepixel instructions don't mention this detail.

 

I'm completely hamfisted (broken tools, doorhandles, etc. without even trying) but did the conversion succesfully in an hour; taking a break when impatience struck helped a lot :)

Another vote for the 75-150 E. I recently showed some 30x45cm (about 12x18in) prints taken with that lens in Florence to my friends, and they had a really hard time believing a $80 lens could shine like that.

Depending on what you photograph you either love or hate the push/pull mechanism. Framing young children or dog puppies is easy with the push/pull but it can be very annoying, e.g., in macro photography (with an extension ring or a close-up lens). At least mine is very loose and in some orientations (pointing up/down) requires holding or tricks with a rubber band to keep the zoom in place.

 

But the image quality is awesome and the Burzynski collar works well if you don't mix hand-held and tripod operation (it gets in the way of handheld shooting). The collar allows for easy landscape/portrait rotation which is nice.

Frank,

 

the Nikon tube has a tripod collar which allows for rotation. Also, the Kenko tube body is plastic, not metal.

Ellis,

 

have you carefully checked how the corners look with the 12-24/4? On a Kodak 14n, the corners are terribly mushy at all focal lengths (including 24mm), and the transition between good and not good is quite sharp. At least with my sample of the lens and the SLR.

 

Could you post a 100% sample from some corner with detail in it?

I bought the Burzynski collar from Isarfoto a couple of years ago, no problem with their service. The Burzynski collar allows for rotation to portrait orientation, too, unlike the Kirk one.

rene,

 

I'm quoting the repairman above regarding the movement of the battery compartment. Indeed it could be that without the batteries inside the compartment, the damage would not have occurred. But there's no way of knowing for sure.

SB-600 is the most fragile piece of Nikon equipment I've owned. I dropped mine once when unloading my camera bag: it fell ~30 cm to the floor, in its pouch. After that it started to work intermittently and after a while ceased completely to function.

 

Took to a repair shop, diagnosis was damaged circuit board. Apparently the battery compartment can move and damage the main board when it is loaded with batteries and receives (a relatively small) shock. Seems to be a case of bad design, actually.

 

Got it repaired and am now extra careful with it. The cost of repair was less than buying another one, but still expensive.

Did you shoot negative film and get the prints done in a lab that uses an automatic machine for making the prints? If so, forget about getting the exposure you want, the machine will mess it up anyway.

 

Either scan the negs by yourself, use slide film, or use digital.

Hi all,

 

are there any Portuguese photographers around? I will be visiting Lisbon for a

couple of weeks about ten days from now, and would like to do some

birdwatching/photographing if possible.

 

It seems that the Tagus estuary and the park there, Reserva Natural do Estuário

do Tejo, would be a good place to visit, but much of the information on the net

is in Portuguese, which I don't really grasp all that well, even with Babelfish.

 

What is not clear to me whether there are accessible pedestrian routes in the

area. So far I've managed to find only one itinerary description from the

official site, but I suppose there would be more paths in the area?

 

Do I have to watch out for the tide? How strong is it there? How wet is the area

exactly? Do I, for instance, need rubber boots or will ordinary shoes be

sufficient? I live in a place where we don't have any tide whatsoever, despite

being by the sea, so I'm a bit unsure on how it will affect excursions in the area.

 

I'll be able to bring only a pair of 8x binos, a 300/4, 1.4x teleconverter, and

a DSLR. I hope that will be enough for casual birding?

 

All information is much appreciated!