bobbollinger

<p>ON white balance, I like the advice Bryan Peterson gave in one of his recent books: Set it on "cloudy" for your outdoor shots and forget about it. He also recommends ISO 200 as the default ISO setting for most photography. </p>

<p>The colors in NC are apparently peaking in the foothills this week, with the Piedmont next week. Here is a site from Appalachian State Univ in Boone, NC that may be helpful to anyone looking for good color in NC. </p>

<p><a href="http://biology.appstate.edu/biology/fall-color-report/fall-color-map-north-carolina">http://biology.appstate.edu/biology/fall-color-report/fall-color-map-north-carolina</a></p>

<p>Those photos are fascinating. They make me grateful that I was not born in, say, 1924, but also grateful for those who were. <br>

Here in the US we sometimes refer to those folks who fought these battles and built their weapons as the "Greatest Generation." We are losing them rapidly, too; there were three obituaries of WWII vets in my local paper just this weekend. </p>

<p>Nice shot, Bob. </p>

<p>How well do you like that Tamron 18-250? Would you buy it again? </p>

<p>I took the deposition of a neurosurgeon recently. He charged $600 per half-hour, or any part thereof, for his time. So 65 minutes costs the same $1800.00 as a full 90 minutes of his time. <br>

Maybe that is how you ought to calculate your bill. $x per half hour, or any part thereof. </p>

<p>I got my first 35mm camera in August 1974 and never bought Kodak (or any other brand) film for it that came in a metal canister. Always plastic from that date. </p>

<p>You guys are really making me want to get out this weekend and see what the local scenery has to offer! Here in the Charlotte area the fall colors are still a couple weeks off, so I may have to wait til mid-October to get the autumn leaves. <br>

Lots of nice photos on this thread but I especially like Matt's trees reflecting in the water; I think that is well done in terms of composition and color. </p>

<p>I overpaid for two of those cameras in "very good" condition a few years ago and after running a half dozen rolls of film through them the aperture blades stuck in both units. I think I would also advise that you either return for refund or insist on a repair. A lot still could go wrong, though, and the stuck blades is a fairly common problem with them, so the refund approach may be your more appealing solution. </p>

<p>My SRT 101 purchased brand new 38 years ago last month has never needed servicing and is still going strong......</p>

<p>And words that tie in to how the photos will be used. "Annual report" and "sales brochure" come to mind. </p>

<p>Minolta Maxxum 800 recorded that data and if my memory is correct, you could see it on the LCD but I don't recall whether you could download it or not. </p>

<p>If you don't get a specific recommendation, any CPA who does a lot of small business / closely held family business accounting should be a good choice. And when you see an accountant, ask him or her to explain the "subchapter S" election to you. That is a way to save on your payroll taxes.</p>

<p>For what it is worth, here is a photo I took in June with the Tamron 70-300 f4-5.6 LD Di lens on my K10d, at 300mm and f5.6, 1/60 second, hand-held with shake reduction on, ISO 200. This has not been cropped. This lens has some "macro" capability-- I think 2:1, so better than none. I have been fairly pleased with the lens, and I think it is still fairly affordable.</p><div></div>

<p>Steve, a lawyer does not neccessarily need to hire a lawyer to sue someone. Depending on the facts of the matter, a photographer may need to hire a lawyer in order to be successful at it. That is the only reason why I suggested it is easier for the lawyer. Of course, suing your clients should be a last resort for either professional. </p>

<p>I have been selling professional services (legal, not photography) for exactly 24 years as of this coming Tuesday, and I can promise you one thing- the more lenient you are on payment terms, the larger your aged accounts receivable will grow. And you don't want a large aged accounts receivable ledger..........You ideally want to be paid fully before you are finished with delivery of the service and work product. <br>

And if a large volume of clients won't pay their lawyer, who can easily sue them for it if so inclined, then you can rest assured that a significant volume of clients also won't pay their photographer if they can get away with it.</p>

 

<p>The last sentence in my previous post is not very clear. To explain better, you should be aware that written contracts usually contain a provision called a "merger clause." This provision means that any discussion that took place that lead to a contract being signed is merged into whatever the written agreement says. Any understanding that you might have with the other party becomes part of the contract only if it is written into it before you sign it. Sometimes the merger clause states "this document contains the entire agreement of the parties." That is a serious provision in a contract and you have to respect it.</p>

<p>Real estate agents are accustomed to seeing people mark through paragraphs in pre-printed contracts when they make offers and counteroffers on property. If you were to simply mark through the paragraphs you don't agree with, and note somewhere in the contract that you do not agree to those paragraphs, then you may be able to enter into a contract more to your liking with the agent. Just be very clear in the document itself as to what you are deleting. Purely oral understandings between the parties to a written contract are not enforceable. </p>

<p>Thanks for checking it out and posting the photos, Howard. <br>

As an aside, I am currently reading a book that is the diary of a British WWI fighter ("pursuit") pilot, who kept a diary but did not survive the war. In 1914, he was a mechanic on the Bleriot as pictured in the photos. The book is "Flying Fury" by Maj. James T.B. McCudden, VC.</p>

<p>Heck, I enjoy coming on the CMC forum and learning about old, obscure cameras I have never heard of or actually seen in real life. I honestly don't care whether they are "classic" or not, as the vintage aspect makes them interesting to me. </p>

<p>Some of the frequent contributors that we have enjoyed here in the past have not posted much lately. Justin Serpico comes to mind; he used to post photos here pretty often but has not posted many lately. </p>

<p>Minolta AF lenses did not have an aperture ring. Apertures were set with a thumbwheel on the camera body. </p>

<p>Hi, Valeri,<br>

I just tracked you down on Google, read the bad Yelp review, and your measured and calm response to it. Your response was perfect, and the guy "Frank" comes across in the post as a real jerk. All those big words he used......I have an excellent vocabulary myself, but people normally don't use those words in something as pedestrian as a web post, and it simply reinforces my impression that the guy is an unmitigated jerk. I am a lawyer by profession, not a pro photographer, and getting unfairly negative reviews on the web also scares the crap out of me (as it should anyone in a professional service business) because I rely heavily on the web for marketing. <br>

I would suggest you ask a couple of clients who you know will give you a first class, 5 star review, to post something about you on Yelp and Google reviews as well. I think that will be the best way to overcome this guy's remark. But I really don't think his remarks, read with your response, is all that persuasively negative. Your reponse lets any intelligent reader know that he was a prick when he was dealing with you, consistent with the way he comes across in the review. Good luck. Don't lose any more sleep over it, either!</p>

<p>I have a SrT 101 that has performed flawlessly since 1974 when I bought it new with a 50mm f1.7 Rokkor lens for about $200. The MD lenses came along later and although they will work on the SrT cameras you don't get the added auto-exposure function of the MD series lenses on the older cameras. These old Minoltas are bulletproof and any of them will give you a lot of photographic pleasure.</p>

<p>Dave, I live 10 miles away from the Shutterfly facility, and I had the same problem this week. They must be having some kind of equipment failure problem this week that is delaying the prints. When I entered my order I got the usual email confirmation indicating that shipment would occur in their normal timely fashion but my prints have not yet arrived. </p>

<p>Howard, there is an experimental plane/vintage plane fly-in that takes place in Rhinebeck every summer, that concentrates on WWI era aircraft and reproductions. You ever been to that? Seems like a good photo op. </p>