tomweis

<p>Thanks, Sandy. McMaster Carr has various loose ball bearings. I can get 100 for about $8.00... and then I can open my own lens repair shop. Ha ha ha...</p>

<p>The aperture blades are clean. These lines are uniform around the whole perimeter which is why bad lens cement was my first guess.<br> Thanks for your replies, guys.<br> T</p>

<p>Thanks for your reply, John. This photo is looking into the front of the lens, but the lines are visible from either direction. It's a Pentax-A 50mm f1.4. The lines seem to reside on an element towards the rear.<br> I doesn't look fungal or organic in nature to me, but what do I know.<br> T</p>

<p>I took apart a Pentax-A 50mm f2 manual focus lens to repair the focus ring helicoid. Students drop these lenses with some regularity - I have a box full of them and figured I'd give the repair a try myself. Anyway, I lost the little bearing that allows the aperture ring to click. Yes I knew it was there. Yes I knew it would jump out at me. I lost it anyway.<br> Questions:<br> 1. Is this bearing a 1.2mm size or something else?<br> 2. I live in NYC - is there somewhere local I can get some extra bearings? I'd rather not have to order them from California and pay $10 to ship something that weighs less than a gram. So far local repair shops refuse to sell me parts. Frustrating.</p> <p>Incidentally, the trickiest part of doing this repair is getting the lens to focus to infinity again!<br> Thanks for your advice!<br> Tom</p>

<p>I've got a Pentax-A 50mm with the Squiggly lines inside perimeter of lens. I'm thinking it's either lens cement that's going bad, or the lens coating is crazing. Does anyone have a definitive answer?<br> Thanks<br> Tom<img src="http://tomweisphoto.com/Z/strange_lens_lines.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>I can't say for sure what might be wrong with your Nikon 80-200mm f2.8 AF-S, but Nikon stopped servicing that lens back in April 2012. Parts are no longer available.</p>

<p>Bob, I'm sorry you're having problems with wedding dress exposures. However, I don't think digital cameras are the problem, at least not any sort of pro DSLR made after 2009. I use the Nikon D700 and am constantly surprised at its dynamic range. I presume newer cameras are better. I shoot with flash in both manual and TTL modes and rarely have a problem with exposure. What camera are you using? What flash system? RAW or JPEG?<br> The wedding photo here was shot with manual flash off camera with an umbrella, and there's plenty of detail in the dress.<img src="http://www.tomweisweddings.com/Z/Stephanie_George_1054_700.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p><img src="http://tomweisphoto.com/Z/Juniors_CHZCAKE_car_600.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="450" /><br> Shot with a Nikon Coolpix P7800 and Hoya polarizer.<br> Junior's is a restaurant in Brooklyn known for cheesecake. The car in the foreground presumably belongs to the owner of the restaurant.<br> T</p>

<p>I recently lost an elastic sock type diffuser I was using on my speedlights. I believe it was this product from Adorama: Adorama Strobo-Socks, Nylon Fabric Diffuser for Portable Strobes (product code FASS). Unfortunately they have been discontinued.<br> I'm considering the Novatron Diffuse-It Strobe Caps from B&H (product codes B&H # NOSCDI35 Mfr # NDIFFUSEIT5) as a replacement and wondering if anyone has used this item on their speedlights, specifically a Nikon SB-900. Do they fit snugly? Any other comments?<br> Thanks<br> Tom</p>

<p>@ Dan South<br> Some Profoto packs to indeed have PocketWizard technology.<br> From the Profoto website:<br />Acute 2R 1200WS pack<br />Product Number<br />900775 Compatible with 344 MHz Pocket Wizard transmitters.<br />900811 Compatible with 433 MHz Pocket Wizard transmitters.</p>

<p>Thanks for all your responses, guys. I'm glad you've kept the conversation light (pun intended), and not devolved it into a brand war which was certainly not my intention.<br> With regards to radio frequency laws, how does Canon deal that issue? Is there a special 600EX-RT version for each region?<br> I'm familiar with PocketWizard's FlexTT5 system, but it just seems to me to be too much extra stuff on top of a camera along with the flash to be safe. Sometimes I put up room lights for a wedding reception and need to fire the remotes along with the SB-900 on the camera. I carry two cameras when shooting events so one is sideways off my shoulder in front of me. The cantilevered load of a sideways SB-900 + FlexTT5 combo stressing the hotshoe worries me.</p>

<p>Consider:</p> <p>1. PocketWizard sales are so low they have laid off staff:<br> http://petapixel.com/2014/02/21/pocketwizard-plagued-poor-sales-lays-almost-half-staff/<br> 2. PocketWizard technology is already integrated in products from Sekonic, Profoto, Dynalite and Bowens.<br> 3. Canon has recently put radio triggering technology into the 600EX-RT Speedlite.<br> 4. Nikon has yet to release a speedlight with built-in radio triggering, and the existing Adavanced Wireless Lighting system is based on optical flash pulses which just doesn't cut it outside on sunny days, around corners, or at great distances.</p> <p>How awesome would it be if Nikon and PocketWizard teamed up? This would strengthen both brands, I think.</p> <p>Imagine the next generation of Nikon speedlights and camera bodies with PocketWizard technology:<br> 1. Trigger remote Nikon speedlights from a Nikon camera body (D5?) with a built-in PocketWizard transceiver.<br> 2. Trigger remote Nikon cameras with the same in-camera transceiver.<br> 3. Trigger remote Nikon speedlights from a camera-mounted Nikon speedlight with PocketWizard transceiver built-in. The camera-mounted flash could be set to fire or not (transmit only). This is one option for older cameras without an integrated transceiver.<br> 4. Trigger remote Nikon speedlights from a Nikon / PocketWizard branded transmitter unit (like the Canon ST-E3-RT Speedlite Transmitter) mounted onto the hotshoe. This is the second option for older cameras without an integrated transceiver.<br> 5. Trigger remote Nikon speedlights with the PocketWizard transceiver / transmitter you already own without the need to dangle a receiver from the lightstand.</p> <p>Proposed remote flash controls capable from camera position:<br> 1. Selection of four groups (A, B, C, D), 32 channels<br> 2. Set lighting ratios and TTL exposure compensation<br> 3. TTL/Manual/Auto/Repeating Flash mode selection<br> 4. Manual power settings in 10ths of a stop for both flash and constant source lights (the new flash would have an LED for video work built into the zoom reflector so it can be focused just like the flash tube).<br> 5. Zoom reflector position<br> 6. Modeling light activation<br> 7. AF assist light activation<br> 8. FP high speed sync<br> 9. Color temperature adjustments made at each head (similar to Broncolor Enhanced Color Temperature Control)<br> 10. Individually programmable front/rear curtain sync for each remote speedlight, and trigger delay adjustments<br> 11. Radio "sniffer" to determine which of the 32 channels is most robust in a given environment.</p> <p>Remember, it's a fantasy...</p>

<p>I posted the same question on another forum and received an explanation for the 1080*("star") setting over the regular 1080 setting; movie bitrate. The movie bitrate is likely higher for the 1080*("star") or "High" setting. Apparently manuals for other Nikon compact cameras spell this out, unlike the P7800 manual. Why Nikon would choose to omit this information from the P7800 manual is a mystery to me.</p>

<p>Page 30 of the Nikon P7800 Reference Section of the manual titled, "Qual Movie Options" gives this information:</p> <p>Option (Image size/ Frame rate, File format)<br> 1080*/30p 1080*/25p (default setting)<br> 1920 × 1080 (High)</p> <p>1080/30p 1080/25p<br> 1920 × 1080</p> <p>So the difference between 1080*("star")/30p and 1080/30p settings is that the 1080*("star")/30p setting says "High". High what? High quality? Does that mean less compression? The manual does not elaborate. Files shot in each of the two settings seem to be the same size for the same length of take. Anybody got an answer?</p>

<p>Hi - anyone know what the minimum aperture value is for the Sony RX10? Also, since it's a constant aperture lens, I'm assuming the effective aperture doesn't drop when zooming to 200mm.</p>

<p>I fried my Sunpak 383 Super at a fashion show - hammered it too hard I guess. The flash will still power up and fire, but it always fires full blast now; no manual control and no auto thyristor function. <br> I know it's probably not worth it, but anybody know of a repair shop for these old Sunpaks?<br /><br /> Cheers. Tom</p>

<p>I have a Minolta Color Meter IIIF that after 10 years of use is finally showing problems. The LCD display flickers in a funny way and shows wildly different color readings at random.</p> <p>First I called Konica Minolta's Sensing Department (888.473.2656). They said that Sony's Konica Minolta Support Division (877.462.4464) or Precision Camera (800.665.6515) would be able to help me.</p> <p>I called Sony. They said, no, they cannot repair a Minolta Color Meter IIIF. Instead they referred me to Konica Minolta's Sensing Department.</p> <p>Unbelievable. This is a classic example of the dumba$$ crap that happens when big companies split up and restructure. Now I have two entities referring each other to me, neither of which can conduct repairs on a $1400 meter.</p> <p>So I called Precision Camera (precisioncamera.com). Yes they can fix it for the flat rate of $99 + $12 shipping. It's even listed as an option for repair on their website.</p> <p>Precision claims to be the World's Largest Camera Repair Facility. Great. Just what I need; the WalMart of repair services - big, impersonal, and probably staffed by people who wouldn't know a color meter from an iPod. Additionally, I've always been leery of companies named with superlatives like "precision" or "best".</p> <p>In addition to all that, I noticed that the Kenko brand (part of THK, Tokina Hoya Kenko) meters - including the color meter - are *obviously* the Minolta products right down to the same LCD screen. I called Kenko and they said, yes, they had bought Minolta's meter making division, BUT they do not service the Minolta meters. That stinks.</p> <p>So I guess I'm asking whether anyone out there has had their Minolta Color Meter IIIF successfully repaired by Precision Camera.</p>