derek_thornton

<p>Hey Jim, </p>

<p>The Watkins Glen area has a lot of nice falls. Hector Falls is beautiful. Eagle Cliff Falls, Shequaga Falls, Rainbow Falls, Aunt Sarahs Falls and Cavern Cascade are all real nice. Withen Watkins Glen State Park there are many falls and cascades. If you are in the area you should see Buttermilk Falls, very nice.</p>

<p>The best thing to do is just search the web for the falls I mentioned or just search Watkins Glen. It is a very popular spot and there should be a LOT of info.</p>

<p>Derek</p>

Yeah Kent, SD and SC are not at all alike. Last year the family and I went to AZ. We stopped in western Kansas to get gas and noticed three cars running while the folks were in the store. I would like to see someone try that in Anderson SC.

That is a good idea Shun.

Dave, I never worry in the National Parks, it is the National Forest that bother me. Where I go there are a lot of rednecks that cruise the forest roads looking to capture snakes for the pet trade. Pretty sad, but thats another story.

 

I dont know if your Element has this, my CRV has a tire well in the back that is empty. I keep my spare on the rear door. It would be a great spot if I could get a lock on it.

 

Don, what does insurance cost for camera equipment?

Just curious what you all do on a shoot when you leave your vehicle behind.

 

Do you carry all your gear with you? There are times when I take 5 lenses and

2 bodies on a weekend. I will use all 5 lenses. Normally I take what I need

and leave the rest locked up in my car. I may walk 2-3 miles away from the

car. The whole time I am away from the car I am slightly worried. Other times

I carry it all with me, the extra weight does not allow for a comfortable time.

 

So, I am thinking maybe a vest would work better than the pack, be more

comfortable due to the weight distribution. But can you carry a 300mm f/4, 70-

200mm f/2.8, 12-24mm, 105mm, and 24-70mm in a vest?

 

I also thought, maybe I can bolt a tuff box type tool box in the back of my

CRV and lock the gear in there. I would probally still worry. I have seen what

people are capable of when they want something. And, with a tool box bolted in

the back of a CRV, they will no something is in it.

 

So what do you all do to feel comfortable physically and mentally on a shoot?

Any help or pointers will be appreciated.

Micheal,

 

at the moment I am not in that position and if I am lucky I wont be next year either. However, I am jealous that I have to worry and others dont. Also, from what I have read, it is much more than high ISO and liveview. The D300 is more like the D2X than D200. That would be a good step up.

 

John,

I wish you said it was laughing with you instead of at you(haha). I guess if I can get $900.00 out of each D200 I will be happy. I was going to keep one as a backup but I am lacking only one lens, 24-70mm.

 

Anthony,

I agree with you. But, I would not mind spending 2 grand a year to upgrade bodies. The expensive part has been the lenses. This year I have got every lens that I wanted but one. I figure once I get the lenses I wont have to buy any for a long time. Nikon lenses can last many years, right. I hope I wont have to get a lens for at least 5 years once I purchase the 24-70mm.

 

Folks, thanks a lot for the responses. There are a lot of folks here willing to take the time to answer so many post, I really appreciate it. It seems like every post I read has a response from Shun and Anthony. I dont see how you guys do it? Dont stop!

Thus far, are there any issues with the D300 yet? I wanted to wait a year but

may not have the money in a year. Also seems like the D200's value is

dropping, would like to sell it before it is too low, like the 18-200mm.

 

Thanks for any help

Wow, that was easy. Thanks alot folks.

I have a question about metering. I have the new 300mm f/4 lens with a pk-13

tube mounted to a D200. With D200 set on aperture priority and 300mm locked on

f/32 the D200 reads f/6 thru viewfinder. It stays at f/6 no matter if I +/-

exposure on camera. If I open lens aperture to f/4, d200 reads f/1. How do you

know what aperture you are on?

 

Is this what is suppose to happen when using nikon tubes, or do I have a

defect somewhere? Will the kenko tubes provide the right aperture? If so, is

it possible to place the guts of a kenko into the stronger nikon body?

 

Thanks for any help

Ric, my choice of words was not right. If you can get out to your favoite spot at 5:30am on a warm summer day you may find some dragons in an inactive state covered in dew and pretty much unable to fly. If this is you the 105mm is great. Most of us cant get to our spot at that time, I can get there at about 9am. At 9am they are fully active and hard to capture with a short lens. Even if you are patient enough to wait at a perch the 70-200mm has worked a lot better for me. I am sure you could make it work with patience.

 

Your butterfly picture, are you messing with me?

If you are having second thoughts about the 18-200mm lens, you may want to get rid of it soon. Value is droping! I bought the 18-200mm lens a year ago. I sold it a month ago and got $650.00 on ebay. If I would have sold it soon after I bought it could have got $800.00+.I shot with it for a month and did not like it at all. I hate the build, the creep and the price. I did get a couple of keepers with it. Also, it was nice at the drag races.

 

I also am thinking about the 35-70mm but may just get a used 28-70mm f/2.8 instead.

Hey guys, I have had lots of luck shooting Damselflies with 105mm lens. For some reason Damsels will let you get a bit closer?

At first I was a little confused about who to contact. Whoever I dealt with was in NJ.

 

Have you(Giotos) had a lot of unhappy customers with the MT-8170?

Stephen, the 105 stinks with butterflies and dragons. It is impossible to get that close. I use the 70-200mm f/2.8 with much success. However, the lens you have is even better. Instead of getting a 105mm get yourself some nikon tubes like any of the PK's and/or the PN-11. You should probally get the Kirk tripod collar too.

 

Now if you ever get interested in flowers, spiders and snakes the 105mm is great!

WOW!!!!!!! Bob, everything has been taken care of.

 

After requesting the parts one of the legs on the tripod froze up. The leg was so tight that I actually felt the cast aluminum crack at the joint. The tripod was the MT-8170. It was junk from day 1. The carbon fiber legs were great. But, the twist lock conectors had problems. The nuts that hold the legs on were all loose. I noticed that after losing a nut. I was very disapointed.

 

Anyway, I let Giottos know how disappointed I was and asked to swap tripod with differant model or refund. So a week later had a new tripod called the MT-7261. I was a little upset that it was valued at $30.00 less, lava instead of carbon fiber and rated at 17 pounds instead of 26. However, this tripod is so much better than the MT-8170 that I am totally satisfied. I have had it for close to a month and it has worked great. The twist locks are perfect, 1/2 turn releases or tightens and legs do not turn with. I am shocked that the two tripods are made from the same company.

 

I would highly recomend the MT-7261 to anyone, or any of the tripods in that new lineup.

 

Bob, thanks for the good service. Also, do not understand why anyone is having problems with my email? I saw in my email that you and Tom had both requested my address, that is how I found this post.

Jay,

Excuse me if I repeat what someone else said. A great place to go in the spring is West Texas. If you are in Nebraska W. Texas is not to far away. Guadalupe and Big Bend National Parks are awesome in the spring. In April everything is in bloom and you can see some amazing thunderstorms. Not to mention all the wildlife. I am trying to talk the wife into a Texas trip when the kids get spring break. You could even make a round trip and hit the Texas Hill Country, catch all the wildflowers in bloom.

I was planing to use with the 300mm f/4 that I have not yet purchased. Is it compatible with the new 300mm f/4 or do I need the older version?

I just purchased a PK-13 and attached it to the D200 with 105mm f/2.8 VR. When

set on P, M, A and S it reads f/0 and does not auto focus. I am pretty sure

that I read that you lose auto focus with Nikon tubes and it does not bother

me. However, I thought that it would meter with D200? Is this right, maybe a

defect, requires manual aperture lens?

 

It is also very tight mounting to the D200, any way to loosen up?

 

Any help will be appreciated

If this dont work I guess copy/paste. http://pc-mobile.net/nikongps.htm

Sorry, try this pc-mobile.net/nikongps.htm

Has anyone here purchased cables from this company? http://pc-

mobile.net/nikongps.htm It looks like a great deal just no nothing of the

company or the quality.

 

Sorry about reposting, never had much luck getting answers midway through a

post.

Is there any way to connect the Garmin GPS72 to the D200 with out using the

overpriced MC-35? Also, does the Garmin hadheld GPS come with interface cable

that plugs into MC-35 type connector or is this another accesory that has to

be purchased?

 

Thanks

I am also very happy with the D200. I will upgrade to D300 but it will probably be at least a year. I just want to give it a little time so they can work the bugs out. When I do purchase the D300 I will still use a D200 as a backup.

D200 with 105mm on closeups, 70-200mm on the butterflies and other large insects at around 5'.

So you are saying that the SB-800 will work fine for closeups as long as it is on a bracket? I was planing on getting the Manfrotto 3429. I figure it would work great for butterflies. Just not to sure about frogs at night? Can you adjust the output of the light so it is not to bright? How does all that work?