rosenmj

I find it really hard to focus manually with the D750

Even with the focus aid arrows and dot

It's just not accurate enough I think for the lens/aperture I was using ( Zeiss ZF.2 Planar 50/1.4)

 

Has anyone tried replacing the screen with the K-3 style screen from

Focusing screens.com?

Any thought on whether it works, how hard is the install and is there a better way to manually focus

On the D750 - I've tried using the built in screen but it's not really made for this purpose

<p>I've used AdoramaPix recently and am very pleased with the results. I did upload hi-rez images and the results were really impressive. AdoramaPix uses the term "infused" in their video explanation of the process</p>

<p>Echoing what others have said - silent shutter is not really the E-M1, 3200 ISO is better on larger sensors all things considered. the image stabilization effectively gives you lower iso, since you can hand hold slower shutter speeds - so for the most part , you are probably fine either way.<br>

if you want a silent camera - try the Fuji X100s , the leaf shutter is crazy quiet. but alas - no interchangeable lenses.</p>

 

<p>the main thing to know is you have to disconnect your phone from your current Wifi network , once the Wifi is turned on on the camera. The camera acts as a Wifi Hot-Spot (except only btw the phone and camera - no internet )<br>

Then, only the first time you connect, you use the camera and olympus app to scan the QR code on the LCD of the camera (that has the network name and password) - these also can be entered manually<br>

subsequent connections - turn on the camera wifi, change the phones wifi (disconnect from your regular Wifi network and connect to the Olympus camera network)</p>

 

<div></div>

<p>I've had this camera for a month - most useful travel digital I've ever owned.<br>

<strong>Pro's</strong><br>

I hate dragging around a FF and 2.8 zoom (think Nikon Trinity) - the E-M1 and 12-40 2.8 is an awesome pair, great image quality, nice small size<br>

IBIS - I can handhold at really low shutter speeds - like 1/3 sec or longer, just stunning.<br>

Very configurable - buttons , wheels and levers that are customizable. <br>

EVF - very very good, little or no lag, very sharp, bright - don't miss the optical viewfinder at all.<br>

lens options - so many really good lenses<br>

Manual Focus - very effective thru the EVF - touch and feel depends on the lens - the 75 1.8 and the 12-40 have a really good resistive/dampened feel<br>

Wifi mode - pretty good to remote control camera or transfer photos to phone<br>

Image Quality - good enough for me - but then I don't do wall size prints<br>

2x lens factor makes wildlife photography possible and affordable for me vs the Nikon FF. I got a 75-300 Oly zoom (150-600 equiv), I can't imagine owning a 600mm on FF (price and weight)</p>

<p><strong>Cons</strong><br>

Silly art modes - fun for 10 secs, then just get in the way.<br>

GPS - I'd like built in GPS<br>

Battery life - this is an energy intensive camera - buy 2 extra batteries.<br>

no 2nd card slot - I'm just wishing out loud here<br>

DoF - you do have to work harder with the focal lengths to get bokeh<br>

pixel peepers - I've used it up to 1600 ISO w no issues - if you peep pixels, there are discussions re higher comparative noise at high ISO and long exposure times vs larger sensors<br>

<br>

I'm really happy with this camera - It's great for my purposes<br>

<br>

</p>

<p> </p>

<p>@David - more like $0.50 per shot</p>

<p>slight math issue - if you have 1 defect per sq inch - then you can product 100 x 1/10 inch sensors, with a 99% yield</p>

<p>Jewelry is jewelry, flip a coin. for what it's worth the M9 is slightly more useful than a Rolex.</p>

<p>Bag 1 - Bare Bones Bag<br>

Leica MP, 50mm Summicron, Vintage Zeiss 50 1.5, Contax-Leica Adapter, Film - Tri-X, TMAX-400, One Sharpie fine point marker , yellow filter, light meter, extra batteries and Contax mount Nippon Kogaku 8.5cm (ok the last one doesn't reall fit in the bag)</p>

<p>Bag 2 - Domke satchel<br>

Olympus OM-4T, OM-3T, Zuiko 50 1.4, 28 2.8, 85 2.0, 100 2.8, F280 flash, film, filters, lens cleaner, microfiber cloth , extra battery</p>

<p>Bag 3 - LowePro Slingshot 200<br>

Nikon D300, 18-200 VR, 50mm1.8, extra battery, charger, connection cables, GPS dongle, SB-800 flash</p>

<p>much more stuff in need of every bigger bags</p>

<p> </p>

Ask the Bride what happens if she gets sick

<p>Leica MP - no question.</p>

<p>like many things - it depends<br>

The 24-70 2.8 is a solid hunk of glass and metal - my sense is the 18-200 is lighter.<br>

you should look at the EXIF data in you photos and determine what FL you use most often in circumstances you will encounter on your trip - that will tell you if you really need the reach of the 18-200<br>

I went on a trip last year with a D300 and the 18-200, I kept it on my camera 98% of the time and was very happy with the results. the other 2% I used a 50 1.8, which is great in low light situations.</p>

<p>The 18-200 has some light fall off at the corners, but for the most part no one sees this but me, and only on select scenes<br>

That said - I'd love the advantages of a larger and fixed max aperture.<br>

I'll also agree that the FX/DX body does have some relevance to the answers</p>

<p>I'm still around and reading all the comments with interest and appreciation.<br>

In my particular situation, I'm glad I waited for the new lens, because it gave me time to learn the shooting environment first, also because I hate buying "old" technology just as it is revised. That said, it's probably true that for my purposes, the first VR version would probably be fine (in DX), or even one of the other suggested alternative lenses.<br>

The season is over for now. so I have until next May to decide and acquire, and wait for the reviews to whet the appetite further.<br>

@Kirk - no way to roam the sidelines, all the fields are fenced off up to first and third. Although I am thinking of "volunteering" to be a coach to get access to the dugouts.<br>

I have the monopod, but i'm less worried about camera shake than shutter speed, you need a minimum of 1/500 or 1/1000 to see the seams on the moving ball. From that sense, VR or VR II would probably be either way fine or moot.<br>

D700 ? I always like to balance lack of talent and skill with equipment, so FX is probably an inevitable choice (even though DX has the effect of increasing the perceived zoom reach) the increased ISO performance is clearly a positive factor. The D300 could easily work for me for years to come - but then again...<br>

@wouter - your probably right, enjoy the hobby and the results and if you can afford it, don't torture yourself over the variations, just get what you want (and sell it if it doesn't work)<br>

In short , I was looking for reinforcement to go out and get the big gun, and by selectively reading the responses, I've moved further down the path.<br>

Thanks again everyone!</p>

<p>I've enjoyed using my D300 and 18-200 VR f3.5 - 5.6 for the past 2 years.<br>

Particularly I've been taking pictures at my kid's little league games. My results are pleasing to me and the small circle of friends I share them with. I am definitely not doing this for any commercial reasons and have no such expectations.<br>

Some of the games start in early evening and I find myself bumping up the ISO to 1600 by the end of the game and even losing enough light to take decent pictures. Of course at 1600 you have some deficiences as compared to using 200/400, higher noise, and sometimes I see lower color saturation. Additionally I'm trying to keep the shutter speed high enough to stop the action. I suppose I could use automatic ISO setting, but in any case I find late in the evening as I zoom to 200, or shift the scene to a darker area of the field, I get the Lo warning and have to adjust and eventually stop taking pictures.<br>

Which brings me to the glorious new 70-200 VRII f2.8. I purposely didn't get the old one this year because of rumors about an impending revision. This would give me 2 extra stops at the long end and VR II for whatever that's worth.<br>

Now that the new one is out, just how crazy is it to get one ? Clearly I am a hacker/pretender/wannabe , but I do enjoy getting a nice shot. It probably would be intimidating at first to wheel out the big gun at the game and then explain to all who ask that I am not from SI rather just a parent with a large budget. The lens itself is much heavier than the 18-200 , clearly not in the same universe from many perspectives.<br>

The D300 is DX, most of the time I am shooting from behind first or third and 200mm on a DX is a great combination.<br>

Although this feels like bringing a shotgun to kill a mosquito. I need your help, comments and support. Is it crazy for this purpose ? Is The FX lens wasted on a DX body ? In the never ending treadmill of NAS, would the next stop inevitably be an FX body ?</p>

<p>As a relatively new MP user, I think the shutter dial is going to take me time to use, I have to take my eye away from the viewfinder, and look at the dial to change it. It may become second nature over time, and the truth is unless lighting conditions change quickly or you want to bracket with shutter speed, you set it once and leave it for a while.<br>

Olympus OM's have the shutter speed ring on the lens mount, which is really convenient when you get used to it.</p>

<p>Contax IIa, 8.5cm Nikkor, TMY<br>

<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3382/3490186906_233d57bcde_o.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="678" /><br>

Summer 2008 - Sister and Brother</p>

 

<p>Les - I was looking at some of your full size black and white scanned images , linked to the this thread, for example<br /> <br /> http://www.fototime.com/%7BE13AC156-2952-46DE-A998-19B1F31626F4%7D/picture.JPG<br /> <br /> all of them show regular vertical scan lines and some of them show slightly different tones from one adjacent line to the next , when the subject tone is uniform<br /> <br /> I haven't had a scanner in years and was thinking of getting one and I wondered, do you use or print the images as is? do you see the same thing as I do ? does this effect disappear when viewed at less than full size or with post-scan processing ? <br /> <br /> Is scanning film just a way to post images online, or can scanning and digital printing be a high quality substitute for wet printing of BW images ?</p>

<p>I think I found out what is happening.</p>

<p>I tried lowering the development time with TMY and TMAX developer, and I also used some HP5+ and DD-X developer and the results maybe were a little better, but still not the wide and rich range of tones I see in many posted images.</p>

<p>Last night I printed with a #1 VC filter. A photo I took in full shape looks nice, but anything with direct sunlight is almost unprintable. Since I've tried to eliminate other posibilities, from checking developement temps, to rereading processing instructions and even switching film and developer. I started thinking about my enlarger , which has an Aristo cold light source, since color temp is what affects contrast, I googled, and found this thread. perhaps if I update by cold light bulb to the lastest, which is better suited for VC paper, I will have better luck</p>

<p>http://www.photo.net/black-and-white-photo-printing-finishing-forum/00S2KY</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I went back and reviewed more carefully , the fixer (Kodak liquid fixer) was being mixed 1:3 (125 to 375) the developer 1:4 (100ml to 400ml)<br>

I don't think the dilutions are mistaken - but you've all given me some ideas and I will test some variations and report back</p>

<p>thanks</p>

 

<p>I use TMAX developer, not the RS version - I mix it as I go, using 125ml of concentrate to 375ml water<br>

I am doing 2 rolls at a time in a Jobo Tank and agitating by 5 inversions every 30 secs, I use the solution one time and throw it out. I start the clock as I am pouring the solution in the tank and pour it out and use stop batch immediately at the end of the developement step<br>

I'm pretty good about managing the initial developer temp (I think) although I guess from what I'm hearing I might try to run some controlled tests varying the time (and perhaps the ISO), maybe I'll replace the thermometer.<br>

I have quite old VC filters in my enlarger - I'll get a new set on the off chance that these have lost their original color cast. I could always use filter #0, but I don't think my photos are scenes with extreme contrast ranges , so ideally I'd like to be in the middle of the contrast filter range.</p>

 

<p>I was using Ilford VC with a #2 filter on a diffused light enlarger</p>

 

<p>I just finished a darkroom session, and the resulting prints were extremely contrasty<br>

the negatives were mostly TMAX 400 and shot at different times and lighting situations with different cameras.<br>

I developed using standard Kodak recommended times and temps using TMAX developer in a 2 reel tank agitating 5 secs every 30.<br>

the only thing I can think of is a mistake in the dilution of the developer.<br>

When I but a quart of TMAX developer, and it says "Makes one Gallon" , after I make that gallon of stock, do I need to further dilute it before processing - for example the recommendation is 1:4 at 68 degrees for TMAX 400 for 7 mins ? Is the dilution ratio expressed from the tmax concentrate out of the container, or from the initial stock diluton (1 quart concentrate makes one gallon stock makes 5 gallons working solution)</p>

I bought a NIkon D300 and just love it. So much in fact that it has revived my interest in photography. In no

time, out came the old SLR, Olympus OM4T, shot a couple rolls with it. I love the mechanical feel, it is slower,

no immediate results, but you do get the satisfying mirror clunk, and you do have to wind it..

Not to be outdone, I then re-purchased my #1 camera, a Contax IIa RF. I just shot a roll with it. 30 minutes

later I was dusting off my dormant darkroom and developing my first roll in maybe 10 years.

The magic of chemicals, silver, darkness and light is still there. I can't wait to print.

 

Digital will always be a tool and what the D300 does is amazing. Film and mechanical cameras will always hold a

fascination and a different feel. Capuccino vs Espresso , they're both excellent

I just got back from a 2 week trip to Italy including one week on a bike. I brought the 18-200 VR, 50 1.8, D300, and SB-800.

I also brought an OM-4T and 85mm lens.

 

I used the SB-800 only once. as for the lenses, I used the 50 once (in a very dark church) the rest of the time the 18-200 VR

 

If I had to do it again, I'd still take both lenses but leave the flash at home. (I'd also probably leave the OM-4T at home too)

 

I also brought a Dawntech GPS which tags the pictures with GPS coordinates (much easier to sort out later) and finally a

Hyperdrive Colorspace O - for backing up my images nightly

 

I packed it all in a LowePro Slingshot 200 which is a great-great small camera bag, although a little geeky, but what the hell, with all my toys , I wasn't going to pass as an Italian anyway :-)