stuart_bellamy

<p>I am wondering if anyone knows if there are fake Canon dslr's that have been manufactured in the East, particular China? I have a friend there on work and he says that he can get a 5D Mark 2 for $700 from a 'source', i know that China has a reputatiopn for producing fake products and pretty close to the original product.</p>

<p>If they are fakes, then i am wodering if they are of the same standard as the original, in terms of performance, IQ, build etc... Anyone have any experience about this?</p>

Thanx guys for the responses, I never considered the 17-35mm. I see that the 14-24mm and 17-35mm are almost the

same price. Will check it out. What is the difference between the 2 lenses in terms of image quality? That is my main

concern.

Also I dont like to hold the filter too much and wouldn't do multiple exposures and blend them together as I think it is much

more realistic to get it right on one shot, plus I hate doing too much Photoshop.

I am looking to upgrade my D80 to a D700 and because I shoot mainly landscapes and panoramics, I was looking at the 14-24mm 2.8 lens

to be my main setup. I dont know much about the mechanics of lenses and optics with sensor sizes but my question is whether the 14-

24mm will be a true 14-24mm on a D700 with no crop factor? Also using ND grads to balance the light, is there any solution to the fact

that the 14-24mm has no filter thread?

Maybe take a look at my photos and let me know if you think I am making the right choice with the lens and body. Apprecaite any

feedback, thanx.

Stuart

Unbelievable, I have just upgraded from a macbook to macbook pro and was looking to

download NX so i can start to process my images from last night. I,m a bit worried if i have

no RAW processing software as that is all i shoot on. I,m getting CS3 today, does anyone

know if it has RAW software on it or any other solution?

Great! Took a look and very nice stuff and they look pretty good with blending. Will keep

trying! Thanx.

Thanx again Colin, will send ya some new pics when i get this whole thing right. Thanx

everyone for all the feedback and insight.

Stuart

Dave,

Looks like you are in the same position i was in 6 months ago with the same problem. I spent

hours and hours researching the best filters and which ones to get. I bought a cokin set to try

first which worked fine until i tried the lee filter system and then immediately changed to Lee

from then on.

If you are passionate about your photos then its worth knowing that you have the best quality

filters available. If the pictures you are taking are not up to scratch, then you know its not your

equipment and just a lack of knowledge and experience. Go with the Lee filter system and

their ND Grads and also try some the singh-ray reverse filters that will fit on the Lee Filter

Holder.

Best of luck

Stuart

Wish i could have started on film but already invested so much on my digital setup. Maybe in

a few years time when i'm better and will take a look at a fuji panoramic film camera. Thanx

Sorry dont have any sample pics as I delete them if they aren't good photos. I shoot only on

RAW and only keep the good ones. But my photos are mainly after the sun has set but i want

to get a similar feeling but with that warm evening light before the sunsets.

I see now, i think i have been shooting when the sun is too strong and maybe too early. Will

try again this evening and use only the hard grad for the seascapes. Thanx alot!

I have tried that in the past but the results dont quite look the same as getting it right in one

well balanced image. I do use tripod though. Thanx anyway and will try hdr again.

Hi,

I am pretty new to photography after buying a Nikon dslr 6 months ago but am thoroughly enjoying

taking landscapes and seascapes almost as often as i can. I use a D80 and have invested in some lee

filters, a few grads and straight nds. I have trouble, when after choosing a composition and shooting

when i think the light is at its 'best', to me, but the foreground up to the horizon is always too dark for my

taste when using a 0.9 nd to balance the exposure. There are always blown out highlights. I end up

getting my better shots 10 - 30 min after sunset but have to try to recover the detail in the lower part of

the image.

What i'm trying to say is that i know i have a lot to learn about light but is there anyone who give a me

some tips or pointers to first, know where to point the camera in relation to the setting sun at what time

in my photo sessions and secondly should i use a combination of nd grads to make them stronger to

block out the harsh light, like a .6 and .9 to make a 5 stop difference?

Would appreciate any advice at all. Thanx for listening.

Stuart

ps. You can also take a look at some of my photos to see if i'm doing something wrong.