tim_eastman

<p>I would second Jody's post; I find the discussions in OT threads are of a much higher quality than most. There is a back and forth exchange of ideas. Sometimes things get heated, but I believe the exchange of ideas is a good outlet and is quite tame. I don't often see ignorant troll type replies that dominate so many forums. I appreciate the caliber of intellect that frequents these forums.</p>

<p>This is a situation none of us wish for, but the chance to start fresh with different equipment does cross our minds!</p>

<p>I have used PTGui for a long time. Many who make 360 spherical panos use PTGui. If you will be making 180 deg. panos including multi rows you may want to look at PT Assembler ( link to forum here: http://www.tawbaware.com/forum2/ ) Max writes the software and does amazing work. Many PTGui users spend too much time on this forum: http://www.panoguide.com/ Take some time to read threads in each forum and they may point you in the right direction.</p>

<p>You should look at PTGui or AutoPano or PTAssembler. Photoshop can get the job done, but these give you much more capability. RRS has some beautiful equipment, but you might want to look at Nodal Ninja, if only for their EZ Leveler http://shop.nodalninja.com/ez-leveler-ii-no-case-f3138/<br>

You will probably benefit much more from learning and using a dedicated stitching program than seeking a technical fix.</p>

<p>How much hiking experience do you have? I am assuming you will be hiring porters to carry your non camera gear. My experience trekking in Nepal is that there will not be much room left in your pack after you pack the personal gear needed for the day's hike: mid to heavy weight insulated jacket, wind shell, gloves, water, energy bars or some food to get you between meals, flashlight, toilet paper etc. It is wise to be relatively self sufficient in case you have a problem, and the above gear is a bare minimum. Porters take off before you and you will probably not see them all day.<br>

Assemble the gear you will need for your day's hike and see how much room is left over for your camera gear. You will quickly discover how much you really want to lug around. With a bad back you might want to decide whether potentially aggravating it is worth the price of carrying too much gear. Nepal is too beautiful to be in misery.</p>

<p>Are you stitching the original images or putting them through Photomatix? I use PTGui and try to keep the original file as long as possible; if they are RAW files I will save them as a TIFs without corrections and then stitch, trying to do my editing on the stitched image.</p>

<p>I would echo the above sentiments. Winter backpacking adds considerable weight to your pack, and assuming you are taking DSLR gear you may be looking at 80 + lbs. of gear. I know that back in my winter hiking days in the 70's, without camera gear and splitting communal gear three ways, my pack was easily 70 lbs. Add the potential of slogging through deep snow...... Not that I wouldn't do your trip in a heartbeat, but make sure you are ready. Or go Nepal and hire porters!</p>

<p>If you get to the Olympics, be sure to drive up to Hurricane Ridge. Incredible vista.</p>

<p>Somewhat related... I use Live View to get optimal focus in difficult situations, focusing manually, then switch off Live View.</p>

<p>Let's say I have upgraded from CS5 to CS6. Past upgrades have run me under $ 200.00 Under the new scheme, if I chose to upgrade via the monthly rent method, do I stop paying rent when I have reached the $ 180.00 threshold? I guess not. In one year I will have paid twice what I would have paid for an upgrade and upgrades seem to be every two years or so, so instead of making $ 180.00 off of me every two years they are making $ 540.00 Now I get it! From Matt's perspective it may make sense if you use other Creative Suite products, but for the majority who use Photoshop and upgrade every two years we have watched Adobe triple its profit. </p>

<p>I agree about the blue water. So many of the vantage points are pretty high up, far enough away from the water that you would not notice silky smooth water. Have fun. This is in Corniglia:<br>

http://eastmanwoodworking.com/panos/CornigliaD.html</p>

<p>Thinking about how VR works will make you realize why it is not a good idea when the camera is on a tripod. The VR is essentially a gyroscope, meant to counteract and stabilize handheld movement. When the camera ( lens ) is on a tripod there is no movement to counteract, so the VR exerts a force that will work against the stability of the tripod. Think Steve Martin in The Jerk, when he puts the buffer on the car!</p>

<p>"</p>

<p >The freelancers, presumably, will be carrying professional camera gear, <a href="http://chicagoist.com/2013/06/01/sun-times_to_train_reporters_on_iph.php" target="_blank">while the reporters will be trained how to do double duty </a>by using smartphones for visual news gathering and video packages.</p>

<p >Smartphones replace point and shoot cameras, they replace consumer-level video cams, they replace pro audio recorders. But smartphones can't replace digital single lens reflex cameras -- and especially can't replace the talent and experience required to make pictures for many types of newspaper assignments. " </p>

<p >The tone of that first sentence sums up how a seasoned photographer feels about it, presumably. It is an insult to suggest that giving a reporter an I Phone and asking him to snap pictures puts him on a par with a seasoned photographer who knows what an F stop is. A good friend who is photo editor at my local Tribune owned paper is certainly insulted at the notion that a reporter with an I Phone is equal to his and his staff's many years of experience.</p>

<p>Here is one area where the D400 is missed. The D300 had a much better focus tracking ability than the D7000. Moving objects that my D300 could track cannot be tracked nearly as well with my D7000. That said, the tradeoff in image quality is well worth it. Is there any rationale FOR the 39 point setting?</p>

<p>The squeeze is on everywhere, as more and more fight for a shrinking piece of the pie. Newspapers are in a death spiral of their own making. The decision to give away content online and hope for magical ad revenues is a real tragedy. What an insult to seasoned photographers.</p>

<p>I had an Induro and now have the Sirui you are looking at. I think the Sirui is a better knock off of Gitzo. The removable leg is quite handy if you are traveling and just want to carry a monopod for a day trip, although it is not as tall as most monopods. You may want to look at Feisol as well, just to further confuse yourself.</p>

<p>I'm not sure how well you will be able to see leather texture from the distance needed to shoot a 7 foot wide sofa. Does your studio have natural light or are you entirely dependent on the soft boxes? Long ago I used to do more elaborate lighting setups for my furniture but found that manipulating the natural light gave good results and took a lot less time. If this is a one time gig you will probably spend much more time setting up for it.</p>

<p>I look at the dedicated Kirk plate as part of the camera price and a worthwhile safety investment. It is asking a lot of a flat plate to keep from slipping, and I shudder at the amount of torque on the screw needed to keep it from slipping.</p>

<p>My OpTech strap is more than 20 years old. Has anyone had a failure with an OpTech strap? I sometimes wonder if it is time for a new one! Agree that I don't like a big message saying NIKON around my neck when travelling.</p>

<p>You should be able to take your tripod carry on. I have flown to Europe three times with no trouble with a small tripod. In Florence they made me put it in my checked baggage to go back to Paris, where I unpacked it and took it carry on to the States. I like my Sirui with a detachable monopod leg, which is a nice option if you want to travel a little lighter during the day. I particularly like it because I can do my 360 panoramas on the monopod. ( http://eastmanwoodworking.com/panos/Damn1D.html )</p>

<p>Devastating table. Nikon should put you on payroll!<br>

Could you compare the D7000 & D7100 in a similar fashion? I have a D7000 and my father replaced his D300 with a D7100. He tired of waiting for the D400 and it seems the D7100 is the new heir to an orphaned line. I hope the D7000 fares more favorably. Image quality is amazing. </p>

<p>There is something nostalgic about film color rendering. Digital is amazing, but certain colors it just can't handle. The last picture, in particular, brings home that point. Overall color rendition may be a little flat, but the consistency is what is appealing, no over saturated reds, just good rendition.</p>

<p>I think there are life cycles to all forums. Many of my favorite forums have slowed to a crawl. Interest peaks and then subsides. Ironically, the Off Topic topics ( note, especially guns ), probably generates a great deal of traffic, something advertisers like!</p>

<p>Chincoteague; the Mariner or the Refuge are 5 to 10 minutes from the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and the beach. Depending on the season there are lots of migratory birds in the impoundment. The occasional otter too. Snow Hill is closer to Assateague and has a nice B & B and two nice restaurants. If you are inclined to sea kayak you can rent one in Snow Hill and they will take you to the top of the Pocomoke ( navigable ) for a beautiful trip down through a cypress swamp.</p>

<p>If you are shooting a panorama you want switch to manual focus. Even at f16. Just good practice when shooting panos to ensure you will have even results. Also, set your metering to manual for the same reason, to ensure consistent exposure. Back button focusing seems to be more trouble than it is worth, for the few times it is needed.</p>