warren_wilson
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Everything posted by warren_wilson
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Temple at Kyauk Kalat in Burma© Warren.Wilson
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© Warren.Wilson
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Mahogany Temple and Acolytes near Inle Lake, Myanmar
warren_wilson posted a gallery image in Uncategorized
© Warren.Wilson
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© Warren.Wilson
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© Warren.Wilson
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© Warren.Wilson
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© Warren.Wilson
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Valentine's day.© Warren.Wilson
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Best wishes on your trip. I ive in BC and have travelled all over the routes you are planning many times. The Idefields Parkway is quite possibly the most beautiful drive in the world. if not — it is in the running. Don’t miss it. Take your time, stop often and take pictures — there is no rush getting to Jasper. The notion of street photograhy capturing the “regular folks” going about their business might not be particularly productive as virtually everyone there is either a tourist or involved in the tourist industry. On the other hand, the “blue hour” will last for hours morning and night so you wil have a wonderful opportunity to capture subtle light. And that light will dance on the mountains for you. East of Jasper as you drive throug the park towards Edmonton you will doubtless come across lots of beautiful big elk and mountain sheep that have not been hunted in 100 years. They are not tame, will attack if provoked, but will not start and run from you. there used to be a bison sanctuary, don’t know if it’s still there. You might also see grizzlies and black bears. In Jasper there is a tramway way up onto the shoulder of Whistler (I think) Mountain. It is worth it to ride up, hike around way up in the Rockies then go down to one of the fine pubs in town. At that time of year you MUST book accommodatoin ahead of time: even camping sites fill up quickly. Outside of Jasper, Maligne Lake is one of the most photographed places in Canada. The islands about halfway down were featured on our $5 bill for decades: again, very early in the morning or late in the afternoon would be the best time to take one of the boat tours down to the halfway point. (I always either canoe or kayak, then spend the rest of the week hiking the mountains at the far end of the lake, but now I’m just indulging reminiscence) In Banff the elk wander the streets. I love Jasper, but photogenically, Banff and area has the edge. I LIVE here and I am jealous of your time!
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I have been slow getting back to this, but had a marvellous time in Myanmar and I will post some pics. I live in northern Canada, so I did find the 35 - 40 degree weather enervating. Also, up here, we get many hours of slowly-fading ilght. The sudden sunsets of equatorial and even tropical regions certainly keep me on my toes. Any time the sun is actually up, the hard specular light creates deep, hard shadows — but I did what I could. It is a wonderfully warm country and the people demonstrated to me again that money has some serious negative impacts on a culture. I left as much money as I could in the hands of locals by staying in places well below the pay grade of government ownership, eating with the locals in delicious but perhaps a tad dingy restaurants, and hiring independent locals (like taxi-tour guys) whenever we needed. I would certainly be glad to share my experience and the tips I picked up on the road with anyone who is headed that way. I’ll post some pics.
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Thanks, guys. Myanmar is a fine place for both the people and the images -- this time I have taken quotes from many great photographers and pasted them randomly ahead of time into my journal, so as I write in it, I am continually reminded of the thoughts of the great: Steve McCurry, Dorothea Lange, Yousuf Karsh, Alfred Steiglitz etc. It is inspirational to start the day with a thought like, "Great photography is about depth of feeling, not depth of field." And having such fine compadres as this group is also inspirational. So thanks.
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Thanks, Peter -- that seems to have been the problem. It took a lot of resets, but finally it took.
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A tad cruel, Mary. :)
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You guys are awesome, taking the time to help a bedgraggled guy who started to hate the weight of his useless camera bag. I appreciate the link to the owner's manual in particular -- I didn't bring it, and have been wishing I did. The good news is that being obsessive, I sat and did repeated factory resets maybe a half dozen times in a row and that seems to have done the trick. Since I have pretty much destroyed my normal backup (D300) with hard use, it might be time to dig deep for an 850 and demote the old 800. That's what I'm telling my wife, anyway. Thanks again -- I appreciate the ethic a great deal.
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Thanks, Mary. Manual mode does the same thing -- I think the communication between the CPU and the lens CPU is down. Yeah. I have a terrible little backup camera. A Coolpix. It is very similar to a camera in some respects, at any rate. (It's OK, but like going from a nicely-tuned sports car to a second-hand pickup truck).
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Thank you for your responses. I have several lenses -- the 70 - 200 f/2.8, a 14 - 24 f/2.8, a 105 macro f/2.8 and a walking around lens. They all behave in the same manner. Te battery is not low, but I will give it a boost. Although the display blinks with the number of the widest aperture available on the lens, when I DO take an exposure, it seems to pinch down to the smallest aperture -- that lever that opens and closes the diaphragm does not seem to be working -- in other words, although the display blinks the number of the widest aperture, when the shutter is activated, the lens appears to remain closed to the smallest aperture. I speculate this because in conditions that might normally ask for 1/120 at f/8 (sunny f/8 kind of thing), I need an lengthy exposure (eg. 1/4 second). I keep hoping it's just something simple I am overlooking -- like on old lenses if you did not have them locked at the widest aperture, they would act similarly. So far the bustling markets of Mandalay have not given me much reassurance that there is a qualified Nikon tech anywhere in the city!
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I am currently in Mandalay with my Nikon D800. The camera seems to want to keep the aperture wide open. For instance, if I use the 70 - 200 f/2.8, it sits at f/2.8 with the display blinking and will not let me change the aperture (in any mode - though I normally keep it in A). I have tried a re-set. I have cleaned the contacts and spun the various controls to see if it is something there. I recall this used to be a problem with really old gear when I didn't have the lens physically indexed to the body, but don't know what is going on here. I am hoping this is some simple thing I am overlooking. I doubt there is a Nikon-savvy camera shop any closer than Bangkok, and there are a lot of miles between here and there. I would appreciate any suggestions: this is a very photogenic place!
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Thanks again, bonsignore. I will take your advice on Kyaiktiyo. We are apparently right in pilgrimage season, so the incense-lighting, chanting etc will be at its height. I am even considering staying in one of those over-priced hotels at the top: hard for a photographer to willingly give up both sunrise and sunset. I will probably try to steal that time from Inle Lake. In your mind given the short timeline should I priorise HpaAn or Mawlamyine? Once, outside Chaing Mai I watched elephants standing at giant easels painting very nice, slightly abstract but clearly representational art. It altered my sense of animal intelligence. Their understanding of shape, form and composition seemed more sound than that of some of my students! : )
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Thanks, bonsinore_ezio Those all sound like good tips. This is the only country in SE Asia we have not yet travelled: we always travel independently. I am planning to take the Mandalay - Bagan boat, then near the end of our time there take the boat from Malamwiyne to HpaAn on our way overland to Thailand. The 28-day visa is brief, considering the slow travel -- so a few overnight buses are also included in my plan. I have set aside 4 days for Inle Lake, 3 days for Mandalay, 3 for Bagan. We will be in Yangon several times. I no longer have the energy or desire to "bag" sights, and prefer to explore fewer places at leisure. And it has always been my experience that the poorest people are the nicest, most welcoming. I certainly don't mind getting my money into their hands -- and the idea of pencils etc. is one I used throughout Indonesia. I'll head to Staples today to grab lots: I was once a teacher myself. (In Nepal years ago, little village children would greet us with two words: "namaste," and "aspirin?") I am trying to lighten my camera load, but don't seem to be able to strip it down to less than (Nikon) a D800, 18-300 "walking around" lens, a 105 f2.8 macro, the f/2.8 70 - 200, and an f/2.8 14-24 with associated filters. It seems like a basic set up, but damn its heavy! (Also a Manfrotto carbon fibre tripod).
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I am headed to Myanmar next month to spend 28 days poking around with some camera gear. I am open to ideas -- if anyone has any thoughts about some really fine places, times or other angles on really indulging my photo obsession.
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Bags like Think Tank with a 8kg carry-on limit?
warren_wilson replied to RaymondC's topic in Accessories
You guys sure do carry lots of gear. I'm looking for a recommendation. I would like to try the Think Tank "messenger" style bag or something similar. I will be carrying a D800 with 4 lenses (14-24, 70-200, 105 macro, and a 28-300) and other associated gear for 6 weeks in Burma, where it can be hot and wet. I don't want to carry anything hugely oversized but would like a little room to stuff in a few other items. Any recommendations? -
HDR images
warren_wilson replied to brian_mchattie's topic in The Digital Darkroom: Process, Technique & Printing
Brian: I don't know the specs in detail (normally I use Photomatix rather than the HDR tool in Photoshop), but what happens if you start with jpgs rather than RAW images? The gurus here will correct me pretty fast if I am wrong, but I think you are already into pixel-level editing when you go to HDR routines so I dont imagine you will lose much by starting with a jpg. -
Top 10 most attractive tourist places in Vietnam
warren_wilson replied to tuan_hoang5's topic in Travel
It is just an opinion, but one with which I basically agree -- no photographer could go far wrong in those places. I don't know which I'd drop, but I would include Hue and the Cao Dai temple near Tay Ninh. -
Piccure+
warren_wilson replied to warren_wilson's topic in The Digital Darkroom: Process, Technique & Printing
Thanks, Howard. 1. I am going to have to do more reading about deconvolution, I suppose. 2. Thanks for the reminder about Luminous Landscape -- ssomehow I have let that site slip off my favorites. -
<p>I recently saw an ad for this software solution vaunted to cure camera shake blur in post.<br> There do not seem to be many reviews out there, and I have to say I am never sure of the provenance of the reviews -- does anyone here have experience with the product?<br> I use pretty good glass and usually a tripod, but I am also a great lover of sharpness, so I might be a sucker for the thing.</p> <div></div>
