socalguy_socalguy

<p>I just bought an SB-600 for using with my D80. I am very new to Flash photography and thought I'd get some input on some problems I am facing when using the SB-600.</p>

<p>1. When I use the D80 in P mode with SB-600, the exposure meter on my camera always shows maximum underexposure. Most of the pictures are still ok though. (This problem is never there when the flash unit is not attached and I am using P mode.)</p>

<p>Also, for those shots using the flash in P mode, it shows that the shot is being taken at f/4 and 1/60 sec. My flash is on TTL BL(balance flash). When I change this to Manual flash with 1:1 or 1:2, the camera meter also shows maximum underexposure. Is this normal?</p>

<p>The camera also shows maximum underexposure in M and A mode, with flash. However, most pictures are ok.</p>

<p>2. When I see underexposure when using flash, I usually dial up the flash exposure compensation to +1 or +2 and try again, until I get the desired result. Is it better to change the camera exposure compensation instead? </p>

<p>Thanks for your help.</p>

<p>Thanks Bill Tuthill and Steve T., for the recommendations and the very helpful link. Looks like both LX5 and P7000 have great reviews - shall look up in more details.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I have a dSLR which I actively use, and have a few good lenses too. I was considering getting a good P&S camera as a backup, and also for using in situations where I am not able to carry or use my dSLR. Any suggestions as to which P&S will be best suited, keeping my goals in mind?</p>

<p>I was considering getting a Leica P&S, choosing from d-lux 5, d-lux 4 (fast lens) or a v-lux 20 (with 25-300mm effective focal length), but am somewhat hesitant of the v-lux since it does not shoot in RAW. I also need a good photo-editing software and I think Leica has Lightroom or Elements included along with a three year warranty on the camera. Any other recommendations for a P&S as a backup camera? Thanks!</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Hello, I'm back from the trip and had a chance to take a look at some of the pictures I took.</p>

<p>Thanks Arthur for the input. And regarding the 18-200mm, although I haven't tried it out myself...it does not seem like this lens is something I want right now. I know a lot of people absolutely love it and it works excellent for them. Looking back at pictures I took, I seldom used the 70-300mm - just a preference.</p>

<p>So, of the ~850 pictures this time, I didn't use the 70-300mm even once, used the 10-20mm sigma around 55% of the time and the 28-80mm around 45%. (Not happy with the colors and sharpness of the sigma, so had to return it.) Of the times I used the 28-80mm, 85% were in the 28-50mm range.</p>

<p>I am getting tempted to just go for the 10-24mm Nikon. By the way, I really like the 28-80mm I have - it gives awesome colors and is sharp. I used it on film camera extensively before (N80), and also use it on the D80. Anyways, just happened to look up the reviews on amazon and Ken Rockwell...that lens has received some rave reviews!</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Hi Lindsay,</p>

<p>Thank you for your input, I'm glad the lens worked out great for you.<br>

<br /> Because for some, K.I.S.S. does wonders! ;)</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I'm glad I stumbled across this board - you guys are very helpful, some great tips.</p>

<p>I was looking up on the D80, and it seems that a lot of people mention about image softness. I just learned that some have sorted this out by setting the image sharpening to +2. I have to try that tonight. Anyone with any other tips for the D80 with respect to the image softness? It'll be very helpful to have your input.</p>

<p>If I hadn't bought the wide angle lens and looked through the view-finder, I wouldn't know what I'd be missing. But once I tried the 10-20mm, I saw how great the scene looks in wide-angle. My only previous experience was with 28mm (on film or ~42mm on digital). I would love to have a wide angle lens.</p>

<p>For Fall colors, I think the wide angle will be more useful. So I am leaning towards either a 10-24mm or a 16-85mm. If the 10-20mm sigma works out, it fits my budget too.</p>

<p>I'm leaving on Saturday morning, and whichever lens I end up getting in a hurry now right before the trip, I understand that I'll end up using it for the very first time <em>on the trip</em>, which is not a good thing in my opinion.</p>

<p>So still undecided on the lens. Well, too bad I didn't get on here and post earlier. </p>

<p>Another thing - can you recommend which photo editing software I should get? Appreciate the help.</p>

<p>Monika, I looked at the Nikon wide angles, it's a bit above my price range. I was hoping to spend ~$500, so still deciding on that.</p>

<p>Ray, thank you for the information on how to use the ND filters, appreciate your taking the time to write down some great tips for me. I have previously used longer shutter times to have that smooth effect, will try our an ND so I can improve on that, I look forward to trying it out.</p>

<p>Andrew, thanks for the insight regarding DX. Your explanation about what happens when using a DX lens on a film camera is consistent with what I was observing. I guess at close to 10mm, the view is so wide that the filter or the lens hood become obstructions? Is that what's going on? At higher than 15mm however (15-20mm), it is just a kick-ass wide-angle lens and I see only slight darkenings around the corners.</p>

<p>I still need to decide about the wide angle - do you'll know any other wide angle lens in the $500 range that'll give good results? Should I just take another shot at a sigma in case I received a bad one, or just bite the bullet and get a 10-24mm Nikon. That is like $800 though, is it wise to get a second hand one from amazon?</p>

<p>Thanks for all the help.</p>

<p>Peter, thanks a lot for clarifying that for me, that really helped. I think you saved me some serious $$.</p>

<p>Hamish, thanks for the input about the wide angle lenses.</p>

<p>Leslie, great point about the 18-200mm, appreciate the input.</p>

<p>So here's what I gather:<br />The 18-200mm is actually the 28-300mm for film. And by buying the 18-200mm, I get two things for $730.00 -<br />1. <em>convenience of not having to change the lens</em><br />2. VR is said to give a 3 stop stabilization, so I dont have to use tripod under most circumstances</p>

<p>The 16-85mm is the 24-127mm for film. The convenience is mainly the advantage of using VR. I seldom use telephoto anyways, and <em>have the 28-80 on ~ 80% of the time</em>, so this might be the only lens I need. But the price is so close to the 18-200mm.</p>

<p>By getting the 10-20 or 10-24 or 12-24mm, I get 15-30, 15-36, or 18-36mm for film. <em>So the wide angle lens is the only one that gives me access to "newer territory" as compared to my previous lenses. </em>Hamish, truly amazing pictures by the way. I'm very tempted to order another sigma at $479, just in case I received a bad copy the first time. How about the Tonika at $440? The 10-24 Nikon is at $800, that's almost double, hmm. The Tamrn is at $490. For the ones in the $400-$500 range, which one would be best?</p>

<p>Hmm....I need to decide which works best for me. I want to order by tomorrow to get it by Friday.<br />Any other points/tips are welcome.</p>

<p>Thanks again for the solid input.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Thanks Peter for the response.</p>

<p>1. Ok, shall look at the Nikon lenses<br>

2. Ok, now I'm confused: I thought the 16-85 mm is already a DX lens? So there is no conversion factor, right?<br>

3. And is this the Tamron you are talking about, just wanted to make sure:<br>

Tamron AF 17-50mm F/2.8 SP XR Di II VC (Vibration Compensation) Zoom Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras</p>

<p>I love the 50mm, that's a great lens.</p>

<p>Thanks very much for the very helpful response guys, appreciate it!</p>

<p>Ok let me clarify first the lenses I have, all from the film body I used before. I do not yet own a single VR lens.</p>

<p>1. Nikon 70-300mm f/4-5.6G AF Nikkor SLR Camera Lens - is the lens I have. So on DSLR body, I guess it is 105-450mm.<br>

2. Nikon 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6G Autofocus Nikkor Zoom Lens - so on DSLR, this is 42mm-120mm.<br>

3. Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor Lens <br>

<br>

Well I was hoping not to go over $500 and also cover the entire range, hence my choice. But once I looked through the viewfinder using the 10-20mm though, I could see the difference it made. <br>

<br>

So, <br>

1. Do you'll recommend sticking with the Nikon lenses? <br>

(For example, similar ranges are also available from Sigma)<br>

2. Given what I have, should I go for the 16-85mm or the 18-200mm?<br>

3. What do you guys think of this lens: Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC Optical Stabilized (OS) Lens with Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras<br>

<br>

And John Tran, you sound like such a bad-ass. Wow.<br>

<table >

<tbody >

<tr valign="top">

<td align="center"><img src="http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/misc/transparent-pixel._V192551059_.gif" border="0" alt="" hspace="0" width="135" height="1" /></td>

<td >

<strong>

<table >

<tbody >

<tr valign="top">

<td align="center"><img src="http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/misc/transparent-pixel._V192551059_.gif" border="0" alt="" hspace="0" width="135" height="1" /></td>

<td >

<strong> </strong>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sigma-18-50mm-Aspherical-HSM-Nikon/dp/B002332KC8/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=I11NN9LNBCBGJX&colid=1SOR4QYGCZHA9"></a></strong>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

</p>

<p>Well I am very inexperienced in this, so asking for suggestions here. The trip is coming up soon.</p>

<p>ok, given the lenses I have and the purpose I would like to use them for, what would you suggest I get?</p>

<p>Eric, thanks a lot for the histogram articles, will take a look, I think this will help me improve.</p>

<p>The 10-20mm lens (sigma) did not quite work out by the way, returning it. The images are not sharp, and I did use a tripod. Any suggestions on other (wide angle or other) lenses that I can use for this trip?</p>

<p>Thanks Monica, and yes, I'll get some cards soon.</p>

<p>Hello, I was looking for some advice on what lens I should get for Travel photography.<br>

Camera/Lenses:<br />D80 (10MP). <br />Just got a 10-20mm lens. Other lenses I have are 50mm/f1.8 (x1.5 for digital), 28-80mm (x1.5 for digital), 70-300mm (x1.5 for digital)<br>

I would like to take some good pictures of Fall color, and ideally, get a few shots worthy of making enlargements.</p>

<p>Since I did not have a wide angle lens, I recently bought the 10-20mm Sigma f/4-5.6 (for Nikon body). However, the 10-20mm lens is not sharp and is producing images that are somewhat fuzzy. This occurs even when I use the tripod. After taking 150+ shots, I looked at the pictures carefully and found this problem. So I am returning it.</p>

<p>What lens do you recommend I should get?<br>

Two that I was thinking about are:<br>

1. 18-200mm, Nikon or Sigma<br>

2. 24-85 mm, 3.5-4.5 Nikkor</p>

<p>Thanks, appreciate the help.</p>

<p>(Also posted under "Travel")</p>

<p>Thanks Andrew and Eric for the input, will plan accordingly.</p>

<p>One more question: Just out of curiosity, I loaded the 10-20mm DX lens on the film camera. At 10mm I indeed see a ring around the frame corners, I guess because the sensor on the film camera is bigger. But at ~ 15mm, I can see the entire frame clearly through the view-finder in the film camera.</p>

<p>I have not developed the film yet, but does this mean I'm good for using this lens at 15mm and up for the film camera?</p>

<p>And, since there is the 1.5 crop factor, is the 15mm DX lens actually acting as a 10mm lens for the film camera? Sorry if this is too trivial of a question.</p>

<p>Wow, you people are really helpful! I came back to take a look, and lots of great suggestions already, thanks!</p>

<p>Eric, that picture kicks ass, great work. I will get the Velvia and try it.</p>

<p>Ok so the general feedback here is go with Digital, not a problem making pictures with 10 MP, great.</p>

<p>Andrew and Eric, you guys are right on. I went out today to test out my wide angle lens and the polarizer...disappointing results in some of the pictures. There is often a darker shade of blue in one part of the sky. As you have said, I guess the polarization affects different portions of the sky differently. (Have only used UV before, never had this issue.)<br>

Monica, have you seen this too? What is your trick get around this?</p>

<p>The main problem is, when looking at the picture in the display, this (uneven sky color) is not apparent.<br>

So, should I skip the polarizer when using the wide angle and just use UV?<br>

If not, I guess the only other solution is to take multiple shots and pray one of them will work out? Not a problem for digital I know, but this brings me to my next question:</p>

<p>I read somewhere that RAW is the format to use when using the DSLR. OK, so on a 2GB card, I get only 166 pictures. I was out for 3 hours today and filled up the card. So, do I actually need to use RAW, if not, what would you suggest? (Currently use ScanDisk Ultra II, my camera is a Nikon D80, if that info is relevant.) Could I use an SDHC card?</p>

<p>Yes, I just learned about bracketing, am taking a class in B&W Film photography. I try to shoot manual almost exclusively with variations of stops on the higher and lower sides, hoping one of them will give the desired results. Have no idea how to work with the histograms though, will have to read up.</p>

<p>Ok another question, I use Picasa to look at the digital pictures and to modify them if needed. But Picasa has crashed my computer several times (Yes, I'm a PC, thinking of getting a Mac ;). What program should I use, is there anything else you'll recommend?</p>

<p>Ray, should I use Neutral Density instead of UV, I know amazon has 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 - which one do you think would be appropriate for someone at my level? And what is grad, sorry I am still getting used to the terms.</p>

<p>Thank you all for the solid feedback!</p>

<p>Hello, I just joined the forum. I am a beginner. I would like to have some advice regarding a Fall Color viewing trip that is coming up shortly.</p>

<p>Camera/Lenses:<br>

DSLR (10MP) and film SLR (35mm). <br>

Just got a 10-20mm lens. Other lenses I have are 50mm/f1.8 (x1.4 for digital), 28-80mm (x1.4 for digital), 70-300mm (x1.4 for digital)</p>

<p>I would like to take some good pictures of Fall color, and ideally, get a few shots worthy of making enlargements (and hang on my wall, lofty goal I know).</p>

<p>Ok, here is where I need advice:</p>

<p>1. Should I use the film SLR or is the DSLR 10 MP going to be enough for enlargements?<br>

2. If film, should I go for 100 speed if it's sunny? I have always used 400 speed before. I guess with 100, the enlargements would come out better if the picture is sharp. What film would work best?<br>

3. When I'm shooting scenery using the wide angle lens, should I use a Circular Polarizer filter or just UV filter for Fall colors?</p>

<p>Thanks, your response will be of great help.</p>

<p> </p>