Robert DeCandido PhD

Hello,

I have the 45-85 zoom and it is wonderful, but it is heavy...I usually shoot with the manual focus 35mm lens (wide angle). I have read here that the autococus 35mm is a bit sharper (but is bigger requiring its own filter/lens hood).

Though I love the 45-85 zoom, I rarely walk with it on the street. So if you would like to purchase that lens (mint condition), contact me for a good price.

If I had to get a zoom, I would go with the 33-55 these days...

Robert DeCandido, PhD

rdcny@earthlink.net

Digiscoping! Skip the camera (slr) to scope adapter and purchase a 990 (preferred) or 995 Nikon digital camera, and get an adapter for your scope.

See:

www.laurencepoh.com

for wonderful examples. You can make up to 6 x 9 inch prints (Epson 1280 printer with dye inks) that are truly wonderful.

Hello Doug,

The photo was taken with the Zuiko 50mm F3.5 macro lens...handheld. There was snow on the ground reflecting light back up to the illuminate the owl.Yes, the bokeh is nice...and I used no flash!

Good info all! I will be ok with that lens and an Acratech ballhead on the 1227!

One last question: I gather it is not so much the focal length of the lens but the weight of the lens that is the critical factor in selecting the correct tripod? So, if there was a 1-2 pound 2500-3500mm lens, it would be perfectly fine on the Gitzo 1227?

Note: a 2500-3500mm lens (that weighs 1-2 pounds) already exists and is used regularly by many photographers. See the we site of the great bird photographer Laurence Poh of Malaysia:

www.LaurencePoh.com

He and his fellow digiscopers use an 80mm Swarovski Spotting Scope with a 20-60x zoom eyepiece (mostly shooting between 20-32x). They attach a digital camera (nikon 990/995/4500 with 3/4x optical zoom as the camera lens) to the scope. So the 3/4x lens of the camera plus 20x magnification of the Spotting SCope equals 2500mm (approx) focal length. So, they have, in effect, a huge and lightweight telephoto lens.

So how much tripod should someone budget per pound of lens/camera? Is the 4:1 ratio I posted above too much? What is the ratio for aluminum tripods?

Thank You!

rdc/nyc<div></div>

Hello All,

I am soon off to do research in a foreign land for the next 12-18

months (Eilat, Israel to study bird, especially raptor, migration). I

will need to do a bit of hiking and want to travel light, but sturdy.

My question is: is the Gitzo 1227 (3 section, Carbon Fiber) tripod

sturdy enough to support a Nikon FM3A with 400 F5.6 lens (and

sometimes a 1.4x teleconverter)? By sturdy, I mean no camera shake if

I use a shutter release. I absolutely do not want a slight blur to my

bird photos (in natural light; no fill flash) because of the tripod.

I will be using an Acratech Ultimate Ballhead...

I already have a Gitzo 1325 Carbon Fiber tripod with the Kirk B-1

head. This is rock steady, but is a bit on the heavy side to

hike/travel with.

The Gitzo 1325 is rated to about 27 pounds of support; the 1227 is

rated to about 17 pounds. I usually allow 4 pounds of tripod support

to one pound of camera. The 400mm lens weighs about 4 pounds and the

FM3A weighs less than a pound....Should I err on the conservative side

and go with the 1325 or can I safely shoot with a big lens using the

1227?

How much tripod do you budget for a long lens? Is my 4:1 ration

(tripod carrying capacity vs. weight of lens) correct, or do you use a

different ratio?

Thank You! I leave Feb. 19th so your help is much appreciated.

Robert DeCandido, PhD

NYC<div></div>

Hello All,

Another vote for Deborah Allen of New York City. See her web site:

http://www.agpix.com/search_catalog.php?agid=DeAl12

However, since she is my girlfriend, I am somewhat biased on this...

Robert DeCandido, PhD

NYC

Hello,

Part of the answer to your question depends on what kinds of birds do you wish to photograph? If it is raptors in flight overhead, then you do not need autofocus (and if you want autofocus go the Canon route and add IS too). If you want to photograph smaller, faster birds, you can do it with a manual focus too...the 600 F5.6 is reasonably small. BUT, you will need to use fill flash. Several photographers like the 500 F4 lens. That is a wonderful lens and it can be carried in the field. I see too many photographers with the 600mm lenses stuck in one place since their rig is much too heavy to walk with more than 50 feet.

Finally, have you seen the bird photographs of Laurence Poh using a technique called digiscoping? See his web site:

www.LaurencePoh.com

His bird photos are phenomenal! And see the equipment he uses...

Attached are two of his photos if this web site will upload them properly...

rdc/nyc

1. The 3x lens of the 990 is far superior to the 4x of the 995.

2. The 990 is slightly better built.

3. The 990 can be found for much less money refurbished compared to a refurbed 995.

Get the 990

rdc/nyc

Hello,

Before you purchase the polarizer for the Mamiya 7ii series lenses (don't use it on the 65mm or wider lenses), see what you think of color saturation without the polarizer. I found that these lenses are so good that the polarizing effect would have made the image "unreal." Blue skies without the polarizer are especially saturated...any more so would surpass the Velvia effect. (I shoot Provia.) You might want to invest the money in a good (light) tripod since depth of field even at F16 is not that great for the 80mm lens.

rdc/nyc

As an aside, you should be able to find the Carbon Fiber Gitzo 1325 for about $465 USD plus $20 USD for shipping here in the USA. In fact, there is a person that is part of the photo.net community that sells this tripod for this price. Since I purchased from him, I can say that service/quality was fine. Take a look in the Classified ads here in the Tripod section...

Your other option is Robert White in the UK. However, because of the recent price declines of the dollar vis-a-vis the euro, the price that he is selling this tripod (and other CG Gitzos) has increased significantly. Also, shipping from the UK to here is about $75...

Best Luck; it is a great tripod.

rdc/nyc

Hello,

I have used the DR5 process; my favorite film was Ilford Delta 100 shot at 100ASA. Compared to normal processing, with the DR5 process you gain a noticeable increase in tones (grayscale). The downside is the cost per roll in DR5...Also, I found any film over 200ASA (eg., TMax-400) to be much too grainy in the DR5 process.

I prefer Scala (shot at 200ASA) processed by the the Agfa lab in Florida to the DR5 process. Why? The contrast is better in the Florida lab. The increase in tone in DR5 comes at the expense of snap (contrast).

Finally, 120 Scala film processed in the Agfa lab in Florida is returned in an archival plastic sleeve.

Robert DeCandido, PhD

NYC<div></div>

Try Ilford Delta 100 asa shot at 80 asa and developed as a positive via the DR5 process:

http://www.dr5.net/main.html

For examples, see my web site: www.BirdingBob.com

and look in the Central Park section.

Robert DeCandido, PhD

NYC

Hello,

On the 65mm lens, will the Mamiya Polarizer (made for their lenses)

cause uneven blue skies (the result of light hitting the film plane at

a slightly diferent time with a wide angle)?

In 35mm terms, a 28mm lens with a Polarizer will sometimes show this

effect; I am curious if anyone has any direct experience with the

Polarizer and the 65mm Mamiya lens (equivalent to a 30/32mm lens in

35mm terms).

Thanks

Here is the story, verbatim:

"Good news for Pentax 645 owners (Michael Reichman included). A reader

has reported that he visited Photokina yesterday and saw the first

digital back for the Pentax 645. It is made by NPC in cooperation with

Mosaic Imaging. The first generation model has the electronics off to

the side, looking similar to a Polaroid back for the 645. They are

apparently working on getting the electronics into the film insert

cavity, so the second generation will be a lot more compact. Also, he

will use a larger 645 chip as they become available."

Look here:

http://luminous-landscape.com/new/photokina2002.shtml

Look for the Sunday, 29 September entry.

Robert DeCandido, PhD

NYC

Hello,

Despite what Pentax says in their camera manual and in the cable

release package, their Cable Release "F" does not fit the new 645 NII

body. (I do not know if the "F" fits the female part of the 645N.)

Does anyone know if Pentax does have an electronic shutter release

that works on the new 645 NII body?

Michael Reichman over at the Luminous Landscape is reporting that Pentax displayed a digital back for the 645 NII at the recent Photokina Photo exhibition. However, I have not been able to find any other mention or info...

For the info on Luminous Landscape, see the Photokina 2002 update section of his web site:

http://luminous-landscape.com/new/index.shtml

Robert DeCandido, PhD

NYC