michele_anderson2

<p>I didn't end up getting a new external hard drive because they wouldn't be compatible with this computer. I'll just take along the one I have, and will get a new one when I inherit my daughter's computer. I did pick up some thumb drives and another memory card for my camera. Hopefully this will work. I want to thank each of you again for all of your thoughts and comments. I have appreciated them all. I will have WiFi in the house we will be staying in, so you may hear from me again if I have any problems! :) Wish me luck!</p>

<p>I found a 2TB Seagate portable hard drive on sale at Best Buy. I think I will pick one up tomorrow. Barry is right that memory sticks are the same thing as a thumb drives or jump drives. They have the 32 GB memory cards on sale too, so I'll get another two of those. I'm finally starting to feel prepared! </p>

<p>Thank you Barry and Eric for your additional help. I was hoping to save my photos in a few different places. I will definitely bring a few memory sticks. At this time I have an external hard drive that is a few years old. It's a GoFlex 500MB hard drive. Do you think that is too small? Because I could go out and buy another if that doesn't seem good enough. I will back up the photos I take each day on the cloud as well (assuming I can). By the way Eric, my husband calls me a pessimist too. I tell him that I'm a realist! Like you, I am always thinking in "what if?" mode. I don't want to be caught without solutions. I will purchase a few extra memory cards just in case something happens to the ones I have. I will be in the US, but getting these things there would be difficult there because I'd have to drive over an hour to get to a good shopping area. I will be sure to try to enjoy my time aside of taking pictures. I know what you mean about getting too caught up in photography to enjoy the other things that there are to offer. My husband will be working some so I figured I'd go out on my own while he's doing that. I did sign up for a photography class in the nearest town. I'm very excited about that. I figured if I shoot pictures with the locals, I will find the best locations to shoot. :)</p>

<p>Richard W, After reading yours and Eric's thoughts on RAW files, I will set my camera to the RAW + JPEG format. I purchased 2 64GB memory cards so I will write to both. I've only got those two cards, and perhaps should go out and get an additional one for slot #1 because I have no idea how many RAW files my card will hold. I like the idea of saving them until I am prepared to deal with them.</p> <p>Eric, The fact that I didn't answer your question about my camera was just an oversight. Just like when you replied to me and had forgotten to answer my question about "camera clubs with rules" question. I read your reply and just answered without paying close enough attention to all that you had asked me. I do this often (short attention span). In my world, a "troll" is someone who comes onto boards and stirs up trouble and makes inflammatory comments, so I was confused by your calling me that. I didn't see any motivation to come to a board like this and be seen as disruptive, especially because I thought I did a good job explaining myself (obviously I didn't). My intentions were genuine, but I appreciate your last post because I was hurt. I think you and Richard have given me great advice about how I will deal with my travel photos. I am very excited and hope to take a lot of photos. </p> <p>To All, I have a few additional questions that will probably sound silly but I will ask them anyway!</p> <p>1. When you go out and shoot tons of photos, do you keep them all? or do you get rid of them as you go to save room on your cards? (Again, thinking of my RAW files). I ask this because I leave on my trip in a few days and over the last few days I've been backing up my photos to the cloud. It's been running 24/7 and I only had 11,000 pictures. I bet it won't be finished backing up for another couple of days. I am going to a very remote location, and I will have WiFi, but I don't know how good it is. Also, I still continue to worry about taxing this computer since it's so old. (Maybe this isn't a valid concern?) I am making sure I have all my present photos backed up just in case something happens. Anyway, at this rate, if I go out and shoot a few hundred photos each day, this computer will be constantly working on trying to back up all of the photos. I'm just wondering if I should only save ones that appear to be worthy as I view them on my camera? I know you can't always tell until they are actually downloaded onto your computer.</p> <p>2. If I were to make a copy of all of my RAW files to play with, as Eric suggested, and then later want to make another set of copies when I'm actually good at working with them, will it degrade my original files too much? I was reading my book last night, and I had the impression that everytime you make a copy of them, it takes a little away from them, or am I misunderstanding this?</p> <p>3. If I were in a special location taking both RAW + JPEG, then went to another location where the pictures aren't as important and I didn't really desire a RAW file of some of the photos, could I shut off the RAW card midstream? This will probably come up in my book, but I'm still not far into it yet.</p>

<p>Rich, thank you for the lens suggestions. I love my lenses but know I will need lighter weight ones for what I want to do down the road. A wider angle lens will be on my list for sure.</p> <p>Richard W, my camera came with a CD (Nikon ViewNX2). When I tried to load it on this computer, it couldn't. That is what brought me here. I'm going on a long trip very soon, and am trying to decide if I should just shoot all of my photos in JPEG because I will not have the knowledge or equipment to work with RAW files. I am a little bummed because I know some of the scenery will be beautiful and while I hope to get back there again one day, I don't know that I will.</p> <p>My daughter is starting a new job this summer and she will be getting a work computer. She has a 2015 Macbook Pro (13") that was custom upgraded to 1TB of storage. She told me last night that I could just have hers when she gets her new one. So it looks like I'll end up with doing that instead of buying something else.</p>

<p>Thank you Rich. I ended up buying the D750 and keeping my old lenses. At the time I wrote the thread that you are referring to, I was waiting for it to go on sale at a tent sale that my photography store was having. I didn't end up purchasing it at the time because it wasn't part of the sale. I then decided to wait to see if it would go on sale on Black Friday, then Christmas... it never went down further. I thought I'd wait to see if it would come down after Christmas and finally went down a small amount so I ended up purchasing it the day before I started this thread. I think I will love it for years to come. :)</p>

<p>Look Eric, I came here as a person in need of advice. I stated that I am new to digital editing and that I just purchased my new camera. At this time, I am using a Mac that is 10 years old. I was interested in updating, taking photography classes and photo editing classes to improve my skills. I thought this would be a good place to come and get some advice. I've gotten some great feedback here, but immediately, you called me out saying I didn't answer my questions properly, and "wasn't ready" and expecting you to be mind readers to figure out my goals. It wasn't really the welcome I was expecting, and now you are calling me a troll. I don't know how you can expect people to engage with you when they are treated this way. To everyone else to responded to me, again, I thank you for your replies. I will reread them and move forward with my next steps to become the photographer I've always wished I could be.</p>

<p>Thank you all for your replies! Just to answer a few of Eric's questions... I am a outdoorsy girl who has always had a passion for photography, but am now planning on seeing if I can get better. I am now an empty nester, so I have more time and travel in my future. I don't plan on making it a career, but would love to take professional quality photos. I'd like to frame ones that I am especially proud of but would also like to share them with friends on the web. I am unsure of my capabilities so I'm hoping to stick with a software program that is more user friendly. One thing that has made me more interested in purchasing a software program as opposed to a subscription service is that I fear that it'll continually be updated and I'll have a hard time getting to know it well. One question for Eric, what did you mean when you said "stay away from camera clubs with rules"?</p>

<p>I have a new camera and need to get a new computer and editing software. I have had MacBook for the last 10 years and need something more current. I have never done digital photo editing before. I have heard a lot of good things about Lightroom. Any suggestions on what I need to purchase (preferably Mac since that is what I'm used to)?</p>

<p>All of your feedback regarding the SD cards has been very helpful! And yes Andrew, I have had experience with a CF card with my current camera, just didn't know it until now. :) When I got the camera, it came with the card. As I mentioned initially, I've only used this camera in the most simple ways. The more I read, the more I realize how much I have to learn. I like the idea of shooting JPEGs+RAW on separate cards. I worry a bit about filling up my computer, but I would probably only keep the RAW files of my favorite images and throw out the ones that I will never do anything with. I might also store them to a back up hard drive. When I take my photography classes, I will also have to take some photoshop classes because I have even less knowledge about that! I have been looking at a lot of images online where they are touched up in photoshop, and they look amazing. I don't imagine that most people keep photos untouched these days. I'm a little intimidated that taking a nice photo has gotten so complicated. </p>

<p>The card that Andrew mentioned...<a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/824149-REG/SanDisk_SDSDXPA_064G_A75_Extreme_Pro_64GB_SDHC_SDXC.html" data-selenium="itemName">SanDisk 64GB Extreme Pro UHS-I SDXC U3 Memory Card (Class 10)</a>, was pointed out in an article I read last night as a recommended card for my camera. I was thinking of ordering 2 from B+H since my camera store doesn't seem to carry them. When I read Steve's comment I became a little concerned that putting in 2 very large cards may effect the performance of the camera in some way. </p>

<p>Steve, I am curious why you wouldn't put a large capacity card in both slots?</p>

<p>I'm feeling a little confused. (Sorry!) I have only heard of JPEG's and RAW, not NEF's or CF cards. I hope when I take classes that more of this is explained to me. I know I'll need to purchase something before I get into a class though. I was reading an online camera forum the other day, and someone made a joke about people who always shoot in JPEG. I guess I didn't understand the joke, which shows how little I know. I know that RAW format is a higher quality file, but are they for information only (not printable)? I guess I don't understand why people shoot both. I know that putting two copies of every photo I take would probably take up a lot of space on my computer. Maybe that isn't a valid concern? Also, if I have 2 SD slots in the D750, wouldn't I get two SD cards? Or is it better to get one SD card and one CF card? Again, I apologize for my ignorance. Think of me like a 2nd grader when it comes to a lot of these things! :)</p>

<p>I don't know if this is appropriate here on this thread but all of you have been so helpful. I just wanted to find out what you guys use for memory cards? I noticed the ones being sold at my upcoming camera sale had poor customer reviews. Again, hate wasting good money on something that could give me problems.</p>

<p>This is embarrassing. I don't know what a DF is! But I am pretty convinced that I want the D750. I have read such good things about it and many of you seem to like it as well. I can keep my lenses and be happy using my camera until I replace them with other lenses as I learn what I am looking for. Being it's a hobby for me and not a profession, I feel I can tolerate the less than perfect aspects of them until I learn more. I know the D750 is costly, and will do a lot of things I don't understand but through all of the posts I've read on this thread, I now feel I will be able to grow into it. It's another 2.5 weeks until the sale takes place, so I have time to go back and forth a few more times :) but I really think that camera will be one I can use for a very long time. My personality is one that I am willing to spend a little more up front, then will stick with it until it no longer fits my needs. </p>

<p>You guys have no idea how happy I feel when I get new replies on this thread. :)</p> <p>Q.E. and a few others have suggested the 105 mm Micro-Nikkor for the close-ups. I can already tell you from all that I have read that it will be the first one I look at. It sounds like a great lens. I looked at Shun's example of the softness in the corners of the photo shot with my 70-200 lens. I want you remind all of you that I know so little! His example showed me what I can expect. This is probably a dumb question, but you all mentioned this softness at 200mm. At what point does this lens go from great quality to poor quality? If I don't open it all the way to 200 mm, would that improve? Even though I wouldn't get any shots at 200mm, I hope if I maybe stop short of that, that I might be able to take a decent picture. I guess the bright side of my being a rookie is that I don't know enough what "bad" is. I mean, the obvious stuff, yes, but I don't have the experience or knowledge to have that critical eye, so I may be happy with these lenses until I become more knowledgable. Does that make sense? Ignorance is bliss!<br> <br> Andrew, yours words of encouragement about confidence touched my heart. Believe it or not, I have loved photography since I was a little girl. I remember being 5 or 6 years old and having crappy little cameras and I'd go shoot pictures in my back yard. I'd call my local drug store daily asking if my pictures were back. LOL Back then they sent them off and it took days to get them back. My dad had what I believed at the time to be an amazing camera. It was a Pentax SF-10. When I grew up he gave it to me. I STILL have that camera packed away and will never part with it. I really loved it. I could be wrong, but I think it had a "nifty fifty" on it. It's been a number of years since I've taken it out and looked at it. You might wonder with this life long passion why at my age, I'm still a beginner. A huge factor was obviously that I didn't always have the finances but the biggest hinderance has been my confidence. I've actually been paralyzed by it at times and not wanted to shoot pictures because I don't believe I am good enough. I always love looking at photography, and what I see in books, booths at the art fair, or even the 4-H booth at my local state fair, they are all so much better than anything I've ever shot. It stops me from even trying. I can't keep doing this to myself because I believe everyone has a God given talent, and inside, I know photography is mine. Why else would I have loved it since being a little girl? Why has it stayed with me my whole life? I have to do something with it. Getting over my own fears is something I'm going to finally address. That is why I want to take lots and lots of classes. I don't know any photographers in my area, but wish I had someone to actually teach me. I think I'm going to try and join in on some of my local photoshoots and maybe I will find someone with the patience to deal with me. I look at all of you guys' photos and I'm amazed. I can't even imagine being able to take pictures like that. I hope to one day!</p>

<p>Eric, I'm pretty sure the warranty is something done through my camera store, not Nikon, although I am not clear on that. I know the first year is through Nikon, and the diamond warranty would kick in after that. I will copy here from the website what it covers. I believe the additional 2 years would be $200. </p> <p><em>The Diamond Extended Warranty provides the following coverage: </em><br /><em>Impact Damage (Dropping your camera) </em><br /><em>Sand & Grit Damage (Sand or grit in the gears from going to the beach) </em><br /><em>Water/Liquid Damage (Dropping in water, rain, spilling your bottle of water into you camera bag) </em><br /><em>Normal/Abnormal Wear and Tear</em><br /><em>Manufactures Defects</em><br /><em>Mechanical Malfunctions</em><br /><em>Toll Free or Online Support</em><br /><em>No Deductible</em><br /><em>2 Free CCD Sensor Cleanings during the life of the warranty ($90 Value)</em><br> <em> </em><br> I have been the beach with camera's before and never gotten sand in them, but I always fear it. Any of the other issues it covers could happen too. I may be crazy for considering this because I always hear what a scam extended warrantees are. I had never thought about the homeowner's insurance and haven't researched that option, so I will look into that as well.<br> <br> I am really looking forward to the sale. I will probably get totally ripped off on my tripod trade based off of the estimates he gave me for the lenses, but it just seems easier to trade it than sell it. At this point, I feel quite confident that I'll get the D750. I know my current lenses aren't ideal, but they will work for now. The thing that I am really missing is the macro lens. So when I buy the body, I will probably start with one of those. I'm sure there will be many good choices for me either new or used. I'll get a tripod and ball head, which he said would be 25-30% off, as well as an extra battery and memory cards. I cannot wait! My store also offers 4 free classes with the purchase of a camera. I will be excited to take those, and I won't stop there. I will take other classes as well. I know you all have expressed concern over the weight of my lenses, and I totally agree! Realistically, I don't know that I would be out all day very often. I probably will go out for a couple hours at a time, and as someone mentioned I can keep the lenses I'm not using in my car while I'm off using the one of my choice. I will make it work.<br> <br> I apologize for being wishy washy about my decision. I've gone back and forth with all the different ideas, and I could even change my mind again! But I feel pretty good about all of this after considering all you have told me. I so appreciate the insight that all of you have shared. You've all made such great points. I've really enjoyed all of the discussion and want to thank each and every one of you for putting in the time to help me figure this out. More than anything, thank you for having the confidence in me that I will be able to learn and use this camera. I have never had a lot of confidence, and I think 20 years from now I'll still call myself "a beginner". I really needed to hear that I can do this.</p> <p> </p>

<p>RE: Extended warrantee's. My husband never bites on extended warrantee's either, but when the camera store guy pointed out that no matter what happens to the camera (dropping it, sand in the lens, or whatever else), it seemed appealing especially since our long vacation this coming Winter will be on the beach. I think the D750 is very well sealed but I'm just a little paranoid about the sand. I probably wouldn't spend the extra money for that if I got a new one, but considered it for the refurb. If it's not advised, I won't go for it at all.<br> RE: my lenses. I did clarify with this guy that me 70-200 lens is the first version, not second. He asked about that. Whatever the case, I agree that I could do better selling on my own. This will sound silly because I know there is always insurance with shipping, but I feel like I'd rather meet with the person face to face rather than sending them through the mail. I guess I'd feel more comfortable with the person actually seeing it, and knowing my lens is what they want to buy. Then I know they will be happy with the purchase. I just have this vision of people buying it over the internet and making my life hard if it is not what they expected. I think that only leaves Craigslist, but as Dieter pointed out, Craigslist is a dud where I live as well. (Maybe we're neighbors!). People seem to want everything for nothing. I guess it doesn't hurt to try though. I could throw a price on it, someone can look at it, and decide for themselves. If they don't like it, I'd just take it home. I'm still not sure that I'll sell them. I might stick my neck out there and buy the D750 with a lens, and just let the lenses sit until I am sure I have something I'm truly happy with. I can't get them back once they are gone. This will be tough to pass off to my husband, LOL, but it's just a thought. </p>

<p>OK, I called the camera store I use and talked to the assistant manager about my lenses. Yikes, trading in may not be the way to go if I choose to get rid of them. He said without seeing them, they would give me $300 on the 28-70, and $1200 for the 70-200. That is the high end. :( I told him that I might be better off selling them outright and he agreed if I am "comfortable doing that". I have no idea what I'd even ask because although I consider them well cared for and in excellent condition, I have no idea what a pro photographer would think. I think I stepped out of line when I asked him if I could show them to him and if he'd give me an idea of what to ask. He told me "no". They deal only in trade in's, and what I charge is between me and the other party. He won't be able to tell me if the tent sale will have a refurbed D750 until a few days before the sale is held. I know I wouldn't save more than a couple of hundred dollars getting a refurb, but he had pointed out when I talked to him a couple of weeks ago, that if I get a refurb and save $200, I can spend the $200 on their top of their diamond level warrantee which would actually give me a 3 year warrantee because it would go 2 years beyond my one year given by Nikon. So even if I ruined it for some reason, it would cover me. With brand new, I just have the 1 year warranty and I'm sure that doesn't cover things that are my fault. I don't foresee ruining it because I'm very careful, but who ever sees an accident coming?<br> I continue to have lots of things swirling around in my head regarding all of this. He did mention that he thinks that I may like a Tamron 28-300 lens for a travel lens. Sounds nice, but it's hard to give up the lenses I have if I don't get a decent price for them. </p>

<p>When I started this thread, I was very excited about the D750, and honestly, still am. I have read such good things about it. I know it's expensive, but I am willing to take steps in order to have something that will make me very happy in the long run. What I don't want is to get something that I end up less happy with just to have it all now. I am firmly a quality over quantity personality. I haven't ruled out the D7200 but haven't spent a lot of time researching since I only recently came to the conclusion that I have to update my camera. I plan to go to the store and hold both of them side by side. When I mentioned my budget, I said "if possible" because it's not a concrete budget, it's a goal. I'm not going to spend $6000 on lenses immediately, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't have $6000 worth of lenses 2-3 years from now. When it was mentioned that my existing lenses were worth possibly $2000 (and I've taken very good care of them so I'm assuming I should get near the upper end of the estimates), I then added the additional $2000 that I was initially expecting to spend when I started the thread. That is how I came up with my $4000 budget.<br> A couple of you mentioned that I replace my body and trade in one of the lenses. I have been thinking about this too. I think it was dieter who mentioned that I could get the D750 w/24-140 lens combo for a reasonable price. I looked that up on the website of my camera store and saw that new combo would cost about $2700. My first love is landscape photography, with close up photography being a close second. Being I love nature in general, I would of course, love shooting animals and birds but it is not a priority over the other two interests. I do not like photographing people, but will do it at birthday parties, holidays, and reunions. But for the candid stuff, I find myself using our Nikon S7000 point and shoot. As I get better with my new camera, I will make more of an effort with it in those situations though. So now I wonder what people would think of trading my 28-70 lens for the combo and just hanging onto my long lens for a while? I am still hoping to see if I can find a refurb at the tent sale. I may not since it's such a new model, but you never know. I also think I could easily l find a nice macro lens at the same sale. I think I'm going to have to trade in my old tripod as well. It sounds like there are better options out there that I could replace it with.</p>

<p>All of your posts have been SO helpful! Thank you for continuing to share your thoughts. After reading all of your comments, I'm now convinced that trading in my current lenses is probably for the best. The weight of them is an issue, and if they aren't the proper lenses for what I enjoy shooting, they will be pretty useless to me anyway. It sounds like they would bring me a fair amount of money to put towards ones that are a better fit. If you believe that the D7200 would truly make me happy, I'm going to start researching those. We have a reputable photo store in my area that is going to have a "tent sale" in a few weeks. They sell refurbished cameras/lenses at that sale. From what I gather, the refurbished cameras/lenses are a good way to go and would give me even more room in my budget for nicer lenses. I am liking what I'm reading about the Tamron 150-600mm for my long lens. I think I'd rather have a macro lens than use a teleconverter though, and I'll need a wide lens for landscapes. My thoughts are this... I would like to get nicely outfitted for $1500 - $2000, if possible. This is my available budget after trading in my two lenses, which according to Eric's estimates could bring me another $2000 or so. Is this budget realistic? I am a person who would rather do things right, even if I have to wait longer, rather than rushing into something that I'd regret later just to get it cheaply. This is probably a stupid question, but is the camera body I'm using now worth anything at all? It works, but not well because it's gotten very slow (I'm sure my batteries are old and worn) but something more may be going on with it. Any additional thoughts or suggestions would be much appreciated. Sorry if I'm posting too much! I have so much to absorb here!</p>

<p>I forgot to address the tripod. I actually have a nice Manfrotto tripod that I purchased 10 years ago. So that is one thing I hopefully will not need to replace. :)</p>

<p>You give me a lot to think about. I am a nature lover, and this Winter will be going on a long vacation to a very rural beach town surrounded by several state parks. I hope to shoot pictures of birds, animals, sunsets, flowers, and anything else that strikes me as beautiful. I love close up photography and really miss having a macro lens. Mine broke years ago, and I've not replaced it. I think I'll need a few lenses to cover all of my interests. I feel a little discouraged because I don't have all of the knowledge that all of you do. I don't want to make a mistake since this will be it for me for a very long time. Realistically, I will need a new body and probably 3 lenses. Unless I drop to a very inexpensive setup, buying those four things will probably run into the thousands. It's encouraging to hear that lesser cameras are producing high quality photos. I would be really sad to buy something more affordable and end up never being very pleased with what it puts out once I get good.</p>

<p>Thank you all for your responses! I so appreciate everyone who has shared their thoughts with me. I was relieved that most of you think that the D750 would be a good choice for me, and that you believe that it is a camera that I can learn over time. I know it's a costly investment but as a few of you pointed out, I already have FX lenses, it would be nice to use them. At this point, I'd like to only invest in a new body because the camera body I have isn't working well for me, while the lenses are fine. They ARE heavy!! I haven't even checked into new lenses, but have they gotten lighter? A few of you mentioned getting a longer lens for doing wildlife. If they haven't gotten lighter, I don't know that I'd be able to deal with one that is much larger. I will try to do what I can with what I have for now in order to keep my costs down. I appreciate the comments regarding the DX, but honestly I don't want to find myself in a situation where a couple years down the road that I'd be wanting to upgrade. I plan to keep whatever I buy for years. I notice that many people who are into photography seem to change cameras often, but since it's a hobby for me, and not a career, I don't foresee myself being able to do that. Thank you all once again for your input. </p>

<p>Thank you for your quick replies. I should add some additional information. Several years ago, my brother in law gave me a professional camera. It is a Kodak DC5 Pro SLR n. He gave me two lenses to go along with it, a Nikon ED AF-S Nikkor 28-70 mm1:2.8D and a Nikon ED AF-S VR Nikkor 70-200mm 1:2.8G. The camera and lenses were used and I know they have to be at least 10 years old. Having kids at home, and not having the time to really learn this camera, I used it in the most simple way. Lately the camera is acting up, and I was told by a guy in a camera store near me that the camera is most likely on it's last legs. I was hoping to be able to use the lenses. He told me that they would work on the D750. My hope was to buy the body only, use my lenses and get newer lenses over time. I hope this extra info helps.</p>