Scout Images

I pulled an all nighter last night, but the reward was great. I am now writing this on my new AMD Dragon Platform, to add to the reward, this was the first time I had built a computer from the ground up (all the way from picking out the bits to putting it all together). I couldnt help but snap a few pics of the computer coming together.

Taken using Nikon D300 + Micro Nikkor AF-D 60mm f/2.8, lit by SB-600 and SB-800 using CLS.

The final spec is:

• AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition 125 TDP
• Noctua NH-U9B SE Cooler
• ASUS M4A89GTD PRO /USB3
• 8GB OCZ Gold Low Voltage PC12800 DDR3 RAM
• XFX ATi HD Radeon 5850 Black Edition
• Seagate Barracuda 500GB HDD
• Seagate Barracude 1.0TB HDD
• Samsung SH-S223 SATA TruDirect DVD Burner
• Corsair HX 850 Modular PSU
• ANTEC Nine Hundred Case

Despite not yet having found the time to go through the images that I took over the weekend (they are coming) I am going to introduce you all to my latest addition. So new to my arsenal that I have yet to have found the time to break out the light tent to shoot some product style images of this baby.

I am now the happy owner of a AF Micro Nikkor 60mm f/2.8D. This lens is a welcome addition to the kit bag and will probably mean that my Sigma 180mm f/3.5 Macro will spend even less time out and about, but it will mean I now have another, lighter, macro solution.

Another piece of news to be shared is that I am in the process of upgrading my main computer. My venerable AMD Athlon X2 4200+ system is about to turn 5 and is starting to show its age, so it’s successor is in the process of being built. What will it be? For all those nerds out there:

• AMD Phenom II X4 Black Edition 3.4GHz 125TDP
• Noctua NH-U9 CPU Cooler
• ASUS M4A89GTD Pro USB3
• 8GB OCZ Gold Low Voltage DDR3 1600 RAM
• XFX ATi Radeon HD 5850 Black Edition GPU
• Antec Nine Hundred case
• Corsair HX 850 PSU

This DRAGON system has proven to be hard to assemble with parts trickling in (still waiting on that Noctua) but I couldn’t help but to unbox the XFX. So here are some of the first shots from this lens (mounted on my D300, lighting provided by SB-800 and SB-600 using CLS).

I have managed to get the camera out twice in the last week, the first time it was when I headed out to the city for coffee and cake (which became chocolate and chocolate). As an impromptu chance, I grabbed my Nikon D60 and it so happened that I had my Nikkor AF-D 50mm f/1.8, which meant manual focus.

Just yesterday I was given the opportunity to accompany a good friend to a shoot at a slightly different location. This was a model shoot at an abandoned warehouse/factory. This is not my usual sort of thing, but I brought out some toys and headed off with an open mind. What do you bring when you are not sure what you will be doing? I brought along my Nikon D300, Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8, Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8 VR, Nikkor AF-D 50mm f/1.8, Nikkor AI 135mm f/2.8, Sigma APO EX DG 180mm f/3.5 Macro, Nikon SB-400, Nikon SB-600 and Nikon SB-800. Not everything got used in the end but I didnt feel like I missed out on anything.

It has been a bit of a long and enjoyable long weekend for myself, with a triple dose of photography, something that I have not been able to do in a long time.

First up was a compact only day, where a few friends and I did a pretty nice hike from Otford lookout down to Burning Palms and the Figure 8 pool. This hike is rated as “HARD” and really lives up to that rating, hence I didnt complain about only bringing a compact camera. So which compact did I bring? The Sony Cyber-Shot TX5 got the honours that day, mainly because it is so small and lightweight as well as being waterproof without a case, and it was in good company with a Panasonic Lumix LX-3 also in attendence.

This exercise was followed by a long nights sleep, but the next night I found myself hauling out an insane amount of gear to participate in a model shoot. My D300 got another decent workout, along with my AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8 and AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8 VR. Being a night shoot there needed to be light, so out came my Nikon SB-800 and SB-600. These were used in conjunction with some coloured gels and the diffuser panel from a Phottix 5-in-1 reflector.

I ended the ANZAC day long weekend with a trip out to the Royal Botanical Gardens. For this trip I decided to travel light, my shoulders still being sore from the weight of the previous nights adventures with the Lowepro Magnum 400AW, so out came my Nikon D60. If you remember my earlier post “Who needs a proper macro?” then you will remember that although I own a Sigma APO EX DG 180mm f/3.5 Macro, I dont always use or carry this behometh. This time, instead of using a Marumi close up kit with my Nikkor AF-D 50mm f/1.8, or my Tamron 70-300mm (1:2 Macro), I was using my Nikkor AF-S DX 35mm f/1.8 with a set of Phottix Nikon AF Extension tubes. My baby Nikon SB-400 and Phottix Duo Cable provided the lighting.

I have to apologise as I am still working on the Velvia scans as mentioned in this post. Also I have updated my gear location, at the moment I only have a SB-400, my other flashes are on loan!

Over the last week or so I have not had much time to take photos (been trying to get this website up and running again) but I did manage to get a few shots in last night at dinner and today at the Fish Market and in Glebe. So here are a few shots that I thought I would share.

These were taken with my Nikon D60 and the Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8. Some of the photos in this gallery used the Phottix Duo Cord + Nikon SB-400 combination as well.

On another note, my venerable Nikon F80D is out on loan again, this time accompanied by my Tamron SP 28-205mm f/2.8 and my Nikkor AF-D 28-80mm. This means my current gear status is….

Just thought I would share some of the dodgy photos I took on New Years Eve and some that I took today whilst at Mamak with my baby Fuji F100fd.

I have to admit that I have often underestimated my needs, and NYE 2009 was just another occaision. I was thinking travel light, travel discreetly, so as a result I kept my gear to the smallest, most unassuming kit that I could. This resulted in:

• Nikon D60 – light and unassuming
• Nikkor AF-D 50mm f/1.8 – small and light, BUT manual focus on a D60
• Nikkor AI 135mm f/2.8 – small and light, BUT manual focus and no metering on a D60
• Tokina AT-X 10-17mm fisheye – small and light, BUT manual focus on a D60
• Nikon SB-400
• Nikon ML-L3
• Phottix Duo Cable
• Joby Gorillapod (Thanks Mr Ken)

With this kit, I assumed that any fireworks images would not be a big problem, unless I wanted a longer exposure to get trails (which you would when your friends are doing so). But this was not my largest problem, whilst setting up for the midnight fireworks down at Darling Harbour, a group of young ladies asked us to take a few pictures of them (using their compacts). After the fireworks we took a few more photos for theses ladies, afterwhich we asked if they wanted us to take some photos for them using our cameras (they will be getting their photos soon). This is when I found myself caught short, really short. The AF-less lenses that I had with me were fine up until that point, but for portraiture they proved to be a nightmare, esepecially since my saving grace (the SB-400 on the Phottix Duo Cable) required a hand to hold off camera. In the end I had to borrow my mates 18-200 and eventually comandeer his D90 (Sorry Mr Jod).

Here are some of my dodgy, hand held fireworks images (I used the Joby for some of the Ferris Wheel shots).

As I have mentioned earlier, I was at Mamak today and took a few images of what I ate. I have to admit that they make a damn good Roti, and I am addicted to their Sambal. These were taken with my now found again Fuji F100fd.

I recently spent a day out with a good friend attempting to capture some of the scenes from the streets of Sydney. What better a day to try this than Boxing Day when everyone is out and about trying to bag a bargain in the many department stores downtown. As an added bonus, mother nature provided us with the gift of rain, I am still undecided as this was to our advantage, or our disadvantage.

Neither of us can claim to be well equipped for street shooting, both of us using fairly large DSLR’s, but I kept my trusty D300 gripless and choose to mate this with the trusty AF-D 50mm f/1.8 and kept my treasured AI 135mm f/2.8 handy for some length.

Here are a few images from the day, as always those denoted with a “_1″ have been post processed.

I just thought I would share some new products that Phottix has been cooking up.

First of all is the Duo TTL cord, a flash sync cable that allows you to mount a flash on both ends of the cable…which comes in 1m, 1.5m and 2m (all coiled) these cables are all universal, being compatible with Nikon/Fuji iTTL (I have tested), Canon eTTL (I have tested), Olympus and Pentax/Samsung. However, the name of this product is slightly misleading, although TTL is retained perfectly when one flash is used, when the second flash is added (or turned on) you have to switch BOTH flashes to manual. This is CLEARLY stated on the packaging so as far as I am concerned Phottix is not being misleading. The usual caveats of using compatible camera and flashes is necessary. I have tested these cables with Nikon D3000, Fuji S5 Pro, Canon EOS 1000D, SB-400, SB-600, SB-800, Nissin Di622, 430 EX II.

Second up are the new Phottix AF Extension Tube sets – available for both Nikon and Canon (I have tested both). The good news is that they work, although they are still very basic extension tubes, the AF (AF-S, AF-D, USM) and image stabilisation (VR and IS) are retained. However I did find that you have to be pretty careful when mounting them on camera. I have not had any experience with extension tubes, but I can say that stacking all three tubes together appears to hamper the AF ability of lenses on a Canon EOS 1000D (18-55 IS, 50mm f/1.8 and 60mm f/2.8 macro). I have only briefly used them on a Nikon D90 + 18-105VR and 50mm f/1.8 but will hope to play with the Nikon ones more soon.

I have personally purchased one of the Duo TTL cords (1.5m as we only bought these) for myself and have purchased a set of the AF extension tubes (Nikon mount) for a friend. I would like to have a close look at the Kenko set of extension tubes to compare the two products as the Canon mount Phottix set appear to be very primitive with simple rods passing on the electronic signals to the lenses. The Nikon mount version appear to be more complex as they also pass through the screwdriver signal for AF-D lenses (and you cant see the guts of the extension tubes).

The Phottix Duo TTL cord

Unfortunately I have not been able to locate a link for the Phottix AF Extension Tube Sets

I do not work for Phottix, but I do use a lot of Phottix gear and do have a working relationship with Phottix. I buy all my Phottix gear (if this changes I will make sure I will clearly state this) and all my thoughts on the gear is as free from bias as possible.

From time to time I will have a number of items that are away (loaned out or sent away for service) so if you are interested check here to see where everything is.….more

Items that are not present at the moment

Nikon D300 @ Nikon Australia – service, LCD screen

Nikon FM2n @Camera Service Center – AI ring replacement

AF-S Zoom Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 VR On Loan – Mr E. Noga

AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D On Loan – Mr JOD

I have been using my new (new to me) AI Nikkor 135mm f/2.8 and have been nothing short of impressed by what it can do. This experience has got me thinking and wanting more older style lenses….primes and manual focus primes. With the quality that is obtainable with zoom lenses it seems rather silly to be thinking about old manual focus primes, but after using the 135mm it has dawned on me that these lenses are of another breed.

The manual focus prime is a lot smaller, more compact and lighter than their modern brethen. Using primes forces you to be more careful with your compostion, drives your creativity and the need to manual focus adds to the care that is taken for each shot.

My usage of the 135mm brings me back to the days when I was first learning to shoot SLR (on an old FM2) and the pleasure of the precision that the MF demands means every shot that works brings a great sense of satisfaction. My only true MF lens at the moment is the AI 135mm f/2.8 but the build quality and precision is simply mind blowing.

Coincidently, the lens that this 135mm is looking like displacing is actually another prime…the AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D. I can now proudly say that I own three prime lenses (AI 135mm f/2.8, AF-D 50mm f/1.8, EX 180mm f/3.5 HSM) and two of these are my two favourite lenses that I own.

Whilst I am not going to ditch my auto focus zooms, I think there will always be room in my kit for a good MF prime or two. I will definitely look into getting some more MF primes in the future when my budget allows for this.

In the mean time…..anyone want:

• Tamron 28-105mm f/2.8 (big, nice range, does hunt a little – I really dont need this lens as I have the AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8)
• Sigma 180mm f/3.5 Macro (I am tempted to downsize this to a Tamron 90mm, AF-S Micro-Nikkor 105VR or head for the Tamron 180mm f/3.5)

Only serious offers will be considered.