Posts: Salo | Ugly Hedgehog

Pleiades Star Cluster

Beautiful! But I see 8 (maybe 9) sisters.

(General Chit-Chat (non-photography talk))

Aug 15, 2019 19:48:40 #

Lost Words from our childhood:

I think Heavens to Mergatroyd was also used by Ragland T Tiger, the sidekick of Crusader Rabbit. They lived in Gallahad Glen on early Saturday mornings in the 1950's. I just loved them.

(General Chit-Chat (non-photography talk))

Aug 15, 2019 19:40:37 #

Doctors are People Too

They're all very funny! Really enjoyed them.

Jun 25, 2019 19:16:22 #

Software Question

I believe Microsoft Paint still produces outlines (sketches) of images and still comes bundled for free with Windows. IrfanView, also free for home use, is another extremely versatile photography program. Free being the key word here.

Jun 21, 2019 17:53:26 #

DownUnder - 5 - Cook Islands: Takitumu-Maire Nui Gardens - 2

Beautiful flowers, but my favorite is the bike rack.

Jun 21, 2019 17:47:09 #

My Friends in the Garden

Gorgeous little creatures. Beautiful images.

Jun 18, 2019 14:52:16 #

Mirror lenses

These are all great mirror-lens photos. I especially like the Concord which was an amazing and uniquely beautiful airplane. Shame they had to abandon it. I always wanted but never got the chance to fly on it.

Jun 15, 2019 17:05:15 #

Mirror lenses

I also have the Tamron AdaptAll-2 500mm f/8 mirror lens in Nikon F mount. I bought it pre-owned in like-new condition and in the original box with lens hood, 30.5mm "normal" filter (UV), instruction manual and hard carry case. It was a lot of fun to play around with many years ago on my film Nikons, but I was not always thrilled with its images. Sometimes I could get beautiful, sharp images at distance (without the donut bokeh), but I often found it difficult to focus precisely at "close" distances (what Tamron called "macro" mode at about 5 to 15 feet), and with essentially no DOF, focus was absolutely critical. Focus peeking like on today's cameras would have been a great help.

I packed it up over 20 years ago when we last moved so it's in one of the dozens of still unopened boxes, but I might be willing to sell it if I can find it, in case anyone is interested.

Jun 14, 2019 16:56:08 #

Need help in photographing Lightning Strikes

bwana wrote:

I simply shoot 4K video and extract the frames with lightning. Works like a charm!

bwa

That's a great idea. I don't have 4k but I think it should work fine with 1080p. Anyway, I'll find out soon enough. Thanks.

Jun 13, 2019 11:38:36 #

Simple cameras

Chris T wrote:

Not sure how you can be certain about that, Salo …... (show quote)

Well, Chris, I cannot be absolutely certain about the size of your Nikkormat EL from the picture, but I believe I've estimated correctly because I am certain of the size of the Nikkor 50mm f/2.0 attached to it. I have the same lens attached to my FT2 and FE. Anyway, I am looking forward to your upload of the three Nikons side by side.

Jun 13, 2019 08:55:17 #

Simple cameras

Chris T wrote:

You're forgetting one thing, Abo, and that is - the Nikon FM, is, essentially, a Nikkormat - which used a smaller frame than the F series. and the Nikon Df - is essentially the same format as the original F. Here is a picture of my Nikkormat EL - which preceded the FM … only way to compare the three in a photo - is to have access to them all, and then line them up side by side - Nikkormat, FM/FG, Nikon F, Nikon Df ….

Chris, I also have a Nikkormat, the FT2, and it looks much larger than your picture of the EL. In fact, my FT2 is huge and has the weight of a small tank. The Nikkormat EL was the precursor to the Nikon FE which is significantly smaller and lighter than the FT2. Your EL seems to be about the same size as my FE so I think Nikon started to "downsize" their bodies starting with the EL, but the older Nikkormats were heavy and LARGE. Very nice looking EL, BTW.

Jun 13, 2019 08:34:19 #

Simple cameras

Shooting smooth video hand-held with even a "light-weight" mirrorless interchangeable lens camera is still no easy feat. Even my small Olympus PEN still feels heavy in my hands. IBIS helps but it's still much easier to shoot video with an extremely light P&S or even a cellphone. I think the largest group of video users are the vloggers who generally have their cameras mounted on a tripod or a gimbal or some other esoteric supporting device. I personally shoot only stills, but on the rare occasion that I want a video of something interesting, I will pull out my cellphone which produces video that's good enough for me or someone else to later enjoy. Unlike with my stills, I'm not trying to win an Oscar with video.

Jun 12, 2019 21:07:41 #

Nikon 50mm lens

I also have both the 50mm f/2.0 non-AI and the 50mm f/1.8 AIS. I've also read where the f/2.0 is "better" than the f/1.8, but I have always been hard pressed to see any significant differences between them in portraiture, landscapes or document copying. They both have extremely flat fields of view with little to no barrel distortion, excellent resolution and, IMO, are both wonderful 50's. The f/1.4 AIS is a completely different (and more expensive) animal but is also a wonderful lens though for slightly different purposes.

As someone already stated above, choosing the f/1.8 should be a no brainer.

Jun 12, 2019 16:03:53 #

Storm Clouds, Sunset and Virga with Lake Reflection

I instantly recognized that your photos were stunning and dramatic, but I had no idea what a virga is. Now that I've looked it up, your photos are still more powerful than the examples that were shown. Great job.

Jun 11, 2019 20:32:09 #

NGC 4565

Wow! Quite a beautiful shot.