Is this on the Athens "Bypass" near Athens, TX?

Is this on the Athens "Bypass" near Athens, TX?

By that logic, we'd all still be driving Model Ts. ;)

The New Dallas Cowboys Stadium

The 5D MkIII is DEFINITELY worth the money. For me, the most important "new and improved" feature is its noise performance. With the MkII, ISO 3200 was about the most I could eke out of the camera and even then it was at some sacrifice of image quality.

With the MkIII, I am regularly shooting ISO 6400 with little to no sacrifice in IQ. (IMHO) The speedier shutter doesn't hurt matters, either.

With new HDR, multi-exposure, and an improved layout of buttons (more like the 7D, that is), I find the extra expense well worth it. Can't wait to get my hands on the new 1D-X!

BTW, here's a highly cropped image (3089 x 2059 px) shot at ISO 3200. It's not without normal adjustments in LR but it's a good example of what you can expect from the MkIII in terms of noise performance.

Have fun!

Minnesota Twins Bullpen @ TX Rangers Ballpark @ Arlington

For the record, so would I. But my carrying a gun is a pretty strong deterrent to someone who may just think twice about taking my property or harming someone around me. And damn good protection against those who just don't care. I pray to God that I never have to use my weapon but if I do, it'll be because it's a last resort not the first choice that comes to mind.

I've been mugged 3 times here in Dallas. Sorry to say it took that many times before I decided that being armed is a better way to go. The police? They were nowhere to be found. Once the perp is gone from the scene, the cops simply don't want to do the work necessary to find him. Even for murder. On the street where I live, an historic district with expensive 100 y.o. homes, there was a murder of an 86 y.o. man about a year and a half ago. Nothing ever was done. I know this because every time I see a cop in the neighborhood, I ask about the disposition of the case. Nada.

Crime fighting just isn't the same as what you see on TV, my friends. Better to be armed and send a perp on his way (down the highway or straight to hell) than to be a victim and have the cops do nothing at all.

In the meantime, I have to deal with either violence done to me or the theft of and/or damage to the tools I use to make a living. And, yes, I do carry insurance.

Sorry, Greg, I count myself among those who don't won't to rely on insurance or government to make me whole again. Better to nip it in the bud before the crime is committed. Oh, wait, maybe I could talk to the criminal and get them to change their mind about doing me or my property damage. That should work! Oh, Happy Day!!!

This is precisely the reason I carry a weapon on long trips. I frequently have as much as $15-20k worth of gear with me or in my vehicle nearby and have no intention of surrendering any part of it to some junky in need of a fix.

My next to-do is to get my CCP. I just wish Texas would pass an open carry law so that there's no doubt that I'm armed and will protect what's mine.

Criminals don't seek out the strongest of the herd but, rather, the weakest, and they prey on them. Ever heard of a criminal attacking a police station? Nope. But I daresay most of us have heard of a number of homicidal maniacs attacking unarmed people at schools. Gun-free school zones are a magnet for these psychopaths.

Now, can we all just chill out with all the gun talk and get back to the shooting we love best — photography?

Yes, I would carry a gun... if I had a concealed carry permit. And do carry it on long trips to outback areas, which is entirely legal. Evidently, you're under the impression that guns are automatically evil and should never be carried around children. But I have a different view: Guns are for the protection of myself, my property, and those around me who don't carry a weapon. It's something called the 2nd Amendment.

No disrespect intended but this is the kind of politically correct response that has become the standard by which parents in this day and age live and breathe.

And you, too, have misspelled "voyeur," PIXChuck. I say this not because I have firsthand experience but because, unlike most of my generation, and particularly in the Internet age, I know how to spell and when I have any doubts, I look it up.

Leopold and Loeb notwithstanding, I still say the world is not nearly the dangerous place that Baby Boomers have made it out to be. But whatever you think about most is what you get.

Like I said, I've completely given up photographing children whose parents do not know me. Others may still do so but not I. I'll stick to photographing subjects that are unlikely to sue.

Subject that is unlikely to sue

You've hit the nail squarely on the head, LarryD. Shooting is a perfectly legitimate activity. Publishing. . . well, that's a different colored horse. Today's society being litigious to the extreme, no publisher worth their salt will accept a photo — particularly that of a child — that doesn't come with a model release. It's way too risky. Even if a photographer self-publishes to his/her online portfolio, the same rule applies.

I agree that asking permission results in the subjects behaving differently for the camera than they would before they knew the camera was pointed at them. Forgiveness, I find, is the better strategy. And being prepared to explain to anyone who asks what you're doing with the photo.

As sad as it makes me that the spontaneous joy of childhood goes un-captured, I long ago gave up photographing children who could be identified in a photo unless the parents were familiar with me and my work. It's just too risky and more hassle than I want in my life.

What a shame that we've come to this in our society: As a single man of 60, I'm supposed to completely ignore the existence of children for fear of being labeled as some kind of deviant. Sad and sickening at the same time. I blame it all on the Boomers who believe the world should be totally safe and that there's nothing but evil in the world. The world can be a dangerous place but it's not as bad as they portray it. I would venture a guess that there's more danger within families than out in the world. Interpret that any way you want.

Halloween on Swiss Avenue

Randy, we've all been where you are right now. The good news is that learning about your new G12 is not like trying to learn brain surgery in an afternoon. That said, having owned the G9 and now the G12, I'd say that the newer model is definitely more complicated. But it's worth the time you put into it. I love the camera so much that I'm taking it to Haiti in January as my 2nd camera while I shoot a documentary.

I, too, have a bit of a learning challenge and find audio reinforcement helps a great deal. More than anything else, however, because you want and need to be intimately familiar with your camera, I think you'll find that if you slowly and methodically work your way through each of the buttons and menus, that familiarity will grow quickly, to the point that you won't have to think about the mechanics of shooting at all.

My learning "disability," if you will, is helped in my case by reading aloud, instead of silently. It engages different parts of the brain than silent reading. I suspect you might benefit from speaking aloud, describing what you are doing as you run through all the camera's functions.

The video tutorials and such that you're looking for may help, as well. But my take is that trying to find them is a bit like waiting for someone else to do something before you can act yourself. Take the bull by the horns and wrestle him to the ground.

And let us know how you fair.

Macro shot with Canon G9

There is a way to set up Fotomoto through 500px.[/quote]

Thanks. I'll check it out.

I've been exploring 500px pretty deeply and haven't found any sort of commerce function. It's a shame. But for fifty bucks a year. . . .

I may yet have to break down and spend time learning Wordpress. The photography theme that I bought for WP seems to support commerce but it can get pretty geeky. Maybe I should hire a geek!! :) There's an idea!

Thanks for the comments on my architectural shots. Hoping to improve them a bit with the 17mm TS lens I just bought. Ouch! The Hunt Oil Bldg image was shot with it. It's incredibly sharp.

Hunt Oil Bldg. shot w/ Canon 17mm Tilt-Shift

Just signed up with 500px.com and uploaded a boatload of images, and I'd like some feedback — NOT about my images, though you may if you feel moved to do so — but about the way the website works, the ease of navigation, any problems, etc.

For fifty bucks a year, it's not a bad deal. I'm still trying to figure out how to incorporate my blog (which they provide on another section of the site) as a menu item on the main page. Anyone experienced with 500px?

Thanks.

Lawrence Standifer Stevens