I think he was referring to bright ambient light hitting the LCD display, not the EVF or the brightness thereof. I typically use the EVF when shooting in sunlight, so that's not an issue for me.

I guess about as much as your own post about QR codes in the Photography Forum helped make me a better photographer!

https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-770292-1.html

A little grace goes a long way...

No, you've posted them in the Main Photography Discussion section (talking about all things photography). They should be in the Photo Gallery section instead.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm not seeing this as on topic for the "Main Photography Discussion" section... Am I missing something, anyone?

Just to let everyone know as the OP, I did download both DeNoise and Sharpen and decided to purchase both since there was an end-of-year sale plus a coupon code available. I haven't had much time to play with them yet (busy family holidays around my house!), but I'm excited for what I've already seen. Again, thanks to everyone for chiming in.

Kevin

Thanks for the insight from experience. I'm going to go with Topaz DeNoise AI (currently on sale for $59); the only question now is whether to get Topaz Sharpen while I'm at it! Just $59 more...

Hmm, I hadn't heard of On1 NoNoise before. Does anyone else here prefer it to Topaz DeNoise? Do the results consistently favor one over the other? Again, I'd prefer to start down the path that most have already found most beneficial.

Thanks to everyone who responded! I'll give it a try then.

Kevin

I moved to the Olympus MFT system a couple of years ago and have enjoyed it overall; however, one drawback I've encountered is noise in low-light situations using higher ISO (of course). I've seen quite a few people online mention the wonders of Topaz DeNoise AI, and I'm wanting feedback from the UHH members who've actually tried it or use it. I did search the forum and saw discussion from as recent as a year ago--some liked the old DeNoise 6 better than the AI at that time (though I understand the v6 is discontinued); but has AI improved over the past year? I should mention that I do have Affinity Photo which comes with a noise filter, but I haven't been able to produce significant improvements with it (maybe due to inexperience/incompetence, haha). So does anyone here think DeNoise AI is truly amazing, or not so much?

I do realize that Topaz offers a 2-week trial, btw, but I've read where people say AI is more complicated to use than the v6, and I'm not sure at my recreational level that I'd be able to master the learning curve in time to make a good judgment in that time frame; thus I'm soliciting opinions.

Thanks!
Kevin

I moved from the Canon 5d III to an Olympus EM-1 (I and II) about a year ago. I love the IBIS, photo stacking, etc., but I do occasionally miss my full frame Canon when shooting indoors and/or low-light conditions. But as others have said, no one system has everything. If you're not doing a lot of low-light photography, I wouldn't hesitate to jump to the m43 platform; otherwise, hang onto that old gear and buy an m43, too!

Thanks for the confirmation, guys! Not one commonly seen in this part of Florida...

Looks like I might have stumbled across it in a search through images of "Florida beetles" online. It appears to be an Acanthocinus obsoletus, also known as the longhorned beetle. If anyone knows with more certainty, feel free to chime in!

Thanks,
Kevin

Oh, it was about an inch long.

I live in Florida, and my wife noticed this bug on our car shortly after we arrived home the other night. Of course, I grabbed my Olympus TG-5 and took the following 30 frame focus stack, which I then processed via Affinity Photo. Does anyone happen to know what kind of bug this is, though? I thought it might be some type of stink bug at first, but I've had no luck identifying it. The eyes are particularly odd -- I'm including a second photo (not stacked) to provide another view. Thanks!

Kevin

(Download)


(Download)

Actually, I've sold a couple of items exactly like that! I've told people that if they mail cash, I'll pull the craigslist ad immediately and then ship the item as soon as the money arrives. I know that sounds crazy to most people, but it's worked out fine both times because I've kept my word. I've also purchased something in the same fashion -- I live in Florida and mailed $110 cash to a guy in California who had listed a sailboat spinnaker on his local Craigslist site, which I found via SearchTempest (a website that searches Craigslist sites across the country). I think that worked out because we were both catamaran sailors, and we quickly felt at ease and thought it would be fun to buck the trend and trust each other. I've had that spinnaker on my sailboat for about 5 years now...

I agree with what many others have already said about selling online. Third-party companies might be hassle free, but you'll never get top dollar since they have to make a profit when they sell it. As for eBay, their fees are pretty high (13% by the time you complete a transaction), and they changed their policy a few years ago to side with the purchaser in a dispute no matter what (trying to compete with Amazon's easy returns, I think); ever had someone "rent" an item for free and then have you pay the return shipping charges to boot? And as for letting someone use PayPal to pay before you ship directly to them outside of eBay, that's problematic, too. I once had someone offer to use PayPal to pay for an item on Craigslist before I shipped it to them, then they later disputed the PayPal charge, saying someone had fraudulently used their account. Boy, was I surprised when PayPal took the stance that I was guilty unless I could prove otherwise! Fortunately, I had saved the shipping receipt, which I uploaded pronto. PayPal reversed their position after investigating, but I was sure glad I kept a copy of that receipt! Anyway, that's why I prefer to do cash deals now, even occasionally via mail!

Kevin