Full Frame DSLRs

When we were all shooting 35mm film, no one ever wondered about crop factors. We wanted features, we wanted sharp lenses, and we wanted value for the quality. Every shot from any camera was 24X36mm (don't quibble about half-frame cameras, that was an entirely different format).

Now, most DSLRs and ILCs are in a version of what is known as the DX format. Most brands use a sensor about 16X24mm, which is about 2/3rds the size of the old stand-by 35mm format. That means that any lens focal length we were used to in our film days now acts like a different lens because of the crop factor. DX vs FX (full frame is called FX in the digital world) crop factor is about 1.5x. So, our memory of 50mm being our "normal" lens is now moot. On a DX sensor camera, that 50mm now is a slight telephoto. It gives us the framing and field of view as a 75mm lens would on 35mm film. But, it is still a 50mm lens. It's just that 50mm now means something different on most DSLRs. Got it? Good!

So, many of us who made the transition from 35mm film to Digital SLRs, really wished we could have sensors in the same size that we were used to. A larger sensor area would also mean an increase in overall digital quality. And, we longed to use some of special ultra wide angles to their full wide viewing ability, which the 1.5x crop factor really affects. Crop factor is a boon to telephoto use, a hindrance to ultra wide angle use.

Well, Canon and Nikon have been making full frame digital cameras for a while. And they have been extremely expensive. For instance, buying a $1000 camera in the film era usually meant the top of the line pro model, but a pro model full frame DSLR might have set you back 5 to 10 times that price.

The good news is that now, there are several FX DSLRs that might be within a regular person's budget. It is a high budget tho, to be sure. From just under $2K to just under $3K for camera with a kit zoom lens.

Three that are available right now are the Nikon D600, Canon EOS 6D, and Sony SLT-a99. (Sony may be offering an NEX (an ILC) FX camera soon.)

An unbiased review site, such as Digital Photo Review, can give you details of quality, features, handling, and many in hand user comments.

I'll be back later to talk about uses of both formats of DSLRs.

Enjoy!

What DSLR to get? (Canon edition)

Canon's line of consumer DSLRs features high quality, ease of use, and multiple settings for whatever kind of photography you do.

The best bargain is the Rebel T3. A 12MP camera, I've seen it in stores and online for around the $400+ price point. 

Don't confuse it with the T3i. The T3i has an 18MP sensor, better video, and some other added features like a vari-angle live view rear LCD screen. But, it adds to the bottom line for pricing. Expect this camera with kit lens to be in the $700+ price point. Sale prices are currently about a $100 off that right now.

An interesting camera is the T4i. Another 18MP sensor camera, the T4i adds a new twist on the view/control LCD screen. It uses a touch menu, like smart phones and tablets. For some people, this will make it easier to access specialty menu settings, for others, they will have to learn to adapt. :-) This camera runs in the just under to well over $1000 price point, depending on which kit lens you pair it with and what current sales are running. 

Canons consumer models use a slightly smaller image sensor than Nikon, Sony, or Pentax, but it still is much bigger than the 4/3rds or Micro 4/3rds format, which itself is over twice the size of sensors in most P&S cameras. The Canon sensor's magnification factor compared to our old stand-by 35mm is 1.6X compared to 1.5X for all the other DX size cameras. It only really affects you on the wide angle side of things, so for most people it is a non issue.

Canons also have a very well regarded video capability in their DSLRs. Should be no surprise, as Canon has been a leader in consumer, pro, and news agency video for some decades now.

Will you really notice any differences in Nikon vs Canon vs Sony or others? No. In the way the cameras feel and handle, yes, there are some major differences. If you have the chance, hold the cameras in your hand before buying. In quality, features, and available lenses and accessories, we all have more than any one of us will ever need from any of the major brands.

In my book, brand wars are silly. Preferences are valid. Arguments waste time. Enjoy DSLR photography!

What DSLR to get? (Nikon for this post)

Well, Nikon has released another great DSLR choice, the D5200. (By the way, check out Ken Rockwell's entire site. He is an awesome photographer and a pretty good teacher. I've been following him since before blogs.)

The D5200 is a very full featured camera. It has the 24.1MP sensor as the D3200, which is related to the D800's full frame 36MP sensor, so the image quality capability is just this side of medium format. Of course, lens choice, shooting technique, exposure and focus choices all play a factor, but the image sensor will not be what's holding us back!  It has many features that put it way up on the list of desirable cameras. 

About the only thing slightly lesser about it vs some more expensive DSLRs is not having a focus motor built in (for older AF Nikkors), not having the weather seals and anti-drop construction beefiness, and a few less focus points. If you've been waiting on the next best thing in serious amateur digital photography, this is it.

What the introduction of this camera does for prices of the D5100 is a real treat. Body only, factory refurbished D5100s can be found for around $380. !!!!!! Let me tell you, for what I used to pay for used Nikon bodies in my film days, this is one of the least expensive, ultra high quality, very full featured cameras I could think of from any manufacturer.

Also worth looking at, D3100 and D3200.

Enjoy!

 Next up: Canon's DSLR choices.

More Meteors! Geminids

Geminids tonight! (click here)

Be sure to stay warm. Early morning hours are the best time for viewing. Click here for one of my earlier posts about meteor watching.

If you see a meteor land on the ground (making it now a meteorite), do NOT do what this man did and poke at it with a stick.

This is what will happen!

Enjoy and be careful.

Photo Cards Now Available at B&B News Stand, Artesia

B&B News Stand, 309 W. Main St in Artesia, New Mexico now has our photo frame cards for sale in store.

While there, enjoy their soda fountain and ice cream bar!

Look at their display of specialty and classic Barbie Dolls (private collection, limited time).

Calendars Selling Out!

Check out our 11x14 photo prints at Steve's Fine Finish!

Thank You Becentsable!

Calendar Giveaway Promotion (click here)

Check out everything else becentsable.com has to offer. It's one of  Marnie's Coupon-a-ram-a favorite sites.

Take a Moment...

 

... to read our instruction manuals.

Gone are the days when we could look at any of 30 different cameras and see all the major controls in the same general location, same basic shapes, even.

Today's digital cameras are computers with a lens. Even the basic shutter speed and aperture controls will change position from brand to brand, sometimes even within the same brand. For instance, try to find the aperture ring on a new Nikkor G lens or on any Canon EF lens. Not on the lens? Correct! Aperture change is accomplished via a camera body control. It may be a dial, a button, or even a touch menu option.

Reading the manual also lets us know what other features are available on our camera. Did you know that many DX format DSLRs have full movie modes? With sound! Some have special effects or photoshop-type enhancements built right in to the operating system.

The printed manuals may be supplemented with a CD or DVD. Look at that, too. Some of the coolest features of my current camera weren't hardly even mentioned until I viewed my DVD.

... And Now You Know ...

 

Show and Sale Today and Tomorrow

Come see us!

2614 W Menefee Ave, Artesia NM

Friday and Saturday

7:00am to 7:00pm

Come to Our Show and Sale!

Steve's Fine Finish and SweetHark Crafts are having a sale this weekend.

Friday, November 30th and Saturday, December 1st from 7:00am to 7:00pm

Our Artesia, NM location is 2614 W Menefee Ave

Greeting cards, Photo Art, Jewelry, gift items, and more will be available for immediate pick up, or stop by to place a special order.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks to our local Artesia business friends for helping promote this event:

Hobo's Meat and Bread

Pure Nutrition

Fenn's Farmers Market

Gregg's Grocery

Heritage Inn 

First American Bank

B&B News Stand

Artesia Chamber of Commerce

 

Reviews of Digital Cameras - Sony NEX-5

Very brief review, as I got to handle it for a short time.

The quality is not an issue, as many other users and reviewers have posted all over the internet. Handling, however, is very different. This is not an SLR, it is what is known as an ILC. There is no eyelevel viewfinder, you use the very bright and clear rear panel display for everything. The settings, the viewing, the adjustments...

And that's where some people might have some issues at first. Or, you could just plug in the optional electronic eyelevel viewfinder. Holding the camera with a large lens does not feel natural to an SLR user. Practice will overcome this issue.  To anyone trading up from a point and shoot, the main thing they will need to remember is to cradle the bigger lens properly.

Menu settings and camera controls are easily accessed via a very nice interface on the back right next to the LCD viewscreen.

Overall, my impression is positive. Switching from an SLR, you might want to purchase the optional ELF. The benefits of this system are extremely high quality, FULL featured, and quite a bit more compact than most competing DSLRs.

My Review of Upload Here Blank Business Cards

Originally submitted at 123print

Upload Here Blank Business Cards

Upload Here Blank Business Cards

Good Deal

By Mooshie Moose from The Wild Wild West on 11/22/2012

 

4out of 5

Pros: Fast, Easy to do, Looks good

Cons: Shipping a little high

Good job on business cards with my own pic. Shipping seems a little high, but they came in a reasonable time. Qulity end product, easy to do online.

(legalese)

Photo Frame Cards For Sale

4x6" photos mounted as a photo frame card.

After card is received, fold out bottom flap and stand card up as a free standing photo!
 

$5.00 per card, shipping included. 

Please be sure to specify which card when ordering.

Aspen Sky

Old Barn

Cattle Drive

Cloud Bridge

Irrigation

Teacher

Theater

Balloon Tree

Two Balloons

Water Tower

White Sands

Canyon Tree

 Only 4x6" size available as photo frame cards.

Playing with Portrait Settings

My pretty wife:

Very minimal enhancement. People usually like to look pretty natural. Still some tweaks we can do. Softening contrast, adjusting highlight exposure, smoothing skin tones, etc...

This is the after. Never show your befores of portraits without explicit permission! Even then, think twice.  ;-)

(Her before looked just fine, btw. But the after is preferred for sharing.)

Leonids Meteor Shower Early Saturday AM

Meteor showers can be an exciting visual and photographic experience. This Saturday morning, amateur astronomers in the South Central and Midwest US will have a good opportunity to see the Leonid Shower.

A meteor shower occurs when the Earth's orbit passes through the orbit of a comet. Over the centuries, debris gets scattered throughout the comet's orbital path. The debris field is thicker the nearer it is to the comet, which is why some years' showers are more intense.

Early morning is the best time to see a meteor shower. The Earth is moving into its orbit from our perspective, so we see the sky as a front windshield more or less. Early morning also has a better chance for still skies, since residual heat has usually dissipated overnight. Clouds can add some drama to photos, but they can also obscure the meteors. A relatively cloudless forecast is preferred, but a few clouds won't hurt. We also need the Moon, Earth's natural satellite, to either be down or in a a very small phase. The Moon is really bright and will obscure most if not all meteors.

Now, how to take the photos. First, we want to be in a dark sky location. For many suburbanites, this means traveling away from city lights. Even country dwellers will need to avoid security lights on their properties. 

For viewing, naked eye is actually the most enjoyable method. Telescopes and very powerful binoculars will narrow ones vision too much to be of any real help. Likewise photographically, we would want to use lenses in the shorter range. From normal to wide angle works well for many astro-photographers. A tripod is a must, the sturdier the better. Do you know your lens' optimum aperture? On most lenses, it is about two or three f-stops down from wide open. Avoid stopping the lens all the way down or using it wide open. With point light sources, those extremes of lens aperture introduce undesirable optical effects that we would never notice with other subjects.

Look East. Frame up a decent view. Manually focus to infinity (but not beyond!). Open up the shutter on BULB for times from several seconds to several minutes. This means you will probably have to use a DSLR, though some P&S from Nikon, Canon, and Fuji have the  BULB setting too.  If you have an equatorial mount set up, you will get crisp views of the night sky objects and hopefully some meteor streaks. If using a regular tripod, you will record curved star trails. Any straight streak going against the direction and curve of the trails is a meteor.

Post production, you will need to color correct white balance to get a realistic looking dark sky color and be sure to lower the noise level as much as possible. Sharpness enhancing may be a good idea, too.

I'll be out facing East from about 3:00am til I see the morning glow of sunrise (which is another fun time for landscape photos with a different feel or look).

Enjoy!

 Thanks to 3.bp.BlogSpot and Science Photo Library for the illustrations.

New Artesia Pics - Around Town

Here are some more photos of the city of Artesia. Some will be available online at stevesfinefinish.com

Others will be available for pick at various retail locations in Artesia, NM.

Watch Solar Eclipse Online Tuesday

You can watch it here! (click here)

Tuesday, November 13th, 2012, 3:35pm EST is when it starts. Coverage on line will begin around 2:30 EST. Besides SLOOH linked to above, you can find numerous other live feeds via a quick web search. Use the terms SOLAR ECLIPSE LIVE FEED in your search engine.

Not the same as being there, but being there in this case would mean being way down under mostly on the ocean.

More Info (click here) 

How Much to Enhance? (More Artesia Balloons)

We talked earlier about image enhancement and it related to using filters in times past. 

In the following pics (of the Artesia Balloon & Bluegrass Festival), I chose to enhance just enough to make the balloons stand out. What did I do? I intensified the warm colors and sky blue. Besides intensifying them, I adjusted exposure values for specific colors. For instance, I darkened blues and greens while brightening reds and yellows.

Keeping the percentages used for each enhancement very low (5 to 8% range), I was able to makes the balloons stand out without making the entire photo look unreal.

Plus, it was fun watching the balloons in Artesia, NM that early Sunday morning.