The Photography Thread

[Fhqwghads]

That first lens has horrible chromatic abberation.

[zoobernut]

That first lens has horrible chromatic abberation.

First thing I noticed. The focus might actually be a lot better if it wasn't for the severe CA which can make a photo look fuzzy too. Also most lenses are soft wide open and that is something to consider as well.

Zansho is correct too when you are working with a depth of field that shallow from being open up all the way if you shift ever so slightly and your focus point hits something slightly off of where you want to be your camera can adjust the focus before you are done taking the photo. The other thing is if your focus point is hitting to things at the same time. I have had that issue before where bangs are hanging down in front of the eye slightly and the camera cannot decide whether to focus on the eye or the bangs and it hunts back and forth.

[Doombear]

Yeah the CA was not something I noticed until last night... At this point I think I am going to send it back to Amazon for exchange. See what the next copy is like.

I would definitely agree that 1/30 is plenty slow enough to cause blur or misfocus... and that shot was more to show an example as it was already resized. There are plenty more of my shots that are shot at 1/2000+ where I focused on the eye and got front focus.

I definitely leaned towards user error at first. Either shake, mis-focus, not using center focus etc... but the chart shots (tripod, flash/even light, took about 15) last night made up my mind to get the lens sent back. Only reason I decided to go with an exchange is because I am still able to as I just bought it earlier this month.

EDIT: Just requested a replacement from Amazon and the replacement lens is going out today with one-day shipping. Here's hoping the next copy of the lens is a keeper.

[Cruzizzle]

Here are a couple shots of the Orion Nebula I took last night. I can appreciate now the need for things like vibration suppression pads and a dew heater. Could only stay out for a few hours before everything was covered in frost. :P This was a single shot exposure, no fancy stacking or dark frames. Just seeing what I can do for a first attempt. Some slight adjustments to brightness/contrast/saturation/RGB in a photo editor.

I image with a Canon T1i (not modified) through an Explore Scientific 80mm Apo Triplet mounted on a Celestron CG-5. I've had bad luck with the Cg-5 and the software not working like it's suppose to. The motor tracks correctly but I have to manually align. Which right now just involves me doing rough polar alignments. I got a polar alignment scope I used for the first time last night and it made my alignment a little better, but the scope still needs to be calibrated. Focusing is done manually atm through live view. I use a field flattener to remove edge distortion. And a sky glow filter which filters out sodium/fluorescent lights from nearby towns.

Astrophotography is hard work. So many variables to consider to get even a decent picture.

This is a 120 second exposure at ISO-1600.

Spoiler: show

http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/8246/img0890ew.jpg
http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/1185/img0890d.jpg

[Doombear]

Amazing. I love it. I think that those images are worth the trouble you went through to get them. =)

[Doombear]

Couple newish shots, with my recently replaced Sigma 50mm. It still has front focusing 'issues' wide open, but not nearly as much. I am going to hang on to it though, shoot with it more and if it really gets to a point where I feel it affects what I want to shoot I will ship it off to Sigma this time.

I feel like I am still getting sharp shots at 1.8 and 2.0 and I know that I will likely never be perfectly content anyway.

http://i761.photobucket.com/albums/x...Y/PotN/81A.jpg

http://i761.photobucket.com/albums/x...Y/PotN/81B.jpg

[zoobernut]

Does your camera have focus adjustments? Quite a few DSLR's have the ability to compensate for front/rear focusing lenses by adjusting where the focus is.

Those shots are very beautiful by the way.

[Doombear]

Thanks Zoobernut. Nope, using my 5D Mark I which sadly has no MA of any kind.

[Zansho]

Here are a few images I shot over the weekend. I had a model come in and basically become my muse - I can't post the more.. ah.. intimate ones, but here are a few for your viewing pleasure. All were shot with Beauty dishes, softboxes, and at least 2 strobes. Incidentally, for those interested, the camera used was a 1D Mark IIN, with a Sigma 24-70 2.8 HSM lens.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5146/...3af0e852_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/...112b0485_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4109/...ccae96e7_b.jpg

[Doombear]

Excellent Zansho! The post proc. (?) on the b&w is damn nice looking. Was that a preset you made or standard? Whatever you did to tone it, I really like it. Would love to see the more 'intimate' ones as well if that is an option. If not, just more from this shoot in general. I would love to have strobes, but just don't have the extra cash for them. I have a few shoot throughs and reflectors, but they are bottom shelf stuff. I have been looking a cheap 40" brolly box set though. This one. I may grab the pair and see how it does with my flashes (YN-560) and Canon 430EXII.

A few low-res and noise filled shots from recently:

[Zansho]

The black and white was run through this plug in of Photoshop CS5:

http://www.niksoftware.com/silverefexpro/usa/entry.php

[miokomioko]

Channel Mixer is your friend.

[zoobernut]

Picked up a new camera body this month, D7000 and so far I am really loving it. Went down to the lake by my house on Saturday morning and was playing around with macro of bugs. Those suckers are fast and it took a lot of photos to end up with just a few usable ones.

http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._3562601_n.jpg

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._6024137_n.jpg

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._2639178_n.jpg

[Doombear]

Oh that looks fun... very nice Zoob. My plans on picking up an 85mm got wrecked by one of our PC's dying so still just rocking the 50mm. Was really hoping to have that 85mm and be able to send my 50mm to Sigma for a tiny bit of tweaking so I can count on it wide open. Here are a couple from a recent alley adventure.

[gt_killa]

Not sure if this would be the right place to ask but...I been wanting to get a digital camera, compact size...Do you guys think the Canon S95 a worthy purchase?

[Swatt]

Not sure if this would be the right place to ask but...I been wanting to get a digital camera, compact size...Do you guys think the Canon S95 a worthy purchase?

definitely. best compact out there imo.

[Dalexander45]

Hey guys, I`m also looking to get a new camera. I don`t know much about photography but would love to learn more about it and really dive in, so I`m looking for the best camera I can get that would be beginner friendly. I have about $500-$600 to spend... any suggestions?

[Tyche]

Canon T1i/T2i
Nikon D5000 (I hate the LCDs on these)

[Dalexander45]

Ah, I was lookin at the Canons, thanks for the suggestion, makes me feel a little better since I really don't know much of anything on the subject. I'll probably be picking one up tomorrow and maybe I'll post some test run pictures to get some input

[zoobernut]

Canon T1i/T2i
Nikon D5000 (I hate the LCDs on these)

In the Nikon realm for that price you would be looking at either the D3100 or the D5100. The D5100 is an amazing camera with great low light capabilities, much better than the Canon T1i/T2i range of cameras. I would suggest looking into either of those cameras in addition to the Canons. The LCD's have also been greatly upgraded in these new versions.