Where Have I Been?

I can't believe I'm been away for almost a year.  Too long and so much to share.  I've rolled over my Nikon D600 camera again.  It happened in January of this year while Hubby and I were on our cruise.    So I'm now at 20,248 pictures taken and my camera is still going strong.

I also took another camera with me on our cruise.  I've been looking for a smaller camera with a decent sensor.  I found it in my Fujifilm X100T.  It's a fixed lens camera, but I've been having a wonderful time with this fun camera.

Fujfilm X100T with Joby wrist strap

Here's a few pictures I took while cruising out of Port Everglades in Ft Lauderdale:

Captured in Classic Chrome mode (Fujifilm X100T)

Waving to the folks on the beach as head out (Fujifilm X100T)

Along with the two cameras I mentioned we also brought along a GoPro3+ that I bought for Hubby on our 2014 cruise.  He shot some wonderful underwater movies as we were snorkeling in the Western Caribbean.  Since he used his GoPro, I used his Canon S90 P&S in it's underwater case to take some fun underwater shots:

Swimming with the Rays in Grand Cayman (Canon S90)

Following the fish in Roatan (Canon S90)

Finally, I had one more camera with me...my Nikon AW100.  Even though this can also be used underwater, it mostly stayed dry and went with me on our excursions to the beach or sailing.  My motto/experience is if the camera doesn't go into an underwater case, it doesn't go snorkeling in the water with us.  

Playa Mia in Cozumel (Nikon AW100)

Rum Point Beach in Grand Cayman (Nikon AW100)

As you can see, the AW100 takes decent pictures.  Yes, I took a lot of cameras with us.  Each had a special purpose to help document our vacation.  We took over 2800 pictures and we had fun doing it.  

I'll be back with more pictures to share with you....

Made the Leap: Nikon D600

When I first saw the rumors of an intro Nikon FX camera coming out...I immediately knew a new camera would be in my future.  I just didn't know it would be this soon.  Nikon did a great job with making the announcement and then five days later had the cameras shipped to the retailers.  It only took two days of reading the reviews and specs to realize this was going to be an awesome camera.  It definitely is!

I did have the usual buyer's remorse until the camera arrived in my hot little hands.  The D600 uses the same battery as my D7000.  No waiting to charge a new battery.  I was ready to go.  I also had an extra Crumpler's Industry Disgrace strap that I attached before turning on the camera.  It's an amazing thing for me to have an extra strap...it was meant to be.

The D600 feels a bit heftier in my hands.  It's slightly bigger than the D7000.  The grip is a bit deeper.  The camera is a bit taller.  The LCD is a whopping 3.2 inches.  Looking through the viewfinder...it's huge!  The 39-focus points are the same as the D7000.  BUT...it's noticeably smaller.

I can use both my DX and of course the FX lenses on this camera.  The camera automatically knows when I switch my lens.  When I have my DX lens mounted and I look into the viewfinder, I can see a thin black horizontal window that shows me the cropped DX area.  At this point the 39-focus points look just like what you would see in the D7000 viewfinder.

The D600 handles beautifully in low light.  It's quick to focus.  So far, I've only taken 200 pictures.  I'll be back with some sample pictures and additional findings that I uncover using this amazing camera.

Stay tuned!

My D7000: Closing in on 20,000 pictures

I'm about 1500 pictures shy of turning over my D7k for the second time.  I've only had the camera for 1 year and two months.  I've been taking pictures like a crazy woman.  I'm still learning lots of neat things about my camera.  In July, I learned how to and experimented with shooting in continuous mode.  That was fun!

For the month of August, I will be learning to use my camera in manual  mode.  I still have a lot to learn about taking better pictures.  Learning to look.  Learning about exposure.  Learning more about shutter, aperture, and ISO and how they play together.  My head is already swimming from all the information I've gathered.

Funny.  My FB photo challenge/assignment for the month of August is:  Learning to Look.  I will be sharing and teaching my fellow FB friends...how to take better pictures by learning to look.  This month, they learned about taking pictures based on a theme I gave them.  They also had to think outside the box.  They were really creative in the pictures they took.

The month of August will hold many challenges for me as I progress into becoming a better photographer.  That's my goal.

A Multiple Post Day!

I've have two posts today.  Yes, I'm in a chatty mood...read on.

I've also added additional wedding pictures and photography comments to the "A Wedding on Friday" post I did dated July 7th.

Enjoy!

Just a Thought...

I'm thinking of another lens.  Real soon.  It's at least an 85mm fixed lens.  Hubby will be getting it for my birthday in a few weeks.  Will let you know which one I decide on.  I never thought I would enjoy working with single fixed lens so much.

Unrelated to this post is a picture of a Hibiscus flower taken with my Coolpix point and shoot:

After the rain with my Coolpix 7100

I couldn't do a post without a picture.  Especially when this is a photog blog.

Weird?

I had the weirdest thing happen to me a few minutes ago.  I had taken pictures of my wreath (office wreath contest), as in 13 pics, and they are no where to be found.  I've checked my primary and secondary SDHC cards...no pictures from today.

It's really strange because I was checking my LCD and reviewing my photos after I took the pictures.  They were on the camera.

I just went back to take more pictures to see what's going on.  Got back to my Mac and looked for the newest pictures on the card.  The most recent set was there.  I checked the numbering sequence of my pictures and sure enough...I'm missing 13 pictures.  I'm really scratching my head on this one....

Over the next few evenings, I will be taking a break from wreath project to take pictures for my upcoming "techniques" posts.  Can't have a post without pictures (except for this one).  :)

Photo Storage...Maintenance/Backups

I spent a few hours this weekend cleaning up my Mac hard drive.  I had roughly 9GB of storage left on my local drive.  My primary culprit was iPhoto.  I have a 500GB My Book Home (Firewire) external hard drive installed as my primary backup drive.  That drive also contains a backup of my photos.

A few months ago, I had purchased a 1TB My Book Elite at Costco for a bargain.  I went ahead and installed the new drive as my second external storage drive.  I moved my iPhoto database (~65GB) over to this new drive.  I also copied over my photos from the other external storage.

I also have a 500GB My Passport portable drive that contains a backup of my photos.

In all, I have three backups of my photos.  Is it overkill...maybe.  I'd rather have a piece of mind knowing I have a good backup when one of my hard drives fail.

I'm happy to report that I have over 60GB of storage on my primary local drive.  Life is good!

Funny...I'm Still Learning About My Nikon D7k

Tomorrow will be a photog day for me.  Several activities are planned at our church.  Most of my photog opportunities will be spontaneous.  Meaning...I have no clue as to where and when I'll need to be to take pictures.  I actually like being in that kind of environment.  Don't get me wrong, I'm an organizer/planner by nature.  Sometimes my creativity doesn't work too well within those constraints.

Being married to a hubby who thrives on spontaneity, I have learned over the years to adjust.  I think I've adjusted quite well and it's helping me in this particular hobby.  People can change.  :-)

So in prepping for tomorrow's photo op, I gathered my equipment and sorted through what I was packing in my backpack.  I also wanted to try out my equipment to make sure everything was in working order.  I grabbed my heavy duty SLIK tripod (I've had for over 25 years), my D7k, and my ML-L3 wireless remote.  Click, click, click...my wireless wasn't working.  Battery issue?  Maybe.  I grabbed my hubby's remote and click, click, click...nothing.  I checked my camera menu options to make sure the remote settings were correct and they were.  I went ahead and pulled out my nifty wired remote (MC-DC2) and that worked without an issue.  At this point, I was scratching my head big time.

What does a geeky gadget person have as a last resort?  I pull out my D7k instruction manual.  I slap my silly head and realize that there's a secondary dial on the camera that needs to be switched from "S" to "remote" mode.  The remote mode icon looks just like my wireless remote controller.  Duh!

Lesson learned?  Yes.  Good idea to have a practice session and make sure everything works as it should.

 

Hurricane Irene

A non-picture posting day today.  I did take the camera out to take some pictures of the sky.  The rain showers started around 11am and steadily rained until Irene's fury started around 7pm.  The whole sky was just gray.  Hubby and I left the house around 3pm to make a quick run to our local grocers for some comfort food.  There was hardly anyone on the roads.  Everyone was hunkered down in their homes.

The local news said the main part of Irene would be hovering over us from 7pm until 3am.  We got pounded with heavy winds and rain.  It didn't feel or sound as bad as what we experienced with Hurricane Isabel in 2003.  Isabel released a fury that shock the inside of our house.  Back then, a neighbor's old oak tree fell and missed our house by a few inches.

I think we're going to be fine.

What Was That? An Earthquake?

Many of us had an interesting afternoon...about 1:52pm to be exact.  I wasn't too sure what was happening other than my office building started to shake.  It was a weird feeling and experience.  I could sense the floor was moving and then I heard the noise...like a train running through the building.  The noise was actually coming from the building structure moving its parts.  I can't remember how long this lasted...20 seconds?  30 seconds?  We were told to leave the building which I assume was a precautionary measure incase another one came.  Several of my co-workers looked at each other in surprise.  Do we have earthquake procedures?

It was a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Virginia.  The epicenter was located close to Mineral, VA...about 87 miles from DC.  It was the largest to hit since VA since 1897.  Apparently, there were two aftershocks reported  (2.8 and 2.2) that occurred almost an hour later that I didn't notice.  I guess I was still in shock after feeling the 5.8.

You think I would have taken at least one picture of this event.  I was too busy trying to call home (cell phone service overload) and trying to get news with my iPhone.  What an interesting afternoon.

Breath of Life Quartet and Heaven's Song...Concert

Hubby and I went to a concert at our church.  I took my D7k and my trusty 18-200mm lens along with my 50mm and SB-600 flash.  I wasn't sure what to expect with the limited lighting inside the church sanctuary.  We sat in the second row and much to my surprise I was able to take lots of pictures of the concert from my seat.  Heaven's Song opened up the concert and they were truly amazing singers.

Heaven's Song
(27mm, f5.6, 1/200, ISO 3200)

At an opportune moment, I left my seat to walk towards the back of the church to take this shot (no flash):  

Breath of Life Quartet (BLQ)
(18mm, f3.5, 1/200, +0.67, ISO 6400, no flash)

One of the neat advantages of being the unofficial photog for the church is the ability to move around without causing too much distraction.  Folks are used to seeing me with my camera.  

The Breath of Life Quartet was pretty amazing and their music was very uplifting.  All I can say, they have awesome vocals and harmonies.   

BLQ - Loren Mulraine, Ron Woodfork, Desmond Pierre-Louise, Duane Hamilton, & Adrian Westney, Jr.
(28mm, f5.6, 1/200, ISO 1250)

BLQ
(29mm, f5.6, 1/200, ISO 1000)

At the end of the concert, both groups were on stage to give the final performance for the evening:

Heaven's Song and Breath of Life Quartet
(24mm, f5.6, 1/200, ISO 3600)

Concert Finale with Heaven's Song and Breath of Life Quartet
(48mm, f4.5, 1/100, +0.67, ISO 6400, no flash)

The concert lasted for 2 hours.  We thoroughly enjoyed it and I was able to purchase a few of their CDs.  I am currently listening to Loren Mulraine's CD - Fall on Me as I'm typing this post.  Uplifting and inspirational!

More Real Life Experiences with My Nikon D7000

My camera is only 51 days old.  I've taken 3,636 pictures so far.  My third battery charge produced over 1300 pictures while I was using both VR and non-VR lenses.  I used my external flash on the camera about 50% of the time.  I did use the LCD monitor quite a bit, especially during VBS.  A lot of the kids had asked me to take their pictures and then they wanted to see it on the LCD screen.

I had the opportunity to watch my D7k fill up slot 1 and continue into slot 2.  Slot 1 contained a 4GB SDHC card while slot 2 contained an 8GB SDHC card.  I set the camera to let slot 2 be the overflow card.  It didn't take long to fill up the 4GB.  It was neat to see the camera switch from one card to the next.  It worked nicely.

I've been extremely happy with this camera and I'm happy with the results I'm getting.  I do get a lot of "wow" pictures.

Outdoors and Overexposed

Early this morning, I grabbed my camera and headed into Old Town to check out the local farmer's market. Again, I had my 50mm lens attached and quickly realized I could have used my 35mm lens instead. The market was crowded and there were instances where I had to zoom out with my feet and avoid bumping into people.

One of the "cons" in several reviews I've read on the D7k mentioned how the camera tends to overexpose in bright light. I have to agree with them. I forgot to adjust my camera and here's the results:


















I think it's time I start using the U1 and U2 modes on the camera and configure the camera for outdoor/bright light settings. That's another dial on the camera that I haven't even experimented with...yet.

BTW...the D7k created a new folder after it reached 999 files on my SD card. Interesting.

Camera Stats: 721 shots at 51% charge

Back in the middle of June, I posted here that I took 718 shots on my first battery charge. I'm now using my 2nd battery (backup) and have taken 721 shots and the battery is showing 51% charge. My, oh, my. That's unheard of.

So what am I doing differently between the two battery charges? One, I'm using the menu system less. I've already tweaked the settings and I pretty much know my way around the menus. Two, I'm not "staring in awe" at the the LCD monitor as much. When I first got the camera I was just awe-struck going from a 2.7" to a 3" LCD screen. I kept zooming in and out to look at the pictures. Three, I'm just shooting pictures like crazy and not having to review each one after each shot. Sounds like "I'm becoming one with my camera". That's happened before with my beloved D40. That's a good thing!

It's been a month since I've purchased my fun-D7k camera. So far, I've taken 1439 pictures. At the rate I'm going, I will have taken 10,073 pictures at the end of this year. Now, that will be a first for me to turn over the camera back to 0001 in under a year or 7 months to be exact. I've already rolled over 3 other cameras, but it took a year to accomplish that.

I'll be back to post the results/stats of my 2nd battery charge. I'm anxious to see if I can get over 1000 pictures on a single charge. So far, it's looking good!

Blueberries...Summer is Here

Since last weekend, I've spent all week shooting with my Nikkor 50mm f1.4 lens. I've had some really good results. Practice, practice, and more practice. It's been over two weeks since I've had my 18-200mm wide/zoom lens on my camera. I've learned to let go. I've learned to enjoy my prime lens.

Last night, my hubby told me to check out our blueberry bushes and to bring an empty container. I had forgotten about the single blueberry bush that we had transplanted over 12 years ago. We actually saved it from being bulldozed over to make way for a new development out in Reston. We actually saved two, but one of them died...probably from the stress of the transplant. We were able to get a handful every year. A few years ago, hubby planted another blueberry bush for me. Kind of like having companion mates. Yes, I forgot about them until last night. We had a bumper crop of blueberries. I collected as much as my container would hold. Then hubby came behind me and collected some more. Actually, he was eating them while collecting them.

In all, we had about a little over 2 lbs of fresh blueberries:

50mm, f5.6, 1/40, ISO 6400

Early this morning, I started breakfast with my Honey Nut Cheerios and those beautiful berries on top:

50mm, f5.6, 1/125, ISO 4500


I am so thankful for blueberries and for my darling hubby who did the major transplant years ago.

50mm, f5.6, 1/125, ISO 2200

718...Pictures Taken on a Single Battery

That's the total number of shots I took with my first battery on my new D7000. I got the blinking battery light and then I could no longer autofocus for the next shot. I couldn't preview the pictures I've taken nor could I access the menu system. The battery was truly expired. So now, it sits in my charger...getting rejuvenated. It should take less than 2-1/2 hours to fully recharge. When I initially did the first recharge on May 30th, it took less than 2 hours. I popped that battery into my camera and kept taking pictures until this evening. My, my...718 pictures later. Truly inspirational.

Now, Nikon says on average I should be getting roughly 1050 pictures on a single charge. For as long as I keep turning on my LCD display, to preview pictures taken or wander around the menu system...I don't think I'll come close to that number. I'm fine with that because 718 pictures taken is A LOT on a single battery. I would have easily gone through 3 batteries on my old D5000.

We'll see what the next picture count I get on the 2nd battery. Oh yeah...it's my new spare battery. I think having two batteries is enough for now. I'll end up buying another one, a year from now and so on. As batteries go through charge cycles, they will eventually deplete or lose their original strength. Out of habit, I always buy another one a year later.

I'm ready to take more pictures this weekend. I currently have my 28-105mm lens attached to the camera...waiting for some action tomorrow. On Sunday, I plan on using my 35mm/1.8 or my 50mm/1.4 lens. I just have to remember to "zoom with my feet".

More later....

More Nikon D7000 Pictures - Outside

I had the opportunity to take my new camera outside today. I wanted to test the camera and see how it handled itself in Program mode and the auto settings along with my 18-200mm lens. I had to work fast as it was a sunny, hazy, hot and humid afternoon. Summer hasn't officially started according to the calendars, but it sure felt like it. I was naturally glowing after 30 minutes of walking around town.

The only post-production activities that took place was to add my copyright and to reduce the photo size. Here's the results of my adventure:


























There are times when I think the D7000 has a hard time handling high contrast or bright daylight shots:







Okay...so this one was an interior shot from inside one of the Old Town establishments:



I really like this camera a lot. It's wow-ing me with colorful images that don't need a lot of tweaking. I'm finding I have a lot of keepers. My new camera is amazing.

More Low Light Pictures

I'm at it again, testing my new Nikon D7000 toy. At first I had buyer's remorse, but that didn't last when I started snapping away and seeing the beautiful results.

I used my 18-200mm lens. All of the pictures shown here were taken in P-mode with auto settings and no flash. The outside pictures were taken after sun down. Then I took the camera indoors.

Here's the results:

Hydrangea Flowers - 95mm, F5.3, 1/125, ISO 1000 (bumped up the contrast-post production):




Poppy - 105mm, F5.3, 1/125, ISO 640:




Mystery Flower on Hosta - 170mm, F5.6, 1/125, ISO 2500:




Stained Glass - 62mm, F4.8, 1/125, ISO 5000:




Dining Room Light - 44mm, F7.1, 1/200, ISO 100



Self-Portrait - 18mm, F3.5, 1/25, ISO 6400:



This camera is "Wow-ing" me with it's low light capabilities. Next up...attaching my 35mm fixed lens and taking more pictures.

Stay tuned!

Test Pictures

We’re getting ready for our trip.  I’m taking my netbook with me to store my pictures as well as do some basic photo edits, like adding copyright information and resizing my pictures for the web. 

I’ve installed Photoshop Elements probably the first version that came out.  A small footprint application that works nicely with the screen limitations of my netbook: 1024x600.   

Works beautifully for what I need it to do.  So, I’m doing a test post with a few pictures to see how my photo edits look. 

 

Before color adjustment:

After color adjustment:

 

Now to publish this post and see the results on a real computer. 

More Warm Thoughts

This was taken two years ago from our balcony. We were leaving Princess Cays on the last day of our cruise.



Some of you are probably wondering...what's up with all these Caribbean pictures? We are getting ready to go on vacation soon. I'm just prepping my blog for more wonderful warm thoughts.