Author Archive
Utah Photography Trip (Arches, Needles, Island in the Sky)
I just returned home from a photography trip… my first in quite a few years. My family went to Colorado for a family vacation. While there I took a solo side trip to Utah for a few days. I spent some time at Arches National Park and at two areas in Canyonlands (Island in the Sky and Needles).
I took pictures with film, so I don’t have anything to post just yet. 
Shake Your Film Canister
Here is another drawback of going all digital. You don’t have any film canisters sitting around, and therefore you can’t use this:
If you don’t want to click the image, the product in question is a set of salt / pepper shaker tops that you can use on film canisters. So if you don’t mind that your salt and/or pepper ends up smelling like film, then go for it. They can be yours for the low, low, price of just $1.99. As for me, I’ll keep my regular salt and pepper shaker that I got from REI.
The Rocket Works
After seeing a couple of “how-to” videos on youtube that show how to clean a digital camera I decided to order a “rocket” to see what I could do for mine. I have to say, it works. It really works. Continue…
Got My Own BL-3… Without Paying Too Much
A few posts ago I wrote about the horrible overpayments being made on eBay for the Nikon BL-3 battery caps. Yet, here we are today, and none of my favorite online vendors have this item in stock yet. I have a camera sitting around doing nothing because I don’t have a way to use my batteries.
That is, until today. Continue…
Preserve Your Rights
I first got into photography a long time ago… in junior high school, to be exact. I was the photographer for our junior high school yearbook. Seriously. I used a Graflex 35mm camera with black and white film. It was fun. The camera broke not too long after (I still have it, I’m sure it’s worth a fortune on eBay 
) so it wasn’t until the late 1990’s that I started up again.
Once I did get back into the swing of things I started looking for ways to make money or gain recognition as a photographer. One day I was reading the Parade section of our Sunday newspaper and saw a photo contest. They paid $500 or something like that for first place, and $100 for each of the runner-up selections. That looked like a possible way to make a bit of money.
Then I read the fine print and realized that the $500 prize was a drop in the bucket compared to what the contest folks could get for my photograph. By entering the contest I was allowing them to do whatever they wanted with my photograph… essentially I was transferring ownership of the picture to the contest company. It wasn’t worth $500 then, and it isn’t now either.
I flashed back to this memory when I read this blog post about how various web sites are using the same technique (or something similar) today. Same scam, new audience.
Just be careful where you post your images. Read the fine print. Make sure you retain the rights you want to retain, because once they’re gone there probably isn’t a way to get them back.
Telephoto AF Micro Nikkor 200mm f/4.0D ED-IF Autofocus Lens
Not too long ago I posted my initial impressions of my new 200-400 VR lens. I still have not managed to give that lens the workout it deserves, so I am not ready to provide any additional comments just yet. Instead, today I bring you my initial impressions of another new lens, the Telephoto AF Micro Nikkor 200mm f/4.0D ED-IF Autofocus Lens. More alphabet soup.
Why Film?
A few posts ago I mentioned that I had purchased a new film camera. Yes, a new film camera. One that uses chemistry to capture images. Why would I do that? It’s a fair question, and one that I will answer now. It’s all about future-proofing my images.
Zoom Telephoto AF Zoom Nikkor 200-400mm f/4 G-AFS ED-IF VR Autofocus Lens
First Impressions
Wow, talk about alphabet soup. The title of this blog post is the way Nikon describes one of their newest lenses. It’s quite a mouthful, but each set of letters represents an important feature. I had been anticipating the release of this lens since last summer when it was first announced. It took quite a while for Nikon to ramp up production, and even today it is very difficult to find this lens in stock anywhere. I was fortunate enough to pick one up about a month ago during the few days B&H Photo Video had them in stock, and I have started taking pictures with it. So far, I am very pleased.
Continue…
VHTF Nikon BL-3 @5x Retail… Such a Bargain!
Last year I purchased a film camera. Yes, you read that correctly, a film camera. Two, actually. The answer to the question “why would you do that?” is coming soon in another blog post. This is about something different. About people and how desperation makes them do strange things.
Continue…
Follow the Bouncing Ball
Most of the photography that I have done over the past decade has been wildlife or landscape subjects. I own a macro lens, and I enjoy using it when the flowers are out. I even bought a used 600mm lens a while back for use in Yellowstone and other areas where wildlife is plentiful. For the most part flowers and mountains don’t move too much while you are trying to take their picture. Wildlife does, of course, but frequently you can get classic “posed” shots.
I also have two boys, aged 5 and 6 at the moment. They’re both playing soccer in a kids league. It has been an interesting experience trying to adapt to sports photography. Kids rarely stop moving.
