Photography - equipment, help hints

[mikewint]

Had tree problems and focus problems as we had some thin hazy cloud cover

 

[Airframes]

Problems or not, they're good shots Mike. I didn't even see it live.

 

[Aaron Brooks Wolters]

Me either, it was clouded over here.

 

[mikewint]

By the time I realized the SLR and telephoto were not going to work very well the eclipse was well underway. Then I had to drag the Celestron out, set it up, and load the old film camera, the eclipse was almost over. Had to send the film out for processing. Will see what comes back. Have considered modifications to use the digital SLR but never got that far.

 

[ontos]

How many of you clean your own camera sensors? Do have any problems doing it yourself and think it's better to have a pro do it. I was just curious, I need my sensor cleaned but the guy who does it only works on the week-end when I need my camera.

 

[Gnomey]

I've never done it myself, so personally I'd feel more comfortable with a pro doing it...

 

[ontos]

I've never done it myself, so personally I'd feel more comfortable with a pro doing it...

Thank you Hugh, I was thinking I might wait till next week-end and have it done. I do have a back up camera so no problem with shooting. To bad they only clean sensors on the week-end.

 

[Aaron Brooks Wolters]

I've got a friend that does mine. Looks pretty easy though. Just have to be patient and careful.

 

[ontos]

Thanks Aaron, I think I will take it in Friday and get it cleaned, it's a Canon dealer so should be OK. I might try it on my Canon XSi just to see how hard it is. Most of the videos I watched made it look pretty simple, like you say just be careful and delicate with it.

 

[GrauGeist]

Most camera manufacturers do offer cleaning kits proprietary to their camera bodies...they can be found at the manufacturer's stores or at dealers like Adorama or B&H.

The Pentax cleaning kit is hard to find, but it's out there...I have been meaning to get a kit, but like most things, I put it off "til later"

Typically, I ship the body off to Pentax's customer service center in Arizona, they work their magic (CCD cleaning, body cleaning, loading any firmware updates and comes with a limited warranty since it's factory authorized) and takes about a week or so - shipping there, servicing and shipping back.

 

[GrauGeist]

Well guys, I finally got around to getting a new tripod today!
If you recall, my good tripod was destroyed in the wreck three years ago, and since then, I've been using my old (some cases, 30 years old) backup tripods. And they've been dying one by one.

My old one was a Best Buy purchase, a house brand called "Rocketfish" and surprisingly well built for the price. It was packed with all sorts of features, like a 3-axis head on a carbon-fiber structure and was 65 inches extended. Sadly, it was discontinued about the time of my wreck, so I couldn't find a new one or even replacement parts for the damaged head.

Here you can see the head bend and broken at the base although the tripod itself is still in great shape.
And yes, my cat Momiche, was helping me.

Here's a closeup of the damaged head.

I kept holding out in the hopes of finding another Rocketfish or parts, but nothing after all these years. So after my last backup tripod died, I decided it's time for a new one.

So I picked up a Manfrotto setup, although not carbon fiber like the Rocketfish, it's sturdy aluminum at 62.9 inches and has all the features of the Rocketfish, like independent leg positions, which is great for Macro shooting, and a special headshaft that can extend sideways from the centerline for offset shooting or shots from odd settings. For the head, I selected the 3-axis type like I'm used to, the sales guy was trying to put the hardsell on the pistolgrip, but I wasn't going to go for it.

And for the technical stuff, the base is the MT190-XPRO3 and the head is the MHXPRO-3W.

So here it is! (by the way, my helper lost interest and wandered off...)

 

[Shinpachi]

Looks so cool, Dave

 

[GrauGeist]

Thank You, Shinpachi!

It seems to be very sturdy and should handle the weight my Sigma 300mm prime lens really well, too.

 

[Gnomey]

Good one Dave!

 

[GrauGeist]

Good one Dave!

Thanks Hugh!

There's no significant weather in the future, but we do have fireworks on the 4th coming up, so that might be the first opportunity for a shakedown!

 

[Shinpachi]

I think that photography is one of the best hobbies to refresh oneself.
Please let me look forward to your excellent firework shots with the new tripod soon

 

[GrauGeist]

I think that photography is one of the best hobbies to refresh oneself.
Please let me look forward to your excellent firework shots with the new tripod soon

Thank you, Shinpachi-san!

This reminds me that I should update the photography page with some recent shots, too.

It's only been a year since the last update!

 

[Shinpachi]

Good idea, Dave !
I will be looking forward to that, of course.
Take care of your health too

 

[Airframes]

Nice one Dave !
I've just brushed the dust off my tripod,ready for a bit of touring in a few weeks time. I rarely use a tripod, but I'm planning a bit of a trip around Northumberland and then the Lake District, so it should get some use then.

 

[fubar57]

Nice Dave. My Slik recently took a tumble and broke one of the leg adjustment locks so its time to start shopping