Like meeting people, Like spending money- Photography is the answer

[spec]

It is surprising how many people are into photography as was illustrated by a PM a few of us had recently.

Me- I purposely resisted photography on the grounds of too many other interests and cost, but finally succumbed a year ago and bought some half decent kit.

What are your experiences? Any advice? Any good pictures? At the moment I am particularly interested in wide angle and macro for products.

spec

 

[large_ghostman]

It is surprising how many people are into photography as was illustrated by a PM a few of us had recently.

Me- I purposely resisted photography on the grounds of too many other interests and cost, but finally succumbed a year ago and bought some half decent kit.

What are your experiences? Any advice. Any good pictures. At the moment I am particularly interested in wide angle and macro for products.

spec

HALF DECENT means Cannon, DECENT means Nikon

 

[spec]

HALF DECENT means Cannon, DECENT means Nikon

Of course it does LG. Just like Fluke are not the best DMMs.

spec

 

[Ian Rogers]

I used to sport an Olympus 10... But alas the camera operator wasn't anywhere near half decent... My wife took better photo's on her £40 camera.... You either got it or you haven't....

 

[spec]

I used to sport an Olympus 10... But alas the camera operator wasn't anywhere near half decent... My wife took better photo's on her £40 camera.... You either got it or you haven't....

Hy Ian,

It is true that some people are naturals in many fields, not just photography, but you can normally become pretty good by learning a few basics. For example, my mug shots always looked like a refection from a hall of mirrors- big nose and pointy head- until I read that you do not use a short lens but as long a lens as possible for portraits-100mm being typical. The reason is quite simple- perspective. There are a few basic rules like that that can improve pictures tremendously. The fundamental one is the nine thirds rule (correction, 'Rule of Thirds' - thx LG) for picture composition. And for lighting, which is probably the most important area, there are a set of simple rules too.

If you have a high resolution camera (6 Mpix up say) with a half decent lens, you can use the scatter gun approach to shooting: take N shots of a scene and then post process in an image editor like Photoshop- cropping being the first operation. Of course, this is anathema to proper photographers.

I have even assembled a picture from parts of the pictures taken of a particular scene. In one case a couple on a settee in pub. They just would not sit still so I had to do him from one pic and her from another- you couldn't see the join either.

You can also do false focus post image processing which can make an average lens look much better.

As you can tell, I'm no artist- more technician

spec

 

[granddad]

Hi spec, had a camera from an early age , (pin hole ... a cardboard canon as per Blue Peter in the late 1950's ) still at it.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pic-man/ LG, Its not the camera that takes the picture ...

 

[spec]

Hi spec, had a camera from an early age , (pin hole ... a cardboard canon as per Blue Peter in the late 1950's ) still at it.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pic-man/ LG, Its not the camera that takes the picture ...

WOW great pics

(LG is only F ing about. It is a carry on from a recent PM thread. He has Hikon and I have Canon- It's a war of the roses thing.)

spec

 

[spec]

Hi spec, had a camera from an early age , (pin hole ... a cardboard canon as per Blue Peter in the late 1950's ) still at it.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pic-man/ LG, Its not the camera that takes the picture ...

Hy Grand,

As a kid I was always fascinated by the notion that you could take a picture through a pin hole, but could never get anything more than a blur from my attempts. Did you get any good shots and how did you manage not to expose the film before taking the shot?

spec

 

[Ian Rogers]

The guy who cuts my hair is a fantastic photographer... He said " I have to be good taking pictures as I'm rubbish with Photoshop!!"

Made me laugh!!

 

[granddad]

Did you get any good shots and how did you manage not to expose the film before taking the shot?

Film ! nooo Paper How to .... A little light tight cardboard box about 3" x 4"" x 4" (about 1/3 a shoe box ) tight lid on back , with a thin internal frame to hold the paper , stout black paper for lens ! ( with nice clean pin hole) with a small length of toilet roll cardboard as lens cap and shutter. in a blacked out broom cupboard ( dim red light OK ) put a sheet 4x3 Ilford bromide paper in back of camera , return lid... sit your Gran on a chair in sunny garden tell her to sit still for 3 minutes , put 'Lotus' box camera on top of an orange box with small brick on top ( camera shake a possibility if windy ) focal length is 1mm to infinity. say smile ! remove lens cap ......... back in cupboard , develop, wash, stop , fix, and final wash the paper exposure, red light needed to stop development if over exposed !...., back in cupboard, sandwich dried negative on top of new paper under glass... coating to coating and expose 1 minute-ish then develop etc ... not quite the 1 hour D&P , result depends on subject sitting still, patience, temperature and your sister not opening the cupboard door ... wish I still had had Gran's picture .

 

[cowboybob]

Ditto, granddad.

Built a pin-hole in Cub Scouts (1956-ish?). I was amazed it worked. Didn't do any of the developing (Den Mother did that for us).

No other camera work until 1965(?) when I saw "Blowup", a British cult film about a pro photog. Instantly hooked on the whole concept. Bought a Pentax

Took thousands of pix with it. Did all the developing (negative to paper).

When the digitals came out I was utterly derisive since I didn't see how they could ever have the resolution of film (wrong) or replicate the finger rub "push" while developing (hello? Photoshop!). To be sure, sort of miss the old way, slow as it was, since it took a level of experience and expertise no longer needed...

 

[granddad]

Hi cowboybob... Yes to that post, I had a Pentax , I think a spotmatic... also like Minolta, and Yashica twin lens 2 1/4 sq . Nothing like watching the image emerging on a 10x8 floating in the developer ..... then to take it into the light

 

[cowboybob]

... Nothing like watching the image emerging on a 10x8 floating in the developer...

Exactly.

"Magical" and endlessly fascinating... (not to mention the "vinegary" odor of the dark room - LOVED it).

 

[large_ghostman]

Hy Ian,

It is true that some people are naturals in many fields, not just photography, but you can normally become pretty good by learning a few basics. For example, my mug shots always looked like a refection from a hall of mirrors- big nose and pointy head- until I read that you do not use a short lens but as long a lens as possible for portraits-100mm being typical. The reason is quite simple- perspective. There are a few basic rules like that that can improve pictures tremendously. The fundamental one is the nine thirds rule (not sure that is the right name) for picture composition. And for lighting, which is probably the most important area, there are a set of simple rules too.

If you have a high resolution camera (6 Mpix up say) with a half decent lens, you can use the scatter gun approach to shooting: take N shots of a scene and then post process in an image editor like Photoshop- cropping being the first operation. Of course, this is anathema to proper photographers.

I have even assembled a picture from parts of the pictures taken of a particular scene. In one case a couple on a settee in pub. They just would not sit still so I had to do him from one pic and her from another- you couldn't see the join either.

You can also do false focus post image processing which can make an average lens look much better.

As you can tell, I'm no artist- more technician

spec

Apparently its called the rule of thirds. Or so I am told

 

[spec]

Ditto, granddad.

Built a pin-hole in Cub Scouts (1956-ish?). I was amazed it worked. Didn't do any of the developing (Den Mother did that for us).

No other camera work until 1965(?) when I saw "Blowup", a British cult film about a pro photog. Instantly hooked on the whole concept. Bought a Pentax

Took thousands of pix with it. Did all the developing (negative to paper).

When the digitals came out I was utterly derisive since I didn't see how they could ever have the resolution of film (wrong) or replicate the finger rub "push" while developing (hello? Photoshop!). To be sure, sort of miss the old way, slow as it was, since it took a level of experience and expertise no longer needed...

Nice. The first decent camera I ever used was a Pentax, but in those days there was no way I could afford one. You are right there is something that film has got that is missing with digital. But digital is so good these days, and well priced, that the gap is narrowing. If it wasn't for post processing I don't think I would find photography so interesting.

Being into photography is a huge bird (girl) puller. If only I knew that when I was single.

 

[spec]

Apparently its called the rule of thirds. Or so I am told

That's right. before and after I bought my kit, I researched photography and knew quite a few rules of thumb but, having not taken a shot for six months, have forgotten it all.

spec

 

[large_ghostman]

Grandad even has a pic of inside a canon!!!

 

[Reloadron]

Like meeting people, Like spending money- Photography is the answer

That would seem to apply to all of my hobbies. Maybe I should take up bird watching? Get a book and cheap binoculars and that should do it.

Ron

 

[spec]

Grandad even has a pic of inside a canon!!!

View attachment 99340

At least Canon use wire and not string.

spec

 

[spec]

That would seem to apply to all of my hobbies. Maybe I should take up bird watching? Get a book and cheap binoculars and that should do it.

Ron

If you mean feathered bird watching, it is far from cheap unless you just want to watch the odd sparrow in your garden. The other bird watching is cheap- a bit risky though you may get locked up or worse.

Agree about hobbies- they always seem to cost a fortune and take up half the room in the house.

Having said that though, these days you can do an awful lot with a $250 camera/lens kit and a handful of memory cards.

And if you are really savvy and sell a couple of pics you can even recover that.


spec