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May 16, 2017

What do you do with your photographs?

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Here are some of the topics and news items we're tracking for our community this week. ---

Members share what they are doing with their photos, two photography specialties worth trying, sensor dust remedies--- PLUS more....


1 -- What do you do with your photographs?
Gold member Steve Castle (AusPhotoMan) from New South Wales, Australia has tons of images collected over the years, and now he's looking to make good use of his efforts. What have you been doing with your "keepers" when you are not sure whether to hit the delete option?

Here is Steve's question:
Hi all,
I have been shooting for many years including some time as a working pro.
These days I struggle to figure out what to do with images I take. I have limited display space at home, but some are on display. I don't have young children or grandchildren to shoot ATM, but do shoot extensively when I travel and make those images into photobooks, but that is generally once every two years.
I enjoy shooting but can't see the point if I am not doing something useful with the images. Decent competitions are expensive to enter multiple images, the main reason I see to enter comps is the prestige of getting an award but I am not one who gets off on receiving awards.
Thoughts please?  -- Regards,  Steve

Responses so far include printing for fun, printing for profit, posting online forums, donating prints and arranging for stock photo reprint options.

If you have a huge stack of great images, you need to follow (and perhaps contribute to) this discussion.

 

2 -- Drops of water equal art?
Silver member Robert Metheney (bobpilot) from Utah, USA is looking into expanding his photo skills by tackling images of water drops. Yes, drops of water. If you have never seen the unique results from this style, you really need to check out the examples posted in response.

Here's the original question:
Now that I have abandoned sports photography, I want to find a new interest. My studio is ready for use.
Today I did some research on water-drop photography. This seems like something I might like.
Because I have no experience with this type of photography, I don't know if this kit is the way to go, or if there is something better.

Bob specified a certain kit, and from the looks of it--responses so far include many options and techniques. This is not a challenge for those of us with limited patience or resources, but the results are truly amazing. This discussion has turned into a great "how-to" primer for all of us willing to take on the challenges.

Have a look, and if you are a water-drop shooter - make sure you add your best shots.

 

3 -- Lowest prices ever on Nikon D500, D750 & D810 plus free Nikon Battery Pack Grips
Berger Bros. Camera tells us they have never seen Nikon offer bigger Instant Savings.

• D5500
Two lens kit - save $550
• D500
Body Only - Save $200
w/ kit lens - Save $670 
Plus Free MB-D17 Battery Pack
• D750
Body Only - Save $500
w/ kit lens - Save $1100
Plus Free MB-D16 Battery Pack
• D810 Body Only - Save $500
D810 w/ kit lens - Save $1100
Plus Free MB-D12 Battery Pack

You can now pre-order the new D7500 Body at $1,249.99 or the D7500 w/kit lens at $1,749.99. Great Personal service: Brad Berger 516-816-4921 or Brad@Berger-Bros.com. or mailto:BradBerger@mac.com.

 

4 -- Irritated by sensor dust?
Silver member Fay Jordan (TripleSeven) from England, The United Kingdom has been trying to resolve sensor dust issues with her Nikon D750. This is one of the most talked about topics in our forums for all DSLR's and her particular problem is drawing good suggestions.

The original question (and image):
Hi all, I have a D750 I bought at the start of last year and it's riddled with spots. It has been cleaned but, within a day or two of the cleaning the spots were back, and in force. The attached just-for-example photo shows how bad the spots are down the right-hand side of the sensor - no processing has been done, apart from resizing the photo so I could upload it, and equalizing it in Photoshop to highlight the spots (which is why the colours look a bit groovy).

What could be causing all these spots? The lens was only changed once in the time since it was cleaned, in a reasonably clean hotel room and I hadn't been in any dusty environments. My D810, by contrast, is immaculate.

Sensor dust is a fact of life, I get that, but this does seem excessive and more so as the sensor was cleaned immediately prior to the trip I was on. My previous D750 that I sold was the same, more dust than the Sahara. That said, is this dust or could it be oil spots? And, although it's a month out of warranty, would it be worth sending to Nikon UK for servicing and cleaning? Thanks in advance for your responses.

Do you have additional suggestions for her problem? Share them with us.

 

5 -- What the heck is a "sportrait?"
Silver member Brian Barbash (brianbarbash) from New Jersey, USA has posted a few images of an athlete (his son) while describing it in a relatively new term. His technique has drawn praise.

Brian tells us:
For about a year or so, I've been playing around with "sportraits" and compositing, creating images of my kids and their teammates. Usually I drop them into a stadium or some other kind of setting that mimics big time sports. The kids go bonkers when they see themselves like this and it's a lot of fun.

The shot (attached) is my youngest son Tyler, 8, wearing his NJ State team gymnastics uniform. He qualified to represent New Jersey in a 5-team state meet held at the West Point Military Academy in April. The team took 2nd place. While this shot isn't a composite, I did use compositing techniques to change the background to near black - the original was a dirty white muslin backdrop that just didn't work that well, but was all I had.

Any feedback or suggestions for improvement are greatly appreciated.

Responding members complimented Brian on his technique with a limited number of suggestions.

Moderating Team member Martin Turner told Brian:
Masterful use of rim lighting which is the mark of the modern sportrait. This is superb, and you haven't gone too far (which is easy to do).

Brian added an additional image showing more creativity. If you have been shooting "sportraits" please feel free to add to this discussion. And, make sure you tell us how you did it.

 

6 -- Comfort plus Theft-Resistance?
Can your strap keep your camera safe when traveling?

This strap, available from PhotoBert, is great for travel as it helps thwart camera thieves and is great for everyday use.
It fits any camera that has a removeable camera strap.

Don't let this strap fool you - it looks (and is) lightweight, but is incredibly strong!

It is 30% lighter than nylon/polyester, 45% lighter than aramid and 15 times stronger than steel.
(Sorry -- PhotoBert can only ship this product to US customers only.)
Nikonians Price: $37.95 
Price is after discount reflected in your cart.

 

7 -- Mark your tripod. Best method?
Gold member John A. Meiers (Dakotaboy) from North Dakota, USA is asking for suggestions on speeding up his tripod settings. Do you mark pre-sets, and if so, how so you mark the gear?

Here's the original question:
About a year ago I purchased a used Gitzo tripod. When fully extended and a D3 attached to ballhead it is about 2 inches too high. Does anybody have any DIY tricks to marking the tripod legs for quick easy setup according to my height? It would be nice to see a tripod with tape measure type markings on the bottom legs.

We have two responses:
• The simplest solution is to adjust the length of the bottom set of legs to your eye level and then mark one or more of the legs with a sharpie so you know how far to extend them the next time you set up the tripod. You could also just remember to not fully extend the bottom section and guess the height. If you do it often enough you will get very close to eye level without having to put a mark on the leg.  

• I don't recommend marring your tripod legs with tick marks, but Marty has a good suggestion. I usually extend the bottom sections of my tripod less than halfway out. For one that keeps dust and mud out of the telescoping joints, and two I can more easily adjust the top sections to set the height I need. BTW, the middle section(s) get extended out all the way.

How would you mark your favorite tripod settings?

 

8 -- Camera ban on air travel: updates
It has been nearly two months since Moderating Team member Ned S. Levi started tracking and reporting on recent air travel security measures that could impact our members flying with their gear.  The restrictions apply to electronic devices, but believe it or not -- your Nikon gear may be included.

In a recent update, Ned shows a pessimistic viewpoint:
As to this ban that isn't really a ban, the only people who are adversely affected are law abiding passengers, many of whom who have decided that the government has gone too far and are not traveling. (Emirates Airlines has reported a $1.5 billion drop in profits since the ban that isn't really a ban when into effect. Other affected airlines are reportedly hurting similarly.)
There is no upside.
The ban has no capability to make air travelers more secure. That's not opinion. That's fact. The ban likely makes us less secure according to experts.

The result of these security measures is starting to point towards our air-traveling members investing in costly "check-in" traveling luggage from sources such as Pelican.
How are you dealing with the newest air travel security arrangements?

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That's it for this week. Make sure you grab your favorite camera and capture some images to share with family and friends (especially us at Nikonians). -- Tom Boné (flashdeadline)

Posted by flashdeadline at May 16, 2017 9:50 PM