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Digital SLR / DSLR Camera Question / DSLR Thread 2

Argh how I hate Ken Rockwell. I can't even think of a motorcycle equivalent for him, but once you've been shooting a while you'll see how painful it is to read his site.

But yes, his advice is sound for people just jumping in to serious digital photography. I will admit that much.
 
I case I haven't mentioned it, I *love* the 50mm/1.8 lens!!

A couple of photos from playing around today:
 

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cycle61 said:
Argh how I hate Ken Rockwell. I can't even think of a motorcycle equivalent for him, but once you've been shooting a while you'll see how painful it is to read his site.

But yes, his advice is sound for people just jumping in to serious digital photography. I will admit that much.
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Do you feel he's right about the differences between the D40 and D60? Is there a difference between the two someone like me would be likely to notice? Is that difference going to become more prevalent or less so the more time I spend behind the lens?

To add another wrinkle to my situation, I believe I may be getting the camera as a "surprise" gift. Now I have to decide if I want to ruin the surprise by bringing up the issue that the D60 may not be the right camera for me right now.

VeloceMoto - I like the first photo as well. To be honest, I didn't notice it was crooked, even after you mentioned it. I thought it was purposely shot from that perspective. It seems to highlight how removed the nutcracker is from the festivities going on behind it.
 
kross said:
Do you feel he's right about the differences between the D40 and D60? Is there a difference between the two someone like me would be likely to notice? Is that difference going to become more prevalent or less so the more time I spend behind the lens?

To add another wrinkle to my situation, I believe I may be getting the camera as a "surprise" gift. Now I have to decide if I want to ruin the surprise by bringing up the issue that the D60 may not be the right camera for me right now.
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Either camera will serve you very well, and the differences are indeed so slight that except for very specific situations (high speed flash sync, which you'll probably not find limiting for a long time) they are going to work identically for you. I certainly wouldn't go upsetting anybody who was gonna buy me a camera by pointing out the differences. Other than the badge on the front, and about 18 months of sensor and processor development, they are functionally identical.
 
Hey, I'm up in the air about whether to buy the Nikon SB-400 or the pricier, more professional SB-600 flash unit. Really, I think either one will serve my needs fine in terms of power, features, etc., ...however, from my understanding, the SB-600 has a swivel head, so you can bounce at an angle (?). I wish I could see a photo with a straight-bounce flash vs. a swivel-bounce.

...and vs. an off camera flash.
 
VeloceMoto said:
Hey, I'm up in the air about whether to buy the Nikon SB-400 or the pricier, more professional SB-600 flash unit. Really, I think either one will serve my needs fine in terms of power, features, etc., ...however, from my understanding, the SB-600 has a swivel head, so you can bounce at an angle (?). I wish I could see a photo with a straight-bounce flash vs. a swivel-bounce.

...and vs. an off camera flash.
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What's the price difference between the two? The SB-600 certainly has more power, and will recycle faster, but it's also quite a bit bigger and heavier, which may be a consideration. The SB-400 would be limiting in terms of bounce if you want to shoot with the camera held vertically, in portrait orientation. Pretty rarely would you want to bounce off a side wall with the camera held normally, but it's possible. I'll pop off some shots of the kids tonight to give you an idea of the difference, if you'd like.

For off-camera flash, basically just check out my website. I pretty much shoot available light or off-camera flash. If you can't tell the difference, that means I'm doing a pretty good job. :teeth

I turn into a retard with the flash on the camera, it just doesn't work very well for me. :toothless
 
cycle61 said:
What's the price difference between the two? The SB-600 certainly has more power, and will recycle faster, but it's also quite a bit bigger and heavier, which may be a consideration. The SB-400 would be limiting in terms of bounce if you want to shoot with the camera held vertically, in portrait orientation. Pretty rarely would you want to bounce off a side wall with the camera held normally, but it's possible. I'll pop off some shots of the kids tonight to give you an idea of the difference, if you'd like.
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Yes, PLEASE!


For off-camera flash, basically just check out my website. I pretty much shoot available light or off-camera flash. If you can't tell the difference, that means I'm doing a pretty good job. :teeth
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I'm not hip yet to all the exact terminology yet so I don't exactly know what off camera flash means. Are you referring to big umbrellas and soft boxes and the like? Or do you mean holding the flash in your hand, or an arm's length away from the camera via some kind of cord? :confused
 
VeloceMoto said:
Thanks! It's a little crooked... still need to concentrate on framing everything with the crosshairs in the viewfinder. :p
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Try concentrating on seeing and capturing an image (as in clicking the shutter button), and trusting your lens to focus sharply for you, than relying on the crosshairs. I forget if the Nikon D70 has those little red dots that show you what's in focus. But that's what I see when I pre-focus on my Canon 20D, a few red dots. Besides I believe with the D70 you can swap out the focusing screen anyway.
 
VeloceMoto said:
Yes, PLEASE!




I'm not hip yet to all the exact terminology yet so I don't exactly know what off camera flash means. Are you referring to big umbrellas and soft boxes and the like? Or do you mean holding the flash in your hand, or an arm's length away from the camera via some kind of cord?
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As requested:

Model is my 8 year old daughter. Camera was in P mode, ISO 400, flash in full automatic. I deliberately shot with her in front of a wall to give kind of a worst-case scenario for shadows, etc. No changes were made to any camera settings for the whole series.

Built-in flash:

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Built-in flash, camera in portrait orientation:

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SB-800, straight on:

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SB-800, straight on with camera held vertically. Notice how much more offset her shadow is, we're starting to get away from the point and shoot shadow look.

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SB-800, bounced straight up. In this one you will notice the dark eye sockets, caused by the fact that all the light is basically coming from above. This is an instant telltale of a bounce flash picture.

p406235150.jpg


SB-800, bounced off the wall to the right. The SB-400 will operate this way if you have a nearby, white colored wall handy. This light is far better than straight on (nevermind the duh expression) but it's still a bit harsh and shadowy.

p358494779.jpg


Camera held vertically, SB-800 flash bounced up to ceiling. Dark eyes again.

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SB-800 bounced off side wall with a small fill card (white reflector to throw some light straight forward) This is probably the best light of the bunch. The side wall acts as a giant light source to evenly illuminate her left side, and the bounce card (literally, an index card taped onto the flash) throws enough light forward to fill in the shadows and smooth things out on her right (camera left). You can also see a reflection of the light in her eyes. This little sparkle adds an amazing amount of life to a portrait.

p533414762.jpg


Off camera flash means anything not on the camera. I've shot with remote strobes mounted in the ceiling of a reception hall, softboxes, umbrellas, holding the flash above my head with my left hand and looking like a chimpanzee, and many other combinations as well. You can buy a TTL Flash cord for about $60-$70 that will allow you to get the flash about three or four feet away, which can do wonderful things for your light.

The flash in left hand thing works well for adults, but kids always end up looking at the flash instead of the camera :laughing Still better than nothing, without the flash here the two kids would be as dark as the adults in the background.

p174611338-4.jpg
 
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Every time I work up the balls to buy a D90 or D300, I get cold feet because the lens I want (18-55/2.8) costs upwards of 1200$. I'm a lousy photog anyway. bah
 
Cycle61, dude, you rock. It's not often someone on an internet forum will take the time to do this. Really, this helps immensely. It's amazing how black and white the differences are. Now I need a real flash unit! :D

Your examples are especially great because they were all taken on the same camera, at the same time, same settings, etc. Previously, I was trying to search Flickr for keywords like "bounce" or "SB800", "SB400", etc., but this is far better, and it's easy to see the differences.

One question:

"SB-800 bounced off side wall with a small fill card (white reflector to throw some light straight forward) This is probably the best light of the bunch. The side wall acts as a giant light source to evenly illuminate her left side, and the bounce card (literally, an index card taped onto the flash) throws enough light forward to fill in the shadows and smooth things out on her right (camera left). You can also see a reflection of the light in her eyes. This little sparkle adds an amazing amount of life to a portrait."

You mean like this? http://flickr.com/photos/spurdog/2569956807/

Oh, another question, as I'm considering buying an SB600...

What does "slave only" mean? I keep reading that the SB-600 can only be used as a slave. Not sure how, or when, that would pertain to me.

I really can't afford the SB-800 so I probably shouldn't even ask. :p

.
 
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maybe i'm old school, but since you're just starting out, have you considered a used manual 35mm slr? they can be had for very cheap, lenses are quite cheap (manual focus ones).

best of all, it forces you to stop and think about what you're doing. i know you're prob thinking, "but i can do everything and more with a new dslr..." well, sure you can...you just have a different mindset when you work with film. i find myself spending more time on composing my shot with my manual camera instead of shotgunning 10 shots and hoping one came out ok.

and when you feel you've learned all you can from your 35mm, you can prob sell it for what you bought it for (or get addicted to it and just keep it like me).

oops...looks like he already got his camera...but i stand by my recomendation to anyone considering learning about photography.
 
cycle61 said:
Photographer :bump

Beau, how are you liking your new camera? Got any pictures for us?
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Dude, I may point the thing and press the button, but the D60 does all the work. The camera takes amazing photos, so good that I wonder how there are any professional photographers at all when a camera can turn my snapshot into beauty.

Seriously, this camera has put the availability of pro quality photography into the hands of neophytes like me.
 
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