I bought a new Nikon D40

[Black Yaris]

here are a few of the first shots though the D40... no editing
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0003.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0016.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0018.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0029.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0035.jpg

they were all just taken from my office window... I am going to play around with it some more this weekend and post some more pretty pix :thumbsup:

[Black Yaris]

Thanks! These were right out of the camera.... so I am going to play in photoshop a bit today.

[Black Yaris]

i do use full manual.... I have played with the auto focus.... but I don't really like it

[Black Yaris]

hmm your EXIF info doesn't tell me if you used auto or full manual lol. Im a purist if you get an SLR you better be shooting in manual lol. But my advice is read the manual first and then get yourself a book dealing with you specific cam, this will help you out a lot.

what do you mean by full auto or manual then.....
I use the M setting on my camera, sometimes the A

[Black Yaris]

I do want to get a wide angle attachment for my lenses.... ones on ebay look like crap.... and a wide angle Nikkor lens is like $1200

[Black Yaris]

this is the wide angle I am looking for
http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/lineup/lens/af/wideangle/af_14mmf_28d/img/pic_001_l.jpg

[Black Yaris]

nevermind..... I need a DX lens.... the ED lenses cost much more

[Black Yaris]

something with a 120° or so

[Black Yaris]

found a F-S DX Nikkor 12-24mm
$500-800 on ebay

[Black Yaris]

here I tried to clean up that one pic a bit
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0030_1.jpg

[YAR1S]

Hmmmm nice! I wish I could afford a DSLR...... I can only afford the bargain slr cameras I find in antique stores..... just as good, but I hate having to wait for developing the film, argh! LOL

[Yaris Palme]

yeah. i also have the Nikon D40 since 1month.

[Black Yaris]

wie tun du mögen es bis jetzt?

[Bob_VT]

Didn't it come with an 18-55mm lens? 18mm is dam wide. The old film wide angle standard was 28mm.

Nice camera now you can download the photomatix and really play.

Did you get a tripod? Get a good one and IMO only get the nikon flash..... stay away from the aftermarket ones.

[Black Yaris]

I have a 18-55mm and a 55-200mm
I do have a tripod, but it is pretty cheep, I think I am going to get a better one tomorrow

I already have photomatix :)

I am just trying to get the functions of the camera down first....

[Bob_VT]

Then you are ready!

[cleong]

You don't want to go too wide for automotive photography, it can ruin how a car looks. But used with care you can get away with it. Moreover, you're on a DX sensor which means that you've got a focal length multiplier (12mm true focal length will look like 18mm in the image).

This is 17mm on a full frame sensor:

http://eaglet.org/albums/Yaris/9B6T6183.jpg

See how it turns the round Yaris even rounder?

[cleong]

Actually I have a Canon. Its full frame sensors like Canon's 1Ds/5D series or Nikon's D700/etc that suffer from shallow DOF (compared to DX crop).

I added corner vignette for that "Top Gear effect".

[Crandall]

Actually I have a Canon. Its full frame sensors like Canon's 1Ds/5D series or Nikon's D700/etc that suffer from shallow DOF (compared to DX crop).

I added corner vignette for that "Top Gear effect".


I noticed you had a 1Ds in your exif data. To be fair though thing tend to get slightly distorted at 17mm even on a cropped sensor. Granted not really to the extent of a full frame.

[cleong]

My other camera (a 10D 1.6x crop camera) works better with 17mm. It works out to roughly 24mm which is a wide-ish sort of crop. The distortion isn't that bad at all.

If you take care with ultra-wides (eg. Sigma 10-20mm zooms) on cropped cameras by keeping the subject centred in the frame, and not getting too close, you can get away with using the wide end.

[eTiMaGo]

welcome to the DSLR club, Joe :biggrin: Have fun, experiment, film is free :laugh:

[firemachine69]

Still saving up for my D300. I can buy the body already, now I just need the lense. :biggrin:

[Yaris Palme]

wie tun du mögen es bis jetzt?

i like it very much.

you can still write in english, i can read it, but it´s a little bit hard for me to write.

[ZING]

i like it very much.

you can still write in english, i can read it, but it´s a little bit hard for me to write.

Writing on forums is actually a good way to practice :) :clap:

[Yaris Palme]

Writing on forums is actually a good way to practice :) :clap:

sorry, but i don´t know if my grammatic is right. :iono:

[coheed]

sorry, but i don´t know if my grammatic is right. :iono:

Your first post was correct. And it would be grammar. And your actually pretty good with English. :biggrin:

[Black Yaris]

took a few more photos trying to get the hang of things... tell me what you think
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0012.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0019-1.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0020-1.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/Lilly.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/Muffs.jpg

[Black Yaris]

last two I cropped down for 1680x1050 wallpapers

#2 just was for fun.... just FYI that is exhaust fan in my kitchen, the wife picked the green out

#3 is a test batch of beer I have going

[Black Yaris]

here is #1 slightly retouched and cropped
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/lillywindow.jpg

[Bob_VT]

Well black, dark blue and many "non reflective" dark colors will screw with your autofocus.

You almost have to find something else in the picture and focus then move onto the subject while holding the button.

Here are a few snap shots today with my canon DSLR

[firemachine69]

Alot of your pictures seem over-exposed. I'd suggest one of the quick-guides for your camera.

[Bob_VT]

Alot of your pictures seem over-exposed. I'd suggest one of the quick-guides for your camera.

Mine were all shot with a bounce as a fill since it was so bright outside..... and lightened by me

[firemachine69]

I was referring the Black's pics. But yours too. You going for the ghost effect? I keed, I keed. :biggrin:

[Black Yaris]

Alot of your pictures seem over-exposed. I'd suggest one of the quick-guides for your camera.

the over exposure was done in photoshop.... they were actually a bit under exposed originals

[Black Yaris]

I have been shooting in JPG Fine

Next time I will shoot all in RAW....

will photoshop recognize the *.RAW files?

thanks on the vent pic.... I like the shaded corners, even though I have no idea how I did it

[Black Yaris]

I just checked.... I do have the camera RAW plug-in for photoshop

[cleong]

There was a time where I shot in RAW but that was because the standard camera output just wasn't good enough, particularly with handling white balance. With the advent of better cameras, I just couldn't justify the extra time required to do the RAW edits and conversion, then do another round of postprocessing in Photoshop.

Nowadays I shoot in JPEG Fine, use the camera's settings to push saturation and sharpness up a bit and export it straight to Photoshop for the final tweaks. Sometimes I just use Picasa if the output isn't critical.

I still use RAW very occasionally, but only when I know I'm dealing with tough lighting situations and don't have the time to keep switching my white balance, such as for weddings.

[cleong]

No actually I prefer Photoshop's sharpening, I don't use Smart Sharpen, I use the regular Sharpen function, at fairly subtle settings. However, I take multiple passes of sharpening both before and after resizing in order to achieve the desired image sharpness.

[Black Yaris]

ok I think I am getting the hang of the close up wide angle... I think they are coming out ok

my mom's cat
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0001-1.jpg

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Nice pics, and nice camera choice Joe.

[Thej3sta2]

nice pics man thats sexy

[Black Yaris]

Took a few more shots today in the cold.... I am just playing around with RAW a bit
the cat was shot jpg, but the others were raw
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_0005.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_002506.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_002807.jpg
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_003505.jpg

[Kaotic Lazagna]

The 2nd one is badass.

[coheed]

Sweet icicle pic. :clap: RAW deffinitly does better then JPG.

[Black Yaris]

Iso 1600, but I set it on Auto till I get down the other functions

[LtNoogie]

If you shoot to RAW and then convert to JPG to post online, is that better than shooting to JPG directly? The second picture is wonderful but is that because it started off RAW or because you have an awesome camera?

[cm07yaris]

Your skills are coming right along man! I've also got a D40 and don't really have much time to shoot, but I love taking pictures of my cats!

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w264/MORIC7380/DSC_0106.jpg

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w264/MORIC7380/DSC_0363.jpg

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w264/MORIC7380/DSC_0284.jpg

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w264/MORIC7380/DSC_0018.jpg

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w264/MORIC7380/DSC_0391.jpg

[Masteraal]

i highly recommend buy a 50mm prime lens.

I have a f/1.8 on my 450D and its the best purchase ive made.. shits all over the twin kit lenses :)

http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/5820/img19253xy2.th.jpg (http://img136.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img19253xy2.jpg)

[Crandall]

if you have 1200$ for that lens:biggrin:

Try more like 150

[Crandall]

for a F1.8? where ill take 10 for that price.
i think you forgot a 0 in there somewhere. the cheapest lens on 1.8 that i saw was 700$ used. i dont know where you get your lenses. if they're made specifically for digital the minimum price is around 700$

share the link to where you saw that price , maybe i could find something for my Oly
i never seen a price like that before

f/1.8 in the Canon line is only 129.99 USD. The f/1.2L is 1400 USD

[eTiMaGo]

Nikon's "classic" 50mm F1.8's work just fine on DSLR cameras (except it won't autofocus, the "cheap" Nikons don't have an AF motor for older lenses), are relatively inexpensive, and are known to be some of the very best optics you can get

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/5018daf.htm

$150, some even cheaper on fleabay (buyer beware)

[cleong]

Actually that particular Canon lens is known as "plastic fantastic". Thus called because it has a plastic lens mount. It is also the lightest Canon EF mount lens.

I view it as a disposable lens - its focusing gears aren't well sealed. If it gets clogged with grit, its going to be rough. But its so cheap, you just go buy another if its out of warranty.

There is another cheap(ish) 1.8 lens out there for Canon mount, the 85mm F/1.8.

[Black Yaris]

I am beginning to like the end result when shooting RAW
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/DSC_000209_1.jpg

[Black Yaris]

I can get 532 RAW images on my 4gig card.... should be enough for the Bahamas

[Black Yaris]

that is what I have it on RAW+jpg....

but I have noticed, when I hover over a .NEF (Nikon RAW file) I can see a thumbnail of it in MS explorer

[Black Yaris]

another fun one of the kitty
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/D40/DSC_000212.jpg

[eTiMaGo]

"you woke me up for what??" :biggrin:

cute kitties, nice pics :smile:

[Black Yaris]

I think I am getting a little bit better
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j111/jthomas43613/Toaster/Toaster01.jpg

[33OH]

Lookin better Joe!

We have a D40X here at work, and I use a Nikon S600 10.3 MP at home. =)

[Crandall]

Not too shabby. Try shifting the perspective down a little so you get a little more foreground, I think it might be a nice addition.

[Black Yaris]

thanks all