New Camera new Blog

As of March 10, 2011 I am now a Nikon D90 owner. I always wanted a Nikon so when my trusty Pentax died I bought a D90 and a Sigma 18-250 VR lens.  There have been some bad times as this camera takes a lot more hands on than the Pentax. Focus is a bit harder to say the least. Well i think I have finally gotten the knack of shooting with my new toy. So below are a few shots using HDR. I hope you like them.

First ride of the season

Today was the first time I have been able to get out and ride. I rode 11.07 miles in 58:20 minutes at an average speed of 11.4 mph and a max speed of 23 mph. I burnt 598 calories and my HR was 134. The weather was very nice with a stiff wind out of the NE at around 10 mph. I ascended 294' and didn't find it to very hard. Below is my stats from Garmin.

Well I am back!

I was not myself for a while do to lower back surgery that took three months to heal. I am first getting back to normal. During that period my notebook computer and my desktop both failed and I am now Blooging on my new 24" iMac. I also purchased a 22" AOC secondary display. My next purchase will be a replacement for my notebook, but that will not be for a while.

I haven't taken to many photos but I still have done a few of my grandchildren.

Back from Europe

I returned from a river cruise in Europe a few weeks ago and then had back surgery, so I am slow at posting photos. As you can see I love pictures of infrastructure and streets.

Received my Sigma EF-530 DG ST Today

I must say choosing this simple flash was no mistake at all, it might not have all the fancy features, but it works great. As far as how long it will last that is something I will have fun finding out. I only have it about an hour and have taken only a few pictures of subject matter around the house. All the photos were taken either in bounce position or direct just to see the contrast.

Bounce Flash:

As you can see this lamp is very well and evenly exposed.











Direct flash:
As you can also see this is not as evenly exposed and the wall is washed out.

Bit the bullet and purchased a flash.

After going from thinking about buying a flash to not buying a flash I decided to go for it. I had a hard choice as I was working on a limited budget and there were only a few flashes to choose from. My first requirement was it had to be a P-TTL dedicated flash. Next it had to have a power zoom with a lens range of 105mm or more. Also it had to swivel up and down as well as right and left for vertical shots. That last one left the Pentax AF-360 out as it does not swivel right and left. Next it also didn't have as powerful a flash and the 105mm lens range. So after looking around I choose the Sigma EF 530 DG ST which swivels and has the 105mm lens with a range of 174'. I ordered it this morning from B&H, and it should be here either tomorrow or Friday depending if it ships today. I am planning on not having any trouble using it, but who knows as i am not a camera expert.

News to report

The Raynox 250 was a total failure for me, not do to its quality but to my lack of patience. Getting a macro shot hand held like I am accustomed to doing was near but impossible. I decided to cut my losses and sell it to another member of the forum. It was shipped off today and he should have it by Tuesday. I decided to go in another direction which is better lighting for my flower shots, so I ordered a Bower Ring Light similar to the type used by CSI. Not an expensive flash but a defused LED ring of 12 LEDs. This light should serve the purpose very well. Accurate lighting which is well defused is important. I will report on this after I have time to test it. I hope to have it next week early.