Nikon Df Real User Experience - Wayne Goodman on GetDPI

Image Source: http://www.getdpi.com/forum/nikon/49999-four-days-nikon-df-andalucia-spain.html

 

The new, retro-styled, D4 sensor-equipped Nikon Df is extremely attractive to me. Wayne Goodman has posted his pictures and experience in shooting his new Df in Andalusia, Spain.

 

(Click Here) to read his post on GetDPI forums.

 

Wayne comments on the fact that while others find the array of knobs on the Df a little challenging, the iso knob is the only one he finds inconvenient. One of the great techniques on a camera that has really, really good high iso performance is to set it on Auto-ISO and stop worrying about it. Then, you can go into Manual exposure mode, for example, and simply pick the f-stop and shutter speed you want, letting the camera adjust iso to get the exposure right. Wayne did this, and was very happy with the results. Even on the couple of occasions where the camera had to go to iso 12,800 (!), he was mostly satisfied with the result.

 

He also finds that he really prefers the optical finder to the now-common electronic viewfinders (EVFs) of today. He comments that the "quiet" shutter mode is pretty effective. While the focus system on the Df is not Nikon's highest technology, he found no fault in it.

 

The shots he shares in the post and in his flickr page were made with the Nikon 24-85 zoom. Wayne and I share the same opinion about this lens. Extraordinarily convenient when you don't want to change lenses, the image quality simply doesn't match great Nikkor primes. Oh well, you can't have everything in just one lens.

 

I continue to be interested in the Df from afar. If my D700 were to die (unlikely), that would be my replacement. For now, I'm holding and watching (and drooling just a little).

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Barcelona - A Changing City, Wonderful Place to Photograph

 

Glimpse of a Memory in Barcelona, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Holga Micro 4/3 Lens

 

I read an article by Beatriz Silva on the blog Theme today, about how Barcelona is changing. Beatriz is a Chilean photographer, living in Barcelona.

 

(Click Here) to read the piece on Photography Daily Theme.

 

Silva makes the case that while Barcelona is one of the richest cities in Spain, the European financial crisis is taking its toll. Poverty and homelessness are high, and on the rise. There is also a cultural loss going on in Barcelona, with the example being bookstores giving way to McDonalds. That is happening everywhere. In fact, I don't have a bookstore within a 20 mile radius of my home in Northern Virginia anymore. Amazing.

 

In any case, I visited Barcelona last November, and just really loved it. It is a photographer's dream. While I shot my Lumix DMC-G3s a lot, I also did a series of evening street shots with my Leica CL and 40mm Rokkor f2. I've submitted these for publication in the LHSA (International Leica Society) magazine, The Viewfinder. They're accepted, and will be published in the next issue!

 

If you get the chance to go to Barcelona, take it. So much culture, history, and style in one place.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Diptych - Barcelona

 

Barcelona Couple, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Holga 25mm f8 Plastic Lens

iso 400, f8, 1/100 sec

 
You may have already seen my previous post of shots taken with the Holga plastic lens for Micro 4/3 cameras. The two above give me fond memories of walking "La Rambla," a major pedestrian thoroughfare in Barcelona. I shot these two shots seconds apart, as I walked past this couple at the subway station.
 
I pay attention to the pace of my shooting. Sometimes, I really enjoy taking a lot of time, setting up a shot, attempting perfection. I find that style of shooting relaxing and rewarding. On the opposite end, another of my favorite styles is street shooting, where I typically set the camera up with manual range focusing (no autofocus), preset exposure (sometimes I'll use Aperture priority, but use Manual more often than not), and use the camera to capture extremely brief little moments. This is a real challenge, and there's no time for fiddling with the camera. The result is just that - captured moments. Imperfect, spontaneous. Sometimes the imperfections add to the image, sometimes not.
 
In the case above, the imperfections are clear - thanks to using a $20 plastic lens with fixed f-stop and only very rough focus control. Personally, I love the result. It is very close to the level of detail in my memories of that morning, walking down La Rambla.
 
Thanks again to Andrea Costa for pointing me towards this great creative tool (the Holga lens).
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com
 
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com
 

Barcelona's Placa De Sant Felip Neri

 

Placa De Sant Felip Neri, Barcelona, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica Summilux 25mm f1.4

iso 1600, f5, 1/320 sec

 
Placa De Sant Felip Neri, located in the Barri Gotic neighborhood of Barcelona, is a special place with a deep history. Originally the site of a Jewish cemetery, a baroque church was built here in the mid 1700s and still stands.
 
On January 30, 1938, during the Spanish Civil War, a bomb fell on the square, killing 42 civilians, including 20 children who were taking shelter in the basement of the church. In the images below, you can see the significant damage that the bomb did to the stone walls of the square.
 
While the shot above was taken with the Lumix DMC-G3, the remaining pictures in this post were taken at night with my Leica CL, Minolta Rokkor 40mm f2 lens, and Kodak Tmax 400 film. I did not use a tripod, and most were shot at 1/15 second exposure.
 
My goal was to capture the feeling that the place gave me as darkness fell. It is not a sinister place, but certainly has a dark history.
 

 

There is still an elementary school in the square. The children in these pictures were meeting their parents, and playing before walking home. While the pictures look dark and threatening (which was my intention), the kids were quite happily running around the square.
 

 

If the soul exists, many have flown skyward from this place. Remnants of those flights persist. Like a tidepool that stays intact after the tide has receded, this place holds memories for those old enough to remember, only vague shadows and moods for those too young.
 
I thoroughly enjoyed trying to capture the impression Placa De Sant Felip Neri made on me. The Leica CL was the perfect tool for it, even though I had to work carefully with iso 400 film and low light levels.
 

DMC-365.blogspot.com
 
 

Spanish Girl on Train

I took these two shots on a train, on the way to the Spanish coastal city of Sitges. Individually, I don't think they say much. Together, they remind me of some of the details of the day - the weather, the sounds of the train on the tracks, the day we had exploring the Mediterranean beach and sights.

Spanish Girl on Train, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Processed with Snapseed

 
I'm in the process of working out how to use my iPad for photo backup on travel. I'm not quite there yet. As a result, these pictures don't have metadata associated with them (a problem I think I know how to fix), so I can't say the exposure details at this point. Not that they matter much - it's the feeling and details of these shots that mean something to me.
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com
 
 

Street Portrait, Barcelona

 

Killer Scarf, Beautiful Smile, by Reed A. George

Panasonic DMC-G3, Lumix 14-140mm f4-5.6 Lens

 
As we were leaving the Segrada Familia (incredible cathedral by Gaudi' in Barcelona, Spain), this was a shot that I just had to get. What first caught my eye was the design of her scarf. Her face was hidden, as she looked down at a map or guidebook. I walked past her, but just could not go on without at least asking if I could take her picture.
 
I simply said "May I take your picture? I love your scarf." She nodded, smiled, and we were off. If I'd missed this shot, it would have been in my mind forever. I'm so glad I caught it.
 
Oh, by the way, I promise to post something without Snapseed processing tomorrow...
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com
 
 
 

Snapseed and Barcelona - Do They Mix?

Well, by the time this posts, I'll be home. But, I wanted to show a few images I've processed using Snapseed, an app on my iPoad, on our family trip to Barcelona, Spain. Snapseed makes it fun and easy to really add some character to your images.
 
These were all shot on Panasonic cameras (either DMC-G3 with 14-140 f4-5.6 or 25mm f1.4 Summilux, or the DMC-LX5). I'm too tired this evening to look up the details... jet lag, you know.
 

Enlightened, by Reed A. George

Le Meridien Stairway, by Reed A. George

 

Textured Steel, by Reed A. George

 
I know, I always say that I'm not into processed images. But, Snapseed sure makes it fun. I hope you don't mind this departure from "straight photography." I think they all give a nice feel for my experience so far in Barcelona. What an incredible place.
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com
 
 
DMC-365.blogspot.com
 

First Afternoon and Evening in Barcelona - I Think I Like It Here

 

Gelato Selection, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

 
We arrived in Barcelona today, Sunday, at about noon. After a quick nap, we went out for a tasty lunch of tapas (shrimp, avocado salad, local sausage and white beans). This kept us full enough that we only needed a small snack for dinner.
 
I can already tell that the street photography is going to be great here. For our evening walk, I grabbed my Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 and Russian 35mm optical finder, set the zoom to 35mm equivalent, manual exposure at either iso 400, 800, or 1600 (pretty high for this small sensor), and shot away.
 

Mixed Traffic, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

 
In order to minimize jet lag, I need to stay up until at least 10:00 tonight, preferably closer to midnight. It's currently only 7:30PM. I may have to go out again to succeed in staying awake...
 
I'm certainly looking forward to the rest of this trip. The images above are both jpegs directly from the camera, shot using the Dynamic Black and White option. I don't know exactly how this works, but flickr is showing the filenames as if they were raw files. That can't be, as the Black and White option only affects the jpegs. And, I can't see my EXIF information, either.
 
At any rate, I'm pretty sure that some careful post-processing at home will clean them up quite well.
 
More from Barcelona coming soon!