Another Corn Crib Shot - HDR

I added one more shot to the corn crib set, this one a high dynamic range (HDR) image from inside the corn crib.

 

Inside Looking Out, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7, Lumix 20mm f1.7 Lens

HDR from three separate exposures

 

I'm looking forward to getting refamiliarized with the GX7 on my upcoming vacation.

 

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The Old Corn Crib, Revisited

I was driving home this evening and noticed a lot of dramatic clouds in the sky, accentuated by the sunset. So, I stopped at the old corn crib that I've photographed in the past and made some images. (Click Here) to see one of my previous posts of this cool old building.

 

This time, I had my Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7 and 20mm f1.7 lens with me. I'm trying to decide whether to bring this camera on vacation with me. I've drifted away from my Micro 4/3 gear recently, but this little shoot has me once again appreciating the GX7.

 

I actually sold some of my Micro 4/3 lenses recently, keeping only those that I hold most dear. Also, I kept the smallest lenses, as that's what shines about Micro 4/3 cameras, small size. So, I sold my 14-140mm zoom, 25mm f1.4 Summilux, and 75mm Olympus lenses. All excellent lenses, I felt that keeping my 20mm f1.7, Pana-Leica Micro-Elmarit 45mm f2.8, 14mm f2.5, Bower fisheye, and the amazing 100-300 f4-5.6 zoom was sufficient. Now I find that I'm missing the medium telephoto length of the Oly 75, especially in planning for travel. So, I'm going to try the new Sigma 60mm f2.8 Art lens, which is very cheap ($200 new), and getting great reviews. More on that to come.

 

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Once Past the Bear...

The Girl and I got out for some fishing. She's very proud to have caught the biggest fish, a smallmouth bass. It's really cool to see her ably control her own kayak and fishing reel, to great success.

 

 

Both taken with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS5, the waterproof, shockproof wonder. Perfect to have in my pocket for every kayaking trip.

 

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lions, tigers, and... BEARS! Oh, My.

Okay, no lions or tigers, but on the drive in to my local kayaking spot here in Northern Virginia this weekend, I did see foxes (4), deer (dozens), and a black bear!

 

Black Bear (Ursus americanus) in Suburbia, by Reed A. George

Nikon D810, Nikkor 200-400mm f4 AF-S VR Lens

iso 3200, f4, 1/125 sec.

 

Keep in mind, this is in Northern Virginia, where the townhouses and strip malls are rapidly gaining on the trees in number. It was a pleasant surprise to see this beautiful animal here. Also a little troubling. I'm concerned for his (her?) future.

 

It was just after 6:00 AM, and the light was low there in the early morning shade. I didn't have time to make adjustments, other than to crank the iso up as far as I felt comfortable with. Luckily, that got me to a shutter speed where one or two exposures came out sharp, even though I was handholding the big 200-400mm lens, zoomed to 400mm.

 

The approximate focus distance is 29.9'. That bear could cover that distance in less than one second. Thankfully, he didn't.

 

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Send Your Vacation Image to L' Oeil de la Photographie

Fun Pics from Last Summer at Provincetown, Massachussetts, by Reed A. George

 

A daily online photography magazine, "L' Oeil de la Photographie," is accepting submissions of your holiday photos. (Click Here) to check out all of the submissions so far, or add your own.

 

I'm leaving for my own holiday very soon. Hopefully, I'll have some to add when I return!

 

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Nikon D810 and Df - The Best Combination Available Today?

Well, I've been thoroughly enjoying my Nikon Df for some time now. The low light capabilities of this camera are spectacular.

 

I've recently purchased a Nikon D810, specifically to take advantage of the increased resolution (36 megapixels) for nature photography. Mounted on my Nikkor 200-400mm f4 AF-S VR G lens, the D810 should allow me more freedom in cropping, which is always useful in wildlife photography, especially with active species like birds.

 

I've only had my D810 out a couple of times so far. One was this morning, shooting birds on a kayak outing. Here's a tightly-cropped shot of a swallow hitting the water surface.

And here's a 100% blow-up (cropped even more).

What I've found so far is that while the D810 does allow significant cropping, it doesn't handle high iso noise nearly as well as the Df. Of course, that's well-known in the Nikon crowd, and makes perfect sense, given the much higher number of pixels crammed into the same sensor real estate as the Df. The shots above were made at iso 1600, and noise is quite visible on my screen, looking at the images in Lightroom.

 

Here's a snapshot of DxO Lab's comparison of the two cameras:

 

Image Source: http://www.dxomark.com/Cameras/Compare/Side-by-side/Nikon-Df-versus-Nikon-D810___925_963

 

As you can see, the D810 wins in overall score, color depth, and dynamic range. But, it performs significantly worse in low light (high iso). Again, no new information here, but it's helping me to form my opinion of this pair of cameras and how best to use them.

 

Basically, the D810 will fill my need for high resolution and cropping ability when shooting wildlife in good light. Or anything else in good light, for that matter. The Df will remain my go-to camera for more challenging lighting situations, and when cropping is not as necessary.

 

So, I think that for me, yes, this is the best combination of Nikon bodies available today.

 

I have to get the D810 out in the field again, and shoot at lower iso settings. I'm sure that's going to really impress me.

 

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More Parkour - Fisheye Shots

Here are some fisheye images I made with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX7 and Bower fisheye lens. These were taken at the same parkour workout that I wrote about yesterday.

 

 

I shot these at the end of the workout, choosing to use high iso and no flash. I really need to try some fisheye images with rear curtain, slow shutter flash. That will be cool.

 

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