The *Official Photography Thread*

Awesome thanks man!

 

. Thanks for the wallpaper

 

What do you guys do for photography in the rain? I'm going out to a duck blind this weekend in the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge and it's supposed to be raining but I don't know how much of a roof the blind will have. It's a great photo opp, but I don't want to mess up my camera...
Leaving the camera at home is definitely an option here...as much as I hate to admit it

 

I've got a ThinkTank Hydrophobia for my 70-200

 

Plastic grocery bag and a rubber band might work too. Cut a hole for the lens opening, and a small one for the viewfinder, then slip the viewfinder eyecup over that.

 

What filter would you guys buy for sunrise/sunsets? waterfalls?

 

For waterfalls, a 6 or 3-stop neutral density (ND) filter. For sunrise/sunset you can get a graduated neutral density (GND) filter, or just use a normal ND filter and use a black card to fake the GND effect.

 

Leftovers from the challenge:


DSC_4851_HDR by medic2230, on Flickr


DSC_4909_HDR by medic2230, on Flickr


DSC_4876-2 by medic2230, on Flickr

I took this one to go head to err butt with Pete's entry. lol


DSC_4920 by medic2230, on Flickr

 

Here's a few more I took today while out looking for a challenge pic. I also put a few in the birding thread.


DSC_4841_HDR by medic2230, on Flickr


DSC_4888_HDR by medic2230, on Flickr


DSC_4897_HDR by medic2230, on Flickr


DSC_4926 by medic2230, on Flickr


DSC_4922 by medic2230, on Flickr

 

Great stuff Murph, all your colors look just bang on! I need to get out soon. It's been 10 below mid day here for the past few days... Tomorrow is supposed to warm up though!

 

None..HDR it.

 

I have a Lightwave cover. It works a lot like the old drapes on 4x5's. Fasten one end around the front of the lens and then pull it over the back of the camera.

You can use any number of things. I would bring a good quality bath towel and then put the camera in a garbage bag. Use the towel to wipe stuff down. Use a rubber band to keep the garbage bag on the front of the lens.

If you can find one of the heavier clear bags, they work best.

 

Thanks guys! I just remembered that I may have a 2.5 gallon ziploc that I can pull out to go around the whole camera. I might go get a filter that I can use to try fastening the bag to, but we'll see what happens with that. Rubber band sounds great, too! I'll play around with various other things here, too, but for some reason I didn't even think of using plastic bags. Brain fart.
Thanks again!

 

Explain this a bit more. Duck season is over, and the refuge is very closed up, with the exception of the auto-tour.

 

I'm in a waterfowl ecology class and we are all going on a field trip up there. We had to wait until after the duck season because we'll be using every blind. But yeah, the purpose was to just get some of the people that don't have much experience in the field out there out of lab. We spend two hours each week looking at specimens in lab and learning identification from that, but this allows us to get out there and actually ID them in the field.

 

Straps.

Hate neck straps. Got the "Up" and don't like it any better than the stock Nikon 2"
Someone recommend me a nice shoulder strap in the $50-$100 range for a bigger guy.
Direct BH link wins you an extra internet

Also, what do you guys use for lens cap keepers?
I hate the "leash" style because they're always a pain when shooting down... cap hangs and swings into the image or throws a shadow... and they don't work well with the longer hoods (especially on my 200-500).
I've been using one of these for the 52mm cap:

and it's okay, but won't hold my 86mm cap for the long lens, plus it won't hold the cap for the fisheye... so it's only good for the 52/62, and frankly, it's not that secure.

Seems like the clip type like the Sensei might work better. Any experience/opinions?

 

i have used Tamrac straps on my cameras for years... they don't bite into my skin like the OEM straps...

and i never really thought about lens caps until you mentioned it... after 14 years working, i don't think i have ever used the lens caps... i recall meeting a photog who put magnets on the outside of his lens caps and then attached a small piece of metal on his straps... it was a cool concept seeing him slap the caps on the strap while shooting and then easily pulling them off to place back on the lens...

 

I use the black rapid RS-sport, and I would never use anything else ever again tbh. So comfortable.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/738106-REG

As for lens cap keepers, my pocket.

 

They're not as well known but I picked up a Crumpler strap called the "Industry Dosgrace" haha all their stuff has peculiar names, but it has a really nice padding to it and even has a soft part that stick out in the middle specifically so it won't chaff on your neck. I carried my camera from before sunup to after sundown when we went to the badlands with it and have a horrible back and it never caused any chaffing or pain. I really like it.


I also slip my lens caps in my pocket when I go out to shoot. That way if I forget to put it back on it's always in whatever jeans I wore that day.

 

x2