|
SubscriptionsSites I Read
|
|
|
|
| Quick Note to Readers - New Blog SiteI wanted to let you know that I have started a new blog site. You can see it here at this new address:
Michael's New Blog Site
I hope that all of my previous friends that had read my blogs here on Xanga will continue to follow me on my new blog site. This site will stay in operation through to the end of my subscription in Spring 2009. Not sure how often it will be updated (ha! that even gets a laugh from me!) Thanks again for being a reader, and I hope to see you on the new blog in the future.
Take care! | | |
| Xanga, I'm a paid customer...I'm not sure why I am required to repost to keep my Xanga domain. I know I'm not a frequent poster, but geez!
| | |
| Buongiorno! from Italy Some of you already know that my wife Annie and I just spent some time in Italy. I've been there before, but it was Annie's first time there, and we had a great time. Although the weather could have been a bit better, it is the magnificent architecture, tasty food, and images like the one above that make these trips so memorable.
The bridge above is the Ponte Vecchio Bridge in Firenze (or Florence) Italy. I remembered it from my last trip there and thought that it would be worth heading out to take a few photos of while we were there. Annie was very supportive and got some really wonderful photos herself. We had to wait about half an hour or so until the lighting was suitable. Although we were both tired from our multi-city trip, it was worth waiting to get the right lighting and the small boats running down the water.
I will be working on some other photos that I will be putting up later on my Facebook page. Thanks for checking in.
| | |
| Some New Stuff - My Nikon D300 and a few photos
 ©Nikon Inc.
In my last blog update it was sugested that I tell you a little about some of the new stuff that I've recently purchased. For those still in the Nikon camp, or if some of you are looking to purchase a DSLR and have not committed to a brand as of yet, this might be of some interest. In late 2007 Nikon really upped the ante for DSLRs and here are some of my observations of the new DSLRs.
When I was at the WPPI show in Las Vegas I was SOOOO close to buying a D3 as Samy's had a few in stock. I pondered for a few minutes and decided that for the money it was better to purchase another Nikon D300 and the MB-D10 battery grip. I was fortunate enough to have already received a Nikon D300 from my wife as a birthday gift in December and I thought it was so good that I had to get another one.
First of all, I'm not a reviewer. I'm just a photographer and I like the Nikon system, and this is just my opinion of the new camera. Thankfully for my wallet, I haven't used the D3. The D300 is the first Nikon to have essentially the very same technical setup as their main flagship camera - the D3. Of course, you are not getting the full-frame aspect ratio; however, most of the other high-tech features are there like the autofocus system and metering. This includes a real, and usable, ISO 3200. If you are a Nikon user, you know that this was not an easy setting to use on any of the other Nikon DSLR cameras without noise becoming an issue. On the D300, the ISO 3200 setting is very usable indoors, and ISO 6400 is also there for last-ditch low-light emergencies. Thisability to use a high ISO in low-light environments with small amountsof noise is a huge advantage.
Another one of the most impressive features of the D300 is the incredible LCD image screen. Of course, I don't use it for checking color and such, but for focus accuracy it is amazing. It really is like having a small computer screen within that 3" of space. I can zoom in and verify focus easily where as it was more difficult in the past. You really should go and check one out, just to see what an improvement it is over the previous screens.
Like all Nikons, the auto focus system is one of the hallmarks of their professional lines. The D300 has 51 focus points which is gigantic over the 11 focus points in the D200. To be honest, I haven't had the need for so many focus points when shooting portraits, but I can assume that it would be great to have them while shooting sports or a moving subject like a bride walking down the aisle. The AF modes dial on the back of the camera has changed from the D200 as it now only has three separate functions instead of five. It now has the Single Point Mode, Dynamic Area Mode, and Auto-Area Mode. This is probably an easier system to use although I haven't used the Auto-Area mode. This is supposed to automatically detect a subject and select the correct focus point. In any case, the D300 uses the same focus setup as the D3 and I'm hoping that it should be a huge improvement over the D200 focus system in low-light. Of course, the D300 is a Nikon and all of the controls are very similar to the D200/D2 and D3 series. If you shoot Nikon already, you should be able to pick this camera up and start shooting immediately.
The accessory battery grip, the MB-D10 is also nicely upgraded from the MB-D200 (the D200 version) and it looks more like a film based motordrive, and well, that's probably because it is also used on the Nikon film flagship, the F6. It does not have the protruding stalk that fits into the battery compartment of the D300, and it can hold one additional EN-EL3 battery or one of the D2/D3 batteries, the EN-EL4s. The top is flat and hence, it is much more easily stored in my camera bag. It also seems to be much more heavy duty and incorporates a small "Nintendo" type paddle that allows the user to set focus points more easily. The one thing you have to consider is that you have to remove the battery pack to change the battery in the camera. This hasn't been an issue for me thus far. An aside note, since I have a Nikon D2 the use of the EN-EL4 batteries is a great idea, and it also allows for much longer runtime. The bad part of this is that the MB-D10 needs a special "battery-cover" called the BL-3 to use the EN-EL4 batteries - these have been IMPOSSIBLE to find since I have gotten the D300 in December. I have an order in so hopefully I will get them delivered to me in the future. In any case, the MB-D10 has worked well for me, and makes the D300 taller than the D3, but the added heft encourages easier handholding.
I've found that the metering which is the same as the D3's to be more tilted to the right on the histogram which means that the photo seems to have a bit more brightness. You can adjust these features in a new Picture Control center on the camera if you shoot JPEG; however, if you use RAW then you can make the adjustments manually on your computer.
In use, the D300 does seem to give more "creamy" colors if that is descriptive enough when compared to other Nikon DSLR cameras. Actually, I was a little surprised by the straight out of the camera results. The low ISO images are clean clean clean. And the high ISO images are also extremely well defined without a lot of anti-noise smearing. In essence, not a lot of plastic looking people, but good texture and definition. Overall, a big improvement over the D200 if you shoot in those conditions (i.e., ISO1600 and up in low light conditions - a church or reception area)
Below are some portraits of a couple of cute kids. The first is Maya, and when this was shot she was almost four months old. She was really a great little subject for these photos. The other toddler is Maddox (no not the Bradgelina Maddox) and he is eight months old. He's another really great trooper who spent over an hour taking photos by himself and with his family. I understand that you can't really make any observations about the ability of the D300 through these web sized images, but believe me, I was impressed with the tones and skin coloring. The detail is also extremely good. For those of you thinking about going Nikon, this is a great camera and I'm looking forward to using it. Perhaps you should take a look at one if you are on the Nikon path.
| Photographs by
Michael Muramoto
© 2008
All Rights Reserved
| | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 | | |
| I'm Still Here (with crickets chirping in background)
Heh... well, I guess I should know that I haven't put anything on my blog when Xanga sends me an email asking, "where have you been?" and when people question me, "hey, why did you stop blogging?" Yes, I'm still alive, and I will be getting more stuff back up here. Right now I'm rethinking my business and working with some new ideas. I may need some of your help in the near future, but I'll get back to you on that later in another post.
A couple of weeks ago I was in Las Vegas at WPPI (the photographers convention) and was again re-inspired by great photographers from around the world. It is always great to see friends who I rarely see, and to give others with the same profession some new ideas. I'm hoping that I can stay in touch with those from the SF Bay Area and keep these nearby networks together. Needless to say, I also spent a lot of cash there too - not at the craps table, but on some new cameras and software and such. Oh the pain.
Anyway, I'll be sure to update my blog with some other non-wedding sessions that I've had lately. Take care, and don't worry, I'll be back. =)
| Michael Muramoto
©2008
All Rights Reserved |
| | |
|
Premium
View Michael Muramoto's profile
