Went Digital!

sanjuan · 01-09-2007, 09:37 PM

Well, I finally went digital and got myself a Nikon D70 (Mind you, I have no intention of letting go of my Canon AE-1). Right now I just have the basic body/lens setup with a 1gb card, but is there anything you guys would recommend I get in order to survive a con?

Sipo · 01-09-2007, 09:54 PM

Well first of all; good for you for taking on digital while holding onto traditional! (I am sure you're gonna get bombarded with, "zomg how could you go digital?!" at one point or another.)

For surviving a con: keep aperture priority or shutter priority as your mainly used settings. It's too difficult (sometimes and mostly) to get cosplayers on the move when your shooting snapshots of cosplay manual settings.

Also, the dealers dens/panels and some indoor places can get dark, so pay attention to your ISO; it may need to be set higher to keep the blur down some.

(Sure, it will give you some noise, but not much if you're using a newer dSLR. They're built with automatic noise-reduction, but if the ISO is REAL high, you will still get some noisy photos!)

Well, those are some things I've done to get some nice snapshots and photos. Photoshoots are a little bit of a different story though. ^^

sanjuan · 01-09-2007, 10:15 PM

Thanks so much for the tips! I'm still weirded out with all the new features...like being able to switch from 200ISO to 1600 in a flash, or being able to take shots without worrying I'd run out of film

staereo · 01-10-2007, 05:03 AM

A flashgun and a grey card would be pretty benefitial. Depending on what your process is for recording and offloading images, you may find a 1gb doesnt go far.

When I shoot raw, I get about 100 images from a 1gb card.

A fast lens is helpful, and typically people crowd you enough that using an unflattering wide angle (wider than 40mm) ends up being a regular happenstance.

As far as minimal things to get, there ya go.

Bruce

SolarTempest · 01-10-2007, 09:03 AM

Did you get a good bag for your camera? Very key!

jtnishi · 01-10-2007, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sanjuan

Well, I finally went digital and got myself a Nikon D70 (Mind you, I have no intention of letting go of my Canon AE-1). Right now I just have the basic body/lens setup with a 1gb card, but is there anything you guys would recommend I get in order to survive a con?

Most immediately, if you can, get another storage card and perhaps a spare battery. If you feel like it, get a UV filter for your kit lens, too. And along with SolarTempest, get a bag, and put an ID tag of some sort on it, on the rare chance you misplace your camera somewhere. That'll probably be enough to hold off until you get a good feel for where you want to go from there.

PS: Congrats! Enjoy your new creative tool!

tfcreate · 01-10-2007, 07:32 PM

Take your new camera on a few outings....
Nothing fancy, just take some basic shots, 100-200 should be enough.
Auto, manual, AE, pre-sets, the whole spectrum.
Basically, get to know your camera. From there, decide what you need/want.
Oh... and congratualtions!
TFC

americankgb · 01-10-2007, 11:26 PM

Make sure you have a fast compact flash card like one of those sandisk ultra 2's if you are going to use continuous mode at some point. You want the camera to be able to offload the pictures quickly to the flash card.

shiroin · 01-11-2007, 05:18 AM

congrats for joining the DSLR peeps.

now its the time for you to go out and go trigger happy.
review your shots and reason about what you like and not like about your photos. remember the points you've made and go out to shoot more.

continue this cycle will make you a better photographer and will let you know what you are lacking in terms of equipment, etc.

practice enough so by the time you get to con you are confident and produce the pics you want!

sanjuan · 01-15-2007, 10:26 PM

Thanks for the feedback guys!
I haven't been able to do as much shooting as I had hoped to do but I am trying! A lot of my shots are done after classes so it is mostly night time stuff (I am having sooooo much fun with slow exposures).
Biggest concerns right now is learning how to play with the built in flash as well as the aperture. I am fairly comfy with the camera now and can change the shutter speed, aperture and ISO without needing to look but I still have a long way to go (I only play with manual settings).
Oh and the first thing I bought was a new camera bag, I now have 3 of varying sizes to suit my needs!

Oklahoma · 01-16-2007, 01:49 AM

One thing that you will NEED is a bulb air blower. Every time you change a lens you risk getting dust in with the sensor and it will become apparent VERY fast with large f stops and slow shutter speeds. One can be used to blow the area behind the lens out and remove most of the dust present.

sanjuan · 01-17-2007, 02:25 PM

Hey again, I'm going to start uploading some of my test shots when they come along, I did this the first night I got my camera, just having some fun with the slow exposure

01-09-2007, 09:37 PM	#1
sanjuan For Hire Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 100	Went Digital! Well, I finally went digital and got myself a Nikon D70 (Mind you, I have no intention of letting go of my Canon AE-1). Right now I just have the basic body/lens setup with a 1gb card, but is there anything you guys would recommend I get in order to survive a con? __________________ www.bsanjuan.artician.com See the world through my lens.

01-09-2007, 09:54 PM	#2
Sipo Occupation: shoten. Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 431	Well first of all; good for you for taking on digital while holding onto traditional! (I am sure you're gonna get bombarded with, "zomg how could you go digital?!" at one point or another.) For surviving a con: keep aperture priority or shutter priority as your mainly used settings. It's too difficult (sometimes and mostly) to get cosplayers on the move when your shooting snapshots of cosplay manual settings. Also, the dealers dens/panels and some indoor places can get dark, so pay attention to your ISO; it may need to be set higher to keep the blur down some. (Sure, it will give you some noise, but not much if you're using a newer dSLR. They're built with automatic noise-reduction, but if the ISO is REAL high, you will still get some noisy photos!) Well, those are some things I've done to get some nice snapshots and photos. Photoshoots are a little bit of a different story though. ^^ __________________ Cosplay in the works: Another Bleach cosplay group! Tamaki - [Ouran High School Host Club] Death Note cosplay group! Camera: Canon EOS 400D Last edited by Sipo : 01-09-2007 at 10:51 PM.

01-09-2007, 10:15 PM	#3
sanjuan For Hire Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 100	Thanks so much for the tips! I'm still weirded out with all the new features...like being able to switch from 200ISO to 1600 in a flash, or being able to take shots without worrying I'd run out of film __________________ www.bsanjuan.artician.com See the world through my lens.

01-10-2007, 05:03 AM	#4
staereo Little fish ISO big pond. Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 1,014	A flashgun and a grey card would be pretty benefitial. Depending on what your process is for recording and offloading images, you may find a 1gb doesnt go far. When I shoot raw, I get about 100 images from a 1gb card. A fast lens is helpful, and typically people crowd you enough that using an unflattering wide angle (wider than 40mm) ends up being a regular happenstance. As far as minimal things to get, there ya go. Bruce __________________ Bruce OBryan Photography My Website (Currently being updated... Still.)

01-10-2007, 09:03 AM	#5
SolarTempest .: Photographer :. Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 599	Did you get a good bag for your camera? Very key! __________________ ---------------------------- "Ketvin Chan Photography" photography.solartempest.net flickr.com/photos/solartempest -Email me for shoots! :2012/2013 Planned Conventions: MTAC, Costume Con, Wizard World, Ad Astra, Colossal Con, Otakuthon, Polaris, FanExpo, Youmacon, ACG Events, DTAC, Katsucon

01-10-2007, 07:32 PM	#7
tfcreate Behind the lens since 68 Join Date: May 2003 Posts: 994	Before anything else...... Take your new camera on a few outings.... Nothing fancy, just take some basic shots, 100-200 should be enough. Auto, manual, AE, pre-sets, the whole spectrum. Basically, get to know your camera. From there, decide what you need/want. Oh... and congratualtions! TFC __________________ ~A fool can learn from his own mistakes..The wise learn from the mistakes of others.~ Democritus It's pointless to brag about equipment. Repeat what you see in my posts and you'll sound really smart Rules for life: Rule #7 Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you are. Anime Midwest Anime Chicago Chicago Comicon Anime Iowa

01-10-2007, 11:26 PM	#8
americankgb Photographer Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 85	Make sure you have a fast compact flash card like one of those sandisk ultra 2's if you are going to use continuous mode at some point. You want the camera to be able to offload the pictures quickly to the flash card.

01-11-2007, 05:18 AM	#9
shiroin Banned Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 1,023	congrats for joining the DSLR peeps. now its the time for you to go out and go trigger happy. review your shots and reason about what you like and not like about your photos. remember the points you've made and go out to shoot more. continue this cycle will make you a better photographer and will let you know what you are lacking in terms of equipment, etc. practice enough so by the time you get to con you are confident and produce the pics you want!

01-15-2007, 10:26 PM	#10
sanjuan For Hire Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 100	Thanks for the feedback guys! I haven't been able to do as much shooting as I had hoped to do but I am trying! A lot of my shots are done after classes so it is mostly night time stuff (I am having sooooo much fun with slow exposures). Biggest concerns right now is learning how to play with the built in flash as well as the aperture. I am fairly comfy with the camera now and can change the shutter speed, aperture and ISO without needing to look but I still have a long way to go (I only play with manual settings). Oh and the first thing I bought was a new camera bag, I now have 3 of varying sizes to suit my needs! __________________ www.bsanjuan.artician.com See the world through my lens.

01-16-2007, 01:49 AM	#11
Oklahoma KYON Stop Taking Pictures Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 142	One thing that you will NEED is a bulb air blower. Every time you change a lens you risk getting dust in with the sensor and it will become apparent VERY fast with large f stops and slow shutter speeds. One can be used to blow the area behind the lens out and remove most of the dust present. __________________ Studio photography is easy because you can get exactly what you want. Studio photography is hard because you can get exactly what you want. Anime Detour Staff: Tech: Main Stage Lighting Photography

01-17-2007, 02:25 PM	#12
sanjuan For Hire Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 100	Hey again, I'm going to start uploading some of my test shots when they come along, I did this the first night I got my camera, just having some fun with the slow exposure __________________ www.bsanjuan.artician.com See the world through my lens.

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