For the new members that will be coming around wdw360 and may be interested in taking up Photography or for people who might be interested in expanding their skills, I am wondering if you can answer a few questions: What kind of Camera do you own? When did you start Getting Serious about taking pictures? How many Lenses do you own and can you tell us what size they are? Out of all the lenses you own, which couple could you not live without? What software do you use if any to help you with Post Processing? If you could go back in time to when you started taking pictures and give yourself a kick in the ass, what would you have yourself do different? Best source for learning? Timmies or Starbucks?
1) Sony NEX-7 and a Pentax WG3 2) I've been into Photography since grade school. Dabbled more in my college years (upgrading to dslr-like cameras) before getting a little more serious over the past 5-6 years and upgrading to the NEX system. 3) lenses for the the NEX range from a 16mm FishEye to the 55-210mm telephoto 4) the 55-210mm comes in real handy for shooting the outdoor shows at Disney. 5) I don't process too much other than watermarking my photos. If I do alter photos I typically use apps on my iPad mini to enhance. 6) not sure what to say here other than maybe I should have upgraded my setup in college instead of just the past few years. 7) PixelMania... Have learned so much over the past five years. 8) star who? Timmie's of course.
What kind of Camera do you own? Nikon D700, Nikon D70s When did you start Getting Serious about taking pictures? High School How many Lenses do you own and can you tell us what size they are? All Nikon - 28 PC, 50 f/1.2 AIS, 50 f/1.4G, 85 f/1.4D, 14-24, 28-70, 70-200 VR, 200-400 VRII Out of all the lenses you own, which couple could you not live without? 14-24, 28-70 What software do you use if any to help you with Post Processing? Nikon Capture NX & Photoshop (the new version of NX isn't going to be useful, so I'm starting to learn Adobe Camera Raw and will eventually switch entirely to Photoshop) If you could go back in time to when you started taking pictures and give yourself a kick in the ass, what would you have yourself do different? Take more photos. Film was the only option when I started in photography and it was easy to fall into the habit of only taking a few photos to conserve film. It took me a while to break that habit after switching to digital. Best source for learning? I read a lot of photography blogs - Moose Peterson, Joe McNally, Dave Black and Jeff Cable are all excellent sources of information. Asking my photographer friends is another great source. I find that many photographers are very willing to help you learn if you ask. Timmies or Starbucks? Neither, I prefer a little high fructose corn syrup with my caffeine.
What kind of Camera do you own? Sony A580 DSLR, Sony NEX-5N mirrorless (Pending: Sony A6000 mirrorless on preorder and waiting for it to arrive) When did you start Getting Serious about taking pictures? I'd say 'serious' began around 1997. I've been shooting since 1973 (5yrs old, Instamatic, NYC), and SLRs since 1977...but was not much more than a 1/125 - F8 shooter for many years. Digital breathed new life into photography for me - very freeing to not worry about film costs and developing costs, and just shoot - and made me want to experiment and learn with cameras more. How many Lenses do you own and can you tell us what size they are? For DSLRs, I have 7 lenses: Sony 18-250mm, Tamron 10-24mm, Tamron 90mm F2.8 macro, Tamron 150-600mm (preorder), Sigma 30mm F1.4, Minolta 50mm F1.7, Minolta 300mm F4 APO. For mirrorless I have over 20 lenses...AF e-mount lenses: 16mm F2.8, 10-18mm, 18-55mm, 55-210mm...all the others are various manual focus lenses from Pentax, Konica, and Leica M mounts. Out of all the lenses you own, which couple could you not live without? My 300mm F4 for sure, and my 18-250mm on the DSLR would be musts. On the NEX, it'd be the 10-18mm and the 55-210mm, plus my Voigtlander 35mm F1.4. What software do you use if any to help you with Post Processing? Paint Shop Pro Photo X4, Photoshop Elements, Adobe Lightroom, Topaz Denoise & Adjust, Nik plugins. Though ironically, I'm mostly a JPG shooter by preference, and mostly do no post processing on my shots. I have the tools and the knowledge to use them, but just choose not to most of the time! If you could go back in time to when you started taking pictures and give yourself a kick in the ass, what would you have yourself do different? Have cared more in film days about photography, so that amazing places and opportunities would have been better captured - WTC 1974, England 1976, Venezuela 1984, Los Angeles Olympics 1984, and so on. Also from my earliest foray into digital in 1997, I would have told myself that I needed every bit of resolution my 1MP camera was capable of, so that I wasn't shooting most of my early photos in 800x600 resolution, which seemed PLENTY for my screen resolution at the time. Best source for learning? Experience, practice, repetition for me. Trying settings, reacting and adjusting, and trying again. Timmies or Starbucks? Must it be asked, honestly? I mean, I probably drink more Starbucks overall than Timmies, but that's only because there IS no Timmies by me. Starbucks is occasionally brought to work by vendors, but if I'm picking up one myself, I'll use Dunkin instead. Give me a Timmies nearby, and I'm a card-holding regular.
What kind of Camera do you own? Nex6 , Canon SX40 IS, Nikon Coolpix S10 When did you start Getting Serious about taking pictures? RIGHT NOW since I officially own a camera I can now use another lens on...of course the 10,000 pictures I am currently trying to wade through might say otherwise. I had a horrible habit of not using the delete button--i have finally come to terms with that aversion-sought counseling and am now in a two step program- delete and empty trash can- repeat as needed.- 5,000 times How many Lenses do you own and can you tell us what size they are? - the one that came with the camera- but getting some vintage glass for my Nex-some Canon lenses next week Out of all the lenses you own, which couple could you not live without?the one attached to the front of the camera since its all i have right now. What software do you use if any to help you with Post Processing? Photoshop Elements ( 5 years of using it)and more recently Lightroom 5 If you could go back in time to when you started taking pictures and give yourself a kick in the ass, what would you have yourself do different? I started taking pictures on the yearbook staff by default in my jr year in high school-early 70's( yes- thats old school stuff)- Got real good at cropping- but was clueless about the camera cept the focusing- back in 72-I wish I had learned more back then about all the stuff i am wanting to learn now about the equipment itself. Best source for learning?an open mind to seeing value in anything I read/see via video on the subject-of any aspect of photography- I must say I gravitate greatly to the post processing and the pure capabilities it has for creating art from a blank digital canvas and layering it with existing digital imagery- Practice, Explore, Practice, Explore- I spent about a 1,000 hours in 1 year with a goal to learn how to integrate photoshop elements into a medium of jewelry. I spent a year capturing light with my camera in many ways of reflecting and refracting it in studio to mimic the properties of glass and manipulating images beyond recognition back to the core of light,color and texture. Finding this site and the generosity of its members has given me confidence to start down many new paths of discovery= my best source for learning has been the search feature on my computer.....I have only recently started watching tutorials found through google search and you tube. I live in a very rural area- the local and surrounding town photograhers I have met are threatened that I might infringe on their market - NOT EVEN- and are not so sharing and caring- my heart is in cross pollinating the mediums I am interested in - not totally focusing on one of them- all that to say- Thanks for letting the different drummer in here.... Timmies or Starbucks? My physiological motivational ingested intake of choice is chocolate- Godiva, Ghiradelli, Lindt okay most times it Hersheys- and a ice cold bottle of .........water -----graphically speaking I like the logo of starbucks- but am really drawn the to the color combo of Timmies..... Can I now pass go and collect .....neva mind - had any one figured out with inflation what that $200 for passing go would actually be worth now since the game was created......... Peg edited this to say--she is NOT an expert at photography- but didnt pay attention to that part of the title TILL after she hit post- oh well- some insight to my world.
