GKPE: General Ramblings thread

[theflyingkiwi]

Thank's.. I was going to ask that.

well it could be like anything in this place. topics change so quickly it's easy to forget what's been said.

so are ya coming over for a GKPE outing ;)

[akiwi]

so are ya coming over for a GKPE outing ;)
If you pick me up then yes. I have the 10th free :lol:

[arkturas]

Hello all, just a quick question - My Wife and I are planning a holiday in New Zealand during the month of March, Whats the weather like that time of year -
cheers,

[scotttnz]

Hello all, just a quick question - My Wife and I are planning a holiday in New Zealand during the month of March, Whats the weather like that time of year -
cheers,

Generally February and March has some of the best weather in New Zealand. Hot and sunny. Unlike we are having at the moment!

[TKRFAN]

Hey - it is hot and sunny here today :) miracles DO happen :P

Anyway, is anyone heading to the A1GP this weekend - managed to finally get through to Radio Sport this morning and won 4 grandstand tickets, so we are frantically trying to scrape up accomodation and will go up Sat/Sun.

Would like to catch up with anyone going??

[theflyingkiwi]

Hey - it is hot and sunny here today :) miracles DO happen :P

Anyway, is anyone heading to the A1GP this weekend - managed to finally get through to Radio Sport this morning and won 4 grandstand tickets, so we are frantically trying to scrape up accomodation and will go up Sat/Sun.

Would like to catch up with anyone going??

I would like to go, just to see what it's like. However I don't plan on going due to cost. I also don't wont to waste time if I can't get a good location for photos.

Anyway let us know what it's like.

what are you planning the weekend after. I think my nephew has got a race in town that weekend.

[DiscoLizard]

Hey - it is hot and sunny here today :) miracles DO happen :P

Anyway, is anyone heading to the A1GP this weekend - managed to finally get through to Radio Sport this morning and won 4 grandstand tickets, so we are frantically trying to scrape up accomodation and will go up Sat/Sun.

Would like to catch up with anyone going??

Was it the Mrs who rang through? Did she get asked what position the NZ team finished in last year? If so, I heard her :D

Congratulations!

[lil_miss]

I tried to buy tickets about 2 months ago and they were all sold out :( Would have loved to have gone....

[Moppie]

Would love to go, but the cost is a huge factor at the moment.

I was however talking to a supplier this morning, hes working surport crew for one of the NZ V8 teams racing. He's spending 3 days right in the middle of the action :D

[weka2000]

Car racing = a lot of NOISE fumes and people. Seems some people dont have kids :rolleyes:

Oh for peace and quite and just the birds singing :lol:

[TKRFAN]

Was it the Mrs who rang through? Did she get asked what position the NZ team finished in last year? If so, I heard her :D

Congratulations!

Hi All

Well, I am the person who rang hehe :) I guess my username isn't that helpful there - I am Tracy (female)!

Managed to get accomodation, at a reasonable price in Taupo, so things are coming together nicely :)

As for the noise, fumes etc, bring it on LOL I am just a little excited :o :D

I get plenty of peace and birds singing through work, so the compete opposite on my weekends works well!

lil_miss - there are apparently heaps of tickets left, both stand and some GA now, but I guess it is a bit late for you :(

Cheers

Tracy

[DiscoLizard]

Hi All

Well, I am the person who rang hehe :) I guess my username isn't that helpful there - I am Tracy (female)!

Managed to get accomodation, at a reasonable price in Taupo, so things are coming together nicely :)

As for the noise, fumes etc, bring it on LOL I am just a little excited :o :D

I get plenty of peace and birds singing through work, so the compete opposite on my weekends works well!

lil_miss - there are apparently heaps of tickets left, both stand and some GA now, but I guess it is a bit late for you :(

Cheers

Tracy

Sorry Tracy! Yeah, I heard you - you sounded a little surprised at how easy you got them?! Very cool, hope you have a great time and take some photos for us.

[lil_miss]

Anyone here had dealings with C R Kennedy direct??? I'm STILL waiting for my replacement Sigma 24-70 from them and its now been 3 bloody weeks.. I kept getting told story after story and now they're so sick of me ringing they are no longer "available". All it was was a transfer of the item from their Melbourne branch to Auckland and somehow it never made it with their last 2 shipments.. so I was told Monday this week.. then Wednesday, then this morning.. and still nothing!!! I'm starting to get rather pissed off.

Has anyone else found them absolutely useless?! The shop I bought it from - Photo Warehouse was even more useless and so I was told to go to direct to CR Kennedy... Heaven forbid nothing ever happens that I need to send any parts away for repair... :S

[TKRFAN]

what are you planning the weekend after. I think my nephew has got a race in town that weekend.

Missed this one before :oops: I will be at the track for sure - hopefully with a media pass, or if not as an official (or do both I think is the plan at the moment :lol: ) so will definitely try to get some photos for you :)

I think I was very surprised I got through to radio sport on my first try (well, for today anyway), and then I think I was surprised they asked such easy questions :) I'm not complaining though, and am extremely grateful to have the tickets, or I would have been watching on tv too!

[theflyingkiwi]

Anyone here had dealings with C R Kennedy direct??? I'm STILL waiting for my replacement Sigma 24-70 from them and its now been 3 bloody weeks.. I kept getting told story after story and now they're so sick of me ringing they are no longer "available". All it was was a transfer of the item from their Melbourne branch to Auckland and somehow it never made it with their last 2 shipments.. so I was told Monday this week.. then Wednesday, then this morning.. and still nothing!!! I'm starting to get rather pissed off.

Has anyone else found them absolutely useless?! The shop I bought it from - Photo Warehouse was even more useless and so I was told to go to direct to CR Kennedy... Heaven forbid nothing ever happens that I need to send any parts away for repair... :S

I have dealt with them directly and your not going like what I am going to say. they are totally useless when it comes to dealing with customers. I tried to find out if my lens had arrived and they couldn't even tell me that.

I rang up one day and was talking the dispatch guy, when I told him who had signed for it, he transferred me to the accounts dept. who don't even deal with repairs. Once that happened I just asked to speak to the manager and then it got dealt with.

This was a couple of months ago so I have lost his phone number. When he said he would ring back the same day he did, which was good. I would recommend you to ring the main number and ask to talk to the manager.

I wouldn't deal with them again for all the tea in china.

[weka2000]

I wouldn't deal with them again for all the tea in china.

I see a new Canon "L" lens owner in the making :p

[dgcorner]

Well I think that is enough interest to consider the 10th officially booked for GKPE VI. Put it in your calanders people!

Trains could be worth a visit if we are going to be out that way.

Count me in!

Anyone here had dealings with C R Kennedy direct??? I'm STILL waiting for my replacement Sigma 24-70 from them and its now been 3 bloody weeks.. I kept getting told story after story and now they're so sick of me ringing they are no longer "available". All it was was a transfer of the item from their Melbourne branch to Auckland and somehow it never made it with their last 2 shipments.. so I was told Monday this week.. then Wednesday, then this morning.. and still nothing!!! I'm starting to get rather pissed off.

Has anyone else found them absolutely useless?! The shop I bought it from - Photo Warehouse was even more useless and so I was told to go to direct to CR Kennedy... Heaven forbid nothing ever happens that I need to send any parts away for repair... :S

The offer on the 24-70 still stands.

I see a new Canon "L" lens owner in the making :p

Now Tony, don't go spreading your "L" virus to us poor hapless folks:p

[weka2000]

Now Tony, don't go spreading your "L" virus to us poor hapless folks:p

I cant wait untill all the final moneys are in from house sale. Will know how much I have for my next spend and its 2007 :lol:

I have a couple of lens in mind or studio lights. What ever I get will be the last spend for a long long long time :cry:

[weka2000]

Ok Wekas challange to the group. I want you to find a photo from your first DSLR that you liked and post the orignal un-altered as well as an PP version.

The challange is to see how far you have come and how much you have learnt. As well as that some old pics may take on a new lease of life.

Do you want me to start a new thread for this?

[lil_miss]

Great idea ;) new thread would be fab :)

Update : After escalation - I picked up my replacement lens this afternoon on my way home which had apparently "just" arrived... hmmm.. Thanks dgcorner for the offer. About to test this new lens to see how it shapes up

[joeseph]

Was it the Mrs who rang through?

LOL - Funniest thing I've read all day! I'm sure Tracy wasn't too offended... :D

Ok Wekas challange to the group.
Good idea, sadly my first DSLR I liked was always set to JPG apart from the (very) odd test shot in RAW. Worth a shot anyway as I've got one or two that are likely candidates. Probably best to start a thread in Competitions.

[Moppie]

Ok Wekas challange to the group. I want you to find a photo from your first DSLR

Hmmm, Iv only just got my first DSLR............ :rolleyes:

[weka2000]

Hmmm, Iv only just got my first DSLR............ :rolleyes:

Dig up one from 1 you borrowed :)

[theflyingkiwi]

Hmmm, Iv only just got my first DSLR............ :rolleyes:

then for you moopie it should be easy :)

[momentz]

Great idea ;) new thread would be fab :)

Update : After escalation - I picked up my replacement lens this afternoon on my way home which had apparently "just" arrived... hmmm.. Thanks dgcorner for the offer. About to test this new lens to see how it shapes up

Well. I'll update this because I'm REALLY f'd off. First of all, the lens we recieved in replacement tests *slightly* better than the original. Still front focussed, but not as much. This was tested on both our 20D and 30D bodies.

However. The zoom ring SQEAKS (the noise of the focus motor is bad enough!). But that's not the worst part... the MANUAL FOCUS RING IS COMPLETELY BROKEN. It does NOTHING!!@##$

For F's SAKE!

[theflyingkiwi]

umm do you guys buy it from a local dealer, and if so how long ago?

[weka2000]

umm do you guys buy it from a local dealer, and if so how long ago?

I buy from Auckland Camera and Glam
3 "L" lens last year + 3 primes 2 Sigmas... Oh and 3 lens from trademe :lol:

Umm I started DSLR Sept 2005 and I have owned

18-55
55-200
70-200 F4 L
70-200 F2.8 L (Wont sell)
17-40 F4 L (Wont sell)
24-105 F4 L (Wont Sell)
50mm F1.8
50mm F1.4
85mm f1.8
100mm Macro
24-70 Sigma
10-20 Sigma
50-500 Sigma (Cant Sell)

[lil_miss]

Yes it was brought from Photo Warehouse in Auckland the week before xmas.. hence why the week between xmas and new year we took it to them demanding a replacement due to the focussing issues. The guy in the shop promptly corrected us with his "shop test" and told us it was fine and was about to send us on our way until we said that wasn't good enough. then he finally admitted he had no idea and wasn't technical enough to comment and so suggested we go to CR Kennedy direct. This was after he told us that our Focus Test chart images and testing that we'd done was a load of bullocks pretty much and he didnt believe that such test existed.

CR Kennedy diagnosed the problem straight away and knew all about the focus test chart and told us it couldnt be fixed at all and so would source a replacement from their Melbourne branch and it would arrive on 4th January. THREE weeks later.... after being told it will be Monday, Thursday, Friday and me ringing just about every day it arrived today after they apparently had to "reorder". Bearing in mind through all of this we told them that we have a wedding this weekend and that the lens was purchased for that purpose and so we NEED it ASAP.

I refuse to deal with them anymore so Aaron is heading back first thing in the morning to demand a second replacement. Apparently they ordered more than one which was a bonus on their part and so I would like to think it will be a straight swap - until we find something else wrong!

F**K!

[FlyingPete]

Reasonably clear sky out there tonight people...

[theflyingkiwi]

well you do have rights, regarding getting a replacement from the store that you brought it from, and since the object isn't performing the way the manufacture says it should work then you can even ask for your money back or a replacement. either from the store or from sigma. The problem is C R Kennedy is crap to deal with, and they are sigmas agent in NZ :(

[weka2000]

Reasonably clear sky out there tonight people...


Was thinking the same thing and it should be higher

[lil_miss]

The store refused to acknowledge the problem and because its a Sigma lens - told us to go to CR kennedy because they would 'fix' it. They said they couldn't fix it here in NZ and it would have to go to Japan and so a replacement was a better option.

I wouldnt have a problem with it taking so long if they told me that from the start. instead I was getting told day after day it would be the next day or the next day. They had 3 shipments arrive in that time frame and somehow the lens missed out on all of them... :S

[weka2000]

I could not find a single fault with my Sigma 24-70 F2.8 ( Brought new at Auckland camera) it was a great lens even on the 5D.

Service is 95% of business and word of mouth around this group puts people off companys real quick

[NordieBoy]

No A1GP for me :(

but.....

The National KiteSurfing Champs are on my doorstep Fri-Sun :D

[lil_miss]

Service is 95% of business and word of mouth around this group puts people off companys real quick

Exactly and I wouldn't recommend them to anyone - I wont be going back to Photo Warehouse in a hurry.. they can stick it.. lol The guy who sold the stuff to me was fantastic... but he then went on leave at xmas and isn't back till this week - so i was left to deal with the plebs.

Technically its not the shops fault as the lenses are all made at Sigma in Japan - but they werent the least bit accommodating which is what annoyed me the most.

[tag141]

Did you note down serial numbers? They may have done a temporary fix on your 'old' lens and pretended it was a new shipment?

I emailed CR Kennnedy about fixing my Bigma. Never heard anything from them, ever. Not even an acknowledgement of my email.

[weka2000]

Did you note down serial numbers? They may have done a temporary fix on your 'old' lens and pretended it was a new shipment?

I emailed CR Kennnedy about fixing my Bigma. Never heard anything from them, ever. Not even an acknowledgement of my email.

Whats wrong with your bigma?

Oh hows your 1D working out?

[lil_miss]

Yes I still had the warranty card from the original lens.. the serial numbers are definately different.. that was the first thing I checked :) lol

[theflyingkiwi]

at some point I was going to e-mail sigma customer service in the US, but since they are from Japan then that might be the thing to do.
http://www.sigma-photo.co.jp/english/network/index.htm

[tag141]

Whats wrong with your bigma?

Oh hows your 1D working out?

I bought Bigma from Hong Kong. When it arrived I didn't check it thoroughly. The top of the box looked fine, so I just ripped it open and tried to attach Bigma to the camera. It wouldn't fit. It has obviously been dropped and bent the metal ring that mounts to the camera body. After thousands of emails and a few lies from them I sent it back. Once they (Not Sigma) had it, they told me I had to pay for repair. After another thousand emails I eventually got it back, unrepaired. I bent the metal ring a bit and it fitted...just. The optics are fine just requires a bit of effort to fit it.

The 1D...http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showpost.php?p=2554031&postcount=9 is back at mother ship.

[weka2000]

I bought Bigma from Hong Kong. When it arrived I didn't check it thoroughly. The top of the box looked fine, so I just ripped it open and tried to attach Bigma to the camera. It wouldn't fit. It has obviously been dropped and bent the metal ring that mounts to the camera body. After thousands of emails and a few lies from them I sent it back. Once they (Not Sigma) had it, they told me I had to pay for repair. After another thousand emails I eventually got it back, unrepaired. I bent the metal ring a bit and it fitted...just. The optics are fine just requires a bit of effort to fit it.

The 1D...http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showpost.php?p=2554031&postcount=9 is back at mother ship.

Looking at a few 1DS mk2 on Trade me at moment. Think I will wait a little longer untill Vagus and see whats unvailed there

[scotttnz]

Hmmm, Iv only just got my first DSLR............ :rolleyes:

I'm still on my first one too.......with luck that will change this year....40D for me (I better work hard and get a good bonus!)

Reasonably clear sky out there tonight people...

Hmmmmm......busy tonight, but weather is supposed to be good all weekend, and I have no family on Saturday morning, so I am going to go out with my poor neglected camera then.

[theflyingkiwi]

Looking at a few 1DS mk2 on Trade me at moment. Think I will wait a little longer untill Vagus and see whats unvailed there

what 16mpx is big enough for ya?

got another question for ya, do you use a wacom pen yet Tony?

[tag141]

Looking at a few 1DS mk2 on Trade me at moment. Think I will wait a little longer untill Vagus and see whats unvailed there

Then if the Mark3 isn't what you want, there'll be a plethora (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plethora) of cheap Mark2s from the technogeeks buying up large.

[lil_miss]

We can see it :D From our deck :) Its just become visible now through a bit of hazy cloud

[Nzshrimper]

Reasonably clear sky out there tonight people...

not down here - not a cloud in the sky until 7pm then whamo a full blanket of grey. :(

We can see it :D From our deck :) Its just become visible now through a bit of hazy cloud

cool get some pics .. ;)

oh well always tomorrow

[NordieBoy]

Too much cloud cover :(

[weka2000]

what 16mpx is big enough for ya?

got another question for ya, do you use a wacom pen yet Tony?

Its not the 16mp I after 12.8mp with the 5D is fine. Its the weather sealing and focus system and Auto focus at F8 that I want.....And no one else in the group has one :lol:

All right I want to be unique :p

Wacom no not yet. I am thinking about the $600 one Intious 3 something like that.

[weka2000]

Then if the Mark3 isn't what you want, there'll be a plethora (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plethora) of cheap Mark2s from the technogeeks buying up large.

I want to see what canon do next. The only down side to the 1D is weight mind you loose a few pounds of my wallet :lol:

I have a 1DsMK11 I can borrow if I need too has a 85mm F1.2 attached as well. The 1D is a WANT not a need. What I NEED is some "L" Primes :)

[weka2000]

Oh most or my early photos are blury or my eyes are getting old.

[FlyingPete]

No issues here :D

http://www.peterlowden.com/POTN/Comet01.jpg
20D + EF70-200 f/2.8 @ 200mm - no crop

http://www.peterlowden.com/POTN/Comet02.jpg
20D + Telescope - no crop

[akiwi]

No issues here :D


20D + EF70-200 f/2.8 @ 200mm - no crop


20D + Telescope - no crop
Wow! Great images.

I would like the weather sealing. I have a few freezer bags in my camera bag & some rubber bands for extreme conditions, but a weather sealed camera would be a lot easier to use. I think the weight would be a problem for me as I take my camera everywhere.

[theflyingkiwi]

wow what nice photos. I can't even see it where I am, going to have to find somewhere flat so I can see it.

if anyone is interesting I have got a training video on how to get the best from a wacom tablet and using it for editing photos. I have managed to pick up a trick or two that is going to help me with my photos.

[lil_miss]

From Goodwood Heights, Manukau

[Nzshrimper]

nice work pete and lil miss.

[theflyingkiwi]

Pete, what were your settings for the camera ?

[weka2000]

nice work pete and lil miss.

Great shot. Thats a print on the wall.
I can sence a waterfall from miles away but cant find a simple comet in the sky :confused:

Least I know what diection to look tommorow night :)

[Moppie]

Those are fantastic photos!
Ill have to make sure I take a look for from my place tomorrow, we have a nice west view, just hope there aren't to many trees in the way.

[lil_miss]

Another :)

http://www.momentz.co.nz/Gallery/comet1.jpg

[akiwi]

I haven't seen that from here in Germany yet.
Won't see it today as a big hurricane is scheduled to roll through this afternoon - evening (130 kmh winds). I'm going to go home at lunchtime & work from there this afternoon so I don't have to drive home while the storm in in full blow.

[Nzshrimper]

I haven't seen that from here in Germany yet.
Won't see it today as a big hurricane is scheduled to roll through this afternoon - evening (130 kmh winds). I'm going to go home at lunchtime & work from there this afternoon so I don't have to drive home while the storm in in full blow.
i thought you lived in Germany not wellington ;)

dont forget to tie down the dogs and other pets.

[Cyborg Death Ninja]

From Goodwood Heights, Manukau
Great shot Sarah.

[FlyingPete]

Pete, what were your settings for the camera ?

ISO200 (on a tripod!), 1/6s, f/2.8 for the normal one, ISO1600, 2.5s f/NA for the telescope. Basically the scope has a 1300mm focal length with a f/8 opening, however the eyepieces magnify further, I had a 25mm in for that shot which is a "wide angle".

[Wazza]

Firstly great photos Serra and Pete.
I don't have a camera to take images... The story to follow ;)

Hey all anyway, feels like I haven't said much lately, but I'll share how my interesting week has been.

Tuesday I took my 20D into Canon direct, to fix a loose hot-shoe mount. It's screwed from within, so has come loose, and I can't do anything about it.

Secondly, the battery grip, as everyone knows has the flexing issue, so I've asked them to have a look at that.

Thirdly, took my 580EX in also, to check out why the red light isn't emitting for focus assisting.

And last but not least.. The most annoying thing, describing the typical service we get from Canon NZ...
My off shoe cord is broken, the flash end connector, two halves of plastic.. Screwed together over the mount. Well the slot mount broke, and I unscrewed the part, so all I need is this 20cent piece of plastic, to screw back on and voila, a working off shoe cord.

Canon had a look upstairs at their headoffice, North Shore (The Warehouse Way)..
Came back down and said it's a common thing, they've looked for that part before, again couldn't find the part, and told me I have to buy a new off shoe cord, as it was obvious I had also already tried to glue it on.

How bad is that? - Surely the best solution would be to either contact another Canon centre, overseas, and ask if they have any spare, or find the manufacturer. I'd pay $20 for them to courier the plastic part. But no, they told me to spent $110 on a new cord!

[FlyingPete]

A little while ago I posted some new prices on CF cards, is anyone interested in throwing together an order? I may be able to arrange read access to the price list, let me know via peter at lowden dot net dot nz

[FlyingPete]

Firstly great photos Serra and Pete.
I don't have a camera to take images... The story to follow ;)

Hey all anyway, feels like I haven't said much lately, but I'll share how my interesting week has been.

Tuesday I took my 20D into Canon direct, to fix a loose hot-shoe mount. It's screwed from within, so has come loose, and I can't do anything about it.

Secondly, the battery grip, as everyone knows has the flexing issue, so I've asked them to have a look at that.

Thirdly, took my 580EX in also, to check out why the red light isn't emitting for focus assisting.

And last but not least.. The most annoying thing, describing the typical service we get from Canon NZ...
My off shoe cord is broken, the flash end connector, two halves of plastic.. Screwed together over the mount. Well the slot mount broke, and I unscrewed the part, so all I need is this 20cent piece of plastic, to screw back on and voila, a working off shoe cord.

Canon had a look upstairs at their headoffice, North Shore (The Warehouse Way)..
Came back down and said it's a common thing, they've looked for that part before, again couldn't find the part, and told me I have to buy a new off shoe cord, as it was obvious I had also already tried to glue it on.

How bad is that? - Surely the best solution would be to either contact another Canon centre, overseas, and ask if they have any spare, or find the manufacturer. I'd pay $20 for them to courier the plastic part. But no, they told me to spent $110 on a new cord!

Bummer. That really puts me off putting my camera in for service. What piece of plastic is it? Can you make a replacement? It is amazing what you can do with a power drill, dremel, sand paper and a steady hand! I "milled" a new clip for my cell phone once out of a bigger piece of plastic.

[Wazza]

The second part involves my day job at (you should know where)


Basically someone left, and was to be replaced with a particular person from another department. I raised the issue, that considering our complex system, the replacement should come from within the two teams of our collections department.

The following day, they asked me if I would like to take an interview for the role, and take it as a learning experience, for further down the road when I may be more likely to get the job.

So the next day, I go along to my "interview" but it was more of a "congratulations", as they appointed me into secondment position of team leader. (So temporarily, at first said 3 months, but have also since heard as short as 2 weeks)

They may re-shuffle other team leaders around once they're all back from holidays, so it may be short lived.

So anyway, from next Tuesday, my shift changes from Sunday to Thursday..... and becomes Tuesday to Saturday, with only 3 late shifts instead of 5 (all of them currently).

In the short term will be managing 17 staff, with 3/4 being there longer than myself.

[Wazza]

I'd take a photo of the part, but I don't have a camera ;)

If anyone has the 580EX. Look at t he smaller end, which attaches to the flash. And It's the top end which has the groove in it for slotting in the flash. It needs to be really secure, otherwise you've just broken a $700 flash ;)
Wait, I already did that

[theflyingkiwi]

Warren, I don't know weather it's congrats you or not. :) It sounds like a temporary promotion which is good. Just think of the skills required. got to be good for ya. Anyway if it's temporary then you will know by the end of it if you will like management.

bugger about the camera and canon. it's a shame that that in this country we have to put up with dealing with crap serivce from so called big companys.

perhaps we should put a letter together with all of our names on it. show that we have some voice?

[lil_miss]

Congrats on the secondment..
Bummer about the camera... tis the season for it obviously :D lol Ya just can't get good service here!

[akiwi]

Hey Warren.. sounds like a good opportunity. Good luck. The camera thing sucks!

[DiscoLizard]

Bad luck with the repairs Warren - I'm not sure why it's so hard to get many people in NZ (particularly in the service/retail sector) to put in a bit of effort for the customer.

Congratulations on the job tho!

[weka2000]

Dam some people are ruff with their gear :lol:
other have just bad luck with sigmas.

Well my new 300gb SATA HDD arrived boy photos take up a lot of space.

Time to start looking for a test 50mm F1.2 L better give AC a ring and see if they can get 1 in. Trouble is its only good for F1.2 - F2 after that the 1.4 is better.

[akiwi]

Dam some people are ruff with their gear :lol:
other have just bad luck with sigmas.

Well my new 300gb SATA HDD arrived boy photos take up a lot of space.

Time to start looking for a test 50mm F1.2 L better give AC a ring and see if they can get 1 in. Trouble is its only good for F1.2 - F2 after that the 1.4 is better.
Why do you need it? (Emphasis on the word NEED)
For landscapes you certainly don't need it, and for glamour work the apperture would create such a tiny DOF that it would be almost impossible to get a focused image, so amy movement would throw your focused point out of focus.

[tim]

Wedding season's going full swing, life is BUSY even though i'm only doing my day job 3 days a week. I've met with 4-5 new customers in the past 10 days, 2 signed up on the spot for $3000+ packages, one for a $4000 package. Wedding every weekend. My amazon associates thing's going well too, generating a fairly good return on my headphones site - hundreds of dollars per month, so i'm expanding to use all the international amazon associate programs. Having 10,000 unique visitors per month actively looking to buy a product you review is a great way to get referral fees...

Upgraded PC from Athlon 3500+ to Athlon X2 4800+. It's a bit snappier, and image conversion in bridge/jalbum takes both cores, things are around twice as fast. PhotoJunction/Photoshop seems to be more disk limited than CPU limited now, so might have to make a RAID array if I ever have the time. Also need a couple of sample albums from Queensberry, if I get time to design them, and man, they're not cheap.

Better go design an album for a customer!

I tried that once, its actualy not as easy as it sounds.
The best way to do it is to get another simple utility from Norton that actualy removes it for you.
Just uninstalling it, dosn't remove all the services, or reg entrys.

Im just waiting for my copy to expire, then Ill do a clean install. Make sure I get rid of it completely, as well as fix a few other problems.

Thanks for the tip.

[dgcorner]

Warren - Congratulations!

Tim - what headphones?

[weka2000]

Why do you need it? (Emphasis on the word NEED)
For landscapes you certainly don't need it, and for glamour work the apperture would create such a tiny DOF that it would be almost impossible to get a focused image, so amy movement would throw your focused point out of focus.

Low light work i.e candle as light source. I would also use it for school for events. Our halls are poorly lit and sometimes cant use a flash.

I will do research before I buy it

[naqs]

A little while ago I posted some new prices on CF cards, is anyone interested in throwing together an order? I may be able to arrange read access to the price list, let me know via peter at lowden dot net dot nz

just a random question do you write your emaili like that to stop spammers???

[akiwi]

Hurricane is full on here at the moment. Over 100 kph winds outside. Houses here are built more solid than a brick sh*t house, so no worries there. Might loose a few roof tiles at the most I hope. Satellite dish was moved so no TV.
Processing pictures.
Posted a couple of threads on G&N so NWS.
Rotation was just a play with a set of images I had (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=264957)
Pregnant where from a set of photos I did at the end of last year (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=264947)

[weka2000]

Auckland Camera have a 50mm F1.2 L in stock. Its testing time.

Hell They even reconise my voice when I ring up...now thats a worry

It will also work well with the 30D = 80mm

AC have them listed at $2500 Umm I will have some money left over for another L :)

In all seriousness. The 3 main lens I have do 90% of what I need. There are times when I need a fast prime
so I might as well get the fastest I can. I dont need a 1D body. It will be my last lens buy....well a 400mm F5.6 would be nice
but then thats why I keep the bigma and wont sell it.

[dgcorner]

Auckland Camera have a 50mm F1.2 L in stock. Its testing time.

Hell They even reconise my voice when I ring up...now thats a worry

It will also work well with the 30D = 80mm

It is indeed a worry!:lol: Next thing they will have your caller ID flashing with $$$ signs:lol:

[weka2000]

It is indeed a worry!:lol: Next thing they will have your caller ID flashing with $$$ signs:lol:

My mother always said "Son you need to invest in Glass" and I do listen to my mother

[Moppie]

Iv been wondering when you start talking about buying gear again Tony :D :D :D

[Moppie]

My off shoe cord is broken, the flash end connector, two halves of plastic.. Screwed together over the mount. Well the slot mount broke, and I unscrewed the part, so all I need is this 20cent piece of plastic, to screw back on and voila, a working off shoe cord.



Thats extremely poor!
Dosn't sound like the same service centre that turned around my camera on only 1 day.

I wonder if you talk to AC, if they can order one for you?
They have a direct contact with the Canon service manager, who I have delt with personaly, and is VERY VERY good.

You might also try sending Cosworth a PM, he seems to be able to order parts from Canon somewhere, and get them sent to the little island he's on.

If you end having to buy a new one, then go into Apix, they have a generic one, thats about half the price :)

[FlyingPete]

just a random question do you write your emaili like that to stop spammers???

Yep, spammers run software bots across the web looking for email addresses, the second trick is to use an image (gif or jpg). I have a very good example of that happening, I posted on a news forum that displayed source email addresses many years back (you needed to email your post in, there was no fancy form like this), I have just set up my first mail server with my own domain, however I used an old Clearnet account if there was a spam risk. The dum mail server though said that my message came from clearnet@(mydomain name), not the clearnet account. now the clearnet@(mydomain name) never existed and still doens't, but you should see the shear volume of spam that comes into my domain addressed to that.

All from one post.

[weka2000]

Im back from AC ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm :lol:

This is 50mm F1.2 750sec. Oh dont use outside at F1.2 purple fringing and the fastest the shutter speed is 1/8000 sec.

The 50mm F1.2 L is big, not to heavy, solid and will be mine soon :lol:

[dgcorner]

When will the madness stop?:p Tony, do you really need that lens?

[weka2000]

When will the madness stop?:p Tony, do you really need that lens?

Did I need a 5D? ....... No. I use it all the time and love it. The 50mm F1.2L I am getting it because I can and I want it its the sort of lens you keep and yes no good for landscapes but thats not what its for.

It has a nice red ring to it :)

Oh there was a 300mm F2.8 at AC for $7500

[momentz]

However. The zoom ring SQEAKS (the noise of the focus motor is bad enough!). But that's not the worst part... the MANUAL FOCUS RING IS COMPLETELY BROKEN. It does NOTHING!!@##$

:oops: :oops: :oops: It has a clutch.. what a novelty...

[tim]

Well done Wazza!

Warren - Congratulations!

Tim - what headphones?

http://www.headphonereviews.org . If you need any headphones buy from amazon through there! I get 300K hits per month, 10,000 unique visitors, people link to it from wikipedia and all over.

[forsaken]

what's your project car simon?

1997 Nissan 180sx

car was imported as a parts car as it has damage to one side. The damaged side will be off to the pannelbeaters then back to sit in the barn while I get its new front and decide what engine/ gearbox combo to use.

will end up looking similar to this but probably not red as my other car is red
http://www.monkys.jp/e/img/1991KRS13S15_01_01.jpg

[weka2000]

1997 Nissan 180sx

car was imported as a parts car as it has damage to one side. The damaged side will be off to the pannelbeaters then back to sit in the barn while I get its new front and decide what engine/ gearbox combo to use.

will end up looking similar to this but probably not red as my other car is red


Not that I am a car person but have always liked the shape of the 300ZX.
I did look at buying one a few years back. Isnt the 180sx the ladys version :p

[forsaken]

Not that I am a car person but have always liked the shape of the 300ZX.
I did look at buying one a few years back. Isnt the 180sx the ladys version :p

not really the 180sx is a completely different kettle of fish.

[forsaken]

maybe you guys can help me choose a colour to paint it eventually, need something that stands out but at the same time must be easy to photograph

[weka2000]

Well Im getting in contact with all the Mangere Bridge Photographer. Found another canon user and part time wedding photographer. Pointed her to this site.

Glam is trying to offer me a 50F1.2 small down payment rest later :rolleyes:
Oh the temptation

[theflyingkiwi]

maybe you guys can help me choose a colour to paint it eventually, need something that stands out but at the same time must be easy to photograph

why don't you just import the photo in to photoshop and play with the hue untill you get a colour you like?

[weka2000]

So any one submitted any photos for the POTN book yet?

[Mark Vuleta]

I think my nephew has got a race in town that weekend.

Hi Mark
What day is your nephews race, we will down in Taupo for three days that weekend but only leaving early on Sunday 28th morning. Coming back Tuesday sometime.

I dont know anything about the Taupo region (south island my area), any suggestions regarding activities &/or photo oportunities/sites??

Cheers


Mark

[forsaken]

why don't you just import the photo in to photoshop and play with the hue untill you get a colour you like?

cos I am bad at photoshop, and don't have it installed no my laptop yet

[Nzshrimper]

cos I am bad at photoshop, and don't have it installed no my laptop yet
go for yellow...

[naqs]

go for yellow...

I would say a bright orange... but please what ever you do stay away from those three spoked wheels. :D

EDIT: How about this colour
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j316/walkntheweb/IMG_4435-1.jpg

[MattL]

I would say a bright orange... but please what ever you do stay away from those three spoked wheels. :D

and the ones that spin :rolleyes:

[tag141]

maybe you guys can help me choose a colour to paint it eventually, need something that stands out but at the same time must be easy to photograph

Get some HUGE grafix that say GReddy, TRD, STi, NISMO and things like that. Then get some more grafix and cover the front and rear windows saying "Bitch onboard" (or similar) in some unreadable gothic font. Then take the springs out so you're 'laying frame'. Paint the front calipers red and also get some blue neon screen washers jets. Lastly don't forget oversized chrome alloys. So big your speedo says your doing 100kph while you're actually going 30 !!!:rolleyes:

[MattL]

What a day!

I picked up the keys to my new house today :D :D

way to put me in a good mood :-)

Moving stuff around tomorrow, might start destroying the bathroom too.

When I get a BBQ, maybe we can have potn meets there! heh

[MattL]

Get some HUGE grafix that say GReddy, TRD, STi, NISMO and things like that. Then get some more grafix and cover the front and rear windows saying "Bitch onboard" (or similar) in some unreadable gothic font. Then take the springs out so you're 'laying frame'. Paint the front calipers red and also get some blue neon screen washers jets. Lastly don't forget oversized chrome alloys. So big your speedo says your doing 100kph while you're actually going 30 !!!:rolleyes:

:lol: If you did that, you'd really have quite a unique car! :rolleyes:

[akiwi]

Lastly don't forget oversized chrome alloys. So big your speedo says your doing 100kph while you're actually going 30 !!!:rolleyes:
On my car it works the other way round. My speedo sais 30 when I am actually doing 100!

I would go fo something subtle like.. Puke green fading to a metalic purple rear with some black yellow orange flames airbrushed onto the body. You don't want to stand out too much.

Or Pearl metallic with a half robot / woman with huge er attributes airbrushed onto the bonnet.

[theflyingkiwi]

got some photos of Comet McNaught tonite

http://www.cuthbert.net.nz/potn/CRW_0721.jpg

[tag141]

On my car it works the other way round. My speedo sais 30 when I am actually doing 100!.

Ya see, that's what moving to the northern hemisphere does to you. Everything is the other way round. TBH I can't remember which way it works. It's just funny round these parts where the boy ricers have TRD stuck all over their Hondas or STi on their EVOs. Exhausts so big you could house the refugees from a small african nation in them (plus it would be warm :D.) One poor sod has a 1.3 Laser. He cut out the word PHAT and stuck it on his centre brake light so it shows through when he brakes (bit like Batman or Phatman!). He car was solid though, 13 inch chrome hubcaps.

Oops, photography forum...1/8 second at F8.

[akiwi]

Double overhead shutter release... Bi Xenon battery grip and a super charged Nitro fuel lcd monitor would be great!

[momentz]

got some photos of Comet McNaught tonite

Awesome is the only word for that. Frame it!

[tim]

Congrats Matt! I'm going through the house hunting process now, it's a pain in the butt. I got given notice on my apartment too, have to be outa here in 5 weeks. Hopefully i'll buy before then, otherwise it's short term rentals and storage for me :(

[MattL]

oh tim without his apartment? Whatever shall you do with the plethora of ladies hanging off your arm? :P

[tim]

oh tim without his apartment? Whatever shall you do with the plethora of ladies hanging off your arm? :P

I have just one now! Lady, that is, not arm :p

Gota go to bed, tomorrow is house hunting then wedding! Weddings coming out my ears right now, could definitely do with an assistant.

[tag141]

I have just one now! Lady, that is, not arm :p

Gota go to bed, tomorrow is house hunting then wedding!

Crikey that's quick! Haven't you just met her?

[akiwi]

Crikey that's quick! Haven't you just met her? What are you doing up at nearly 4 oclock in the morning?

[tag141]

What are you doing up at nearly 4 oclock in the morning?

On-call. :cry: Sh1t loads of money for 30 seconds work :D .

[Nzshrimper]

Get some HUGE grafix that say GReddy, TRD, STi, NISMO and things like that. Then get some more grafix and cover the front and rear windows saying "Bitch onboard" (or similar) in some unreadable gothic font. Then take the springs out so you're 'laying frame'. Paint the front calipers red and also get some blue neon screen washers jets. Lastly don't forget oversized chrome alloys. So big your speedo says your doing 100kph while you're actually going 30 !!!:rolleyes:

you forgot the on-board cannon for an exhaust pipe. that you can hear for 2km away and the 'slicks' racing tyres.

Awesome is the only word for that. Frame it!

thats two words but your right thats a stunner. Great shot Mark.

Double overhead shutter release... Bi Xenon battery grip and a super charged Nitro fuel lcd monitor would be great!

pimp my Canon ;)

[dgcorner]

:oops: It has a clutch.. what a novelty...

Indeed, the clutch takes getting used to:D

Well done Wazza!



http://www.headphonereviews.org . If you need any headphones buy from amazon through there! I get 300K hits per month, 10,000 unique visitors, people link to it from wikipedia and all over.

Thanks Tim

maybe you guys can help me choose a colour to paint it eventually, need something that stands out but at the same time must be easy to photograph

Nice car Simon. Canary Yellow always looked good on that car. Flaming Red too. Suggest you also change the wheels - those 3 spokes do not do the car justice.

What a day!

I picked up the keys to my new house today :D :D

way to put me in a good mood :-)

Moving stuff around tomorrow, might start destroying the bathroom too.

When I get a BBQ, maybe we can have potn meets there! heh

Congrats Matt! Welcome to the Mortgage game.

got some photos of Comet McNaught tonite

WOW!!! Frame it!


. . . pimp my Canon ;)

Gosh, I wonder what a 20D will look like in lime green?:lol:

[theflyingkiwi]

:oops: :oops: :oops: It has a clutch.. what a novelty...

what's a clutch ? :rolleyes: :lol:

WOW!!! Frame it!

I am thinking that :)

[naqs]

I have just one now! Lady, that is, not arm :p

Gota go to bed, tomorrow is house hunting then wedding! Weddings coming out my ears right now, could definitely do with an assistant.

hmm... how much an hour? :p

[weka2000]

Well been thinking. $2500 for a 50mm F1.2 L. I think for the same amount of money I could get a lot more. For what I want to Do I could use the 50mm F1.4 and tripod.

Why the change of mind 1 word WIFE :lol:

[Nzshrimper]

Well been thinking. $2500 for a 50mm F1.2 L. I think for the same amount of money I could get a lot more. For what I want to Do I could use the 50mm F1.4 and tripod.

Why the change of mind 1 word WIFE :lol:


at least i am not the only one. ;) I get that all the time. 'Why spend all this money on that...' - she just does not get it.. :rolleyes:

[weka2000]

at least i am not the only one. ;) I get that all the time. 'Why spend all this money on that...' - she just does not get it.. :rolleyes:

Yes .... But sometimes our wifes are correct even though me may not want to agree. I always run things past mine as often she will see something different that I didnt think about.

[Nzshrimper]

Yes .... But sometimes our wifes are correct even though me may not want to agree. I always run things past mine as often she will see something different that I didnt think about.
i run it past her because i cant be bothered with the two weeks of sulking and fights. :D and then months later have it all dragged back up again. ;)

[weka2000]

i run it past her because i cant be bothered with the two weeks of sulking and fights. :D and then months later have it all dragged back up again. ;)

Ah yes the pi$$ed off wife issue. Hell I can acheive that without spending a cent I just open my mouth :lol:

[Nzshrimper]

Ah yes the pi$$ed off wife issue. Hell I can acheive that without spending a cent I just open my mouth :lol:
i can do it by the power of thought ... :D

[jasestu]

Oh right, didn't realise this was an NZ general ramblings... GKPE? K stands for Kiwi? What's the rest?

Anyway, yeah, new here - based in Whakatane.

[theflyingkiwi]

hey, good to see ya here.

the gkpe stands for General Kiwi Photography Expedition.

we even have a web site. www.gkpe.org.nz

[jasestu]

And here's the back story to my McNaught shots (since we're all about rambing...)

Click here for a Google map of Edgecumbe area (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=western+drain+rd,+bay+of+plenty,+nz&sll=-37.996392,176.85131&sspn=0.208598,0.431557&ie=UTF8&z=12&ll=-38.029704,176.87027&spn=0.208504,0.544167&t=h&om=1&iwloc=addr)
I was shooting from a couple of km to the west of Awakeri (pretty much where the green arrow appears), looking South-West (obviously, since that's were the comet is). Some of the orange glow on the right of the images was due to the mill in Kawerau, which you can see is just to the west of the Mountain. Luckily those Sodium vapour lights just add to the sunset effect. :)

Except in this one the lights are a bit too obvious:

[tag141]

They're building a wind farm down here. I wish the wind was strong enough to get rid of this bloody cloud cover. Can they put wind turbines in reverse to 'blow' cloud away? I'd go down the beach and try and take a few pics otherwise.

[weka2000]

I was born in Whakatane and spent a year at Kawerau College.

Welcome aboard

[dgcorner]

Welcome aboard Jason! The "G" stand for "Great" not "General" as Mark puts it.

[naqs]

And here's the back story to my McNaught shots (since we're all about rambing...)

Click here for a Google map of Edgecumbe area (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=western+drain+rd,+bay+of+plenty,+nz&sll=-37.996392,176.85131&sspn=0.208598,0.431557&ie=UTF8&z=12&ll=-38.029704,176.87027&spn=0.208504,0.544167&t=h&om=1&iwloc=addr)
I was shooting from a couple of km to the west of Awakeri (pretty much where the green arrow appears), looking South-West (obviously, since that's were the comet is). Some of the orange glow on the right of the images was due to the mill in Kawerau, which you can see is just to the west of the Mountain. Luckily those Sodium vapour lights just add to the sunset effect. :)

Except in this one the lights are a bit too obvious:

wow cool... They have New Zealand maps now

[theflyingkiwi]

Welcome aboard Jason! The "G" stand for "Great" not "General" as Mark puts it.

I am photographed corrected :)

hey got to have something in this thread photography related :)

[weka2000]

Well just semt of a bunch of e-mails via myspace, lets see what comes back re new models and over 30 :)

[davidatgrafton]

Ok Here's something photography related. Hi, David here from Chch. Just bought a silicon power 2gb cf card for 350d. Formatted it, shot a few photos and camera froze and wouldn't switch off. reformatted and managed to get 40 photos onto laptop and got "cf error", tried reformatting and got "error 99" I put in the old 512 card and camera works fine. Anyway,the card goes back on Monday. Anyone else had this happen?

[Nzshrimper]

Ok Here's something photography related. Hi, David here from Chch. Just bought a silicon power 2gb cf card for 350d. Formatted it, shot a few photos and camera froze and wouldn't switch off. reformatted and managed to get 40 photos onto laptop and got "cf error", tried reformatting and got "error 99" I put in the old 512 card and camera works fine. Anyway,the card goes back on Monday. Anyone else had this happen?
Hey Dave good see another CHCH member.. so i am not alone any more. ;)
Welcome to GKPE

CF card card failure. hmm not nice, where did you get it from?

[davidatgrafton]

Photo and video in Merivale with new lens so should be no trouble swapping it. I should have got a sandisk. I think I'll pay the difference and do that. I have a dodgy Internet connection 2night so slow 2 reply

[Nzshrimper]

Photo and video in Merivale with new lens so should be no trouble swapping it. I should have got a sandisk. I think I'll pay the difference and do that. I have a dodgy Internet connection 2night so slow 2 reply
we all have dodgy Internet connections in NZ. ;)

Photo and Video have great customer service so i cant see any issues with the swap. (they are open tomorrow as well).

error 99 is what the camera will display if the error is not with the body, in other words it knows somethings wrong but does not know what it is..

(bit like women.) so what do you do in chch

[theflyingkiwi]

Photo and video in Merivale with new lens so should be no trouble swapping it. I should have got a sandisk. I think I'll pay the difference and do that. I have a dodgy Internet connection 2night so slow 2 reply

Hey David, how ya going

I use a kingston 2gb card with out any problems on my 10D. I am looking at getting a kingston 4gb cf card.

I think scandisk costs to much

[joeseph]

Ok Here's something photography related. Hi, David here from Chch. Just bought a silicon power 2gb cf card for 350d. Formatted it, shot a few photos and camera froze and wouldn't switch off. reformatted and managed to get 40 photos onto laptop and got "cf error", tried reformatting and got "error 99" I put in the old 512 card and camera works fine. Anyway,the card goes back on Monday. Anyone else had this happen?
Hi David - welcome aboard!
I had a 'el cheapo CF card that woorked 99% of the time and 1% it would corrupt the image. Got it replaced and haven't seen any such problems since. They're pretty hardy items - before I sent it back I tied it to a sparkplug lead and run the car for 10 mins: result - no loss of images...

[theflyingkiwi]

Hi David - welcome aboard!
I had a 'el cheapo CF card that woorked 99% of the time and 1% it would corrupt the image. Got it replaced and haven't seen any such problems since. They're pretty hardy items - before I sent it back I tied it to a sparkplug lead and run the car for 10 mins: result - no loss of images...

are you sure that's your CF card and not your filter in front of your sensor?

[weka2000]

it knows somethings wrong but does not know what it is..

(bit like women.)

Im still looking for the manual for my wife. Have all my Canon ones. Now where is that off button :lol:

Oh had a reply re myspace 1 down 13 to go :lol:

[davidatgrafton]

I teach classical guitar at a few schools here. I got a laptop to do music stuff and discovered photography again after some 35 years. It's very strange working in colour. It took a long time to realise there are no right answers in the editing process, so I'm trying to get a feel for works for me in the way a photo comes out. Mainly I enjoy taking the year's photographs from the flamenco group I accompany and from the heritage group down at Ferrymead and turning them into calendars for members. Had to laugh.. spent all this time trying to get sharp photos and good colour only to knock it back to b&w and slightly fuzzy for a 1910 calendar for them. What do you do here?

[Nzshrimper]

I teach classical guitar at a few schools here. I got a laptop to do music stuff and discovered photography again after some 35 years. It's very strange working in colour. It took a long time to realise there are no right answers in the editing process, so I'm trying to get a feel for works for me in the way a photo comes out. Mainly I enjoy taking the year's photographs from the flamenco group I accompany and from the heritage group down at Ferrymead and turning them into calendars for members. Had to laugh.. spent all this time trying to get sharp photos and good colour only to knock it back to b&w and slightly fuzzy for a 1910 calendar for them. What do you do here?

Computer techie.

[naqs]

who was the one who got a media pass to the A1GP? ???

[davidatgrafton]

Cool. Then this digital stuff won't have been such a steep learning curve

[theflyingkiwi]

who was the one who got a media pass to the A1GP? ???

did someone from our little group get a media pass?

Cool. Then this digital stuff won't have been such a steep learning curve

we are all helpful around. You can even ask in some of the main forums, there are a lot of people here that know a great deal.

I am a computer tech here as well

[Nzshrimper]

who was the one who got a media pass to the A1GP? ???
i applied - but they wanted to let every know two weeks before the event who had a pass. so i withdrew my application. :( could not risk booking flights and accom to be told sorry no pass. or getting the pass and not getting flights etc. and with two weeks notice the flights would have been to expensive.

[Nzshrimper]

Cool. Then this digital stuff won't have been such a steep learning curve
yep you would think :rolleyes: .. but we all learn every day.. esp with these lot as back up.. :D