California Meet Up #7 : Spring '09

ok.. i like this one better.. the world of difference a tiny s curve can do. this one was taken a few minutes later.

Another great shot of the bridge! I wish Chris and I could have stayed longer.

Very nice indeed Shannon.

I like how the lights are not as bright and the reflection is softer. Now if you bring a generator and sodium lamp to illuminate the back side of that rock in the water..


I wonder what it would look like if you dodged out some of the sodium light during those long exposures to lessen the effect on the overall picture.
Alan, I am getting closer to your house.... I was on Shell ridge today. Rock city or Mt. Diablo is next.

meh_meli wrote in post #7834396
Alan, I am getting closer to your house.... I was on Shell ridge today. Rock city or Mt. Diablo is next.

Thanks for the warning.

Seeing as that IR photo was of ALMOST everyone (except the guy with the long distance award), here he is.
All the way from Houston Texas.

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For some reason, I keep getting an error message when I'm trying to post some pics. Here is a link to my Flickr if anyone wants to see a few of mine from Saturday.
http://www.flickr.com/​photos/cbh76/

Very nice Chris.

The composition of your images make me want to go back and try again.

Thanks Alan!

I was thinking of making a return trip myself.

Scott007 wrote in post #7827393
It's Scott and his brother.

How was the hockey game, Denzil?

It was great! We won 4 - 1 and I scored a goal.

I still haven't had the opportunity to go through all my pictures and the ones that I have gone through I can tell that I need a lot more practicing to do, haha. I've been busy with school as of late.

On another note, I'm doing a job tomorrow taking pictures with a family-friend who owns his own photog developing shop and we'll be taking portrait pictures of 2.5-year-olds after their softball/baseball games. I borrowed my sister's flash (which is some crappy non-brand one off of eBay) and the tripod I have is apparently for a video camera (another crappy piece of equipment, haha). So this leads me to my two questions but what would you guys/gals recommend for me for a beginnner tripod and flash? I think I'm going to go with a tripod first (thinking Bogen Manfrotto) and then the flash (some sort of Speedlite) but I'm open to suggestions. I'm such a newbie!!!

I went through a lot of the threads here on POTN but the information is fairly overwhelming. However, since I've met some of you, I'd rather hear your personal thoughts and recommendations since I know you better.

Anyway, thanks in advance!

cbh76 wrote in post #7838182
Thanks Alan!

I was thinking of making a return trip myself.

That would be California Meet Up #7.1
I think I will make use of this EPA site for particulate matter in the air and pick a clear day.
http://cfpub.epa.gov …rnow.showlocal&​CityID=228

Denzil,

If you can swing it, the 580EXII is an awesome flash. It'll do just about everything for you.
How about a used 580EX?
If that's too high in price, try checking out a new 430EXII or even a used 430EX?
Have you checked the buy and sell board on here?

Craigslist has a few on there right now as well.

For a tripod, do you want sturdy at a fair price, or are you looking for lightweight?
I have actually been fairly lucky in combining all three

Chris,

Your photos are beautiful!

I'm curios as to what you did to them to make them so vivid. Are the images straight out of the camera, or did you process them?

I upped the saturation on mine, and adjusted the levels, but they are no where near as rich as your images.

Allan

Killjoy wrote in post #7840868
Denzil,

If you can swing it, the 580EXII is an awesome flash. It'll do just about everything for you.
How about a used 580EX?
If that's too high in price, try checking out a new 430EXII or even a used 430EX?
Have you checked the buy and sell board on here?

Craigslist has a few on there right now as well.

For a tripod, do you want sturdy at a fair price, or are you looking for lightweight?
I have actually been fairly lucky in combining all three

Hmm, I'll look into the flashes. As for the tripod, I'm looking at all options really but I'm just trying to get somewhat decent gear on the cheap. I really just need something cheap to start with that will hold up for maybe a year or two. I guess you could say I'm looking for value-priced items! With that in mind, I guess I should be looking at used stuff then...

Devilspike wrote in post #7840258
On another note, I'm doing a job tomorrow taking pictures with a family-friend who owns his own photog developing shop and we'll be taking portrait pictures of 2.5-year-olds after their softball/baseball games. I borrowed my sister's flash (which is some crappy non-brand one off of eBay) and the tripod I have is apparently for a video camera (another crappy piece of equipment, haha). So this leads me to my two questions but what would you guys/gals recommend for me for a beginnner tripod and flash? I think I'm going to go with a tripod first (thinking Bogen Manfrotto) and then the flash (some sort of Speedlite) but I'm open to suggestions. I'm such a newbie!!!

Denzil,

I second Alan's opinion. I have the 580EX and a 420EX. The 580EX is awesome. I use it at church and can light up the stage from 60 feet away. The 420EX is OK for up close stuff, although I only use it as second fill flash (slaved off the 580EX). The 430EX would work fine for taking portraits and other pictures that are not too far away.

I own a Bogen Manfrotto tripod and really like it, although I did not get one of the real light ones (3021B w/488RC2 HEAD).

As for whether to get a flash or tripod first, it depends on what you primarily shoot. If you take a lot of portraits and can shoot at shutter speeds that will let you hand hold the camera and get a sharp image, then I would get the flash first. I rarely use my tripod. My flash is always on my camera, since I take a lot of candid photos. If you like to shoot with long shutter times, then the tripod is a must.

You could get a good flash, then buy a used or relatively inexpensive tripod. Just make sure the tripod is rated for the weight of the camera and attached gear.

Allan