CGrindahl wrote:
Love the challenge you and your friend have given one another. These are times when every creative adventure is welcome. No doubt, folks are returning to this thread for exactly that reason... BOREDOM...
NightOwl Cat wrote:
85 f/1.4 AI-s or the 105 f/2.5, the AI-s version has the built-in hood that slides forward. There's also the 85 f/1.8 H C Auto
Thanks to both of you. The conveniently available examples of the above were priced on the high side so I'll keep my eyes open for now.
I did get a 1972 pre-AI single coated Nikkor-P Auto 105mm f/2.5 with hood that looked to be in very good shape for a song. I realise this isn't the most popular 105 but I figured there's no harm in AI-modding it and seeing what it can do.
Some more 55mm f/2.8 AIS macros - PK17 I think is the tube used.
These are still from the batch with LED back light on a light table. The slide copy adapter is still being shipped around the world (purchased in Japan, March 4 - Estimated delivery Thu, Mar 19 - Fri, Apr 03 - so should be here tomorrow?)
Nothing new in my processing with this batch. So today I'm showing off the focal lengths I used back in the day
Here two taken with the super wide 14mm
All exposures the same here, f/5.6 1/50s ISO 64 on D810, cropped to match neg frame size
These shots are why one of the first lenses I bought for my full frame D600 was a 14mm Rokinon. Above was taken with the 14mm f/2.8 (Canon, I know, but 90% of the car shooters those days used Canon. Canon was killing Nikon on the long lens front. The two things I envied Nikon shooters for was their fantastic automatic fill flash in daylight and the 16mm fisheye, another lens I procured asap for my Nikon full frame)
My favorite big lens to shoot these cars was the 600mm f/4. I shot it so much, even where others shot 300mm that it became my trademark lens. The 1.4x converter went on a lot as well. This history is likely the reason I bought the Nikon 600mm f/4 ED AIS for my DSLR. We mostly shot the long lenses manual focus when subjects were moving, so there wasn't a big difference when I went to full manual. Pre-focus, shoot, hope for the car to be in the right spot. The number of keepers was ok as I shot 1/500s f/8 a lot to get that depth of field. More images were soft because of low shutter speed than focus. Today, it's all different when AF can nail the focus in a millisecond, and dynamic range lets you push a stop or more without IQ penalty. The number of keepers is just overwhelming these days and "editing" becomes the new problem, not "getting a shot"
Pit stops obviously didn't have the problems with shutter speed - this is likely 1/200s f/4 ISO 100 Fuji Super G100 on monopod and the single dot EOS-1n AF used to get Greg Moore in focus, the rest was far enough away to be also in focus, but the nose tip is already a bit soft. The AF back then loved the edgy rear wings of these cars, but with low depth of field, you never had a usable front or even driver in focus. In the pit lane, it was easier to just grab one of the fuelers who always were mid-car as focus point and re-compose
CGrindahl wrote:
Honestly, I can't imagine doing photo processing on a laptop though I know people do that. When I traveled to Turkey with Rinie many years ago she brought her 13" MacBook. I used it primarily to offload photos from my D700, then saved them to a 500GB portable drive I brought with me. I did take the occasion to process a couple of photos to upload on FM but it was so painful after spending time on a 27" iMac. I love having all that real estate. Of course, you can attach your MacBook to a monitor which likely have. That works well.
One thing you might consider as you sort this out is to look at Apple's refurbished computers. Sometimes what is offered is new gear being cleared and even when a product is refurbished it has been completely worked over and comes with a full one year Apple warranty that can be extended with Apple Care. I've bought a few refurbished computers over the years and never had a problem either with cosmetics or performance. Here is a link to the refurbished Macs, both iMac and MacBooks.
My LG gram 17" fits a 2560 by 1600 wonderfully accurate display in a 15" body size, is incredibly lightweight and speedy at photo processing i7, 16 Gig, 512 Gig SSD. I happily process in it. Another trick I use is to remote desktop from he laptop to the desktop using win 10 pro, everything looks and works as if I was working in the laptop but all the work is being done in the desktop, this is a real battery saver.
NightOwl Cat wrote:
But that is not the "Oldest Active Duty Ship" out there.
Sorry, I missed the "active duty" my brain went to oldest only! The USS Constitution is the oldest but is not really active, the LC-19 USS Blue Ridge's keel was laid Feb. 27, 1967 makingit the oldest truly active duty ship in the Navy, but I don't have a model.
rafaelcasd wrote:
My LG gram 17" fits a 2560 by 1600 wonderfully accurate display in a 15" body size, is incredibly lightweight and speedy at photo processing i7, 16 Gig, 512 Gig SSD. I happily process in it. Another trick I use is to remote desktop from he laptop to the desktop using win 10 pro, everything looks and works as if I was working in the laptop but all the work is being done in the desktop, this is a real battery saver.
leighton w wrote:
The LG is one of the laptops I've looked at.
Regarding laptops - right now I'd hold back a few weeks until products with the Ryzen 9 4900 HS cpu arrive - it's a pretty massive performance step, at a price lower than anything Intel can put together, better on power consumption, too. Right now there is only one 14" laptop available, but that will chance soon
see this review of the chip and why it is such a game changer in the laptop market
We just had to get out today. All of the family came along on a short trip to a nearby forest area. Social distancing in the forest is great. I feel al lot better today but we were only out for a very short hike, kids got rid of excessive energy and we could get some fresh air (and I could take a couple of shots).
Here´s a 10 shot pano I took with the D800 and the 50-135mm f/3.5 ais @ 50mm and f/5.6.
Looks like we're on the macro mode. I saw a leaf while playing outside with the kids. I took it inside. Here are some shots with the 200mm f4 AIS Micro.
Solaire wrote:
Thanks to both of you. The conveniently available examples of the above were priced on the high side so I'll keep my eyes open for now.
I did get a 1972 pre-AI single coated Nikkor-P Auto 105mm f/2.5 with hood that looked to be in very good shape for a song. I realise this isn't the most popular 105 but I figured there's no harm in AI-modding it and seeing what it can do.
I'm very fond of the 105 f/2.5P enough so that after shooting with a fair condition copy of the lens that had Nikon AI conversion kit, I bought a second, mint copy and swapped aperture rings. My first manual focus Nikon lens was the venerable 105 f/2.5 AI-s and it is a great lens, but as my kit building continued I learned to love the earlier lenses. So long as you can mount the lens, it doesn't really matter which version you buy since they can all be a joy to use. Because I'm shooting with the silver Df, I'm especially fond of the older lenses that have more silver. Here's a photo of the four 105mm lenses in my kit. The P shown was the first copy I subsequently replaced.
One of the stalwarts for sure Laura. I remember your early attempt at explaining extension tubes to me. And yes, boredom can be a great motivator. Often the ways we've busied ourselves aren't available when we're sheltering in place, so the internet beckons and what better way to use it than to spend time with photographers who love our favorite lenses...
