Category : The Learning Center

On my way up to Milwaukee today I saw a great set of grain elevators, actually a few hundred grain elevators!  These were very high detailed so I pulled off the road, killed the engine, ran up the ISO to 800 so I could get a really fast shutter speed, ( 1/2000th of a second ), and squeezed off a shot.  I converted it to Black and White to accentuate the sharpness and then zoomed into 100% on the original file.  My goal was to settle in my mind that you could get a super sharp image hand held.

 

The answer with a high enough shutter speed and good technique?   I think is yes!

 

Your thoughts????

 

the pilgrim

 

Technical Details:   D800, ISO 800, 1/2,00oth of a second at f 6.3.   Nikon 24-120 AF-S VRF f 4 lens, set at 120mm and with VR turned on.

One of the things I love about writing the blog is the great interaction with you guys.  A little while ago I mentioned that I was desperately wanting an old Nikkor 25-50 zoom lens, they are pretty rare and hard to find.  My buddy John Gompf from New Jersey shot me an email with one he found on eBay, so I ordered it, and it came while I was at NECC, it’s near mint and I love it!  John had even made an offrer to see how low the seller would go, and so I knew I could save a little on it!  I bring the whole thing up for two reasons, first and most importantly, I really enjoy the old friendships renewed and the new ones mad, that have been a result of the pilgrim’s chronicles. It’s really fun to kick ideas back and forth with all of you and share spiritual insight.  When I was at NECC, last week, I had a half dozen people approached me and tell me they read the chronicles and it was meaningful to them.  It thrills me to know that God’s will is being done, and pray that He gets all the credit!

 

The second thing is that, like you, I’m a photoholic.  I just love my addiction to all things photography, what a great profession and hobby!  Since my experiment  with manual lenses I’ve wanted to get another 25-50 Nikkor zoom and test it.  I will do so at Oshkosh and I think I know what I will be reporting.  The history of the 25-050 is an unusual one.  It was the second “extreme” wide angle zoom Nikon ever made, you  have to remember in the 70’s 25mm was extreme for a zoom!  As our engineers always do, they attempted to make a near perfect optic, and they came very close.  For it’s time,  the 25-50 was a very expensive lens, and consequently, it never was a big seller.  A few years later it was sold out, at a bargain price, and only then did a number of people get their hands on a lens they could not have afforded otherwise. The lens became an instant classic and legend.  The interesting thing is the lens while very sharp is not what I would call legendaraly sharp, like says the 55mm Micro Nikkor. What made the lens so incredible was  that it was so well designed that it had virtually no CA (chromatic aberration)!  As a result the images from this lens have a color purity and, “look”,  that are out of this world.  Now, every lens sample is ever so slightly different, but I hope to discover that I got one of the very good ones!  Tests this week will tell the tale!

 

Thanks to all of you, out there,  many of whom I will never meet, or know, for coming here and letting me visit with you via a blog.  I know that God has inspired me to do this, and I pray He is reaching out to each of you and meeting your needs with “His” inspiration.

 

In Him,

 

the pilgrim

At the New England Camera Council Meeting I’ve been attending, I got to see and briefly test a new lens that, before the test I had little interest in, now I am very interested.  The lens is Nikon’s latest Super Zoom, a 18-300 AF-S VR DX F3.5 – 5.6.  On a DX camera, which it was designed for, it is a whopping 28-450 Equivalent.   It is well built and feels substantial without being too heavy or burdensome.  Of course that would not matter if the lens was not sharp.  My test revealed that it appears to be another shocker, maybe even sharper than the 28-300 FX lens which has become a favorite.  If that were not enough, it focuses very close even at 300 so it is essentially almost a 450 mm Micro!  Once again it is tack sharp too!  The two images at the top show it at the 18mm setting and then extended to the 300mm setting.  The thought of traveling with a 10-24 or 12-24 and an 18-300 (15mm to 450mm equivalent) is pretty exciting, if I get a consignment lens, I will do a full test.  Here are a couple of shots below that were done to just check it out, pretty impressive lens!  Oh yes it will sell for just sub $1,000.

 

 

Then Wayne Bennett shot this image of me handheld!!!

 

 

Interesting,

God Bless,

 

the pilgrim

As I was driving down to Knoxville this morning for client meetings I was thinking about the photographers that have had the great influence on me.  In most cases it has been how much I’ve learned from them, in many cases it has also been how much I’ve admired them personally.  Before I start, you are going to hear something over and over, “what a great guy they are” , this isn’t surprising because over my 43 year career that is the kind of people I gravitate to!

 

So here goes:

 

John Shaw   In the early part of my love affair with photography John was the one shooter a lot us really wanted to be like.  His technical knowledge both about photography and the natural world was almost unparalleled!  John’s images were certainly artistic enough, and his technical mastery was astounding.  John was a prolific writer and he had a number of best-selling how to books that formed the photographic library for many of us in the 70’s and 80’s.  The highest compliment might be that to this day many nature shooters, could rightfully be called John Shaw Clones!   From John I learned discipline.    www.johnshawphoto.com/

 

Joe McNally    When I first met Joe, I had no idea how good he was, I was long out of photojournalism and I knew if he worked for Life he must be good, but I had not seen that much of his work.  Later when I got to know him, he was dating one of my best friends, Anne Cahill at Nikon, I came to love him as a great guy, and someone that Anne loved dearly.  Then I started seeing his magnificent work!  He astounded me with the breadth of what he could do with a camera, he still does!  As good a shooter as Joe is, he’s an even better man.  From Joe I learned the value of caring about my subjects!      www.joemcnally.com/

 

Scott Kelby  I don’t have room to sing all the praises deserved by Scott.  He is among the best teachers, tecnicians, shooters, musicians, comedians, and all round great guys I’ve ever met, or known!  Scott is one of those multi-talented individuals that comes along once a century.  The fact that he has more followers than you can imagine is well deserved.  That his success has been astronomical is only outweighed by the fact that he deserves it!  From Scott I learned that the sky is not the limit, just the starting point!    www.scottkelby.com/

 

Bill Cox  You may not know this guy, but I’m here to tell you he is one of the most gifted shooters I’ve ever known.  When I was a younger man, Bill and I belonged to camera club we helped start.  We were very often the top to shooters in our division.  Trust me, winning against Bill was not easy!  Bill has maybe the best eye for photographic design I’ve ever seen, his work, even with an iPhone is masterful.  I learned the value of simplicity in images from Bill.    You can see Bill’s work at Instagram search for  sciencehill_360more links coming!     http://statigr.am/sciencehill_360

 

Art Wolfe   Art Wolfe may be the hardest working and most prolific photographers I’ve  ever known.  He once told me that he hired six other people to do all the, “other” work so he could stay in the field and shoot, and does he ever, I think he is out there, around the world, over 300 days per year!  I seldom see an image in an ad or story that belongs to Art that doesn’t immediately announce that he was the shooter.  Art has been a good friend for along time and I am proud to have watched him get better and better over the years.  Art taught me that you have to stay in the field, behind the camera, to get the shot!  image.www.artwolfe.com/                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

 

And now some others that have inspired, taught, and encouraged me along the way:

 

Mark Alberhasky  One of the most talented of the group of new faces in the world of photography, he has Shaw’s technical skills, Wolfe’s work ethic, and Bill Cox’s eye!    www.imagema.com/

 

Jim Begley & Chuck Summers   Two of my favorite shooters and best friends, and  great teaching partners.    They both have unique styles, and do tremendous work!     www.wowphotoshdr.com/             agpix.com/csummers         

Richard Small   A man with few peers in almost anything he shoots, especially cars, aviation and people!   www.richardsmallphotography.smugmug.com/

Tom Bol  One of the best outdoor adventure shooters around and truly nice guy!   He fills the gap with the loss of Galen Rowell.   www.tombolphoto.com/

 

Matt Kloskowksi & R.C. Concepcion  Two of the best teachers and shooters around and great people to be in the field with.  More fun than a barrel of monkeys, come to think of it!          www.mattkloskowski.com/              www.aboutrc.com/                                          

Ian Plant   One of the best up and coming nature shooters in the field today, his work is stunning.  Great vision!  www.ianplant.com/ 

 Jack Graham  One of the best workshop leaders, shooters, and one heck of nice guy!  www.jackgrahamphoto.com/

Mike Moats   Among the very best, maybe the best, close-up photographers there is.  I met Mike in person for the first time at the NECC conference and he is a great guy as well!!     www.tinylandscapes.com

 

Much thanks my friends, for sharing your vast knowledge, your wealth of experience, and your warm friendship!

 

the pilgrim