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TSR PhotoSoc (and post your gear thread)

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Original post by Sir Fox
You should definitely show us some of your results some time!

I was in the Cairngorms with my university's Mountaineering Club last Sunday and my group got kinda lost in a valley after dark. Sleet and wind in our face, knuckle deep in a swamp, no idea where we were, but above us the band of the milky way as bright as I'd never seen it before. Have to take my tripod on the next full-weekend trip :smile:


Aside from the weather/swamp than sounds wonderful! I'd love to get into the wilds with my camera but I don't have any transport :frown:

Here's a couple I took last night, these are just as they came from the camera with no stacking or editting.

This one was just a patch of sky I thought was dark, ended up capturing the Andromeda galaxy and what I think are two meteors!


This one is the Pleiades star cluster which has come out really nicely.


I'm very impressed with them, getting Andromea was a real piece of luck. I've photographed it before but with a different, I was specifically looking for it then and struggled to find it. Last night it just accidentally ended up in the shot. I'd really like to see what this lens can do in better conditions and when I stack the photos.
Original post by Manitude
Aside from the weather/swamp than sounds wonderful! I'd love to get into the wilds with my camera but I don't have any transport :frown:

Here's a couple I took last night, these are just as they came from the camera with no stacking or editting.

This one was just a patch of sky I thought was dark, ended up capturing the Andromeda galaxy and what I think are two meteors!


This one is the Pleiades star cluster which has come out really nicely.


I'm very impressed with them, getting Andromea was a real piece of luck. I've photographed it before but with a different, I was specifically looking for it then and struggled to find it. Last night it just accidentally ended up in the shot. I'd really like to see what this lens can do in better conditions and when I stack the photos.


Nice! One of my favourite photo sessions I've had was night sky stuff:

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Original post by greeneyedgirl
Nice! One of my favourite photo sessions I've had was night sky stuff:

IMG_6258_WM.jpg
IMG_6262_WM.jpg
IMG_6276_WB.jpg


Oh wow, those are amazing! What kind of kit are you using to get those results?
Original post by Manitude
Oh wow, those are amazing! What kind of kit are you using to get those results?


Think this was Canon 1100D, my Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 ultra wide, a tripod, remote shutter and a loooooong exposure! Plus I was at the top of Spain's highest mountain which is famous for it's night skies (hence being able to see the Milky Way.
Original post by greeneyedgirl
Think this was Canon 1100D, my Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 ultra wide, a tripod, remote shutter and a loooooong exposure! Plus I was at the top of Spain's highest mountain which is famous for it's night skies (hence being able to see the Milky Way.


Very nice. That lens looks really good, but a bit more than I can afford right now, seeing as I just spent £100 on a 40mm f/2.8 lens! It's something for when I've got a job I think :tongue:
Original post by Manitude
Very nice. That lens looks really good, but a bit more than I can afford right now, seeing as I just spent £100 on a 40mm f/2.8 lens! It's something for when I've got a job I think :tongue:


I want my next lens to be a 30mm I think :yep: it is a gorgeous lens...I didn't have the money for it but Gofre persuaded me damn him :tongue:
Original post by greeneyedgirl
I want my next lens to be a 30mm I think :yep: it is a gorgeous lens...I didn't have the money for it but Gofre persuaded me damn him :tongue:


So many pretty lenses... I cannot possess them all :frown:

I think I'll have to wait a while before getting another new one, there are other things that are more pressing for me like a new computer as this one is on its last legs!
Original post by Manitude
So many pretty lenses... I cannot possess them all :frown:

I think I'll have to wait a while before getting another new one, there are other things that are more pressing for me like a new computer as this one is on its last legs!


And without a functioning computer how else are you going to internet browse pretty lenses?!
Original post by greeneyedgirl
And without a functioning computer how else are you going to internet browse pretty lenses?!


This is very true :tongue:
I need to go somewhere where it's really dark at night. I've attempted it in my back garden but you can't really see all that much.

Went camping a couple of times over the summer and in both locations the sky looked awesome when it was clear, but I could never be bothered to unlock the car and get my gear out :s-smilie:
Reply 50
Avatar for dhr90
dhr90
18
I'm now seriously looking at getting a laptop for photo editing, and with the potential for post christmas deals to be had now is probably the time to get a bit more clued up.

Desires:
15" Full HD screen (I have a 23" external monitor I would use for serious editing, but would still like a high resolution on the laptop screen too).
8GB RAM (preferably 16 for future proofing).
Min 500GB HDD. Even if I keep my photo library on external drives, I have a fair amount of music and films so anything less just won't be enough I think.
The ability to easily get rid of the bloatware that Microsoft/laptop makers insist on providing.

Cost: no more than £750 (ideally it will be nearer the £600 mark), this rules out any kind of Macbook. The one I would like is close to £1500 so isn't even vaguely achievable.

What i5/i7 processors should I be looking for or to avoid? Same for graphics processors/cards?

I'm open to the idea of refurbished, but it'd have to be as new basically, and I'd need to see it before purchasing to be happy.

Currently I'm using my parents Dell desktop for all computer duties which has the following spec:
AMD 64 X2 Dual Core 5000+
2GB RAM
NVidia GForce 8400GS

Its just slow, old (it was cheap in 2005/6 when we got it), a full HDD doesn't help but I can't delete anything as the files aren't mine and its just inconvenient. I have a desktop myself but the spec isn't much better (3GB RAM, woo) and there is nowhere for me to set it up, hence my desire to have a laptop despite the premium in price for the spec.

All help is appreciated.
I finished off my recent gear acquisition craze with a new bag - the old tiny sling I originally bought for my Bridge camera almost 5 years ago was getting way too small for my DSLR gear. I'll keep it for walks in urban areas where I need a maximum of two lenses, but as I've lately got into hiking and mountaineering in the Scottish highlands and travel a lot anyway, it was time for a proper backpack.

Got myself an f-stop Loka with a Small Pro ICU. For those not familiar with the brand - you get one of their backpacks and then choose a photo inlay (ICU) according to your gear size. In order to get more space for non-photography gear (crampons, jacket, food etc.) I took one of the smallest, but it still fits all my gear and has more room for another two lenses. I haven't taken the bag out for a field test yet but the quality of the material and workmanship feel superb (they'd better be for the price!) and it has a lot of well thought out features that show how the brand got so popular amongst outdoor photographers - loads of small pockets for filters, memory cards and batteries, a hydration system, straps on both sides and the back to fit a tripod/snowboard/ski and so on. It also officially fits a 13' laptop (but rumour has it it'll also take 15' if you kindly ask).

Here are some pictures:







Original post by dhr90
X


Consider adding a smallish (128 GB?) SSD to run your OS and Lightroom/Photoshop etc. from, makes the whole thing run much faster. You can store your files on your HDD.
(edited 9 years ago)
Reply 52
Avatar for dhr90
dhr90
18
Original post by Sir Fox
I finished off my recent gear acquisition craze with a new bag - the old tiny sling I originally bought for my Bridge camera almost 5 years ago was getting way too small for my DSLR gear. I'll keep it for walks in urban areas where I need a maximum of two lenses, but as I've lately got into hiking and mountaineering in the Scottish highlands and travel a lot anyway, it was time for a proper backpack.

Got myself an f-stop Loka with a Small Pro ICU. For those not familiar with the brand - you get one of their backpacks and then choose a photo inlay (ICU) according to your gear size. In order to get more space for non-photography gear (crampons, jacket, food etc.) I took one of the smallest, but it still fits all my gear and has more room for another two lenses. I haven't taken the bag out for a field test yet but the quality of the material and workmanship feel superb (they'd better be for the price!) and it has a lot of well thought out features that show how the brand got so popular amongst outdoor photographers - loads of small pockets for filters, memory cards and batteries, a hydration system, straps on both sides and the back to fit a tripod/snowboard/ski and so on. It also officially fits a 13' laptop (but rumour has it it'll also take 15' if you kindly ask).

Here are some pictures:









Consider adding a smallish (128 GB?) SSD to run your OS and Lightroom/Photoshop etc. from, makes the whole thing run much faster. You can store your files on your HDD.


Looks like a good bag, if a little bright. Mind you I can't talk, I got a bright red hiking daysack to hold my camera...

That is a good idea. If I could do that and add a 500GB drive at a later date even then I'd definitely be interested. Or do you mean a SSD to the current PC I'm using?
I just had to shoot with a nikon over past 2 days... So odd trying to change camera :tongue: definitely will be glad getting back to canon!

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Reply 54
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dhr90
18
Original post by greeneyedgirl
I just had to shoot with a nikon over past 2 days... So odd trying to change camera :tongue: definitely will be glad getting back to canon!

Posted from TSR Mobile


Every time my dad hands over his Nikon to get me to take a photo it just feels so wrong and less intuitive. Especially the menus.


Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by dhr90
Every time my dad hands over his Nikon to get me to take a photo it just feels so wrong and less intuitive. Especially the menus.


Posted from TSR Mobile


Yes definitely! And trying to adjust settings was just bizarre.
Original post by greeneyedgirl
I just had to shoot with a nikon over past 2 days... So odd trying to change camera :tongue: definitely will be glad getting back to canon!

Posted from TSR Mobile



Original post by dhr90
Every time my dad hands over his Nikon to get me to take a photo it just feels so wrong and less intuitive. Especially the menus.


Posted from TSR Mobile


I was playing with a few Nikons at the airport a few weeks ago and it does feel really foreign, I hated the UI especially. Although I'd bet if you thrust a Canon onto a Nikon shooter they'd feel the exact same way, but they're obviously brainwashed and it can't be helped :ahee:

I was also playing with the 70D, and now I'm craving one again :moon: I'll be hard pressed to resist blowing all the extra cash I've made over Christmas (currently on my last night of a stretch of five 12hr night shifts) on one! But on the other hand it will kill the upgrade fever again... No Gofre, don't do it....


Original post by dhr90
I'm now seriously looking at getting a laptop for photo editing, and with the potential for post christmas deals to be had now is probably the time to get a bit more clued up.

Desires:
15" Full HD screen (I have a 23" external monitor I would use for serious editing, but would still like a high resolution on the laptop screen too).
8GB RAM (preferably 16 for future proofing).
Min 500GB HDD. Even if I keep my photo library on external drives, I have a fair amount of music and films so anything less just won't be enough I think.
The ability to easily get rid of the bloatware that Microsoft/laptop makers insist on providing.

Cost: no more than £750 (ideally it will be nearer the £600 mark), this rules out any kind of Macbook. The one I would like is close to £1500 so isn't even vaguely achievable.

What i5/i7 processors should I be looking for or to avoid? Same for graphics processors/cards?

I'm open to the idea of refurbished, but it'd have to be as new basically, and I'd need to see it before purchasing to be happy.

Currently I'm using my parents Dell desktop for all computer duties which has the following spec:
AMD 64 X2 Dual Core 5000+
2GB RAM
NVidia GForce 8400GS

Its just slow, old (it was cheap in 2005/6 when we got it), a full HDD doesn't help but I can't delete anything as the files aren't mine and its just inconvenient. I have a desktop myself but the spec isn't much better (3GB RAM, woo) and there is nowhere for me to set it up, hence my desire to have a laptop despite the premium in price for the spec.

All help is appreciated.


Firstly, pay attention to the four digit number that follows the model name and be sure it begins with a 4, for example i5-4200M. This means it's the latest generation of Intel processor :yep:

The basic jist of Intel processors is that the mobile ones are divided into M variants and U variants, which is denoted after the processor number (there are couple of rarer ones like H and T but they're rarely found in conventional Windows machines). U variants are low power chips designed for tablets, ultrabooks etc, while the M variants are running at more conventional 2GHz+ clock speeds. Obviously when it comes to more intensive applications, say for example photo editing, the extra power of the M chips is preferable.

From there the i7 chips split into two further variants, M and MQ/HQ. The Q denotes that the processor is quad core (mobile i5 and i7 chips only come in dual core), which is again a boon for intensive applications- double the cores and threads means more actions being executed simultaneously. You can probably find a laptop with a quad core i7 within your budget, depending on your other considerations.

As for graphics cards, everything I've read points to a dedicated GPU being of lower importance for photo editing than the CPU, which handles most of the workload. A modest entry level card like an 850M or 950M will give you a bit of headroom in the event that you want to try basic video editing in the future or photo editing software starts utilising graphics hardware, but it's not really a top priority- Macs certainly wouldn't be so popular among photographers and visual artists if graphical power was important :ahee:

I'm also going to agree with Sir Fox in that an SSD is a big help for working on when you have PS/LR etc installed on it, I recently moved my Lightroom installation onto my SSD boot drive and things move along much more quickly now. Pair it with a 1TB+ conventional hard drive for mass storage for the best of both worlds.

So, as for recommendations, I'm going to make the same suggestion I make for virtually all Windows machines these days when the buyer wants to spend over £500, and that's to get a custom laptop from pcspecialist.com. You have absolute free reign over virtually every aspect of the laptop's configuration, they're well built and reliable, and they are no more expensive than any comparable pre-built machines that match their specs, which sometimes don't exist depending on how exotic you go with your config, and are often even cheaper. You even get the choice to ship it with Windows 7 if you want it. They're an excellent company to consider!
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by dhr90
Looks like a good bag, if a little bright. Mind you I can't talk, I got a bright red hiking daysack to hold my camera ...


That's the point :biggrin: I like the colour, plus when out in the wild you want to be visible.

That is a good idea. If I could do that and add a 500GB drive at a later date even then I'd definitely be interested. Or do you mean a SSD to the current PC I'm using?

Neither - both in the new computer. But I doubt 128 GB would be enough, just the OS and basic programs will eat over half of that - then you've got music, videos, images and other files, all your old stuff ...

Original post by greeneyedgirl
I just had to shoot with a nikon over past 2 days... So odd trying to change camera :tongue: definitely will be glad getting back to canon!


I tried multiple Nikons and Canons - I preferred the first over the latter, but would not take any of the two if someone paid me :biggrin: The Nikon's have terrible ergonomics (in my subjective opinion), that's why reviewers were so surprised and raved about those of the new 750D, and the lower Canons feel way too plasticy for me. Must be different with the FF ones apparently, haven't held any yet.
Reply 58
Avatar for dhr90
dhr90
18
Do it. Just think of the AF, the video functionality and improved sensor :grin:


Thanks. Do they tend to have sales on around xmas or anything? I much prefer the UI or windows 7 so that is a big bonus. Whether 8.1 is better or not I dunno. But who sticks a touch screen UI onto a non touch screen laptop in the first place?! Thats just penny pinching to me.


Original post by Sir Fox
That's the point :biggrin: I like the colour, plus when out in the wild you want to be visible.

That is a good idea. If I could do that and add a 500GB drive at a later date even then I'd definitely be interested. Or do you mean a SSD to the current PC I'm using?

Neither - both in the new computer. But I doubt 128 GB would be enough, just the OS and basic programs will eat over half of that - then you've got music, videos, images and other files, all your old stuff ...



I tried multiple Nikons and Canons - I preferred the first over the latter, but would not take any of the two if someone paid me :biggrin: The Nikon's have terrible ergonomics (in my subjective opinion), that's why reviewers were so surprised and raved about those of the new 750D, and the lower Canons feel way too plasticy for me. Must be different with the FF ones apparently, haven't held any yet.

Fair point. I assume its not a bag you'll use for street photography where the colour draws attention to yourself?

I'd probably just put the OS and lightroom on the SSD, use that for editing and then have all the files moved onto a 1TB HDD for general storage.

The 7D and 5DIII etc all feel much less plasticy and better IMO.
(edited 1 year ago)
Original post by dhr90
Do it. Just think of the AF, the video functionality and improved sensor :grin:

Nooo don't encourage me (I totally didn't post here hoping for peer pressure to give me an excuse :ninja:)! Autofocus was the first thing I noticed, so much quicker!


Thanks. Do they tend to have sales on around xmas or anything? I much prefer the UI or windows 7 so that is a big bonus. Whether 8.1 is better or not I dunno. But who sticks a touch screen UI onto a non touch screen laptop in the first place?! Thats just penny pinching to me.


Yeah I haven't moved from 7 yet, can't stand 8/8.1! I don't think they do sales, but considering any orders won't get processed u till after Christmas there's no harm in waiting and seeing :ahee:

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