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Cyber-shot F707 -- A Multi-talented Beast!

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bluedot

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Hi everyone.

I just posted thuumbnails of every single photo I took with my F707 (and kept) since I got it (October 5). Over 900 images!



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/everything

I would love to hear your comments/criticism/bashing!! Some of these I am happy with, others not so much. And some I left because they're so bad, I know I can learn something from them!

I also updated my panorama gallery,



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/panorama

and added an all-new photo-montage section! (I started with some I did of my family).



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/photomontage

Please drop in by clicking the links above or by simply accessing the galleries from the main page at http://www.pbase.com/nichijin

And let me know what you think!!

Cheers.--mork (a.ka. bluedot)
 
Great pictures, I can tell you are truely having the time of your life.
bluedot said:
Hi everyone.

I just posted thuumbnails of every single photo I took with my
F707 (and kept) since I got it (October 5). Over 900 images!



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/everything

I would love to hear your comments/criticism/bashing!! Some of
these I am happy with, others not so much. And some I left because
they're so bad, I know I can learn something from them!

I also updated my panorama gallery,



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/panorama

and added an all-new photo-montage section! (I started with some I
did of my family).



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/photomontage

Please drop in by clicking the links above or by simply accessing
the galleries from the main page at http://www.pbase.com/nichijin

And let me know what you think!!

Cheers.
--
mork (a.ka. bluedot)
Click to expand...
 
TurboTed said:
Great pictures, I can tell you are truely having the time of your
life.
Click to expand...
Thanks for dropping in Ted! I am indeed enjoying the freedom of taking tons of pictures (without having to worry about development costs).

I'm really hoping to get feedback on some my stuff... After all, more than anything else, this is a learning process!

Cheers, mork.
 
mork - you must be having so much fun with this camera. i went through the 1st 15 pages of the portaits and my favorite is still 2130. what a great shot :-)

i went to the mall yesterday to take photos of people... seemd to dark to take pics without the flash. i haven't downloaded them yet but was wondering if you or anyone has had experience taking "secret" photos in a darker area like that? i really wanted to capture that look of exhausted shoppers or christmas spirit or something but don't know how to do it incognito with low light (without having the red radar splashing across strangers faces!).

anyway, keep clicking :-)
 
cully said:
i went to the mall yesterday to take photos of people... seemd to
dark to take pics without the flash. i haven't downloaded them yet
but was wondering if you or anyone has had experience taking
"secret" photos in a darker area like that? i really wanted to
capture that look of exhausted shoppers or christmas spirit or
something but don't know how to do it incognito with low light
(without having the red radar splashing across strangers faces!).
Click to expand...
Hi cully!

Thanks for dropping in! Shot 2130 is one of my favorites too! In fact, it is an example of shooting handheld under very low light (F2.0, 1/30). This is one of the areas where the F707 is quite strong because of its fast (large aperture) lens.

I really try to avoid using flash as the main source of light in my shots (I use fill-flash and bounce-flash a lot but that's about it). I have done a lot of shots in low light, and seem to be getting the hang of it. Here's what you can do (I assume you are shooting handheld):

1. Set the camera to shutter priority mode and select a speed of 1/30.

2. Zoom out to wide angle (38 mm on the F707). Remember the "inverse rule" (is that what the pros call it? dunno) which gives you the reasonable minimum shutter speed to shoot with at a given length of lens. So, for instance if you zoom in slightly (say to 60 mm), you have to use a shutter speed of 1/60 to avoid blur.

3. Focus on your subject (wait until auto-focus locks) and wait until he/she stops or slows down and shoot. (This assumes that the subject is not moving towards or away from you, otherwise you have to refocus).

Notes:
  • In "low light" conditions, a shutter speed of 1/30 usually means that the F707 will select a large aperture (probably as large as 2.0 at full wide) which results in very shallow depth of field, so accurate focus is crucial. I assume you would not mind the shallow DOF because you are shooting people, and at full wide you will still get a reasonably sharp background anyway.
  • I always turn off the hologram AF assist when taking candid shots anyway (however, the camera takes longer to auto focus).
  • Using wide angle means that you would have to be quite close to your subject. Try to shoot from the side or 3/4 an angle rather than full-frontal to avoid getting dirty looks (this usally produces more interesting compositions anway).
  • Practice using manual focus which is quite important in taking candid shots (AF on the F707 is quite fast but you can be faster).
  • Advanced technique (I am still practicing this!): Try to pan along with moving subjects while pressing the shutter. With some practice, you can get it just right and it creates a very interesting effect -- a "swished" background with a razor sharp subject.
P.S. I have taken lots of shots with the above-mentioned F2.0 1/30 setting. If you like, please check:

http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/portrait (shots 4566 to 4639)
http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/landscape (shots 4576 to 4667)

These were all shot handheld in extremely low light.

Hope this helps! mork.
 
monk,

In the EveryPortrait area, I only get thumbnaiks presented. The original appears to be a thuimb.

Any great work. You have a good eye for composition, and capturing some moments that express.

rgds
mike g
bluedot said:
cully said:
i went to the mall yesterday to take photos of people... seemd to
dark to take pics without the flash. i haven't downloaded them yet
but was wondering if you or anyone has had experience taking
"secret" photos in a darker area like that? i really wanted to
capture that look of exhausted shoppers or christmas spirit or
something but don't know how to do it incognito with low light
(without having the red radar splashing across strangers faces!).
Click to expand...
Hi cully!

Thanks for dropping in! Shot 2130 is one of my favorites too! In
fact, it is an example of shooting handheld under very low light
(F2.0, 1/30). This is one of the areas where the F707 is quite
strong because of its fast (large aperture) lens.

I really try to avoid using flash as the main source of light in my
shots (I use fill-flash and bounce-flash a lot but that's about
it). I have done a lot of shots in low light, and seem to be
getting the hang of it. Here's what you can do (I assume you are
shooting handheld):

1. Set the camera to shutter priority mode and select a speed of 1/30.
2. Zoom out to wide angle (38 mm on the F707). Remember the
"inverse rule" (is that what the pros call it? dunno) which gives
you the reasonable minimum shutter speed to shoot with at a given
length of lens. So, for instance if you zoom in slightly (say to 60
mm), you have to use a shutter speed of 1/60 to avoid blur.
3. Focus on your subject (wait until auto-focus locks) and wait
until he/she stops or slows down and shoot. (This assumes that the
subject is not moving towards or away from you, otherwise you have
to refocus).

Notes:
  • In "low light" conditions, a shutter speed of 1/30 usually means
that the F707 will select a large aperture (probably as large as
2.0 at full wide) which results in very shallow depth of field, so
accurate focus is crucial. I assume you would not mind the shallow
DOF because you are shooting people, and at full wide you will
still get a reasonably sharp background anyway.
  • I always turn off the hologram AF assist when taking candid shots
anyway (however, the camera takes longer to auto focus).
  • Using wide angle means that you would have to be quite close to
your subject. Try to shoot from the side or 3/4 an angle rather
than full-frontal to avoid getting dirty looks (this usally
produces more interesting compositions anway).
  • Practice using manual focus which is quite important in taking
candid shots (AF on the F707 is quite fast but you can be faster).
  • Advanced technique (I am still practicing this!): Try to pan
along with moving subjects while pressing the shutter. With some
practice, you can get it just right and it creates a very
interesting effect -- a "swished" background with a razor sharp
subject.

P.S. I have taken lots of shots with the above-mentioned F2.0 1/30
setting. If you like, please check:

http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/portrait (shots 4566 to 4639)
http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/landscape (shots 4576 to 4667)

These were all shot handheld in extremely low light.

Hope this helps! mork.
Click to expand...
 
mike g said:
In the EveryPortrait area, I only get thumbnaiks presented. The
original appears to be a thuimb.

Any great work. You have a good eye for composition, and capturing
some moments that express.
Click to expand...
Thanks for dropping in Mike!

Yes, the "Everything!" gallery (which includes "Every Portrait!" and "Every Landscape" is intended to be a catalogue of all the shots I have taken. Uploading all the originals would have been impossible, so I just uploaded thumbnails. (The other galleries on my page have full size shots).

If you are interested in any particlaur shot, please let me know and I will post the original (full size) version.

Once again, thanks for visiting! mork.
 
mork - great info on my low light question. i haven't as of yet been able to fully digest what you suggested but i copied and printed it out and on my next venture i will take my cheat sheet with me and experiment. thanks for taking the time to give such an in depth answer :-)
 
cully said:
mork - great info on my low light question. i haven't as of yet
been able to fully digest what you suggested but i copied and
printed it out and on my next venture i will take my cheat sheet
with me and experiment. thanks for taking the time to give such an
in depth answer :-)
Click to expand...
I forgot one more useful piece of advice: When shooting candids, the burst-3 mode would be useful since it gives you 3 shots (a fraction of a second apart) to choose from. Good shooting and don't forget to post some of your shots for all of us to enjoy!

Cheers, mork.
 
Konbanwa Mork,

You have been busy, haven't you??

I really enjoyed looking through your galleries! I was especially intrigued by your family pictures (is Mork really your name??) -- quite clever! And I enjoyed your power line photos; I had thought about looking for some here, but they simply couldn't come close to Tokyo in terms of sheer (but fascinating) ugliness.

I wish the pics were larger, as squinting at the thumbnails was frustrating at times when I wanted a closer look. For instance, there was a shot of lots of colored lights that I couldn't quite make out (may have been #2192 but not sure now). But of course it would have been impossible to upload that many full-size shots.

At this point I feel I would probably recognize some of your friends if I were to run into them in Tokyo!

Anyway, this is the second time I have typed this since I lost the first, more complete version while playing with the keyboard so I'll quit while I'm ahead!

Great idea, keep up the good work! You have managed to capture a very real side of Japan.

Helen
--Helen--- http://community.webshots.com/user/helenpb_
 
Hi Helen!

Thanks for dropping in! I'm glad you enjoyed my gallery. It seems you looked through the many shots quite thoroughly! I got some bashing over at the "Samples and Galleries" forum for having posted so many shots. Guess I offended their artistic sensibilities or something, I don't know... But your kind words more than makes up for that!
Member said:
I was especially
intrigued by your family pictures (is Mork really your name??) --
quite clever!
Click to expand...
Mork is just a nickname that stuck. Plus it's easy for the people here to pronounce (mo-ku-kun hahaha!).

And I enjoyed your power line photos; I had thought
Member said:
about looking for some here, but they simply couldn't come close to
Tokyo in terms of sheer (but fascinating) ugliness.
Click to expand...
"Sheer but facinating ugliness"... Hmmm, very well put!
Member said:
I wish the pics were larger, as squinting at the thumbnails was
frustrating at times when I wanted a closer look. But of course it
would have been impossible to upload that many full-size shots.
Click to expand...
Yep, had enough trouble uploading the thumbnails (what with slow server and frequent computer crashes). Sorry for making you squint!
Member said:
For instance,
there was a shot of lots of colored lights that I couldn't quite
make out (may have been #2192 but not sure now).
Click to expand...
The colored lights in shot #2192 are actually an art installation. Each of these lights is a phrase written in neon lettering. They flash on at random in a scattered pattern, so I had to use a slow shutter to get them all to appear lit up at the same time.

I would have uploaded the full version, but if my computer crashes one more time tonight, I think I will start pulling out my hair! If you're interested, I can post a full-size shot at a later time.
Member said:
At this point I feel I would probably recognize some of your
friends if I were to run into them in Tokyo!
Click to expand...
Hahaha. I should probably thank them for bearing with me sticking the F707's (long) lens in their faces all the time!
Member said:
Great idea, keep up the good work! You have managed to capture a
very real side of Japan.
Click to expand...
Coming from you, this is a great compliment. I really enjoyed your galleries too! Oyasumi!

mork.
 
Mork,

Looks like I turned in last night before you! That's a switch. I was pretty beat as I had a deadline to meet and was editing away to the point of exhaustion.

I would be interested in seeing the picture. It fascinated me, for some reason. You can e-mail it to me if you like, or upload a larger version here. Don't stress your computer out any more than necessary, however.

Will look forward to upcoming pictures!

Helen
bluedot said:
Hi Helen!
Click to expand...
bluedot said:
The colored lights in shot #2192 are actually an art installation.
Each of these lights is a phrase written in neon lettering. They
flash on at random in a scattered pattern, so I had to use a slow
shutter to get them all to appear lit up at the same time.

I would have uploaded the full version, but if my computer crashes
one more time tonight, I think I will start pulling out my hair! If
you're interested, I can post a full-size shot at a later time.
Click to expand...
--Helen--- http://community.webshots.com/user/helenpb_
 
Hi Bluedot,

I enjoy your album alot. It's very interesting!

Antoine
bluedot said:
Hi everyone.

I just posted thuumbnails of every single photo I took with my
F707 (and kept) since I got it (October 5). Over 900 images!



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/everything

I would love to hear your comments/criticism/bashing!! Some of
these I am happy with, others not so much. And some I left because
they're so bad, I know I can learn something from them!

I also updated my panorama gallery,



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/panorama

and added an all-new photo-montage section! (I started with some I
did of my family).



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/photomontage

Please drop in by clicking the links above or by simply accessing
the galleries from the main page at http://www.pbase.com/nichijin

And let me know what you think!!

Cheers.
--
mork (a.ka. bluedot)
Click to expand...
--Antoine
 
antoine said:
Hi Bluedot,

I enjoy your album alot. It's very interesting!

Antoine
Click to expand...
Thanks Antoine! And let me take this chance to commend you on your work in the last Shooting Challenge, particularly the DOF effect you achieved on "The Wheel"! Very nice work.

I look forward to seeing what you have to offer to the current challenge, "Darkness". Good luck!

mork (a.k.a. bluedot)
 
bluedot said:
Hi everyone.

I just posted thuumbnails of every single photo I took with my
F707 (and kept) since I got it (October 5). Over 900 images!



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/everything

I would love to hear your comments/criticism/bashing!! Some of
these I am happy with, others not so much. And some I left because
they're so bad, I know I can learn something from them!

I also updated my panorama gallery,



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/panorama

and added an all-new photo-montage section! (I started with some I
did of my family).



http://www.pbase.com/nichijin/photomontage

Please drop in by clicking the links above or by simply accessing
the galleries from the main page at http://www.pbase.com/nichijin

And let me know what you think!!

Cheers.
--
mork (a.ka. bluedot)
Click to expand...
"Pbase Database choked". Yikes, I killed it! mork (a.k.a. bluedot)
 
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