Nikon 24f1.4 AFS
The 24f1.4AFS sure does let the light in, that’s for sure. But it does a whole lot more than that for my photography. If knowing how I’m using might be of help to you, give this a gander.
Nikon GP-1 Site
It’d new to me, Nikon’s GP-1 microsite. It’s pretty cool with good info and if you’re new to GPS, geotagging or the technology, it brings you up to date pretty fast. It also shows you how to use the GP-1, Nikon View to create custom maps showing others your travels. I’ve seen my friend Scott Diussa use this in his shows and it was cool enough I loaded ViewNX just so I could create the same thing. Check it out, knowledge is a good thing!
Wacom Intuos4 Bluetooth
My Wacom Intuos4 Bluetooth just arrived and I just love the freedom! I used the “older” unit just as long as I could (it wasn’t made for traveling) and then upgraded to the Intuos4 but never liked being wired in. The new bluetooth model offers all the freedom of Bluetooth (you charge the battery which has a great life via a USB port) along with the programmable express keys. What I really like about the Intuos4 Bluetooth is the vast increase on the pen tip sensitivity, some 2048 points! It’s no secret I’m a HUGE Wacom fan using their products everywhere I go. I have two of the 21UX on my desk, we have four of these at DLWS, the 12WS travels with me and when weight is an issue, I have a tablet. For the last year I’ve always had the Intuos4 in my luggage. I’ve taken that out now, it’s been replaced by the Bluetooth, it rocks.
Just a point of interest, for me at least when I paired the Intuos4 Bluetooth to my computers, it showed up as a mouse and not a tablet. That threw me for a while, couldn’t figure out why my computer wasn’t seeing it. Finally I clicked on the mouse to pair and found out that was actually the tablet. Last thing, the new surface on the Intuos does wear down the pen tips. Wacom provides a fist full of repl when you buy the unit. If you travel, take them with you!!! You have no idea how hard it is to find a tip in the middle of Yellowstone in winter.
Star Trails – Learning All Over Again
So close and yet so far away. I didn’t take the time to check out one of the most important aspects of star photography before first heading out with the 24f1.4AFS for the first time. I didn’t look at the focusing ring, it focuses past infinity! So, being a dork I headed out on a killer morn to shoot and come back with, well, crap technically. If I had a nice instructor leading me, he might have just said pilot error but the final result which you see here would be the same. Out of focus yuck! With that said, I am very excited by the results I did get with one click point light source shooting. You can see very easily the Milky Way and that’s really what I was after. We head to Monument Valley shortly and lots of star trails, so happy to work on the bugs shooting with new lens (24f1.4) and new body (D3s) before it’s crunch time.
CS5 – Can finally Talk About IT!
Finally I can talk about what I think is the most exciting, polished and useful edition of Photoshop ever and that’s CS5! All, repeat ALL the images on the blog for the last 7 months have been finished in CS5 Photoshop Extended and I LOVE IT! Everything from Content Aware fill to HDR to Photomerge ROCK!!!! The people though who have prepared like crazy for what seems like months and months to bring you THE best information on this exciting new suite are my dear friends at NAPP.
You want to head HERE, NOW and see why if you want to be the best at your game, CS5 is your playing board!
Nikon 24f1.4 AFS
This is one wicked sharp lens! As I stated on my video for this lens, I bought it for one feature, f1.4! Shooting this lens wide open is basically all I do all the time when shooting it. I can only do that because it is just that sharp. While the lens is tack sharp spectacular, keep in mind that at f1.4, the DOF is such a narrow band of focus you have to be incredibly careful with your focusing and where you place your focus. This lens is not for amateurs!
And here’s the honest truth, this lens IS NOT for everyone! There is no reason to spend the $2k for this lens if you DON’T NEED f1.4! Buy a used 24f2.8AF for a couple of hundred of dollars. It’s a beautiful little lens that produces marvelous results and take the money you spend and go shooting! But if you need wide angle f1.4 performance, you ain’t going to find a better then than this.