Struggled with Exposure Compensation

I love my Nikon D7000.  I really do.  I always was a Nikon fan, but in all honesty, sometimes I really, really wish it was more user-friendly.  In some ways it is, I guess, but in other ways it is just about impossible to figure some of the functions out without hours of research.  I have tried using the Bracketing (bkt) function on my Nikon D7000 for about 2 weeks now.  I could not figure it out.  I've searched online for advise, read what the manual had to say several times, asked at camera shops, it was like one of life's great mysteries.  Until today.  A few short minutes ago I came across this site by Steve Tosterud: http://sumptuousart.com/shooting-hdr-with-the-nikon-d7000/

The puzzle has been solved!  Yay!  After many frustrating hours I can finally say I managed to get it right.  Now to go out and try out the new skill.

I've read somewhere that it is advisable not to carry a 'name-brand' camera bag in order not to draw too much attention to the quite expensive camera you might have inside.  This is obviously to prevent thugs from noticing it and realizing the value.  So hubby bought me a very basic 'no-name-brand' camera bag this past weekend.  It was inexpensive and not too bulky.  I like it.  Hopefully my camera will draw less attention than the one of the person who's camera seems capable of taking shots of planet Neptune from their front porch.

Here is a pic of my new bag.  I have used my new bracketing skill there for you!

(-2 EV)

(0 EV)

(+2 EV)

No Sign of the Bug

I finally got my camera back this afternoon after handing it in on Monday for cleaning.  I got a call from the company earlier today asking me to please bring the battery so they can test it....  The only problem was that I didn't actually take it out when handing the camera in.

After me having a slight panic attack and them looking for it everywhere, they found it in their charger.  What a relief.  I haven't played with it much yet after getting it back, but had a quick look and it seems like the bug is gone, although the technician couldn't see it from the time he got the camera.  He checked it several times.  Hopefully the cleaning helped.

So now it is on to the practice assignments to be completed for module three of the course.  Oh by the way, so far got 100 % for each module's theory questions!  Silly as this may sound, I cannot yet figure out the bracketing function on the Nikon D7000 yet.  On the Nikon D50 everything seemed straight forward, but somehow I've been unable to figure this one out.  So tonight I will be searching high and low on the internet for something that actually makes sense to me and that actually works!

Will post again once I've figured it out.

My Camera has a Bug!

No I don't mean "bug" as a technical term, I literally mean it has a bug.  It is somewhere inside my camera and I cannot see where.  I have removed the lens to try and see if it is on the mirror or on the glass on the inside of the lens, but it is nowhere to be found, but lo and behold, when I look through the viewfinder... there it is!  Taking a stroll across the viewfinder.  Only for me to frantically start looking for it again.

So... I've looked it up online and found that I'm actually NOT going crazy and this is something that actually can happen.  I have read some strange replies from people who responded to others experiencing the same.  One of the pieces of advise that was given from various people is to actually freeze the camera!  Whether it is true or not, I don't know, but in all honestly it is not something I will try.  I can just picture my camera being destroyed if I tried.

I don't have any idea on how to deal with this really, but I've handed it in to be cleaned yesterday.  I'm hoping that when I get it back tomorrow, the problem will be solved.

Making Progress - Course Update

Last night I finished summarizing module 2 in the course and now the Practice Assignment needs to be done.  I'm quite excited that I finally made progress as with us moving house, etc. etc. etc. it really took very long to finish this module.  Of course after the Practice Assignment is the lovely little test I need to complete in order to go the next module.  That is the part I always worry about most every time.  I'm already getting nervous just thinking about it.

The Full-Frame Sensor vs APS-C Sensors and their advantages and disadvantages can be quite confusing, or to me anyway.  I decided to see what information on the subject I could find online and found this post by Darren Rowse that clarified it and made it seem less complicated.  Here is the link:  http://digital-photography-school.com/full-frame-sensor-vs-crop-sensor-which-is-right-for-you

One thing I'm still not 100 % sure about and this probably might be a silly question, but what I want to know is if you use an old film camera lens on your DSLR, will the image you see on the view finder be the same as what is actually printed at the end of the day, considering the crop factor?  Or must you in your minds-eye see where the boarders will actually be if you take the picture?  In other words will the actual picture be smaller than what you can see on the viewfinder?

Hopefully someone can shed some light on this for me.

Single-Servo (AF-S) vs Continuous-Servo (AF-C)

On a visit to Hermanus on the Southern Coast in the Western Cape I have taken a couple of pictures of our daughters on a jungle-gym's swings.  Unfortunately, to my frustration, most were completely out of focus.  Of course I only realized this when going through the pictures when we got home.

I have realized two things that I needed to do:

1. Always have a quick look through the pictures on the viewfinder (especially if you are on location and cannot go back to re-do it).
2. Make sure the Autofocus on my Nikon is set correctly.

Since I haven't had a chance to do the 2nd part of the tutorial on the Nikon D7000 yet, I had a look on Nikon's website and came across this link with more information on the AF-S vs AF-C modes:  http://imaging.nikon.com/history/basics/16/03.htm.

This really clarified to me what the difference between the two settings are and which one is best to use under which circumstances.

Course Update

I am not making progress on the course as fast as I would like to due to limited time to spend on this.  However, I do enjoy it and find it very interesting.  At the moment I'm still busy with the second module and find this particular chapter quite daunting.  I'm busy learning about the technical aspects of the camera and it is quite overwhelming and I cannot help but wonder how I will ever remember all of this.

In the meantime I came across an online tutorial on using the Nikon d7000 which I am looking forward to go through soon!  It seems so easy to understand when someone else is explaining how to use each setting on the camera, but I honestly never thought it is possible for one camera to have so many settings to choose from.  I cannot wait to get to a point where I can truly and confidently say I know what I'm doing when I pick up my Nikon d7000 to take a photo!

Nikon D7000

Hubby bought me a Nikon D7000 for my birthday!  I am super excited about this.  In all honesty I find it a bit complicated and not at all as user friendly as my D50 was, but I plan to do a course in how to use it.  Nikon offers free courses.  The next one will be on the 11th of this month, but I won't be able to take time off yet.  I was hoping to be able to go when I'm on leave, but that is probably just wishful thinking.  I doubt that they would have another course until I'm back at work after the holidays.  I will keep an eye on their website for the next date.

I have noticed that the colour of the pics taken with the D7000 is very different to the colour of the pics taken with the D50.  I have sold the D50 to my employer, but still use it for work purposes.  I must admit I really enjoyed using it, but I'm at the same time, having lots of fun figuring out the new camera.  It is amazing what one can do with one camera!

I cannot wait to get some training on using it properly.  I would love to know what other people's experiences are with the D7000 and any handy tips are always welcome :)

We will hopefully be moving soon, ealry next year, and I'm hoping to start a studio from home then.  I have all the equipment, it is only a matter of getting a space where I could work from.  I had a look at possibly renting a spot somewhere, but haven't found anything suitable and affordable.  At the moment, the best option seems to be working from home.  I am looking forward to finally put the equipment and what I've learned so far to good use!