During a long and continuos reading for the reviews about all the Nikon, Sigma, Tamron Lens, I have came up with the New 1) Nikon 16-85mm VR or the 2) Nikon 18-200mm VR. Both of them selling at a similar price, HK$4800 vs HK$5280

1) The Nikon 16-85mm VR:
Pro:
Newer (Introduced in 2008), Brighter Images and Lighter in Weight and most important of all, I could use back my 67mm B+W UV MRC Filter and The B+W Circular Polarizer MRC!
 Con:
Expensive.  Distortion at the 16mm range. Expensive for its zoom range ability!

2) The Nikon 18-20mm VR:
Pro:
Older (Introduced in 2006), Nice Zoom Range for most situation, Highly praised by lots of users around the world.  Great value for the money.
 Con:
Bigger! Longer! Heavier! (But who doesn't like being longer?). The need to buy new UV filter and Circular Polarizer (which is another HK$1000 on those!) Softer Images vs the 16-85mm and it's less wide comparing to it too!

The final decision came to mind.  The Nikon 18-200mm

For HK$5300 I brought the Nikon 18mm-200mm home from Mong Kok. I believe that its a very good deal!  For the more usable zoom range for the perfect moment.  I am a slow lens changer... and I rather spend my time with my trip companion (Pauline) than to switch and switch and switch in between lens! I am not the lens slave!

Here's a quick shot I took of the feature in Photoshop User:

(Click on the image for a larger view.)

All the images in the feature were taken with one of three cameras: a Nikon D80, a Canon Digital Rebel, or a Canon Digital Rebel XTi.  All of those cameras are consumer-level DSLRs and can all be purchased for less than $1,000.00.  So the next time you head out and think you need to drop a lot of dough on a new D300, D3, 40D, 5D, 1D, or D700 (huh, D700?  More on that later) I suggest you think again and wake up and smell the memory cards... it's NOT THE CAMERA!

Have a great day!

Stephen

As reported on my tech/gadget blog (Hong Kong Tech Phooey) last week, Nikon D700 Announced, the Nikon D700 is soon to be hitting town, for now, enjoy the video from MegaWhatTV.

Source - MegaWhatTV

Berkesempatan mengambil foto penari-penari kecil dari Kg. Melayu Raya ketika sedang membuat liputan untuk Utusan.

*Hari ni bertemu ramai press dan saya kagum dengan Abg. Nazri(dulu BERNAMA, sekarang join RISDA) seorang otai lama dalam dunia kewartawanan berkecimpung sejak tahun 1974..memang baik gila la.. dan banyak memberi nasihat kepada saya dalam dunia kewartawanan*

Research is now over.  Final decision: Nikon D300.

MUDGE’s Musings

The four-day holiday-anniversary weekend was consigned to the status of staycation, due to ... well, pick one: gas prices, economic malaise, inertia.

Fortunately, staying put doesn't mean that tourism and sightseeing opportunities are lacking.

The summer season in Chicago offers a variety of ways to spend a week, a weekend or even an afternoon. This is not a tourism site, so we won't dwell on all of the possibilities, which include the Cubs, the White Sox, the Museum Campus, the Art Institute, the wonderful again Museum of Science and Industry, Millennium Park and its free Grant Park Music Festival, and special events such as the ending today gorge-fest, Taste of Chicago.

For many years, the non-profit Chicago Architecture Foundation has offered a variety of resources: tours, lectures and a museum. Chicago has always taken its architecture seriously, especially its breathtaking skyscrapers; Chicago considers itself the birthplace of the skyscraper. For a long time, until the world's economic center of gravity began its shift away from the U.S. to Asia and the Middle East, Chicago's Sears Tower was the tallest such structure anywhere.

One of the Chicago Architecture Foundation's most approachable products is the Architectural River Cruise. River cruises in Chicago are easy to find -- just head down to Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive between May and November. CAF's are unique because they feature commentary by trained docents who aren't simply mechanically reciting a script; they really care about what they are so enthusiastic to show you.

We've enjoyed this cruise two previous times through the years; the last was perhaps 20 years ago. Wow, has Chicago changed in twenty years!

So, we drove two miles to the terminal, parked the car for $2.00 in the recent garage (the entire terminal has been extensively rebuilt -- finally!), and rode the (air conditioned!) "El" train downtown, coming upstairs from the subway about 50 minutes after leaving home.

When we arrived at the departure dock, we were about 30 minutes early. It was a good opportunity to find a bench and relax on the Riverwalk, a tree-lined corridor that's been built on either side of the river in recent years, watching people stroll by, and the river traffic, mainly competitor sightseeing cruisers, many private motor yachts, and a covey of kayakers. The bright yellow craft below is a water taxi, that makes a circuit between the train stations just west of the river's South Branch, and this dock, just west of Michigan Ave.

Finally, the 1:00pm departure time arrived, and we were off on our 90-minute cruise.

There was lots to see. Yr (justifiably) humble svt's very clunky and elderly Nikon Coolpix 2000's tiny 128MB memory card was in a race with my alkaline batteries as to which would poop out first. Fortunately, I conserved both, captured 131 images. Relax, you won't see them all here. Today.

But you will see some highlights.

When this Philip Johnson structure was finished in the late 1980s, I believe, Chicagoans were put out that a New York architect had been hired for such a visible commission, at the three-way branch of the river. Today, everyone just loves it for the spectacular exercise in curved, mirrored glass that it is. At this point, the river splits to North and South branches; the tour goes north, first.

An all but abandoned bridge, this one built for the former Chicago & Northwestern railroad, to get rolls of newsprint to the Sun-Times and Tribune (both downtown printing plants long since relocated to less expensive real estate). The bascule design is typical of Chicago bridges; there are more of those here than anywhere else.

Once totally industrial, the North Branch of the Chicago River is more and more residential; here's a recent example. Live on the river, walk to work. A very nice lifestyle for those who can afford it.

As we crossed the intersection between the North and South branches, I caught this view eastward, from whence we had originally come. Behind one of the "corncob" Marina Towers (could be a subject for its own post) we see the Trump Tower, a first for Chicago. The winner of Trump's first "Apprentice" series was to become this project's manager -- I have no idea whether that actually happened (reality show, indeed!), or if so, whether the man is still connected to the building. But the multi-use structure is topped off, and the hotel at its base is in operation already, despite the high altitude construction above.

Inexcusably for an architectural photographer, I chopped off the tip of the tower of the Wrigley Building, a Chicago icon since it was built in the 1920s. But, it's a holiday weekend, and the giant flag seems a suitably observant way to end today's tour.

Chicago is a very, very photogenic city, and it was a beautiful, sunny afternoon. I am a very untalented photographer (I guess it's that elusive vision thing), with a very simplistic camera, but even Mrs. MUDGE was impressed by these, and many of the others that I might be persuaded to share. Some other time. Maybe. Tomorrow?

It’s it for now. Thanks,

--MUDGE

Via:iguzz.com

This was taken at a local fireworks show on July 3rd. I have another few to post once I do some editing, but here is one that I like that without any edits. My only gripe is that the shot is a tad angled, but I can fix with that a quick edit at some point.

Focal Length 18mm : Exposure 13sec : ISO 800  : F/13

Since today saw an almighty zap in an already fractured story, I thought well.. it was time to share it with you.

Firstly.. in honour of his background and my own studies, I considered writing it out in a 4GL programming language (assigning values for Confusion, sorting statements for truth but I think I get a "divide by zero" error. Thank you, Redo From Start) however...

Once a upon a time....

I met someone. 

And I have to say I thought he was pretty fantastic. He was smart. He was funny. He didn't seem to mind that I was smart. And we could talk. And he actually had something to say.

And I couldn't believe it.

And more than anything else.... I actually *liked* him.

But at the point in the story when you like to have the significant music start playing... he disappeared.

He kept promising to call back.. but never did. When we finally did meet up.. and establish a dinner date, I thought great, I just liked the idea of spending time with him.

And all day on that Tuesday, he sent flirty text messages until.. about lunchtime. And then he stopped.

And wouldn't answer the phone. Wouldn't respond to email.

I spoke with him about 5.30 and no... he had a prior engagement. No sorry.. just had something more important to do. He'll call me.

And never did.

And so I flew back to TB G the next day... hoping that maybe he'd call... and nope.

There's only so many times you can text or call someone without getting a reply before you start feeling like a stalker and so, you take the hint.

After two months of moving through the range of feeling stupid that someone like him would even consider me for longer than fifteen minutes and being angry that he couldn't even be bothered to say "Hey look at the time.." the catchphrase we'd joked about. He got in touch.. but then... wouldn't answer calls again.

Occaisional email...

And today, after waving M_F and F_F off at the airport (they're heading north for a week's holiday), I went to one of my favourite spots in Canberra. (Ok.. to reassure F_F : I went home and exchanged his Mercedes for M_F's less culturally and financially significant Toyota first)

And I walked into...

Yep.

but to add another crack in the mirror - the point to note is who he was with.

A seriously adorable little girl perched on his shoulders.

 Introduced as his daughter.

I suspect that she answers many of the questions I have wondered about him for a while.

And probably, opens up a few more.

I know you read this from time to time, so I'll say this:

I have no problems dealing with the fact that you're someone's Daddy. It's what you are to that someone's Mummy, that's the biggest issue.

dot dot dot

Anyway.  I had a quiet day though I did indulge myself a little.

My photography, I think, has been improving steadily. Jorge has helped enormously and I'm now going on hunting expeditions to snap.

And more artistic:

But there is a limit to what you can do when you're juggling a Nikon D80 with a 18-200mm Lens.

And our beloved but much beat-up Sony Cybershot is just not quite hitting the mustard.

So....

I went to visit our friends at Domayne and I treated myself to a new pocket size snapperer :

Heeeee heeeee heeeee.

I also went shopping at Spotlight because I was playing Extreme Yarn Chicken with the Purple Baby Blanket I'm working on :

I bought 5 balls of the purple Honey babycrylic and I found I was getting 12 rows to a ball. I need 64 rows to make it square.

To make life more interesting, i bought the yarn at Spotlight in Cairns.

What are the chances that they have the same dye lot in a store 4000km away?

Small.

However. My luck was slightly in.

And they had... get this.

One ball of the magic Dyelot.

And to make M_F feel better... I only bought another 15 balls of yarn.

and I have been using up yarn :

It's not quite so bright in real life but the flash picked it up. It's a 12 point RR in pure wool, (a good yarn, but not great. The good part: it comes in nice colours, it's pure washable wool and 100gms for $3.99 is great - it's just not as Good as some of the 100% wools that are around.) once I've done the blue, we're going back to the white, the green, the varigated and then back out to the pink and a border.

There.

 A mixed day  that really makes me believe my life would be so much more fun if was happening to someone else.

hugs to you all.

Nikon Coolpix P60 Review at PhotographyBLOG

PhotographyBLOG has posted a review of the Nikon Coolpix P60.  The P60 is an 8 megapixel point & shoot camera with a 5x optical zoom (equivalent to 36mm-180mm on a 35mm format camera).  The P60 also features image shift Vibration Reduction (VR) and sensitivity range of ISO 80-2000.

Check here the Review

I really, really do hope to spend some time here very soon.

Pam

xxxx

and they swimming except the girl

Hari ini sebenarnya saya hendak buat photo-essay mengenai rumah kebajikan orang tua yang berdekatan dengan rumah saya tetapi apabila saya keluar dari rumah saya, saya terlihat sekumpulan kanak-kanak dari kampung seberang datang bermain di hadapan kawasan rumah saya. Saya menghampiri mereka dengan niat memotretkan mereka berempat. Saya membatalkan niat untuk ke rumah kebajikan orang tua tersebut (lain-lain hari boleh pergi). Saya meluangkan masa bersama mereka dan ternyata mereka pada mulanya agak malu dipotretkan, setelah berbual mesra dengan mereka. Mereka sudi menerima saya untuk bersama mereka. Setelah bosan mengekori mereka saya mula memberi idea untuk mengambil gambar di sebuah kolam yang terbiar berhampiran dengan rumah saya. Ketika mengambil gambar potret mereka. Saya mengajak mereka mandi kolam padahal saya nak ambik gambar mereka bermandi-manda. Mereka bersetuju dengan cadangan saya dan saya pun terpaksa berendam bersama mereka kerana telah berjanji akan mandi bersama mereka. Dengan sehelai 'boxer' dan saya berendam bersama D300 + Nikkor AF-S 18-70mm yang telah rosak akan 'Auto Focus'. Sepanjang berada di dalam air, saya hanya mengambil dengan menggunakan 'manual focus'. Terpaksa!!.. Memang mencabar dengan cahaya yang panas terik dan terkial-kial mengambil gambar mereka yang sedang lincah bermandi-manda ditambah untuk fokus secara manual dengan pantas. I love D300!! Saya berupaya mengambil gambar dengan jelas mengikut kemahuan saya kerana 'viewfinder' D300 yang terang dan jelas serta 'coverage' 100% membantu saya mendapatkan sebuah gambar dengan 'sharp'. D70s saya kasi bungkus... Setelah berhempas pulas bermandi-manda dengan penuh gaya lompatan yang mengarut, mereka memutuskan untuk pulang ke rumah sebelum kena hambat dengan orang tuanya..yeah!!!

*I guess the B&W version are more impact & meaningful than color version... for color version at my flickr.

*Actually this entry are full with many pixs but after doing some discussion with Beawiharta and he advised me, "select 3-4 best pixs with different angle". *

I own a Nikon D70, D200 and D300.  As expected, the the higher the model number, the more capable the camera. This makes sense!  However, if you look at the entire collection of D-series model numbers, it gets very confusing.   For example, the D40 is newer and more capable than the D50 or the D70.  The recently announced D60 is even newer and more capable.  Now, Nikon skips from the D300 to the D700?   I feel like I need a decoder ring!

I decided to capture several of web pages for offline reading (using Adobe Acrobat 9 of course!) from dpreview.com, kenrockwell.com, and wikipedia and study them on my recent flight from London to home.  I had some time to kill and was ready for a break from the job after a long week of meetings.  After studying each of the 19 Nikon D-series cameras, I now understand the entire lineup much better than before.  From looking at some of the popular photography message boards, I noticed that many others share my confusion so I felt that my research was blog worthy.

I created a simple grid showing every Nikon D-series camera sorted by release date of the camera.  I’ve selected a handful of attributes to put in the columns of my grid.  I don’t propose that these are the only attributes worth considering when evaluating a digital camera so don’t base any purchase decisions solely on my grid!   The attributes selected are used to illustrate the high-level differences between each camera model.

* The D300 and D700 will do 8 FPS if used with the battery grip
** Higher ISO speeds are available via "boost" but quality suffers dramatically

Here are my conclusions on the basic numbering scheme of the Nikon D-series (feel free to correct me):

• Dx = Pro-level camera.  The priority is in features and ruggedness, not size and weight.  Check out the frames per second (FPS) on the D3 compared to the Dxxx and Dxx models.  It’s obvious that this camera is for hard-core photographers.  Take a look at the photographers on the sidelines of an NFL game.  You’ll see a lot of D3’s.  These photographers need very fast frame rates, huge storage capacity and a camera that can survive an occasional 300lb collision!   Nikon focuses on giving professional photographers what they want and spare no expense to deliver.  Take a look at the price of the D3 and you’ll see what I mean!   It ain’t cheap!   I want one but I can’t justify the cost.  I do just fine with my D300.
• Dxx = Entry-level camera.   Although these cameras are categorized as “entry-level”, they are extremely capable and solid cameras.  Entry-level describes pricing more than capabilities.  Many of these cameras are used by pros, sometimes as a backup camera.  I know a professional photographer that carries a D70 as a backup to his D2Xs.  He knows that if the D2Xs fails, he can keep doing his job and deliver good images using the D70.
• Dxxx = High-end amateur and pro.  These cameras fill the gap between the  previous two categories.  Their specs are very good and many pros find them more than adequate (including myself).

Below is a illustration from wikipedia that further breaks down the categories:

DX vs. FX

The Nikon D-series cameras followed a long line of 35mm film SLR cameras.  The size of a 35mm film frame is about 36mm x 23.9mm.  When the D-series was launched, Nikon and others wanted to use a similar size digital sensor because it would allow all of the lenses to have the same angle of view as they did with the 35mm SLRs.  Unfortunately, a sensor this size was not practical at the time so Nikon went with the smaller 23.7mm x 15.7mm sensor (now known as the DX format).  Photographers using lenses from the their 35mm cameras had to re-calibrate their brains when thinking about focal length to adjust for the difference!   The DX sensor is smaller so the image projected by the lens is cropped.  As a result, photographers using their existing lenses had to multiple focal lengths by 1.5 to estimate the new results.  For example, with a 35mm film frame, a 200mm lens provides 4X magnification, but with the smaller DX sensor, the resulting image is equivalent to a 300mm lens (200x1.5) resulting in a zoom of 6X.  Although this sounds like a nice bonus, it made wide angle lenses not so wide when used on a DX camera.

In 2003, Nikon introduced DX lenses.  These lenses projected an image that matched the size of the DX format sensor. A list of Nikon DX lenses can be found here.

The Nikon D3 is the first Nikon digital SLR to use a sensor that is the same size as the original 35mm film frame.  This new format is called "FX".   There are several advantages of a larger sensor, one of which is that the non-DX lenses work as expected.   However, if you use a DX lens on the Nikon D3, it only projects the image on the middle 5.1 megapixels of the 12.2 megapixel sensor.

The new Nikon D700 is the first Dxxx series Nikon SLR to provide a FX format sensor.  Now it starts to make sense!  The Nikon D700 is basically a lower-end version of the Nikon D3 providing a more affordable alternative to the Nikon D3 for photographers that desire the FX format.   The Nikon D300 is basically a DX format equivalent of the D700.

My assumption is that there will be more DX format DSLRs and will most likely be named the D400, D500, etc.  I suspect that D700 was chosen as the FX model number to some room for future DX additions.

FYI - I'll personally skip the D700.  I'm still very happy with my D300 and my Nikon 18-200mm DX lens.  I do own a few non-DX lenses, including one of my favorites, the Nikkor 50mm f1.4, but I don't have a real need to switch to a FX format camera, especially considering the cost of the upgrade.

If you are a photographer looking to purchase your first Nikon DSLR, don't let the whole DX vs FX debate frustrate or confuse you.  You'll be happy with either format.   My recommendation is to go with one of the Dxx models and later get yourself a higher end Dxxx.  I often recommend the D60 or D40 to friends as a first DSLR.  If you are on a very tight budget, a used D50 or D70 is a fine choice.  All of these take fantastic pictures.  Most are sold as a kit that include a decent starter lens.

If you want to read more about DX vs FX, I'd suggest the following:

• Bjørn Rørslett's D300 review - dedicates a substantial page discussing DX vs FX
• Ken Rockwell's article
• Thom Hogan's article

By the way, although I am obviously a "Nikon guy", there are equivalent cameras in the Canon lineup that are fantastic choices as well.  I'd like to see a similar breakdown of the Canon DSLR models to the one I provide above.  I did find a timeline of Canon DSLR articles on Wikipedia.

To learn more about any of the cameras mentioned above, visit one of these great sites:

• Ken Rockwell's site - reviews and discussions of just about every digital camera
• DPReview.com - great reviews, all brands
• Nikon's site
• Thom Hogan's site

Other good comparisons:

• Nikon DSLR Comparison Guide (PDF)
  
• Nikonians.org comparison chart

Below are a few pics I've shot with multiple Nikon cameras (and one Fuji - sunset out plane window).  To see high-res versions and the EXIF data to see which camera shot what, go to http://gregorywilson.smugmug.com.  Dpreview.com also has sample images for all of the cameras mentioned above.

The review is more on the specifications rather than a hands on. What struck me is the comment that the D700 uses the same battery as the D300. We have heard a lot of issues with the D300 battery. Many photographers complained of the low charge contained by the battery. A lot many photographers also complained about the battery functioning with any of the VR lenses.

Here is a link to the video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlucYFXXjNo

The SB 800 is also being replaced by the SB 900 flash. The review does not mention whether the SB 800 will not work with the new D700 or whether the newer SB 900 will have more functionalities with the new Nikon D700.

The jeans are preemie sized but I sure can't figure out the waist in the silly things...it's huge!!!  By the time he grows into the waist, the length would resemble shorts. :D  The shoes looked kinda funny on his tiny feet but the jeans helped balance it out a bit.  If I remember right, the shoes are size 0 and are a little under an inch too long still.  Amazing how tiny their feet are!  I remember Autumn was in double 00s for a long time! (can't find double 00s in boy shoes it seems-or, atleast I haven't had any luck finding them!) But, once her feet starting growing, they grew very quickly!  My guess is that Mason will do the same. :) 

If you're lucky, you might catch a swift smile here & there.  The second picture down, I barely caught a half ('kinda') smile.  See it? Ya have to look close. :)  Several have asked how much he weighs now...I'm not sure exactly but if he's staying on track on his normal 5oz/week weight gain, he should weigh around 6.5-7lbs now.   I'll know his exact weight next week when he goes in for his 2 month check-up.  He's definitely feeling out slowly but surely!  Before we know it, he'll be sporting himself a set of rolls. :D

Ghost House in the Morning
ISO 200, f/4.5, 1/40th

Patrzymy. Nie wierzymy.
Tylko czasem...

Moszna.