Saturday, March 29, 2008

King of the geeks

This week I am Allakhazam's featured player.


Check the full interview and graphics out -Here-

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Two very different DVD reviews, Blue Man Group and Love in the time of Cholera

While waiting for Universal to get off their butts and join the Blu Ray bandwagon, I've gone back to reviewing some standard def releases!

Love in the time of cholera

Blue Man Group - How to be a Megastar - Live! (DVD and CD!)

Very different but I found things I liked about both...

Sam

Monday, March 24, 2008

My 20D is in good hands


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Originally uploaded by Kadath
Lending it to Jay, god knows what he will come up with using it....

Hermit Crabs at Point Pleasant


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Originally uploaded by Kadath
Have i mentioned just how much I love the colors on the D300?

More fun at Pt. Pleasant with Jay and Jen and co. Full set Here

Wrong on just so many levels


08-JayJen-1331
Originally uploaded by Kadath
You know Jay/Mac was at the controls on this one...

Sunday, March 23, 2008

St. Pat's


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Originally uploaded by Kadath
Full set Here

Me too!


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Originally uploaded by Kadath
I'm more than a little bit Irish I guess....

Amanda Rose


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Originally uploaded by Kadath
I stink at kid photography but you can't go wrong with a killer smile and those baby blues.

Got the world by the shorties


08-D300-Park-0939
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Man to be this young again and have that killer of a smile!

Full set here

Saturday, March 22, 2008

08-EggColoring-1292


08-EggColoring-1292
Originally uploaded by Kadath
More easter fun added to the set from last week can be found here

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Round 3


08-D300-Moon-1095
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Now THIS is a moon I can be happy with!

Struttin'


08-D300-Ohio-0579
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Nice day, if you're a goose!

Full set -here-

Boom

Say what you want about the quality of the 18-200 but this is the best picture I've ever taken of our moon and I did it HAND HELD almost without thinking about it, saw a cool moon, looked up, shot it and 30 seconds tweeking in Lightroom and Voila, this is what I got!

Compared to the shoots I took of the eclipse this blows them away!

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Everyone do the dinosaur


08-D300Day1-0127
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Er, stop doing the dinosaur if playing Simon Says....

ISO


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Originally uploaded by Kadath
6400 is definitely usable. Check the EXIF on Flickr -->

Buzzards and Pancakes


08-D300-Buzzards-0160
Originally uploaded by Kadath
That's what I shot on Day 2 with the new D300, see em all Here

It's a tradition


08-D300Day1-0146
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Get a new camera and you are forced by tradition to take cat pictures... Couple interesting shots from Day 1 with the D300 -Here-

Why did I get a D300?
-Spot metering. Big for me, as is the very reliable 3d matrix metering. I never liked the 20d's meter and often found myself using exposure compensation on every shoot. Flash Exposure Compensation is even more off. VERY happy with the D300 metering so far, tho I do not have a SB-800 yet. White Balance is also more flexible and accurate tho indoors its still dicey.
-Live View. Will be cool for precise focus checking especially on tripod mounted macro shoots. Maybe for over the head two arms extended shots too.
-A true pro AF system. It's the same AF as in the amazing D3. I have been consistantly frustrated with the 20D AF. There is so much to learn in this new system and choices for different situations that it's still too early to make a call, but I was moderately happy with the speed it kept up with buzzards in flight yesterday.
-The 3" LCD is a game changer.
-2.5x the FPS isn't huge for me but could open new doors for my soccer pics.
-More megapixels is not a big deal, certainly wasn't something I would have paid more for. Requires more space to burn the files but also allows more detailed crops when needed.
-The 18-200 VR is a FUN lens. It's not a professional lens by any stretch but it's got a lot of uses for walkabouts and family events. Convenience and light weight with no equal on the canon side.
-Fun stuff: Built in intervalometer and multiple exposure mode. First I will use a LOT, second not so much but still fun to play with.
-ISO 6400. Huge for me if it matches the hype. Not expecting D3 like results but still nice to have and also never get antsy about using ISO 1600 and beyond.
-All my old Nikkors now fit =) 50 1.8 is fun and light and bright and easy to hand to a family member.

Plus as noted I'm KEEPING the 20D and my best lenses =) I still admire what Canon puts out, but at this time they are a big step behind in the market that I fit into and the new features I value most. If they had put an AF system like the D300s and an LCD to match in the 40D it might have been a lot harder to make this jump, and I'm going to have my eye out for what comes next for the 5D class bodies. It's going to need to be huuuuge to convince me that I need that more than I need better glass.

I knew the 18-200 would have a bit of Chromatic Aberration, Lr looks like it will clear that up if it really bothers me. What I really wasnt expecting was how much it vignettes at 200. Doesn't really bother me since its easily correctable but I was shocked nobody mentioned it in any of the reviews I've read.

I had been led to believe that Lr and Nikon weren't really playing nice together but so far I have no complaints other than the monstrous NEFs take a lot longer to be processed by my aging rig than the svelte 8 megapixel 20D raws. =) I'm not giving up on Canon totally, I love the 20D and its now my backup cam and am keeping my best lenses and selling off some lesser pieces. Once a real successor to the 5D comes down the pike I might head that way again but I have a feeling the D300s gonna keep me happy for a long long time.

Bullrushes and Barbed Wire


08-D300Day1-0099
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Messing around with composition =)

Turkey Vultures!


08-D300-Buzzards-0512
Originally uploaded by Kadath
They are taking over Navesink, I swear!

Full set Here

Sunday, March 02, 2008

The mighty hunters feast


08-Hunters-3253
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Jack Sodon held a feast for all the local hunters and friends who go to his cabin each year in NYC. Food was awesome and we had a great time just remembering old stories. Gotta do it again next year!

Full set -here-

Ryan's first Communion


08-RyanCom-4016
Originally uploaded by Kadath
Holy cow, who knew the boy could smile so big?

Full set -here-.