I crushed a coconut today!!!

[Bibudesh]

The news is hidden in the exif.

Details???? I dont think its required ...

Here is one of the most non-appealing shot I have ever taken. But the shot has a meaning to it. (No I did not get the roof of my car painted in black LOL!)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3298/4567930718_a6aeee22e1_o.jpg

Rest in next post !..

[KrishnenduKes]

Congrats for the coconut breaking inaugural ceremony. :)

Approved

Ps; Change your colour space to AdobeRGB.

[hitanshu]

Really awesome :-)

[Vicky]

Darn! There goes another possible canon convert!

Congrats mate :)

[Devaiah PA]

Just one birding made it all possible..... :)

[KrishnenduKes]

Darn! There goes another possible canon convert!


You know what... I am beginning to reconvert myself! :) Back to Nikon. Will it happen???

[Bibudesh]

Congrats for the coconut breaking inaugural ceremony. :)

Approved


Ps; Change your colour space to AdobeRGB.

Thanks ken. O yes I have to do that :p..
Really awesome :-)
Thanks buddy..

Darn! There goes another possible canon convert!

Congrats mate :)

hmmm!?!?!? You have pending PMs to be read.

Just one birding made it all possible..... :)

Indeed buddy ! I must thank Surya

You know what... I am beginning to reconvert myself! :) Back to Nikon. Will it happen???

Now that you have said it.. Please join the army :) ..

So the news is I have upgraded to Nikon D300. Few months back I was in a total dilemma about the body. I was confused between Canon and Nikon.

I am in a plan to build the system for birding gradually, so a smart AF was my basic reqmnt. I almost freezed my decision for 50D, but somehow the mind and brain were in argument screamingly.

I must thank Vicky who guided me very well when I was negotiating with my dilemma. Sorry Vicky, I couldn't switch brand even after trying my best.

I got a nice deal in the used market, I must say the person from whom I bought the gear is a gentleman. The shutter has done only <5k clicks. This was a lucky deal I can say, since I almost zeroed on getting a new D300s on Saturday. This ad came up on wednesday :D:D and there were manyyyyy contenders :eek:

I also got a Nikkor 12-24mm f/4 DX lens with Hoya 77mm UV filter and a 4GB CF in the package.

This time I am quite careful in taking decision for lenses. Best lenses or no lenses :o ..
Here is a shot of camera using my D40-

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_U5QmawFlv_k/S94r27Pu9rI/AAAAAAAAFTg/b1bUdzw2EuY/s800/DSC_00461.jpg

And another ultra wide angle shot at 12mm using the D300 .
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_U5QmawFlv_k/S94uwlbmPeI/AAAAAAAAFTo/4522eEI21Bk/s800/DSC_488511.jpg

The manual is a whopping 400 pages long and its taking time for me to understand the stuffs. I had a gut feel and confidence about my skills, well now I know the reality.
The 51 point AF system is something which needs a real good time and dedication to understand. The 14bit RAW produces a 21MB file, my machine asks for confirmation if I am really interested in opening that file LOL!..

I was blown away with the quality of images even at ISO 1600, at 3200 it was usable with some noises since the NR was set to low.

Other things are something I am still learning. I'll understand the full system of AF before detailing about it.
My shopping list includes a tripod/monopod for which again I'll disturb some expert. As of now I have plans of going ahead with the Feisol Tripod, and probably a cullman ballhead, lets see since the plan is not freezed.

Following are the probable list of purchases I may have to make over a period of say 2 years.
1. A feisol tripod with ballhead (need to decide).
2. A Nikon MB-D10 battery grip.
3. A tele lens in range of 150mm (prime only). Need to research on this as well.
4. (This may take long) A Nikkor 300mm f/2.8 with TC-14E.
5. A 32GB CF card.
6. Mayyyybe an 85mm f/1.8 or a 50mm f/1.4 (replacing my 50mm f/1.8)

-Bibudesh

[KrishnenduKes]

I am impressed at the distortion free aspect and the colour clarity of the lens at 12mm. I think that you got a good deal!

Congrats again. :)

[Deltaone]

The 12-24 is a nice peice of kit, but doesnt even come close to either the tokina 11-16 or the FF 14-24. The former gives pretty much the same quality as the latter at one third the price although it isnt FF.

Small piece of advise, dont buy a 32 gb single, get a couple of 8s or 16s, its far less risky that way. You dont want to lose everything at once.

[Aryan]

Congrats Bibu, for getting the D300 and the 12-24. Super stuff!

[Bibudesh]

I am impressed at the distortion free aspect and the colour clarity of the lens at 12mm. I think that you got a good deal!

Congrats again. :)

Thanks Ken :-) ..

The 12-24 is a nice peice of kit, but doesnt even come close to either the tokina 11-16 or the FF 14-24. The former gives pretty much the same quality as the latter at one third the price although it isnt FF.

Small piece of advise, dont buy a 32 gb single, get a couple of 8s or 16s, its far less risky that way. You dont want to lose everything at once.

The CF plan, I think it make sense the way u are telling me buddy.

The FF 14-24 is indeed one of the best lens made by Nikon till date, but no moolah for that. Moreover the wide angle will not remain that wide when used over my crop sensor. That lens one dream lens, but quite unable to justify the price for the kind of usage I have.

I have done a very extensive reading on Tokina 11-16, and I thinks its debatable comparison between the lenses. There has been some niggling compatibility issue of Tokina 11-16 with D300. And after burning my fingers with a third party lens, I am quite skeptical. I prefer to stick to Nikkor.

And the most useful FL with this lens for me is 20-24mm, and this lens excel in that range. 12-18mm usage will be seldom for my kind of work.
The image I have shared is a SOOC at 12mm, with 0 sharpening.


Congrats Bibu, for getting the D300 and the 12-24. Super stuff!

Thanks Aryan :-)..

[surya@64]

@ Bibudesh, Congrats on the new gear...Looks like lot of brain storming has gone into this...

Now the scene has shifted from the camera to the man behind it...Waiting to see some rocking pictures from ur new set-up.

Good luck.:):)
Regards.

[Nakul]

Congrats Bibu.. seems like everyone in Blre are spending on gear this month..

[Cyclops]

Wow Bibudesh, hearty congratulations on your new gear. So, it seems to be camera, lens & accessory buying season down south. Well, so lets see some fantastic shots!

[Bibudesh]

@ Bibudesh, Congrats on the new gear...Looks like lot of brain storming has gone into this...

Now the scene has shifted from the camera to the man behind it...Waiting to see some rocking pictures from ur new set-up.

Good luck.:):)
Regards.

Thanks Surya. BTW there was an inspiration behind this upgrade ;) .. Lets plan another trip soon :) .. This time my metering, AF, color etc. will not ditch me.

Congrats Bibu.. seems like everyone in Blre are spending on gear this month..

Thanks Nakul. How about you buddy?

Wow Bibudesh, hearty congratulations on your new gear. So, it seems to be camera, lens & accessory buying season down south. Well, so lets see some fantastic shots!

Thanks Cyclops. Unfortunately I am not getting time even on weekend to try some hands on :( .. No time even to go thru the manual. I somehow managed to get some time to purchase the camera.

BTW, the gentlemen from whom I bought the camera has an excellent system. The collection of lenses was something every Nikonian dream of. Some of them wat I tried was-

1. Nikkor 24-70 f/2.8 (One legend). I was doing some time pass with this lens when trying on the D300. Later I realised the lens I was fiddling with was a 24-70 f/2.8 LOL!.

2. Nikkor 28mm f/2.8 AI lens. This is a MF lens, and believe me I have never seen such a sharp SOOC shot in my life before.

3. Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 . Again a WOW factor. Couldn't use this.

4. THE Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8. Does this need words? I did not get a chance to use this lens.

5. The D700 which he bought immediately after I took his D300. He had more lenses which I did not get a chance to peek at :( .. I remember him talking about the 70-200 f/2.8 VR as well.

And he is just a hobbyist photographer !.

[anvancy-(macro analyst)]

congrats.

birding eh..with feathers or without?:p

ill post a photo for you later for you to drool upon.and its related to your cam.

Anvancy

[Bibudesh]

congrats.

birding eh..with feathers or without?:p

Anvancy

Thanks buddy :)..

Certainly, the birding has to be with feathers this time. Last time I missed the feathers and that is the potential reason for upgrade LOL!.



ill post a photo for you later for you to drool upon.and its related to your cam.

Anvancy

hmm!. . now that is something makng me restless.. Is it a super macro taken using reversed 28mm f/2.8 with raynox?

[Nakul]

Thanks Surya. BTW there was an inspiration behind this upgrade ;) .. Lets plan another trip soon :) .. This time my metering, AF, color etc. will not ditch me.



How about a meet up some time soon ???


Thanks Nakul. How about you buddy?


None from my side.. I was referring to Surya's latest buy.

[KrishnenduKes]

How about a meet up some time soon ???



There you guys go again! Will be looking forward to this too... :)

[anvancy-(macro analyst)]

Thanks buddy :)..

hmm!. . now that is something makng me restless.. Is it a super macro taken using reversed 28mm f/2.8 with raynox?

Nope.this is certainly related to your birding aspect.

Anvancy

[Bibudesh]

Nope.this is certainly related to your birding aspect.

Anvancy

Has it something to do with the 14 bit Raw capability?

Ohh I am so much boasting about my new equipment, people wud be laughing at me.

Blore Guys!.. How about meeting up this saturaday morning. I have some work in JC road, so I wont mind coming few hours early ;) ...

Deviah, Surya, Nakul, guys wake up!.. Lets meet.

[anvancy-(macro analyst)]

I was completely drooling for a week seeing this in Action.Hope you get this soon.Way soon infact.I was talking this.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1259/4596181094_6e9a49c53c.jpg

D300+300mm 2.8+2x aspherical converter+bean bag+LOADS of patience.
coupled with the 51AF system she was a complete hunter!

Anvancy

[shutterbug]

Bibudesh, Congrats man!
I missed a lot of stuff! D300 eh, Wow! So what are the other lenses you are planning to get?

[Bibudesh]

I was completely drooling for a week seeing this in Action.Hope you get this soon.Way soon infact.I was talking this.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1259/4596181094_6e9a49c53c.jpg

D300+300mm 2.8+2x aspherical converter+bean bag+LOADS of patience.
coupled with the 51AF system she was a complete hunter!

Anvancy
2x? I really doubt about the performance with that TC. Since its the 2.8 and crazily sharp then I think the softness would be on the lower side with 2x.

Well, you have clicked my dream gear :-)...

Bibudesh, Congrats man!
I missed a lot of stuff! D300 eh, Wow! So what are the other lenses you are planning to get?

Thanks shutterbug. Right now I have a Nikkor 12-24 f/4 DX and the all time fav 50mm f/1.8.
I am planning to get max primes so quite choosy this time. The selection is expensive so need to dissipate the shopping.
Planning to get a 300mm f/2.8 for birding after a year or so. A 85mm f/1.8 is also there in the list. Also I need to get a battery grip and a tripod :( .. Expensive hobby :(:(

[anvancy-(macro analyst)]

2x? I really doubt about the performance with that TC. Since its the 2.8 and crazily sharp then I think the softness would be on the lower side with 2x.

Well, you have clicked my dream gear :-)...



Thanks shutterbug. Right now I have a Nikkor 12-24 f/4 DX and the all time fav 50mm f/1.8.
I am planning to get max primes so quite choosy this time. The selection is expensive so need to dissipate the shopping.
Planning to get a 300mm f/2.8 for birding after a year or so. A 85mm f/1.8 is also there in the list. Also I need to get a battery grip and a tripod :( .. Expensive hobby :(:(

It has that crazy performance.the aperture becomes 5.6 but the clarity is just superb!

Anvancy

[synn]

Whoa!

Congrats, SP! Now you have one of the best bodies in the Nikon arsenal. Go out and do it loads of justice!!! :)

[hitanshu]

Can someone for the love of God change the bloody thread title to Coconut.

I can imagine Bibu's slip in the midst of that excitement but its about time it got changed. Pretty please, Ken da?!

[KrishnenduKes]

Can someone for the love of God change the bloody thread title to Coconut.


Done!!! Ouf!

[Bibudesh]

Whoa!

Congrats, SP! Now you have one of the best bodies in the Nikon arsenal. Go out and do it loads of justice!!! :)

Thanks synn. I am unable to take out time to at least learn this computer. i think no time is an excuse, its just that I am getting lazy.

I am running short of subjects, maybe short of creativity. Whenever I see a frame with my eyes, I tend to ignore it thinking "sigh, not the same frame again!", and eventually I dont shoot.

I think I may have to take out some time and travel long distances. Feeling to do something unconventional, but dont know what :( .

Are there anymore guys here facing similar syndrome?

Done!!! Ouf!

Thanks ken. But still I am thinking what was the issue :eek: .. Was that coconut mispelled?

[synn]

Are there anymore guys here facing similar syndrome?

I have. Several times.
Solution? Shoot people. ALWAYS a different shot. If you're going landscaping, try different times of the day, different climatic conditions, etc.

[synn]

Hey SP, how about a review of the body?
Let's just say I may have rekindled interest in the same. ;)

[Bibudesh]

Hey SP, how about a review of the body?
Let's just say I may have rekindled interest in the same. ;)

Well, I have not used it much yet. And all the photographs looks new to me due to new optics.
Still learning but I may put some review, some strightforward ones.

1. Ergonomics- The camera is quite big in size, and since I have graduated from a puny D40, the D300 feels like holding a baby. The grip is ultimate and rubber stuff is different and softer than what you see in D90 etc. The switches are quite stiff giving a strong feel while using.

2. Till date I have tested the continuous servo in dynamic AF mode. The bicylcle shots were taken in that mode only.In that mode one good thing I have seen i.e once you lock a subject then no matter how much you shake the camera you never loose the subject. Faster the lens, better the shots.
Believe it or not, the 50mm f/1.8 focusses slower than my 12-24mm LOL!. Now you can imagine how fast is the focussing speed, if I say 50mm is slow.

3. IIRC, focussing in low light is very fast. Once a guy came with his D3000 and asked to take his group shot. His D3000 gave up after hunting for some time since those guys were a little far and standing in shade. I tried the same on my D300, voila it took milisec to lock.

4. Metering accuracy and speed is frustraing if you are coming from a D40 background LOL!. Even with 6 fps burst mode the camera was accurately getting the right shutter.
The bicyclists were moving from very bright to very dark area in fraction of seconds. While tracking a bicyclist in 6 fps (high), the shutter would go real slow immediately (fraction of sec) when he enters the dark shade. This was accurate as well as frustrating since I missed the panning shots and was in no mood to switch to manual mode.
If the light was proper then the shots would have been a killer. The panning got screwed up also bcoz the aperture was max opened.

5. The 51 point AF is very good for action shots but little frustrating while taking static shots. I mean it takes a while to navigate the AF point to desired co-ordinate. You can have a selection between 51 point or 11 point AF. Still, in an unknown situation u never know which may be required when.

6. Battery. Its a wow!. Till date it never went out of juice in a single shooting event. I ran out of memory though LOL!. I am thinking to drop the MB-D10 grip plan since getting a spare battery will make more sense. And people say that MB-D10 with a heavy lens like 200-400 makes the overall package a rice bag. Man I am not a body builder!.

7. I did not get a chance to test flash.

8. ISO- Max I have pushed is 400. But somehow I feel the high ISO performance is not that great the way it is boasted over the net. I don't know if I am missing something or doing something wrongly. I am yet to read the ISO part in manual.
I keep the NR either to medium or low, never tried high. Ok I'll try it in NR set to high today and post some samples.

9. The 14bit RAW- The fruit of this option can be enjoyed by only those who really know what happens when increasing or reducing exposure in ACR. Man this 14 bit RAW has a clear cut difference. While regaining the shadow, if done correcly, you may end up in negligible noise believe me.

E.g. these two shots were not at all usable initially (see the skin tones carefully u'll know)-

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_U5QmawFlv_k/TAqB_fwT77I/AAAAAAAAFXM/FAEhFX2ncDs/s800/DSC_5757.jpg


http://lh3.ggpht.com/_U5QmawFlv_k/TAqB_cTv-4I/AAAAAAAAFXQ/OJqrVJn4jV0/s800/DSC_5760.jpg

[KrishnenduKes]

Wow! Thanks for that excellent review! Enjoyed reading it. The AF tracking and locking sounds great. That is one BIG gripe for me for the 5D or even the 5D II. AI Servo is crap to say the least. Thanks again.

[synn]

Great post, thanks, SP!

Just wanted to point out a couple of things to you.

the 50mm f/1.8 focusses slower than my 12-24mm LOL!

This is to be expected. The 50 is driven by the in-body motor while the 12-24 has an SWM which rotates at much higher RPMs. You'll need a 50 1.4G for faster focusing.

The bicyclists were moving from very bright to very dark area in fraction of seconds. While tracking a bicyclist in 6 fps (high), the shutter would go real slow immediately (fraction of sec) when he enters the dark shade.

Somewhere buried in the custom menu is a toggle between release priority and focus priority. I believe it's currently in focus priority which is why you can't get a shot when the camera is hunting. Switch to release priority (Which takes a picture no matter what: Like in Manual mode), set to 3D color tracking, shoot like there's no tomorrow and delete the OOF ones later.

The 51 point AF is very good for action shots but little frustrating while taking static shots. I mean it takes a while to navigate the AF point to desired co-ordinate.

Focus/recompose, closest subject or face detection, my man!

ISO- Max I have pushed is 400. But somehow I feel the high ISO performance is not that great the way it is boasted over the net.

Shoot in RAW and use NR in Lightroom is what I'd suggest.

[Bibudesh]

Wow! Thanks for that excellent review! Enjoyed reading it. The AF tracking and locking sounds great. That is one BIG gripe for me for the 5D or even the 5D II. AI Servo is crap to say the least. Thanks again.

The AF system in D300 is borrowed from the D3/D3x/D3s/D700 series and is considered the best on planet. I believe Canon gives its best AF algo only in the 1D series.


Great post, thanks, SP!

Just wanted to point out a couple of things to you.



This is to be expected. The 50 is driven by the in-body motor while the 12-24 has an SWM which rotates at much higher RPMs. You'll need a 50 1.4G for faster focusing.


Indeed !. 50mm f/1.4 is there in my shopping list. And there are many takers for my 1.8 at a selling price more than my cost price. (What a resale value!.)

BTW the 50mm is near to invisible on D300 and looks quite funny LOL! You put a 50mm and then a 70-200 and its a real good ad subject for baidyanath vita-ex gold.


Somewhere buried in the custom menu is a toggle between release priority and focus priority. I believe it's currently in focus priority which is why you can't get a shot when the camera is hunting. Switch to release priority (Which takes a picture no matter what: Like in Manual mode), set to 3D color tracking, shoot like there's no tomorrow and delete the OOF ones later.


There are three settings there release, release+focus and focus. it takes 2 clicks to toggle. I dont remember which mode it was in to be honest. This thing did not come to my mind.
But it was not hunting actually, the shutter was getting slower due to spot metering. There was no hunting issue.
And my mistake, I did not try the 3D tracking (how can I miss that ??).. Ok next time.
Come on man, gimme some room for learning LOL!.


Focus/recompose, closest subject or face detection, my man!

That works wonder while composing a portrait. You can see Mr. Mahalingam shot taken in that mode. But with other subjects its a little frustrating, you dont get what you want.


Shoot in RAW and use NR in Lightroom is what I'd suggest.


Conventional solution?? I need to put the high ISO on test actually since I have paid a little premium for that assurance.

I have only 4GB CF as of now, and the RAW has a real heavy apetite.
I ran out of memory in the middle of event and had to sit down and carefully delete many shots to get space for at least 50 images.
Then I was carefully switching between jpg and RAW. But one good thing, the switching is just one click away.

Another thing I wanted to mention was the ISO setting is displayed in the viewfinder itself. And change the ISO is again one click away. So this was real handy while composing low light shots.

Also, the ViewNX is an amazing s/w. I am not sure if it comes bundled with D90 or lower. It shows every tom, dick and harry setting u had for a picture including the focus points.
So that way the AF modes and metering behavior of the camera can be very well understood (provided u have time unlike me).

[surya@64]

Bibu's heartfelt analysis of his beloved equipment...I can feel the d300 in his words even then tho I am a hard core CANON man...!!!

I am loving the discussion. Keep it going.:)

[Bibudesh]

Bibu's heartfelt analysis of his beloved equipment...I can feel the d300 in his words even then tho I am a hard core CANON man...!!!

I am loving the discussion. Keep it going.:)

:).. The equipment deserves such a kind of love Prakash. All it need it proper nutrition of lenses.

[powerslave]

Congrats!!

Since I am a year and a half late in noticing this, let me use this opportunity to ask for your long term impressions and experiences with the camera.

[Bibudesh]

Congrats!!

Since I am a year and a half late in noticing this, let me use this opportunity to ask for your long term impressions and experiences with the camera.

So this thread got a bump.
I do not have exact count of the shutters, but here is my long term review.

Camera is still doing great. Software support for D300 NEF is quite limited but now I have found out a way to deal with it. Adobe has come up with the camera profile using which ACR gives near perfect images as shot.

Due to mag alloy the body is quite on the heavier side and does not comes in line with Canon 1D mIV which is very light despite of being sturdy.

One thing I am totally loving in this camera is low light focussing. I am able to get tact focus in total incredible situations with aperture as low as f/8.

The continuous servo is highly impressive, an example is the panning portrait I have posted in the mudumalai thread. I was just holding my camera still and it was easily tracking the contrast.

One rather eye opener, there is no difference in 14 bit or 12 bit RAW when it comes to PP. I tried taking same shot in both the modes and tried to recover the shadow and highlights. Both gave exact same result. I am not sure about the application of 14 bit RAW maybe.

The camera even today feels like new and hand holding gives a highly sturdy feel.
Sensor has got some dust which is long due to get it cleaned. Still the images are not getting affected.

[powerslave]

Awesome. Well one more question, can you post more pictures?

[Bibudesh]

Awesome. Well one more question, can you post more pictures?

Sure power. Today again I have discovered that even CS5 is unable to produce cent percent clarity. I really don't know how others are claiming 100% clarity of D300 NEF in PS.
I think NX2 is the only way out. Let me see some SOOC without PP and post them.

[robin234]

Hvae you unchecked this in NX

Camera Settings:Colour Noise Reduction ->"Better Quality"