Exposure, HDR, and Fill-in Flash…

Taking Bryan Peterson’s advice, I have decided to go “manual” on my DSLR as much as possible.  It has been a very interesting learning experience so far (that’s another way of saying I have been pulling my hair trying to understand and experiment how I can get the _shot_ the way I envisioned with my own eyes.

For example, I was trying to take a couple shots of my living room to work on getting familiar with coming up with the correct aperture, shutter speed, and ISO (and hopefully eventually move onto getting the creatively correct combination).

First problem I ran into is getting the right amount of light into my camera so I can get a “correct” exposure.   With ISO set to 100 (yes, Auto-ISO is off), I realized I will need a very slow shutter (1/2 second) and the largest aperture I could to get enough light through.  But a 1/2 second shutter requires a good stable tripod (and pretty much remote trigger) to avoid the fuzziness as the result of camera’s movement during the exposure.  Increasing the ISO to 400 made it possible for me to capture the correct exposure at 1/10 second shutter and f/11 aperture.

As you can see from the picture above, the side lighting from the street gave the objects plenty of shadow and texture, but perhaps a little too much shadow.  At the same time, the tremendous lighting difference between the object in-door and out-door made it impossible for me to capture both objects in-door and out-door.

Well, almost impossible.  With Nikon D5100’s build-in High Dynamic Range (HDR) imaging capability, I should be able to combine shots with different exposures and get more details out of both the dark and bright areas.  So that’s what I did.
 
Clearly this is an improvement – we can now see a lot of details that wasn’t available before.  Do not despair if you don’t have HDR as part of your camera, auto-exposure bracketing and some post-processing by software (even the lowly Nikon ViewNX2) will give you the same result (or better, some have argued).

At the same time, I can’t help wonder how it would look like if I just use fill-in flash to illuminate the room…  With camera still configured for 1/10, f/11, and ISO 400, I popped the flash and snapped a frame.

As it turns out, flash did illuminate the room very well and bring out a lot of details inside the room.  The downside is the out-door objects remain over-exposed and I lost a lot of shadow that, in my opinion, really adds to the atmosphere (or the character) to the picture.

What did I learn today?   HDR is a very nice feature to have when you are shooting a composition of great light contrasts.  Flash is okay if you want to “freeze” the moment.

As I am writing this, I realized I have left out two more parameters to experiment: White Balance and lowering the aperture to dampen the effect of the flash (the flash was triggered even though I have already achieve correct exposure with my setting).  Oh well, I guess that would be something to experiment tomorrow.

Experiment about White Balance (and why I hate Windows, the operating system)

Today I decided to play around the effect of white balance in in-door shots, so with ISO set at 400, f/11 and 1/10 shutter, I fired away the following shots:

WB: Shade 

WB: Cloudy 

WB: Incandescent 
 
WB: Cool-White Fluorescent (aka Tungsten) 
 
WB: Flash (the actual flash was not used, FYI)
 
WB: Auto
 

As you can see clearly, “Auto” is the winner (with cloudy as the close second) as they both managed to convey the white colour correctly in the pictures.   This is cool, other than I don’t know what “Auto” did behind the scene…  I guess I might have to leave WB as “Auto” unless I have a good reason to override it.  
And yes, I’m sure you are just as curious on what it would have looked if I take those shots with flash on.  So here they are:

WB: Auto (w/ flash)
 
WB: Incandescent (w/ flash)

WB: Cool-White Fluorescent (w/ flash) 

WB: Cloudy (w/ flash), and yes he was getting a little annoyed…
WB: Shade (w/ flash)

WB: Flash (w/ flash)

Obviously, “Flash” is looking awesome in this case and it’s clear that “Auto” is same as “Flash” in this case (easy logic by the programmer – if flash_is_on, WB = “Flash”).
At the same time, it is noteworthy that “Cloudy” is (yet again) a close second…  Hmmm…  Maybe there is a reason why some people defaults to Cloudy when they don’t want to trust the camera’s own logic for “Auto”.

Why I hate Windows…
As promised, here’s a little rant about Windows…  With the amount of pictures I took for this experiment, there was no way I could remember their respective settings, so I figure I will just look them up from the EXIF info.  Right click on a file, select “Property” and go to the “Detailed” tab.  And voila, there’s my EXIF info.  Or is there…   For reasons I don’t care to investigate, Windows Explorer does not parse those info correctly and many of the fields are showing (mistakenly) blank.   I had to install Nikon’s ViewNX 2 program to be able to retrieve those wonderful EXIF detail (and man, does Nikon do a great job with them or what – it record every single imaginable detail about the camera’s configuration behind that shot).

From stills to video

Both of my D90 and D7000 can capture video but are they the best tool for it?  I have tried using my D7000 a few times and did not get good results.  The problem is in the auto-focusing system.  I have read that while shooting video, you should not use auto-focus.  Why?  Because the lens' auto-focus system (even with AFS) keeps on hunting every now and then, and it is very loud.  The D7000 picked up clearly the sound of the motor on my Nikkor 18-200mm AFS lens.  So, I shut off the AF system but then, manual focus was a bit tough to use.  Perhaps I should have reduced the aperture.

I was not too impressed with the video capturing capability of the D7000 so for the dragonboat race festival in June, I decided to purchase a used Canon HD Vixia HG20 camcorder.  It used to cost $1000 in 1998.  Today, one should be able to find a used one for $500 or less--talk about the speed of obsolescence vs. price!

When I first used the HG20, I was somewhat disappointed in the movie format.  It saves the video in .m2ts (MPEG-2 Transport Stream) format. I thought Flickr and YouTube do not support this format but from reading a couple of articles, it appears that they do.  I will test that out one of these days.  For now, I use a combination of two software in my workflow to produce video.  First, I use Pixela's ImageMixer 3 SE ver.3 to transfer the m2ts video from the camcorder to my notebook, then use the built-in Video Editor to cut the video.  Second, I use a free software called "Free HD Converter" to convert the .m2ts files into MP4 format.  Here is a sample video converted to 640x480 at 24fps with "Free HD Converter":

(The video is of Chris unpacking his D5100 for the first time.  The D5100 and the two lenses were packed in a black Nikon camera bag.)

This HG20 is what I am planning to take with me on my winter camping trip.  It's got a hard drive so while it is running, it will generate heat, hot enough I hope to keep the battery from freezing up.  I have two batteries so there should be enough for capturing at least a couple of hours, but even if I can get one hour out of them, that would be more than enough.

My first DSLR rig…

Much thanks to Photon, I was able to get Nikon’s latest hobbyist DSLR camera, D5100, at substantial saving from what I would have to pay for it here in Canada (I shall save my rant about the pricing gouging in Canada for a future blog entry).
The camera comes in a kit with a handsome Nikon bag (that is able to hold the body with one lens with room for another lens, battery, memory cards and filters).  Though it is a nice case, I can’t help to want something more stylish, lower-profile (i.e. not advertising to everyone that I am carrying a DSLR), and more out-door friendly.  After much searching, I went out and got myself a Case Logic SLRC-205 case.

This is a real nice case, but it’s not available in Canada (somehow Case Logic decided to exclude Canada from the list of regions that it will market this product), but thanks to B&H and its very affordable custom-clearing service, I was able to get this at a very reasonable price.  It has a nice suspended compartment that will hold the body with its medium size lens, with additional pocket for a second lens (or bottle of water, or sandwich), another one for battery and memory cards, and one for something thin and small.  Essentially, I can fit my entire rig into it. 

In addition to the Nikkor 18-55mm lens that came with the kit, I have also acquired a 55-200mm VR ED IF lens.  Yes, the 55-300mm VR ED IF lens was very tempting, but simply can’t justify paying that kind of money at this time. 

And of course I got a UV filter, both as a “protective” filter for the lens and for those occasions where I might hike to somewhere UV is an issue.  Clearly I will need a second battery – nothing sucks more than having a nice camera that stops working because it has no power (and no, I didn’t want to buy generic ones off eBay when I can get the real thing for $34).

 

So far, all the above were acquired from B&H, with the expensive/heavy stuff ship to Photon’s brother to save on taxes and shipping.

While waiting for the gear to show up, I found out Future Shop (a Canadian national retailer of electronic/computer goods, fully owned by Best Buy) was having a sales on the Duracell SDHC Class-10 16GB cards at $25CAD a-piece, so I grabbed two.  

Then I stumble across another local computer store chain that are clearing out its camera accessories and was able to pick up a Hoya Super HMC Circular Polarizer filter for $38 and a Slik monopod 350 for $30 (yes, the prices are comparable to B&H’s regular price, but I didn’t have to pay shipping to Canada and the custom brokerage)

 

So you have it, my new DSLR rig.   Hopefully I will have something worthwhile to share with you in the near future.

Winter camping

Last night, I had a brief chat with a friend over winter camping.  It looks like we are going to head out into the cold of Ontario winters this coming winter.  I started now to think how I am going to shoot our first time experience in the wilderness of Ontario at -20C.  I have taken my D80 out in the dire cold before but only for a couple of hours.  How will my D7000 or D90 fare in -20C temperatures?  I kinda like to do lapse photography, setting up the D7000 on a tripod and have it fire away every minute or so.  I need some way of protecting them from the elements.  I will also like to bring a camcorder, which has never been stress-tested this way before.  I will jot some notes down on this blog from time to time as I build my list of things to do and things to bring.  For one thing, I will surely bring my new GPS unit along so we will know exactly where the photos were taken.

Nikon D5100

It has been over a month since my friend bought a Nikon D5100 and got it shipped to my younger brother in the States.  Well, my friend will be in for a surprise when I drop by this morning with the D5100.  I just asked last night to borrow his ladder for a couple of hours this morning when I did not need one.

So I had a look at the D5100.  It feels very ergonomic.  The grip is well designed to fit nicely in the palm and fingers of your hand.  It has sort of smallish footprint and is quite lighter than the D300 I used to own.  Light is good when traveling or hiking up a hill.  The back of the D5100 has a big, bright articulate LCD screen.  This screen is big!  There is a fair degree of freedom to swivel it around.  It can swivel 180 degreees and pushed back flush against the body of the camera and operate just like a normal LCD screen.  For protection while storing away the camera, the LCD screen can be swiveled back 180 degrees so the LCD screen faces the body of the camera and its back faces out.  And one other thing I like about the design of the camera is the fact that the shooting mode dial is in the middle of the camera as opposed to the left of the camera as designed on the D80, D90 and D7000.  The dial on these latter cameras tend to get knocked out of position by accident.

I did not try the shutter release to take sample pictures.  It's Chris' camera.  He gets the first shot.

ViewNX 2, part 2

So, as much as I find ViewNX 2 slow and buggy, it kinda works well.  I had a series of shots where I was not paying attention to the light in the hallway.  I realized after shooting them that I had forgotten to set my white balance.  Lucky me that I shot in RAW+JPEG mode because it was easy enough to fix in ViewNX 2.  I simply tell it to fix the white balance by choosing a spot in the shot that I know was white and ViewNX 2 fixed up a batch of photos in one go.  It took it a while as I expected but it worked.

Canon SD110

My Canon SD110 has been a real work horse.  I used it at home, on the road, on the plane, in airports, in my car, on campsites, on waters, on canoes, in forests, under canoes while portaging, in the rain, everywhere.  It had a problem with the LCD but Canon offered a free fix.  Why am I bringing the subject of this camera up now?

Well, I do like the compactness of the camera--easy and light to carry around anywhere you go.  It however takes an awfully long time to power up and and the shutter lag often misses the moment.  Is there a camera that offers speedy power-up time and near instant shutter lag?  I am contemplating at getting a Canon G10, a Canon S90, or a Nikon P90, but for almost $400, why would I spend the money on a point-and-shoot compact camera?  I could get a decent DLSR with a kit lens for that much.  I am now looking for a used G10, S90, or P90, somewhere around $100.  Even that seems pricy for a point-and-shoot, for some reason.

Rubber zoom ring on Nikkor 18-200mm, part 2

In June 2009, after a trip to Cuba, the zoom rubber ring on the Nikkor 18-200mm got really loose.  I had to cut a few millimeters off the ring and glue the ends back together with Krazy Glue.  Two years later, last night, I had to do the same thing again.  I had to cut another few millimeters of the ring as it got fairly loose.  I must have cut about one centimeter in total so far.  A few drops of the Krazy Glue did the trick as usual.  The rubber ring feels tight and snug once again.

I wonder if this is a problem with the rubber rings on other lens manufacturers, or is it just because I use this lens so often in the humid and hot weather of Toronto/Cuba summer.

P.S.  I had mentioned that Nikon sells a replacement rubber ring for probably $10.  I thought I'd check on eBay.  The ring goes for $18 USD or so.

Solmeta GPS N1 for D7000, part 2

The GPS unit arrived on August 11, a couple of days before a BBQ.  It took under two weeks to arrive, faster than I expected.  The parcel was not shipped through China mail though.  It was through the Hong Kong post office.  Parcels do arrive in Canada faster when they are shipped out of Hong Kong.

Anyway, I got to play with the Solmeta for the first time yesterday at the BBQ event.  It was simple to use.  Just slide the main unit into the hotshoe flash mount, connect the USB cable to the unit, and connect the USB cable to the camera.  Now, interestingly, contrary to what I have read online, the USB end that connects to the camera is not so easily breakable.  It fits in very tightly.  I really have to apply a good amount force to plug it in and to pull it out--if the connector head is wet, it would be next to impossible to pull it out.

Once the GPS unit is connected up and turned on, it takes about a couple of minutes--I did not time it but it felt like a couple of minutes--to acquire satellite signals.  The LED at the top would blink as it tries to acquire signal, until it becomes solid when it is ready.  While the GPS unit is connected to the camera and is turned on, the top LCD on the D7000 displays "GPS"  beside the focus mode indicator.

When it is all ready to go, you just shoot and GPS information is recorded with the photo.  To view the GPS information, I would scroll through the photo detail screen as usual.  GPS information was now displayed along with the histogram, ISO, aperture, speed, etc.

Now, there was one annoying behaviour I observed but have not been able to reproduce after I returned home.  At the BBQ, with the GPS unit connected to the D7000, I was able to shoot like normal but then after a few shots, I was unable to half-press the shutter release button to focus.  As soon as I half-pressed the button, the camera took the shot right away so the pictures came out blurry.  Was it a problem with the GPS unit or with my possibly broken Nikkor 18-200mm lens?  To troubleshoot, I just removed the GPS unit and the shutter release button worked again as expected.  Something is funny about this GPS unit ... it could be because the USB cable was not fully inserted.

In the photo above, the camera fired away before the lens had a chance to focus as if it was shooting in manual mode.  This is a behaviour I have yet to reproduce.

ViewNX 2

Nikon makes superb cameras and lenses but when it comes to software, they need to partner with a strong software developer.  I have not used CaptureNX yet but am using ViewNX 2 to convert my RAW images to JPEG.  Oh boy does it feel slow!  It takes probably 12 hours to process about 500 RAW images with the default settings.  (My Lenovo T60 notebook has an Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz processor with 3GB of RAM and I am processing the images off a network drive--maybe my network is a bit slow.)  It also crashes after converting about 500+ RAW images, complaining it ran "out of memory".  It asks you to close other applications to free up memory even though it is clear that there are plenty of unused memory in the system.  The only way to deal with the "out of memory" problem is to restart ViewNX 2.  What a pain.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30 in the field, part 2

I decided to bring the Lumix to interior camping this past weekend.  I used to bring a DSLR with a couple of lenses but considering that we were going to portage, a little less load would help.  I also brought along my old Canon SD110 point-and-shoot as it is easier to carry around (your neck) and also the battery on the Lumix is not that great.  Between the two cameras, I managed to take over 500 shots.

In any case, the Lumix performed great in some cases but really poor in others.  As I expected, with enough light, the pictures came out great.  I have to say however that I am a bit confused how it decided to expose the shot.  In two similar shots, one got exposed for the sky while the other got exposed for the trees.  Now, in the dark shade, it had trouble capturing details.  It is as expected very grainy in poor light conditions.  Perhaps I should have put the camera on automatic mode so it would pop the flash in the dark shade.  I had the camera on aperture-priority mode, the way I have it on my DSLR's.

Here is an example where it totally failed me:

It looks like it exposed for the trees in the background.  As a result, the subject became totally black and there are not enough details to brighten up the subject with.  I did not get a chance to re-shoot unfortunately.

Had I shot this in automatic mode, it would have turned out better.

Eneloop batteries

Before the wedding this past weekend, I have been using the Duracell pre-charged rechargeable batteries for my Speedlight flash gun.  These Duracell batteries are exceptional.  They perform as expected and I can always rely on them--unlike the rechargeable Energizers I bought a few years ago.  These Duracell batteries are the low self-discharge type whereas those Energizers were the normal rechargeables.

If you read about these Duracell batteries, you are likely going to run across the Sanyo eneloop batteries.  I always wondered how good the eneloop are.  For the wedding shoot, I thought I might need four sets of batteries--I have two flash guns, so two sets per flash gun.  I was going to purchase two additional Duracell batteries but then thought I'd check with Canada Computers to see if they have any Duracell on sale.  Lo and behold, I came across the Sanyo eneloop batteries, a special edition 8-pack for $24.99.  Not cheap but cheaper than the Duracell.  These Sanyo eneloop are the second generation batteries, able to recharge up to 1500 times.  Time will tell.

I have already used these eneloop batteries in my SB-900.  They worked great.