It arrived today, along with a 1GB CF card. Its amazing. I took a lot of useless pictures but then went back and read some of the manual. All the options, all the fun. The resolution is amazing as you can see here – I give you a low resolution version of a high res jpg I took of Maia and Daniel; then a crop of Maia’s eye – same picture!:
So last night as I checked Fedex Shipping tracking on the web and my eyes lit up Stephanie said “what?” I replied – “expected delivery date 3/15!” You see, I ordered it Sunday thinking with Purim and other delays, and since I took the inexpensive “ground” method it wouldn’t be here till next week. She said, “oh man, I married the AV Geek.” We aren’t talking point and shoot here – though you can, we are talking control and quality – I’m psyched!
Yea, I admit it. I was the guy in middle school who could thread a 16mm projector and who in all of my jobs is the one who gets the projector running for a presentation, loads up software and troubleshoots pc problems when the IT guys are busy.
I’m also the guy who chose Photography as an elective in high school and college. Who had countless hours of quality time with Dad in the field and the dark room shooting, editing and developing film and prints. I love this art and hope I find the time to really enjoy this camera.
Its been a long time coming but I do feel a little guilty for buying a $1,700 camera. I had considered the D50 – for about a minute, settled on the d70s for about 6 months and then they released the D200. I couldn’t believe the price. It may seem like a lot but this is a $10,000 camera five years ago. A $5,000 camera just two years ago – heck, a year ago. 10MP for those of you who count – twice as fast as the D70 and twice the pixel count. Its a solid tough magnesium body, has complete control over white balance, ISO, Quality – right from the dial! It has a bright LCD (2.5,” 230,00 pixels. 170 degree viewing angle) on the back that allows for easy cropping and preview. A professional meter (1,005-pixel 3-D RGB Matrix Metering). Program, Shutter priority, Aperture priority and Manual. 11 AutoFocus Zones. I could go on and on but I will wait till I get it… TOMORROW!
JC
Ken Rockwell has put together a terrific site. I find the photographic equipment reviews particularly well done. He has a section dedicated to Nikon and really well done hyperlinks thorughout the site bringing you where you need to go as you read. He knows cameras but he also understands the power of HTML – link when you can and click when you read. Don’t be afraid to wander around, you can always click the back button.
One of the folks I work with is a marathon runner. She said I should run one. So to start I need to run, period.
Today – in Kansas
20:56 Minutes 153 ABPM 2.5 Miles 8:22 Avg. Cooled down last few minutes.
Mile One 8:03Â 125 BPM
Mile Two 8:19Â 171 BPMÂ <— the bear got on my back and my heart shows it.
4:33 Remaining half mile 165 BPM <— no sugar left in my muscles; no base to run on.
Where do friends come from? As a 40 year old man. Ask a 40 year old woman. Ask a “breadwinner†or ask a “single mom.†Ask a kid or a teenager. Ask a retired colonel or a retired grandmother.
Different friends at different times. Different circumstances created different relationships. Do we realize that some people have different opportunities?
So where do my friends come from and how do I make friends differently then others. Why am I so wide open with my heart on my sleeve and my interest in others? I haven’t really made my own friends for many years. The last time I made new, close friends was just after college and in the first few years of work. Since then most come from my children’s friend’s parents. Many from my wife’s friend’s husbands. From my circumstance at work but that is rare. Consider how much time I spend on the road – no real time to build an office relationship. Consider how much time I spend in the evenings with my family – no time for happy hour. Consider how much time I spend with my family on the weekends – no time to see ballgames or play golf.
Not sad really – there is no way to explain the satisfaction of a full house (there are five of us) unless you already know. Then it’s a knowing smile. Here is what I have learned though – and it has been a part of the way I do get to know people when I meet them. It is the reason you know me as soon as you meet me. No time for games, false impressions, fictional accomplishments or carefully crafted images. I am what I am because I may not see you again. Every day on the road (as a salesman covering much of the mid-west) I meet new people. These are the social circumstances I have and I try and make the most of them. Why not. Why not ask them about their hopes and dreams – maybe they will ask about mine. Maybe we will talk about nothing or everything that matters.
And the friends I have kept over the years – the ones from high school, the ones from college. The ones from my first job, the ones from past sales and sales-calls. These all started that way and there was a click, a moment, an open mind and open heart. A desire to know about the other, to help in some intangible way. Sometimes its one sided and sometimes it reverses – years later. The key with most of my friends that has always brought comfort is that the real friends know I will call from time to time and when I ask about them I really want to know. When we talk it is as if it was just yesterday we shared a beer or simple experience. There is a look in the eye, a knowing smile or a pregnant pause on the telephone that says “damn its good to hear your voice, give me a minute I’m remembering a time – a good time in the past we shared.
Comments weren’t counting. There might be several posted comments and it would show them but say at the top “no responses for…” And olderposts with new comments showed the old count.I did the procedure suggesed by those on the WP Blog – turned off Spam Karma and then went in and edited the comments of at least one from each post. It brought the count back.
I need Spam Karma – it caught 55 spam comments this week.
Image ones are hard to install, what should I do? 0 I’ll check the Spam Karma site. I don’t know If I can go edit the database..
How does music affect you?
Does it bring you to an emotion or is it only something to dance to? Do you listen or do you hear? Does your heart match the beat or does the melody pull it? Does both happen and do you find you have not choice but to sing and dance? Why is there music? Is it the beat of our heart, the firing of our nervous synapse, the pumping of our adrenele glands or the breathing of our lungs. Is it the desire to share a pulse with our mate or the memory of such an encounter? Music is often overlooked by our visual society. Filmmakers know it – a movie without a soundtrack is empty. But people don’t think about it when they live daily lives. Why the iPod? When so many were moving towards the ultimate personal device this thing only did music. Why did it work? Maybe it brought a little happy feeling to those who used it.
Because if you can add that pulse, that drive, that song to a picture. If you match a memory with the song’s sweet passion. If you can take the feeling from an experience and amplify it with the pulse of life you capture the heart and head together.
this looks like a good place to buy worms for the bluebirds we are accumulating in our back yard.
I’m considering the new Nikon D200 – was looking at the D70s but now I’ve been upsold for the 10 Megapixels! I’ll look deeper later – here is a GREAT REVIEW of the D200 by Phil Askey.
So this website “best price cameras” offered the camera $400 less then anyone else. I figured it would be too good to be true so I did a google search on them and look at this horrible feedback.
The best is the picture of the storefront!
Thanks Don Wiss. This guy has a great webstie – he has taken shots of the storefronts behind the websites.
Apparently many of these low ball resellers go beyond the grey market vs. usa warranty scam. Grey market is when its bought from Japan or Europe and therfore not sold as a USA product. The problem is finding a place that will fix it. If the company is big enough they may send it to Japan to get fixed for you. Most of these companies won’t be in business that long. Here is the dirty trick they described that this company does. They require you to phone in your order to verfy, then ask you if you want the “accessories” which are really the stuff you are supposed to get with the camera anyway. Such as the manual, lense cap, battery, etc. They bump the price over market that way or tell you its backorderd and you never get your product or money back.
I’m ok with the “international” warranty on certain items. For example, Stephanie bought my Tissot T-Touch with an international warranty. With Swiss Watches they are top quality as long as you get a real/new one. And I’m pretty sure this one is. The manufacturers protect the resellers who are “authorized” – if not “authorized” they cannot offer the US warranty. But the cost difference was enough that I’d just buy a new watch or pay for the repair. With a Camera its a different story – especially this one that will cost over $1,500 dollars and have lots of moving parts. With this reseller they claim they will send it to Switzerland for you.
