Digital photography

[RhynoCZ]

A slight update...

... so, after a few days I managed to learn what button/dial does what and what all the stuff on the display (HUD) means. I still can't quite make the camera do what I want it to, but I'm getting there.

I am amazed how much information/detail the APS-C sensor gets into the pictures, compared to a smartphone camera. Also, for some reason I found an unexplainable interest in monochrome photography. The level of detail just seems much higher when you work only with shades of grey.

Oh, and I bought a camera carrying bag, cleaning blower and a lenspen. I would not bother with the lenspen but I acidentaly touched the lense glass with my greasy finger and after reading stuff online, I decided to solve my greasy lense issue with the lenspen. I was sceptical, but it did remove the finger grease quite imediately, with no visible damage to the glass.

Anyway, here are some pictures. The original picture res. is 6000 x 3376, I had to reduce the res. to 4K to upload the pictures here. Otherwise all of these are JPEG right out of the camera. The F4 picture is my desktop wallpaper at the moment.

QUESTION: What do people say about affordable third party lenses? Lenses from 7Artisans, MEIKE, ... etc.? I do understand that my camera (X-T200) uses the lense for picture stabilistaion, and that the third party lenses do not have stabilisation, but missing stabilisation could only be an issue when shooting moving subjects and video, right?
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[martin734]

[doggone]

While not normally a fan of facebook the groups are good for stuff like this there seem to be some with a lot of info about the Fuji X range even without signing up you can read and search.
Usually you are best sticking to the native lenses even if it means saving up a while but there are always exceptions it might for example be fine to look at something (e.g.) Sigma like an F1.4 50mm which is really nice for portrait or product type photos with blurred background.

The kit lenses are usually around 24-70 or 24-105 zooms, then it's always tempting to think about maybe a 70-200 or even 100-400 for more reach but a nice fixed length one good in low light i.e. Wide aperture F1.8 or lower is really nice to have and a relatively inexpensive addition early on.
A wider angle such as 28 or 35mm is good for astro or other very low light photos like city lights at night etc.

More affordable zooms are often F4 or higher so not as handy in low light.
Don't be hasty about additional lenses until you get a better idea of what interests you. Used lenses can be very good value for popular brands like Fuji.

[RhynoCZ]

Thank you lads,

I only recently figured out how to actually use the kit lense (XC 15-45mm f/3.5-5.6) and the connection between aperture and shutter speed and how to use the auto focus or rather what mode to use and when. The manual focus is somewhat cumbersome. Could be the lense, could by me not understanding what's going on. This is where I might buy a used cheap prime lense (3rd. party) with manual focus and aperature just to try and learn stuff. But so far the Fujifilm kit lense is enough for me. I still couldn't even take many pictures outside, as it's either raining, snowing, freezing or it's just too dark.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[Howling Terror]

Bit of bad weather shouldn't give you a long face.


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FIbIzrgX0AceQj1?format=jpg&name=largeTaken today.

F2.5 SS 1/100 ISO 160
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Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[RhynoCZ]

I'm still not comfortable to use the camera in sub-zero temperatures and high moisture environment. Fujifilm says the X-T200 operation conditions are 0°C to 40°C, at 10% to 80% air humidity. It's not the camera that I'm worried about though, it's the lense, that contains hugh chunks of glass inside in a plastic housing full of electronics with no weather sealing whatsoever.

I did however do some hiking in the mountains today and took many pictures with my Pixel 4a phone. Although, ever since I got my hands on the X-T200 camera I find the smartphone camera, and its features, very limiting.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[Tarmacsurfer]

I bought a second hand OM-D EM1 last time I was in Japan, sold it a few months back in a fit of "oh shit, I need money quick". I really regret doing so. Weather sealing is something I never knew I needed until I had it.
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I'm immortal. Well, so far.

[RhynoCZ]

So, I made some pictures with my digital camera outside. I'm not quite happy with the results, it was dark, but it is a start. Once again, I had to reduce the picture resolution to upload them here.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[Howling Terror]

Challenging light conditions there RhynoCZ where exposure bracketing probably wouldn't have given you much satisfaction....then again I'm guessing at what you wanted from the shots.
____________________
Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[doggone]

In that scene to keep the colour in the sky that can't be exposed to much it will just wash out.
At the same time you often want to see some detail in the dark foreground (without losing all the silhouette look)
The camera can automatically bracket for you in that situation maybe try three shots at -1 0 and +1 or even -2 0 +2

But then you need to blend them together which is more complicated though (e.g) Lightroom will do it for you and make a decent job.

Another approach is to use one frame and lift the shadows and drop highlights a bit - effectively reduce contrast.
This can be readily done by pretty basic editing software but results will be much better if your original file was RAW rather than JPG
I did try to tweak things from the uploaded jpg but not much data hidden in the dark - you would retrieve something from a RAW file.

As soon as you start pushing things about beware of degrading the image by going too far, and making it look too forced or artificial.
One of those times when less is more

With film the 'correct' way would have been to use a graduated neutral density filter which is darker at the top so your sky isn't too bright if you increase exposure of the whole frame a bit.
Good filters are quite expensive and are not really needed so much with digital but certainly can be used and kind of fun to play about with.

[Stevie GooGs]

[RhynoCZ]

I do have the RAW file to the A1 picture. I tried to edit the raw file in darktable but the dark areas can't be brought up much without washing out the sky. Although, I can see all the trees in the background now. I uploaded a 4K (2160p) jpeg here. The original picture is in much higher resolution of 6000x4000.

The data says the picture was taken with 200 ISO, f/5.0, 1/85, 29mm focal length. ISO too low for the shutter speed and apeture settings? It looked alright in the viewfinder before I took the picture, though.

QUESTION: My smartphone camera has a fixed aperture of f/1.7. The Fujinon kit lense that I use on my digital camera goes as low (high?) as f/3.5. I get that f/1.7 is very fast, but is f/3.5 that slow? In terms of how long it takes to get all the necessary light through onto the sensor to get similar results?
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[Howling Terror]

The composition isn't good (which means nothing if you're happy with it).
What was the focus of attention? What did you want in sharp focus? Where did you focus?


The bright area of sky would maybe have benefitted from a graduated filter or as I mentioned a series of images with different exposure settings.

Aperture setting (again...don't know which mode you were in and what you had in mind).

Next time you're out, setup your tripod and capture the same static scene using Aperture priority and note how the ISO and shutter speeds adjust. See how the depth of field alters.

Use the histogram to check that there isn't a massive spike towards the right (indicating blown out areas of the image that cannot be 'fixed' in post).

Most of all take lots of photographs and maybe some tutorials on the areas you're not sure about.
____________________
Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[doggone]

[RhynoCZ]

I use the (A)perture priority 99% of the time, as I only shoot static subjects and also figured out what effect do different aperture settings have on the final image. It's always the question of how sharp do I want the image and the background to be and what the camera should do with the ''light rays'' from various light sources.

Playing with the aperture also revealed a big dust particle inside my lense, right on the back glass, it shows only between f/11 and f/22, moves with the zoom. I have no idea how it got inside, however I am certain it wasn't there when I first had to use the blower to clean the sensor. It is visible on the glass with bare eye.

I am tempted to remove the back glass (4 screws) and blow the dust out.

Anyway, I also try my luck with AUTO ISO, that I set to min. 200ISO and max. 800ISO (it can't go lower on the max. ISO with the AUTO ISO function), and I tell the camera not to drop the shutter speed bellow 1/60. That, unless I want to make a night time/low light picture. The Dynamic Range option and exposure compensation, I'm still not quite sure about. I sort of understand what these two functions do, but I can't predict the end results, if that makes any sense. I do use the histogram however sometimes it does not reflect the reality or rather what the final image will look like. My computer monitor also isn't that well calibrated. That being said, I still prefer JPEG over RAW, although I set the camera to shoot both, so I can then pick the pictures I like and edit them.

Anyway, I'm off to make some more pictures, last night I watched several Fujifilm camera tutorials on youtube and read through the manual again. Before I decide to do anything about the dust inside the lense, I'll keep the aperture between f/3.5 and f/10 to hide the dust bastard.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[RhynoCZ]

[Howling Terror]

My eye was immediately drawn to the brighter area and then it had nowhere to go but for a desktop wallpaper I can see what you had in mind.

As for the dust issue, have you tried using a *can of compressed air or is it possible to send it in for service under warranty?

Happy snapping.



*keep the can upright
____________________
Diabolical homemade music Bandcamp and Soundcloud
Singer songwriter, Artist and allround good bloke Listen to Andrew Susan Johnston here
The Harry Turner Project

[RhynoCZ]

I got the camera and lense from a general electronics store, so I'm gonna have to check the service under warranty conditions. I'd say dust inside the lense isn't really something a warranty would cover, as the lense has no sealing whatsoever and the possibility of dust getting inside was always there. Fujifilm does have representation in Czech republic, so I might check the warranty conditions with them. I should probably register my camera first.

When you say compressed air, where would I even put the nozzle? It's inside the lens. I also heard that compressed air in the can is not ideal, as it may present moisture to the lense (electronics inside).

The next option, there are the local vendors who clean lenses for a little fee, with good results I hope.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[doggone]

[Islander]

[Islander]

[RhynoCZ]

So, today I made this. I used the wrong autofocus settings, I also should have used the burst shutter mode... anyway I've got a question.

QUESTION:
I use the 15-45mm kit lense that came with my Fujifilm camera. The blurrines of the picture asside, I understand that with a longer lense I could make that bird much bigger from where I was standing. Now, would a ring (set of rings) under the kit lense work? Those macro rings do move the focal lenght, don't they? Used macro ring extensions go for next to nothing, compared to proper zoom lenses.

QUESTION:
Focus to infinity, is it just set it to infinity and forget about it?

https://www.bikechatforums.com/files/dscf1444-edit2.jpg
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[doggone]

Not for that subject realistically, they are decent purchase but to have autofocus work you need the slightly more pricey ones with contacts.
They really are mainly to make you lens able to focus much closer like almost touching the glass.

Infinity isn't always fully turned one way or on the infinity symbol if present.
With a zoom it might vary through the zoom range slightly.
With sony there is a way it can show you what's in focus called 'peaking' you get a red line round objects in manual - can be turned on or off.
Not sure if fuji do something similar
But you can do almost as good a job by eye, especially if it helps you by enlarging when you turn the ring.

Unless light is very low autofocus is so good now you are best sticking with it.
Sometimes there's an object like tree branch in the way so manual over ride is better.

[RhynoCZ]

Fujifilm cameras do have the focus peaking and the red (or whatever colour you chose) markings on what's in focus when using the manual focus.

I use the AF+MF mode, meaning the camera does the focusing and I can then fine tune the focus with the focus ring on the lense. I've got several pictures where I focus on much longer distances with much sharper results. Not in this case though. The camera refocused, no time to fine focus it, and it blurred the image. The focus meter on my camera goes to 10m, then it's infinity, so my thinking here is manual focus to infinity and just leave it there to take such pictures of subjects in long distance.

The data says it was taken at ISO200, 1/450, f/10, with stabilisation turned on. Does ISO have an effect on autofocus? 1/450 isn't slow and at f/10 the lense should be as sharp as it can possibly be.

EDIT: Or maybe I just have high expectations.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[doggone]

ISO shouldn't affect focus but some subjects confuse it and in lower light you often notice it will hunt from one thing to another.
In your photo the bird looks sharp I thought that was your subject and it is close enough that the distant trees are a bit blurred