Oops. I guess I decided to convert from Serendipity to WordPress for my blogging app. Hopefully the old entries come back online soon. If not, oh well. Then I just have to make the site look good.
Dang.
edit: well it kinda worked. Images don’t work any more. hmmm….
edit2: well images are back, but the formatting is nuked. Oh well. I might go edit them if I have time.
edit3: nope, I guess the images are broken still.
edit4: they’re back, for now.
Permissions. Ugh. Seems any time I make a change to the gallery, the permissions go all wonky. Oh well, it is fixed.
Well I did it.
I’ve been considering it for a while, and I finally pulled the trigger. I started my own forum for Sigma cameras. There are currently two main Sigma forums, and both have their issues – so I figured I’d start a new one that is hopefully more accommodating to most users. Not much there yet, still getting things set up:
“Floral” is in quotes for a reason. The landscaping at the back of the house has been neglected, because it’s at the back of the house 
A little while back I noticed we had a very large thistle growing, so a couple days ago I decided I’d do something with it.
Cutting pieces off of this was very tough without gloves. But it was worth it.
I set up a little makeshift “mini studio” in my office for the shoot. This basically consisted of a black comforter pushpinned to the wall, a white piece of cardboard as a reflector, and my SB-24 twist-tied to my tripod: no, I don’t have a light stand or umbrella yet. Soon. Maybe. I hope.
I shot these with the SD14 and Vivitar 28/2.5. The close-up shots were done using some generic macro extension tubes.
I found this video today. I don’t think I’ve fully figured out yet just what it means to me, but I know it means something. Definitely worth a watch I’d say.
I’ve been playing with my M42 equipment the last few days. One thing I really like is using the macro extension tubes. Here are some shots from my reef tank using the Vivitar 28/2.5 and an extension tube or two. These are all either f/8 or f/22.
Got some new stuff.
I’ve been interested in toying with using old M42 lenses on the Sigma lately. A few weeks back, I found a Vivitar 28mm/2.5 in mint condition for a 20 spot at an antique shop in Ft Collins. Hopped on eBay and purchased an M42-SA adapter, and a set of M42 macro extension tubes.
Took a while for those to get here…the adapter came from Poland and the tubes from China.
The adapter is good, the lens works great. The tubes leave a little something to be desired. They screw into each other just fine, and the lens screws into them just fine, but they don’t want to screw into the adapter very well. Not sure if it’s because they are painted aluminum instead of anodized or what would be causing the threads to have issues. I damn near destroyed the small tube and my M42 adapter trying to remove it last night. They will work with small lenses, as they screw in about halfway, but I wouldn’t trust them with a heavier lens. Once I get a bigger M42 lens I will pick up a better set. So if you see a set of M42 extension tubes on eBay for $12 with free shipping…skip that listing and get something of a little higher quality.
I must say it’s really interesting to be able to get just a couple mm from the front glass and have things be in focus. Makes it a little difficult to light things properly though.
Eventually I’d like to get something in the 70-135mm range to use with tubes for macro work.
Sorry, no pictures yet.
Took some photos out in the garden yesterday evening. All images taken with the SD14 (of course) + 18-200mm DC OS, Nikon SB-24 off-camera, using a DIY shutter release cable.
Also, I think the site is starting to look good. Finally getting things put together properly.
If the site looks stupid, it’s because I’m halfassed trying to work on the layout. Please bare with me…
Wow, I suck at this whole blogging thing. I guess I just need to make it a point to get off my lazy butt and type a few paragraphs now and again.
Anyway, I’ve had the SD14 for a while now, and I love it. It certainly has its quirks, but that is ok, I can work with them.
One quirk would be the fact that the red channel can easily get over-saturated in some situations. Just some things you have to work around.
How about a few pictures then?
