Given that there are a fair few Photographers in UCET, I thought that it may be a good idea to fence in our gear and technique talk, so as not to bombard the heathens... sorry, non-camera enthusiasts... when we talk/dream about new gear we want or have just got our mucky paws on.
I'll kick off with today's bargain, a Manfrotto 190Cx Cf Tripod-3S.
Yup, a Carbon Fibre Manfrotto... for £15, delivered.
RRP is £250, Cheapest I can find it was £160. It's also totally unused, complete with tags, manuals and box. I now need a Head for it. Fluid Head or Simple Ball with a QR Plate?
[quote="NewStuff" post=8829]Fluid Head or Simple Ball with a QR Plate?[/quote]
WTF !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! im just a SIMPLE caver :S :S :S
Fluid Head - Great for video, very very smooth when panning the camera. Looks like You would expect the top of most tripods to look like.
Ball Head - Is what it says. Ball and Socket joint. Small, Light weight, and can be locked in position, but prone to Wonky horizons, and crap at panning. Preferable for Stills.
thankyou thats more like it
I've horrified several people already by stating that it is getting dragged underground with me. I buy gear to use it, not polish it and show it off. I can get spares for anything I break easily enough.
if you're after a fluid head - i got a crackin deal on a cheapo chinese version of a manfrotto 701 off ebay - i'm well happy with it. There are a few though some are crap so watch out - i found a review site where people were raving about it and followed the link.
Great for video but worse than useless for photos - i.e. no way to 'level' it. You need both i recon ;-)
will trawl through my ebay history to try to find it.
search "717 head" in ebay
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FANCIER-717AH-Pro-Video-Drag-Head-for-Camera-Tripod-/180859636290?pt=UK_Tripods_Monopods&hash=item2a1c130a42
i'm still using my £3.99p one off amazon with a big wood screw holding the head on.
for photos only i also use a dirt cheap pile of crap i picked up for a £5. its filmy but hey - theres no wind underground - unless you're following too close behind Mr Leahy. ;-)
For smooth pan video - i use a Manfrotto tripod with the cheapo chinese fluid head.
but then again, my photos are shit compared to mad-dans - must get more practice!
I use Manfrotto, it's lightweight and compact. Haven't seen anyone with the carbon fiber one yet though so can't comment.
Only problem with it is the name, sounds a bit gay.
[quote="NewStuff" post=8829]Given that there are a fair few Photographers in UCET, I thought that it may be a good idea to fence in our gear and technique talk, so as not to bombard the heathens... sorry, non-camera enthusiasts... when we talk/dream about new gear we want or have just got our mucky paws on.
I'll kick off with today's bargain, a Manfrotto 190Cx Cf Tripod-3S.
Yup, a Carbon Fibre Manfrotto... for £15, delivered.
RRP is £250, Cheapest I can find it was £160. It's also totally unused, complete with tags, manuals and box. I now need a Head for it. Fluid Head or Simple Ball with a QR Plate?[/quote]
Is that on amazon? that really is cheap!
It was on Amazon. Sadly, only one available, or I'd have PM'd the link to a few people on here. Looks to be someone doing Clearances/Bulk buys of stuff, maybe liquidation. I think they had no idea what it was worth, and chucked it up for a Tenner.
I took a Flyer on it, and I lucked out... I could well have got a replacement leg-lock for the tripod instead.
I'm loving it so far, especially the centre plate, that can be used instead of a traditional centre column. Seems to add a lot of rigidity.
I think I'll look into a decent Ball head for it... It's not as if there are many straight horizons to worry about underground.
That's well jammy and a cracking find. :P
Having found that the Tair 300mm Lens from my Photosniper Outfit uses the 3/8 mount natively, I've sort-of had a test. Surprisingly sturdy, although very "hollow" sounding. Plenty light enough to drag around underground all day long, and isn't that tall, when considering how tall it will extend should I want it to.
I am comparing it to my "comedy" tripod though (a Benbo 1), Dan should remember that one, I nearly dragged it around Denbigh Asylum until a dose of Common sense took hold.
Today's bargains are a 50mm f1.7 SMC Takumar (totally mint) and a Vivitar Thyristor flash for £20.
Are you searching these bargains manually though amazon, or are you using a page?
Glad you are happy with the tripod, I swear by mine.
Just be carefull if you are doing any photography In windy conditions, the tripods can blow over. Had it on top of a building once :(
[quote="Suboffender" post=8894]Are you searching these bargains manually though amazon, or are you using a page?[/quote]
Manually. Almost of the Cash Converters type places around here give me a Ring if they have any Manual Focus stuff come in. They know if it's decent, I'll probably have it, so don't mind giving decent prices to me. I do snag the odd badly listed bargain on fleabay, amazon and gumtree.
[quote="Suboffender" post=8894]
Glad you are happy with the tripod, I swear by mine.
Just be carefull if you are doing any photography In windy conditions, the tripods can blow over. Had it on top of a building once :([/quote]
I'll make sure to weigh it down with a decently heavy bag.
No gear-shots then? nothing for me to drool over? (If you have a Samyang 14mm, post it up, I fancy one).
Do You shoot on/with anything unusual, old or downright silly, just for the hell of it?
Hell, if You only post up to distract me from breaking out the Manual Focus lens collection, then I won't be offended, not everyone likes old lenses.
if its a vivitar 285 then buy it - i got one a goodly while ago - its the flash to have!
right - note to self - take photos of some of my old manual primes with nikon converters for newstuff to get all silly over ;-)
That'll do nicely.
I need to re-look at all of mine to make sure no nasties have started appearing on them, so I may do a few shots of them while I have them all out.
I really really want a Samyang. They are not too expensive either.
Waiting for one to come up cheap :)
I'm after a M42 mount 100mm macro lens if anyone comes accross a cheap one.
and one of those cheapo lighting sets.
Had my first canvas printed yesterday, so i'm going to have a go at taking some pictures of the kids, supprised it came out as well as it did seen as i was using my cap-lamp for lighting
[quote="mad-dan" post=8918]I'm after a M42 mount 100mm macro lens if anyone comes accross a cheap one.
and one of those cheapo lighting sets.
[/quote]
Dan - I'll keep my eye out for a Macro.
I have a nice set of Bowens lights (on stands, with backdrops, stands for those etc etc, softboxes, umbrellas), pretty much a full studio setup, just add camera and tripod.
Cheap isn't going to come into it I'm afraid.
It's that last of my stuff from the Studio now that I have sold the Comedy Tripod, and I love these lights. I'd rather keep them than let them go for a pittance.
Joel - I'm hoping to snag one for my Birthday or Xmas. Assuming I do, it'll be in M42 (Will fit almost anything bar Nikon, with the right adaptor), and you're welcome to have a play about with it to see if You like it.
to be honest, for the amount of use i'll give any lighting kit, it would'nt be worth me spending a fortune.
but what sort ofmoney are you after (inboxme if you would rarther)
No need to inbox you, The heads are around £200ish each used, and I have 4 of them. Perfect condition, not a mark on them, 500W/head. If someone took all 4, I'd chuck the rest of the stuff in.
It's way over the top for the odd shoot though. If You fancy starting up a Studio however, lol...
I dont spend that much on my cars.
yeh, way more than i'm after spending, i would bet if i get some they wont come out more than 3 or 4 times a year
I don't spend that much on gear any more, it's the last bit's I kept from my Studio.
In all honesty, I've used them 3 times in nearly a decade. When they are up permanently, they are awesome. Hook up the Sync leads and go. If you have to put up 4 heads, a backdrop, softboxes, reflectors, brollies etc, it's a ballache.
Okay, here you go, my collection (so far) of Manual lenses. Almost ll of them get used (The PK fit lenses have had the pin removed, but it's totally reversible, PB I'm working on).
Top to Bottom, Left to Right.
Photosniper case
Photosniper (Tair 300/4.5, M42), Pentacon 300/4, (M42)
Tokina 80-210 (PB), Pentacon 200/4 (m42), Pentacon 135/2.8 (PB)
Helios 44 (58mm, M42), XR Rikenon 50/1.7 (PK), XR Rikenon 50/2 (PK), Pentacon 50/1,8 (M42), Pentacon 50/1,8 (M42), Zeiss Tessar 50/1.8 (M42), Pentacon 30/3.5, Meyer Optik Gorlitz Lydith 30/3.5 (M42), Clubman 24/2.8 (M42).
[quote="NewStuff" post=8922]
Joel - I'm hoping to snag one for my Birthday or Xmas. Assuming I do, it'll be in M42 (Will fit almost anything bar Nikon, with the right adaptor), and you're welcome to have a play about with it to see if You like it.[/quote]
That's a kind offer mate, but i'm Nikon all the way! :(
Just show me some underground shots taken with it and i will judge from there. Could do with another decent zoom lens for rooftop shots, as i have just lost my Tamron.
That's one hell of a manual kit :P
I just added another 50 1.7 to it. Looks to be an unused Pentax SMC. As good as the day it.was made. I'm a sucker for a cheap lens. £15 with a free vivitar 285 flash.
285's are awesome :-)
[quote="TimWatts" post=9074]285's are awesome :-)[/quote]
Indeed they are. I had it in Moel Fferna today for a brief play about. I have an idea for it... I'm going to need some more RF-602's though... And some more Flashes...
I've got 4x 602's, a 285 and a couple of other big 'un's if you need to borrow them.
Also some big flashbulbs & 9v batteries. ;-)
[quote="TimWatts" post=9080]I've got 4x 602's, a 285 and a couple of other big 'un's if you need to borrow them.
Also some big flashbulbs & 9v batteries. ;-)[/quote]
When are we going to Wrysgan then? :P
just say the word ;-)
Are you back on dry land sometime around the 6th-8th Sep?
i am but have other site on and am then flying out to Norway for a meeting..... what about the following week maybe?
My weekends are fully booked for the next couple of months but have some weekdays free :-)
So, Samyang are releasing a 10mm Rectilinear (Mr Leahy goes crosseyed :P ) for crop sensors, and it's almost a certainty that there will be some new Russian glass in the form of Mir, Tair and Helios.
I'm currently rubbing this in the face of people who say Manuals are dead....
Anyone else looking forward to reviews and examples from the new lenses? I want a Mir 20/3.5 so badly it's stupid. I may even put the Samyang on the back burner. The Mir is only around £160ish
Oh, and I bought *another* Pentacon 50/1.8. I have 2 already, but a mint (possibly unused... no scratches on the bayonet at all) copy for a Tenner? I can't say no to that. This one does not go underground.
An interesting discussion just came up on Flickr about 10-20mm lenses
http://www.flickr.com/groups/sigma10-20/discuss/72157621913677426/ (http://www.flickr.com/groups/sigma10-20/discuss/72157621913677426/)
My Sigma 10-20mm'tis also my favourite lens.
All i use at the moment is:
Sigma 10-20
An old 35mm F1.8 (fully manual)
A Nikkor 50mm f1.4 (fully auto!)
A Nikkor 18-105mm 'kit' lens, which ain't bad for what it is.
I just sold my 55-200mm (DX VR) so i'm now short of a long lens.
Just been bidding on a Sigma 70-200 (Full frame) f2.8 right through the range :-) - The 'new' one with the Sigma version VR. It translates to about 105-300mm on a 3/4 sensor Nikon. Fitted with a doubler would give an effective very useful 600mm @ f5.6 on my D7000. :-) Missed out by a few quid :-( Went for £700 odd though, 'only' £900 new - bloody good job i missed it i guess - mrs would have killed me!
There are some very tasty and highly rated manual 300ish mm fastish lens popping up on ebay though, for much more sensible money - i think i'll bide my time.
I have a 300/4.5 Tair and a 300/4Pentacon. If Nikon could focus to infinity with M42, You would be welcome to borrow them.
The focus mechanism on a photosniper version of a Tair is something almost all people love. Should be standard on all long lenses.
GoPro HD Hero 3 has just been released... is anyone else eyeing up it's low light capabilities?
As usual, cracking Promo video... although I notice a disttinct lack of underground... Maybe Tim should volunteer to Beta test them underground?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3PDXmYoF5U
I've got a gopro2 - its 'ok' underground. To be honest the promo videos they churn out have obviously had lots and lots of post production work thrown at them though. I've been diving with mine also and the raw footage doesn't look as good as what they publish.
Yeah, loads of professional production. The 3 is *meant* to be far better than previous model in low light (The first was utter crap!).
However, to get some good raw footage? Would be a lot easier than lugging what we currently do. I can do post, though it takes a while... Must need more cores.
So, I pulled the trigger on an NEX-3 and an adaptor for M42 glass.
It'll be interesting learning how to pull focus on a manual lens and a camera that small. The Liveview and Focus peaking should be a huge step up from the EOS with a Split Prism.
[quote="NewStuff" post=11158]So,
The Liveview and Focus peaking should be a huge step up from the EOS with a Split Prism.[/quote]
wtf ??????????????????????????????????????????????? :unsure: :unsure: :unsure:
i think you will be hugely upset if you got one of these new at full price, had a play with a nex 7 today, it was shit.
Indeed, Sony can go jump if I'm paying £1K!
I paid £130, lol. Even if I hate it, I can pass it on and make on it.
Do bear in mind that I do not shoot AF at all, so the LiveView and Focuspeaking alone are a huge boost from the EOS.
Mike - I don't use "Modern" lenses that focus when You push a button. I use older ones You have to set and focus yourself. Using these on my old camera was always a bit of a ballache, the new one *should* be a lot easier to use. Focus peaking highlights the parts in focus... look at the yellow highlights in this video to give you an idea.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqHwXvebZ5s
thank you ali that makes more sense :silly: :blink: :silly: :blink: :silly: :blink:
don,t kid yourself you mean your just a simplicity caver if you don,t get it, ask a female ha,ha,
if you have a fluid head then that cheap chinese version of thialand girl was more than 5 doller ha ha full of it tonight
Hi Tim
Just arrived from tom top china "ON CAMERA CN-LUX1000 (£15) volage7.2-12v
power 6w ,colour temperature 5400k/3200k, 3 filters,adapter box for panasonic battery and a battery box for 6 AA, shit hot have a 180 wide angle sweep 80 feet on 1000 lux will try it out on crtt trip.
[quote="madmicks" post=11188]if you have a fluid head then that cheap chinese version of thialand girl was more than 5 doller ha ha full of it tonight[/quote]
you been drinking cider again mick :sick: :sick: :sick: :sick:
[quote="mike leahy" post=11191][quote="madmicks" post=11188]if you have a fluid head then that cheap chinese version of thialand girl was more than 5 doller ha ha full of it tonight[/quote]
you been drinking cider again mick :sick: :sick: :sick: :sick:[/quote]
I know what he's talking about, an On-Camera (Sits where the flash normally would) light source, probably a Video Light. Looks like it's intended for closer work, but sort-of bright at 6W. The 5400K/3200K bit is the colour temperature of the LED's (Measured in Kelvin, or "K"). Around the 2500-3000K mark, the light is something like you would use in your front room, a "warm white", more of a yellowy tint to it. 5000-600K is a "cool white", more like You would see in a shop or an operating theatre. I prefer something nearer 6000K, but that's just me.
Hi mick,
Nice let me know how it goes. The one i used for filming the CRTT was this one:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3800-Lumen-CREE-XML-3x-T6-LED-Flashlight-Torch-18650-fast-ship-5-mode-Battery-/300725600975?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Camping_LightsLanternsTorches&hash=item4604a482cf
i use it 'off camera' to try to reduce light bounce back from dust and moisture in the air.
Good luck with the CRTT - sorry i won't be back in time to help! (Home late Wednesday night).
I now have the NEX and adaptors.
So far, I love it. Very easy to nail the focus even in low light. Focus peaking is awesome. High ISO performance is, coming from a 400D, astonishing. Weight is far lighter... Hell, a 50mm Pentacon with the NEX adaptor is bigger than the damn camera! It looks totally stupid with the Tair 300/4.5 on the end, and I haven't been silly enough to try out the Pentacon 300/4 yet.
I'll give it a good run tomorrow when I have daylight. Initial impressions are bloody good so far though, and I'm looking forward to a trip out next week.
New additions to my Manual Lenses bag (That isn't really big enough now!)
Hoya 24/2.8 and Hanimex 28/2 in M42. Totally immaculate. I doubt I'll take the Hoya underground, it's beautiful, and a shame to ruin it.
I also have a Zeiss T* 45/2.8 in Contax/Yashica on the way too. For a Mind-Boggling - FREE! (Yes, that's a £200+ lens, and no, it's not going underground!)
I also got my PK adaptor today. I love the Pentax-M SMC 50/1.7. Gorgeous for Portraits. The Ricoh XR Rikenons are pretty decent too.
on a serious note, how much of your gear do you actually think you'll ever use?
i at the moment have 3 DSLR's, one of them i havent even picked up for 18 months, actually i have 4, so thats 2 i havent touched for 18+ months.
i have at least 15 lenses and i use 3 of them, i use my 18-70mm for underground stuff and general snaps, i've a 10-24 i just dick about with and a 50mm i use for portrates, oh, i do have a 28mm f2.8 i use sometimes, just not very offten.. i've various flash guns i dont use, 6 or 7 tripods, i use 2 of them, one for underground and i've a decent one for outside stuff and boxes of other stuff that just sits there taking up room..
boys and toys bla de bla de fuckin bla. get a life boys
I use most of it. Different lenses for different situations, each has better strengths. Almost all will produce, at a minimum, decent pictures. Some are razor sharp, some have a really nice OoF effect, some are just plain brilliant to use (The Tair-3 pHs comes to mind, all long lenses should focus that way). I still run nice film through my EOS 1 if I want something special, but I've gotten lazy with Digital, and my keep rate is way down (I had a better keep rate on a Zenit 12XP with a 400mm "wundertube"!), so I reserve it for special occasions/subjects.
That said, I really need to stop snagging 50mm's (Pentax-M, Zeiss Tessar, 2x Pentacon 1.8's, Ricoh 1.7 and 2.0, and I suppose you could count the Helios 44-2 at 58mm, and possibly the incoming Zeiss 45) just because it's usually very nice glass, and cheap. I could do with offloading a few at some point though, just keep the best.
I do have unused gear (Nikon F301 and a couple of lenses), and a couple of bridge cameras (Sony F-707, becuase that lens is bloody sharp, and a Panasonic TZ7 which the Missus sometimes uses).
I sold all of my AF lenses bar the Superwide 24/2.8, as it's sporting a nasty scratch and the AF is goosed (courtesy of Moel Fferna). It does work very nicely on the EOS1 and D60 despite the scratch, and is very sharp. I even sold that CF tripod, as it was just too big for underground (dropped into Fferna with it, never again).
[quote="mike leahy" post=11870]boys and toys bla de bla de fuckin bla. get a life boys[/quote]
Get a mug shot Mike - bla, bla, bla.
If you can't find one, then get these nice photographer guys to take one for you.
We could even run a competition - for the best likeness. Mug shots of our venerable chairman!
i dont think ive got one john.
Just checked our mugshots on the "who is who" section and they are all bust :(
[quote="Ian" post=11912]Just checked our mugshots on the "who is who" section and they are all bust :([/quote]
as are most other things on the forum/site
A new toy showed up today. Now I'm waiting for the C/Y adaptor for the NEX to show up. This is meant to be very sharp indeed. It should be at the shorter end of the scale for a Portrait lens on a crop sensor, (67.5mm effective FoV). If needed, I can always knock a bit of detail out.
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8265724966_a53ba62966_z.jpg)
Dan, I do believe You need to get Your arse over to AditNow...
http://www.aditnow.co.uk/community/viewtopic.aspx?t=7687
I'm gonna say it... Told You so...