SHOfrE3zE, you could mask the sharpening off so it doesn't occur on the noise in the blues. That said it has a film-like texture which I don't mind.

AlphaBeta: Yes, because DRO is basically an automatic Shadow Fill. Highlight Recovery is done by the camera, which chooses to underexpose to retain the tones in the white clouds. So even though I shot it at ISO200, the blues are a good 2 stops below (0 EV) while the buildings are possibly 3-4 stops below the sky (ISO1600-3200.)

When you underexpose an ISO200 shot by -2 EV, and bring it back up to 0 EV brightness, the picture has basically become an ISO800 shot.

SHOfrE3zE, shifting color is going to add noise.

In Photoshop, hit Ctrl-1, then Ctrl-2, then Ctrl-3; you'll see that the noise is different in every channel. If you stretch the wrong one you'll end up with a noisy picture. It looks like you pulled up the green and blue channels. Usually green is less noisy because our sensors have 1 red, 1 blue and 2 green elements.

I would use the Magic Wand on the blue-green bit, then do a Smart Blur on it.

lehtung, yes I was there for the Rainforest World Music Festival 2008!

This post has been edited by albnok: Apr 8 2009, 12:46 AM

achew, I'm still using Photoshop 7, so it's Unsharp Mask for me. Smart Sharpen is much better though for handling highlights and shadows separately.

Seng_Kiat you're in the list (on the other side!)

ament, need more daylight-to-orange ah?

craziqbal, yes I will teach WB! Will be bringing the flash gels.

dingenius3, yup will bring more!

I've seen people put flash gels in diffusers before at catwalk shoots. However my flash gel holder goes on top of the Stofen.

signither: 50mm F1.4?

AlphaBeta, some Sony lenses have a built-in auto focus motor - they have Super Sonic Motor (SSM) in their name.

Sony/Zeiss lenses with SSM:
CZ 16-35mm F2.8 SSM
CZ 24-70mm F2.8 SSM
Sony 70-200mm F2.8G SSM
Sony 70-300mm F4.5-5.6G SSM
Sony 70-400mm F4-5.6G SSM
Sony 300mm F2.8G SSM

Some Sigma lenses also have a built-in auto focus motor for Sony mount - they have Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) in their name.

Sigma lenses with HSM in A-mount (already exist and can be bought):
Sigma 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM
Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 EX DG HSM
Sigma 50-150mm F2.8 EX DC HSM
Sigma 70-200mm F2.8 EX DG HSM Macro

achew, the Sony 35mm F1.4G does not have SSM.

This post has been edited by albnok: Apr 9 2009, 12:18 PM

alpha_company,

Nikkor AF-S = Sony SSM
Nikkor AF-D = Sony (normal)

All Sony lenses can use normal Sony or Sony SSM lenses.

The Sony 18-70mm F3.5-5.6 DT is a normal Sony lens without SSM. The focus motor is in the body not the lens. You do not need a SSM lens for the A300.

The Nikon D40/D40x/D60 does not have a focus motor in the body so the lens must have a motor inside (AF-S or AF-I only.) That means the famous Nikkor AF-D 50mm F1.8 cannot be used on such a Nikon.

Yes, Nikon VR is equivalent to Sony SSS. Only that VR is on the lens and SSS is on the body.

A Nikon D60 + AF-D 50mm F1.8, for example, cannot autofocus and will not have VR.

A Sony A300 + Minolta 50mm F1.7 will autofocus and have SSS.

The Sony pop-up flash on the A200/A300/A350 is lower and is a disadvantage. But the advantage is that ANY Sony pop-up flash can do wireless flash. The Nikon D40/D40x/D60 cannot, you need to buy a separate wireless controller.

The Sony A300 screen can tilt up and down.

Refer here:
http://a.img-dpreview.com/news/0801/Sony/s...350_LCDdown.jpg

Okay lah cerita sikit:

Olympus 4/3rds/Canon - all focusing is on the lens
Sony/Pentax/Nikon - focus motor is either in the lens or the body

Sometimes, the focus motor in lens is faster; sometimes, the focus motor in body is faster. Depends on the lens and the body also.

The D60 and A300 use the same 10.2 megapixel sensor. So ISO performance is about the same. Only when you talk about the Nikon D90 then it's got much better ISO performance.

Kul | Mo0, come for the TT, we teach you wireless flash! It's the easiest thing in the world to activate (compared to a Nikon D90 + SB-800...)

Oops this is a reply from earlier which I forgot to paste from Notepad:

Cats love the Alpha shutter! When I shoot a cat on the road, at first it doesn't look at me... then I can see the ears turn towards me. I snap again and then it turns to face me! It just seems very intrigued.

v1rtual, if going straight is to Zouk, then you turn right at Public Bank.

achew, I was waiting for you to discover the potential of wireless flash with macro! Brilliant shot, love the colors (and the splash, I thought it was ice)!

alpha_company: Are you worried about the AF hunting in carlj's comment? It depends greatly on what you shoot. For example, if you shoot macro, you most definitely need to use manual focus! Also, the A200 is better than the Konica Minolta 5D in auto-focus.

The 55-200mm F4-5.6 DT is good if you want to go to the zoo or shoot on the street for far distances. It can take portraits, too!

The Live View flip screen is useful for shooting over crowds. I wish I had that whenever I'm at concerts because I am not 6 feet tall!

Also with Live View, you can see the color/white balance/exposure on the screen so you don't need to shoot, then go "aiya, my color/exposure wrong already" and then adjust...

vandechrome: Fuyoh Raynox power!

signither, nice strobe capture!