Conners wrote:

VERT wrote: Climbed Mt Angelus, Nelson Lakes in the weekend, this is a jetty looking out to Lake Rotoiti

(it is the jetty at the St Arnurd end of the lake - the one off to the left in the main carpark?)

Aye, that be the one

Thats kinda freaky - I must grab that photo and scan it when I'm at the folks place next time...

VERT wrote: Climbed Mt Angelus, Nelson Lakes in the weekend, this is a jetty looking out to Lake Rotoiti

That is a sweet photo!

You don't happen to sell prints do you?

XCrazy wrote:

VERT wrote: Climbed Mt Angelus, Nelson Lakes in the weekend, this is a jetty looking out to Lake Rotoiti

That is a sweet photo!

You don't happen to sell prints do you?

send me a pm, we could work something out

So I've been reading through this thread for quite some time now, your photography is amazing I've become very engrossed, to the point where I really want a camera. But I want to understand all the tech behind it as well, so are there any sort of classes that I could go to? I assume there are, but just thought I'd ask in case any of you know any good ones, or something that will give me the low down on Digital photography. Also, I'd appreciate any recommendations for a beginning camera. I shot these two with a Powershot G7.

I think you have basics there. An eye for the stuff. But could do with some fine tuning.

Keep it up. And get a camera! You'll love it to bits. Just dont ask me what to get, cos I'm not in the know about all them.

I look forward to some more shots

A Powershot G7 is a great beginner camera

Only it's not mine haha. I'm quite keen on a digi SLR, just there a myriad of options out there. The Nikon D40 seems good, anyone rate it?

One of the many photos of a corporate rowing event down here, was good to test my new Sigma lens.

The far most crew looks like they're trying to dig up some crabs from the bottom of the lake......

VERT wrote: A Powershot G7 is a great beginner camera

Except that Canon in their infinite wisdom decided not to put RAW in it....
They put it back in with subsequent models.

For a point and shoot I like the G10 and the Ricohs

For a DSLR it's a matter of choosing one of the lens mounts first IMHO... then choose your body on budget.

My thoughts

Nikon
Great wides
OK teles
OK Primes
OK 2nd hand availability
OK cost

Canon
OK wides (I prefer Sigmas for the money)
Great Teles
Good primes
Good 2nd hand availability
OK cost

Pentax/Sony/Olympus
All much of a muchness.
They do gret bodies at the moment but I'm a lens whore and there just isn't the depth there from either the Manufacturer or the generics.

In terms of bodies and assuming your more consumer end...

I like
450D - Good low end Canon. Steer clear of the 1000D, sacrifices too much.
D90 - Nice but a bit more spendy. Newest model from Nikon
40D (nice price now with the 50D out) My pick of the good value options from Canon
K20 I LOVE this body. Pity it's a Pentax mount. If you're happy to buy some of the nice Pentax primes this is a good option IMHO.

Suggest checking the reviews at www.dpreview.com before purchasing... They are pretty solid.

I am a big fan of good lens, OK body.
On a limited budget I'd get a second hand 20D or 30D or 400D and a new 24-105 F4 L IS
Lens will be twice the price of the body. Lens will hold value REALLY well compared to body.

The canon refurbs from Adorama look pretty good... Though the dollar has moved hard against shopping overseas recently.

cauld wrote: The far most crew looks like they're trying to dig up some crabs from the bottom of the lake......

Yeh, alot of crabs caught that day, of course it was mainly novice people. It was actually done on Otago Harbour on Sunday, because the weather at Lake Waihola on Saturday packed up bad, as you can see below...
Right after that race, by the end of which the rain was pouring down so i put away my gear. The wind got twice as bad, and the next race had one of the 8's sink.

STPStudmuffin wrote: So I've been reading through this thread for quite some time now, your photography is amazing I've become very engrossed, to the point where I really want a camera. But I want to understand all the tech behind it as well, so are there any sort of classes that I could go to? I assume there are, but just thought I'd ask in case any of you know any good ones, or something that will give me the low down on Digital photography. Also, I'd appreciate any recommendations for a beginning camera. I shot these two with a Powershot G7.

I have a black cat too, and they are tricky. You need to use some fill flash. The fancy flash metering modes use a pre flash for exposure that is almost invisible to humans, but a cat will spook and move before the real flash burst making the photo blurry!

Turn off all ettl and other advanced flash modes and put a couple of pieces of scotch tape over the built in flash to diffuse it. You will get much better night time party photos with this method as well.

A small aerial set from my trip to Vancouver yesterday/this morning