camera for bee, wasp and hoverfly id?

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camera for bee, wasp and hoverfly id?
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dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Mon Feb 10, 20 12:35 am Post subject:

i should be very loud and clear, 300gm watercolour paper will not work in most domestic inkjet printers, without a lot of faffing about at every stage including knowing what faffs are required and killing kit and spilling ink to no avail even if you get it eventually, they are not built for it

decent paper does have a wonderful capacity to absorb and hold pigment/dyes.

a nice thing about inkjet colour ink is that it is dye based so it works a treat on some papers, (redacted redacted redacted redacted )

3 colours and chiaroscuro is plenty to have fun with

i have a few things to do before a proper play with this but the kit is being developed thoughtfully.

cheap ink for this was not the reason to get a new printer, both of us are at the mo slaves to win 10, tt needs it for work and i wanted a snaps apps pooter, a surface met my specs. our mature printer speaks Sumerian and linux but not 10 and by now has probably succumbed to a congestive disease of the print head:lol: ink was horrid expensive as well.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Fri Feb 21, 20 7:04 pm Post subject:

lightroom is ace for reviewing burst shot birdy snaps

the R does more than i have asked so far and what i have asked it has done

i need to refine the handle for under the big lens but what i have so far is better since i increased the friction on the ball/socket turny bit by adding a bit of fiddler's rosin

short and solid and shaped to fit my hand would be ideal

note to self have a(ed a more detailed chat) chat with my chum who is a woodcarver

Last edited by dpack on Fri Feb 21, 20 8:24 pm; edited 1 time in total

gz

Joined: 23 Jan 2009
Posts: 8918
Location: Ayrshire, Scotland

Posted: Fri Feb 21, 20 8:17 pm Post subject:
I have an Epson expression 322....it manages 250 GSM card with the feed vertically in the back and flat out the front. It still sometimes baulks at A4. It is supposed to be able to feed horizontally but I haven't worked out how yet...that is the key to using heavier paper/card

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Fri Feb 21, 20 11:13 pm Post subject:
i have been ok with up to 220gm watercolour paper in domestic ones, fatter than that takes a heavy toll on the running gear broke 5 another issue with domestic is registration, they do not consistently run true which is an issue with multi pass prints. for a single pass it does not matter. ink use is a huge issue if using absorbent papers

yummersetter

Joined: 26 Jan 2008
Posts: 3241
Location: Somerset

Posted: Mon Feb 24, 20 2:14 pm Post subject:
I print almost exclusively on 300gm paper ( professionally) and mainly buy mine from www.fotospeed.com

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Mon Feb 24, 20 6:12 pm Post subject:

thanks , they look useful. i have no idea what papers i might want

so far i have arches aquarelle 300m hot and cold pressed cotton paper which i have played with before, it can even be got cut into A4 blocks.

having a choice of paper makes a lot of difference but thought i would start with a predictable canvas as all the other kit and materials are new to me

i will have a go with good photo paper made for printers, the domestic stuff is barely suitable for layout prints, thanks again. my rather nice new printer is good but simple, a black pigment and CMY dye based ink regime is not sophisticated enough for single pass printing of art/archive quality snaps. i know who to ask if it needs doing.

i do hope it is up to my multi layer/multi pass art printing images, tis still under gnt if it isnt:lol:
when i was first playing with the method i did a snap of my aunts cat, the result was suitably terrifying

far too malevolent, far too 3d and very cross at being trapped on paper like a photocopied demon, just like it

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Mon Feb 24, 20 9:10 pm Post subject:

the test packs look like a useful way to try a variety of papers made for printers, triple thanks

the thing i like about watercolour paper and dye based inkjet ink is that the paper has a capacity to take multiple passes to build body and detail like a painting.

i have some old ones which might help explain what i mean but pictures of them misses the point big style, they are well odd and effective in the "flesh".

a photo of a painting made with photo tech is not a painting, a painting made with photo tech is a painting

a snap may or may not be a painting but thinking of photo ( ref light) and graphy( ref making marks on a surface) photography and painting do have a lot of common ground if you are doing it properly

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Mar 04, 20 10:04 pm Post subject:

im still happy with the camera and starting to learn more of what it can do

most accessories have been easy but not knowing what a cheese plate was called was an issue until i discovered their name.
i need to mount a handle and strap to the mount ring on the 100/400 so as the weight is not held from the camera via the converter ring.
at the mo the handle is on the lens mount ring and the strap to the camera which just seems to put unneeded strain on delicate bits rather than chunky ones.

the other bit i am still to get is a soft silicone eye cup, the one on it is ok but i prefer the sort that fit around my eye socket excluding side light and hold the camera to my head.
canon dont have one for the camera yet but if i can work out if the fitting is ed or ef i can get a generic one, if it is neither i might be stuffed til they make one.

i can get all the kit in a case that would pass as cabin luggage by size but i might have to have a lump as a handbag on weight grounds on some routes but it does mean it will easily go in a train overhead rack if needs be.

i might get a better tripod at some point but so far i am hand held for speed of tracking a target and i like papping stuff more than rigging up for one shot and missing a far better one.
a modern carbon fibre one would be nice and light but it will need a pretty chunky mount/tilt and pan top to take this beast with the 400mm of metal and glass sticking out of it. i will have to check some out. the ones i have are ok but modern ones are far more tidy.
a better handle is further up my wish list than a new tripod.

re modern online £100 a year photoshop etc, tis better than the older versions
i am very impressed with the functions of lightroom i have discovered so far. the review mode is ace with a touchscreen, checking out cute birds is but a swipe and poke rather than clicking or waiting for the next one to slideshow.
the roladex of lightboxes8)

photoshop is basically the same but easier to use and much easier to use with a choice of : trackball, pen, fingers, turny dial thing for adjusting values and a screen big enough to have tools and image on one monitor is ace.

not cheap but it does what it is supposed to rather well.
the low light ability even at mid f numbers is nice but i am looking forward to reducing the iso and upping the shutter speed when the sun gets into my "canyon".
grainy and shakey is borderline as snaps but works for id and observational stuff but i want full fat images frozen in time for arty stuff

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Fri Mar 13, 20 3:22 pm Post subject:

at last i have got the proper lens hood for the 35mm macro lens.
it took a while which i spose is a problem with a new lens.

the one i got as a freebie when i got the lens would not fit at the same time as the lens cap and it was 3 cm too long so it clipped the edges of the frame

this one was not found after a repeated internet trawl, chatting with the local independent camera shop chaps who know june at canon who knows what fits and i got this one which is perfect.
they have only just started printing this lens on the list of the macros it fits, oh well it bodes well for other odds and ends

with the protection filter i now have about 10mm from rim to lens hump and the right cone of vision to avoid flare but still give full frame

it was not particularly expensive, for a branded top end part, but it was a beast to find one to do the job.

i know i am early adopter with this kit but i recon it will catch on. not having a mirror flapping about is rather nice and i recon those that went from 35mm film to dig mirror/slr will want to convert once they covet their neighbour's unflappable and more ergonomic asset up close and personal

it will take a little while for the lenses and custom fittings etc to catch up
with some significant improvements and be able to make the most of them but the good stuff works as well on this as it would on older stuff if not as well as the stuff made for this system.

i am rather lucky to have a local camera shop that does quite a bit of top end kit and both chaps are experienced snappers/camera technicians.
based on a few visits at least half if not more of the customers are pro and serious amateur snappers rather than folk who want something a bit better than a phone but just as cheap and simple.

they have good used top end kit if anyone is looking for something

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15967

Posted: Sat Mar 14, 20 7:30 am Post subject:
A long way, but we have found Mifsuds in Brixham good, and they do mail order. They do a good range of cameras new and second hand. Always useful to have a local photographic shop with experience. The two we had locally are long gone, and I think another couple are struggling, but still just keeping going. Sadly the digital revolution has affected them as a lot of their trade was printing.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Sat Mar 14, 20 1:14 pm Post subject:

i had a look at the mifsud site when i was looking for a camera body to work around, pretty good stuff.

york cameras

if you need something used that does not seem to be anywhere on line , these chaps are good at finding stuff, they have got me a few strange odds and ends within a week or two.

york is well supplied with churches, as is the surrounding area so we have an unusually large number of wedding snappers each with multiple cameras as well as other pro users, a lot of top end tourists and a fairly well off demographic including a lot of very rich international students smart enough to cope with more than one button.
i am sure that i am very lucky being in a place that can support what is effectively a pro camera shop in a market "town"

london was ok for good but basic kit i could afford and later my ex bil was a jessop's manager(hence the 3 at an affordable price for a poor chap like me)

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15967

Posted: Sun Mar 15, 20 8:54 am Post subject:

I think most cathedral towns are like that; Chichester is similar in many ways, as are parts of Exeter, although I don't really know many others. If I go to Exeter, there is a little church in the middle of a shopping development I like to visit; an oasis of calm in the chaos around it.

Chichester still has 2 camera shops, although much depleted from what they were.

If we visit York again, may introduce son to York cameras as he is taking his photography fairly seriously these days.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Apr 15, 20 10:57 pm Post subject:

the tech side of good dig has similarities to good film but enough differences to make it interesting, a bit too interesting to get a half decent image at times.

mylar is ace

images that are fairly easy to work down to 2 M need a different set of techniques to a full fat, full frame blow it up to billboard size one.

i am not sure what will work best for printing, i dont just press print if i wanted "photo print" i would pay for it.
i take an image and use it to create layers, much like working in oils, that combine into a multi pass print that i do.

i have not got to that yet, the tank fuelled printer will get tried soon but at the mo i have 20 sheets of good paper and no idea if any more can be obtained .
i recon that might give me a start but depending on what i learn i will probably want to order paper quite soon and at the mo ......

perhaps i should just get a full fat image with potential and give it a go, if i run out of paper it can wait a bit and i can consider what i need

a half decent snap with new kit is quite challenging.
it is coming along sort of

a half decent snap suitable for a specific purpose i need to work on

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Fri May 29, 20 11:05 pm Post subject:

mylar on adjustable panels is really good if you need to light a space or thing

critters do what they do , knowing what they will do helps

i need a few bits and pieces(mostly to be able to go off grid for 10k of snaps)

if there is a one to four for this body my MK 1 is gone, not been using it for a while as the critters and me have an understanding about "distancing"
"ignore beardy , he is harmless even if his big eye shines in a scary way"

the snaps i have been taking are mostly under 4 M and many are far closer, maybe an average of 2.5M or 200mm) some have been " in yer face" from either side of the equation

i know nikon fans but canon kit is ace, i have no idea of what this stuff is capable off beyond when i know what i want and how to ask it does it

the kit i have now works even if i dont , from early childhood there seemed little point in an AMCAM person trying wildlife snaps after the first few dismal attempts on film(i did get a decent bee snap in 1983)
this kit can be made to work

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46210
Location: yes

Posted: Sat May 30, 20 10:36 pm Post subject:
i spose not an amcam now might help not camera kit but relevant, bait and/or wait, adjust settings for where it will be, "lead" the subject before and during its moves, controlled burst shoot steep learning curve people are easy

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