Basically, dunno if you've been noticing a trend in what lens i'm using constantly in recent times, but it seem the 35mm f/1.8 is just about all I ever have on my camera these days. I kinda get why it should be, the fixed lens lets you concentrate more on taking a photo than being lazy and zooming, but I think its more than that really. Its just a bloody good lens isn't it.

I'm hoping to get out and take some more photos very soon, and i'm basically waiting for any break in the clouds and i'll be straight out there. I definitely need to, the word load from university has been immense recently with what I estimate at 22,000 words + 3 orchestrated scores and a radio advert i've had to produce within a month

I'll end by saying thanks for the rather large number of views i've had in response to a photo taken with my Tamron 10-24mm in some of the hills behind Guildford
[link]


Please join me on Facebook by becoming a fan!
[link]

And please check out my Prog Metal band on Facebook!
[link]


Roadmap:

Entry Level DSLR:
Completed Mid 2008, Nikon D40

52mm Polarising Filter:
Completed Late 2008, Camlink 52mm Polariser

Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens:
Completed Jan 2009, Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5

77mm UV Filter:
Completed Jan 2009, Jessops 77mm Skylight Filter

77mm 0.9 ND Filter:
Completed Feb 2009, Tiffen 0.9 ND Filter

Prime Normal f/1.4 or f/1.8 Lens:
Completed July 2009, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8

52mm UV Filter:
Completed July 2009, Jessops 52mm UV Filter

DX Format Telephoto Lens:
Completed August 2009, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6 VR

52mm UV Filter:
Completed August 2009, Optex 52mm UV Filter

Speedlight Flash:
Completed December 2009, Nikon SB-600

77mm Polarising Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Warming Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Gradient Filter:
Not Complete

77mm IR Filter:
Not Complete

3rd Party Battery Grip for D40:
Not Complete

Wide-Telephoto Zoom Lens (at least from 18-200mm)
Not Complete

A Better Tripod (cos mine is crap):
Not Complete

Upgrade DSLR (D90):
Not Complete

Second Telephoto Zoom Lens (70-300mm ideally):
Not Complete

Dedicated 105mm Prime Macro Lens:
Not Complete

Third Telephoto Zoom Lens (150-500mm perhaps):
Not Complete

Ultimate Goal: 70-200mm f/2.8:
Not Complete

Friends:


Groups:

Right, i've been posting quite a few photos recently, but to put this into perspective, lemme just list how many i've got that may still go up:

London Zoo - 793 Photos, probably about 1 or 2 left to put up
Warnham Nature Reserve - 620 Photos, at least 10 to put up still
The Biz (commercial) - 269 Photos, about 5 to put up
Farthing Downs - 296 Photos, about 15 to put up

+ various wallpaper packs, probably about 5 of them

These are estimates, and i've yet to edit a lot of these photos.

But there is some very good news! I've met a lovely girl called Alexia, and as soon as she lets me point my camera at her and she's satisfied with the results, I should have a beautiful portrait to upload as well.



Please join me on Facebook by becoming a fan!
[link]

And please check out my Prog Metal band on Facebook!
[link]


Photography Roadmap

Entry Level DSLR:
Completed Mid 2008, Nikon D40

52mm Polarising Filter:
Completed Late 2008, Camlink 52mm Polariser

Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens:
Completed Jan 2009, Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5

77mm UV Filter:
Completed Jan 2009, Jessops 77mm Skylight Filter

77mm 0.9 ND Filter:
Completed Feb 2009, Tiffen 0.9 ND Filter

Prime Normal f/1.4 or f/1.8 Lens:
Completed July 2009, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8

52mm UV Filter:
Completed July 2009, Jessops 52mm UV Filter

DX Format Telephoto Lens:
Completed August 2009, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6 VR

52mm UV Filter:
Completed August 2009, Optex 52mm UV Filter

77mm Polarising Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Warming Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Gradient Filter:
Not Complete

77mm IR Filter:
Not Complete

3rd Party Battery Grip for D40:
Not Complete

External Flash (probably Nikon SB-600):
Not Complete

Wide-Telephoto Zoom Lens (at least from 18-200mm)
Not Complete

A Better Tripod (cos mine is crap):
Not Complete

Upgrade DSLR (midrange or prosumer model DX Sensor, perhaps a D90):
Not Complete

Second Telephoto Zoom Lens (70-300mm ideally):
Not Complete

Dedicated 105mm Prime Macro Lens:
Not Complete

Third Telephoto Zoom Lens (150-500mm perhaps):
Not Complete

Ultimate Goal: 70-200mm f/2.8:
Not Complete

Friends:


Clubs:

Heres the deal:
One of the guys on my course is re-designing a website for this restaurant in Woking (i think) called 'The Biz', and they needed a whole load of new photographs. Thats my entry, seeing as i've already done a portrait of this guy before, and he was more than happy with the results [link]

Turns out i'm gonna be paid a sizeable amount for this shoot, and now it seems that unlike all the shitty anime people on this site who abuse the japanese language, I can actually say i've been commissioned to do something. Thats right, I went there, and I can because i've got my A* in Japanese already and don't just say kawaii all the fucking time.

Sorry for the bitter entry, but those anime people do just get on my nerves with their clear lack of basic knowledge in their medium.

As far as my backlog of photos goes i'm still sorting through london zoo photos, then i've got Warnham Nature Reserve to sort out as well, so its gonna be a while before theres a proper commissioned photo up here from 'The Biz'

If anyone has some sneaky tips on food portraits, please share, otherwise i'm shooting everything about f/8-16 with natural light, then playing around with the white balance



Please join me on Facebook by becoming a fan!
[link]

And please check out my Prog Metal band on Facebook!
[link]


Photography Roadmap

Entry Level DSLR:
Completed Mid 2008, Nikon D40

52mm Polarising Filter:
Completed Late 2008, Camlink 52mm Polariser

Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens:
Completed Jan 2009, Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5

77mm UV Filter:
Completed Jan 2009, Jessops 77mm Skylight Filter

77mm 0.9 ND Filter:
Completed Feb 2009, Tiffen 0.9 ND Filter

Prime Normal f/1.4 or f/1.8 Lens:
Completed July 2009, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8

52mm UV Filter:
Completed July 2009, Jessops 52mm UV Filter

DX Format Telephoto Lens:
Completed August 2009, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6 VR

52mm UV Filter:
Completed August 2009, Optex 52mm UV Filter

77mm Polarising Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Warming Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Gradient Filter:
Not Complete

77mm IR Filter:
Not Complete

3rd Party Battery Grip for D40:
Not Complete

External Flash (probably Nikon SB-600):
Not Complete

Wide-Telephoto Zoom Lens (at least from 18-200mm)
Not Complete

A Better Tripod (cos mine is crap):
Not Complete

Upgrade DSLR (midrange or prosumer model DX Sensor, perhaps a D90):
Not Complete

Second Telephoto Zoom Lens (70-300mm ideally):
Not Complete

Dedicated 105mm Prime Macro Lens:
Not Complete

Third Telephoto Zoom Lens (150-500mm perhaps):
Not Complete

Ultimate Goal: 70-200mm f/2.8:
Not Complete

Friends:


Clubs:

About a week ago now I went on a trip with aka. Joe, to do some nature and landscape photography. Warnham Nature Reserve happened to be walking distance from my place, and only £1 to get in so it was an obvious choice.

I think we snapped about 1000 photos altogether (to add that to the 1000 I took with Jay not long before at London Zoo), and i've been busily editing through them. Theres definitely some of the best landscape stuff done there, and we got incredibly lucky when we stumbled onto the golf course there just after it had rained. Mist was rising off the grass all around making the sunset look more like a sunrise which i've never seen.

As for nature photography there, it was mostly ducks, geese and swans, although we did see a heron, but it was on the other side of the reservoir...

I've still got even more from London Zoo to upload, and also I got a few wallpaper requests so i'll be sorting them out for people before I can even start with photos from Warnham...

And I start Uni soon, and i'm starting running with my mate, and i've still got my friend's album to finish mastering... but i'll try and get stuff done!


Please join me on Facebook by becoming a fan!
[link]

And please check out my Prog Metal band on Facebook!
[link]


Photography Roadmap

Entry Level DSLR:
Completed Mid 2008, Nikon D40

52mm Polarising Filter:
Completed Late 2008, Camlink 52mm Polariser

Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens:
Completed Jan 2009, Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5

77mm UV Filter:
Completed Jan 2009, Jessops 77mm Skylight Filter

77mm 0.9 ND Filter:
Completed Feb 2009, Tiffen 0.9 ND Filter

Prime Normal f/1.4 or f/1.8 Lens:
Completed July 2009, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8

52mm UV Filter:
Completed July 2009, Jessops 52mm UV Filter

DX Format Telephoto Lens:
Completed August 2009, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6 VR

52mm UV Filter:
Completed August 2009, Optex 52mm UV Filter

77mm Polarising Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Warming Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Gradient Filter:
Not Complete

77mm IR Filter:
Not Complete

3rd Party Battery Grip for D40:
Not Complete

External Flash (probably Nikon SB-600):
Not Complete

Wide-Telephoto Zoom Lens (at least from 18-200mm)
Not Complete

A Better Tripod (cos mine is crap):
Not Complete

Upgrade DSLR (midrange or prosumer model DX Sensor, perhaps a D90):
Not Complete

Second Telephoto Zoom Lens (70-300mm ideally):
Not Complete

Dedicated 105mm Prime Macro Lens:
Not Complete

Third Telephoto Zoom Lens (150-500mm perhaps):
Not Complete

Ultimate Goal: 70-200mm f/2.8:
Not Complete

Friends:


Clubs:

So I went to London Zoo the other day, the first proper time i've gotten to use my latest lens, the 55-200mm f/4-5.6. I think together, myself and my friend managed to snap over 1000 shots. After a bit of editing, i've chosen 62 great ones, and i'll be uploading the best of that lot up here.

Lets see what I learnt then:
1) Never bother carrying a wide angle around all day
2) Autofocus is 100% essential (my friend's 60mm macro doesn't AF on our D40's)
3) To shoot through grills you need to jam your lens right up against them to let the light Diffract
4) ISO 1600 is necessary. Perhaps ISO 3200 would be even better in some cases.
5) VR is necessary
6) 200mm as the longest focal length isnt always long enough


A load of these photos i'll be uploading WILL also be uploaded by and thats cool, because our cameras were used interchangeably, so don't report us.

On another note, I don't mean to be petty with the Nikon Vs Canon thing, but Canon has lost 10% of their marketshare in the last 3 years, while Nikon gained another 4% to add to their lead... so err, Nikon WIN!


Please join me on Facebook by becoming a fan!
[link]

And please check out my Prog Metal band on Facebook!
[link]


Photography Roadmap

Entry Level DSLR:
Completed Mid 2008, Nikon D40

52mm Polarising Filter:
Completed Late 2008, Camlink 52mm Polariser

Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens:
Completed Jan 2009, Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5

77mm UV Filter:
Completed Jan 2009, Jessops 77mm Skylight Filter

77mm 0.9 ND Filter:
Completed Feb 2009, Tiffen 0.9 ND Filter

Prime Normal f/1.4 or f/1.8 Lens:
Completed July 2009, Nikkor 35mm f/1.8

52mm UV Filter:
Completed July 2009, Jessops 52mm UV Filter

DX Format Telephoto Lens:
Completed August 2009, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6 VR

52mm UV Filter:
Completed August 2009, Optex 52mm UV Filter

77mm Polarising Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Warming Filter:
Not Complete

77mm Gradient Filter:
Not Complete

77mm IR Filter:
Not Complete

3rd Party Battery Grip for D40:
Not Complete

External Flash (probably Nikon SB-600):
Not Complete

Wide-Telephoto Zoom Lens (at least from 18-200mm)
Not Complete

A Better Tripod (cos mine is crap):
Not Complete

Upgrade DSLR (midrange or prosumer model DX Sensor, perhaps a D90):
Not Complete

Second Telephoto Zoom Lens (70-300mm ideally):
Not Complete

Dedicated 105mm Prime Macro Lens:
Not Complete

Third Telephoto Zoom Lens (150-500mm perhaps):
Not Complete

Ultimate Goal: 70-200mm f/2.8:
Not Complete

Friends:


Clubs: