17Aug 2017 by Igor No Comments
Nikon 100th Anniversary – Pin Collection Overview

Nikon 100th Anniversary – Pin Collection Overview

All, Photography
At long last the 100th Anniversary collectibles started shipping (mine from BnH) and the first from my order is the Nikon camera Pin Collection. Everything is self-explanatory and I will caption details in the shots below. First off, the unboxing and case details of this beauty - [gallery size="medium" columns="4" ids="21786,21790,21787,21785,21789,21784,21791,21783"] And now the very juicy, macro shot of each pin as well as the display's inner plaque - [gallery size="large" ids="21792,21793,21794,21795,21796,21797,21798,21799,21800,21801,21802,21803,21804,21805,21806,21807,21808,21809,21810,21811,21812,21813,21814,21815,21816,21817"]
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28Jul 2017 by Igor 2 Comments
Wings of Fancy – Live Butterfly Exhibit in Brookside Gardens, MD

Wings of Fancy – Live Butterfly Exhibit in Brookside Gardens, MD

All, Photography
Went to check this galore of colors yesterday and it was impressive! The Blue Morphos from South America were particularly tricky to catch both mid-flight or landed with wings open, but I got lucky a couple of times across the span of 2 some hours there. [ngg_images source="galleries" container_ids="27" display_type="photocrati-nextgen_basic_thumbnails" override_thumbnail_settings="0" thumbnail_width="250" thumbnail_height="250" thumbnail_crop="1" images_per_page="20" number_of_columns="0" ajax_pagination="0" show_all_in_lightbox="0" use_imagebrowser_effect="0" show_slideshow_link="0" slideshow_link_text="[Show slideshow]" order_by="sortorder" order_direction="ASC" returns="included" maximum_entity_count="500"]
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11Jul 2017 by Igor No Comments
Insects of the Black Hill Regional Park, MD

Insects of the Black Hill Regional Park, MD

All, Photography
Finally crawled back out to Black Hill park to shoot some proper 2:1-1:1 macro and as best as 400mm (70-200 f/2.8 + 2x teleconverter) can do at minimal focus distance and the first batch of results is quite pleasing! I did miss a great blue heron once again as he flew by with me having my macro setup on and far away enough for me not to be able to chase the elusive avian. The insect shots are as follows: [gallery columns="4" ids="20501,20502,20503,20504,20505,20506,20507,20508,20509,20510,20511,20512,20513,20514,20515,20516,20517,20518"]    
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01Jul 2017 by Igor No Comments
2:1 Ladybug and Spider

2:1 Ladybug and Spider

All, Photography
Got pretty lucky to spot the little lady last night inside my garage, so I scrambled for my SP90 + 2x TC before letting the poor thing out. Next morning, I might've noticed the same one on a leaf outside, but it escaped before I could get any more shots in, so I decided to settle for one of the spiders.
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21Jun 2017 by Igor No Comments

Df Goes to Firefly 2017!

All, Photography
Story really begins last year when I decided to make the best of 2 free tickets to Firefly by getting a harmless looking, mirrorless setup to take where "no professional cameras are allowed" and capture me some real memories without even trying to suffer using my D5100 in anything but bright sunny 16 lighting because there would be absolutely no way the security would clear my D600. Thus I scoured all forums and ebay and found the X-Pro 1 and the 27/2.8 lens and successfully tested it out last year. Not my ideal setup due to an ancient LCD that makes checking accuracy of focus impossible and rather bad auto-focus, with manual focus being abysmally digital and useless when shooting blind. My ideal setup for something like this? Naturally the…
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20Sep 2016 by Igor 2 Comments
D to the f – Nikon Df

D to the f – Nikon Df

All, Gear Reviews, Photography
Never would I ever dream of getting a 55/1.2 from 1867, but even more so never would I ever imagine getting a silver Df with as little as 620 clicks straight from Japan! Incidentally it may even appear like I got it solely to match my 45/2.8 AI-P and it would not be a wrong assumption, but in reality - the full tactile controls and the inconspicuous appearance that house a powerful D4 sensor at the fraction of the price are absolutely the deal-breaker here. Everything feels solid, as expected of a simplified top-shelf camera, and the next biggest surprise is that it does squeeze semi-pro amount of shots off of a mere EN-EL14/a battery found in the beginner bodies. With 55/1.2? Stellar! With 70-200/2.8 VRI + Kenko 2x DGX…
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20Sep 2016 by Igor No Comments
The VERY Last PBR

The VERY Last PBR

All, Photography
Never mind drinking Greenhouse Tavern of their PBR dry once, but this time was for good as they cut the distributor contract since only one or two more people ever ordered it besides myself (and clearly not in the same quantities). Incidentally it was my Df's first night out, so the ISO was tested and passed with flying colors using but a 2.8 lens! And that 2 month old display can still tasted all the same. Go aluminum and not letting light in! Otherwise everything came out very crisp for 12800 ISO, D4 sensor seriously kings, and Df's styling, especially in silver, is a perfect attention grabber.
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23Apr 2015 by Igor No Comments
Garage Honey Bee

Garage Honey Bee

All, Photography
So found one of these guys cold and sluggish inside the garage this morning, and 55* really isn't flight weather for them. Fed it some watered down clover honey, then proceeded to get something out of the encounter for myself with the help of some natural props:
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20Apr 2015 by Igor No Comments
Start of the macro bee project

Start of the macro bee project

All, Photography
This spring's goal is to catch a bumblebee or a forest bee in flight (on or off flower as well) while filling 70% of the frame with it. I found an injured one while skating last night and decided to use the opportunity to get some first macro shots of this majestic beast. I helped him off the road afterwards and hopefully he survives.
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