If you love dahlias, then you would love to do some weekend wanderings around Country Dahlias in Winchelsea. It is quite an amazing place.
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It isn’t the first time I have been to the Blue Lotus Water Gardens at the Yarra Junction, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. Visiting the gardens is always good and there is so much to photograph. They are only open for a few months of the year, so I need to make the most of it while I can.
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It has been an interesting week and part of it was getting the Tamron 24-70mm G2 lens on loan to test out. There is going to be a review here of it soon, but for now I am getting out as much as possible to take photos to see what it is like. I had an opportunity to take photos around the city on Friday morning when Emily wanted a One on One which was more about showing her the architecture around Melbourne and how to photograph it.
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On my last visit to Alowyn Gardens I took the Lensbaby Velvet 85 with me. I have had it on loan for a few weeks now, and the gardens are a great place to take photos with any lens that could be good for macro photography. The Velvet 85 is no different.
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Have I told you about the new phone lenses that I got from Struman Optics?
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Back in May I did a post on my photography wishlist. I did it for some fun, but I also knew there were things on that list that I did really want. Since then, I’ve changed my mind about some of them, still want some and have got some. I am going to repost what I wrote here for you and put in the updates.
So here is my wishlist.
- A new camera, a Nikon D810 or D750. I am not sure which. I think they are both great cameras.
I would still like a new camera, though I think I would go for the D810 by Nikon now. Still with what I know and the gear I have, it does make sense to stick with it. I’ve been noticing a lot of hot pixels when I do long exposures and I’m wondering if that is just something I have to put up with, or if it is something that happens with older cameras.
- A 28-300mm lens by Nikon. I love this lens and would really love my own.
When I had this lens I couldn’t imagine living without it, but since I haven’t had it since June, I can’t say I have really missed it. I manage very well with what I have. If I could have anything I think I would wish my 24-70mm was a little longer, so maybe the 24-120mm would be a better lens for me.
- Maybe a Nikon 24mm Tilt Shift lens. I like architecture and wonder if I should get one, but then I was with someone recently who had one and it was a bit of mucking around to get the photos, so not so sure now.
I have now decided that I don’t think I could be bothered with it. So this is also coming off the list.
- A slightly smaller tripod, I would like some new carbon fibre legs from Gitzo.
This is still on the list, though I think I have found the one I want, only it is from Benro instead. I’ve been loaned a travel tripod from them to try out and if I’m honest, I really don’t want to give it back. Actually, I think I’ve made up my mind I won’t be. Hoping I can get a good deal. It is exactly what I wanted. It is light to carry around most of the time and great for photographing the city.
- A geared Really Right Stuff tripod head with a L bracket.
I finally got my L bracket, but not from them. I found a great alternative from Sunwayfoto. I also got a new top bit for my tripod so the L bracket fits it very easily. It is great. The bracket is like the Arca Swiss brackets, so fits all those as well.
I love the L bracket and it has been one of the best purchases I’ve made. I had got one from Manfrotto, a total waste of money. I hated it.
- Complete set of Formatt Hitech ND Filters for my Nikon 14-24mm lens.
I have to say this has been a long time wish and I finally got some last week. I haven’t had a chance to try them out yet, but I will be very soon. I got the holder and the 10 stop and 16 stop for that lens.
- Pay for Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom for about 5 years.
This is still very much on the wishlist. I couldn’t live without these programs so it would be nice to just get them.
- Maybe a Tamron 150-600mm lens.
I haven’t really been out taking bird photos for so long, and, if I’m honest, I have never really thought of myself as a bird photographer. I think I could take this off my list.
- New laptop.
This is still on it. My husband and I are having small disagreements over which I should get. He thinks I should get something that will be a lot more expensive, and I don’t think I need one that good.
I can’t think of anything else. Is your list close to mine? What would you get?
If you want to see what you might have said here is the link to the previous post, My Photography Wishlist.
Bolte Bridge, Docklands. I used this image for MM, but it was monochrome.
Changes
There are things that have changed and things that I want that are more to do with photography in general rather than just with gear.
Ambassador
I keep seeing this word being used for many other photographers and it carries a lot of weight, but I don’t seem to be able to get anyone to think that I am good enough to be an ambassador for. It is frustrating and quite depressing really. I don’t know what else I have to do.
Writing
I am really enjoying the life of a writer and I would like to do a lot more of it. I would like to write for magazines as well. I would be more than happy to earn most of my money from it. I don’t know if that is possible anymore, but I am going to continue trying.
I’m also planning on doing a lot more writing for this blog. As I said previously, I do want to start doing reviews, perhaps some tutorials, some articles on photography. Time is going to be my biggest factor. It would also be good if I could get companies to advertise or sponsor posts. Though, having said that, I need to be clear that the posts would always be about photography. I’ve been approached in the past and so far have turned many down because I don’t like what they want me to do for them.
Finally
I think that is about it really. I keep hoping that some of the opportunities that other photographers get will swing by my way, but it isn’t looking hopeful.
How is your wishlist going? Have you changed you mind about some things? Maybe you have been able get some of the items you wanted? Let me know.
It has been a great week on Instagram for me, now with over 10K followers I feel like I have reached my goal. That number of followers is meant to be special, I don’t know, but I suppose I will find out. I hope you enjoy the photos from this last week.
In yesterday’s post I showed you some images taken with the Samyang 12mm fisheye lens. I have some more images for you today. These are more from outside in the streets. It is quite amazing what happens to buildings when you photograph them with this lens.
I tried some photos of the street art, the three statues that stand on the corner of Swanston and Bourke streets. I also tried getting some movement with the trams, then put them together in a small video for you.
[video width="2000" height="1334" mp4="https://leannecole.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/bourke-street-trams.mp4" loop="true"][/video]The weather has been stunning, sadly it means winter is ending and summer is returning. I’m not looking forward to summer, but I am planning on doing something different this summer I think. You will have to wait to find out what.
Here is a gallery with a few more images. Take care and I hope you are enjoying your weekend where ever you are.
The other day I went into the city with Frank from Vanbars and he had a Samyang 12mm fisheye lens that I was able to try out. I’ve been hearing about Samyang Optics Australia quite a bit and it was great to be able to try out one of their lenses. Also, being a fisheye was even more interesting.
It does create a lot of distortion, but fisheyes are always going to do that. That is part of the attraction, and then trying to work out how to use them and for what.
I spent a few hours in the city experimenting with it. I have to admit I had a lot of fun using it and was reluctant to give it back. If you ever get a chance to play with one, do it. I might have to think about getting one of my own, though I would like to try a wider one, maybe an 8mm.
I have a gallery of images for you. They were taken around the city in some arcades and foyers. There are photos from the Emporium, Myer, Royal Arcade, Block Arcade and the foyer of 333 Collins Street. I have a lot more and will show them tomorrow.
How amazing are they? If you could try out a fisheye what would you photograph?
I showed some photos today on my main blog of the Milky Way, that I photographed last night and I have had quite a few people ask me what settings I used, so I thought I would do a quick post on what I did.
We traveled away from the city lights as much as possible, so were down on the coast. We both had apps on our phones that would tell us where the milky way was, though you can kind of see it.
I used a Nikon D800 camera with a 14-24mm 2.8 lens. Earlier in the day I tried to focus the lens for infinity, put tape on the lens and then turned the lens and camera onto manual focus.
The camera was mounted on a tripod and the lens was pointed in the direction I wanted. I sent the mode to manual on the camera, put the aperture on f/2.8, the shutter speed on 30 seconds and the ISO on 6400. Then I took some photos. You do have to do stuff with the images on the computer, but you can do what you need to with Lightroom.
I did play around with the ISO and took some at 3200, some at 4000, but most of them were at 6400.
It is quite easy to do once the camera is set up, you just keep clicking.
Good luck.
On a side note, if you have enjoyed this post or learned something new, please remember this is how I make my living, so it would be wonderful if you would consider making a small donation.
