Friday, December 21, 2012

It's a Winter Wonderland


The weatherman was right for once! They forecasted snow and we actually got snow. Of course it came with rain, sleet and 45mph winds but we did get snow, about two inches worth.

I figured since Q had you all warm and comfortable with the photos from Kaua'i I would contrast that with some cold and miserable. The winds were still blowing about 20mph yesterday at sunset when I took this shot and the temps were right around 25 degrees. Needless to say I didn't take the time to set up a tripod.

12 comments:

  1. I hope you don't forget to bring that tripod to Maui! If the temps staying at 25 for the next few days, you would have a big ice skating rink. LOL

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    1. Definitely taking the tripod to Maui! Already started packing!! LOL

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    2. Your description made me feel colder than the picture.LOL I really like this boardwalk with the snow... very pretty shot.

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    3. Oh and Happy Holidays to you and yours! xo

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  2. I really like your composition on this photo, looks cold there!

    Can you recommend a good tripod for traveling with? I'm planning on taking one with me next trip to Hawaii but the one I have now is a little big for packing around all day.

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  3. Gorgeous photo Ron! At least the scenery is beautiful even though it feels cold & miserable!!

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  4. Paul, I have two different tripods. One is aluminum and made by Induro. It's a great tripod but is large and heavy. The other one I just bought this year and it is a carbon fiber tripod made by Rocketfish ( I also bought one of their monopods). The carbon fiber is a lot lighter than the aluminum tripod and the three section legs make it close down shorter than the two section Induro tripod.

    The Rocketfish tripod is fairly inexpensive, around $120, and works great but the head that comes with it sucks! The head is big and bulky and is more in line with a video head. I replaced that head with a cheap ($25 made in China) ball head which works well if I'm using the D300 and a small lens but once I put the D700 with battery grip and the Sigma 150-500mm lens on it it didn't work well at all. The equipment was too heavy for it and it would "drift". Q told me I needed a better ball head and he was right. I invested in an Acratech ball head about a month ago for the Hawaii trip. The ball head cost almost three times more than the tripod but it was well worth it.

    My next investment will be a good gimbal head for the tripod, and a macro lens and a prime lens and a...

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    1. Next investment... haha!

      Good tripod and gimbal information, thanks. Any advantage or disadvantage to taking a monopod rather than a tripod?

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    2. I'm going to try for some good sunset and nights shots this trip and that's why I'm going to take the tripod. I don't think I will use it for much else except the longer exposure shots.

      I like taking the monopod because it's easy to handle and small and for shooting the whales or even surfers it gives me that extra stability but doesn't get in the way if I have to move or turn quickly to get another shot. I spend a lot of time just sitting/standing and waiting for the whales to jump and you really need to have your camera up and ready to hit the shutter release the whole time so the monopod works great for that and if I'm on the lanai (patio) it doesn't take up as much room as the tripod.

      I know Q will say to always use the tripod but afterall, I am on vacation and I don't want to work too hard! LOL

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  5. Brrr! Looks like we might get a shot of wind and snow Christmas Day!

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  6. Merry Christmas to all the Shutterbugs...look forward to all your shots in the new year!!

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