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April 27, 2006
Soul
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/250 at f/4.0 | Focal Length: 248mm
A vocalist pours his soul into a song while performing with the University of Miami Studio Jazz Band during a concert by the lake on the UM campus on Sunday, April 9, 2006.
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April 26, 2006
The Nikon D200: Initial Impressions
I was fortunate enough to receive for testing a brand new Nikon D200. Right out of the box, the camera feels more like a professional camera than the D70; I’m not sure if it is the rubberized coverings, but the camera doesn’t feel plastic. The other thing you notice right away is the weight; the camera weighs considerably more than a D70. If anything, the weight of the D200 is closer to that of the D2X.
If you’re familiar with Nikon’s D2-series of camera, then getting started with the D200 will be a snap. It’s controls and custom function menus are similar to the rest of the D2-series.
The viewfinder differs from the D2-series in that Nikon has eliminated the information display from the right of the viewfinder, and now all information is displayed along the bottom of the viewfinder or via head’s up display icons that appear on the image area itself. I turned on the camera without a memory card inserted, and an icon started flashing in the viewfinder just below and to the left of the focus marks. Nikon has made an interesting change with the focus spots in the viewfinder; instead of brackets appearing constantly, the focus spots appear as small circles except for the selected spot, which appears as a bracket. The eyepiece is larger than the D70’s but not as large as the D2X. The viewfinder did exhibit a strange behavior that I personally would find annoying: when the camera’s AF was on, a red glow appeared in the viewfinder. Unfortunately, the glow wasn’t limited to a focus spot (in the way that the D2X will flash briefly to highlight the focus spot selected); the glow appeared across all of the focus spots and more.
The placement of the memory card slot is different, as is the orientation of the card. With the other Nikon digitals, the card goes into the back of the camera with the top of the card facing to the right. As oriented, the D200’s card slot loads the memory cards with the top of the card facing the back of the camera. The addition of the lock for the slot cover is nice, although the cover is somewhat awkwardly placed. Unless you have long fingers, you’re probably not going to be able to continue holding the camera by its grip and at the same time load a card into the slot.
Nikon claims that the D200 is capable of five frames per second. While the rate of firing is greater than that of the D70, it seems somewhat slower than the D2X’s 5.3 frames per second. The built-in flash on the D200 extends higher than the flash on the D70; however, it is still not high enough to permit the use of the 17-55 without the lens hood casting a noticeable shadow on the images.
The ISO settings for the D200 range from 100 to 1600 in the expected increments (and unlike the D2X, it has a 1250 setting). Unlike the D2X, there are three high ISO settings being third-stop increments from 1600 to 3200.
With the default noise reduction, images at 1600 appear generally clean. However, shadow areas are still a problem, and result in very noticeable noise.
The D200 seems to use a new set of white balance and noise reduction algorithms, and these produce results noticeably different from what the D2X produces. To produce the test shots below, I used a 300/2.8 on the D200 and D2X. Exposure was 1/60th at f/2.8 at ISO 1600. The default noise reduction settings and auto white balance settings were used on both cameras. Given the low light, I was not surprised that the D200 had difficulty focusing; however, I was surprised at how much faster the D2X’s focusing was under the same conditions, and the D2X had no difficulty focusing.
In the test shots below, the results from the D200 have a noticeable color cast. Sure, this is easy enough to correct with curves, but in comparison, the D2X image needs less correction. The more interesting difference seems to be in the noise reduction feature; the algorithm used by the D200 results in a slight softening of detail. The 100% crops below are without correction or sharpening.
Sample Images
Figure 1: A cropped D2X image.
Figure 2: A cropped D200 image.
100% Views
These are 2" x 1.5" crops of the images above, and at full size (clicking on the image will open a window with the full size image) they are 100% views.
Figure 3: D2X 100% crop; click on iamge to view 100%
Figure 4: D200 100% crop; click on image to view 100%
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Jamming
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/250 at f/5.0 | Focal Length: 180mm
The University of Miami Studio Jazz Band jamming during a concert by the lake on the UM campus on Sunday, April 9, 2006.
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April 24, 2006
Release
Details: ISO: 125 | Exposure: 1/1000 at f/4 | Focal Length: 550mm (35mm equiv. 825mm)
The force of the gyrations involved in throwing the discuss sends Florida International University sophomore Joeane Jadotte airborne during the 2006 University of Miami Elite Invitational track and field competition at Cobb Stadium in Coral Gables, Florida on Saturday, April 15, 2006. Jadotte recorded the second best throw for the competition of 49.74 meters.
Posted by slewis at 11:15 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 21, 2006
Odd Positions
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/1000 at f/4.5 | Focal Length: 450mm
North Carolina State University freshman Chris Welte watches his shot after barely getting in position to return the ball during the doubles match with the University of Miami's Tim Krebs and Vivek Subramanian at Coral Gables, Florida on Sunday, April 16, 2006. Welte and doubles partner, Val Banada, won the doubles match, 8-6.
Posted by slewis at 10:47 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 20, 2006
Splashdown
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/1250 at f/4.5 | Focal Length: 600mm
Florida International University freshman Eddie Arguello hits the water next to one of the obstacles in the 3000 meter steeplechase at the 2006 University of Miami Elite Invitational track and field competition at Cobb Stadium in Coral Gables, Florida on Saturday, April 15, 2006. Arguello finished third with a time of 9:59.14.
Posted by slewis at 10:00 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 19, 2006
Dance, Dance, Dance
Details: ISO: 200 | Exposure: 1/250 at f/8 | Focal Length: 35mm
A carefree pair of students get up and dance as the University of Miami Studio Jazz Band performs a concert by the lake on the UM campus on Sunday, April 9, 2006.
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April 18, 2006
Impact
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/2000 at f/4 | Focal Length: 450mm
North Carolina State University junior Andrew Iriarte makes contact with the ball as he returns a shot during his match with the University of Miami's Josh Cohen (ranked #72) at Coral Gables, Florida on Sunday, April 16, 2006. Iriarte lost to Cohen, who won the match in straight sets 6-3, 6-3.
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April 17, 2006
Sunday Afternoon Tennis
Details: ISO: 125 | Exposure: 1/1000 at f/4 | Focal Length: 450mm
North Carolina State University senior Val Banada attempts to reach and return a shot during his match with the University of Miami's Daniel Vallverdu at Coral Gables, Florida on Sunday, April 16, 2006. Banada and his doubles partner, Chris Welte, accounted for the Wolfpack's only doubles win. Banada did not fare as well in singles, with Vallverdu taking the match 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. The tenth-ranked Miami Hurricanes won the tournament, defeating the NC State Wolfpack (ranked 34), 6-1.
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April 16, 2006
Giving It All You've Got!
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/1250 at f/3.2 | Focal Length: 600mm
University of Miami freshman Viktoria Andonova strains in her attempt to clear 1.80 meters in the high jump at the 2006 University of Miami Elite Invitational track and field competition at Cobb Stadium in Coral Gables, Florida on Saturday, April 15, 2006. Andonova was unable to clear the height, and Texas A&M's Caroline Wolf, who cleared 1.85 meters, placed first in the competition.
Posted by slewis at 9:09 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 14, 2006
The Musical Touch
Click For Larger Version
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/250 at f/4.0 | Focal Length: 300mm
The guitarist in the University of Miami Studio Jazz Band performs during a concert by the lake on the UM campus on Sunday, April 9, 2006.
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April 12, 2006
Concentration
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/800 at f/4.5 | Focal Length: 420mm
Showing intense concentration, Tatiana Golovin of France watches her shot through her racquet on its way back to China's Jie Zheng in the quarterfinals at the Nasdaq-100 Open tennis tournament at Key Biscayne, Florida, on Wednesday, March 29, 2006.
Posted by slewis at 9:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 10, 2006
Shades of Sound
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Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/250 at f/5.0 | Focal Length: 300mm
Image converted to black & white using Convert To B&W Pro v2.0
A member of the University of Miami Studio Jazz Band performs during a concert by the lake on the UM campus on Sunday, April 9, 2006.
Posted by slewis at 11:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 6, 2006
Trolling
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/500 at f/4.5 | Focal Length: 450mm
A female mallard duck trolls the water for a meal.
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April 5, 2006
More Sunday Afternoon Tennis
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/1250 at f/4 | Focal Length: 450mm
Clemson University sophomore Carol Salge concentrates on returning a shot in a tiebreaker with the University of Miami's Monika Dancevic. Salge won the match a few shots later, 6-4, 6-7, 1-0 (10-7). Unfortunately, the rest of the twenty-fourth-ranked Clemson Tigers did not have a good day, falling to the fifth-ranked Miami Hurricanes, 6-1.
Posted by slewis at 8:56 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 4, 2006
Extra Effort
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/800 at f/4.5 | Focal Length: 420mm
Tatiana Golovin of France attempts to return a shot dropped just over the net by China's Jie Zheng in the quarterfinals at the Nasdaq-100 Open tennis tournament at Key Biscayne, Florida, on Wednesday, March 29, 2006. Golovin dropped the first set, 3-6, but battled back to take the second set 6-3 and the third set 6-2. With the win, Golovin advanced to the semifinals to face Maria Sharapova.
Posted by slewis at 11:31 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 3, 2006
Sunday Afternoon Tennis
Details: ISO: 100 | Exposure: 1/1000 at f/3.5 | Focal Length: 450mm
Clemson University freshman Alexandra Luc returns a shot late in her match with the University of Miami's Audrey Banada (ranked 83). Banada won the match a few shots later, 6-3, 6-2, to help give the fifth-ranked Miami Hurricanes a match win over the twenty-fourth ranked Clemson Tigers, 6-1.
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