Indecent Exposure Podcast

Lori and Matt, Another wonderful show guys,
I have a quick question about Crop vs Magnification. I have a 40D with a 1.6 crop factor, does that mean a 50mm image is cropped to look like a 80mm or the 50mm has zoomed to 80mm?
Keith Macke

Hi Lori and Matt, question from a new dslr owner. I recently purchased canon xsi with EF 50mm f/1.4 lens. I've noticed that the depth of field I see in the viewfinder seems to be deeper than the resultant images I get. I thought one of the advantages of slr is that you are actually seeing through the lens and hence seeing the images as it will be captured. What am I missing here? I usually shoot with the lens wide open so I don't think it's an issue of not using the dof preview button. Thanks.
James Kim

Love the podcast. Looking for some advice on a Christmas photo problem.
I like to take a night time picture of my family near the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve. The problem is getting the people properly lit with out washing out the tree and obliterating the tree lights with the flash. Is there any technique you can recommend or am I doomed to take two shots and Photoshop them together?
Thanks, J. White, Phoenix, Ariz.

I have a rather interesting question on manual focusing using a dSLR viewfinder. I have a Nikon D80 that I took to the zoo one day and was trying to get shots through a chain link fence. I found it exceedingly hard in this and other circumstances to get the focus just right and often my pictures would come out blurry, even though I took time to do the focusing and it looked focused to me. I do wear glasses and shoot with my glasses on since I have never been able to get the diopter settings right for my eyesight.
Any help, either in how to set up the diopter correctly, or how to focus when the picture is so small and is hard to see.
Love the show.
Chris, Lexington Park, Md.

Hey Lori and Matt,
I had a question pertaining to SDHC cards for DSLRs. I have a Nikon D40 that currently uses a 512MB SD card from Sandisk. I am looking to upgrade and was able to find some very inexpensive 8GB SDHC cards from Sandisk. My question was if I'll notice any speed difference from the card while taking pictures with my camera and/or transferring images to my computer via a card reader.
Love the podcast, keep up the good work.
Regards, Josh Holat
http://www.joshholat.com

I recently purchased a D80 (July) with an 18-200 f/3.5-5.6 VR lens. I love the camera and lens combination in the majority of situations.
My wife and I are preparing for our first child in April and in lieu of a video camera, are looking for a great fast portrait lens. We can imagine flipping through still images, but would dread sitting down in front of the TV/computer to watch/edit hours of videotape, much less watching our child growup from behind a video camera.
I've seen the recent announcement of the the new Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G, several websites indicate that this may make a great portrait lens on Nikon's DX cameras as an equivalent 75mm fast prime lens.
Are there better options for portraits with the DX format at or below the approximately $450.00 price point? I am specifically looking for spectacular low light performance. Is there a faster zoom lens which would still work great for the situations I am likely to find myself shooting in? What are the pros and cons of using a full frame lens on a DX camera, if any, beside the 1.5 crop factor?
Any help you could offer would be appreciated.
Thanks again, and love the show
-Scott

Hey Lori and Matt,
I recent have my Canon EOS 40D for about a month now. While I was taking pictures of my dog, I was thinking about the life of my shutter. Most cameras have a cycle of 100,000. When it comes to replacing my shutter which would be better to do? Send it in to have a professional to fix my camera or do it myself?
Thanks guys!
James

Hello Lori and Matt,
I've heard about your podcast from a promo from BOL a few months back and now look forward to your podcast every week. My question is regarding photo printers. I do portrait work on the weekend (portable backdrop, 2 speedlights ) one of the services I provide is 5x7 prints on location. My location work flow for this is, camera tethered to my notebook, do some level adjustments in Aperture then I send it to an HP A636 connected via USB.
What I'm finding is that my prints are darker and seem to have a more reddish/orange tint to them (it is somewhat similar to getting really excited with the saturation bar in Ps/Aperture where everyone looks like they have a bad sun tan. Even though the picture on my screen looks fine.
I calibrate my monitor every two weeks using Datacolor's Spyder system. When sending prints to my local Costco my colors are as it should be. It is only when using the A636. I tried to download a profile for the A636 from HP's website but none exists.
What I would like is a recommendation for a portable photo printer that does 5x7 prints that can work with Aperture. As right now I am guessing what the printer my print so it really looks desaturated on the screen but prints out OK.
Or is my only solution is to have 2 display profiles one for Costco prints one for on site prints. The only downside to this is that I would need 2 edits of the same image.
Help!
-joey

Hi Lori:
I am in the market for a camcorder for the sole purpose of using it for taping my golf swing. It just needs to be a clear image with the ability to play it back at very slow speeds.
thanks!
Mike

Hi, I recently bought a Canon 40d with a 50mm 1.4 and 70-200mm F4L to start what has been a wonderful journey into the world so far. My major problem has been exposure with incandescent light. Any tips on how to make my pictures come out right? Also, any recommendations for books for teaching photography? Enjoy the show and the off beat humor every week! Cody

Indecent Exposure,
Let me first say, I love your podcast, I have been listening since the first episode.
I have a question I was hoping you might be able to help me with. I have a Nikon N80 35mm camera that I love, except for the developing of the film part. My wife and I have an inexpensive point a shoot digital camera which works, but I miss my N80.

So I have been looking at getting a DSLR, I plan on staying Nikon so I don't have to replace my Lenses. I have been looking mostly at the D80 which has come down a lot in price since the D90 came out. But with the economy the way it has been lately, I have not dared to pull the trigger on the purchase.

Recently I saw a used listing for a D100 that caught my eye. I have seen a lot of D100 (body only) selling for between $100 - $200. From the reviews I have read, it looks like the D100 is just a digital version of my old N80. Also, from what I can tell there is not a lot of major differences between the old D100 and the current D80 in the basic spec besides, 6.1 - 10.2 megapixels, CF vs. SD memory, 1.8" vs. 2.5" display.

Do you know of anything else that is different that I am missing?

What do you think of purchasing a D100 vs. a D80?

Do you think this would be a good inexpensive way for me to get a DSLR.

Thanks for any advice you can give.
--Jonathan

I am writing to request your recommendation for software for digital photography. I am an advanced amateur and just purchased a Nikon D300 camera and various lenses (previously used the Pentax LX system). Since I am starting from scratch with digital imaging, I want to know which software and which computer to use. Is Adobe Photoshop CS4 "better" than Nikon Capture NX2? (I want to spend most of my time photographing and not manipulating images on a computer). Does the software run better on an Apple MacIntosh or a PC computer? I have extensive knowledge of PC's (Microsoft XP Professional), but do not mind learning a new system if it is better.

Thank you for you time and advice.

Hi Lori,
Question: Do any of the dslr cameras that have the live view feature (Nikon d90, Olympus E3, etc.) permit one to connect the camera to a laptop computer, display the live view screen on the laptop screen, then capture the image on the laptop?

If so, which cameras and how to do this?

Thanks, in advance.
--Leslie

Dear Matt and Lori,

I have the entry level Canon DSLR. Two questions:

How do I implement a firmware upgrade?


I love your show, and especially look forward to the tips portion.
-AngryFrench, Chico, Calif.

I am a hobbyist shooter looking for a lens that takes acceptable pictures for night sports, mainly football. I am using the basic canon 70-300mm F4-5.6 zoom lens on a rebel xti. Unfortunately, even at the highest ISO setting, I cannot get acceptable pictures. I am convinced I need a new lens, but I am not sure what to look for. I am a student and do not have loads of dispensable income for a new lens so I would like to keep it under $400. Any suggestions for a lens or shooting techniques to make my pictures acceptable? Thanks? Jordan in Kentucky

Lori & Matt, I was hoping that you would speak more on the D90 and perhaps compare it to a few of the SLR Canon models. Specifically the D90 vs. Canon 450D (XSi) and the Canon 40D. These are good entry level SLR's for beginners. Hopefully you could shed some more light on which DSLR (under $1000) is the best bang for your buck! Is it worth investing over $1000 for the camera body? Or going for a cheaper body and investing in a couple nice lenses? Love the show! Your Canadian listener, John C.

Hey, Lori & Matt I just got my 1st DSLR, the Nikon D60 with an AF-S 18-55mm non VR lens, and was wondering if you could give me any newbie advice. Also, is it worth getting a UV lens filter; what purpose does it serve? Thanks, Jacob, Australia