From Lincoln to Washington

What an absolutely gorgeous view he has every morning...

VAIO/Adobe CS3 Offer Issues

Received an offer link on my new VAIO laptop - get Photoshop CS3 for $350 off list price. Yay. When I clicked on the link, I was taken to the Adobe Online Store where a popup dialog box stated "Promotion code not valid". Oh, by the way, the link did not work in IE; it only worked in Firefox - go figure ( Here's the link )

Had to call Adobe... the first customer service agent said she couldn't help me and transferred me to an offshore call center agent who was obviously reading from a script. He couldn't help me either and transferred me back (!) to another stateside customer service agent who could hear the frustration in my voice. She however went on to say the promotion only applied to an upgrade from Photoshop Elements (I did not receive a copy of Photoshop Elements with my VAIO). By now I was livid, yet reserved. I think she heard the strain in my voice. I was trying hard to be civil. She went ahead and processed the order for me. CS3 at $299. Worth the effort but OH why can't companies get their promotion ducks in a row so customers don't get jerked around? What a concept.

Great light

I woke up this morning and was amazed by the glow in the sky - the beautiful cloud cover had taken on a rosy hue that begged to be captured by my camera. Unfortunately, I was in bed. Such is life.

Crappy light

Went shooting with Eric and Mario. Unfortunately, the light was really bad and the sky did not look nice at all. Oh well.

Wireless blog post

Rainbow over Lincoln

This was around 7.30 a.m. a few days ago... I had packed up my bags after taking pictures inside the chamber and was leaving Lincoln Memorial when someone on the other side of the monument gestured wildly screaming "rainbow, rainbow". I turned around to see what he was saying, and put down my bag, took out my tripod, set up the shot and took this picture.

Should I buy Photoshop CS3?

I am trying to determine whether to purchase Photoshop CS3 or not. What do you think?

1Ds Mark III files are enormous

1Ds Mark III file sizes are insane. The RAW files are roughly 25MB each (compared to 6MB for the 10D, 6-9MB for the 1D Mark II, and 10-12MB for the 1Ds) and the extracted TIFF files are 120MB each! Yikes. From a pure full-frame to full-frame comparison, the 1Ds Mark III files are >100% larger than those of the 1Ds. Needless to say, the resolution too has gone up to 21 megapixels from the 11 megapixels offered by the 1Ds.

At this rate I am going to need a LOT of storage space. Fortunately DVD-RWs are cheap, and I have a DVD burner!

Tricky Distagon

I like the Contax Zeiss Distagon 21mm f/2.8 for its ultrawide perspective but I still have not got the hang of focusing with the lens. I need lots of practice. This picture seemed fine when I took it but in reality it is out of focus. I like it nevertheless.

ALL my fault

I should have never offered to meet up with fellow photogs. Thanks to this fateful post four years ago, I now have two great friends and have spent a boatload of money on camera gear. By some measure, that easily amounts to a down payment on a cute little condo somewhere in Florida! No snowbirding for me, I guess...

Fire in the sky

Isn't this amazing? Shot with a Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L.

Tripod Permits

Why can we not have a definitive policy on tripod permits that everyone has access to, and, that everyone can understand? Today I called the NPS Office of Public Information and was told it is a crime to take pictures of Lincoln Memorial!

Current Gear

My current gear includes the following:

Camera bodies

• Canon Digital SLR EOS 1Ds Mark III
• Canon Digital SLR EOS 350D

Camera lenses

• Canon Ultra-Wide Zoom EF 17-40mm f/4L USM
• Contax Zeiss Distagon Ultra-Wide 21mm f/2.8
• Canon Standard Zoom EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM
• Canon Wide Angle EF 35mm f/1.4L USM
• Canon Standard Telephoto EF 50mm f/1.8 Mk. I
• Canon Medium Telephoto EF 85mm f/1.2L USM
• Canon Macro EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
• Canon Telephoto 135mm f/2L USM
• Canon Telephoto 200mm f/2.8L II USM
• Canon Telephoto Zoom EF 70-200mm f/4L USM

Camera accessories

• Canon EF 1.4x II Extender
• Canon Anglefinder C
• Canon Speedlite 580EX E-TTL-II Flash
• Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX E-TTL Flash
• Canon Timer Remote Controller TC-80N3
• Sekonic L-558 DualMaster Light Meter
• Gitzo G2220 Explorer Tripod
• Arca Swiss B1 Ballhead
• LowePro Pro Trekker AWII
• AquaTech SS-200
• Adobe Photoshop CS2

New Camera

Finally, after 19 months of waiting and playing with a "toy" camera, I finally have my 1Ds Mark III. As far as I can tell, this is a crackerjack camera and will keep me company for a very, very long time.