Click, click, click. . . !
Belted Kingfisher with the new Nikon D300
I got my new camera (Nikon D300) in the mail today and although it is the same . . . it is also very different from my older camera. The biggest difference is that I can’t edit my raw files with Photoshop CS2!! Grrrrr!!! I haven’t figured the raw editor that is offered from Nikon but from what I have seen online, it isn’t anything like Photoshop (big disappointment). I can’t update the editor plugin because Adobe doesn’t support CS2 anymore!! Uggg!! I am also having the same problems with my 400mm lens as I was having with the D70s!! I had hoped those problems would disappear with a new body (but it didn’t). Probably should have gotten a new lens before a new camera body!! O, well . . . with that said I absolutely LOVE the Nikon D300!!
Osprey with my Nikon D70s
My first picture that I captured was of one of my cats . . . but then I accidentally deleted the photo when I formatted the flash card! I got out to take some pictures this afternoon but spent most of the evening trying to figure the camera out (and getting my lens to work)! While taking a few pictures, I also found my first Swamp Sparrow for 2008 (CHECK). Shouldn’t be too long before I am more familiar with this camera and able to click, click, click away!
Common Merganser with my new Nikon D300
BTW: Those wondering about the Salamander Migration last night . . . we ended up with snow in the air and it never happened! I will do the post once the Salamanders actually do their big migration (but good note, I did hear the Peepers peeping today for the first time).
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Your pictures are so sharp and clear. Such good quality. I think great cameras are worth the investment. Figures the editing software wouldn’t work when you upgrade anything now days. BTW, have you grown to like your new video camera that you bought a while back or are you still dissatisfied with it?
Those salamanders are just the cutest. I hope you’ll be able to get some more pictures of them.
2 April 2008 at 11:26 pm
Great pictures and it’s fun to play with a new toy!
2 April 2008 at 11:38 pm
That Merganser pic is fantastic! WOW! Worth the investment!
2 April 2008 at 11:49 pm
Great photos! And I was betting the first one you took would be a kitty picture.
3 April 2008 at 12:00 am
Congratulations for the new camera, is also the one I wish for 🙂
3 April 2008 at 4:39 am
I use nikon Capture Editor for my raw files, it works great. I have CS2 but i prefer using capture for the raw files. It is also cheaper than upgrading Photoshop. I use a 70s with nikon lens. Adobes site
http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html
says CS3 supports your new camera. I will be staying in the park the second week of May, maybe I will run into you.
3 April 2008 at 5:39 am
@ Linda – thanks and I hope so! You would think expensive programs would allow you to use for a long time but nope! I still wish I had gotten the Sony Camcorder! This JVC and the mov file doesn’t work well on the computer. I can’t use the wide screen feature also, which I had been excited about when getting the camera.
@ Chicago, thanks and it sure is!
@ Liza – I hope so and probably should have posted the series of it going up like that to flap its wings!
@ Grace- thanks and it was a cute one also!! Wish I hadn’t deleted it!
@ Nuno – thanks and its well worth getting!
@ Bill – I plan on giving the 30 day trial a try! Second week . . . That Saturday I will be over in Erie PA for a bird club field trip. Look for a guy walking around with a D300 and please feel free to say hello!
3 April 2008 at 7:17 am
Hi Tom,
Great choice. Nikon has me realy looking. I think you will find the high ISO capability a blessing at the beginning and end of the day. If you like doing your raw conversions in Adobe you might consider light room.
Regards
Mike
3 April 2008 at 7:56 am
I can’t wait to see the results of the click click clicking. That shot of the Merganzer flapping its wings is nice. I like action shots.
3 April 2008 at 8:11 am
Congrats on the the new camera! It takes a good month to really feel comfy with a new one, don’t you think? But to capture a belted kingfisher – nice and clear – great job!!! Looking forward to many more…
3 April 2008 at 8:22 am
Cool camera.
Isn’t it frustrating to have to take a step back in order to go forward! There’s much I know I could (should) do differently but I’m too impatient to stop long enough to sort it out.
If the world would just stop spinning long enough for me to get my act together….
We’ve had a cold snap, too–but forecast for the mid-60s this weekend. Maybe you’ll get a drift of it, too.
3 April 2008 at 8:33 am
I wouldn’t expect such good photos the first time out (my first ones with my Rebel XT were awful). I love the one of the merganser–very professional looking.
3 April 2008 at 10:03 am
I’m glad you are having fun. The photos are of a very good quality.
3 April 2008 at 11:52 am
Dude, you rock. That belted kingfisher, well, I can’t believe it behaved for you. The ones here always, always fly away right when they see the camera. They are just as skittish as the kestral’s.
I’m not sure what version of PS I have but I cannot open RAW’s either. I have to convert and then edit, which sucks.
3 April 2008 at 12:26 pm
I’m posting this way b/c my WordPress login always gets caught in the SPAM filter… Unfortunately, it seems that when Adobe stopped supporting CS2, they stopped doing Adobe Camera Raw updates for it, too. HOWEVER, I found a workaround you may be able to use on the Adobe Forums (I paraphrased the original, longer version):
I’ve played with the Nikon Capture and Nikon NX software, and they are slow, memory-hogging programs with really bad user interfaces (and since that’s what I do for a living, I can say that. 😉 ). The advantage is that they DO a better job at maintaining the information that you recorded in the camera than Photoshop*, but you should be able to compensate.
If you need more help, let me know via email and I’ll do what I can.
*Nikon won’t release the official algorithms, so everything Adobe does is a guesstimate. Another reason Canon is doing so well – they released their code to Adobe so you get 100% true color and settings from camera to Lightroom/Photoshop – but that’s another post…
3 April 2008 at 12:42 pm
Whoops, it also left out my bullets… darn WordPress!!
3 April 2008 at 12:42 pm
Congrats for the new toy! I envy you 😉
Hope you find out soon how it all works, will wait for the upcoming posts!
3 April 2008 at 2:00 pm
I agree congrats on the new camera – figuring out software… then the lens…. then what all the new buttons mean… frustrating process that sometimes can be fun too. good luck. Learning it is half the fun?? okay maybe just a bit of the fun.
3 April 2008 at 2:24 pm
Fantastic photos. I’d love to read what you think are the greatest difference between the D70 and the D300. What features do you like most? Least? It’s probably not something you can do right away, but once you’re fluent in D300, I’d be interested your assessment.
3 April 2008 at 3:55 pm
Dear Tom,
For some reason I thought you were working with a D200…I saw the D300 the other day at the camera shop. Looks like a great camera. I am wanting a macro lens for my D50.
I just like to be able to get the picture when I see it!
You did great…
Kingfishers are beautiful birds.
Sherry
3 April 2008 at 4:42 pm
I would like to have a camera like yours. A few years ago we heard a peeping for a week, and we thought it was a alarm. Then one evening as I was birding in my back yard a dicovered it was a peeper. And it comes here every summer now.
Goodbye,
Birdman
3 April 2008 at 5:55 pm
I use Bibble pro for my raw converter for my D200. It also works with the D300 Raw files. It has tremendous work flow capability and will make minor or major adjustments to the raw photos. It converts to .tiff files which then are compatible with CS2.
I used this to process 18,000 photos from our 16 week Alaska Trip
e-mail me off post if you have any other questions.
3 April 2008 at 6:26 pm
It didn’t take you long to produce some terrific photos! I especially like the merganser photo.-I’ve never been able to get that kind of clear action photo with my point and shoot.-I wonder if there is a better setting on it for something like that.-Nice to see the Osprey retun.-They came back some time in March around here.-
3 April 2008 at 8:44 pm
@ Mike – thanks and there are many more features that I have already thought was a blessing! I have just started hearing about light room!
@ Lisa – I will continue to work on the clicking part!
@ Bird Girl – Thanks and I will be use to it by the time the warblers return!
@ Nina – I hope the weather is nice the next week or 20 weeks! Technology is great but also very complicated!
@ Joan – Much of the way it is set up is like my D70s but there are some smaller changes that will take a short while to get use to!
@ Scienceguy – thanks and working on that!
@ Misty – thanks and actually it flew right to me (I was standing in once spot)!
@ Marty – I did download the 3.7 and only found a .8bi file! Hmm ,will have to email you! Thanks for all the detail in this . . . it was very helpful!
@ Mel – thanks and now just can’t wait to have time to take pictures!
@ aullori – thanks and just taking everything in JPG right now! I prefer RAW files! Sure is fun learning!
@ Robin – thanks and that might be a post within it’s self! You get what you pay for and still learning the new features of the new camera. Right now, all I can say the D70s has in its favor is it’s price! Everything else that I liked on the D70s is 100x better on the D300! Example, auto ISO is limited on its speed on the D70s, I can set it to do whatever I want with the D300! ISO quality is 100x better with the D300 and double the size of mega pixel! Like I said, that is a post just within its self!
@ Sherry – I would have loved a D200 but let me say how amazing the D300 is! WOW,you thinking of getting it?
@ Samuel – start saving! You can start with some of the lower end cameras like I had with my D70s or the D50 like Sherry is using! But, don’t forget that 75% of the pictures taken on this blog is with my point and shoot camera! A fraction the price of this new camera!
@ Troy – never heard of bibble . . . will have to google it! Wow, 18,000 photos . . . . how many flash cards did you have?
@ lvn – thanks and actually, many of my pictures are taken with my point and shoot! But these kinds of shots do need something with magnification!
3 April 2008 at 10:00 pm
Jealous about the D300 – was thinking of getting one, but the price of other things has delayed those thoughts from becoming reality. I must say the bluebird indicates that the camera was a good buy.
3 April 2008 at 11:21 pm
Oh Congrats on getting it! Now the figuring out part-fun!
Love that Kingfisher-I never get good Kingfisher shots!
4 April 2008 at 4:13 am
@ NatureShutterbug – thanks and well worth the price! I can’t wait to have the chance to really start using it!
@ Marg – thanks and lets hope this is the fun part! This kingfisher was very kind to land near me!
4 April 2008 at 7:28 am
Sweet about the new camera (although I’m a Canon fan 🙂
Although it might take awhile for you to improve on the wonderful shots you’ve been delighting us with!
4 April 2008 at 1:32 pm
Congrats on the new camera! Sorry about the unexpected hassles. Nice shots, as usual. 🙂
4 April 2008 at 6:07 pm
@ Birdfreak – thanks and sorry to hear about you being a cannon fan 😦 Thanks for you kind words!
@ Thanks and its life!
4 April 2008 at 7:55 pm
I’m trying to hold back the extreme jealousy! Of course I knew the minute that I bought the 200 that the next big thing would be out within 3 months… oh well!
5 April 2008 at 8:54 pm