[at-l] photo thoughts - my two cents

[bullard@xxxxxxxxxxxx (Jim Bullard)]

At 12:01 AM 2/19/2003 -0500, Clark Wright wrote:
>4)  Avoid the Kodak Advantix system if you have any inclination that you
>will want to enlarge any pics beyond 4 x 6 in size; the smaller
>negatives give inherently less sharp pictures.

Also the Advantix format is slowly going the way of 126, 110 and disk
camera formats.  Several manufacturers have dropped their models in that
format.  As you note it's a smaller negative and doesn't offer any
significant advantage over digital like 35mm which still has (for the
moment anyway) a better price/quality ratio.

>5)  Consider looking for a good 35mm film pocket camera that also has a
>panorama feature; or a digital camera that lets you do the same; some of
>my favorite pictures are VERTICAL shots of the Trail taken with the
>panorama feature on.  Here is an example:
>
>  http://gallery.backcountry.net/ThruThinker-2001AT/aek
>
>[FYI, the black borders that show in this pic file do NOT appear in the
>actual, printed picture, but for some reason do show up in the photo CD
>pic files of panorama shots that I received from my [cheap] film
>processor.] [note also my "oops" as you can see a bit of my left leki
>hiking pole strap in there! :)]

The black bands on the sides are the cropping blades inside of your
camera.  35mm cameras make a panoramic photo by covering up part of the
film with two movable blades.  Printers crop the print to get rid of the
black areas. Apparently the automated machine that makes the CD copies the
full frame, hence the black bars.  You can easily crop the digital version
yourself with image processing software.  In fact most digital photos could
use a bit of work before putting them on the web.  As an example I captured
your picture, cropped it to get rid of the black bars, applied
'autolevels', then unsharp mask and resaved it.  Here is the URL:
<http://www.jimbullard.org/TTphoto/aekmodified.jpg>

>7)  If you use a 35mm film camera, consider looking for Fuji film, it
>seems to have better green and blue colors, which often are important in
>outdoor shots.  Also, for a bit of weight savings, look for 36 exposure
>rolls if you can find them.

Good film and a bit cheaper that the Big K

>8)  Take an extra ziplock along to protect your camera if you get a
>sudden downpour; I found I could still fit the ziplock bagged camera
>into my shoulder strap nylon case - I just carried the ziplock bag with
>me at all times in one of my short pockets for quick access.

Excellent suggestion.  I use the freezer weight bags for this.  The
regulars will probably do but I'm very cautious with my photo gear.

Saunterer