Hello from NZ (another DPRefugee)

[Bucolic Old Sir Henry]

G'day all. I followed PKM-UK over from the DPR R Talk forum, so if I blot my copy book, it's his fault... ;-)

You could call me a sort of ex-pro shooter/photojournalist, in that my first proper job after university involved carrying a camera everywhere I went to illustrate stories for a large UK supermarket chain's staff magazine. This was the late 70s, and we were using Pentax Spotmatics, and then Nikkormats. For flash, we had over the shoulder lead acid batteries feeding Mecablitz flash guns. It kept you fit. I then went on to work on photo magazines for a while, doing occasional freelance shoots as well as profiling some of the top photographers of the time, before moving into editorial and publishing management (which included managing a photo department for a major UK magazine group).

I was a convinced Nikon devotee for many years (my favourite camera of all time is the Nikon FM - I'm sorely tempted to buy a Nikon Zfc every time I see one!), until its relatively slow move into digital SLRs made me look at Canon. So it was a 300D, then a 5D. I spent a few years in the M system - M, M3 and M5 - before getting back into full frame goodness with the R. Upgraded to the R6 as soon as it arrived, and have been building up a collection of RF glass. Not hugely tempted by the R6II, but might jump to the mythical R5II when it arrives, mainly for the MP because most of the birds round our farmhouse are small. ;-)

Long time Mac user (30+ years), Lightroom Classic my preferred software. I have a Nikon Coolpix scanner on the desktop next to the Mac Studio/Studio Display. One day I may complete my digitise the past project, but don't hold your breath...

These days I mainly shoot for pleasure, but do work with a view to illustrating the books I'm supposed to be working on. And then there's the family, and the relentless need to feed social media to market our farm products. Happy to try my hand at anything - being willing to learn keeps you fresh.

If I have any philosophy behind my picture making it's the Cartier-Bresson idea of the critical moment. That, and composing every shot in camera. Every crop a failure - unless it's a necessity. Which may or may not be most of the time. ;-)

 

[MikeZ]

Welcome to the board. I think that we'll all miss DPReview - not a member but an occasional reader. BTW, I too have a Nikon CoolPix scanner on my desk (haven't used it in years) along with boxes of slides and negatives that I need to digitize. What software do you use to drive the thing?

 

[Bucolic Old Sir Henry]

Welcome to the board. I think that we'll all miss DPReview - not a member but an occasional reader. BTW, I too have a Nikon CoolPix scanner on my desk (haven't used it in years) along with boxes of slides and negatives that I need to digitize. What software do you use to drive the thing?

Thanks for the welcome. I've been a happy user of VueScan (https://www.hamrick.com/) for many years. It handles the Coolpix with aplomb - and has all the features of the original Nikon software, if not more.

The Coolpix scanners are something of a collectors item these days, I'm told. Apparently there's bloke in the US who will recondition them to as-new for a not unreasonable amount of money - but mine is still working perfectly so I haven't been tempted. But it's good to know he's there...

 

[Tim Mayo]

Welcome on board Gareth and thank you for joining up here and introducing yourself. It certainly sounds like you have a wealth of experience! What kind of books are you working on?

 

[Bucolic Old Sir Henry]

Welcome on board Gareth and thank you for joining up here and introducing yourself. It certainly sounds like you have a wealth of experience! What kind of books are you working on?

Thanks Tim. I'm supposed to be writing a follow-up to my book on truffles, which was published in 2005. We hadn't actually produced any truffles back then, but have now, so there's a bit of a story to tell. Working title is Truffles With Rosie - Rosie is our truffle hound, a now elderly beagle who is the finest truffle finder in NZ.

I may occasionally post a picture of a truffle or two: I had to learn how to focus stack in order to get a decent close-up shot.

Believe it or not, that warty monster was worth about NZ$1,000...

Then of course there are the dogs. Here's the young dog we've been training...

...and her mentor...

I've also written books on olive growing, climate change and a sci-fi satire. But slowly... ;-)

 

[Bear]

G'day all. I followed PKM-UK over from the DPR R Talk forum, so if I blot my copy book, it's his fault... ;-)

You could call me a sort of ex-pro shooter/photojournalist, in that my first proper job after university involved carrying a camera everywhere I went to illustrate stories for a large UK supermarket chain's staff magazine. This was the late 70s, and we were using Pentax Spotmatics, and then Nikkormats. For flash, we had over the shoulder lead acid batteries feeding Mecablitz flash guns. It kept you fit. I then went on to work on photo magazines for a while, doing occasional freelance shoots as well as profiling some of the top photographers of the time, before moving into editorial and publishing management (which included managing a photo department for a major UK magazine group).

I was a convinced Nikon devotee for many years (my favourite camera of all time is the Nikon FM - I'm sorely tempted to buy a Nikon Zfc every time I see one!), until its relatively slow move into digital SLRs made me look at Canon. So it was a 300D, then a 5D. I spent a few years in the M system - M, M3 and M5 - before getting back into full frame goodness with the R. Upgraded to the R6 as soon as it arrived, and have been building up a collection of RF glass. Not hugely tempted by the R6II, but might jump to the mythical R5II when it arrives, mainly for the MP because most of the birds round our farmhouse are small. ;-)

Long time Mac user (30+ years), Lightroom Classic my preferred software. I have a Nikon Coolpix scanner on the desktop next to the Mac Studio/Studio Display. One day I may complete my digitise the past project, but don't hold your breath...

These days I mainly shoot for pleasure, but do work with a view to illustrating the books I'm supposed to be working on. And then there's the family, and the relentless need to feed social media to market our farm products. Happy to try my hand at anything - being willing to learn keeps you fresh.

If I have any philosophy behind my picture making it's the Cartier-Bresson idea of the critical moment. That, and composing every shot in camera. Every crop a failure - unless it's a necessity. Which may or may not be most of the time. ;-)

Welcome aboard and I also will miss the DPReview. It was my go-to site for everything photography. Nice to see a longtime Mac user. I left the Windows platform about 25-years ago and never looked back. Enjoy the forum and have fun with the R6 (and the RF lenses - still working on my arsenal of RF’s).

 

[Bucolic Old Sir Henry]

Welcome aboard and I also will miss the DPReview. It was my go-to site for everything photography. Nice to see a longtime Mac user. I left the Windows platform about 25-years ago and never looked back. Enjoy the forum and have fun with the R6 (and the RF lenses - still working on my arsenal of RF’s).

I liked the R, but when I got the R6 it immediately brought a smile to my face. It felt like a fully-realised camera, a delight to use, and apparently capable of truly magical things - like hitting focus on the eyes of a swallow as it whooshes past, or even a dragonfly's eyes. Some of the RF glass has had the same impact on me. I traded an RF600 f11 against the 100-500 and immediately fell in love with it. I might say the same for my most recent acquisition, the 14-35 f4, but it's early days still...

 

[Tim Mayo]

Believe it or not, that warty monster was worth about NZ$1,000

I need to train my dog to find truffles! Lovely images Gareth. It certainly sounds like you have plenty on your plate to keep you busy.