A few quick impressions.  Yes the Sigma 150-500mm will try and auto-focus with this converter…. but and it is a big one.. it won’t be very successful.  In bright light you can get focus but it requires a tripod and a lot of luck at the long end of the range.  So you are better off switching to manual focus.  In fully auto mode I found the d7000 tended to over compensate for the F stop which pushed out to f13 at 500mm, and so the ISO jumps to 1600.  So, once again push to manual.

It is going to take me a while to get the hang of this new teleconverter, but first impressions they say are the ones that count.  My impressions are nice.  Yes images aren’t as sharp, there are issues with focus.  But the EXIF data is all correct, the Kenko works with my Sigma perfectly.

And if you have ANY dust devils on your sensor… you will notice them straight away.  I am going to have to get the D7000 cleaned before the Point Cook Airshow, at f13 the shots are full of dust.

So here are two moon shots the settings in camera and are copied from one shot to the other in lightroom3 so are identical. These are the uncropped versions, click on the images for the bigger versions on Flickr.

The Moon at 500mm

The Moon at 1000mm

The Set up:

Enjoy.

( See also 11mm to 1000mm a slideshow showing shots from one location zooming in on the complete focal range I have access to. )

well I posted this

“help twitter… mrs wolfcat is holding my new 2xteleconverter ransom … she won’t release it until more chores are done”

below are the replies…

( The names have been deleted to protect the innocent )

Female: one is free to throw oneself on ones own sword, [howls with laughter :0))]
Male: if she breaks the teleconverter, you’ll have to buy a new, high-res D4 / D800 and crop
Male: 2 options comply or dare, comply you’re done. Dare she’ll break everything you care about until you’re done are we clear yet?
Female: Well do the chores then! #UsGirlsStickTogether
Female: no mercy, dude, no mercy
Male: you’re on your own mate :/
Female: well then, you’d better hurry up and finish up those chores…
Male: Definitely by the short and curlies
Male:  We have a policy of not negotiating with terrorists.

To be honest the not “not negotiating with terrorists” is about the most useful…

anyway I must get on and back to my chores…  review of the teleconverter will have to wait.

———–

Update – the next morning…

I was finally told the secret hiding location… in typical Mrs Wolfcat fashion it was in plain sight all along..

… Next step the D800…..

Won’t be long before I am saying sit down and shut up….

SOME REPORTER: Could I read you a letter from yesterday’s Australian? It said ‘Actions of corporate dishonesty and custodial sentencing. Pity the same rules don’t apply to politicians.’ What’s your response?

JULIA GILLARD: Well, I can understand why people feel unhappy about the Government’s decision to introduce a price on carbon. But we took a decision that in the end it was more important to be economically responsible, and more important to maintain the climate in the long term than it was to avoid embarrassing the Prime Minister.

SOME REPORTER: So honesty comes a distant second in this?

JULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter, when I made that statement, in the election campaign, I had not the slightest inkling that there would ever be any intention to change this. But obviously when circumstances change, governments do change their opinions, and that is actually the responsible course of action.

SOME REPORTER: You say you had no inkling it was likely to change, but Scientists knew that there’d been a blow-out, didn’t it?

JULIA GILLARD: Yes. We certainly were aware the costs were increasing, and there was no secrecy about this, Some Reporter. The, the pre-election climate outlook statement revealed that there had been a substantial increase in the cost of the carbon, and obviously since the election the Government has had the opportunity to consider this blow-out — to look not just at the current quadrennium, but to look at the long term — and has made the decision that the price had to be applied.

SOME REPORTER: So it didn’t bother to look at the long term before the election?

JULIA GILLARD: Well, we, we were looking at the long term before the election. But obviously in a budget context you can focus even more directly on the long term, and that’s what we’ve done.

SOME REPORTER: It sounds as though you can’t believe anything anyone says in an election if they follow those rules.

JULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter…

SOME REPORTER: Unless it coincides with the budget.

JULIA GILLARD: Some reporter, look, I can understand your scorn.

SOME REPORTER: Mm.

JULIA GILLARD: And I can certainly understand the dismay of — of some electors. I can obviously understand that. But there are all sorts of values here. One value is obviously keeping commitments. But another important value is economic responsibility, and another — a third important value is solidarity with the team.

And in the end I think voters expect above all else that governments will be economically responsible, and certainly I think economic responsibility has been the chief hallmark of the Gillard Government.

JULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter, again let me say that I can understand why people are dismayed by this decision. But in the end governments have to balance a whole lot of objectives. And sometimes you have to choose between a range of difficult, even unpalatable, alternatives.

And we could stick with the pre-election position. And further blow out the cost to the climate. Or we could make a change. And we thought on balance it was best to take the economically responsible position now.

SOME REPORTER: On balance wouldn’t it have been better to be honest before the election? Acknowledge it had blown out to $1.3 billion and make the changes thenJULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter, we did acknowledge in the pre-election financial outlook statement that there had been a very significant blow-out in the cost to the climate. I think the, the first year cost of the climate had blown out by some fifty per cent in the pre-election financial outlook statement, and obviously there had been a commensurate blow-out in the forward estimates.

SOME REPORTER: Now, Wayne Swan also knew the figures were phony, didn’t he? In fact he said the parameters of the Carbon Tax will not change. In other words, he committed himself as much as you did.

And yet he’s led the charge now to break the promise. What do you think of that? This is the bloke who wants to be prime minister.

JULIA GILLARD: Some Reporter, again, I can understand your dwelling on this. But, but sometimes governments have to choose between a range of unpalatable alternatives. Now…

SOME REPORTER: One of the unpalatable alternatives is telling the truth, presumably.

JULIA GILLARD: We set up this Carbon Tax back in March of last year. Thinking that it was going to cost $440 million.

SOME REPORTER: You knew by the election it was $1.3 billion.

JULIA GILLARD: We, we discovered in September-October that it was going to cost a lot more. We made a decision in a budget context that the best thing we could do for the long-term health of the climate, and indeed for the long-term health of the climate, to change the thresholds.?

SOME REPORTER: And con the people through the election.

JULIA GILLARD: Look, we, what we, what we said to people back then was what we honestly believed to be the case. And…

JULIA GILLARD: But, but Some Reporter, the point I make is that there was no deception about the cost blow-out. The cost blow-out was there for all to see in the pre-election financial outlook.

SOME REPORTER: The deception’s about what it meant.

JULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter, the thing is this: obviously when you have time to reflect and consider these things, as governments obviously do in a budget context, you’ve got to make a decision. And the decision was to be economically responsible.

SOME REPORTER: Now, you opposed that decision. Did you at any point consider resigning?

JULIA GILLARD: Not seriously.

SOME REPORTER: But you considered it?

JULIA GILLARD: Oh, look, when you tell me that I should resign, Some Reporter, on national television, obviously the thought goes through your head. But as I said, there are many important values here. One is keeping commitments. Another is economic responsibility. And a third is solidarity with the team.

And it’s been a very good team. It’s been a very good Government. And in the end I think people don’t have a simple-minded approach to this. They understand that governments have got to balance a range of different objectives, and probably economic responsibility is the most important one.

SOME REPORTER: But your word’s not worth much any more, is it? A Julia Gillard commitment now will rouse horse laughs.

JULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter, look, these are the risks you run, obviously. And I guess I would simply ask people to appreciate the totality of the circumstances in which governments operate.

SOME REPORTER: The Productivity Commission has suggested that Australians who can afford a price on carbon should be allowed, or even obliged, to opt out of the public electricity network. Is the Government going to do that?

JULIA GILLARD: That’s not something that the Government plans to do.

SOME REPORTER: Is that an iron-clad, rock solid commitment?

JULIA GILLARD: Some Reporter, I, I’m not…

SOME REPORTER: You see the problem you’ve got?

JULIA GILLARD: Yeah, look, I understand that, Some Reporter. But the point I’m making is that when circumstances change, governments change their view. And that’s not mendacity. That’s responsibility.

SOME REPORTER: The circumstances that changed was you won the election.

JULIA GILLARD: Well, Some Reporter, we, we are considering the long term health of our climate in a budget context. And we believed on very full consideration that the best thing we could do to protect and preserve our climate — a climate which The Liberals still pledged to abolish.

SOME REPORTER: You said repeatedly in the election that the Government would not price carbon

Is that a rock solid, iron-clad commitment?

JULIA GILLARD: Well, yes it is.

SOME REPORTER: You see, at this point we cue the horse laughs, don’t we?

JULIA GILLARD: Well, well, Some Reporter, as I said, I can understand your scorn. But I think that the citizenry of Australia know that governments sometimes have to choose between a range of difficult alternatives. And in this case we had to choose between strictly keeping that commitment that I gave, and the long term health of the economy, and the long term health of the Climate.

And we chose the long term health of the economy and the Climate.

SOME REPORTER: Julia Gillard, we thank you.

JULIA GILLARD: Thanks  Some Reporter.

————————————————————————————————————-

ok… I have a confession, I didn’t write this… in fact apart from changing the words in italics and the names “Julia Gillard”, “Some Reporter” and references to Labor, the rest is actually a word for word transcript. I admit I did change the meaning, by swapping Medicare Safety Net for Climate Change.

As for the original, the actual person who broke the election promise, well that was one Tony Abbott.  See this is a transcript of an interview from April 17, 2005.  ( Sunday Programme with Lauri Oakes ) Well after Howard decided that there were “non-core promises” at election time anyway.

Food for thought next time Tony Abbott rants on about broken promises….

This pic is Erin in her Jolly Jumper.  I must say I am a big fan of the Jolly Jumpers, it also helps that the Cubs are as well. The one tip I would give anyway is always put a rug underneath the child.  If it isn’t vomit from bouncing there will be litres of drool that soak into the floor.

The advantage of twins is that you can put them both in the jumpers they do amuse each other.  This gives parents 30 min or so to run around and get some chores done. An added bonus it that they are still where you left them and at the same time wears them out (ready for  a nap) like nothing else yet.

Oh yeah and they are cute too boot as well.

Due to the Wolfcatcubs currently (and for the next 30+ years I think) Redbubble is the only money that I have to spend on new toys for the camera. ( Hint hint hint )  Of course in the last few days I have no offers on my $5999 print, so no new d4 for me, but I will have about $400 to spend in the next few weeks.

With so many toys I still NEED, I thought I would put out my list of possibles and see what others think.

I could get one of the following… to go with a Nikon 90 and D7000

• AF-S DX Micro Nikkor 40mm f/2.8G
• Cokin U960 Z-Pro Graduated Neutral Density Kit
• or either the 1.4 or 2x Teleconverter for my Sigma 150-500mm

of course I’d like all of these… but you can’t have it all can you.

Perhaps there is something else in the ballpark that I really should get?

Thoughts below please…

–

update: brought a Kenko Teleplus Pro 300 2x Converter.

But that is not to say I will just give away my work.

In light of a number of recent posts people have done about “free” photography and the real cost of getting some of these shots, I have done some thinking around commercial use of my photography. I have decided in no way related to the announcement last week of the Nikon D4 that the shot below is worth USD $5999 RRP. (for the autographed version ( Limited edition of 1 ))

I could tell you about how much the camera cost, the lens, the tripod, the fuel for the car to get to the location, the time and planning to get the shot, the years of waiting for just the right moment, the software and computer equipment to process the shot.

I could point out how this has a lot more going for it that a shot of a field ( even if that shot is 3meters across ) and is dramatically cheaper.

I could say how people want to just use my shot and give me credit for it in the hope that it gives me more publicity…

I could just tell you about the new Nikon D4 and how cool that camera sounds.

( Excuse me whilst I wipe drool up from my keyboard )

Completely unrelated to the last statement I promise….. this shot is now worth the same as the Nikon D4….

and all the details on when and how this shot was taken are in my Missing from the EXIF blog post

or you can buy it Redbubble but that version is unsigned…

The $5999 version will be signed. Perhaps it is my signature that is worth the most money after all.

The video from the trip up suffered from the usual technical problems ( this time a blown power inverter half way up ).. but with a new inverter onboard I finally got a clean video run for the trip home.

This shows the trip from Edgeworth ( Newcastle ) to Melbourne down the F3, around Sydney and down the Hume, stopping overnight in Jugiong then on to Melbourne. ( Approx 1100km in distance )
The video is also availble in 720p HD as well, just watch it on youtube

( and yes that is me at 2:09 taking photos )

(as far as the map is concerned, please ignore the error that Google Maps has that refuses to let you drive down the Hume near Holbrook )

View Larger Map

The car in reflection of a truck hub on the trip home.

I’d like to thank all those that encourage my photography over the last 12 months from those that purchased prints, to the countless who RT’d my tweets and left comments here and on Flickr.  And thanks for putting up with all the #wolfcatcubs photos as well.

Hopefully next year I will be able to get out some more… but I doubt it.

Wolf.

In reverse order of date taken.

Now that is a bolt of lightning

Finally got a nice clear bolt of lightning… now if only I had a clear view of the sky…..

Monstering Melbourne

Over 20,000 views makes this my most popular image on flickr.

and all the details on when and how this shot was taken are in my Missing from the EXIF blog post

And for sale at Redbubble

Simplicity

This has a Japanese feel to it for me. Shot from the End of North Road, at 500mm.

And for sale at Redbubble

Dancer

Something about this shot sings to me. The simplicity, the story and the power.

And for sale at Redbubble

Mum and Zara

Choosing one shot of the #wolfcatcubs was hard, this one for me says it all.

Red and White – Moomba Fireworks

The first time I actually went to Moomba.

And for sale at Redbubble

The Belly of The Beast

After a number of trips to Avalon, I finally got lucky. Not only did I have the right gear, (Nikon D7000 + Sigma 150-500mm Lens) but I got to see this aircraft fly.

Contemplating the day that was

One of the first shots taken with my Sigma 150-500mm. A lens that 12 months later I am still in love with.

Step by Step, showing the Lightroom processing for the the shot here

And for sale at Redbubble

Keep your Cool

(from one of the only out of the city photo trips I did all year)

And for sale at Redbubble

The long shot… North Road Jetty #nyemelb

Details and Background about this shot here

And for sale at Redbubble

The destruction of a wind turbine in a North Ayrshire wind farm.

From my “limited” knowledge, I would say that the brake on the Turbine failed in the extreme conditions, resulting in the prop being free to spin.  In the incredibly high winds, the turbine would have got so hot and fast the engine caught fire.

Whilst the blade could handle the speed of the wind, the small fact of physics that heat gets generated as the turbine spins electromagnets means that in extreme winds they always have to shut turbines down.

A major set back for wind energy…..  um no.

Lets compare a wind turbine where “Fire engines attended the blaze which died out after a matter of minutes at the wind farm situated above Ardrossan” and the clean up cost, would be the replacement cost of the Turbine and some grass seed….to say…

this…

the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster where reactors 1, 2 and 3 experienced full meltdown. Unlike the Turbine fire “As of August 2011, the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant is still leaking low levels of radiation and areas surrounding it could remain uninhabitable for decades due to high radiation”.  The clean up cost could be over 100billion dollars in the next few years.

Yep, lets all get up in arms because one wind turbine had a failure….