Entries Tagged as 'gps'

Missing from the EXIF: Electric Melbourne

Electric Melbourne

Wow, I finally got the lightning shot I’ve been hunting.  By finally, I mean after 5 years of owning a Digital SLR.

This of shot of course was not without a bucket load of luck.  Luck in the form of the following, lightning at the right time, not raining at the time, not windy at the time, the #wolfcatcubs down and asleep, and that is just for starters.

Taken at my favourite location at the end of North Road, I was chasing a certain storm cell I had seen on radar 30 min before. A cell that hit Ballart hard with hail and severe winds causing a lot of damage as well.

Setting up in my fav location, phone in hand with WeatherzonePro+hooked up to my Weatherzone Pro account I could track the storm cells and lightning as well.  The first batch of photos were shots chasing the cell which passed near Geelong.  Whilst I managed to get a few strikes on camera they just weren’t that “photogenic“.

Checking the radar told me to wait a bit longer, whilst a few drops of rain had fallen, I knew it wasn’t going to rain hard for a while yet.

I repositioned the camera to focus on a potential cell over the city.  Whilst visible on radar, it wasn’t to the naked eye. I had the intervalometer mode enabled on the D7000, shooting an 8second exposure every 9 seconds.  At which point a lot of luck came into play.  A lightning strike lasts for less than a second, so I had the camera shooting for exposures which would have been to dark for ordinary use, but to compensate for the bright flash that lightning would produce.

I had joked with some people at the location, what I was after was a couple of bolts dropping just over the CBD, for that magic shot.  My joke came true. As you can see in the radar capture from the time, my location was in a hook in the rain, even more luck.

I took over 100 shots that night at one location.  But this shot is a one shot wonder, all of these strikes are as you see in one shot.  Often people merge multiple lightning strikes into one image, this is an in camera image, which is how I prefer to shoot.

The corrections in lightroom were a small crop, lens correction and a slight push to black levels, nothing more. Whilst I could have corrected the white balance, the blue cast adds to the image in my opinion.

I hope you enjoy this shot as much as I did.

Please support my camera habit by buying this image by click on it below.

The EXIF Info:

Camera Nikon D7000
Exposure 8seconds
Aperture f/7.1
Focal Length 18 mm
ISO Speed 200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire
Software AdobePhotoshopLightroom4.2 (Windows)
Date and Time (Modified) 2012:11:30 22:55:20
Exposure Program Manual
Focal Length (35mm format) 27 mm
Lens Model 18.0-105.0 mm f/3.5-5.6
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 53.81″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 5.63″ E
GPS Altitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPS Altitude 16 m
GPS Satellites 10

 

 

 

Missing from the EXIF: Monstering Melbourne

Must say it is nice to have 10 min to myself to finally update the blog with a non Wolfcatcubs related photo and Behind the Exif Blog Post.

So this is the story of this image…

Monstering Melbourne

I’ll break down the day as it happened as was planned.  Now Melbourne is not known for its tropical storms.  This is both good and bad for me.  Good as I hate humidity and the last few days in Melbourne have been torture, but very bad for taking storm photos. The BOM had been saying for a few days that big storms were due.  So the night before involved checking all the gear, making sure the camera was charged, the Solmeta GPS was charged and the cards were emptied.  Nothing worse than a rare storm event and not having something right 🙂

The above radar image shows the time I left home. I’d been watching the weather all day and had a rough idea on when it was due, seeing this cell and its track meant I knew it would miss me, but it would provide some good shots.

Lucky for me, there was a second cell on the radar.  The second cell was the one that I would get my shot from.  The first cell did provide some nice outflow clouds and I saw a few lightning bolts, but nothing on camera.

There were a number of people down at my fav location.  The trusty End of North Road location.  The advantage of heading here was that I knew how to look at the radar on my HTC Incredible S in comparison to my location which told me to stay longer than the first cell passing as well.

So with all the gear set up, I was ready for the storm.  The second radar image is approx when the shot was taken.

And thus here is the gear as the storm moved in.
The setup for "monstering Melbourne"

It was also the first time I got to test out my new tripod the Manfrotto MT294A3 290 with 804RC2 Head.  Must say it worked a treat even in the strong outflow winds.  (Look at the strap on the camera)

The shot is taken on manual mode to address the issue of the balance from the dark side of the image under the cloud with the bright side of the sun coming through.

Post processing consisted on a small lens correction and crop, with a touch of a graduated filter to address the slightly over exposed right side of the image.

As the storm got closer I timed the run back to the car with about 1/2 second to spare. Whilst the D7000 is listed as water resistant, the Tokina 11-16mm and the Solmeta GPS Pro aren’t. Further given the solid wall of rain that was coming sideways, I’m sure the D7000 would not have coped.

So days of planning went into this shot, and oh yeah mother nature help as well 🙂

This shot is now my most popular on flickr for favs and comments…  so thanks to all of your for the comments.

 

And of course you can buy this image as well ( just think Xmas is coming 🙂  )

 

And the EXIF Data

Camera Nikon D7000
Exposure 0.013 sec (1/80)
Aperture f/7.1
Focal Length 11 mm
ISO Speed 200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire
Software Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3.5 (Windows)
Exposure Program Manual
Date and Time (Original) 2011:11:09 18:42:47
Exposure Mode Manual
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Focal Length In35mm Format 16 mm
Scene Capture Type Standard
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 54.02″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 4.71″ E
GPS Altitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPS Altitude 10 m
GPS Time Stamp 07:42:44
GPS Satellites 10

 

Stopping to smell the tech roses every now and then, thanks to #UARS

I admit, there is a long list of toys and next best things I am waiting for. Everything from the Nikon D4 to a holodeck, neither of which I will ever be able to afford mind you. This list goes to even more simple things, and by simple I mean cheaper such as the next great Android phone, or that Android Tablet that I really want, but thanks to the #wolfcatcubs will never get.

In this headlong rush to the next great thing, it pays to stop, catch a breath and reflect on some seriously awesome stuff that I and a lot of you have.

Saturday 24/09/2011 was that moment of pause for me.  At 2:45pm I jumped in my car (2000 model AWD Subaru) to head down to on a winning lotto kind of chance to get a photo.  The photo I was prepared to take was of the UARS satellite as it came crashing back down to earth. A Satellite launched via the Space Shuttle ( Retired 2011 )

It got me thinking on the 15 min drive to what kind of tech was I using. It started with the IVF #wolfcatcubs  (1980 for Australia )I had left with mrs wolfcat at home. Amazing tech and science right there before I had even left the house. Now sure IVF had been around prior to the launch of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) in 1991, but it has taken leaps and bounds since then.

So I listened to my 80’s mixed CD in the car. Sure, CD’s were around before 1991, but the recordable CD had only been around since 1990. As for the fact I was listening to a collection of MP3 format songs, well they didn’t come out until around 1993. At least all my music was pre UARS launch.

Waiting for #uarsI get to my location which is my fav place to shoot from at the end of North Road, and grab my camera gear out of the car.  A Nikon D7000 ( Sept 2010), a 16.3mega-pixel DSLR (with full HD video), drop on my 150-500mm OS Sigma lens (2008) and turn on my Solemta Geotagger Pro GPS (2009) for my camera. So in under a minute I have turned on and got ready a swag of technology, most of which people in 1991 wouldn’t have even dreamed off.

I have two GPS devices on me at this point, one for the camera the other built into my phone, HTC Incredible S (2011). Note that GPS didn’t become fully operational until 1994 and it wasn’t until 2000 that GPS ‘Selective Availability’ was removed.  That is the little thing that saw GPS move from 50 meters of accuracy down to a few meters for you and me.

Being at a location where I am “the mayor” I of course used my 3g phone  (2003 in Australia) to check in on Foursquare ( 2009 ) to my location.  Then I fired up Twitter (2006) to follow in near real time the @UARS_Reentry account to get the info I need. Info I was able to get in near real time with no wires as it were.  But then I did check on the WWW (1990) on my home computer using ADSL 1 (8mbits) (2006) to get the info I needed before I left.

I fired up Google Skymap (2009) on my phone to check compass headings and location on the interactive realtime star map just to make sure I was looking at the right bit of sky and waited. I also checked real time weather satellites to check that the cloud cover would remain clear in my location for the time frame I was after.

Of course like all long odds, I didn’t succeed.  But I knew where to look when UARS had passed overhead and that it was time to go home.

Stop and think about just how much cool tech you have you right now…

I am still waiting for NASA to work out where it crashed of course, but it wasn’t over me, but I was thanks to the tech in my pocket prepared for it.

 

Latrobe Valley Drive Video

So I didn’t get to do a big road trip this Xmas… so to get the cobwebs out the the car and my brain, I did I quick one day 500km round trip to get some photos I had always wanted.

This video is the Moe and surrounds part of the trip. The to and from Moe was just freeway driving, so here is the more interesting 220km (roughly) of the trip. Video was recorded on a Microsoft HD Lifecam at 720p at 7.5fps, then compressed down to a single 5min movie.
Enjoy.

(Choose full screen to watch in HD, or watch on youtube for lower res version )

The Approx Route of the video ( this doesn’t include a couple of dirt tracks that I drove up, like the road to Mt Erica Car Park )

View Larger Map

And what I was after were shots like this of the Power Stations in the Latrobe Valley.

Keep your Cool ( B&W Version )

And the trip was timed for sunset… ( which luckily for me had some nice golden colours )
Across the Ponds

( These Shots are also on Redbubble as well )

Missing from the Exif: Sometimes the light is perfect

Magic hour, the hour around sunrise and sunset is called that for a reason.  The best light can be found when you have  a touch of luck and a lot of patience.  This shot was taken from what was a fairly average sunset.  But instead of putting the camera away and heading home, I stayed out for another 30 minutes, to grab the last touch of light.

In taking this shot, I wanted the whole sky, even with my 11-16mm Tokina, I still didn’t feel I had the whole sky.  Thus I went for the panorama.  When lining up the shot, the one thing I did notice, standing on the foreshore was the small waves lapping on the shore.  When trying to line up a panorama, waves are just a path to heart ache.  So I walked out till I was thigh deep in the water, passed the lapping waves.

This is a handheld panorama of about 10 shots, with a lot of overlap.  When shooting panorama’s always shoot in manual mode.  That way, when the shots merge, you will have consistent levels across each shot. Checking one shot that balances the light and dark will mean that your levels will be averaged out. The final image is 6335 x 4133 ( compared to 4288×2848 from the D90 )

Also this was one of my first sunset walks with the new GPS, but for some reason, my GPS decided I was 10 meters above sea level.

Camera Nikon D90
Exposure 0.004 sec (1/250)
Aperture f/6.3
Focal Length 16 mm
ISO Speed 250
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash No Flash
Date and Time (Modified) 2010:12:04 21:56:54
Exposure Program Manual
Date and Time (Original) 2010:12:04 20:44:05.00+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:12:04 20:44:05
Max Aperture Value 2.8
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Manual
White Balance Auto
Focal Length In35mm Format 24 mm
Image Number 87921
Lens 11.0-16.0 mm f/2.8
GPS Version ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 54′ 57.54″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 8.35″ E
GPS Altitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPS Altitude 10 m
GPS Date Time 2010:12:04 09:44:02Z
GPS Satellites 10
GPS Img Direction Ref Magnetic North
GPS Img Direction 8.3

( Linked image is to lightboxed version as well, which looks much nicer )

Sometimes the light is perfect

And you can buy this as a print from RedBubble as well

First Impresssions… Solmeta Geotagger Pro on a Nikon D90

Solmeta GPS Pro Mounted on a Nikon D90I finally got a GPS for my D90, so I thought I would write down a few first impressions, before I do a big review later once I am more settled into using the device.

I have been wanting a GPS for my Nikon D90 since the day I got my camera.  Why, I liked to geotag things.  My work flow has been go out take photos, remember to turn on GPS software on phone, make a track file on phone, remember to turn track file off, hope track file isn’t corrupted, export GPX file, open GeoSetter, plug phone into compimport GPX File, save files……. all rather tedious. Also with a number of fail points built in.

Now, work flow is, turn on camera, turn on my Solmeta Geotagger Pro, take photos, done.  Yes, it worked.  I do like when first impressions are, good.  No manual reading was required ( good for me, being male and all ), and away I went. A couple of quick tests for accuracy seem to be close, altitude seems to wander a bit up and down by a few meters, and took a while to get the first fix in Australia. Also the digital compass seems to wander a few degrees when taking shots.

As for the GPS itself. Wow, is it fast.  Almost aGPS fast actually. First time I fired it up, the display showed the lat and long for China, where the GPS was tested, less than a minute later after putting it on the window ledge at work, it had a fix for the new location.

I am glad I went to the extra expense and brought the Pro version as well, the display and extra functions are really coming in handy.

I love the extended GPS info I now get in my metadata as well.  The number of Satellites is great for giving a level of accuracy to the GPS data as well. And the compass headings, whilst take me a while to get used to working in digital format, will give me directions.

GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 55′ 33.87″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 8.77″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 17 m
GPSDate Time 2010:12:01 08:46:36Z
GPSSatellites 06
GPSImg Direction Ref Magnetic North
GPSImg Direction 85.5

So far so good…

I was considering buying the N2 version, but am after less than a day, glad I went with the Pro version. The LCD, whilst small is still good enough to read, and I know I will use the data logging feature.  That way I still have a backup track as well.

Geotagger Pro Geotagger N2
GPS information

acquired

lat/long, alt, and UTC time lat/long, alt, and UTC time
Orientation Yes. (3 axis electronic

compass, output heading)

Yes. (2 axis electronic

compass, output heading)

Battery Yes. 20-Hours. Yes. 20-Hours.
LCD display Yes No
Gradienter Yes No
Speed Yes No
Internal memory Yes(8M) No
Record GPS position

as tracking walk.

( Data logger)

Yes No
Working indoors Yes Yes
Compatible

models

Nikon D3x, D3, D700,D300S,

D300D2XS,D2X,D2HS&D200,

D90,D5000,Fujifilm S5 Pro

Nikon D3x, D3, D700,D300S,

D300,D2XS,D2X,D2HS&D200,

D90,D5000,Fujifilm S5 Pro

Dimensions

(L X W X H )

62X42X23mm 54X35X20mm
Weight 50g 35g

So for first impressions, I am very happy, and already am using a feature set that goes way beyond what the Nikon GP1 model could ever do, and unlike the GP1 model, this thing works as well.  Still lots more testing to do, so that will be my excuse for heading to the beach to get some photos at least for while…

Late Change ( showing new GPS Exif data )

Nokia N8 – Sunset Camera Showdown

So you are out for an evening walk, watching the sunset and you think, wow that is pretty, I’ll get a photo.

This is the Nokia N8 camera shoot out for that situation. ( Please note, it wasn’t a spectacular sunset the evening I got the shots… )

First is shooting directly into the sun. This is one of those men from the boys tests.

Shooting into the Sun – Nokia N95-8gb Shooting into the Sun - Nokia N8 Comparison - Nokia N95-8gb Version

Camera Nokia N95 8GB
Exposure 0.003 sec (1/333)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 5.6 mm
ISO Speed 100
Flash Auto, Did not fire
Orientation Horizontal (normal)
X-Resolution 300 dpi
Y-Resolution 300 dpi
YCbCr Positioning Centered
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:25:34
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:25:34
Light Source Unknown
Color Space sRGB
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control None
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Shooting into the Sun – Nikon D90Shooting into the Sun - Nokia N8 Comparison - Nikon D90 Version

Camera Nikon D90
Exposure 0.001 sec (1/800)
Aperture f/16.0
Focal Length 18 mm
ISO Speed 200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Auto, Did not fire
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Modified) 2010:10:24 21:24:20
Exposure Program Auto: No Flash
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:24:02.00+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:24:02
Max Aperture Value 3.5
Subject Distance 6.31 m
Metering Mode Multi-segment
Light Source Unknown
Sub Sec Time Original 00
Sub Sec Time Digitized 00
Sensing Method One-chip color area
CFAPattern [Green,Blue][Red,Green]
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Focal Length In35mm Format 27 mm
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control None
Contrast Normal
Saturation Normal
Sharpness Normal
Subject Distance Range Unknown
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type D50
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Lens 18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-6.3
Lens ID 38
Image Number 85557
Color Transform YCbCr
Flash Return No return detection
Flash Mode Auto

Shooting into the Sun – JVC GC-FM1Shooting into the Sun - Nokia N8 Comparison - JVC GC-FM1 Version

Camera JVC GC-FM1
Exposure 1/4029 sec
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 3.9 mm
ISO Speed 100
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash No flash function
Orientation Horizontal (normal)
X-Resolution 72 dpi
Y-Resolution 72 dpi
Date and Time (Modified) 2010:10:24 19:22:55
YCbCr Positioning Co-sited
Exposure Program Program AE
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:22:55
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:22:55
Max Aperture Value 2.8
Metering Mode Center-weighted average
Light Source Unknown
Color Space sRGB
Custom Rendered Normal
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Shooting into the Sun – HTC Desire Shooting into the Sun - Nokia N8 Comparison - HTC Desire Version

Camera HTC Desire
ISO Speed 100
X-Resolution 72 dpi
Y-Resolution 72 dpi
YCbCr Positioning Centered
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:22:31
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:22:31
Color Space sRGB
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 51.27″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 8.24″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 12 m
GPSTime Stamp 19:22:31
GPSMap Datum WGS-84
GPSProcessing Method HYBRID-FIX
GPSDate Stamp 2010:10:24
Compression JPEG (old-style)

Shooting into the Sun – Nokia X6 Shooting into the Sun - Nokia N8 Comparison - Nokia X6 Version

Camera Nokia X6-00
Exposure 1/1000000 sec
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 5.2 mm
ISO Speed 123
Flash Auto, Did not fire
Orientation Horizontal (normal)
X-Resolution 300 dpi
Y-Resolution 300 dpi
YCbCr Positioning Centered
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:21:27
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:21:27
Light Source Unknown
Color Space sRGB
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control Low gain up
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 51.58″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 7.84″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Below Sea Level
GPSAltitude 1.5 m
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Shooting into the Sun – Nokia N8 Shooting into the Sun - Nokia N8 Comparison - Nokia N8 Version

Camera Nokia N8-00
Exposure 0.001 sec (1/1400)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 5.9 mm
ISO Speed 100
Flash Auto, Did not fire
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Modified) 2010:10:24 21:11:30
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:21:18.153+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:21:18
Light Source Unknown
Sub Sec Time Original 153
Sub Sec Time Digitized 153
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 0
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control None
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 5 m
GPSMeasure Mode 3-Dimensional Measurement
GPSDOP 0.9
GPSMap Datum WGS-84
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type D50
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Color Transform YCbCr
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 51.34″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 7.91″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 5 m
GPSMeasure Mode 3-Dimensional
GPSDOP 0.9
GPSMap Datum WGS-84

Looking towards Melbourne CBD from Brighton.

Skyline – Nokia95-8gbSkyline Comparison Series  - Nokia95-8gb - 5mp Camera

Camera Nokia N95 8GB
Exposure 0.009 sec (1/110)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 5.6 mm
ISO Speed 160
Flash Auto, Did not fire
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:27:26+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:27:26
Light Source Unknown
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control Low gain up
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type D50
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Color Transform YCbCr
Flash Return No return detection
Flash Mode Auto
Flash Function False
Flash Red Eye Mode False
Skyline – Nikon D90 Skyline Comparison Series - Nikon D90 - 12mp Camera

Camera Nikon D90
Exposure 0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture f/7.1
Focal Length 18 mm
ISO Speed 200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Auto, Did not fire
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Software Ver.1.00
Exposure Program Auto: No Flash
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:26:33.00+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:26:33
Max Aperture Value 3.5
Subject Distance 21.1 m
Metering Mode Multi-segment
Light Source Unknown
Sub Sec Time Original 00
Sub Sec Time Digitized 00
Sensing Method One-chip color area
CFAPattern [Green,Blue][Red,Green]
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Focal Length In35mm Format 27 mm
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control None
Contrast Normal
Saturation Normal
Sharpness Normal
Subject Distance Range Unknown
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type D50
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Lens 18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-6.3
Lens ID 38
Image Number 85559
Color Transform YCbCr

Skyline – JVC GC-FM1Skyline Comparison Series  - JVC GC-FM1 - 8mp Camera

Camera JVC GC-FM1
Exposure 0.003 sec (1/340)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 3.9 mm
ISO Speed 100
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash No flash function
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Modified) 2010:10:24 21:15:02
Exposure Program Program AE
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:26:52+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:26:52
Max Aperture Value 2.8
Metering Mode Center-weighted average
Light Source Unknown
Custom Rendered Normal
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Color Transform YCbCr
Flash Return No return detection
Flash Mode Unknown
Flash Function True
Flash Red Eye Mode False
Skyline – HTC Desire Skyline Comparison Series - HTC Desire - 5mp Camera

Camera HTC Desire
ISO Speed 100
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:25:39+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:25:39
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 9 m
GPSTime Stamp 19:25:39
GPSMap Datum WGS-84
GPSProcessing Method HYBRID-FIX
GPSDate Stamp 2010:10:24
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Color Transform YCbCr
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 51.37″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 8.08″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 9 m
GPSDate Time 2010:10:24 19:25:39Z
GPSMap Datum WGS-84
GPSProcessing Method HYBRID-FIX

Skyline – Nokia X6Skyline Comparison Series - Nokia X6 - 5mp Camera

Camera Nokia X6-00
Exposure 0.002 sec (1/500)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 5.2 mm
ISO Speed 100
Flash Auto, Did not fire
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:24:11+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:24:11
Light Source Unknown
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control None
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPSAltitude Ref Below Sea Level
GPSAltitude 7 m
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Color Transform YCbCr
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 51.83″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 7.72″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Below Sea Level
GPSAltitude 7 m
Flash Return No return detection
Flash Mode Auto
Flash Function False
Flash Red Eye Mode False
Skyline – Nokia N8Skyline Comparison Series - Nokia N8

Camera Nokia N8-00
Exposure 0.003 sec (1/310)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 5.9 mm
ISO Speed 103
Flash Auto, Did not fire
X-Resolution 240 dpi
Y-Resolution 240 dpi
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:24 19:24:21.534+11:00
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:24 19:24:21
Light Source Unknown
Sub Sec Time Original 534
Sub Sec Time Digitized 534
Custom Rendered Normal
Exposure Mode Auto
White Balance Auto
Digital Zoom Ratio 1
Scene Capture Type Standard
Gain Control Low gain up
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 19.5 m
GPSMeasure Mode 3-Dimensional Measurement
GPSDOP 1.1
GPSMap Datum WGS-84
Compression JPEG (old-style)
Viewing Conditions Illuminant Type D50
Measurement Observer CIE 1931
Measurement Flare 0.999%
Measurement Illuminant D65
Color Transform YCbCr
GPSVersion ID 2.2.0.0
GPS Latitude 37 deg 53′ 51.03″ S
GPS Longitude 144 deg 59′ 7.94″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 19.5 m
GPSMeasure Mode 3-Dimensional
GPSDOP 1.1
GPSMap Datum WGS-84
Flash Return No return detection
Flash Mode Auto
Flash Function False
Flash Red Eye Mode False

Headline numbers on the Cameras are.

Nokia X6- 5megapixel
Nokia N95-8gb- 5megapixel
HTC Desire – 5megapixel
JVC FM1 – 8megapixel
Nikon D90 – 12megapixel
Nokia N8 – 12megapixel

Whilst I know that sensor size, aperture, glass etc are what makes a great camera, megapixels is what Joe Public know when they are after a camera.

One of the more interesting things that came out of the second test, was that 3 of the cameras that had GPS built into them had time to get a GPS fix. Compare the locations.

Camera Nokia X6-00 Nokia N8-00 HTC Desire
GPS Latitude 37° 53′ 51.83″ S 37° 53′ 51.03″ S 37° 53′ 51.37″ S
GPS Longitude 144° 59′ 7.72″ E 144° 59′ 7.94″ E 144° 59′ 8.08″ E
GPSAltitude Ref Below Sea Level Above Sea Level Above Sea Level
GPSAltitude 7 m 19.5 m 9 m
GPSDate Time 2010:10:24 19:25:39Z
GPSMap Datum WGS-84 WGS-84
GPSProcessing Method HYBRID-FIX

KML Google Map Showing, location of the Above Cameras. The HTC was the closest.

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All the EXIF data, is pulled from Flickr’s view EXIF info mode, more data would be available through other tools.

Once again, the Nokia N8 wins in the above tests. ( Well apart from the D90 ). I kept the D90 in the tests for showing what a DSLR can shoot compared to a mobile phone when on auto mode.

I can not believe just how bad the camera on the HTC Desire is, it fails on every comparison test I do. And fails by a long way.

To be fair to my Nikon D90…. this is what you can get, with a DSLR, Manual Mode and a 70-300mm Lens. This is the cheap old 70-300mm lens which costs less cost less than $200AUD.

The end of 10

( This shot is also available for purchase on Redbubble )

#wtrip10 – Stalking me via Enroute

This is more of a test than anything.  Using EnRoute for the Location Sharing on my 3 day drive to Adelaide following the coast.

As I am on Vodafone sim on my HTC-Desire (more outback trips I use a Telstra Sim), there are a few black spots along the coast I will be dropping back to Edge network as well… so I have no idea how well it work.

(p.s sorry about the frame as well, but all going well this should work)

(p.p.s sorry in advance for the fact that I will forget to turn on the software at some point in time :-))

Also you can stalk me in the usual ways via Twitter or Foursquare as well.

A suprise near conclusion for the #telstradesire

When I started this, I was thinking would I use this phone to replace my Nokia n95-8gb and whilst the answer is a qualified yes… there is a different item it may well end up replacing.

The Car Computer for the Road Trip My UMPC, the Asus R2H which I use primarily as my car computer these days (yes I am that sad I have a car computer).  I’ll need to trick it up a bit.. like with a bigger SD card or two but it could be possible.  The main things I do with the R2H are make time-lapse driving videos (eg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwjbluNF3So)  and run OziExplorer for offline detailed topomaps to see where I am and where I want to go.  Google maps just doesn’t cut it when you get off the beaten path. And have some music to sing along badly to.

With a few well choosen Apps I could do this.  It is going to take sometime to work it all out, but I really think that this is possible.

There are a few things that the R2H can do that the Desire can not.. storage and downloading photos from my D90, but I can still take the computer for longer trips, just not mount it on the windscreen.  One of these weekends I’ll get a decent screen mount, and I already have a lighter to USB power supply, plug in my FM transmitter to the headphone jack and I think it can be done.

I really wish that I could get offline navigation for free like I can on my Nokia with Ovi Maps (well not free $10 because I have an old phone) but still… the fact I am even considering this I think is noteworthy about the device.

http://www.wolfcat.com.au/randomrants/tag/r2h

another GPS trace from the #telstradesire

This time I took the bus and train to work. Electric Trains are notorious for getting a GPS signal even with a window seat it can be tricky to get a solid lock. I was very pleased with the strength of the signal and the trace. Once again I just used the GPS and not the WIFI positioning. There are a few drop outs in the signal when the train passed through some cut outs and some big road bridges. However the trace is still good enough to see where I went. Another advantage is that the trace actually has the broken lines. The traces via Sports Tracker fill in the blanks. Having the Gaps lets me see where the signal did drop out and most software for geotagging photos will let you infer location from gaps in the traces so this is not a major problem.

So here is the trace.


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