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That is an amazing looking "gumnut" It looks as though it's made of metal that is still hot from being forged - is this really from a tree, Peter? Beautiful wild colors and fantastic detail!

Originally Posted by BBW

That is an amazing looking "gumnut" It looks as though it's made of metal that is still hot from being forged - is this really from a tree, Peter? Beautiful wild colors and fantastic detail!

Thanks BB, yes, it from a tree. In this case one about 70 feet high in my backyard. The gumnut is about less than 1/2 inch in size. The colours have been ehnanced slightly as it was a dull day so a little HDR magic was used to bring out the detail.

Feedback from various sources has been very good on this photo. I am rather surprised as it is such a simple shot but seems to go down quite favourably.

Originally Posted by PeterB666

How are you finding the D5100. It seems like a ripper of a camera and the LCD would be great for macros.

I don't own this camera anymore, because the lenses (at least the 35mm) had some quality issues. But the files this sensor produces are the best I have ever seen from any camera I own or have owned. At base ISO the files are cleaner than the files of the D90. I have to be careful not to speculate too much, because I had this camera only for such a short time, but my impression is, that at higher ISO the D5100 is about one stop better than the D90. The handling is very good and I loved the screen for macro.

I would agree with your assessment of the D5100 compared to what I know of the D7000. A number of my friends have the D7000 and that is how I wound up with my D90 (I bought my D90 from someone who upgraded to the D7000). Of course the D5100 uses the same sensor as the D7000 and it is very good although with very long exposures, does need to have dark-frame noise removal while the D90 does not (at least up to the 5 minutes I have done). Long exposure noise (or the lack of it) is the reason I got the D90. It wasn't a good deal in the Olympus E-P1.

Trying to get back onto topic, I find the use of macro lenses on the Nikon much better than the Olympus. Maybe it is that I only have an old Olympus 50mm f/3.5 macro and 1:1 tube but for ease of use and image quality, the Nikon wins with macro.

Olympus E-PL1, 120mm @ f/8, 1/350, ISO 100

Chinese Peony


Olympus E-PL1, 90mm @ f/5.6, 1/90, ISO 100

Olympus E-PL1, 150mm @ f/8, 1/350, ISO 100

Absolutely lovely, Christian. I'm noticing your E-PL1 a lot lately. That dark background is perfect with these sunlit beauties.

I'd missed that peony - how elegant the Chinese version is!

Many thanks, BB!

Originally Posted by BBW

I'm noticing your E-PL1 a lot lately.

I want to use what I already have for a while instead of buying new but flawed gear. This and the E-P1 are the best digital cameras I have, because it's the only digital camera I have which allows me to use interchangeable lenses. Unfortunately the noise of the E-PL1 at ISO 200 is about the same as the noise of the Nikon at ISO 800, which kills many details. There are more problems (dynamic range) and it is far from a perfect camera, but it is light, versatile and it works fairly well.

Olympus E-PL1, 150mm @ f/11, 1/30, ISO 200