[Abeer]

I have lost/misplaced the Lens Hood and Hood Adapter of my FZ18. I checked on the internet but was not able to locate anbody selling these items in India.
Can anybody let me know from where can I buy these?

[typeOnegative]

Originally Posted by Zenster

Can one of the experts please help us understand why his pic sooooo detailed compared to mine with the same camera and similar settings? Is it the teleconverter that is playing a big role here?

I am not an expert, but I can hazard an explanation:

1. A Teleconverter does result in a drop in clarity. This is because you are adding more glass in front of the existing lens. Which is why a Prime lens gives much better performance than the standard zoom lenses on a DSLR.
2. There are other factors that affect picture quality - ambient light, camera shake, haze dust, pollution etc.

Where did you get this shot from?

P.S. I think you bought a TC at last. Which one?

[Zenster]

Originally Posted by typeOnegative

I am not an expert, but I can hazard an explanation:

1. A Teleconverter does result in a drop in clarity. This is because you are adding more glass in front of the existing lens. Which is why a Prime lens gives much better performance than the standard zoom lenses on a DSLR.
2. There are other factors that affect picture quality - ambient light, camera shake, haze dust, pollution etc.

Where did you get this shot from?

P.S. I think you bought a TC at last. Which one?

Not yet bro, not yet!! Still evaluating my options and the performance of the FZ100 before buying a telecon for it.

I have taken this pic with the FZ100 with no lens/filters and handheld.

My doubt is that the picture taken from the forum link, was taken by the fz100 and a teleconveter and mine was taken only from the FZ100 with nothing. Hence i was wondering if the teleconverter has enhanced the amount of detail captured in the picture.

I think your second point may be valid in my case because the sky was quite cloudy and I had to wait to get a clear shot.

The thing is that I am happy with zoom power and clarity of my cam but you know us BHPians, we love squeezing that lil bit extra from our Possessions be it cars or cams :P

However, my questions stands. How is his snap better than mine with similar settings. I accept the argument of Handheld vs Tripod and Clear vs Hazy conditions. But I'd still like to see if any of other gurus can throw some more light on this

[typeOnegative]

@Zenster:

My advice would be not to go for a Teleconverter; at least now. Mine does give me reach but at a frightening drop in clarity; unless of course the conditions are ideal.

Now to the picture comparison:
1. We have understood that the day (or night in this case ) was cloudy.
2. Had you used a stand?
3. Silent Engine's photograph seems grainier than yours; though his EXIF shows that ISO 80 was used.
4. Exposure for Silent Engine's photograph is 1/200s. What is yours? Remember longer exposure timings can increase the amount of illumination and this can result in loss of detail.
5. If you have shot this picture in RAW format, you can try playing around with EV compensation and see if the clarity increases. Alternatively try playing around with the brightness and contrast settings. Even if you have taken a JPEG picture, you can attempt the same in Picasa.

P.S. I do not think that your photograph is less detailed. Take a closer look. Both are brilliant shots - one seems a bit darker, yours a bit brighter.

[tsk1979]

All TCs are not the same.
Olympus TC is actually quite good, and a favorite among FZ35 shooters
Here is a nice link for those who want information on TCs
Some High Quality Telephoto Converter Lenses

[ExtremeTorque]

Originally Posted by SilentEngine

Here's my attempt at taking a moon shot.

Originally Posted by Zenster

Here a pic is took from my FZ100 on the 23rd Oct (Saturday).

Here is mine, shot (SX20IS) yesterday night. Exif: F5.7, Exp Time - 1/125, Zoom - Max 80x (20x Optical + Digital)

I feel both your panasonics gave much better pics than mine.

[typeOnegative]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

All TCs are not the same.
Olympus TC is actually quite good, and a favorite among FZ35 shooters
Here is a nice link for those who want information on TCs
Some High Quality Telephoto Converter Lenses

No. Not all TCs are the same. However a TC does result in a drop in quality. The better the TC, the lower the drop.

[typeOnegative]

Originally Posted by ExtremeTorque

Here is mine, shot (SX20IS) yesterday night. Exif: F5.7, Exp Time - 1/125, Zoom - Max 80x (20x Optical + Digital)

I feel both your panasonics gave much better pics than mine.

Try not to use Digital zoom. There seems to be some amount of shake as well.

[hiren.mistry]

Is the Panasonic FZ100 available in India? What could be its approximate cost?

Thanks

[Abeer]

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Is the Panasonic FZ100 available in India? What could be its approximate cost?

Thanks

It is available on ebay.in for around 30K

[ExtremeTorque]

Originally Posted by typeOnegative

Try not to use Digital zoom. There seems to be some amount of shake as well.

When i zoom to 20x, i dont cant spot the craters all i see is a white blob. Am i doing something wrong? I need to use atleast a little part of the digital zoom (39x) to catch the details of the moon. Yes, there is a little bit of shake as i didnt use a tripod.

[tsk1979]

Do not worry about the blob thingy. set camera to M(Manual)
Just do this
1. Set ISO to 100
2. Set aperture to F5.0
3. Set shutter speed to 1/200(Experiment with 1/400, 1/200, 1/100 etc.,)
4. Turn on IS and keep your hand real real steady

Shoot.
And then crop the image before posting here.
Simple!

[ExtremeTorque]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Do not worry about the blob thingy. set camera to M(Manual)
Just do this
1. Set ISO to 100
2. Set aperture to F5.0
3. Set shutter speed to 1/200(Experiment with 1/400, 1/200, 1/100 etc.,)
4. Turn on IS and keep your hand real real steady

Shoot.
And then crop the image before posting here.
Simple!

Tanveer, thanks a ton! Will try with the 'karvachauth' moon today and post it here. For point 4. i plan to use my tripod.

[mail4ajo]

SX30IS price update:

Lowest price quote in Chennai is 25.7K for cash and 26.2K for credit card payments. Most BLR dealers are quoting 26.9K. MRP is 28.9K

[condor]

Guys, I urgently need the USB cable for a Casio Exilim EX-Z1080 P&S camera. I have checked some of the retailers & electronics stores, and in SP road - but no success.

One other source in National market - but if anybody has purchased such a cable before, pls share the source.

Camera side interface looks like this :



I also urgently need to download some pics. If anyone has this cable, I would like to come over & use your cable .. Pls let me know.