Wrong camera, wrong lens

[penolta]

Late in a previous thread there was a discussion of whether or not a folding LCD should be available on one or more Pentax models and I said I would post some otherwise good pictures that would have benefitted by a lower angle that would have been enabled by such a feature in a fast moving situation. The wrong lens was not wrong for quality, but focal length as I was setting up with the K5 and Sigma 70-300 APO for feeder shots for the Meal Time challenge when Della treed the squirrel, so I made do with what was at hand. In the two shots where she is standing on her hind legs (which you can't see) I couldn't react fast enough to either get back far enough of zoom back to 70mm which would still have been too narrow- she was moving too fast and I had missed too many other shots trying to frame precisely - a shorter zoom range would have been easier to handle - the lens was OK for the other shots, but following and framing a dog running so close was impossible at those longer narrow angle focal lengths (too much vegetation intervening to have gotten far enough back) so these are all "short poses" where she stopped momentarily.

These are the best of the bunch - some posted earlier in one challenge or another but cropped a bit more to eliminate extraneous background and tighten the framing; minor sharpening and otherwise unmodified. I am pleased with the way they came out, but they would have been better from a lower angle - not looking down at a dog looking up.

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[penolta]

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8 And a cropped portrait from a different shot:

[NMRecording]

Did well with what you had. I feel your pain when im in the backyard birding. My tripod has a top extension rod along with the normal double set of leg extensions but you have to hand crank it to lower/raise. Theres a lot of times where the lens is where it needs to be elevation wise but I just cant turn my neck/head that way to be able to see the VF properly to focus. When you're dealin with 3-600mm theres such a small window for viewpoint. I've contemplated an "L" shaped view finder eye piece but that doesn't work well in all situations either.

[mole]

These came out great, despite all the difficulties and the "gymnastics" required to accomplish them.

Before I got my first Pentax, I had an old Canon "superzoom" with an articulating screen, but rarely used it. Much preferred using the viewfinder...

[penolta]

Thanks NMR and Mole.

Originally Posted by mole

Before I got my first Pentax, I had an old Canon "superzoom" with an articulating screen, but rarely used it. Much preferred using the viewfinder...

Well, you were and are in great shape from all your hiking up and down hills - just wait till you are 77 years old with a bad back and try getting up and down repeatedly to get those low angles . . . . I prefer the EVF too, but a WLVF makes things a lot easier.

[tsquare]

Della is a fine looking dog, and I love that color (brindle?)! She looks like an Akita, but not a full size one. Sheba Enu (sp?) by any chance. My sons both have an Akita. One is larger than the other by a fair amount -- think one is a Japanese breed and the other is American breed. Make sense? Anyway, she is good looking.

[penolta]

Originally Posted by tsquare

Della is a fine looking dog, and I love that color (brindle?)! She looks like an Akita, but not a full size one. Sheba Enu (sp?) by any chance. My sons both have an Akita. One is larger than the other by a fair amount -- think one is a Japanese breed and the other is American breed. Make sense? Anyway, she is good looking.

Thanks, tsquare.

Della is a Norwegian Elkhound, one of the oldest Northern breeds, used for hunting Moose (=Elk in Europe). They are not as large as Akitas - males are about 18 inches at the shoulder, females less, and up to about 40 pounds. She is a retired show champion. The hairs are agouti colored (banded black and silver gray, not brindle) in a basic wolf color pattern, typical of many Northern breeds.

[mtnman]

You did a superb job Penolta, with the wrong camera and wrong lens. These photos really express her energy and enthusiasm for catching that squirrel.

[penolta]

Thanks mtnman.

Originally Posted by mtnman

These photos really express her energy and enthusiasm for catching that squirrel.

As her voice rises, enthusiasm becomes more like frustration, as her nemesis is always out of reach, teasing her!

[Keltech]

What a handsome dog. The pictures are great showing the excitement of the dog chasing the squirrel up the tree. Wrong lens or not you did a fine job.

I agree with you and think an articulated screen should be standard equipment on a pricey DSLR. I shoot once a week with a Chinese friend who can squat down low to the ground and I see so often the nice perspective he gets in his pictures that I miss because at my age I can no longer get down low to take a shot. Having an articulated screen would be a great aide for me to take low angle shots while only bending at the waist.

As for having the wrong lens on the camera when something exciting happens and you want to catch it, I think happens to all of us at one time or another. But toughing through it with what you have at hand separates the picture taker from the photographer.

Nice work and lovely dog.

Lou