Does digital count ?

Thanks Pix,

I managed to find the instructions for the camera which, strangely enough, were included on the cd that my wife never told me about (she's not a tech geek like myself, so she tends to overlook these important tidbits). I have now figured out what all the functions are which is a definite boon. Be uploading better ones soon...I hope

Allright Wolfp ! Ben Stein in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off !" Great movie (I love the scene w/the principal & the dog !) One of the great advantages of digital is that you don't waste anything. Try this: light your model and "shoot away," using different settings (exposure, f-stop, focus, etc.) till your card is full, taking note of what changes you are making. Then download them into the computer. Knowing the names of the functions is only necessary when communicating with another photographer. What matters most is what works best for you. You don't waste film, you only gain experience this way. Erase the card & shoot away again ! I have also thought of sharing my photography experience ( I am a media arts major with 3 semesters of photo-b&w, developing, printing-agreat way of learning the behaviors of light & shadow ), but these post and response boxes are small, and photography knowledge can be of use to modelers of all subjects. Next post I'll do a new topic and show the raw images that I used for the 2nd shot I posted here. Thanks for the compliments ! Your friend, Pix.

Great pics, Pix. I wish I could do that with my dig camera, but alas I am still fat fingering the buttons trying to figure out what I am doing. Usually ends up out of focus, blurred, or just plain bad. Suppose I will just have to screw with it until I get it right. Maybe the net guru's would like to add yet another sub forum for photography techniques...anyone, anyone, Bueller?

Hello, DEAKON, and thanks for the compliment. An important thing to know about digital cameras is the zoom feature. The optical zoom is fine, but using the digital zoom is like cropping the image and enlarging it to the original dimensions. This creates pixellation of the image. When using the optical zoom, the wide angle can sometimes "bend" the edges of the frame. To find out if your camera does this, fill the frame with a rectangular object (best aspect ratio is 4:3) and shoot. Look closely at the edges on your computer monitor. If you get "bending," simply zoom a little closer and move back from the subject. Hope this can be of help. I don't think any modeller would want an innacurate picture of something that they worked hard to make accurate. Thanks again, Pix.

hey pix another great action shot m8...i dont actually own photoshop...i am at the moment evaluating some trial photo software..i only just recently bought a digital camera ..2.5 megapixels..3x zoom..£80:00.. it's more than adequate for my needs.
i just wish i had the time to play around with them..but alas i'm too busy to delve into the intricacies of digital photography and image manipulation...so it's just basics at the moment..kepp the pics comming m8 great stuff....

Hello, maddafinga. I posted this image prior to the one I posted here. I had included some of the elements of which you spoke. I find this one more interesting, visually, and I was tryimg not to repeat myself. I also try to have strong diagonal lines when I want to show conflict. The camera that I use is a Canon Power Shot G2, with 4 megapixel resolution. It comes with Adobe Photoshop 5.0, which has all of the same elements that I used here. I got this camera from Abe's of Maine (located in NYC !), refurbrished, and w/o CF memory card, for $400 ! (retail=$900) Check them out, if you are interested. Many of the "prosumer" cameras come with Photoshop. Even if you dont copy & paste collages, you can color-correct, resize, add text, change a document's resolution, etc. I absolutely love it. I have had Photoshop for about 1 1/2 years, and I use it 4-6 hours a day. The image of the P40 & oscar was about 12 hrs. straight, though. I have more pics on the rongeorge gallery, aircraft, page 3. Thanks for your suggestions, Pix

As for a way to improve, try looking for reference vids that show actual gun camera footage, that will give you an idea or two about attack and defence positions. I love discovery wings channel, and the history channel and even tlc for this, you can find all kinds of footage if you look for it. Being an artist, I understand composition pretty well actually, being an artist myself, but even within that framework there are things you could do to tweak on it. Take a good image like you have there and maybe greyscale it, and perhaps make the farthest away plane a bit out of focus, but not much, you'd have something that could have been taken from someones gun camera. Just for a bit more interest, since they are planes and not confined to the same up-down relationship that cars are, try having one of them rolled on it's axis to be more off wing plane maybe, that way you could have the same relationship of the two planes, and they'd be basically in the same position relative to each other, but they'd be a bit more independant of each other. Just an idea. What kind of camera do you use? I'd like to get a digital camera, but have no idea what to look for in one.
Sorry if I come off as an ****** here, I'm not really, I'm just trying to toss out a few ideas here, some may be good, some not. I can see how digital manipulation could be a really really neat thing. I should get photoshop one of these days, I should probably get a camera first.

madda

So sorry for assuming my defensive posture. I guess that I was just looking for ways that I may improve, not just what was wrong with it. The process is quite a lengthy one to describe. I'll have to write it out on paper first, rather than trying to "wing" it online. I would like to enclose the source pictures as well, but I am confounded by the way that a "nested album" is created on the rongeorge page. Can anyone help with this ? I use Photoshop 6.0, and I also have 5.0. They both have the same commands and functions, but they are located in different places. Let me know, DEAKON, which version you use. I don't have 7.0, and that has probably been replaced by a newer one ( a new one every year, just like the cars of the 50s & 60s ! - gotta love those marketers ! )

great composition...fantastic models...like a 2D diorama...i wish i was as adept as you with my digicam and photoshop. shots like that would do wonders for my portfolio......i'm still trying to get my models and dioramas in focus.........

Just for the record, I do really enjoy yer pics, er........ Pix. I did mention that I didn't wanna be too nitpicky, that was just what jumped out at me immediately. I like the blurred props too. I wasn't trying to break you down or anything, just providing an observation for future reference maybe.

madda

Love it!

I print pics and make dioramas and scenes for my stuff.
If you are going to post here you will have to share your secrets like we do

Post a pic of the planes before the "scene",
then tell me which photoshop buttons you hit

Good luck, have fun

maddafinga, I'm not a pilot, and I don't play the simulation games. Perhaps that experience would lead to a more accurate representation of the laws of physics. I placed the planes where they are for reasons of composition and movement. Please accept it as art and not reality. I appreciate your comments, though. I am trying to balance both reality and art, and we as modelers know this is no easy task. Thank you for your time and opinion. Pix

Nice work with the software Pixilator. I for one enjoy seeing the models put into an action scene like this .... digital or not.

Thanks for sharing.

Not to be too nitpicky, but having played online ww2 sims for years using the most accurate setting available, I've got to tell you, that p40 has no shot there. To get hits, a pilot had to lead his opponet by a fairly long margin, otherwise he'll miss badly. Pilots in ww2 always said that as long as your opponets nose was pointed AT you, you were safe. The p40's best bet here is to ease off the g's and go back up, hammerhead it, or just loop, and try again. Again, I'm not really being a butt here, just pointing out an observation. That said, I think you do some pretty good photoshop work, and I've enjoyed looking at your pics that you've posted.

Im confused... are those real models or something or a drawing????? im dumb and probably already know the answer.