I didn't buy from Ebay but got a similar "economy priced" flash trigger from one of the local retailers.

It has generally worked fine for everything I wanted to do and, for the price, was a great investment.

Compared to some of the more exotic units, I understand the limitation of this device is distance but again, more than adequate for my current endeavours.

Only two problems to report:
First, the battery contact became weak in the sender and was remedied with a quick open, clean and re-tension of the contact.
Second, using a setup at the local club meeting, had erratic firing of the flashes happening. Couldn't figure out what was the cause and it hasn't happened anywhere else since. As the building we were in has a lot of electronic and communications circuits, the manufacturer's rep felt it might have been picking up an external signal. Seeing the picture of the unit you are reviewing (with the assumed channel selectors) this may have remedied the problem as the unit I have is an earlier edition with a fixed channel.

In summary, I've been happy with the unit. Someday, when I win the lottery, I'll investigate the Pocket Wizard.

Al

Thanks Don and Simon for your response.

Don, I like your idea and have been putting some thought into how I could make make something "fold-up" portable (god knows I've got enough plumbing materials left over from many renos). A friend has also suggested those transport load securing bars...they're sturdy and plentiful just not sure how small they will collapse to.

A little insight...what prompted this question was an instore feature of a backdrop starter kit with a price that seemed too good to be true. To me, the assembly seemed flimsy (compared to the professional wall mount systems) and the salesperson wasn't really interested/experienced enough to answer questions. At any rate, by the time I got back for a second look the kit deal wasn't there and perhaps someone else realized they'd forgotten a digit from the price.

The main thing I liked about the whole kit was that it folded and stored into quiver-like pouch which kept everything together and made for easy transportation on little notice (lack of hobby time always seems to be an issue). Assembled in the store, it looked OK but gut feeling was that in real life it could be troublesome.

Again, thanks for responding.

Al

Toying with the idea of buying a portable background stand set-up. Generally, the ones looked at are similar in that they are basically high-reach tripods (or strobe stands) with a crossbar. These units are designed to support both muslin and paper backdrops with an approximate average maximum of 10' X 10' coverage.

Any advice or horror stories that could help me critique the various offerings?

Thanks.

Wishing everyone the best of the Holiday Season and hope that 2007 brings peace and prosperity.

Al

A quick vote for Practical Photography. Al

In addition to Scott Kelby's "The Photoshop CS2 Book". I've found "Photoshop for Windows and Macintosh" by Elaine Weinman/Peter Lourekas to be a valuable resource (ISBN 0-321-21353-X).

From my perspective, the Kelby book is a great training manual with work through tutorials while the Weinman/Lourekas book is more of a quick reference compendium of problems and workable solutions.

Al

Hello Ian,

I have the auto bellows A and have used it with the *ist D. A couple of initial problems.

The first was mounting the camera onto the bellows. With the protrusion of the built in flash, the camera body mount adapter needed to be removed from the bellows unit, installed into the body and then remounted on the bellows...at a right angle to horizontal to get clearance (mine will not sit in the traditional horizontal mode and, if necessary, need to tip the tripod head ninety degrees -- not preferred as it does place a lot of weight off-side on the tripod).

The second concern was the cable release question you've alluded to. On this unit, the bellows mount cable connection can be depressed into the bellows body and turned CW to lock, thereby getting the correct aperature. My process is to take my readings with the aperature wide open, set the camera for a manual image, close the aperature (with the twist function) and then take the shot.

http://www.ephotozine.com/gallery/showlargepic.cfm?photoid=472009

This is a shot taken of a standard hardball baseball stitching with the setup.

My quick recommendation is to take the bellows with you and check the clearance before purchase. I don't konw if the external dimensions of the K10D are greatly different than the *ist D.

Hope this helps.

Al

[quote="Don"]Al try this:
http://static.flickr.com/117/260233204_c27fc581ed.jpg
it worked with a [url] instead of [img]
cute little guy by the way...the only fox I got recently was a scrawny, hungry looking little fella!![/quote]Thanks Don, will try that next time. Sorry for the delay in responding our ISP seems to suffer periods of over-capacity, leaving us "speechless". Al

I use this Tamron lense and have been quite happy with it both on the *ist D and the MZ-S. Previously had a Sigma and was a little disappointed with that unit.

Coincidently, had the lense on the camera on the weekend and caught this fellow


New at linking photos so hope this works.

Al

Some time ago, my wife worked for a photo supply house that also had a big rental division (before the days of video). The deal was, if there was equipment available on the weekends, employees were welcome to use it, gratis. So, we often had the k1000's out to play with.

When it came time to invest, asked the service manager and he said "you could throw the K Pentax over the building, pick it up on the other side and with a little dusting, know it would be functional". Maybe a little exageration but given the selection of equipment they had, simply stated, the Pentax was the most reliable and from their perspective the only money maker because of the reliability. That was a good enough recommendation for me.

We bought an ME-F and started the journey. The ME-F (I still miss it) finally suffered a terminal electronics fault and went to that camera store in the sky. A little frustrated with the electronics issue but not the camera got a P series (trying to get back to that basic functionality).

Since that time, we've added another P, an MZ-S (a beautiful piece of equipment) and an *ist D. The big plus is that all the lenses collected over the last 25 years are not obsoleted by the newest models, leaving the extra pennies free to further expand the glass collection.

With the reliability and the still workable collection of lenses and equipment, it's really easy to remain true (and a little smug when I hear of some of the tribualtions a few club members have with upgrading some of the other makes). Al

Hi Mac,

Not sure if Loblaws chain has an outlet in your neighbourhood but one of my "informed" sources tells me their store film is rebranded Fuji at quite a reduction in price.

I've seen some results and it is a quality product (both print and slide). Personally, have continued to pay those extra pennies to the local camera store operator no doubt receiving more than the price difference in education...I am a difficult student.

Al