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FastFreddy2

Photo's ..... The Big Question.

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No going back on the Tough 820 purchase now. Not wanting to either really. Seems to be doing the job. B)

Also tried the Lumix G5 while I was at Jessops. Not only easier to hold than the G3 I nearly bought/kept last December (I think it was), but was much much faster to focus/lock/expose. As I don't need the video capability of the GH3, I may 'settle' for the lightning fast G5, which is probably half the money, but not half the camera. B)

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Have finally uploaded what could be the last of the pictures taken with the old Nokia phone of mine. I'm making a concerted effort to take the Olympus with me, and it seems to be working out. B)

I'd be happier with a slimmer camera, but I don't a slimmer camera so I'm just getting on with it.

Success rate has ramped up enormously with the new camera, but image quality still leaves something to be desired. Not fully bottomed out how to get the most of it, but for me, getting a poor image is significantly better than getting no image.

Have a couple of write-ups to do for days out (last week) with pictures to support the adventures. ;) Just need a bit of time to produce them. :huh:

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I am still delinquent on my write-ups, and growing even worse on my 'snaps' taken while out in public.

For example:

Was out in Milton Keynes today, though only for an hour. Place was packed with post-Christmas bargain hunters looking for reductions in the Winter/New Year Sales.

Returning to the car, and late, I spied a slim/short(ish) girl accompanied by a much taller man friend. She wore a very high heeled boot given she was shopping ..... Although late, I could not resist taking a picture. I got several (of mixed quality), but I have an image to share. I think she was wearing boots by ALDO, with a VERY slim heel. More detail as I catch up.

*** As an aside ***

Parking was hard work. It took over ten minutes to find a space, and meant we parked some distance from the 2 or 3 shops we wanted to visit..... We stopped by another shopper outside the MK Centre shop Waitrose, who was unloading a trolley full of groceries. [2 hours free parking bay, twice the time we could stay.]

I was sure I recognised the male shopper, and stared. He stared back, though I'm not sure if he knew why I was looking. Not being the shy type, I left my car and approached him stood only 10 feet away. "D****? We worked together 15 years ago at ********* ****** in Luton? How are you?" Well, it was him! We shook hands and briefly exchanged pleasantries. He left, and I parked up.

Milton Keynes was on the back end of a 130 mile around trip I made today. What were the chances of me meeting someone I hadn't seen for 15+ years in a town 20 miles away from where we both worked?

I had been driving in flat shoes, so no drama there. Even if there was, the chances of us meeting again, simply do not exist. ;)

If ever people tell you there's no such thing as coincidence mention this. We live 40 miles apart, not seen each other for 15/16 years. No intermediate contact, and I dare say him with no immediate recollection of me. [i look similar, but not same, and he never saw me previously without a suit and tie on anyway.] There was a 60 second window for me seeing him, in a car park I had trawled around for 10-12 minutes over 800 yards.

Of course it helps I don't walk around with my eyes closed ..... :D But what are the chances? :huh:

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Some news .......

Bought my Olympus from a company called Jessops, not least because they provided a their own 2 year warranty with the camera.

Last week [8th January 2013] Jessops went into administration, and by the end of the week the company was dead. Not too worried for myself, as I'm sure Olympus will honour the standard 1 year warranty. Not so good for the people with any part of the £800,000 Jessops vouchers held by their customers, that the administrators won't be honouring.

Bought myself the Lumix G5 "standard" zoom kit, and 20mm prime lens just before the end of last year. Not been out of the box yet, but it won't be much longer. ;) This will work even better in low light, and is even quicker at focussing than the (carry everywhere) Olympus. Better still, I did not buy it from Jessops ...... B)

........

Edited by FastFreddy2

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Reading about Shyguys intended trip to Northampton and his plan to take more photo's, reminded me about this thread.

I've hopefully sold the 'standard' lens that came with the G5, and expect to use the money on a better quality lens. I've already bought the prime (aka pancake) lens that'll allow fast low light photography.

Also found out there's an adapter that will let me use my old Nikon lenses too. Will have to use in full manual mode (or maybe aperture priority) without auto-focussing, but for portraiture, neither of these omissions will be a problem. Adapter has arrived, and the UV filter for the fast lens arrived today. [These are often used to protect the expensive lens from dust and abrasions.]

Am keen to get out but Saturday will bring cold winds, Sunday promises rain and sleet, with Monday will bring more snow. :rolleyes:

Patience Freddy, patience. ;)

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Patience Freddy, patience. ;)

The snow came. Not too many counties got it, but of course I'm in one that did. :rolleyes:

Fortunately it wasn't the fine dry power stuff we got last time, that fell in sub zero temperatures. This was large gloopy wet flakes that fell in circa 2 degrees. It snowed for 12 hours so we had 3 or 4 inches here, but it quickly disappeared off the roads thanks to the warm car engines passing overhead, being able to turn it into slush.

If we hadn't been busy trying to sort out curtains and curtain rails, it would have been a great day for some spectacular winter scenes. The weathermen have promised more snow during February, so all is not lost. ;) While out today, managed to get a picture or two with the trusty Olympus Tough 820.

So far, I am very very happy with this camera. In fact I used an older Fuji bridge camera the other day to do some auction photo's. Was surprised how much slower the older camera is, which is something I had not noticed during the previous 6 or so years I'd owned it. :huh:

The G5 is just as quick as the Olympus, if not faster (on paper at least), and will work in even lower light levels. B)

I trained in photography using a film camera. It had a couple of modes, but I mostly chose the taking settings myself. As a general rule, I would propose digital cameras have two benefits. 1: instant results, meaning you can see the picture immediately after you've taken it. 2: almost all digital cameras have a Program mode that enables the camera to take good quality pictures with no input from the operator. Mrs F has a Lumix S3 sold explicitly for folk who want to point and shoot with success. Her camera does this VERY well.

If I'm honest, the G5 must have a mode that provides this, and I suspect the "ai" button is for that very purpose. [Takes over full control - other than the composition of course.] Anything other than that setting, looks to need an computing degree. ;):D

Thankfully, I won't need to waste film learning how to use the thing, ;) but the manual is on CD so no bedtime reading up. :blink:

I'm quite excited! :D

......

Edited by FastFreddy2

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Had a brief play with the G5, now I have the (unused) Micro 4/3rds to Nikon adapter, and a UV filter for the 20mm lens.

I needed to take some photo's of some shoes being returned (poor fit unfortunately), and they had to go back promptly for me to get a refund. The light was poor, but with the Lumix 20mm lens providing f1.7's worth of light, it is easily the brightest digital lens I own. Got the photo's done ..... Had forgotten what I'd set all the controls to ....

Might post an example here, or add a link to the photo's taken for another thread.

It's obvious, I need to learn how to use the camera!

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Progress on learning what the Lumix can do, is disappointingly slow. Not least because the Olympus Tough does such a great job for 95% of my image recording needs.

Have started using the Lumix recently though for 'studio' type photo's of items going to auction. Much easier to use than the Olympus, as I'm more used to a viewfinder for that type of work. Warmer weather HAS to be on its way, and with it might come opportunities for using the Lumix in earnest.

I've amassed quite a collection of street type images over the last 6 months or so. I've tried to incorporate them in heeling reports where possible (like an illustrated story perhaps), but I've still plenty to publish. The plan was to add 5 or 6 of these every couple of weeks in the gallery. This helps attract new membership (people interested in heels coming back to see the latest images posted), and ensures the regulars don't get bored seeing the same batch of pictures every time they log in.

As a couple of members have been adding pictures of their own footwear just recently, I'm loathe to 'bump' them off the front page - as it were. So for a short while at least, I think I might play catch-up by using this thread to publish the backlog until the members own footwear pictures, themselves start to seem a little tired.

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Freddy,

Why not just start a new street heeling thread, for those pics that you and the rest of us may have snapped of some nice heels!

I would like to see what you have managed to capture!

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Why not just start a new street heeling thread,

Could do.

Hope I haven't overstated the potential interest in the photo's. ;)

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I don't think you have overstated the interest, perhaps one or two at a time and invite comments, we should soon get an idea if they are of interest!

On a slightly off topic items.... I saw the WORST example of heeled boots today whilst taking my Mum for her xray.

This Nhs Manager has a pair of 3 1/2 inch block heeled brown long square toed calf length boots, teamed with a long tweed (Not fashionably styled) skirt and tight fitting jacket (Leatherette and blue!)

I have for reasons of sanity not taken a pic.... But it was seriously disappointing after the click click click of her approach!

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I don't think you have overstated the interest, perhaps one or two at a time and invite comments, we should soon get an idea if they are of interest!

Would rather not receive remarks actually. The pictures are taken because I've got a strong need to record my life, heel by heel. :D

When I look though my galleries here, I can see quite a few pictures, though not all I've taken. [About half are unusable for one reason and another.] Even so, there are very few (if any) I can't remember taking. I remember where I was, usually the time of day, and what I was doing there.

The recent London meet with Euchrid written up over the past two days, wasn't done from my (questionable) recollection of what happened, but from what we did going from picture to picture. ;)

Unfortunately for the members, I'll publish because I need to. It's usually more practical to keep them in the 'Galleries', but once buried there, I'm not sure they get very many views. It's why I tend to upload 6 at a time, it makes sure they get looked at. ;):P:D

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Nice lady and nice heels seen today.

Couldn't get the photo to rotate. May not be the best quality as me and the lady were both walking.

Just as I was nearing work I was going to take another photo, but met someone who works where I do so had to stop.

post-856-0-79118500-1366814855_thumb.jpg

post-856-0-05363500-1366814881_thumb.jpg

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It's been a while since I uploaded any fresh pictures to the Galleries. June in fact.

 

Not that I haven't been taking them still. Looking at where I'm up to, I'm only a few days short of being a whole year behind in the sorting/cropping/editing phase.

 

Must be hundreds .....  :huh:

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Olympus "Tough" eh?

 

The camera has been coved in one of those padded soft cases since it left the shop where I bought it, September 2012. While it's supposed to tolerate a drop of 1m without damage, I've always had my doubts .....

 

I did drop it a month ago, with no discernible damage.

 

It fell out of my grasp again tonight, and it now has a piece missing. (Ironically, it was the only thing of value I was holding onto.) So no longer waterproof nor dust proof. I could araldite up the hole, but it's a bit ..... of a bodge? Will have to get a price from Olympus tomorrow, Doubtless it'll be so expensive to fix, I'll need to buy something else.... :(  

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I've (finally) added some new candid's of people wearing heels in public. I've been trying to stay away from my computer, so as to get more work done in the house, or outside earning some pennies. (And I do mean pennies.)

 

Anyway, new year and hopefully a new regime. Doing more of everything. So I made some time to do some editing, and I've added some photo's for the first time in a while. I've also got some ready queued too. But ..... One of the pictures added today has a Christmas tree in the background, so you might be tempted to think the picture is quite topical? Well, it is, but was more topical when it was taken TWO YEARS ago. I am now over two years behind with my editing.  :huh:

 

I haven't had the Olympus repaired either. I decided the money (probably circa £100) would be better spent on a replacement. Like maybe a TG3. If only my camera budget matched my shoe budget?  :P   :D

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I for one would like to see more members taking photos of their own heels and maybe their wives and girlfriends heels as well. Post them in a thread not in a gallery, so it gives us something to talk about.

 

As for taking photos of the public. I haven't a problem with that either.  I,m not going to take photos of the public. Only problem I have is that sometimes members on here take photos of heels under jeans and when I go to view the photo all I see is a very little part of the shoe. Sometimes photos come out blurred, It is best in my view not upload these photos.  I like to see the whole of the shoe and not blurred. Also if you going to upload photos, could please have them facing the right way.

Edited by Heels

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I'm likely going to start a new thread called "in the papers today".

 

A bit like the "Meeting" and DIY threads, the idea is to provide a running theme that members can comment on as I add new links. The purpose of the thread will be to indicate who/what heels have been seen out in public. Sometimes the 'accent' might be on clothes or style of clothes, but it'll be predominantly links/pictures of heels.  B)

 

I would agree on "image quality". I take many more pictures than I publish, and have quite a rigid quality threshold. Also, I try to adhere to the site requirement that more than just a shoe is shown. Where possible, I try to show the outfit that goes with the footwear. That isn't always possible, but I do try.  ;)

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Imagining system update .....

 

Lumix G5 has been superseded by a wifi enabled/GPS enabled G6. I don't need either, so I remainl happy with my 'as new' G5. Still not tried the Nokia lens adapter.  :rolleyes:  I tend to use this camera for high quality auction photographs. I have yet to make the time for a serious visit to photograph anything in low light since its purchase. Bit embarrassing really. I get some useful video of lightning strikes recently, using mostly manual settings. Was a frustrating experience, but I got some images.

 

post-40-0-62672400-1439253173_thumb.jpg

 

Olympus Tough 820 is the workhorse. I tend to carry it everywhere, and it's mega useful just about everywhere too. It provides instant records of anything while out shopping or travelling. I recently tried a TG4, and a Nikon 'tough' style camera for comparison. Both worked exceptionally quickly, and maybe possible routes for an upgrade. Nothing planned as yet. I still have over 2 years of High Heel candids to publish.... Now with some experience, I know this camera isn't very useful at all in low light. In fact the video system performs better than the 'stills' chip in low light. Weird but true.

 

Nokia 2370 phone. Currently this has no back to it, and an elastic band holding the misshapen battery in place. BUT, I have FINALLY bought another phone! It's a Motorola E 2nd Gen with 4G and cost £99. Camera is 5 megapixel, and is very very quick. Not used it yet, as I'm waiting for the protection system to arrive. It needed a smaller SIM card, but I've had that for a couple of weeks. Comes with Android 5.02 and currently provides VERY good listening to You Tube mixes. I have no exposure/experience to Android, so I expect that will cause some heartache when I do finally use it in earnest.  ;)

 

Another family member, recently acquired a Windows based Kazam phone, for around £60. The frightening thing they demonstrated, was location and how they got it. They spoke directly to the voice recognition system "Cortana". So the phrase went "Cortana, where am I?" And only a couple of seconds later came the answer. Since they were sitting inside my house but only 4 feet away from my neighbour (the other side of a wall they were sitting close to), I wasn't surprised they got the door number wrong, but I was shocked to find they got everything else so right and so quickly.  :huh: Honestly, it was shocking. It means that your phone literally tracks you wherever you are, and accurately too. I have turned off the GPS on my new phone ....

 

Ironically, Mrs Freddy uses a Nokia N8 she acquired from a family member some time ago. One of the best imaging systems still, with lens by Carl Zeiss. Symbian operating system so it's simple to use with no GPS to be concerned with. She won't swap.  :ph34r:

 

I'll add some sample photo's from the Motorola when it gets the opportunity to provide some. ;)   :D  

Edited by FastFreddy2

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Yay. Joined the 'modern world' by finally putting the new SIM card in the new phone .... To date I'd only been using it like a mini-tablet, even watching a film on it one night while in bed with headphones. (Sad.)

Bug-bear has been getting my contact list from one phone to the other. Different sized SIM cards didn't help. I had lost the lot once doing a phone to phone transfer, so was taking no chances this time. Wasn't easy, but I got it done.

While there's a lot to like about the phone, answering a call have so far proved impossible. Sending messages is very very very hard work. I had to let my old phone go as the battery and keypad were both worn out. I may yet go back to an un-smart phone if I don't get the hang of this one. The slightly annoying thing about Android, is that EVERY app seems to have to come from Google's Play-Store, after first logging into a Google email address. This effectively guarantees a full audit trail for everything I do? So far, I have no apps other than those provided by the operating system. The only one I expect to need, is something like a Tom Tom function for when I'm in unfamiliar territory. 

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I have a Samsung Ace 4 using  Android. I don't use it mush to ring people but I do text from time to time. Don't play games on it. The only apps I have on it are Facebook and Ebay. I tend to chat to my friends using Facebook then texting them. I don't use it that much but always nice to have  it with me when I out and about.

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I've skipped the whole mobile phone thing, although I have an iPad I rely on for many things when I am on the road, from movies to emails to Facetime chats.

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For the first time (+2 days) I can now pick up calls! B)

Since I am a computer user of some 35 years standing, pressing buttons has always been the order of the day. 'Swiping' is so new to me, I hadn't been doing it properly. Seems my technique was more like a double-tap. A gentle sideways movement of the finger, was all I needed.

 

For those of you into computers, I was trained on an NEC Century mainframe. So powerful it would do wages runs for the local aerospace employer with 15,000 employees. No screen, operating commands were input via a teletype, bulk data went in via 80 column punch-cards that we were trained to make and read. It was housed in a clean room, air conditioned, and no food or drink allowed. The room was probably cleaner than most hospital wards (now anyway).  It was called a "Century" because it had 100k of addressable RAM. In its day, more powerful than the mainfame that helped send a man to the moon. (Reputedly a 64k machine.)

To put that into perspective, the SIM in your phone almost certainly has more storage. By way of (a non-technical) comparison .... Comparing that NEC computer to a modern day AMD/Intel multi-core processor installed with say 32gb ram 240gb SSD and a TB hard-drive, would be like comparing a Saturn Five Rocket, to a firework. (Topical pun thrown in - did anyone notice? :D)   

 

So anyway, I no longer have to phone every caller back, because I couldn't answer their call. ;) Yay! 

 

 

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I remember writng on an original Apple MacIntosh back in the 80s. Antique now. Probably worth a fortune. My first laptop, also an Apple, had a black-and-white screen, 40MB of hard disc space, 4 MB of RAM and I thought it was the bees knees. 

I couldn't fit a single image from my camera on that computer now, let alone the software needed to download it. My present workhorse laptop, still an Apple, has 1TB of storage and even so I have to cull my images regularly and store them on separate, much larger, hard drives. 

Edited by Shyheels

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