Advise Needed

[sandman]

After much deliberating i decided to buy the Hyper-utility software (£130). Well, i,ve been going on about the picture differences without trying the complete item, so lets try it properly?
My question is an easy one for all you guys who shoot exclusively in RAW, what settings do i need on my S2 , i shoot now STD, STD,STD, OFF..I know in the converter you can reset all of these, so doe's it matter ,or not?. any help please.
Now for a moan, when i ordered the EX from fuji U.K., i asked the girl if it was the latest version, ''Yes it is'', well guess what, it's not, it's ver1.01. So i downloaded ver 2 from the links in this forum. It's not even on the fuji U.K download site.

[Ramses]

Hello,
Camera settings takes no place, if you convert the raw files with EX converter (and change the settings). Anyway, the camera setting values are stored in raw file and those settings are used in conversion made by LE converter.

You didn't ask version 2, but the latest. Don't count on sales personnel knowledge on software versions. :)
It probably takes some time (if ever) to ver.2 hit the shelves.

Klaus

[sandman]

Thats what i thought, i think i did mention ver 2, but she was proberbly too busy filing her nails. thanks Klaus.

[Wichita Wayne]

I wouldn't be too hard on the person that sold you the software. Version 2.0 is very new and may not even be available on disk yet. Besides, anytime you buy software you should check the web for upgrades. I do find it odd that the U.K. does not have the upgrade yet.

[sandman]

I don't find it odd , just seems thats the way it is over here, rest of the world first U.K. second. as for the salesgirl, proberbly right, i was too hard,but anyone who goes into a super market or hypa store,over here, and asks for help will know what i mean.Back to my thread .This EX converter, it does'nt matter what the settings are on the camera, is that right, i'm going out tomorrow to shot a load of raw files to try it out.

[ronlcox]

The only thing I would set would be my custom WB because that can not be set via the converter. I have been told, but won't say it is the gospil, that if you set 1 & 2 then both are imbeded in the RAW data and either can be used. Though I have always shot with my cutom WB on because you don't have to use it. Maybe someone out there can enlighten us. Other wise I shoot Org. Org. Org. Off. I rarely shoot jpeg unless it's just a birthday party or something lite. I recently downloaded that latest version othe the EX converter. The new software allows you to extract the jpeg thumbnail from the RAW data. A very nice feature if you are wanting to pull out some pix for distribution to family, friends or the web.

[X-Sync]

When shooting RAW I would be careful with the white balance. Although you can set the white balance before conversion, the histogram you camera displays in the field is for the JPEG created when you shoot a RAW file. If you shoot just short of the edge on the histogram to gain the maximum dynamic range you could blow the highlights in post processing by adjusting the white balance from the one set in camera at the time of capture.

Happy Shooting

Simon

[sandman]

Thanks simon
had it about a week now, tried it out on about 50 shots , i can see why the pro's must use it the're getting money to take the very best shot, but for me ,it's too fiddly, yes i've manage to extract a bit more detail out of some shots, and i will use it on some weddings i shoot.( although no one ever complained about my fine jpegs). But it won't be my principle format. The file sizes are just too big as well.
I now shoot on auto outside, and do a custom w.b inside , and shoot on that. I use an 80DX flash , which when you take down to -5 exposure works fine.

[ronlcox]

Do you use only a single flash when shooting weddings? Do you use it on or off camera. Reading the forums it seems like some go to a lot of trouble lighting a wedding. Would like to hear your comments.

[sandman]

As i've said before ,many times ,i'm no pro , but i sure get my share of weddings, 19 this year so far, and 5 more in the pipeline, friends, relatives, friends of friends.
I only charge to cover the cost of the day, paper , ink, DVD'S, etc , don't make any money, (don't want to), i love doing it.

Flash? years ago ,when on film , i used a side bracket, and a sb28, great for red eye. now i just use a 80dx, on the hot shoe, or if the light is good enough i don't use any.Use fill in flash if the women are wearing big hats. i really just wing it, and so far have'nt had any really bad shots.
Advise? well the're are wedding photographers reading this who have 1000's under their belts, much more qualified to answer questions on the nuances of flash photography, i'm just here for the ride.
one quick story. did a wedding once along side a pro who was handholding a 'blad' all day. during lunch ,i was opposite him ,so i asked him why no tripod?. His reply was that he had twich in his leg and sometimes it would shoot out and catch the tripod, knocking it and all his gear over. I just nodded and got on with eating, a little later we were all chatting away ,and suddenly from nowhere ,he twiched!!!!! sending the table, food,, and all our drinks , into a great big heap. I just curled up with laughter, could'nt help myself, he didn't see the funny side and staggered away to find a drink. Turned out he gave lessons at a local collage, his photo's weren't very good either. THE END.

[Rockyw]

We use studio strobes in the church for before and after portraits. A on camera strobe even on a bracket just creates to many shadows. We set the camera right (main light) light at f8 and the fill on the camera left at 5.6. This gives us a good depth of field and throws the shadows down and gives portrait like photos every time. We hardly ever use a tripod for this as we move in, out and all over for differant angles. At f8 and a 60 shutter we never get a bad shot from hand holding and makes the photos go faster. During the ceromony we go tripod, Nikon 70-200VR lens and ISO 400 or 800 as needed for a 2.8 and a shutter of 1/45 or 1/60. If the VR is to tight we go with our Nikon 28-70 lens. With the VR lens at 200 my wife has hand held many photos that are crisp as a tripod as long as the shutter is set as above. We use manual mode for the ambient ceremony shots. All other shots are with a SB80 on a strob-a-frame bracket. We used tripods all the time years ago but found them to slow us down a lot and the images do not suffer from it if we grab the tripod when needed. The bracket is very impotant! We have never shot a red eye picture and never will. Don't try to corect this in the computer or use a red eye mode in any camera. The bracket also helps with shadows and gives a better look the portrait. Want to try something fun, at the next reception, shot a few dance pictures like the chicken dance or other group shot. Set the camera at ISO1600, f2.8 and A mode. Set your flash at TTL and fire away. It will light up the whole room. Up close people will be blown away but if you stay back it looks great. You can get a whole wedding party in a totally dark room. have fun and good luck.

[ronlcox]

Very educational. Wish I had the opportunity to work with you.

[Rockyw]

Thanks ronlcox, one thing about our setup is that it would be hard to do with a single person. Or at least take more time to do. I and my wife work together, if one of us can't be there we take our daughter. After the service, one of us takes pictures of the bubbles ect, and the other sets the lights back up. It's more work but the images are worth it. If any questions just write me. merockyw@aol.com :)

[raidertek]

As one of those shooters with 1000's of weddings on the belt I would say that Sooting with the S2 has changed a few things for me. I as well use the array of studio lights for formal images at the wedding but as for the candid images I know use the S2 with a metz 60CT ( basiclly a flamethrower on my shoulder). this works great with a reflector on the light and dragging the shutter to get the feel of the space. I find myself using less and less light for my candid work as I get a better feal for the digital capture.

Happy hunting...