I've been wanting to do some close-up/macro work with my Mamiya 645E, and a diopter only gives me some close-focusing. So, I recently acquired a set of extension tubes for my Mamyia from KEH.com, which remains #1 on my list of reputable sellers. I have never been disappointed with anything I have purchased from them. The last time I did macro in medium format was about 7 years ago with my Pentax 6x7. I wasn't terribly happy with my results then, but I'll attribute that to lack of experience. The 645 is a lot easier to handle, of course, and has better metering than the humongous Pentax 6x7. I also shot the images with TechPan -- the slowest emulsion available, but also the finest-grained. I have to say that I was really pleased with my results. All done on a tripod, of course, with mirror-lockup. The results:
"Spilling the Beans"


"Jiffy"


"Analog"

Here's an oldie. I have to say, I miss real paint...


Acrylic

And for those of you who like to see the brush strokes...

In modern life we are surrounded by hundreds of machines, yet there is just one that most people would find hard to do without. A photomosaic using some of the many devices of modern life as tiles.

For PhotoFriday's topic the machine.

In this episode you will learn two different three light setups. This video will help you to understand what equipment is used (and what you need to reproduce the results).

In this video Mark describes the two types of light meters and answers the very important questions, “How do I use a light meter?” and“What meter should I buy?”

24-60mm f2.8

24-70mm f2.8

I'm looking into buying a better lens for my 35mm camera and I have stumbled upon these two lenses. Judging by the performance data supplied by the manufacturer, which is the better lens? Explanation of the diagrams you can find here; I cannot make much sense of them myself. Please leave your choice and explanation in the comments section.

At the moment I have the lens with the characteristics below; would any of the lenses above be better? I'm not too happy with my current lens now as it has problems with vignetting and distorts otherwise.

I was out late expect a good sunset over the lake, to cut a long story short there wasn't one. Just a big dark cloud threatening a cool change which didn't happen either.

At least this little guy knows how to stay cool

The 'L' over Wabash Ave. I have been going through Wikipedia to come up with some more info, but it doesn't answer my most important question regarding Wabash: How do you pronounce the name Wabash? What are the origins of the name? My guess is that it is pronounced as 'Wah-bahsh' but feel free to correct me. ^_^;;

Camera: Pentax MZ-3, lens: Sigma 28-300mm - 1:3.5-6.3