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UltravioletPhotography

Let the journey begin


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Andrea and I are soon to commence our 1 month long journey criss-crossing Norway. In fact, as far as I'm concerned, the journey already has begun. This trampled dandelion just went into blooming at my garage door when I retrieved the little red car to start the trip - had to open the car door and locate a UV capable camera inside.

 

D3200/Baader U2/10 mm f/5.6 OP-Fisheye-Nikkor, hand support for 20 secs.

 

UVP_T1405011472.jpg

 

We may not be able to contribute on a regular basis the next four weeks - but we'll try :D

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Agreed, but this DX-format camera is the only one in my possession with the Baader U2 inside ....

 

This fisheye lens is a rarity, but I think it can be modified to do a little better in UV by removing one of the internal filters in the embedded filter turret. I am not prevented attaching it to my Nikons by Nikon stating this to be 'impossible' and 'damaging to the camera'. As evidenced by hundreds of photos taken with this or other similar fisheye lenses, you can make the 'impossible' possible.

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you can make the 'impossible' possible.

 

I have no doubt about that!

 

There are full-frame mirror-less cameras now, as you know well yourself. It all just comes down to personal preferences and priorities.

 

The fisheye lense I tried (Zenitar 16mm) was not very compelling in UV, specially on APS-C sensor, so I am a bit jealous of your lens :)

 

I hope you will have no snow during the trip (we had some in Stockholm yesterday), but that, of course, will depend on your route. I remember Tromsø is a very nice place during the summer – Alpine Botanical Garden with lots of interesting plants. Might be a bit too early to go ther now.

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Mirror or mirrorless is not the issue, with this kind of non-retrofocus fisheye lens you need to have the UV bandpass filter over the sensor as there is no way to have it on (or inside) the lens itself. Currently the only available camera to me set up in this manner is D3200. I decided to rebuild my D40X (internal Baader U2 courtesy my friend Vivek Iyer) to an IR-only camera and hence moved the Baader over to a D3200 instead. I did this to get features such as GPS support, LiveView, and (slightly) better high ISO performance. Going from 10 to 24 MPix was more collateral damage than a driving force.

 

I often use a Panasonic GH-2 (broadband) with the Baader inserted into the lens adapter for exotic lenses. However, these Fisheye-Nikkors (7.5 mm f/5.6 and 10 mm f/5.6 OP) extend too far into the camera so can't be mounted with the filter in position. Thus currently the D3200 is my only viable option.

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I am sorry, I did not know that this particular lens extends so deep inside the camera body. Oh well... How big is the rear lens element? Would one of the shards from the broken Baader U2, which was left in the California desert, be able to cover it?

 

It is too bad noone wants to cut the Baader U2 to custom sizes.

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Haven't measured the diametre, probably around 15-16 mm for the 10 OP. However, as the ray bundle exiting the lens is highly diverging, I would not recommend putting a filter there at all. You are likely to introduce severe optical aberrations with a filter as thick as the Baader or its ilk. Covering the sensor is better.
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Bill De Jager

Agreed, but this DX-format camera is the only one in my possession with the Baader U2 inside ....

 

This fisheye lens is a rarity, but I think it can be modified to do a little better in UV by removing one of the internal filters in the embedded filter turret. I am not prevented attaching it to my Nikons by Nikon stating this to be 'impossible' and 'damaging to the camera'. As evidenced by hundreds of photos taken with this or other similar fisheye lenses, you can make the 'impossible' possible.

 

Wow, Bjørn. I had always written off the fisheyes for UV due to the relatively large number of elements including cemented ones. Of course your exposure was very long which suggests a low level of transmission. What kind of frequency response do you get with this and other fisheyes you've tried?

 

Looking at the photos linked on Roland's site, I see that the non-retrofocus fisheye Nikkors have a rounded rear projection into the camera unlike the flat-sided round projection on the 21/4 non-retrofocus Nikkor. One would think this would mean no issue with the rear projection rotating and damaging a raised mirror as the 21/4 is notorious for doing to cameras it was not intended for. However, the rear projection is not exactly round so I wonder if some later-model cameras with mirror lockup might still have an issue with mirror clearance for these lenses. Nikon's back-compatibility has its limits, especially for pre-AI lenses.

 

That still leaves the question of how a D3200 can handle such an intrusive lens. I was under the impression that the Nikon dSLRs that don't have mirror lockup can lock the mirror up for cleaning but not for shooting. Is there something here I'm missing?

 

I have a Pentax screwmount Takumar 18mm f/11 full-frame fisheye arriving today. This pancake lens has 4 elements in three groups. We'll see how it does on m4/3, though I don't yet have a way to do this in UV-only. Also, there is always the possibility of a non-optical adapter to Nikon which could at least allow wide-angle closeups with this lens. Until I have a dedicated UV Nikon, or can rig up an external filter, there's no point in doing that since I have better lenses for visible light in that focal length range.

 

I hope both of you have a great trip!

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Fisheyes don't do very well in UV of course, but that is hardly the point. They make for differently looking pictures.
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Mostly socialising so far, plus of course a 20 year anniversary to celebrate - meaning less actual photography the first 2 days, but we'll pick up the pace shortly.

 

This is a straight UV shot of the River Glomma delta with a dead alder as front attraction and a leafing riparian forest (mainly birch) as a backdrop.

 

UVP_D3200_UV_Nikkor_T1405041481.jpg

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Andrea B.

We went to the Lista Peninsula to shoot rock carvings and had quite a good time in spite of the chilly day. This area has been under cultivation for more than 6000 years. The carvings are from the Bronze Age and nearby in the sheep pasture are the remains of a farm settlement dated between 400-550 A.D.

 

A view of the outcropping of large rocks on which the carvings were made. Not all carvings are easily visible due to erosion, weathering and lichen growth.

rockCarvingArea_050814penneNorge_8062pfRes.jpg

 

Some of the 22 ship carvings have been painted so they can be seen. The round cup carvings were made for offerings.

rockCarvingArea_050814penneNorge_8029pfRes.jpg

 

Bjørn is working here with a tilt-shift lens to gain full sharpness across an unusually angled shot.

rockCarvingArea_050814penneNorge_8046pfRes.jpg

 

The sunken foundation lines of the dwelling can be easily seen. Further on there is part of a tumbled stone wall.

rockCarvingArea_050814penneNorge_8039pfRes.jpg

 

In IR the windswept tree is even more striking next to the lichen-covered rocks.

rockCarvingArea_050814penneNorge_15138pf2Res.jpg

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Andrea B.

Gullkronene Forest (Golden Crown) near Tønsberg, Norway has been preserved since 1670 for its lovely beeches and oaks. In May the forest floor is carpeted with Wood Anemone. Bjørn complained that there were fewer than normal but you couldn't prove it by me. There were thousands!

 

Trees in Gullkronene. The typical excellent shot from the handy little Coolpix A got a minor crop and a dash of sharpening but no other editing. Click it up large and see what you think.

gullkronene_050514tønsbergNoreg_4572pf.jpg

 

The ferns are ready to unfurl. The Coolpix A has a handy close-up switch for such shots. Pretty cool bokeh too.

gullkronene_050514tønsbergNoreg_4600pfRes.jpg

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igoriginal

Wow, Andrea. These are simply beautiful, lush, pristine environments! Thank you for sharing!

 

We went to the Lista Peninsula to shoot rock carvings and had quite a good time in spite of the chilly day. This area has been under cultivation for more than 6,000 years.

 

That is quite impressive, and it only confirms the most widely-accepted anthropological models that Nordic-region proto-neolothic tribes begin to also assimilate and / or adopt agrarian social patterns not long after the very first (believed) agrarian / farming civilizations arose within the Mesopotamian / Sumerian eras (some 7,500 years ago) and associated regions (what is now modern-day Iraq).

 

Clearly, news of new farming skills spread fast, northward. Even though all travel north-ward was still considered dangerous and riddled with uncertainties (the ice shelves were still receding after all, from the last glacial period), and many passages remained unexplored.

 

... and nearby in the sheep pasture are the remains of a farm settlement dated between 400-550 A.D.

 

Ahhh, yes. These people would have been referred to as the 'Gothi' / 'Gótthoi' ("Goths"), by the Byzantium-era Greco-Roman empire which constantly struggled (though largely in vain) to keep their northern borders fortified against raids by the Germanic tribes to the north. And the 'Gutans' / 'Norse' people had every right to be upset with the overly-corrupt Byzantine empire to the south, as it had been constantly expanding its "claims" to more and more land, through ongoing military incursions ... bringing along on its military exploits the "mighty god of Christianity" to either crush the "pagans" to the north, or force them to conversion and assimilation into the empire. (I am am outspoken critic of the ruthless beginnings of the rise of "Church authority / orthodoxy", which came out of Byzantium-era Rome, as you can see. :( )

 

Fascinating stuff, to see and hear about these remnants, from someone who is there, on sight! Thanks so very much for sharing!

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Quite a lot of snow !!!

It was a bit cold this day. I'm wearing a down jacket under the waterproof.

Note the colour of the inner snow - a distinctive cyan-blue.

 

Made with Df.

scene_051214norge_1790orig.jpg

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