Order Placed! - (Your latest online purchase.) [2]

My grandfather, as an officer, died in first WWI battle, Austrian-Hingarian empire Vs kingdom of Serbia 1914. Inherited his bimoculars but lost them as a kid.

dencal said:

Purchased these binoculars in the early 1950s from one of those shops that bought goods for cash.
Believe them to be German forces issued.
Superb optics have tried others but none better.

Zeiss are right up there with the best of the best. Leica, Leitz, etc. ^^

There was a full moon tonight. I took a gander at it with my 10x42 binocs.
Pretty awesome. I looked it up... 10x mag on the binocs is equivalent to a 500mm lens on a DSLR.

I could see the moon really well.

I tried to take a pic with the 2MP camera on my $49 flip phone. It couldn't even focus on the moon.

My DSLR is being weird. It says the contacts between the lens (18-135mm), and the camera are dirty.
I'm gonna have to call Canon, and ask them about that.
I bought the camera/lens kit in 2013. Since that time, I've probably only used it for maybe 20 hours total.
I always store the lens and the camera with all the "caps" on, and in the camera bag.

So if those contacts are dirty, it's gotta be molecular dirt. The contacts "look" spotless.
I don't really know how to clean them anyway. Contact cleaner I guess... but not the spray type, I assume.

I wiped the contacts with a microfiber cloth... seems to have worked.
I really wish I still had my old Nikon F2 (35mm).

I'm gonna need a class on this camera. I still know almost nothing about this camera.


I found the pic of the original order...

smalltown said:

Nice looking camera. I was pricing mirrorless cameras the other day ouch!

I dunno if it's still feasible, but if I had it to do over, I would have purchased an SLR 35mm film camera, from the old days.

They still sell used ones, but unless you wanted to set up your own color/black and white darkroom as well... it probably wouldn't be worth it.

I think the best combination would have been the old manual SLR cameras, with only the digital sensors and the ability to connect to a computer.
Once the went to only DSLR... the manufacturers went insane.


There's no need for all the auto everything crap.
The f/stop, shutter speed, ISO, focus, etc., should all be manual, with analog controls.

All the digital controls should be removed. They are NOT as fast or as good.


And deep down inside... my right thumb really misses the lever used to move to the next frame.
That lever was a basic part of photography. It was like a pat on the back after a job well done.



[Near Mint] Nikon F2 Eye Level 35mm Film SLR Camera Black Body from Japan #1689 | eBay






This was the camera I had, back in the day. It did absolutely everything.
And it did everything fast and efficiently.

Aperture (f-stop), focus and zoom were all manual and all on the lens itself.

After each picture you would grab the end of that big lever with the side of your right thumb, and "flick" it to the right. That's how you "knew" that the picture was taken and "put away" for safekeeping.
Even on a DSLR, my right thumb still wants to do that.





But thanks to all the technical "improvements", this is what we're saddled with these days.
And it doesn't do anything more or better than the old stuff.
Oh... and there's about 20 more screens (written in Klingon or something), of this crap.



Oh yeah, almost forgot the best part.
Every time the temperature changes (like moving from indoors to outdoors), the camera loses electrical connection with the lens and you can't take pictures. LOL

Well, I did see a youtube that suggested taking the lens off when this happens, and wiping the contacts with the edge of your shirt. That sort of works. But I feel there should be a better solution.

Well, after living where I am for 22 years, I decided I'd finally get a compass.
I can only guesstimate where East is, because there are hills with trees, all around me.

Yeah, I could make a compass. Or I could figure it all out via the stars. But what the heck.
I found a great compass... for cheap...

Amazon.com


Global needle (works in N or S hemisphere), mineral oil filled chamber (dampens needle movement), and no tools required to set my declination. Also, it will fit in my pocket.









Now if I had money to burn, I'd probably get this. It doesn't function any better than the one I actually bought, but it sure "looks" better.

Grand Voyager Compass Black - Dalvey

I still have a few traditional compasses but these days I use more modern hardware I carry my mobile with me that has various GPS mapping systems, including the official Ordinance survey Maps also have a bespoke electronic Map / Compass with Mapping from Garmin, and my Garmin Instinct Watch has two variations of Compass installed and includes basic navigation.

Health currently reduces my outdoor walking trips but at least I'l know in what direction I'm driving

Ghot said:

Well, after living where I am for 22 years, I decided I'd finally get a compass.
I can only guesstimate where East is, because there are hills with trees, all around me.

Yeah, I could make a compass. Or I could figure it all out via the stars. But what the heck.
I found a great compass... for cheap...

Amazon.com


Global needle (works in N or S hemisphere), mineral oil filled chamber (dampens needle movement), and no tools required to set my declination. Also, it will fit in my pocket.









Now if I had money to burn, I'd probably get this. It doesn't function any better than the one I actually bought, but it sure "looks" better.

Grand Voyager Compass Black - Dalvey

If you know where West is, then you mast know where East is, Besides, compass is lying to you.

CountMike said:

If you know where West is, then you mast know where East is, Besides, compass is lying to you.

I don't know exactly where west is either. The sun makes an arc across the sky. By the time it clears the hills and trees, I really don't know where it crossed the horizon, and even if I did, that would only be accurate at sea level.

As for the compass "lying" to me... I realize that there is a difference between true north and magnetic north. That's why it's important that the compass allows for declination adjustments. I know I'm at 9,21°W declination.The NOAA declination calculator is great for that.

NCEI Geomagnetic Calculators


Back in the day I was an Eagle Scout. I can't stand not knowing the exact compass directions. Since I no longer drive, I don't even have that aide in "getting the feel" for the compass directions.

Most of the time, I can deal with not knowing the exact compass directions. The other night though, I was attempting to photograph the full moon and knew at which compass direction it should appear. Unfortunately I could only guesstimate in which direction that actually was.

I realize this isn't a life or death problem. And for the moon at least... sooner or later I will "see" it easily. But with most other heavenly bodies, at much greater distances, it would really help to know the exact compass directions.

Where I grew up... about 15 miles from here, I was on the top of the largest hill for many miles in any direction. It was a lot easier then. But now I'm down in this bowl or valley, where it's a lot harder.

Btw... I did a lot of research before ordering the compass I ordered, most of which is posted on ElevenForum...
Order Placed! - (Your latest online purchase.) | Page 65 | Windows 11 Forum

...just in case anyone else is interested.

Barman58 said:

I still have a few traditional compasses but these days I use more modern hardware I carry my mobile with me that has various GPS mapping systems, including the official Ordinance survey Maps also have a bespoke electronic Map / Compass with Mapping from Garmin, and my Garmin Instinct Watch has two variations of Compass installed and includes basic navigation.

Health currently reduces my outdoor walking trips but at least I'l know in what direction I'm driving

I just have one of these. It doesn't know where it is, let alone where I am.