First Post: I tried to take some Gun Pics: Need Advice (Bandwidth Warning)

[hartzpad]

All pics were taken with a 4 year old Sony Cybershot DSC-S50 2.1 Megapixel on 1600x1200 resolution. All guns are completely legal and are stored in a locked gun safe. The only things that I think I can do better on is better lighting and also my camera sometimes takes pics a little crooked to the left even though the viewfinder shows them to be level. Thanks for any advice!

 

[Sunray]

Start by reducing the size of them. Think Photoshop or one of the other photography programs.

 

[Soap]

Nice guns and welcome to THR! Also, we no longer use the "porn" term on this board in keeping with THR's family friendly environment.

 

[DMK]

Nice Pics!

Suitable for wallpaper, especially that top one.

 

[Mike Hull]

IrfanView is about the easiest program to use. You can reduce a photo in seconds.
http://www.irfanview.com/

It's spyware free freeware.

In the resize, under image, just click on 480X680, or whatever's closest to that.
That size is ideal for forums.

 

[spin180]

Nice pictures, I really like the third one.

The one with the Saiga is pretty cool too.

 

[mrapathy2000]

welcome to THR.

that saiga-12 what magazines are those in that stack of 3? how much?

cant wait to get my saiga 223 and 7.62x39 done.

you going to put galil handguard on the saiga 7.62x39? or do you prefer the stock saiga guard?

nice collection

 

[Kharn]

Those look like 8 round mag bodies that were permanetly converted to only hold 5 rounds.

Kharn
(No one is sure if the 8 round mags are legal for use in a postban shotgun, (fixed magazine over five rounds and detachable magazine are listed as two seperate features, so who knows what the ATF would consider an attached (but detachable) 6+ round magazine to be) due to the poor wording of the assault shotgun portion of the AW ban, the ATF has been dragging its feet on responding to inquiries)

 

[BowStreetRunner]

definitely not for the slow of bandwidth

but nice pics regardless
BSR

 

[Charles S]

Great pics,

Thanks for sharing.

Charles

 

[hartzpad]

Thanks guy and sorry for the "porn" reference, I won't use it again in the future.

mrapathy2000,
Three of the mags are the regular 5 round Saiga 12 mags and the other three super long mags are 10 round mags for the banned destructive device USAS-12. They are very tough to find and usually fetch over $100 each. I found two for $70 shipped and 1 for $67 shipped. As of now they are unmodified, I'm waiting for the AWB to sunset beofore modifying them because I don't think they will work in the USAS12 after I'm done converting them.

 

[natedog]

VERY cool pictures- the SAIGA one is now my background.

 

[roo_ster]

I am not particularly artistic, but I have learned a couple of things about pics:
1. Tripods are your friend
2. Lighting is important
3. "Macro" ability in a camera is a godsend.

Question:
What operating system are you using? If linux, there are a goodly number of free (as in "free beer") tools to help the beginner get off the ground.

GIMP: A photoshop-like replacement. From what folks who use these tools much more/better than I tell me, GIMP is has about 90% of Photoshop's functionality but with better automation/scripting features. GIMP can be had on Windows, too.

ImageMagick: Commandline utilities to create, edit, or convert images. These rock. Think of one command line input that resizes entire directories, just to start.

You may be able to get the ImageMagick toolset by installing Cygwin & XF86 on your Windows box.

 

[one45auto]

Also, we no longer use the "porn" term on this board in keeping with THR's family friendly environment.

Oh absolutely, I mean the last thing we'd want to do is offend someone's delicate sensibilities.

 

[Soap]

Well if the person is six years old and you want to show them a nice .22 rifle that someone posted do you want to explain to them what "porn" is?

 

[Ktulu]

Come on guys! Lets not turn this guys gun pics post into another argument about the term, "gun porn."

Nice pics hartzpad.

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

If you haven't already read P95Carry's information on digital pics at http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=57796 , you should take a look at it, made my pics look halfway decent!

 

[cabinetman]

Gun photos

I rarely will post any photo that is larger than 800 dpi in any one direction. That ensures it will fit on the page.

Also, I like to create a background that enhances the photo. I purchased a big remnent from a fabric store and use it almost exclusively. Finding the right color helps.

Finally, as another poster suggested, tripods are a must as is good lighting as is a good macro ability. I built a light bar that is adjustable and kills the stark shadows. Here's an example of what I'm talking about:

Other than that, your photos are very nice. Keeping them smaller will allow those forum members with dial up to see them.

Rome

 

[Ktulu]

cabinetman, what kind of bulbs are those?

 

[cabinetman]

Blubs

Simple flood lights. They make all different kinds. These are for indoor flood lights. Spots will be too "harsh" on something close up.

If you didn't recognize them, the holders are cheap metal "shop lights" that clip onto the wooden bar. Since they clip on, they're adjustable.

One other thing, I put a dimmer on the bar and an outlet on the bar. I plug in the lights so I can remove them if I want, and the dimmer lets me adjust the amount of light (obviously). That's so I can adjust the shadow. To take this light bar one step further, you could put a "lens" on it to help diffuse the light further or buy a couple of small "reflector umbrellas" like photogs use to get better bounce. But, for most purposes, these lights do just fine and they were cheap and quick to make.

Rome