www.nikonians.org Nikonians Newsletter
In This Issue: 15-NOV-2005 
•   Exciting times
•   Latest From the Nikonians Resources
•   Nikonians News
•   Book Review: Birds of Central Park
Exciting times
A lot of things have happened at Nikonians since our last newsletter. October 21st one of our main servers went down late night due to a hardware failure. In addition, a malfunctioning RAID system (mirrored hard disks) made it painful to get the server back online. We are now more than happy to be back with you all! We received a lot of positive emails, mental and moral support from many during those tough hours: Thank you all who have helped out the last days!

But, what a comeback: November 1st we broke our community traffic records: Half a million pages viewed by over 65,000 visitors in a single day. A second very joyful - and not really an unexpected event :-) - happened that day: Nikon officially announced the D200. Since a DSLR of that calibre is not announced every day, you can bet on that we are thrilled and we suggest you visit our very active D200 Users Group.

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Nikonians on PMA
We will be on the PMA in Orlando 26-FEB...01-MAR 2006. Make sure you visit our small boot No 1759. We have a set of free daypasses to give out to Silver, Gold and Platinum members. More info will be published on this soon.

Nikonians Photo Insurance
It is possible to sign up for pre-registration with our affordable insurance NikSecure
More info

Nikonians meeting in Brussels
We are meeting for a full day of good talk, presentations and photos in Brussels 03-DEC-2005
More info

Thanks to all of our supporters!
It's good to be back
Bo & JRP

For the latest on the D200 - Visit our D200 Users Group

Harem by Stefan Maurer (nafets) of Germany
Nikonians News
UK Shutterbug Items of Interest
For our community members in the UK, there's several items of interest happening this month. Several sessions on Apple's RAW Workflow software Introducing Aperture: An Apple Seminar will be held towards the end of the month. You can also catch the Aperture Roadshow at the Nikon Solutions Expo on Nov. 22nd and 23rd in London. The Expo will feature hands-on demos of the D200 as well as other Nikon products and HP will have a case study focusing on two professional photographers, including the man who took the famous photo of the protestor facing down a tank at Tiananmen Square in 1989. Best of all, the Expo is free!
http://blog.nikonians.org/archives/2005/11/uk_shutterbug_i.html

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Nikon Ups Digital Camera Shipment Forecast
TOKYO, Nov 10 (Reuters) Nikon Corp. said on Thursday it will raise its forecast for its global shipments of digital cameras in the business year to March from 7.6 million units it projected in May.

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A Nikon spokesman declined to give the new target but said it will be announced next Monday when the company reports its first-half results. Business daily Nihon Keizai reported that Nikon plans to raise digital camera shipments to about eight million units. The Nikon spokesman said that was the paper's own estimate.

Last business year the company shipped 6.61 million digital cameras.
http://blog.nikonians.org/archives/2005/11/nikon_ups_digit.html

Nikon D50 Earns Slot on 2006 DigitalCameraInfo List
Nikon's entry level DSLR continues to gain praises. The D50 kit just received the award for Best Value under USD750 on the DigitalCameraInfo List for 2006. Be sure to check out our D50 forums to learn more about this great camera!
http://blog.nikonians.org/archives/2005/11/nikon_d50_earns.html

Win A Trip to PMA 2006
The PMA 2006 International Convention and Trade Show will be held Feb. 26 - March 1, 2006, in Orlando, Fla. Make sure to register for the convention by midnight, Monday, Dec. 5 and be automatically entered for a chance to win a Travel Package Giveaway, covering your trip to the convention.
http://blog.nikonians.org/archives/2005/11/win_a_trip_to_p.html

Race Shooters: Give Them Your Best Shot!
Action fans close to the Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, have an opportunity to win and become a track photographer for a day as well as publication of their image on the 2006 Program brochures.
http://www.infineonraceway.com

Firmware Upgrade for D2X, D2Hs Cameras
Nikon appears to be rolling out the first firmware upgrade for its D2X and D2Hs digital SLR cameras. Nikon Asia's website now offers a Mac and Windows updater for firmware version 1.01 for both of these professional cameras. The A and B camera firmware are both updated, and installing both modules is required for proper camera functionality. http://blog.nikonians.org/archives/2005/11/firmware_upgrad.html#more

Imaging and Photo News with a Nikonians Touch in Nikonians News Blog

Book Review: Birds of Central Park
Birds of Central Park by Cal Vornberger
From the Nikonians book and magazine literature section. By Nikonian Conrad Obregon (Obregon)

Birds flying up and down the Atlantic flyway inevitably encounter a huge patch of concrete, asphalt and brick. In the center they see a large patch of green, with plants and insects. That’s why Central Park in New York City is one of the best birding spots in North America. Several hundred avian species can be found there. In addition, there is another species there in large number, Homo sapiens birdwatcher and still another smaller subspecies, Homo sapiens bird photographer.

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With all these birds, birders and bird photographers, there was a huge niche for a book called “Birds of Central Park”. Cal Vornberger has filled that niche.

Vornberger has digitally captured the wide variety of birds that pass through Central Park. He presents these birds by season rather than in taxonomical order, which helps to give an impression of the bird life in the park the way that a birder would see it. Like all good photographers Cal is concerned with the light. But his style is different from those of other bird photographers, like Art Morris or Tom Vezo. Instead of being concerned with artistic composition, or deep focus to give a sense of the environment, the author seems aimed at a sense of intimacy with the individual birds. Most of the birds pictured fill the frame completely, forcing us to focus on the individual.

What is amazing is not only how close Vornberger has gotten to his subjects, but how he has caught them in the details of their daily lives. I have never seen so many photographs of birds with food, whether insects, berries or crustaceans, in their mouth. And he has caught many of these birds in flight, reminding me of the bird pictures of the great Eliot Porter. But the artist that Vornberger’s portraits most remind me of is the great John James Audubon. There is this same sense of intimacy and presentation against a subtle background.

Occasionally, Vornberger brings his own special aesthetic to the book, as when he pictures a cardinal taking off in the snow on the face page to the winter section. The bird’s wings are cut off, the bird faces away from us and the only way that the reader can tell that the white background is snow is from the white snowflakes that follow the bird’s ascent. And yet this picture captures a moment better than most technically perfect photographs.

Vornberger’s occasional remarks interspersed with the pictures often present a little known fact about the subject or give a hint to other bird photographers hoping to duplicate his accomplishments.

This book should not be considered a guide to Central Park’s birds, although there is a convenient pocket guide in a slipcover in the back of the book. Instead it is a testimonial to the birds of Central Park. New York lovers, birders and photographers will want to page through this book to recall the avian pleasures of the park.

You find more of Nikonian Conrad Obregon's reviews in our book and magazine section

Order this book from Amazon

Birds of Central Park
Latest From the Nikonians Resources
How to get the most out of your tripod
Even if you already own - or by now have decided to own - either of the tripod brands and models shown in the What Tripod FAQ, they don't work alone. Tripods benefit from all the help you can give them.

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Read more on tripod techniques

Tripod Techniques
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