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[Midnight Rider]

These plant closings will have an impact on the very high end stuff, but most of the consumer/prosumer equipment is now made in Taiwan to Nikon Specs, though it could impact the actual glass manufacturing, as I'm not sure they make that in Taiwan.

I'm sure that any cameras (like a D300s replacement...D400) due to be replaced will be put on hold for some period of time.  This would include the replacements for the D3 series, which would be the D4 series.

Hopefully, this will not have a permanent impact on Nikon's bottom line....

[JCZ]

Question for all the camera experts......as of last Sept (our 9 western states tour) I ride with my Nikon D60 hanging around my neck.  While I realize it's not in the same league as the cameras that you guys are talking about, it seemed to be a pretty good package deal at Costco at the time.

Anyway, I'm riding with it around my neck.  I keep the lens cap on it (unless I'm actually snapping pics on the fly.....which I do a lot of) but I'm sure at speed it's picking up dust, etc.  How much should I expect to pay to have it cleaned?

Also, being a total novice to the DSLR.....anything that I should know (no, I haven't read the book that came with it that's the owner's manual), any tips, etc. are appreciated.

[porthole]

These plant closings will have an impact on the very high end stuff, but most of the consumer/prosumer equipment is now made in Taiwan to Nikon Specs, though it could impact the actual glass manufacturing, as I'm not sure they make that in Taiwan.

I'm sure that any cameras (like a D300s replacement...D400) due to be replaced will be put on hold for some period of time.  This would include the replacements for the D3 series, which would be the D4 series.

Hopefully, this will not have a permanent impact on Nikon's bottom line....

"Nikon Sendai is Nikon's flagship DSLR plant, where the D700, D3x, and D3s are built. The anticipated D700 replacement and the upcoming D4 would also be manufactured there.."

Nikon is predominately a lens company that just happens to make cameras - as is Canon.

[rganz]

Question for all the camera experts......as of last Sept (our 9 western states tour) I ride with my Nikon D60 hanging around my neck.  While I realize it's not in the same league as the cameras that you guys are talking about, it seemed to be a pretty good package deal at Costco at the time.

Anyway, I'm riding with it around my neck.  I keep the lens cap on it (unless I'm actually snapping pics on the fly.....which I do a lot of) but I'm sure at speed it's picking up dust, etc.  How much should I expect to pay to have it cleaned?

Also, being a total novice to the DSLR.....anything that I should know (no, I haven't read the book that came with it that's the owner's manual), any tips, etc. are appreciated.

If you are talking about getting dust on the outside glass, just get a can of compressed air, give it a blast to remove dust and then use a lens cleaner solution and a cleaning cloth to clean the outside of the lens. After blowing off the dust apply the lens fluid to the center of the lens and in a circular motion wipe the lens surface starting in the middle and working your way out.
The beauty of the DSLR is the ability for the user to change lenses. This is where you will have the greatest chance to get dust on the sensor and in turn show up as black spots in the photos. Whenever you change lenses turn off the camera, The sensor will attract dust when it is powered up, point the camera lens mount down and change out the lens. Try to stay out of the wind if possible when changing lenses. You can send the camera out to Canon or Nikon for a cleaning but expect to pay anywhere from $50.00 to 100.00 each time you do this. Shipping is extra. That's the beauty of the point and shoot cameras is that they seldom have dust issues because you are not changing lenses unless it has dust issues from the factory.
I clean my own sensors and have done so for many years. Some new cameras have a feature that is a self cleaning sensor. This sends some sort of vibration through the sensor to dislodge dust. It works pretty well.
Check you manual to see if this feature is available.
I use a commercial product from a company called visible dust. It is a brush system to pick up dust using static from the brush. Works pretty well. For stubborn dust you may need to use a fluid like "Eclipse" fluid and a sensor cleaning tool. Maybe have a local camera store show you the ropes. It is not difficult you just want to make sure you do it right. There are specific steps that are to be taken. The sensor is located behind the mirror and to clean it the mirror must be raised.(Never touch the mirror) or anything else inside the body for that matter. Follow manual for instructions. It is worth the effort to learn how to clean the sensor your self as it can be a pain in the A$$ to send the camera out every time you see a speck on it.

If you have a 20 to 300 mm lens that does it all and you hardly remove the lenses you should have minimal issues with dust. Keep in mind that there may be dust from the factory and jostling a cameras may dislodge it and chances are it will end up on the sensor.

Rob

[rganz]

"Nikon Sendai is Nikon's flagship DSLR plant, where the D700, D3x, and D3s are built. The anticipated D700 replacement and the upcoming D4 would also be manufactured there.."

Nikon is predominately a lens company that just happens to make cameras - as is Canon.

Duane I can't imagine anything happening in that region for a while....
Rob

[porthole]

Duane I can't imagine anything happening in that region for a while....
Rob

I agree, and if they have a meltdown - maybe never.

But, since full frames are out of my price league it won't affect me to the same level as those using the FX.

[rganz]

True enough but I wonder how much R&D  from the high end cameras finds it's way into all of the camera products in one way or another. I think this will put the brakes on many offerings from Nikon and Canon, and maybe not just cameras. Watch the price of Nikon lenses in glasses, binoculars, rifle scopes, etc and all the products canon makes like copiers, scanners, medical equip go through the roof.

Rob

[porthole]

True enough but I wonder how much R&D  from the high end cameras finds it's way into all of the camera products in one way or another.

All of it! The lowly D3000 is light years ahead of Nikon's first digital SLR 

And the DX D7000 ain't no slouch either 

[porthole]

Adorama has a list of photo companies and how they were affected

Sony was the hardest hit - and my favorite for TV's

http://www.adorama.com/ALC/News.aspx?alias=UPDATED-Japan-Photo-Industry-Affected-by-Earthquake-and-Tsunami&utm_source=ET&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=EmailALC030911

[cvobiker]

Some of you guys/gals have some really nice camera gear (evident of the Picture section  ) and i'm curious if you actually carry and/or use this stuff on your road trips. And if you do, how much gear (lenses, flashes) do you carry along and what is your real preference? I personally carry a Nikon P90 in my saddle bag, my wife just got a Cannon PowerShot G12 which she lugs in her saddle bag. Both cameras are plain digital cameras and take awesome shots, although the G12 runs circles around the P90 but a few times i can surprise her with a little Photo Shop editing.  The Nikon DSLR cameras seem to be most popular here and the Canon PowerShots for the Digital cameras. I have no clue how to put together a poll thread here but it would be interesting to see what is most popular.  

Then on another note, my next carry-on road trip toy is going to be a Video Cam and after researching for last 6-months, i still have no clue what to get. My budget is $600 anyone have any suggestions here??  

[Midnight Rider]

Anyway, I'm riding with it around my neck.  I keep the lens cap on it (unless I'm actually snapping pics on the fly.....which I do a lot of) but I'm sure at speed it's picking up dust, etc.  How much should I expect to pay to have it cleaned?

JC...unless you are seeing spots on the photos you create, post, or print, I would not be concerned with cleaning the camera.  Even the D60 is sealed well enough not to allow dust particles into the body of the camera...as mentioned, the time you are most likely to get dust in important places is when the lens is off the camera.  Also, I don't know what lenses you use while riding (I would guess just one zoom), but I personally would stay away from anything really long, as it would just get in your way.  IF you are looking for a new lens, I would highly recommend the Nikon 16-85 VR.  Having the vibration reduction settings would be most helpful in low light situations while riding (early morning/late afternoon).  This lens gives you the equivalent range 24-127 in a full frame camera (35mm film or FX in DSLR), and would likely be the only lens you'd ever need while riding.  It is quickly becoming my favorite lens.  If you'd like to look into getting something a little more compact, I can highly recommend the Canon G series Poweshots...the newest version being the G12.  This is an excellent camera...well built, capable of being manually overridden, makes files large enough to easily do a 16x20 print, and while not a shirt pocket size, it is easily a jacket pocket camera, but built solidly...it would remind you to some extent of an old rangefinder camera.  If I were going to upgrade my DSLR camera body, I'd take a look at the D3100 or D7000, but there's really nothing wrong with your D60 unless you need larger file sizes for larger prints.

[Midnight Rider]

Then on another note, my next carry-on road trip toy is going to be a Video Cam and after researching for last 6-months, i still have no clue what to get. My budget is $600 anyone have any suggestions here??  

The G12 is an excellent choice for carrying on the bike, IMO.  Also, my opinion is that Canon "point and shoots" run circles around Nikon at this time.  I have the older G10, and it is what I carry most of the time while on the bike, and also when on vacation when I want to carry something easy to use while walking around town, rather than lugging the bigger DSLR.  Now, having said that...if I know I'm going into an area thats going to merit me getting really serious about taking photos, the DSLR and a couple of lenses, polarizing filters, and even my Carbon Fiber Tripod and ball head will be along for the ride.  With today's zooms, a couple of lenses that cover wide angle to a longish telephoto is all you really need.  I am biased towards Nikon when it comes to DSLR's...nothing wrong with Canon, but I think Nikon has them beat in some areas that are important to me.

Video cams?  I can tell you what NOT to get...anything that records on a CD type medium.  Too much vibration on the bike for that.  Either the little tapes or directly to a card would be my choices there.  I have an older Sony Handycam DCR-HC48 with a wide angle attachment lens that does a good job recording rides while mounted on the handlebar with a RAM product I have.  A helmet cam is another good option to look at, depending on how serious you want to get with doing that kind of work.

[JCZ]

Thanks a bunch rgantz and Terry!

Terry, my camera came with two lenses and I don't remember the numbers on either.  I only changed them a couple of times, when I first got the camera......simply because I didn't have room in the camera bag that came in the package deal, for the long lens. 

And I also do remember that the shorter lense is a VR something or other and I rarely use the flash.  Just seems to take better pictures further away, after dark, if I don't use the flash.

So, only using one lense and having the VR lense are both pluses, for what I use the camera for.  No, no spots in the pictures but when I'm viewing the picture after I took it, I notice the bottom right corner of that window seems to be full of dust or something.  It's not an issue for me.  I just thought that having the camera strapped around my neck at highway speeds for thousands of miles......maybe I should get it cleaned once a year or something.  I hardly ever leave home without it, now.

I've even been expermenting with all the different settings, lately. 

[Midnight Rider]

If you've got a VR lens, then you're good to go, and if you don't find yourself wanting a wider angle or wanting to reach out some distance, you really don't need wide angle or telephoto zoom.  The on camera flash (the one that pops up on top of the camera) is useless more than about 10 feet away, if it's totally dark.  However, even in the daytime, the flash can be a useful thing...for example:  You are taking a photo of someone/some object that is a few feet away against a brightly lighted background...in other words, pehaps the sun is behind your subject...then pop the flash up and use it as a fill light to light your subject, while still properly exposing for the background light as well.  It takes a little reading and playing around to set the flash to the right power output, but it can really make a difference in the photo.  We've all seen photos of a person standing against a sunlit background, and the person is barely distinquishable because the camera is fooled by the background and underexposes the subject (the person)...on the other hand, if you expose for the person, the background will be "blown out", meaning it will look too bright.  Using Flash in those situations, but using it in such a way so that you really can't tell flash was used, makes for a much better overall photograph.  The whole key with flash is to be able to do it well enough that people can't tell you used it when veiwing the photo.  It's worth learning a little bit about all that, IMO...today's cameras are really "smart"...the trick is to know when the camera might be fooled because of unusual lighting, but 90% of the time, the camera is probably smarter than you are.

If you're talking about the LCD on the back of the camera having a spot in the lower right corner, that's probably not the sensor being dirty, but could be a flaw with the display itself.  If you download the photo and it looks fine after downloading, then the LCD is just a minor bother. 

What you have seems to be working well for you, so why change anything unless you want to get a lot more "serious" about photography in general...then the higher end camera bodies and lenses come into play, but be wary, you can sink a LOT of money in camera gear before you blink your eyes good.  I've spent tens of thousands of dollars on gear over the years, but currently have "fine tuned" my gear to suit 95% of my needs.

[rganz]

Good advice Terry
When I do workshops I also tell people not to get hung up on having the latest and greatest because you will go broke trying to keep up. Besides most cameras take unreal pix now anyway. The difference being all the bells and whistles that they offer.  It is different if you use it to make a living. Not up to speed on video so I cannot even make a suggestion there.


CVO
The G12 is a great unit to pack along and actually I rarely bring my DSLR cameras with me when I am on the road on the bike. I have a G10 that I take along. If I take a DSLR along I pack as light as possible...one lens and a flash unit. I have gotten lazy over the years. That being said bring anything that you are comfortable with and shoot lots. Last year on a ride in Utah I dropped a point and shoot Nikon Coolpix that I had with me and it smashed all over the pavement. Someone drove over the SD card before I could retrieve it and damaged the soldering inside it and we could not retrieve any pix from it.  DOH!!!! Good idea to have a few smaller cards and change them out so as to not have all your "eggs in one basket" as they say.


JC
I Think Terry's right about the rear LCD. One of my Canon cameras had a small shadow on the LCD on the back of the camera but it never affected the image because the sensor was fine. If it shows up on the image after downloading it may be as simple as a vignette from a lens hood not installed properly or possibly a sensor issue.

Rob