Steve J O'Brien

Blogger: User Profile: Steve J O'Brien:

'via Blog this'
Ok so it's been a while since I Blogged about anything, lately due to my Canon 40D being Stolen I bought a Canon 3ti Digital Rebel and complemented it with the SAMYANG 8mm Fish-eye- What an amazing lens highly recommended, great all round use.
Manuel focus (which is easy as it's a prime lens) all we have to do when starting to use the lens is alter the Aperture Ring & the Shutter speed on the Camera -Using live view to start with it helpful be eventually not needed once getting used to light conditions ISO etc- another point which I didn't begin with is to get the best results shoot in RAW ten if your lighting is a bit off it can be adjusted in Elements 11
Ah right I didn't mention Elements 11- now that is an amazing piece of software and a must buy if you are serious about digital photography and don't have the budget for the full Photoshop version- I picked up Elements 11 off Amazon for £60- which included Film editing software too!

Another new purchase was a bike! Yes my other pastime is Cycling - I had been using the Giant XR2 roam Hybrid bike for nearly 3 years and decided a change was needed so after researching various options starting at a price ceiling of £1000 I bought the Specialized Secteur sport.
A compact set-up with 18 gears (9 speed cassette) I was concerned at first by dropping from 27 gears on the Giant down to 18 on the specialized- no worries I picked a steep hill when first out and took it no problem.
I am fit with the amount of cycling to and from work and extra trips out at weekends so if you think about getting the Specialized as a first road bike you may not get the same result I got but get a few miles under your belt and it's a dream like riding on rails.
The riding position is so comfortable it has a raised stem so you are not bent right over as in other Road bikes it is designed for distance and I can say it really does eat up the miles.
The giant had front suspension another concern was how the forks would cope with the ver poor in places UK Roads- again no problem Carbon forks with Zerts inserts and a slightly longer wheel base with expertly designed frame (a sort of wish-bone shape)
The shifters have amazing 'flippy paddles' changers on the same control as the brakes (which are disc so stopping power is amazing and the wheel rim won't be damaged)
The bike was supplied with Pedals and straps but I am changing to SPD' double sided as cycling in traffic with SPD can be dangerous
The paint finish on the bike is really nice Satin Black and red with a nice tough of the Bike name on the Inside of the rear frame also.
Fast adn responsive I had my head over the bars doing about 20 or so in the dark didn't notice a parked car and swiftly veered around it with no loss of control- also my fasted in line speed was 25 and down hill 40 mph this I had to slow so could have gone faster- overall a great fun bike