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2024-03-13

Staeble-Telexon E 85/5.6: Samples [1] - FF

Photos taken with the Sony a7c (FF, 24MP) and the Staeble-Telexon E 85/5.6 at f/5.6.









Posted by malykh в 00:04 0 comments

2024-03-12

Samsung NX lenses: My statistics (2010-2024)

I have been using Samsung NX cameras since 2010. Although I have sold most of my NX equipment, I still have two lenses (NX 20/2.8, NX 30/2) and two cameras (NX10, NX2000).

For my interest, I calculated the usage of Samsung NX lenses for the period 2010-2024 (cameras are NX10, NX20, NX300, NX300M, NX500, NX2000). This statistic is based on the number of SRW (raw) files and their EXIF data (LensID/LensType in terms of exiftool).

Percentage of SRW files by lens:

LensPercentage
NX 30mm/267.34%
NX 20mm/2.86.97%
 - Manual lenses - 5.52%
NX 16mm/2.45.09%
NX 45mm/1.84.91%
NX 18-55/3.5-5.6 OIS (III)3.93%
NX 10/3.5 Fisheye2.30%
NX 50-200/4-5.6 OIS (III)1.65%
NX 60/2.8 Macro OIS1.27%
NX 20-50/3.5-5.6 (II)0.52%
NX 16-50/3.5-5.6 PZ OIS0.50%


As expected, my most popular Samsung NX lens is the NX 30/2 (45mm f/3 equivalent). In fact, I used it a lot. It was and still is my favorite Samsung NX lens.

This distribution is not just a matter of focal length. The nature of a lens is also important. For example, I was disappointed with the NX 60/2.8 because of its size. Or, there were cases where the NX 18-55/3.5-5.6 was used only because of OIS (optical image stabilization). The NX 20/2.8 is handy but optically weaker than the NX 30/2. And so on.



See also related notes:
Posted by malykh в 00:14 0 comments

2024-03-11

724mix - OS/2 mixer for YMF724 [OS/2, 2000-2001]

724mix is a simple mixer for OS/2 with a text mode interface for YMF724 based sound cards. I wrote it in C++ in 2000-2001.




Now I have released the source code: https://github.com/malykhcom/724mix

Notes:

1. Some source files (shared with Qu-Player/2) are missing. It is impossible to build the application without modifying them.

2. Although it is formal C++ code, it is more C code with some C++ syntax sugar.

3. And typical for my old code, "t" is used as a loop counter name.



Posted by malykh в 00:00 0 comments

2024-03-10

Clarinet Marmalade, Fletcher Henderson, 1926 (different)

This is the version of "Clarinet Marmalade" that I was looking for and have found. It is by Fletcher Henderson, 1926 (different).



This is the best version of "Clarinet Marmalade" in my opinion.

Posted by malykh в 00:01 0 comments

2024-03-09

FED 2: Rangefinder film camera

Yet another M39x1 rangefinder 35mm film camera. This time it is the ФЭД-2 (FED-2).



The FED-2 (1952-1970) was a direct competitor to the Zorki-6 (1959-1966). Both are M39x1 rangefinder cameras. On the one hand, both are very simplified (no slow shutter speeds, no light meter), but on the other hand they have the coupled rangefinder, which is combined with the viewfinder, and the rangefinder base length is quite long (due to the lack of a slow shutter speed mechanism). This is one of the advantages of these cameras.

Note that the 1969-1970 FED-2 is a different camera with a different design and appearance (it's a stripped-down version of the later FED-3 with an advance lever/crank), its rangefinder has a shorter base length.

I think the pre-1969 FED-2 is overall the best practical camera in the FED line. It is quite usable (unlike the earlier ones) and at the same time looks nice (unlike the later ones). The lack of a light meter is not a problem today (at least you can use a mobile application instead).

My FED-2 is the PE0400 version. It's characteristic is the dark red (wine) color, a flash sync terminal on the front panel near the lens mount, a new design of the shutter speed dial, and the lack of a self-timer. This version was produced only in 1957. I was especially looking for this FED-2 version because I like non-black colors and the front panel without a self-timer: it makes the camera look more vintage.

This FED-2 does not have a film advance lever/crank. You have to turn a knob to advance the film and cock the shutter. It is not a fast action, but I like the feel of the old days.



This version allows you to change the shutter speed before and after the shutter is cocked. But some early versions may require you to cock the shutter before changing the shutter speed.

Like the Zorki-6, the FED-2 has five shutter speeds (not including Bulb). But this version uses an old shutter speed scale: 1/25, 1/50, 1/100, 1/250, 1/500. The updated scale  (1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, similar to the Zorki-6) is used from 1959.

The shoe mount is "cold", but there is a sync terminal (from 1956).

There is a diopter adjustment on the viewfinder (under the rewind knob).



It is a very good thing, but the adjustment can easily be changed by accident.

Unlike the Zorki-6 (where the film door is used), the FED-2 has a removable back (film cover). 



It is nice to have a tripod mount close to the lens mount.



It is a 3/8" ("big") thread mount. To mount the camera on a modern tripod, an adapter to 1/4" should be used.

I like the FED-2 better than the Zorki-6: the design, the look, the feel. And as I said before, the Zorki-6 is too similar to some Zenit SLRs, which I do not like very much.

My FED-2 camera looks like a good copy. The shutter works, but in cold weather there are some problems with slow speed (at least with 1/25). There were also some minor problems with the rangefinder (which I fixed).

And I had some questions about the reliability of this copy. I also found some minor damage that the seller didn't mention. After some negotiations, I returned the camera.

So once again I have no 35mm film camera to use.

Posted by malykh в 00:01 0 comments

2024-03-08

Pentax M 100/4 Macro: Samples [1] - FF

Photos taken with the Sony a7c (FF, 24MP) and the Pentax M 100/4 Macro at f/4.











See also related notes:
Posted by malykh в 02:29 0 comments

2024-03-07

Digitizing a film with a digital camera (2006)

When I first started shooting with digital cameras, I also tried to use them to digitize old films.

In 2006 I made a pretty good construction:




It was based on the Pentax *ist Ds (my first DSLR, 1.5x crop factor, 6MP). On the camera was mounted the Industar-61L/Z 50/2.8 with a M42x1 extension tube in between (to increase magnification). 




The lens was combined with other M42x1 extension tubes and slide/film holders.





As far as I remember, I took the holders from an old slide projector Свет ДМ-4Т (Svet/Light DM-4T) or similar.

The frame was illuminated by reflected light of a flash.

I used this construction to digitize slides (i.e. positive films). The result was good. But color negative films required (at that time) too many difficult actions to restore original colors. So in the latter part of 2006, I switched to a flatbed image scanner that could also scan films.

Posted by malykh в 00:03 0 comments

2024-03-06

RockStar/AstrHori 35/1.8 (Sony FE/E): Full-frame lens

This is a non-electronic manual focus full-frame lens for the Sony FE/E mount.



It's called the RockStar or AstrHori 1.8/35. 




It has an unusual design with two filter threads. The "inner" thread is 52mm, it moves back and forth when focusing, but it doesn't rotate. The "outer" thread is 58mm, it doesn't move when focusing, but it does rotate.




If you use a filter on the 52mm thread, you can't use a cap on the 58mm thread at close focusing distance.

The minimum focusing distance is about 29cm, which is good. The hard stop focuses to infinity, which is rare for a Chinese lens.

The aperture has 9 blades:




Also note the yellow tint, this will be an important consideration.

The aperture ring with click stops: f/1.8, f/2, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16.

Optical design: 9 elements in 7 groups




This lens (on the right) compared to the Samyang AF 35/2.8 (on the left) and the Cheecar FF 35/1.4 II (in the center):




The lens is quite large and heavy.

Posted by malykh в 00:02 0 comments

2024-03-05

Duplicate fret markers [DIY]

Round stickers:




These stickers duplicate the fret markers on a guitar neck.




Sometimes it comes in handy.



Image albums:
Posted by malykh в 00:03 0 comments

2024-03-04

Pentax K-m vs Sony a7c: Size comparison

The Pentax K-m is a compact, lightweight DSLR with an APS-C sized sensor (1.5x crop factor). The camera is quite small in the DSLR world. But how small is it compared to the full-frame mirrorless Sony a7c?

I mounted the Pentax A 50/1.7 (the smallest Pentax K-mount lens I had) on the K-m and the Samyang 35/2.8 FE (the smallest Sony FE-mount lens I have) on the a7c.





This shows how small the Sony a7c is despite being a full-frame camera. I especially like the absence of the pseudo-pentaprism protruding from the body.

Posted by malykh в 00:00 0 comments

2024-03-03

Noname [OEM] 50/1.1 FF: Samples [1] - FF - f/1.1

Photos taken with the Sony a7c (FF, 24MP) and the Noname [OEM] 50/1.1 FF at f/1.1.











See also related notes:
Posted by malykh в 00:04 0 comments

2024-03-01

Webolog: Common/Combined Log Format analyzer [Java, 2001]

In 2001, I had access to the server logs of a Tonigy website. I tried several ways (at least Moglan, Webalizer, Analog, ALA, and hypermart.net service) to analyze them, but I didn't like the results. So I decided to write my own web log analyzer.

Although I wrote Tonigy in the C language, I decided to use the Java language. Java had a much more advanced standard library than C. In C, even simple string manipulation was too verbose.

I was also writing in Perl at the time, but I was never a fan of that language. I didn't see Perl as a language for anything more complex than a few CGI files.

In 2001 I created an analyzer called Webolog, which I never published. But I used it a lot in my work. It was a command line tool for Java 1.1+. It takes logs in Common or Combined Log Format, extracts data, collects it, and generates a bunch of HTML files (with statistics).

I do not have logs that old, but I found screenshots from May 2001. Funny, they show MS IE as the browser.

Total visits:




"Referers":




Search queries (from "referers"):




It is possible to configure query extraction. The search sites at that time:

===
web.altavista.com q
www.altavista.com q
www.lycos.com query
www.google.com q
www.google.fr q
www.google.de q
www.search.com qt
google.yahoo.com p
search.163.com key
en.os2.org query
===


Browsers used:




And OS used:




Agent data extraction is also configurable with RegEx.

===
; Opera
"Opera/(\S+) \(.*Windows 9(?:5|8).*\)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Windows 95/98"
"Opera/(\S+) \(.*Windows NT 4\.0;.*\)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Windows NT"
"Opera/(\S+) \(.*Windows NT 5\.\d;.*\)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Windows 2000"
"Opera/(\S+) \(.*Linux.*\)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Linux"
"Opera/(\S+) \(.*OS/2.*\)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "OS/2"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*Windows 9(?:5|8).*\) Opera (\S+)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Windows 95/98"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*Windows 2000.*\) Opera (\S+)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Windows 2000"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*Linux.*\) Opera (\S+)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Linux"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*Windows 3\.10.*\) Opera (\S+)\s+\[[a-z]{2}\]" "Opera" "Opera $1" "Windows 3.1"

; Internet Explorer
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*MSIE (\S+);.*Windows 3\.1\)" "Internet Explorer" "Internet Explorer $1" "Windows 3.1"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*MSIE (\S+);.*Windows 9(?:5|8).*\)" "Internet Explorer" "Internet Explorer $1" "Windows 95/98"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*MSIE (\S+);.*Windows NT 5\.\d.*\)" "Internet Explorer" "Internet Explorer $1" "Windows 2000"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*MSIE (\S+);.*Windows NT(?:| 4.0).*\)" "Internet Explorer" "Internet Explorer $1" "Windows NT"
"Mozilla/\S+ \(.*MSIE (\S+);.*Mac_PowerPC.*\)" "Internet Explorer" "Internet Explorer $1" "Mac/PowerPC"

; Netscape Navigator
"Mozilla \(OS/2; (?:I|U); OS/2 Warp\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator" "OS/2"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \(.*OS/2.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "OS/2"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \(.*Linux.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Linux"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \(.*Macintosh.*68K\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Mac/68K"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \(.*Macintosh.*PPC\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Mac/PowerPC"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*OS/2.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "OS/2"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*Win9(?:5|8).*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Windows 95/98"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*WinNT.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Windows NT"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*Windows NT 5\.\d.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Windows 2000"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*Linux.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "Linux"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*SunOS.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "SunOS"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*AIX.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "AIX"
"Mozilla/(\S+) \[[a-z]{2}\].* \(.*IRIX.*\)" "Netscape Navigator" "Netscape Navigator $1" "IRIX"

...
===


Webolog collects data in a simple database. For simplicity I didn't use a RDBMS. Instead, the data is stored in a ZIP file containing several binary and XML files. Not very efficient, but it was enough.

Then Google Analytics became usable and even popular, so I stopped using Webolog.


p.s. And when I looked at the source of Webolog, I found using the variable name "t" as expected:





See also related notes:
Image albums:
Posted by malykh в 00:01 0 comments

2024-02-29

Olympus E-PL1: Micro 4/3 mirrorless camera (from 2010)

My new old camera: the Olympus E-PL1 with the 14-42/3.5-5.6 lens (28-84mm equivalent).




I mentioned this camera back in 2011. It is exactly this one. I recently got it for free.

It was one of the first mirrorless Micro 4/3 cameras (2010). The crop factor is 2x (with the 4:3 aspect ratio), 12MP.

The camera has simple controls. There is not even a dial except for the mode dial. To change the aperture/shutter speed in manual modes, you should use the up and down buttons.




Surprisingly, the menu is quite powerful, there are many options to customize the camera.

The shutter counter shows about 5500 frames. But there are few problems, typical for old Olympus cameras. However, the camera shoots and is still usable.

I don't see any reason to use the camera for everyday photography, but I hope to test it with some manual focus lenses (via an adapter).

Posted by malykh в 00:00 0 comments
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