Gene F. Rhodes

Camera Editing: With all the controls provided with this camera I can manually adjust the exposure, contrast, white balance and focus just the way I want them before capturing the image. The magnified internal viewer makes all this possible, and is more than adequate to judge the shot.

PP6 Editing: Nearly all my images are edited with Picture Publisher 6.0. In my customized tool bar are two rows of icons that provide immediate access to my editing tools. I've found nothing that can match PP6 for simplicity and efficiency. (With PP6 I don't need the Minolta Image Viewer.) Bought PP10 for ($35 from Corel). Very useful, but to unreliable to replace PP6.

Manual Exposure: I set the camera to Manual mode and the Digital Effects dial to AV comp. Shutter speed is adjusted with the control wheel, and so is aperture when the AV comp button is pressed. The internal viewer displays these changes as they occur.

White Balance: If Auto WB or one of the other presets is close enough, I'll shoot and adjust later in PP6. If not, I'll use a white card (folded piece of ink jet paper) and do a custom preset.

Contrast: I normally shoot with contrast comp set at -3. This reduces the editing required by PP6 to get proper balance in high contrast scenes. If I could adjust comp to -30 it would be much more useful. Especially on bright sunny days.

Manual Focus: Since I've discovered Flex Focus I can find no reason for using manual focus anymore. I hold the Controller center button down for one second and a cross appears in the center of the viewer. That's the spot focus point and seems to work better for low light focusing. I can move the cross around with the Controller keys, if necessary.

Memory 1-3: Three sets of camera settings can be saved for quick selection. I use Memory-1 when I don't have time to plan the shot. Started with defaults and then set contrast to -3 and exp comp to +1. (All my pictures seem to be underexposed at least that much.) Memory-2 for indoor flash pictures. Started with defaults and set contrast to -3, flash comp to +1 and exp mode to shutter priority at 1/60 sec. Memory-3 for planned shots. Started with defaults and set contrast to -3 and exp mode to manual. This is my favorite and is also used for flash pictures.

	Magnificent camera: All the controls I've wished for and easy to get at. Simplest menu system I've seen. I use the internal viewer most of the time to conserve battery power, and in auto mode it only lights up when my eye is near.
	HiContrastControl: Bright sunny images have too much latitude for my D7i to capture. When compromise is not a choice I expose for both highlights and shadows and combine the two in PP6. I created a mask in PP6 to captured 50% of the shadow image and pasted it onto the highlight image. Additional editing is usually required though. Now Fuji has invented a camera that does all that for me. FujiF700
	Wide Angle: Finished testing my Phoenix .65X wide angle aux lens that mounts with a 49-62 mm adapter ring. This lens does not clip corners, but its extended view is fuzzy. Full resolution image cropped top, bottom and RH side to reduce file size.
	Flash Accessories: It's been difficult deciding which accessories I'll need. The top image is the Minolta 3600HS(D) Maxxum Flash, and the bottom image shows the accessories required for use with the Dimage 7i camera. I generally leave the supplied wide angle diffuser installed on the flash. The extra flash width and diffusion gives me better coverage and softer lighting.
	Flash hookup: The 3600 can be used off camera with and without hookup cables. Remote wireless allows the flash to be placed where needed without cables. The internal flash blinks to trigger the 3600. Off camera hookup uses the OC-100 cable and the OS-1100 shoe. Also shown is the FS-1100 shoe adapter for my Sunpak 622 Super flash with ring head. (I bought a Sunpak "Maxxum" MX-1AF dedicated module for use with my Sunpak 622, but it will not work.)
	Slave Flash: To improve my lighting setup I bought some Morris DC Midi Slave flash units from Adorama (SUMMNAF) for $38. They work well to lighten certain dark areas, use 2 AA batteries, have a GN of 55 and a tripod mount. The image shows one midi mounted on a handmade bracket to use as bounce supplementary lighting.
	RC-1000s: 20" remote shutter release cord. Press button to focus, press harder to expose. Press-and-slide button to lock shutter. No other functions.