haux

Why did you get that camera if you're not willing to learn it? SLRs aren't toys. You have to learn how to use them to get it all right.

Ahhh! Smooth out the terrain!

It's still difficult to judge, man. You just have to learn your camera. To freeze the trains going fast, you'll need a fast shutter speed. Mayby 1/500 or faster. And you'll have to compensate with the aperture, but I don't know what kind of aperture you get with that 18-200. Bump the ISO up and play with the shutter and aperture. But like I said, there's really no way to just say what you need. I can't just say: "Set the shutter at 1/600, F/5.6, ISO 200 at 105 mm." There's just really no perfect way of saying. Learn your camera. Get a feel for it in lots of settings. Or try these two "rules": "f/8 and be there." And the "sunny 16" rule, which is when it's sunny, set the F-stop at 16 and your shutter speed around the ISO speed. Say you're shooting at 400 ISO. You'll want it at f/16 and your shutter around 1/400 (probably 1/500).

There's really no way to answer this question. It all depends on your light, speed of the coaster, what sort of effect you want, the depth of field, your lens, etc. Get a feel for your camera first. Really, I don't think there's a way to answer this. There's no simple "just do this in this situation" answer.

No and no. Actually, I recall seeing a coaster that was edited a long time ago that was able to go something like 100,000 mph, but that was edited with some outside program.

Nine tutorials on the basics? OK! Glad I'm heading into my weekend. I'll check it out, I guess.

I downloaded it. Thanks. I've been handbuilding since NoLimits came out, so I'm sure there'll be a big learning curve for me with this program. I'll give it a shot tonight after work.

This isn't really a "help" comment, but I didn't know where else to post it. Am I the only one who builds everything by hand anymore? I've tried a few older tools like the Purgatorium (still works really well when I can get it right) or Elemental, though I don't quite understand it. I've also tried the AHG, but it made no sense to me. I tried making a zero-G roll, and though it made a heartlined element, it wasn't a zero-G roll because it didn't complete the roll. It just tilted to the right, inverted, then tilted to the left. Some of these I haven't even heard of. Newton? I wouldn't know where to get it and probably wouldn't know what to do with it. This is part of the reason I don't post tracks. I can't use tools, and I'm never satisfied with my hand-built tracks.

It looks pretty cool. I'm looking forward to it.

That's been done before. Obviously.

This thread is becoming a parody. Don't let me get it back on track with a success story gone wrong.

One month is nothing to mark. Buy her a chocolate heart or something if you're going to celebrate one month. Sheesh.

Comment: Always make a backup. Sorry, man.

Does anyone have any stories that aren't of success? This thread's getting a little too happy.

Former Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska described the Internet as a "series of tubes" and said his staff sent him an "Internet" that he got days later. This man was on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which oversees an Internet subcommittee.

That's a nice picture.. A thing I learned from shooting something that has a lot white, (like in that picture) it's always good to overexpose it a lot. The camera's meter see's all that white and thinks the scene is really bright so it underexposes the picture, and it will give you a correct exposure reading and you will end up with a dark depressing snow scene instead of a bright, happy snow scene. I forgot how much compensation you need, but I would try one stop and higher and see what looks good from there. For sunsets/sunrises, if you want a really detailed sky, undercompensate. I learned all this stuff from a book Yeah, I'm learning it all from trial and error. A couple of weeks ago, I was shooting snow, and you're right. My camera wanted it underexposed, so I had to adjust the stops until I got it right. It thought the exposed picture was metered right, but it wasn't because the snow was so bright. I'm really enjoying my camera. It's one of the best purchases I've ever made.

I bought an SLR a few months ago and have been playing with it a bit. My New Year's resolution was to take one photo a day with it. So far, so good. This was the morning we had freezing fog roll through.

All right. I'll back off and let you be miserable. I'm 27. My friends are all in serious relationships, engaged or married. Many have been married for a few years and have a couple of kids. So I know what you're saying. I'm just saying maybe you need an attitude adjustment because the way you're being now isn't helping anything. And it's not fun to try to drag other people down to your pathetic pity party.

I think you just need to take a step back. You're 23. It's OK. If you've never had a girlfriend, you've always been going to bed alone at night. Don't try comparing it to something you don't really know yet. I'm not saying love isn't something you wouldn't want. You're just going about it the wrong way. Sure, things may be upsetting now, but what's this not "pretending everything is all right" nonsense? You're alive. I assume you are healthy and have a family that loves you. Just cool off. Go for a walk. Clear your head. Yes, I was angry and bitter and jealous on Valentine's Day and the days leading up to it, but I got over it. I'm going to find a woman someday. It may not be soon, but I'm not really thinking about it. Being that bitter at your age isn't going to get you anywhere. I was bitter for a long time when I was your age. I had a girlfriend when I was 21, and that was a mess. My next girlfriend wasn't until I was nearly 25, and she was my last girlfriend. Do I harbor bad feelings? Yeah, sometimes, because of the way she treated me after she broke up with me, but I get over it and move on. You need to relax, man. Songs and movies tell you that love is the only thing you need. Sure, it's nice, but tell me you're not loved. Does your family hate you? Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe your family does hate you, and I'm sincerely sorry if they do. But getting so worked up at your age is just bad for your health. Settle down, think about things, and you'll see it's not so bad. Besides, would you rather run off and get in a relationship right now knowing it won't last and be that good, or would you wait for a really great girl to come around? Trust me, the latter is much better than the former.

^ Have you ever considered that perhaps it is? If you only feel comfortable in a relationship, you should seek help. Or at least try to enjoy yourself. It's OK to get lonely, but you shouldn't feel that it's better to be in a relationship than not in one. I know people like that. They skip from boyfriend to boyfriend (or girlfriend to girlfriend), but they're not truly happy. And the significant other knows that. Try changing your mind. At least get out and get your mind off it.

^ It wasn't the media, and it wasn't the cost. I think the reason they took out the drop ride versus not taking out the coasters was because of the reasons they happened. The coasters were rider/operator error. A person too big to ride was allowed to ride anyway. With the drop tower, it was maintenance's fault. The girl was not too big to ride, and the ride operators had almost nothing to do with the accident (I say "almost nothing" because they apparently weren't properly trained on E-stopping and maybe did not exactly notice something wasn't right.). They were different instances. I'm sure with the drop tower, they didn't want that to happen again. So they fired maintenance staff and removed the ride. With the coasters, they could retrain operators and modify the restraints.

You'll get over it, and you'll date again. No worries. You're too young to consider being "single forever."

I guess I'll just have to see what you're doing because I don't understand the difference between lateral supports and angled supports on the lift hill.

I just meant why would you put custom lateral supports up when the program will automatically put them up when the track is at a certain height. What would possess you to all custom supports?

Why are you doing custom lateral supports? I understand customizing supports in low turns or parts where the prefabs don't go, but why would you want to do the entire supports but the ones under the track?