Yes Jimmy, Nikon Capture is sold individually for about $100. You can probably find it for less. The D70 comes with a one month trial version.

The Capture software gives you the ability to adjust images shot in raw mode. Raw images, Nikon calls them NEF's, retain more data. Any alterations to images performed in Nikon Capture can be reversed or adjusted, with no data loss, as long as the images are saved as NEF files. The images can be converted to tiffs or jpegs for use in other software programs.

I have a digital gray card that I place in either a scene or in front of a painting. You can use the software to adjust the white balance by pinpointing a spot on the gray card. The white balance setting can be saved and then used to correct other pictures shot in the same lighting. The really cool thing is that I can upload this same white balance to my D70. I can also upload adjustment curves.

Marvin, would you say that RAW files are a quantum leap in quality over files saved by the camera in Tiff or Jpeg formats?

The camera doesn't save in TIFF format. It only records JPEG and NEF formats, either individually or both together. I can shoot both a NEF and a JPEG at the same time. When I compare the two, the NEF is sharper if both are blown up on my monitor. Also the NEF has greater shadow detail.

Thanks!

LAURA...

Help - can you give me a step by step? Do you use a gray card?

Hey Mom, this is what I need, we need to track Laura down!

By Mom, I'm assuming you mean Mike O'neal McCarty.

Your Canon has a 9% center spot meter feature. It also has a AE lock which is by your right thumb indicated with an *.

If you have these features you shouldn't need to use the camera like a hand held light meter as Laura was suggesting. The spot meter effectively reaches out and does this at a distance.

You can practice this feature anytime. Just point the camera at something using the regular matrix metering, make note of the exposure. Now(must be in P mode for the spot metering for your camera I think) set the metering to partial (spot I call it on my Nikon) and point back at the same scene. Pick different areas of the scene, lighter - darker, and notice that the partial meter has created a different exposure based on the light in the center of the viewfinder.

Now, pick an exposure and press the AE lock button and then move the camera. You should notice that the exposure does not change.

If your shooting a face, try pointing your partial meter (center 9% for your camera) to an area of middle value and see if that doesn't give you a good balanced exposure of the face.

Great thing about these cameras is that you can practice and see the results almost immediately.

I thought you guys might get a kick out of the fruits of my labor this evening. Here is one of the shots of the very rambunctious 5 year old.

The 7 year old girl was beautiful, but the jury is still out on the one we'll use for the older boy.

Thanks for everyones help, and Laura, Mom, I didn't even get a chance to get this metering worked out this evening. I do understand why any kid under seven must be shot outside during daylight, you really need the ability to pick your camera up and run with them. This guy was behind the drape more than in front.

I just keep the back a somewhat "Leffel green". It was a major learning to shoot three children when you have a dog that likes small boys and a puppy who's, well a puppy.

Take me away Calgon...
P.S. Yes I can see the fill light was too strong from the cast backdrop shadow!

I feel your pain. Here I've got this brand-new, extremely cool camera with tons of modern functions that I am putting great effort into learning, and I spend most of my time during shoots jogging from one end of a playground to the other just trying to get the kids in frame, much less properly exposed. Who knew painting children's portraits could be such a strenuous occupation? :)

Well, I hope that AE lock stuff will eventually come in handy for both of us; I don't think I've used it yet in the five shoots I've done since my Digital Rebel arrived. The true saving grace of digital cameras as far as I'm concerned is being able to carry two 512 meg cards in my pocket instead of ten or twelve rolls of film for my vintage A-1. When I can shoot 250-300 exposures in an hour without stopping to rewind and load, I have to be doing very badly not to find eight or ten good ones in the bunch!

Laura and all the rest who own a Canon Digtal Rebel... we will no longer let those Nikon people brag and go on!

Go to a photography store and buy the book, Magic Lantern Guides Canon EOS Digital Rebel

You will be totally amazed at the things this camera can do that you would never have known by just reading your manufactures manual. Histogram in the LCD/viewer... yeah, we got that! It's all there.

Laura and Mike, thanks for opening my eyes to research this!

:thumbsup:

Ok Beth, Im a rebel with you now....got my rebel yesterday. Now to figure it out.