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Just got back yesterday evening after a weekend for at Yosemite w/the g/f for the first snowfall of the year, and the weather did not disappoint. This was the first time ever for using my LX5, and everything was shot manual. I shot RAW and 'fine' .jpg, and everything here is .jpg, since I only have Silkypix and have zero idea thus far how to use it to my liking. Saturday night dumped another foot (at least) on the valley. Felt badly for the fools who I saw in the Curry parking, minivans and cars covered in snow, tire chains/cables in hand, reading directions about how to put them on (hint: not after at least 12" snow, when it's freezing and your front wheels are already covered themselves).

Lesson 1: I kept looking for a long exposure function, as I had to do in my old FS7, and then, after driving out of the park, it occurred to me, "Hey, Jackass, just leave the shutter open for a long time. It's full manual, you can do that." Oi! I wish I'd thought of that for the moonrise over Valley View, but I'm so used to the camera having computer-driven options that something so simple just didn't occur to me.

Lesson 2: I could have just converted all my RW2 files over to .tiffs and THEN worked on them in Photoscape, or something else I'm familiar with, but that, too, didn't occur to me until I'd already spent time working on .jpgs.

The famous elm in Cook's Meadow, w/Halfdome juuuust coming through the mist



The classic Valley View shot, that I usually avoid like the plague, but this one caught my eye because of the one, single yellow leaf at the bottom. I'm also happy that I could get El Cap Gully in at the left side of the shot.



Fallen tree, Merced River, Cathedral Beach



Same thing, different reflective view



Another warhorse: the famous copse of trees in Awahnee Meadow. Just enough color on top to keep it interesting.



Snow on fallen tree, Merced River, looking west from the bridge if one turns left on South Side Drive i/o going right to Curry. I can never remember the name.



Looking NE from other side of bridge.



Royal Arches B&W



Finally, the shot I wish I'd had a much longer shutter open for. The moon was out for literally 1 minute. I'm converting it to a .tiff from RAW and letting my pro g/f work on it in Lightroom.

Real nice shots.

A Panasonic LX5?

Yes, really nice shots.

I've been using a Panasonic LX3 and an Olympus Pen EPL-1 in my quest for okay pictures while still carrying a fairly lightweight, and not overly pricey, camera. Both have their good points, but I still keep looking at the old Olympus E-410 sitting on the shelf and remembering how easy it was to take nice pictures with it - the EPL-1 was it's replacement, but it's a lot harder to just put the EPL-1 in automatic and take nice pictures than it was with the E-410. At the same time, it is forcing me to learn more about taking photos. When the time comes, I'll probably replace the LX3 with an LX5 or LX7....depending on what the model is when the time comes because the LX3 has been a good little camera overall.

Great photos.

I was just in the valley last week admiring all the bright oranges, reds, and browns. What a change. Photos look great.

Bascuela wrote:I was just in the valley last week admiring all the bright oranges, reds, and browns. What a change. Photos look great.

We were just there about three weeks ago, and it's extraordinary how quickly the weather can change, and how variable it could be. It was the weekend they closed the Tioga Pass/Road (filled up at Crane Flat and practically became a snowman, myself) and there was very little color. Then, later than week, they reopened the Pass, and color changed. THEN, just this last weekend, it just dumped snow.

We got very lucky with getting the first snow, even though some of it started to melt as we were leaving. To see what a real pro with real gear can do, this is one that my g/f took when we were at Cathedral Beach. I have to link, as they're protected, but she uses a Canon 5D.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/robinblack ... /lightbox/

I'm a little jealous of her sensor, but I LOVE my new Panny, as I can now do shots like this:

Thanks for sharing.. .Very nice set of photos.. any plans on going back out? I am anxious to go this season

WOW! Fantastic shots. Love the Merced with the snow, especially.

Quick question about the LX5. How do you think it compares overall to your full-blown DSLR cameras? I've been eyeing some DSLR for the Christmas season, particularly the D90. I've always kind of cringed at the thought of lugging around a DSLR, though because my digital point-and-shoot has all manual adjustments already (but the lens in nowhere near what is on the LX5!). Do you think D90 would out-perform the LX5 by a large margin? The couple of articles I read quickly on the LX5 make it sound like a viable option for someone heading into the backcountry.

Thanks,

Gusto