Camera

[Rodney_gold]

Always underexpose  sunsets for those deep oranges and reds - one to 2 stops will do , you can always brighten up but cant really "darken" and maintain the spectacular aspect of em if overexposed.
Also , be aware that pics coming out of most Canon cams are "soft" and will need some unsharp mask to sharpen em up. Be juducious in your use of unsharp mask..oversharpening will introduce artefacts.

[...]

Absolutely stunning Rodney, perhaps I will get there one day.
The only problem I see with digital is the computer screen, I will explain, looking at your pics on the pc. At work they look great but slightly over exposed, looking at them on my i-Mac at home they almost look as what I would expect with the naked eye but just a tad to the dark side, on the I- pad they are exceptional, the colors are very natural and the pictures look absolutely perfect.
I find this quite difficult as one would never be able to get the colors in a way that will please all (IMHO)or am I way off the beaten track here.

[Rodney_gold]

Well , it is a huge issue as to view all stuff s it is intended you need a calibrated monitor , the problem is calibrated to what.
At work , I have a What you see is what you get setup  WYSIWYG and the screens are calibratedto a large format printer which is in turn calibrated for pantone or some other colour schemes.
At home , I have used dowloaded and inbuilt graphic card  test packages to calibrate my screen as best I can.
Most pics end up on monitors anyway so It's worth calibrating right.

[Stereophreak]

Well , it is a huge issue as to view all stuff s it is intended you need a calibrated monitor , the problem is calibrated to what.
At work , I have a What you see is what you get setup  WYSIWYG and the screens are calibratedto a large format printer which is in turn calibrated for pantone or some other colour schemes.
At home , I have used dowloaded and inbuilt graphic card  test packages to calibrate my screen as best I can.
Most pics end up on monitors anyway so It's worth calibrating right.

I also used the calibrating function that came with the gpu. Luckily it's quite close to my printer's setup. It's amazing what you can get used to, only to realise later that you were WAY OFF! Same with sound I suppose.

[...]

I also used the calibrating function that came with the gpu. Luckily it's quite close to my printer's setup. It's amazing what you can get used to, only to realise later that you were WAY OFF! Same with sound I suppose.

Exactly what I am saying.

Well , it is a huge issue as to view all stuff s it is intended you need a calibrated monitor , the problem is calibrated to what.
At work , I have a What you see is what you get setup  WYSIWYG and the screens are calibratedto a large format printer which is in turn calibrated for pantone or some other colour schemes.
At home , I have used dowloaded and inbuilt graphic card  test packages to calibrate my screen as best I can.
Most pics end up on monitors anyway so It's worth calibrating right.

As you say Rodney, "calibrated to what ?"
I have various calibration packages for the I-Mac, it seems to prefer darker tones more than anything else I look at.
The I-pad looks good, the I-phone 4 pretty much same as the pad.

As strereophile said, same as audio, the other issue what one individual finds pleasing the next one might not.

What I can say is those pics of Rodney's are very pleasing to me, thanks for sharing.

[joel]

And then when you turn the lights on, everything on your screen looks different too.

NEC essentially believe calibration starts not on the monitor, but in the room in which it is being used.
You need to get the walls and lighting colour temp correct, then calibrate every single piece of equipment used in the imaging to the same standards.

My the colours on desktop monitor (which I calibrate every few weeks because I can) look different with the lights on and off. 

[...]

Update.
I have been having loads of fun, some pics that are just different 

[Ampdog]

Ah!

That steam train journey was where?

The second photo, could just about be salon standard. Very slight movement enhances it rather than distracts, to my mind. Great mood photo.

[...]

Ah!

That steam train journey was where?

The second photo, could just about be salon standard. Very slight movement enhances it rather than distracts, to my mind. Great mood photo.

Hi Ampdog
It was the train from Hermanstad to Cullinan, not as scenic as the Magalies trip but still awesome, it's a 2 hour ride and you then spend time in town, enough time to buy some liver pate, nougat, have lunch and even do the diamond mine trip 
Those pics were taken quite near to the township as we passed.

[...]

I have been playing around a bit more and managed to capture some crepuscular rays.
I vignetted the image a bit just for added effect 

[Schalk]

Real purdy 

Is this what is meant by those "rays" you're talking about?

[Mervin]

crepuscular rays

Impressive... Crepúsculo in Portuguese means Twilight...(Byrd go and impress the wife) my word of the day. Thanks Analogos

[Stereophreak]

Very nicely done. I like the processing too.
I was lucky enough to catch a sunset with lightning. I had to stop down like a mad man to try and get the shutter long enough to get lucky with a lightning strike, but not so long that the highlights get completely lost. I sort of managed it, but still lost some detail in the bright spot.