Wow. That's my favorite Orca I've seen to date.

played with photoshop. thought it looked cool so ill share it..

So, Rad,

How's the stability?

Especially on 50mph+ descents?

Any serious ringing out yet? Long climbs, etc?

Please, opine!!!

Nice bike.
I have two of them- one is my daily rider and the other I'm building to race.

The first time I saw an Orca I completely loved it,those pictures are awesome...there are some people here that dare to say that Orbeas are "ugly bikes" ...

ToneB - nice work. Now if you could tone down the highlights on the saddle and bars....

right on, thanks.

oh snaps!

Two words for that: Oh. My.

Toned it down just a bit but still looks the same..

Just like how cyling is about the engine, not the bike, photography is about the eye, not the camera. The camera is a tool--a bad one can hold you back but a good one won't make your pictures any better. I had a 10D and now have a 1D, the improvements in the 1D make the camera more durable and easier to use (especially quickly), but everything that is in the 1D that allows the photographer to take good pictures is present in the 10D.

Some of the minor touches that make the 1D nice most people would never even notice, such as an adjustable diopter in the eyepiece, an integrated eyepiece shutter (to block light from entering during long exposures), extreme weather sealing, dual memory slots (and the ability to shoot to both cards at the same time in the same or different formats), control layout designed for fast adjustment (less intuitive, but easier to change settings quickly with one hand), faster/smarter autofocus, higher frame rate, higher data bandwith/larger internal buffer, etc. None of these things would have helped Rad take a better picture of his bike, but for a pro, they can be extremely useful.

All you really need in a camera to take a nice picture is a good eye, a decent lens, and some degree of control over the exposure. Edit: and good lighting...

A decent lens is key - I've taken great pictures with the most rudimentary, manual Minolta SLR - but those lenses were great. Same with Olympus (okay, an OM2 hardly qualifies as rudimentary, but it was the lense that made it great).

Even my pocket digital Canon takes very good pictures (not quite the same as the film OM2 though), and it's not the electronic doodads - it's the quality of the lens.

Hey Rad, did you get the 54 frame?

57. All my bikes are between 57 and 60. The days of riding the 55 Lemond or the 56 Santana and being comfortable are now behind me.

Its a great shot and the blown highlights are a minor niggle. I've noticed I have to continuously under expose with digital. It's like slide film almost - better to under expose it a bit. Most digital cameras seem to handle shadow detail better than highlight detail?

Rad - wonder how an hdr shot might look?

I respect Orbeas but I do think the fork is a little awkward looking.

Very well said. As a former member of the Nikon Professional staff(15yrs) and now a Canon Pro everything you stated is right on the money.
"Bells and whistles" are fine but it always come down to user input, glass and exposure. Of course nowadays even a 10yr kid can take a great photo if he has the computer skills.
Digital has changed photography for both the very good and the very bad/questionable.

Great shots Rad. Great use of an obviously great studio. Love the red cables.


KRhea

Composition aside, its just about getting the light to the film/sensor in focus for the correct amout of time. Everything else is secondary. For my profesional work, I determine the exposure and color balance independently and set them on manual. But I live on my fast autofocus, high frame rate, and large buffer. I was still able to get good pictures with my 10D, just not as many

im way jealous of your bike(s)

There are very few bikes I find more beautiful then an Orca.

You know, I didn't like the Orca... until I saw this! Nice whip!

What stem is that?

Thomson X-2. 120 mm, 17 degree rise or flat.

55/Rad that is an awesome looking bike!

Call me a compulsive (symetry wise), but I always like to find a stem that has an angle that ends up being parallel to the Top Tube.

Of course after riding for years now, and refining my posture and geometry, none of my bikes have that anymore.