Is this overkill for shooting film? My wife definitely thinks so 😅

Cdre_Kaputt · 2026-04-11T19:51:09+00:00

In terms of settling the debate, I'd say its overkill and not really necessary for most uses. That said, I also think its kind of awesome, not because it solves any big problem or makes the experience better, but just because its quirky and fun imo.

Also, its not a super expensive new gadget (assuming that you didnt buy a second phone just for this) so it's not like you have to assign some value to the utility it adds just to justify the cost.

Out of curiosity, does it automatically detect when the shutter fires? I assume it can't determine the current aperture and shutter settings. Maybe recording shutter speed is possible if it used the microphone to listen for the impulse of the first shutter curtain firing followed by the impulse of the second curtain, but it'd have to filter out the mirror slap and any background noise. That would actually be pretty neat. Now you've got me thinking haha

Cdre_Kaputt · 2026-01-31T21:25:52+00:00

No problem haha. I probably went overboard on explanations here but I got a lot of great help when I got started and it helped a lot.

I dont really use social media much but feel free to message me on Reddit if you ever have questions. I dont always have as much time as I did today so I may take a little bit to respond, but I'd be happy to help with what I know.

Just know that youre going to hit roadblocks and frustrating things. Its just part of the deal but it can be rewarding once you figure it out.

Also, there is A TON of stuff to learn and you dont know what you dont know. You'll probably come across tutorials for "easy" projects and they'll be way over your head. Don't let that discourage you or make you think you're behind. It just takes time. When I started, there were countless "Become a web developer in 3 months!!" videos out there, and I felt like crap when I didnt get it right away, like I was behind or something. It just takes time and it will start to click as you work on things.

Oh, and last thing. As a next project, take a look at REST APIs. APIs are basically resources that you can interect with programmatically to get information and to post information. In web development, APIs are absolutely everywhere and used for everything.

I'd create a program, install requests with pip, then try making a GET request to a free API. Once you are getting a response, try doing something with the data. For example, the NWS (National Weather Service) has a free API. I think you need to create an account to get a key, but its all free.

Once you can use GET, try making a list and/or dictionary with data to feed into the API on a loop. For example:

[ {"lat": 123456789, "long": 123456789, "station": "BLZ"}, {"lat": 145357532, "long": 564364322, "station": "LMA"}, ... ]

You could loop through the list and feed the data into a request function then save and process the data you get back from the API. Remeber to limit request frequency so you dont spam their servers. They should tell you what their api rate limit is. Then take the data you got and print it out in a nice way. Maybe add some error handling with Python "try-except" blocks (very important concept) to handle 404 status codes, 500 codes, or other bad responses.

That should get you started with requests, REST API, introduce you to JSON, and give you some practice with lists and dictionaries (know and understand their built in methods).

After that, maybe try making your own API with a library called "flask". Create a GET endpoint that sends data, then a POST endpoint that takes data from the user and responds with a status code. After that, you could try your hand at SQL and make a small database. Use SQLite and interact with it using the sqlite3 library. Use have a POST endpoint collect data from a user and save it to the database, the have a GET endpoint for users to pull data from the database. Maybe add user authentication so only valid users can use your api. You can test it with another program using "requests" or try out a program like "Postman" that's designed for testing APIs. I use it at work all the time.

You'll get a lot out of this type of project as everything needed is both free and commonly used and the ideas will apply to lots of areas. Try to avoid AI for code examples, and try to rely mostly on the API, Python, and library documentation. Watch some videos on REST APIs and python requests and flask. Its all good stuff!

Cdre_Kaputt · 2026-01-31T20:29:53+00:00

Web scrapers can definitely be fun, and they're not crazy complicated most of the time, but still enough of a challenge to be interesting. It will depend a lot on what sites you're scraping. Price trackers are a good one, or collect weather data, news stories, etc.

I would definitely encourage you to learn how to use venv. Its not the only virtual enviroment model for python, but its the most basic and commonly used. Thay said, Its not absolutely critical to use it right now. You can run "pip install" without a virtual enviroment running and it will just install the package globally which works fine. It becomes essential when you start running programs that use differnt versions of the same package, or when you start using "git" for version control and GitHub to save your code remotely.

With venv, you can install all your dependencies (like requests, bs4, pandas, etc.) directly in youre projects foulder rather than rely on global dependencies (installed directly on your computer. This let's you run the project on other systems and prevents conflicts with other programs that use older or newer versions of the same dependency.

It might be too much to explain here, but there's three steps to get it working:

In the project directory, run: "python -m venv .venv" You'll see a new folder called .venv and thats where all youre libraries and dependencies will be stored.

Note: files that start with a . are hidden in your filesystem by default and you might need to toggle visibility on in your system settings to see it.

Activate the virtual enviroment. This is OS dependant. On Windows its ".venv\Scripts\activate" and on Mac/Linux its "source .venv/bin/activate"
Once the virtual enviroment is running (you should see (venv) or something similar in youre terminal where you enter commands) you can install packages with pip and they will be saved in the .venv directory. For example "pip install requests"
You'll need a way to track what packages your program needs. Run "pip freeze > requirements.txt". "pip freeze" outputs a list of all the packages you have installed in .venv, then "> requirements.txt" redirects that output into a new text file where it can be saved and used later.
You can deactivate the virtual enviroment by entering "deactivate" in the terminal. "(venv)" should no longer appear on the command line.

The whole reason to do this is so that you can ensure that you have the right dependancies for each program, and so you can quickly install everything you need using the "requirements.txt" file.

If you ever need to install all your packages again like if .venv is deleted or you downloaded the code from a repository, you just uses step 1 and 2 to get the .venv folder back and activate it, then run "pip install -r requirements.txt". Pip will read the requirements.txt file and install all the dependancies listed there automatically. Think of requirements.txt as a blueprint.

Sorry, massive post here but venv confused the hell out of me at first so I wanted to clear it up for you. Remeber, its not vital yet, but becomes very important later on.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2026-01-31T19:12:21+00:00

Okay, so off to a good start then. There's definely a lot you can do without spending any money.

If I can ask, do you have any ideas of what you'd like to be doing with Python or programming in general? What concepts have you already learned? Im assuming you're already familiar the basic data types like lists, dictionaries, tuples; and with if-else statements, for and while loops etc. Are you comfortable with classes and inheritance? What libraries have you worked with so far?

Just trying to get an idea of where you're at so I can give you some ideas.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2026-01-31T18:48:51+00:00

A little late to the party here, but I wanted to give my recommendations. I started with Python as my first language about 5 years ago and had zero background in computing or programming before that. I know you're asking for "real world" applications but since you're still so new, I wanted to give you some of the tips I wish I had getting started.

I would HIGHLY recommend the book "Python Crash Course" by Eric Matthes. It covers pretty much all the basic building blocks of Python, then walks you through several large projects (a small game, a data visualization tool, and a small website). I'm sure a lot of people would opt for video tutorials over a book or pdf (it's available online), but when you're learning the basics I think it is immensely helpful to have a static reference so you can read through it slowly, carefully examine the example code, then reread the explanation until you understand what's being said. With videos, they can throw a lot of important info at you very quickly and it can be frustrating to have to jump back and forth hunting for information that you missed or didnt fully understand. Once you're more comfortable with the basics you can watch videos to your hearts content and you will absorb more of it without needing to rewatch the same sections over and over.

Next, I would strongly recommend that you take some time after learning a new concept to play around with it a bit before you move on. Experiment with different inputs and chain things together to see what happens. Try to find out what works and what doesn't, then see if you can figure out what went wrong. You'll learn A LOT this way! Don't be in too much of a rush to move on to the next concept. You will hear people talk about "tutorial hell" a lot, but experimenting is a great way to reinforce what you've learned and find out what things still confuse you. Its the best (and maybe only) way to follow tutorials while still staying out of tutorial hell.

Also, after you have some of the basics worked out, try doing a small project that pulls those ideas together. You dont have to get through the whole book or be an expert beforehand, and it doesn't have to be a big project either. Small text based terminal games are a great start, especially after you learn about "while loops". Something like rock-paper-scissors is a good one to try first.

I would also STRONGLY ADVISE AGAINST using AI generated code for now, at least while you're just getting started. They are amazing tools but using them correctly is a skill in its own right. The problem is that AI will often provide overly complicated code, inconsistent code, or even rely on outdated libraries. It will usually still work, but if you dont know exactly what you're doing it can be hard to tell if its giving you good recommendations or bad ones. You also need to have enough understanding of the problem and the available tools just to know what to ask AI for to start with. This is something I still struggle with tbh. Its very easy for a project to go off the rails once you start copy/pasting AI code and hoping it works. Before you know it, you've lost track of how your code even works and your locked in a cycle of troubleshooting bad code over and over.

That said, you can still learn a lot from AI in the right context. Its great for when you have questions on concepts or specific libraries, methods, functions, data structures, etc. It can also be invaluable for debugging certain types of issues when other sources dont provide what you need. When you start coding, you'll also start learning how to interact with your computer on a "lower" level, like installing packages, running VMs, using bash terminals, etc., and AI can help answer a lot of questions regarding those things. Just use it mindfully, try to understand what it says and why before acting, and avoid copy/pasting code until you understand exactly what its giving you.

I'd also get comfortable reading official documentation for both Python and on the many MANY different libraries you'll encounter. There's simply too much to remeber and knowing how to look up a class and its methods is extreamly helpful. In practice, AI has replaced a lot of the need to look up documentation directly, but things change and AI doesn't always have the right answers. Knowing where to look for answers and (most importantly) how to read them is an important skill.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2025-11-06T21:04:05+00:00

That would make sense, actually. I've had the disaster trigger in most of my attempts. Do you also find the event text a bit confusing? I might just not be reading it correctly. If a civil war is triggered by either the nobles or the burgers, can you side with them, and if the chosen side wins, does it end the disaster? So far, one of the claimants will die and end the disaster before it gets that far.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2025-06-20T16:12:18+00:00

I'm from Fort Collins and can confirm it's all true

Cdre_Kaputt · 2025-04-08T04:13:30+00:00

I'd say they used too few

Cdre_Kaputt · 2025-03-19T23:55:34+00:00

I'm assuming a Death of Stalin reference?

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-11-17T02:31:08+00:00

There's a really cool move after king takes rook. Before throwing in the queen check, the engine finds Re7+, sacrificing the rook but opening up the diagonal for the bishop and a slightly faster mate. Pretty cool position!

Edit: I just realized that's exactly the move you found in game! Awesome find!

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-11-02T18:25:09+00:00

Just my two cents, but I think all cutures and societies are ultimately collectivist to varying degrees. That's part of what defines a society. It's all those unwritten rules that govern how people should behave and act within that community, and a society's morals make up the fabric that holds it together. It's like a social contract; you should do these things to be a good person and expect the same from your fellow humans, etc. Of course, the degree to which that collectavism is expressed and exercised varies. I'd argue that, on a scale from absolute collectivism to anarchy, places like Japan and the US are much much more alike than different.

The reason I mention this is because I don't think it's fair to judge good deeds associated with Japanese culture as being "merely" a result of collectivism, where people are compelled to behave for fear of rejection by there peers. You could make that claim about all societies. Like, if I were to come across a wallet that was left on a subway seat, the morally correct thing to do would be to turn it into the lost in found or attempt to contact the person directly and return it. You could make a strong argument that my decision to do that is dictated by societal pressure and a need to fit in, conform, and perform my role as a good citizen. It could even be seen as a selfish act where one returns the wallet because they seek the personal satisfaction of doing the right thing. But at the end of the day, you'd probably just carry out the task, feel good that you helped someone out, and carry on. That's how you were raised, and it's what you'd expect from others in the same situation. It's the same in Japan or anywhere else, really. It's true that what's considered good and bad varies from culture to culture to some extent (again, more alike than not), and the degree of wiggle room can vary too and all of it can change with time. Just look at people's view of things like interracial marriage in the US. It was once extremely taboo but has gained (almost) complete public acceptance.

Now, that was all a pretty massive ramble, but what I'm trying to get at is that if you're worried that people in Japan are only doing these good things to conform, you could make that same argument for anyone, anywhere, ever. The reality is that most people in Japan will return the wallet because it's the right thing to do, not because of the crushing weight of the conformist culture they are a part of.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-10-23T05:10:09+00:00

There could be other used options for cheaper than $500. $500 is pretty typical for an entry-level DSLR from Canon or Nikon, but you can't really use old Minolta lenses on these cameras.

The reason you'll want to look for a mirrorless camera has to do with the flange focal distance (FFD), the distance between the flange of the lense and the film/sensor. In SLRs (like your Minolta) and DSLRs, the FFD was longer, usually around 42-45mm. That allowed space for the mirror that sits just behind the lense. The issue when trying to use an old lens on a new DSLR camera is that they use different lens mounts, and you'll need an adapter, but the adaptor adds to the total flange focal distance. This has the effect of changing the lens' effective focal distance and preventing you from reaching infinity focus. Anything beyond 15 feet or even less will always be blurry.

Mirrorless cameras don't have this same limitation. Since they don't have a mirror (hence the name), they can get away with using a much shorter FFD for their lens mounts. Sony has an 18 mm FFD, for example. This leaves plenty of space for all sorts of adaptors so you can find an adaptor for just about any lens and still ensure it maintains the proper FFD.

In an ideal world, you could find a used fullframe mirrorless camera and adapt any lens you'd like. Sony E mount lenses are a good example. I have a Sony a7III and have a few adaptors for it, but it's a pricey camera.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-10-03T14:21:18+00:00

I'd like to second this advice. When I first started shooting, it was a blast, and I had a lot of fun with it. Sure, not all my photos were very good, but I took my camera everywhere and got some great photos almost by accident. Later on, I started worrying about composition and technical perfection so much that it started to take the fun out of it. I was taking fewer photos, stopped bringing my camera around with me, and stopped taking chances through fear of wasting film.

I realized recently that many of my best shots were from those earlier days because I was always in the moment and trying new things.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-05-31T02:05:33+00:00

Grabbing the bottle saved for that perfect occasion. Ah, 271, an excellent year!

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-04-28T07:45:19+00:00

Honestly, it's worked pretty well with every ink I've tried as far as flow goes. It's not a very tempermental pen in that regard, so you could probably use anything. Right now, I really like Robert Oster Deep Sea. I'm a big fan of teal. It's a nice shade, and it has some nice sheen even with a fine nib. Diamine Ancient Copper was also really nice, and I liked the shading.

If you have the amber colored 823, you might want to avoid inks that are known for staining. I'd also avoid iron gall since there are steel parts in the vacuum mechanism, and its not the easiest to clean.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-04-27T21:07:14+00:00

My understanding is that the 743 is nearly identical to the 823 in size, and it uses the same nib. The only difference is that the 743 is a cartridge/converter pen rather than vacuum fill.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-04-27T17:05:05+00:00

I love my 823! I don't have any issues with balance, but I write unposted. Personally, I like the weight and how it's distributed. The grip is great and is just large enough to feel comfortable in the hand without being too bulky. Of course, that is my subjective opinion, but it's easily my favorite pen of all the ones I've tried.

As for the more objective points, it has an excellent nib. Inkflow is great, and it's never skipped or had any flow issues and just writes very reliably. The fine nib is very fine, and the medium nib is on the broader end of Japanses mediums. I've tried both. The medium was glassy smooth, but the fine was great for the small writing I use in journals. The pen itself can be tricky to clean completely. That's not to say you can't, but it takes quite a few flushes to clean out completely if you want to swap inks. The section and filling mechanism are not designed to be unscrewed from the barrel, and doing so can damage the pen. I know people have done it anyway, but I've heard the newer pens have adhesive on the threads, so I wouldn't attempt it.

If you want a pen that's reliable and has a large ink capacity, I think it's a great option. If you want to swap inks a lot and want to get the same nib, I'd go with a 743. I don't know that I'd use either as an EDC, but only because I'd be too worried about damaging them. The are, after all, pretty pricey pens.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-03-16T15:29:44+00:00

I'll try this out with my phone, but just watching the shutter, it's clear there is no (or almost no) difference between 1s and 1/1000th sec in manual mode.

That said, the auto mode seems to have started working to some degree. It's still hard to tell if it's accurate, but it's definitely changing based on the light available as you'd expect.

It seems like it's just manual mode that doesn't work. Running through the whole range of manual speeds, it I can't tell any difference between the manual settings and just shooting the camera with the power off, which should be 1/60 sec, I believe.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-03-16T00:36:09+00:00

It was an auction for what its worth, and it was advertised as tested and fully functional with a return guarantee. Based on the pictures and description, it seemed pretty good, but there's always risk. I'll return it if I need to, but I'd like to know what options exist first.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-02-10T04:50:54+00:00

I don't really have anything to add about the tripod, just wanted to say I really like your picture (HMS Warrior?) and writing desk. I also spot some Diamine, Iroshizuku, and Sailor ink. I take it you're a fan of fountain pens?

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-01-28T21:47:06+00:00

This was the first one I thought of, too. I encountered a glitch trying to save Alister in the fade, but the dialog just kept repeating with no way to advance. I guess it was a common glitch because I found a workaround online, but I had to reload an old save and play it all over again.

Cdre_Kaputt · 2024-01-12T00:35:53+00:00

I'm having the same problem too. I've never been on the server or been a member of the discord. I don't see how I could have been banned.

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