The $1 photographic essential

One of the most useful pieces of photo equipment for home shots only costs a $1, and that's a largish piece of white card.  What I do is I put it on a dresser we have and curl it up the wall, sitting the object to weigh down the card so it doesn't move.  I then use bounce flash to shoot, with an over exposure by the flash of 1 stop.  Usually I use a macro lens due to the excellent resolution and set it around f11 for maximum across the frame sharpness.  My Micro-Nikkor easily outresolves the D600 sensor, so no issues getting details, and also allows for deep cropping.  Because of this, getting back a little to increase the depth of field, is usually a good idea.

Almost perfect product shots for a $1 outlay.

Rainy flower shooting

Over summer last year we had some relatives come to visit.  We decided to take them to the nearby Edward Gardens, but the inclement weather had different ideas.  We stayed around for a short while, though it wasn't a whole lot of fun.  I took the D90 and the Nikkor 60mm micro and took a few shots where I could.  Drops on flowers always come up well, and this situation was no different.

NOCT is back

Nikon Rumors reports that Nikon has filed a patent for a 58mm f1.2 lens, with an optic elements diagram that is very similar to the famous Nikon NOCT 58mm f1.2 lens.  The NOCT that was released in 1977 and remained in extremely limited production until 1997, with less than 11,500 ever made. By way of comparison, Nikon has produced over 7 million 18-55mm VR lenses!!  It was designed to perform at its best at maximum aperture and to prevent chromatic spherical abberation, commonly showing up as low contrast with 'bat's wings' around points of light. 

I am sure Nikon sees this as a great opportunity to compete against Canon's 50mm f1.2 L series lens, and gain some profit from a higher end lens.  Without a doubt, Nikon will price such a lens in the $1,800 - $2,000 price range, similar to the 35mm f1.4 and the 24mm f1.4.

Edward Gardens - Nikon D90 w/ Nikon 60mm f2.8D Micro

Nikon V1 - Massive Price Drop

The Nikon V1 certainly isn't the best mirrorless on the market, but at the recent price drop to $299 with the 10-30mm zoom, it makes a compelling case.  What this camera would work really well for is macro, the small sensor creating large depth of field even at 1:1 full frame equivalent.

With a Nikon 60mm micro, this would make a focal length of approx 165mm, and with loads of resolution, it would be great on the V1 high resolution sensor.

Other deals are out there too.  I see Henrys had an open box Pentax Q for under $300, and a Pentax K-01 with the ultra slim 40mm Pancake lens can be had for just over $400.  I love the Q for its tiny size and the K-01 because it can take regular Pentax lenses, with the excellent Pentax21mm f3.2 being a real treat for this camera.

 All sound like a bargain to me.

Lunenburg NS - Nikon D90 with Sigma 10-20mm @ 10mm

Nikon 35-70mm f2.8 - My other sample

Recently I was asked to do a shoot for a family that lives close to us.  They wanted some shots of them and their children to hang up and use around the house, and I was happy to oblige.  I decided to take the Nikon D90, the Nikon SB-800 flash and a few lenses.  I packed the Nikkor 35-70mm f2.8, the Nikkor 60mm f2.8 Macro and the Nikkor 35mm f2.  

When I got there I decided to use the 35-70mm to give me a little zoom range for shooting busy children.  It worked OK, but for some reason the shots came out decidedly flat and lacking in contrast, even at f5.6.  This became significantly worse when pointed to even slightly in the direction of the sun.  I tried a lens hood, but that didn`t work.  This was very disappointing as the other sample of this lens I owned was excellent.

Growing a little frustrated, I attached the 60mm macro and suddenly all the contrast, colour and sharpness was back, and so I kept it on using it for the remainder of the shoot.  Indeed my best shots came while using this lens.  Below are two shots taken next to each other to illustrate the difference.

Once I have a bad experience with the lens, its time to let it go; and that`s exactly what I did.  These still bring good money on the used market, and this will enable me to put money towards a new full frame D-SLR.

Nikon D90 with Nikkor 35-70mm f2.8

Nikon D90 with Nikkor 60mm f2.8 micro