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‘Choosing the right lenses is tougher than picking the right camera. Kim Brebach from Get the Picture explains why.’

Traveling Lightly

A wise photographer once said: the bigger the camera, the less likely you’ll have it with you when you want it. Most of us use our cameras to shoot kids and pets, sports, city- or landscapes and occasional portraits. Most of us want a camera that’s easy to cart around and can take a few knocks.

Pro shooters who travel light have the same need, and legends like Galen Rowell have proved that you can produce stunning results with simple equipment. His friend Thom Hogan once described how Galen would race past him up a mountain, with only a Nikon F80 and a couple of light-weight lenses in his small chest pouch. .

‘If he were still with us today,’ Thom wrote somewhere else, ‘I’m pretty sure it [the camera in his pouch] would be a D60. The emphasis was on light, light, light. On the lens side, Galen zipped around with an old 20mm f/4UD and the 80-200mm f/4-5.6D (US$99!) consumer lens.’

New Options

That was written a few years after Galen lost his life in a plane crash. If he were alive today, would he use one of the new compacts like the Olympus E-P1 or Panasonic Lumix GF1? Or the Sigma DP2? Or would he choose a D60 or D5000 because of the vast lens choices they offer and their all-round competence? These Nikons are smallish cameras weighing less than half a kilo. Canon, Olympus, Pentax and

Sony all make similar cameras.

As their prices shrunk and their features grew, many of us took the leap and bought a twin-lens DSLR kit. As time went by, we bought more lenses to supplement the two kit lenses. In my case it was a Nikon 18-135mm for convenience, a Sigma 10-20mm for super-wide angles and a 50mm fixed lens for its f/1.8 speed and because all the critics raved about it.

Learning Lessons

I hate carrying big camera kit bags or backpacks when I’m out. Instead I got used to slinging the camera over my shoulder and sticking a second lens into my bum bag. It’s an easy way to walk about as long as the gear isn’t heavy. That Sigma was a heavy lens but a bigger problem was that I now had to make serious decisions whenever I went out: which 2 lenses do I take?

Learning Lenses

One day I took stock of which lenses I’d taken most of my photos with. The result: 80% with the humble 18-55mm, and at least another 10% with the 55-200mm (Seagulls on the right).

Why was it so? I’d bought the 18-135mm thinking it would be on my camera most of the time since it covered the most common range. In practice, it was often just a little short and also lacked the Vibration Reduction of the kit zoom. Worst, it wasn’t as sharp as the two kit lenses until you got to 100mm and over.

The super-wide Sigma produced a few exciting shots with a lot of fine editing, but they were far and few in between. Most landscape shots weren’t sharp enough (really fuzzy in the corners), and the light blow-outs were blindingly spectacular. It’s a special-purpose lens with no practical streak and severe limitations.

The Nikon 35mm f/1.8 prime lens has no real flaws but is no sharper than the 18-55mm kit lens. Yes, it’s faster but the 18-55’s range is more useful so the prime lens went on sale on eBay with the two others.

What do you lose when you go light?

Build quality, size and speed. Nikon’s pro lenses aren’t only bigger, but have more glass inside them and tend to be made of metal. The 70-210mm for example is beautifully made but it’s not the kind of lens you’d throw casually into a bag. Portability is not a strength but speed is: a constant f/2.8 compared to f/3.5 – 5.6. Does it make that much difference? If you’re a pro, the answer’s yes. If you’re an amateur, it’s a lot of extra money and heft for a marginal benefit.

What about super-wide options? That’s a tough question. An improved version of the Sigma 10-20 features a constant f/3.5 aperture and a $1,000 price tag. The new Tamron 10-24mm is lighter (plastic) and just a little cheaper. Nikon’s consumer 10-24mm is closer to $1,500. Tokina makes a couple of good wide-angle lenses but they won’t autofocus on a D60/D5000.

How often do you need a super-wide angle? If you shoot photos of very small apartments for large real estate agents, you’ll need to find the money.

Working out what you Need

My needs are more at the long end of the range. As a mid-range zoom lens that’s light and portable, the 55-200mm takes a lot of beating but beyond 200mm things get more tricky. Nikon makes a 70-300mm VR which isn’t too heavy and gets good reviews. The bad news is that it won’t leave you with much change out of $1,000, which is incomprehensible when you can buy the same lens in the US or from Hong Kong for A$600. Why are we being punished for living in Australia? Because we get more sunshine?

$1,000 is a hell of a lot for a slow (f/4.5 – 5.6) plastic lens, even one with a 450mm reach. Yes, since it’s designed for full frame cameras, the range on a DX (all Nikons except D3 and D700) is 105-450mm. That makes it better value in theory because the longer the tele end, the bigger the ticket price.

Among the alternatives is a cheap Tamron 70-300mm, which gets mixed reviews as they say, and a Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG MACRO, which sold for $300 and was described in many user reviews as the bargain of the year.

For $300 I was prepared to take a chance. The only problem was that I couldn’t buy one in Australia for love or money, even in the middle of a deep recession that saw lens makers in Japan laying off workers.

A call to the distributor produced a vague answer about a shipment due in 3 or 4 weeks, so I ended up buying it from Adorama for the same A$300 including the hefty $50 freight charge for having UPS deliver it to my door four days later (there was no cheaper, slower option).

This 100% crop is from a shot of Centrepoint Tower taken from Waverton across the harbour. This lens doesn’t need much sharpening across the range, the colours are accurate and the build is rock-solid. The AF is a bit noisy and the macro function a bit clunky but still the only thing the lens really lacks is VR. Given the bargain price, who’s complaining?

Filling gaps

We’re back to three lenses but most of the time you know when you need to pack a long zoom, like when there’s stuff on the harbour like the Sydney-Hobart or the Queen Mary coming through the heads. The Sigma is too heavy to go walk-about with as well so it rules itself out for Sunday walks, but a special purpose lens for $300 I can live with. I may buy a second hand super-wide one day to fill that gap, because super-wide angles can be fun.

Meanwhile, here are links to the views of a couple of Nikon gurus on lenses:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/dx-dream-team.htm
http://www.bythom.com/DigRecs.htm

Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.

The Glass Menagerie: Choosing your Best Lenses

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This text comes from 1001noisycameras.com If you are seeing this text on another website or blog, it means they are republishing the contents of our feed without permission. This full-text RSS feed is provided as a service to our loyal readers to thank them for their support and offer them more flexibility in the way they receive their camera and photography news. Republication of this RSS feed on any website or blog is prohibited and violates the terms of use of this RSS feed.

We just posted a new burst-mode of specials at the Camera Deals blog including the D-Rebel T1i at $670, Panasonic GH1 at $1420, and Kodak M1093 + dock for $100. But the purpose of this post is something more time-sensitive. Today is the last day for the Nikon instant rebates at Amazon. They end at the end of day today, so if interested, be sure to look into them.

We summarize below, with prices as usual, as of the time of writing. Please note we don't have magic technology that automatically senses changes and rewrites blog posts! That's something for someone with the IT resources of "The Google" or "The Microsoft" and even they haven't done it yet! One more thing, we did the price-math using our bird-brains, not calculators, so this increases the chances of an error.

For the instant rebates to take effect, all items must be sold and shipped by Amazon.com itself, not any third-party sellers. Also, if you don't see the Instant Rebate discount in your Amazon Checkout page (top right corner), then there is something wrong. Do not proceed since you cannot fix it later. We have an example of how that looks at the bottom.

Advanced Nikon DSLRs
+ Nikon D700 body-only + 70-300mm VR = $2400 + $512 - $200 instant rebate = $2712

+ Avoid the D700 + 24-120mm bundle! The 24-120mm lens on its own goes for $529, while the D700 + 24-120mm kit goes for $3000. Thus, $2400 + $529 = $2929 vs $3000

+ Nikon D300s body-only + 70-300mm VR = $1575 + $511 - $200 instant rebate = $1896

+ Again, avoid the D300s + 18-200mm VR II bundle, since it costs more! That kit costs $2428, while the Nikon 18-200mm DX VR II goes for $796. Math majors are badly needed in the retail world! If you buy individually, $1575 + $796 = $2371 vs $2428. Amazon, you sell calculators - use them!

+ Nikon D90 body only + 70-300mm VR = $795 + $512 - $200 instant rebate = $1107

+ Nikon D90 + 18-105mm DX VR + 70-300mm VR = $1032 + $512 - $200 instant rebate = $1344. In this case, LOVE the kit, the 18-105mm lens on its own goes for $360. $795 + $360 = $1155 versus $1032 for the KIT. It's like getting the 18-105mm DX VR for $237 in the bundle.

Affordable Nikon DSLRs
+ D5000 body only + 70-300mm VR = $600 + $512 - $200 instant rebate = $912

+ D5000 w/18-55 DX VR + 70-300mm VR = $652 + $512 - $200 instant rebate = $964

+ D3000 w/18-55mm DX VR + 55-200mm DX non-VR = $470 + $157 - $100 instant rebate = $527

+ D3000 w/18-55mm DX VR + 55-200mm DX VR = $470 + $216 - $100 instant rebate = $586

Example of how the Amazon Checkout page should look
If you are not familiar with the Amazon instant rebates, below we have a screenshot of how your Amazon Checkout page should look like. If you don't see the discount there, it means there is something wrong, and DO NOT proceed. We are using the D90 body-only + 70-300mm instant rebate as an example, since its price is fairly stable.

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http://www.1001noisycameras.com/2009/11/panasonic-gf1-review-by-neo-iso-comparison-vs-k7-and-f200.html

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The review party continues for the Panasonic GF1, as NeoCamera has just published their findings after checking out the camera. Their review includes ISO-crop-comparisons with two cameras with a larger (K7) and smaller (F200 EXR) sensor. They go all the way to ISO 3200. They also have full-size real-world sample images.

Almost everybody has reviewed the GF1, there are 32 reviews of it in its review-cluster already!

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journal by Archaznable, your friend

Right now I'm craving for a 32" HDTV for Christmas when I was looking and canvasing for an HDTV in some of the appliance centers. I happened to passed by on one of the brands that took my attention. And that HDTV is a Panasonic Vierra a 32" model with a c10x model and it was priced at around 20 to 23k. I haven't seen any reviews about this Panasonic 32 inchers but the price just couldn't resist. I don't know if that c10x model is an LCDTV or a Plasma but when I look at the price tag it says an LCD so it really is an LCDTV. The only thing that I've heard about this brand is that it's just only a 720p so meaning it doesn't get hight to 1080p. Which is ok you wouldn't see the difference of it because its just a 32" you will experience a 1080p if your screen is 40" or higher.

Also I've seen a lot of Samsung 32" that priced at around 25 to 26k. There are a lot of 32" HDTV right now that is priced at around 20 to 28k so expect a lot of price drop this coming christmas season its like a Black Friday here in the Philippines hehehe.   

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journal by Arianne, your distant relative

 

Aaminin ko, mas gusto ko talaga yung mga delikadong coverage.

 

Nakakabuhay kasi ng dugo yung pakiramdam na hindi madali yung ginagawa niyo ng crew. Yung feeling na siyet, mahirap at delikado to… pero pag natapos namin ‘to, ang galing-galing namin!

 

Pero itong recent Ampatuan massacre, may nagkuwento sa akin na naka-receive daw ng tip yung mga tiga-media na may mangyayari nga raw kapag tinuloy yung convoy.

 

Hindi ko alam kung totoo yung kwentong yun, pero napaisip pa rin ako. Kung kasama kaya ako kunwari sa mga na-assign na magcover nun, tapos na-receive ko yung tip… tutuloy kaya ako?

 

Feeling ko oo. Tutuloy ako.

 

Kasi iisipin kong pwedeng exclusive yun kapag nakuhanan namin ng bonggang-bongga! Tsaka marami naman kaming tiga-media, wala naman sigurong mangyayari sa aming masama… In fact, puwede pa nga magamit nung mga kalaban yung media para maiparating yung mga demands nila diba, kaya wala naman siguro silang magagawa sa amin…

 

Pero that’s me speaking bago pumutok yung balita na lagpas 20 journalists pala ang pinatay sa bayan ng Ampatuan.

 

Parang matinding wake-up call ulit yung nangyari e… Akalain mong paulit-ulit nang sinasabing isa ang Pilipinas sa mga pinaka-delikadong lugar for journalists, pero ang dami-dami pa ring nagwowork sa media. Masaya din kasi yung work namin.. tapos minsan may perks pa!

 

Pero kahit sangkatutak na perks ang natatanggap namin.. narealize ko na hindi pa rin ganoon ka-powerful ang Media or Press ID.

 

Hindi puwedeng shield ang Media ID sa mga bala ng baril… Hindi nito kayang pigilan ang mga bakal o kung ano pang gamit na ihahampas sa ulo ng mga journalists… Hindi nito kayang i-restrain ang mga lalaking nais mang-rape ng mga babaeng hostages… Hindi nito kayang maghukay ng daan palabas kapag binaon na kami sa lupa…

 

Hindi kaya ng Media ID na bumuhay ng mga patay.

 

Kaya matindi ang paniniwala kong our job isn’t worth dying for. E ano nga naman ba kasi kung may exclusive coverage kami? Kung kapalit naman nito ang buhay, bale wala rin. Mananalo yung coverage nung award, pero asan yung aawardan? Tsaka after a few months I’m sure may panibago namang award-winning coverage (hello, sa dami ng gulo sa Pilipinas, hindi kami mawawalan ng i-co-cover…) at pag nangyari yun, mababaon na sa limot yung iba… kawawa naman kung namatay ka pa for something so ephemeral diba. Mas magagampanan namin ang aming tungkulin bilang journalists kung buhay kami.

 

Pero ayokong isipin na those journalists in Maguindanao died for nothing. Kasi hindi naman talaga.

 

Pinakita nung pag-massacre sa kanila, at sa iba pang mga inosenteng tao kung gaano ka-corrupt ang political system dito sa bansa. Dahil sa kanilang kamatayan, nalaman natin kung ano-anong mga panganib ang araw-araw na hinaharap ng ating mga kababayan sa Maguindanao. Dahil sa Ampatuan massacre, na-realize natin na may mga taong walang kaluluwa at kahit pumatay pa sila ng pumatay… kaya nilang lumusot dahil walang kwenta ang justice system dito sa Pilpinas.  

 

Ito rin yung ilan sa mga bagay na patuloy naming tatalakayin sa Media… hangga’t hindi pa napupukpok ng todo ang ulo ng mga taong dapat managot dito.

 

Hindi ganoong ka-powerful yung Media ID ko pero hangga’t kaya ko pa siyang isuot, paninindigan ko yung tungkulin na kaakibat nito. Pero siyempre mag-iingat din ako ng todo…

 

Dahil sa kabila ng ipinagmamalaki nating demokrasya at press freedom, ganoon pa rin kadali para sa ilang mga tao na patahimikin, patayin, at babuyin ang mga journalists dito sa Pilipinas.

 

Ano ba 'to, kinabog pa natin ang Iraq at Afghanistan. Nakakahiya. Tsk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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photos by ash, your friend hollee ivy's friend

gragraduate ako this sem. *cross fingers*behind the scenes.

• I think I am starting to discover what makes this life-long condition easier to bear.
• I can't set a particular age for when I want certain things to happen because this, as with so many other things, is not completely in my control. I can only determine my focus. That is all I can do, and so I will be satisfied with that.
• Faith without works is dead.
• "Salita ka nang salita, wala ka namang ginagawa". Don't talk the talk if you can't walk the walk.
• Anger is such a wasteful emotion if the energy generated isn't channeled towards something productive and good.
• I feel the Christmas spirit. This has always been my favorite season. I can't wait till I go home! I miss the cold, I miss the pine trees, I miss the clear blue sky, I miss Baguio.
• I have made my final decision about work. God please lend me strength to see this through.
• More should be expected from those who have more personal resources; more should be expected from those who have been given much. And I'm not just talking about money. Intelligent, talented people have the potential to do so much for others - it pains me when they choose to live selfishly. Such a waste of valuable human resources.
• Apathy in the blessed is a tragic thing.
• g is still the one I can't afford to see. It is better to completely steer clear of temptation. I won't try to analyze the deeper implications of this fear.
• So much has happened this year. My end-of year entry will be..... stuffed full to bursting, like I will be on Christmas (everyday, I am reminded of how blessed I am).
• Why service? It's because I don't see my abilities as mine. They are only on loan from my Creator, who I serve by using my blessings to serve others. This return to Him was the light at the end of my own dark, painful tunnel. It keeps me going on both good and bad days. At the beginning and at the end of every day, I pray that I walk as He wants me to.
• All I really want is to be able to face Him at the end of every day. If tonight is my last, I have to be okay with that - and so I want to always be able to say that I did what I could.

This is my life now.