Equipment Show us your gear!

I've added a EF 135mm F2.0 L to my list!!

M_D_K : I'm so jealous of that 35L and 85L !! Those two are mising from my kit (and the 5D II would be nice as well ;-) )

 

The 135L is a gorgeous piece of glass. It almost made me think about swapping all my zooms for primes... maybe I'll get around to that one day.

 

There is some quality gear around here. Thanks for the shares.

I would like to venture into this hobby. I was wondering what type of camera would be a good one for a beginner...

Thanks in advance.

Cheers.

 

They all have their good and bad areas.

Best bet would be to go into a shop and handle the latest Olympus, Pentax, Nikon, Canon and Sony Bodies and see which you prefer. Also take some test shots. Then once you have some ideas, ask for some technical input here. Also depends what you want to do.


I (apparently) just inherited a Chinon Camera + a host of K mount Lenses. I buy a Nikon and wind up with a ton of Pentax Gear. It's like the universe is mocking me. Pics when the stuff arrives from Canada

 

A used Nikon D80 would be a good start. Handles really well. I used one as a second body for ages. I was really pleased with it.

A used Canon 20D is another good starting point.

 

I'd avoid a D80. I have one. The metering is as pants as they say. I personally wouldn't worry too much about not having the built in motor. Unless of course you plan to buy the 85 1.8D, 50 1.8D and 35 F2D. You'd be better off with the 50 1.4G and 35 1.8G though imho.

Speaking of which, I'm tempted to get the 50 1.4G lately.

 

??? Sure yours is OK? Mine was flawless in almost every situation (apart from the obvious). It had a tendency to be a little "cautious" in high contrast situations, but that's probably a good thing for a beginner.

I hardly ever use the camera's meter for most shots, instead relying on a far more accurate incident meter, but out of curiosity always see what the camera suggests as well and it almost always agreed with my incident meter. DPReview and Camera Labs agree with this conclusion as well, which was pretty much the reason I got it, as my Canon was constantly under exposing (a fact also mentioned in the Camera Labs review).


BTW.. how has your VR 70-300 been? My non VR 70-300 is dead... need another lightweight replacement.

 

I dont have digital still gear other than a fuji a340 compact,my main cameras are Minolta Dynax 800si and 9xi both very good cameras,lenses I have are the 50mm 1.4 G series lense and the 28-105mm XI tele zoom my flash is metz CZ 45 OR 40 cant remember as ive not used the flash in ages,tripod is manfrotto 161 mk2b studio I use the tripod mainly for my video shooting as I have a heavy camera

 

The D80's meter is pretty decent, not as good as the d90 but better than the D50 in my oppinion

If you are going for a second hand nikon, Just be aware that the really entry level bodies are really tiny.

 

Hmm, it's not dire, but I always seem to think it could do with a stop under/over. Not the case with my D700, lol. Or at least it's more a case of needing to overexpose because my subject needs more light, not because the camera itself is being fooled. I.e my D700 is more predictable, my D80 not so much.

My 70-300VR is fine. It's plenty sharp for close subjects, but start using it for more distant subjects wide open and it isn't that great from 200-300mm. Focusing is pretty standard, in line with other consumer grade nikon zooms. Fast enough in broad daylight for most things. VR is good. Most 'interweb' worthy shots I've taken with it are here;

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gregtherotter/sets/72157609652780122/

 

Gear whoreing again Selling my Ringflash if anyone is interested as I'll have bowens Gemini 500R & large Travelpack on the way soon with a Pocket wizard card in
Borrowed one for the weekend and it was so nice to use and much better to control with fine adjustments rather then full stops of power.

 

About D80 metering, it's fairly common knowledge that Nikon neutered the D80's metering module. They basically took the D2/D200 module and removed all the higher functions, which in the process, also made it rather erratic. It's a goody camera, but relying on the metering is discouraged as Pooky has mentioned. Not a terrible thing, as you need to pay attention to the histogram and use manual to really get what you want, but not the ideal situation either.

 

Exactly. A good incident light meter is something I'd recommend. ALL in camera reflective meters can be, and regularly are fooled... even the best of them.

Having said that... the D7000's has done nothing but impress me so far. It seems equally as good as the D3s... but I still don't trust it. The only completely accurate method of metering is measuring the light falling UPON the subject, not reflected OFF it, unless you use a grey card (see my post in here for more about that).

 

Are the two flashes different?

 

Oh cameraaaa equipment, I thought you meant--never mind...

 

What I currently have.



From left to right.

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR
Nikkor 80-200mm f4 AI-S
Nikkor 70-300 f4.5-5.6G ED AF-S VR
Nikon D7000
Nikkor 24-70 f2.8G ED AF-S
Nikkor 12-24 f4G ED AF-S DX
Nikkor 18-70 f3.5-4.5G ED AF-S DX
Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX

Items not in shot: Manfrotto 190QCB with 141RC head.
Nikon D3 (for sale)
Gladstone 11a bag
Lowepro Pro-Runner 300AW backpack
Sekonic L-308B flash meter
Assorted filters, releases, remote controls and about 64GB of cards.

Will also sell all DX lenses as soon as Nikon release a full frame, hi-res dSLR with 1080p.

 

How are you getting on with your d7000 Pookey? I'm possibly considering upgrading my body next year and I have to say I'm very tempted by it. Should be quite a step up from my d40 too....

 

Awesome. So good in fact, I'm selling my D3. Apart from being full frame, there's no advantage to the D3 at all. I'm happy to keep this until Nikon launch a decently priced full frame SLR with 1080P.

 

If only...

 

If only what?