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dudemanppl wrote in post #11267656
I just got the 14-24 today, I am literally pooping at the sharpness.
To above: I don't usually use all 51, I use 11 point selection because 51 is too much, I just focus/recompose if I need to. I set it to C (continuous) and use the rear AF-ON button so it basically acts as single. The M is mostly for AF-D lenses that don't have a focus switch on the lens, so you have to turn it off in the body.

Aren't you the kid on FM that sells people "smokin' hot" Nikon flashes?



jokes...

nicksan wrote in post #11266504
Might as well ask this here.

Going to be in Italy between 11/20-11/30. Rome->Florence->Venice.

Yep, you guess it. Lenses? Lenses? Lenses?

What's set in stone:
D700
SB-900
Tripod

OK, so on to lenses. 3 lenses would be ideal, especially if they are going to be the heavier ones. 4 lenses would be the absolute max.

I'm thinking the 14-24 would be cool for architectural shots. 85G for the length. 24G might be nice for low light stuff. 24-70 is a good "safety net" lens and it's a GREAT lens to have on vacations. 50 f1.4 is a nice gap lens between 24 and 85.

Pool of candidate lenses:
14-24
24-70
24G
Sigma 50
85G

Staying home for sure:
105VR
70-200VRII

What say you?

Hey Nick .. the 24G will be extremely helpful when you're indoors like the Vatican .. and all the buidlings you'll be in .. when i went to Rome last year with my Canon stuff was .. 5D2, 24LII, 17-40L and 135L .. brought the flash but never even used it and definitely no tripod (way too heavy)

basically it was the 24L and 17-40 on my camera the entire time except when i was in another country where certain places i wasn't allow to go and i had to get the zoom out for those .. but that is rare and in Italy, you can go everywhere mostly

for me, this is what i would bring, 14-24, 24G and 85G .. dont worry about the 50 gap, we're not working so there's no such thing as a gap

tsw910 wrote in post #11271490
Hey Nick .. the 24G will be extremely helpful when you're indoors like the Vatican .. and all the buidlings you'll be in .. when i went to Rome last year with my Canon stuff was .. 5D2, 24LII, 17-40L and 135L .. brought the flash but never even used it and definitely no tripod (way too heavy)

basically it was the 24L and 17-40 on my camera the entire time except when i was in another country where certain places i wasn't allow to go and i had to get the zoom out for those .. but that is rare and in Italy, you can go everywhere mostly

for me, this is what i would bring, 14-24, 24G and 85G .. dont worry about the 50 gap, we're not working so there's no such thing as a gap

Thanks Tom.

I think at this point, 3 lenses or 4, doesn't really make a difference to me but yeah, those 3 lenses are now pretty much set in stone.

As for the flash, I know what you mean. I always bring my flash though, so that's going with me.

Yes, the tripod. I usually cram that inside my luggage. When I get there I will carry it when I think I will need it. Again, it's a pretty specific thing. I want to take some night photos at Venice. I also want to make sure I snap a few with me and my wife in the frame.

oh one thing .. in Rome, since all buildings can't be taller than the Vatican .. the sunset hitting the buildings and how it lights up .. its really cool and way different from here with all these high risers LOL

tsw910 wrote in post #11271599
oh one thing .. in Rome, since all buildings can't be taller than the Vatican .. the sunset hitting the buildings and how it lights up .. its really cool and way different from here with all these high risers LOL

Interesting fact right there. Had no idea! I have to spend the next week figuring out some of the logistics like train tickets from Rome->Florence and Florence->Venice, places to eat, scheduling, etc.

Oh, yeah, I also bought the SlingShot 202AW to replace my 200AW. I've had that bag for a few years so it's ready for a replacement. I've got too many bags!

man, i want to go to Florence and Venice myself .. as for food, eat anywhere and everywhere! i can't get sick of pizza, pasta (i think i was Italian in my previous life LOL) and gelato ! its different how the pasta are their starter dishes and not their main .. so dont be shocked when they bring it in a small plate LOL

ok, enough about food LOL with the coming of the 35G, i dont know if i would add that .. back in Canon, it was definitely my most used lens bar none! but with the 24G being supa dupa .. i think it may be redundant to have the 24G and 35G and 24-70G LOL

tsw910 wrote in post #11272404
man, i want to go to Florence and Venice myself .. as for food, eat anywhere and everywhere! i can't get sick of pizza, pasta (i think i was Italian in my previous life LOL) and gelato ! its different how the pasta are their starter dishes and not their main .. so dont be shocked when they bring it in a small plate LOL

ok, enough about food LOL with the coming of the 35G, i dont know if i would add that .. back in Canon, it was definitely my most used lens bar none! but with the 24G being supa dupa .. i think it may be redundant to have the 24G and 35G and 24-70G LOL

Yeah, I'm kind of drooling over the 35G myself. If it's anything like the 24G, HELLO!

But I feel the same way. 24mm and 35mm are pretty close. I can definitely see myself using the 35mm, but I don't see myself carrying both at the same time and that's an awful lot of cash right there! Actually, when I was shooting Canon, I traded my 35L for the 24L. But I was shooting different things back then so...

The only real issue with the 24-70G is that it "only" does f2.8. Otherwise I don't feel you sacrifice IQ at all. It's a GREAT lens. I am using it less and less, but that's a lens I will never get rid of.

The only problem is at 50mm. While I like my Sigma, it's still not "there", you know? I used it a lot at the engagement session last weekend and I was a little disappointed with it. Combine that and the kinda weak and not-so-accurate off center AF points on the D700, and it was almost a disaster. The Sigma really struggles with the outer AF points. But I can say the same for pretty much all my lenses to a certain degree. It's just not as accurate as the center column points and often times I'll get soft-ish photos that leaves me scratching my head.

nicksan wrote in post #11271149
Sounds like you were letting the camera decide which focus point to choose on the D700. That's a big no-go, at least IMO.

I wasn't familiar w/ the D700 AF system so was playing around with it. Luckily or because D700 is smart, it detected the eyes and that particular point lit up so I didn't have to do much

Today, the 40D went too. So officially, I have no Canon gear now. Feels a bit sad but I hope a camera like D700 will make up for it

Do you guys like the 10-24mm?

I've never heard of the 10-24. A quick search suggests it's a slower consumer level zoom.

nicksan wrote in post #11272489
The only problem is at 50mm

agreed! i really wished they have the 50L counterpart .. as much as ppl didn't like that lens. i for one loved it and used it constantly .. heck, i love that lens so much, its one of 2 lens i've kept from my canon stuff

at one point, i was even looking into getting some zeiss 50

tsw910 wrote in post #11275276
agreed! i really wished they have the 50L counterpart .. as much as ppl didn't like that lens. i for one loved it and used it constantly .. heck, i love that lens so much, its one of 2 lens i've kept from my canon stuff

at one point, i was even looking into getting some zeiss 50

I had a love/hate relationship with the 50L. When it was "on", boy was it a thing of beauty. Seems like we can say that about all the 50mm lenses we are talking about.

Nikon needs to make a "pro" level 50mm in line with the other primes they've been releasing. Perhaps a AF-S 50mm f/1.2 G. That would be sweet. Probably never going to happen. Just don't get why Nikon won't release anything worth a damn at 50mm.

Is there a way we can use theTimer while on live view mode? I'm thinking not because we have to manually switch it back to the Timer Mode.

All of my pictures on live view/handheld comes out blurry so far. What I do is furst switch to live view, then manually focus on the subject then when everything looks good on the monitor, I press the shutter. Pictures comes out blurry.

eye2i wrote in post #11277155
Is there a way we can use theTimer while on live view mode? I'm thinking not because we have to manually switch it back to the Timer Mode.

All of my pictures on live view/handheld comes out blurry so far. What I do is furst switch to live view, then manually focus on the subject then when everything looks good on the monitor, I press the shutter. Pictures comes out blurry.

We need to more a lot more to determine what's wrong. What were the settings on the camera? Particularly shutter speed. What focal length?

nicksan wrote in post #11277511
We need to more a lot more to determine what's wrong. What were the settings on the camera? Particularly shutter speed. What focal length?

I was using a 35MM Zeiss.

After playing with it, I found out its user error. I didn't know I had to press the shutter halfway first (where it feels like a mirror slaps at that point) then press it all the way down to avoid vibration. It worked. I must admit, I never used a liveview before until today. Pretty neat stuff.


Thanks Nick!