Tag: DSLR

Hit Man for the Nikon Mafia

Ok, there really is no hit man.  More of a pitch man.  “This is why you need a Nikon.  Look at what you can do with a Nikon.  You really should get a Nikon.  Nikon is always ahead of everyone with their technology.”

I am giving myself several months to choose a DSLR with interchangeable lenses.  Right now there are so many new offerings just out, or out soon (just in time for the winter holidays), that it doesn’t make sense to buy one now.  Later, the reviews will be in, and the prices should drop.  Of course, there will be newer things as well later on.

My thoughts on cameras run in all directions.  Buy good glass, and not be too nutso over the body.  Buy small cameras which are easy to hold, and have good lenses.  Buy something that feels good in the hand with both large and small lenses.  In other words, try the camera on for size.

Nikons are what my friend who lent me his keeps telling me to get.  I think he has been using them for forty years!  Or, as a second choice, he says, get a Canon.

All well and good, but part of me just doesn’t want what everyone else has.  I’m rather ornery that way.  I was drawn to the micro 4/3 system when it first came out, but to date it does not seem as if any of them are really having superb lenses to go with them.  Nikon does have excellent lenses, as does Canon; not too sure about Sony or Olympus or Panasonic in their smaller cameras, though I do believe Leica lenses can work on the Panasonic.  There is argument, though, for and against the Japanese-made Leica glass versus the German-made Leica glass.  Eek!

One which has caught my eye very seriously is the Pentax K-5.  I like its really, really solid construction.  I drop things and spill things all over the place, so it sure does have appeal that way.  Another especially attractive element is the fact that the K-5 is backward compatible with all K-mount lenses.

An attractive smaller camera is the Panasonic Lumix GH2.  I really love my little ZS5 – it takes some really great pictures, and it is what has gotten me really interested in the DSLR world more seriously, especially using manual exposure factors.  For a point-and-shoot camera that fits in your pocket, it is phenomenal as far as I am concerned.

Sony is also interesting.  The Alpha 55 looks like it has a lot going for it, especially in size.  Good reviews are coming out about it, although opinions of its lenses vary.

Price is also a factor.  A good, used Nikon may be had, but there is always part of me which likes to buy something new.  However, that seems sort of silly at times – people are always selling off perfectly good techie toys because another model is out.  And, seriously, this may be the route I take, but I think I need to make a choice of camera itself (brand) before I buy lenses.  And that is where Sigma is interesting – it makes third-party lenses for most major camera manufacturers!

I’m willing to spend on good equipment – things made to last, that work well, that don’t become unfashionable in a few weeks time – all appeal to me.  I’m doing my research!  In the meantime, I am very lucky to have a Nikon D70 to play with.

Resurrection

The other day my photo buddy and I got together.  He just acquired a Nikon D200 DSLR for a song, and in a fit of generosity (as well as a ploy to convert me to a Nikon fan!), has offered me the use of his Nikon D70 DSLR for play.   Isn’t that great?  And I admit, I am really excited about the idea of being able to use a DSLR with interchangeable lenses.  All my digital cameras have had fixed lenses.

I’ve also been on the hunt for a rangefinder camera as I have never used one, and am looking at several on eBay.  I don’t want to spend a fortune, so I have been doing a lot of research.  It never ceases to amaze me how much I learn while looking!  There are so many rangefinder cameras out there – some more popular than others, some with an interesting history, some for pennies, others for thousands of dollars.  To me, what is the most fascinating idea of all, is their supposed portability compared to SLRs.  I’m no expert, but my impression is that the plane of focus can be very narrow, and this gives pictures taken with rangefinders some of their charm – blurred foreground and distance, with razor sharp images in the middle.  As well as this, brilliantly detailed landscapes.

And if I do this – I need to get the pictures developed.  My scanner has an attachment for digitizing film negatives.  But!  I have no negatives that I can find to try it.  Solution?  Dig out my old, and only, SLR – a Canon A-1.

Tragically, I never really learned to use this camera.  My cheapskate side hates spending thousands of dollars on snapshots which I don’t like.  However, with the idea of being able to digitize snapshots, I decided to pull it off the shelf where it has been sitting for too many years.  It has seen better days.  It has been dropped fairly hard, to the point the enamel is down to the metal underbody, and the ISO dial is reluctant to move.  The lens has a haze filter on it, but the entire camera was swathed in dust.  The lens itself was jammed, and a button to release it from “A” for the automatic modes popped out when I tried to move the lens to an F stop.

As you can see, this poor thing has been really neglected.  I got most of the dust off, but this shows you just how much more needs to be done.  Despite this, I went out and got a new battery and the only package of film (Fuji 400 Superia) in the drugstore, downloaded and printed out a manual, which I don’t think I ever even read when I got this camera nearly 30 years ago.  I read the manual front to back.

I pulled out my tripod and set up a few shots, using only the manual elements to do some close-ups of an orchid in the yard, and the dying hop plant.  I tried to do shots with the largest F stop – f/3.5 with the 28 mm macro, and some with f/11 for detail and depth.  I have no idea how they will turn out, but recorded them in a notebook.  It will be interesting to see what they look like.  Hopefully not like snapshots!

It’s pretty amusing to think I used my digital camera (Lumix DMC ZS5) to take these pictures.  If I find myself wanting to use this Canon, we are very fortunate to have a camera repair place here in town that has an excellent reputation.

Time was when one used to be able to buy film in drugstores and grocery stores, but not now.  Online seems to be the place, and camera stores.  The varieties are still myriad, but local availability has dwindled.  Forget having black and white processed at a local lab – it needs to be sent out while color processing stays somewhat local.  It may be worthwhile looking into processing at home or finding a local members-only lab, but that is a bit down the line, and only if I get into it.

How times have changed!