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Thursday, June 7, 2007 -
New lens
After posting last week that my new lens hadn't arrived it appeared the following day. I didn't get a chance to play with it until the weekend when we visited Richard's folks in Margate, but I'm very pleased with it.
I'll still probably shoot more photos with the Sigma, as a lot of the photos I take at the moment are low-light evening events, but this seems to be a lovely addition.
I'll still probably shoot more photos with the Sigma, as a lot of the photos I take at the moment are low-light evening events, but this seems to be a lovely addition.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007 -
Nikon 18-200mm lens
I'm still waiting for my 18-200mm Nikon lens - there really seems to be a shortage of these lenses in the UK at the moment. Jessops apparently have a 200+ on order, and of those 80 are already ordered for customers.
So, I'm still using my Sigma 30mm lens for all photos, and the more I use it, the more I love it. Hope I love the Nikon one too when it finally appears.
So, I'm still using my Sigma 30mm lens for all photos, and the more I use it, the more I love it. Hope I love the Nikon one too when it finally appears.
// posted by Jane @ 7:28 PM
Comments:
I too stayed on a Jessops waiting list for a while but they don't seem to have a good supply chain. In complete contrast there's what I believe is a great little camera shop in Chichester (West Sussex Cameras) who seem to be able to get them easily. They've got 2 for me in the last year and both times took less than a week to source then. Worth a go...(they're in Yellow Pages somewhere)
Thursday, May 10, 2007 -
Kit Bag: Nikon D80
The Camera
My main camera is now the Nikon d80 (having upgraded from my Canon G3). I've had it only 10 days or so, but so far we're getting along just fine. I've experienced the same problem as many other d80 users - namely that it has a habit of overexposing (apparently it exposes for the blacks in the picture) but a quick adjustment on the exposure meter sorts that out. Other than that, no problems at all.
The Accessories
Lenses
So far I have one lens - the Sigma 30mm f1.4 - fortunately I love it. I wanted a fast lens for shooting some of the geek events I attend as light levels can be pretty variable.
I also have the Nikon AFS DX VR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED IF on order.
Once I've got used to these lenses, I'll determine whether I need a more wide angle lens to add to collection.
Filters
I have one filter for the Sigma lens (62mm) and that is a UV filter. Over time, when I've worked out which lens I'm using in what circumstances I'll get a polarising, a Neutral Density and maybe some close up filters. I already have a 72mm UV filter ready for when my 18-200mm lens shows up.
Accessories
So far I have the following:
The Case
I've used my non-camera Crumpler bag a lot over the years, and it has just kept on going. So, I thought I'd give the Crumpler Pretty Boy 4000 XL a try. It looks fantastic, and fits everything I need (at the moment) into it without a problem.
Saturday, February 17, 2007 -
Which DSLR?
After 4 years of solid use, the time has come to say goodbye to the trusty Canon Powershot G3 and upgrade to a DSLR. As the last 2 digital cameras had been Canons, then I'd assumed I would remain true to the cause and remain a Canon girl. I have no lenses and therefore free choice at the moment.
My initial thoughts were to go for a Canon EOS 400D, and so I headed off to Jessops to try it out. I got on ok with the system, but it felt a bit too plasticky, and felt somewhat unbalanced with a larger lens on it. I began to think that I needed something in the "semi-pro" range instead of the prosumer range.
I continued to read up on options, and to ask about for recommendations. The next stop was to go into Clock Tower Cameras, here in Brighton which was a master stroke. The gentleman behind the counter was knowledgable, and patient and extended my models to consider by introducing me to the Pentax cameras. As always I'd headed off armed with 2 memory cards - one CF and one SD - and so proceeded to snap away and try them out. What became apparent very quickly was how much more robust the Pentax 100D felt in comparison to both the Canon 400D and the Nikon D40. Based on that, and the ease of use, in this range the Pentax would be the one.
But now I'd started thinking about the next range of cameras, so the Nikon D80, the Pentax K10D and the Canon 30D, so back to Jessops to hold and try. In this range, the Nikon and Canon catch up on robustness, and so there was no clear winner on this factor. I plugged all three models into the Digital Photography Review side-by-side comparator to get an idea of the differences.
The flickr Camera Finder has proven useful giving the ability to see what photos have been taken with each of the cameras:
Pentax K10D
Nikon D80
Canon EOS 30D
Unfortunately, it doesn't break it down by lens, but does give an idea.
After reading the reviews, it is between the Nikon and the Pentax (read the hands-on report), so a complete change from my original thoughts, I am leaning towards the Pentax at the moment, but I think another trip to the camera shop is required, to try a few more settings based on what I've read - including the Adobe RAW format on the Pentax K10D as all my test shots were taken as JPEGs.
My initial thoughts were to go for a Canon EOS 400D, and so I headed off to Jessops to try it out. I got on ok with the system, but it felt a bit too plasticky, and felt somewhat unbalanced with a larger lens on it. I began to think that I needed something in the "semi-pro" range instead of the prosumer range.
I continued to read up on options, and to ask about for recommendations. The next stop was to go into Clock Tower Cameras, here in Brighton which was a master stroke. The gentleman behind the counter was knowledgable, and patient and extended my models to consider by introducing me to the Pentax cameras. As always I'd headed off armed with 2 memory cards - one CF and one SD - and so proceeded to snap away and try them out. What became apparent very quickly was how much more robust the Pentax 100D felt in comparison to both the Canon 400D and the Nikon D40. Based on that, and the ease of use, in this range the Pentax would be the one.
But now I'd started thinking about the next range of cameras, so the Nikon D80, the Pentax K10D and the Canon 30D, so back to Jessops to hold and try. In this range, the Nikon and Canon catch up on robustness, and so there was no clear winner on this factor. I plugged all three models into the Digital Photography Review side-by-side comparator to get an idea of the differences.
The flickr Camera Finder has proven useful giving the ability to see what photos have been taken with each of the cameras:
Pentax K10D
Nikon D80
Canon EOS 30D
Unfortunately, it doesn't break it down by lens, but does give an idea.
After reading the reviews, it is between the Nikon and the Pentax (read the hands-on report), so a complete change from my original thoughts, I am leaning towards the Pentax at the moment, but I think another trip to the camera shop is required, to try a few more settings based on what I've read - including the Adobe RAW format on the Pentax K10D as all my test shots were taken as JPEGs.
// posted by Jane @ 6:31 PM
Comments:
Hey, I recently went through exactly the same DSLR dilemma :)
I was going to go for the 350D or 400D, but as soon as i picked them up, i found they were too plasticy and too small for my hands.
After trying a lot of DSLRs in Jessops, and researching them all on the net, i eventually returned to buy the Nikon D70s - a lovely, lovely camera at a good price, and the kit lens is great - 18-70mm :D
To be honest, all of the DSLRs are great, and whatever you buy, you're pretty much going to be happy!
One quick thing which you're no doubt aware of - if you want an AF lens with the D40, you need to get a newer lens with the focusing motor built into the lens, which are more expensive.
I was going to go for the 350D or 400D, but as soon as i picked them up, i found they were too plasticy and too small for my hands.
After trying a lot of DSLRs in Jessops, and researching them all on the net, i eventually returned to buy the Nikon D70s - a lovely, lovely camera at a good price, and the kit lens is great - 18-70mm :D
To be honest, all of the DSLRs are great, and whatever you buy, you're pretty much going to be happy!
One quick thing which you're no doubt aware of - if you want an AF lens with the D40, you need to get a newer lens with the focusing motor built into the lens, which are more expensive.
Jane,
Get the K10D. I looked at all the others and picked the Pentax. Image quality is, to all intents and purposes, identical whichever camera you choose. The deciding factors for me were the Pentax's superior build quality/weather sealing, the in-body anti shake, the fact you can use lots of older, cheaper Pentax lenses with it and the availability of top quality, compact and light DA prime lenses. It's not perfect-no camera is-but it was the best of the bunch for me. Having said that, make your own mind up. Handle them all and get the one that you feel most comfortable with, everything else being equal.
Regards,
Bruce
Get the K10D. I looked at all the others and picked the Pentax. Image quality is, to all intents and purposes, identical whichever camera you choose. The deciding factors for me were the Pentax's superior build quality/weather sealing, the in-body anti shake, the fact you can use lots of older, cheaper Pentax lenses with it and the availability of top quality, compact and light DA prime lenses. It's not perfect-no camera is-but it was the best of the bunch for me. Having said that, make your own mind up. Handle them all and get the one that you feel most comfortable with, everything else being equal.
Regards,
Bruce
