December 2020 Camera Gear Check 2020-12-27

December 2020 Camera Gear Check 2020-12-27

Sharing what I'm mostly shooting with as 2020 comes to a conclusion.

Primary DSLR Camera:

Body: Nikon D7500

Lens: Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX DC OS HSM

Grip: Peak Design CL-3 Clutch Camera Hand Strap with Arca Plate and Peak Design Anchors

Compact & Pocketable Point and Shoot Camera:

Pocket Camera: SonyRX100MK3

Manfrotto Pixi Mini Tripod

Desk Tripod:

Neewer Desktop Tripod 

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G 2019-12-27

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G 2019-12-27
Product: https://www.nikonusa.com/en/nikon-products/product/camera-lenses/af-s-dx-nikkor-35mm-f%252f1.8g.html

I've been shooting with my phone and a compact camera of late and have made a conscious effort to shoot on my Nikon DSLR a bit more.  Along those lines, I'm going to make a more concerted effort to use a prime lens and force myself to move around a bit more instead of just zooming.

I shoot on Nikon's DX (APS-C) line of cameras so I'll be looking to use the 35mm f1.8G lens for this "homework" assignment.  It's a highly embraced DX lens in the community and is quite economical (sub 200 dollars).  It is a G lens and is made of hard plastic.  As I mostly shoot casually when out with friends the f/1.8 aperture is perfect for low light photography in evenings and allows me to avoid using as much flash.

The lens itself is quite small, very light, and has a lens hood, soft lens cover, and uses 52mm thread filters.  For those newer to the DX line of Nikon cameras, this is the first prime lens to get for most shooters.  You'll read online that 50mm is the preferred lens but that is for full-frame (FX) shooters.  On Nikon's DX line with the crop factor, the 35mm lens is the DX lens that fits the bill best as it approximates the zoom of a 52mm FX lens on your DX camera.  Lastly, 50mm on FX is revered because it most closely approximates the viewing angle of the human eye.

If you shoot Nikon DX DSLR cameras, this lens is one of the quintessential lenses for your kit.
If you shoot on Nikon FX DSLR there is a separate 35mm FX lens.  DX lenses are wasted on FX cameras.

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G

Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G

Nikon DX Sigma Lenses

I added two new Sigma Lenses to my collection:

Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC
Sigma 17-50 F2.8 EX DC OS

Nikon 10-24mm F3.5-4.5 G ED AF-S DX Nikkor Lens

Nikon 10-24mm F3.5-4.5G ED AF-S DX Nikkor Lens

Ultra-wide 10-24mm lens for Nikon DX cameras gear check

Photos:

Macro Photography (Nikkor 40mm Micro F/2.8 DX Lens)

I started testing out the Nikkor 40mm Micro Lens F/2.8 DX (Nikon's Macro lens).  I paired the lens with a Nikon D5100.

It works well as a 1:1 Macro lens and takes decent general 40mm shots as well.  With an f/2.8, it handles most normal lighting well.  I do miss the f/1.8 of the 35mm prime but this lens allows for some closer shots.  For those really interested in macro photography a longer lens might be needed as getting in close can cause shadows.

Nikon 40mm f/2.8G AF-S DX Micro-Nikkor Lens

Nikon 40mm f/2.8G AF-S DX Micro-Nikkor Lens
Lens runs approximately $280 USD.

I made the splurge on my first macro lens, Nikon uses the micro designation for its macro lenses. Confusing, yes.

As my photography focus generally is more on candids,  people, scenery, and food, I didn't want to make a large splurge on a very zoomed in macro lens (e.g. 80 or 100mm)  The 40mm macro allows for closer focus ranges and also allows for general 40mm photography so I decided on trying this lens out.  It might not fit my general use purposes as well as my 35mm f/1.8G prime lens especially in low light but I am already seeing major differences in up close photos so the balance between the two lenses in usage will need to be explored.  More to come over time.

Nikon Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 G

Nikon Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 G

Latest lens added to my glass collection.  I really like my 35mm f/1.8 G lens and I decided to add to my prime lens collection.  The build is very similar to the 35mm.  More updates to come after I experiment with the lens.  I think the 50mm will be great for portraits, some closer ups but might be a little too long for casual indoor photography.

The lens runs about $220 on Amazon, B&H and various other retailers.

Original boxing

Nikon 50mm f/1.8 G comes with lens, lens cap and soft cover

Lens with lens hood.

Nikon J1 10-30mm Kit Lens Test Photos

In an attempt to be a little more technical, I'm going to be putting the Nikon J1 through a slightly more thorough user test. 

Now that I have played with the Nikon D5100 for a few months and done a little homework, I am better able to judge competancies and end results of cameras and photographs (by no means on a pro level, more as a hobby)

I have no qualms carrying my DSLR with me at all times, but I can definitely see the perks of having a smaller decently high quality camera as well.  I'm aware I'm a little behind the times but with the price point of the J1 and V1 dropping down to about 300 dollars with a kit lens for a savy shopper, it might be time to re-evaulate Nikon's 1 series of cameras.

So far:

Pros: light weight, extremely speedy auto focus, super easy for a point and shoot user to pick up and use.

Cons: manual adjustments require using a clunky interface, smaller sensor, limited lenses (but that is improving)

Note: for any of you lens/physics afficianados out there.  The Nikon 1 uses a compact mirror-less sensor system (10.1 Megapixel CX format CMOS sensor) The Nikon 1 CX sensor yields a 2.7x field of view magnification factor.  A 10mm lens on the Nikon 1 is equivalent to a 27mm field of view on a standard camera.

The included kit lens is a Nikon 1 Nikkor 10-30mm/f3.5-5.6 VR Zoom
This yields approximately an equivalent 27mm - 80mm lens on a standard camera.

First sample image: Flowers on my Kitchen Table

1/30 F4 ISO 3200 14.5mm on a Nikon J1 10-30mm Kit Lens



 

Nikon Nikor 18-300mm f3.5-5.6 ED VR lens

Nikon Nikkor 18-300mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR unboxing: