Showing posts with label photography. Show all posts
Showing posts with label photography. Show all posts

Monday, December 30, 2019

Philadelphia City Hall 2019-12-28


Philadelphia City Hall 2019-12-28

A few snaps while walking by Philadelphia's City Hall.

Ferris Wheel at City Hall





Carousel at City Hall






Friday, December 27, 2019

Peak Design Travel Tripod Unboxing 2019-12-27

Peak Design Travel Tripod Unboxing 2019-12-27
Product: https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-tripod

I joined the Kickstarter for Peak Design's Travel Tripod in early 2019,  forgot about it, and then received my travel tripod before the close of 2019.  It's designed by Peak Design and manufactured in Hong Kong.  Now that it's been made, shipped, and cleared customs and in my hands, my unboxing photos are below.  Review and feedback pending after I find opportunities to try it out.

Package from Hong Kong
Opening the Box
Peak Travel Tripod Packaging



Opening the Top of the Container
The Travel Tripod comes in a nice travel case
Opening the Travel Case
Aluminum Peak Design Travel Tripod and Case

Opening the Tripod with 2 segments extended






Peak Design Slide Lite Strap 2019-12-27

Peak Design Slide Lite Strap 2019-12-27
Product: https://www.peakdesign.com/products/slide-lite

It took me a while to find a camera strap that I enjoyed using with my gear.  I've tried a few other straps and have finally found one that suits my needs.  Enter the Peak Design Slide Lite Strap.  This strap has been updated and enhanced by Peak Design, I am currently using an older design of the strap but it suits my needs perfectly.

Peak utilizes its custom Anchor Link system that enables the user to quickly connect the strap to their camera.  Once you get used to the system, you can detach and reattach the strap to different anchors and devices.  As I have an older version of the strap, my anchor mount on the bottom of the camera is significantly larger.  It does work with peak design's capture mount though.

Even though the slide lite is billed for mirrorless and light DSLR cameras, I prefer it over the slide as the thickness of the strap is much slimmer.  Dual quick-adjusters allow easy reconfiguration of length.  For anyone who fiddles with their strap length and shifts between using it as a neck strap, sling, or shoulder strap, peak design's straps are very versatile.

As I generally like to use it as a shoulder strap, the anchor mount on the bottom of my camera enables this functionality best.  The strap comes with a hex screw for the times where I need to remove the anchor mount to use with a tripod.  With the anchor link system, I can easily reconfigure the strap to be used as a neck strap.

Pricing is a bit high but after using peak design gear for a while, the convenience of being able to switch straps amongst gear and configure it to suit my needs on the fly, it's worth it.

Peak Design Slide Lite Strap
Peak Design Slide Lite Strap
Peak Design Slide Lite Strap
Peak Design Slide Lite Strap


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



Thursday, February 21, 2013

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.


Saturday, January 26, 2013

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