CGrindahl wrote:
djjohnr13 wrote:
CGrindahl wrote:
djjohnr13 wrote:

Wonderful, this makes me feel like I'm on Jupiter.

Since you seem to be enjoying your time here, you may wish to introduce yourself. The first way you could do so would be to add your first name to your users profile. You may also with to include a location and perhaps a listing of your camera gear. We tend to be on a first name basis on this thread. This is a pretty easy group to trust. You perhaps are aware that one of our members, Ben, from Australia loaned us a lens worth three or four hundred dollars that has been circling the globe since last May. I expect it will be back in the owner's hand by March, after I've had an opportunity to play.

So welcome. Enjoy yourself. I love this comment by the way. Hope to see you on the board in the months to come.



Thanks Curtis,

My name is John, I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I've been using Nikon cameras for 8 years except for a brief stint with a 5D. The past few years I've mostly been working with 4x5 but since my favorite color films are disappearing I've been playing around with a D800. I prefer using manual focus lenses whenever possible as I generally prefer their rendering to the new D/G designs; they're easier to manually focus (surprise) and I often find them as sharp or sharper at the apertures I work with (most of Nikon's dev work on primes seems to be at the wider apertures or in flare resistance). I'm currently using an 85mm AIS f/2.0, and plan on adding a 105mm f/2.5 and a 135mm. I just sold a 28 f/3.5 and formerly owned a 75-150mm (nice lens, but the zoom creep was a killer for tripod work).

Welcome John. Perhaps you noticed, if you checked my profile, that I live in Marin. I was in San Francisco this afternoon, taking a friend shopping south of Golden Gate Park near the beach. Man do I hate trying to find parking in San Francisco.

One of my favorite lines that has become a bit of a motto for this thread is that "kit building is forever." It seems you're engaged in your own version of that process. You'll get a great deal of support on this thread from folks who've had long experience with these lenses. It is clearly a benefit that these lenses are so reasonably priced. Happy shopping!

And, you're more than welcome to add you evolving kit to your profile. It is not a matter of showing off as much as a way for folks to get a clear picture of what you're using. A major part of the conversation happening here is about lenses, so knowing where a person's kit stands makes it easier to offer suggestion. Granted, it can be challenging to stay current with one's profile when lenses are coming a going, but it doesn't hurt to try.

When weather gets better, if you'd care to try out a few lens I'd be happy to get together with you to do a bit of shooting. I offered that to Ray and Reagan when I was in Florida last October and Ray felt inspired to buy his own copies of two lenses I shared with him. Reagan is too confused about what he wants in his kit to have made any hard, fast decisions at the time... But he did buy a D600 yesterday, so he has kept at least one oar in the Nikon water.

Thanks for the offer, I may take you up on once our newborn starts sleeping through the night.

You live in a beautiful county. I grew up in San Rafael and Fairfax and lived in Novato and Forest Knolls later. We'd still be there if it wasn't for my wife's job in the east bay.

Mp356 and Fogg14, thanks for the comments.

MDoc9523 wrote:
I am flying to Ohio in the morning for a few days to attend mothers funeral. I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your heart felt sentiments at her passing. To have that kind of friendship has certainly made this ordeal easier. My two brothers and I are flying to Ohio together and our sister is meeting us there, coming from South Carolina. It will be wonderful to have the family all together even though the circumstances are less than ideal. I am sure that mom is in a better place and will look down upon us with joy with our dad by her side.


my condolences Ray - to you and your family.

take care

ben

asiostygius wrote:
mp356 wrote:
"Ice Covered Window". Taken with 50 1.4 ais. Thanks for looking.
Scott

ht0.jpg

Very nice!

+1

great abstract Scott

ben

jhinkey wrote:
A few from my 2nd 135mm f/3.5 AIS - this one from KEH in EX condition (the first one the ebay seller graciously took it back for a refund). Both at f/5.6.

The center is already sharp wide open (that is if you get it focused accurately) with the borders and corners catching up by f/5.6:

http://.jpg

and this

love this first one John. All your panos are spectacular, of course, but this is a favourite.


ben

djjohnr13 wrote:

...Thanks for the offer, I may take you up on once our newborn starts sleeping through the night.

You live in a beautiful county. I grew up in San Rafael and Fairfax and lived in Novato and Forest Knolls later. We'd still be there if it wasn't for my wife's job in the east bay.

I'm sure you know exactly where I live, between Sir Francis Drake and Center Blvd about a block and a half west from Drake High and a block from the border with Fairfax. I spent a few years in the East Bay near Lake Merritt and then a few years in Vallejo where I worked. Marin is a very sweet place with close access to the Mount Tam watershed, but I enjoy the East Bay as well. My dear friends baby is about four months old, so I understand what you're going through. Congratulations on your baby. Here is a photo I've posted before of Ansel, my friend's boy held by my god-daughter... shot with the 85 f/1.8 H AI'd.

a.RodriguezPix wrote:
Todd wrote:
th

I have relied on just looking out my viewfinder for the longest time using stock screens, so much so, that when i learned about the green dot here on the MF part of the forum, that i still use just my eyes, and i think i do well, considering my main glass is an 85mm 1.4 AIS manual focus exclusively set to f/1.4!


[url, on Flickr


Americo - I've got to confess I'm not really into cat pics but this series of yours has started to get to me. And I love how they're getting more abstract. Looking forward now to each instalment of cat/bokeh.

ben

Curtis, this look familiar? just happened to be in the Travel section today.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2013/01/27/travel/36-hours-in-marin-county-calif.html

Thanks Scott, Leighton and Jeff for the kind comments.

Todd, welcome to the thread, I am waiting photos from your new 105/2.5 and 300/4.5;

Ronny, sharp and beautiful views from Sweden;

Kevin, I liked your sets with the venerable 80-200/4.5, mostly the "green" leaf;

Chuong and Ron, stunning flower captures.

Samy, I have used a 55mm f/2.8 for digital slide dupes with some succes, both with a D3 (12Mp) and a D7000 (16Mp). I suppose with a D800 36Mp you will capture more details.

Here I have a collection of samples using the 55/2.8 + ES-1 slide copier:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/labecoaves/sets/72157630214914922/#

Perhaps you can find some useful tips here, where I found my usual setup:
http://www.throughthefmount.com/articles_tips_digitise.html

Both 55/2.8 and 55/3.5 have similar and great sharpness, so no concern here which lens to get;


Finally, regarding to your TC16A + 500/4P, I suppose you will like this thread:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3121174
Is your TC16A the modded one for newer Nikon bodies?

Jim S, I have the 600mm f/5.6 AIS and can attest to you to be a fine lens for wildlife. Not too heavy as the 600/4, but anyway it needs a tripod for better results like all long lenses above 400mm.

Two samples:


Burrowing Owl with the 600mm f/5.6 AI-S EDIF by labecoaves, on Flickr

Taken around 8-10m of distance. D300 + Nikkor 600mm f/5.6 ais EDIF N supported on a beanbag at my SUV window. ISO 200, f/8 at 1/160s
The image was ~ 33% cropped. I think this is not bad for an "old, outdated and garbage" MF lens.
Note that even at f/8 just the head is in good focus, the tail and even the feet are OOF.



Thraupis palmarum with Nikkor 600mm f/5.6 AIS EDIF by labecoaves, on Flickr

Palm Tanager
Nikkor AI-S 600mm f/5.6 ED-IF at minimum focus distance (5m), tripod + flash
D3 1/250 f/11 ISO 500




This lens can present a little more CA than the 800mm f/5.6 AIS, specially wide open at very harsh and contrasty light conditions, but PP can fix most if not all CA.

see here:

_D2X3463dpreview by labecoaves, on Flickr

600mm F/5.6 AIS MF ED-IF. The Sayaca Tanager was at ~17m. Insets show original image (it was a 2x crop mode of D2X) and CA in the bill and eye


One way to fix that:


600mm ais CA removal in NX2 by labecoaves, on Flickr

600mm f/5.6 ais EDIF CA removal in NX2:
The example is a 200% crop of a D2x crop mod (2x) shot.
In NX2 the default is at left: auto lateral CA correction only.
In the right, when I enabled the axial CA correction - default level was 50, the result is no red fringes and a removal of the green cast.



Finally, if you have time, take a look at this flickr group with tons of sample shots with MF long lenses and some discussions among mebers:
http://www.flickr.com/groups/nikkorprime/#

Thanks Scott and Jose.

One more with the 135mm f2.0

Reagan wrote:
CGrindahl wrote:

...When weather gets better, if you'd care to try out a few lens I'd be happy to get together with you to do a bit of shooting. I offered that to Ray and Reagan when I was in Florida last October and Ray felt inspired to buy his own copies of two lenses I shared with him. Reagan is too confused about what he wants in his kit to have made any hard, fast decisions at the time... But he did buy a D600 yesterday, so he has kept at least one oar in the Nikon water.


Hey, I still have a 28,50,and the 105


Reagan

I just can't resist teasing you Reagan... all in good fun.

bruni wrote:
jhinkey wrote:
A few from my 2nd 135mm f/3.5 AIS - this one from KEH in EX condition (the first one the ebay seller graciously took it back for a refund). Both at f/5.6.

The center is already sharp wide open (that is if you get it focused accurately) with the borders and corners catching up by f/5.6:

http://.jpg

and this

love this first one John. All your panos are spectacular, of course, but this is a favourite.


ben

Thanks Ben!

saph wrote:
Curtis, this look familiar? just happened to be in the Travel section today.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2013/01/27/travel/36-hours-in-marin-county-calif.html



I read through it yesterday Samy. They did a fine job but I definitely could have given them a few ideas. Marin is a funny place with enclaves of investment bankers in multi-million dollar gated estates and a biker bar in the middle of an upscale town, the Silver Peso in downtown Larkspur. My favorite brewpub, Iron Springs is crowded every Sunday with cyclists coming back from the hills and families on their way home. The dining room is loaded with little kids coloring place mats while adults are enjoying outstanding beers. Some of the best hiking in the Bay Area is ten minutes from my front door. We also have meditation centers scattered throughout the county including the legendary Green Gulch Zen Center and Spirit Rock Meditation Center. We're unashamedly progressive in politics, eclectic in our spiritual pursuits and committed to eating organic food which is often bought at local farmers markets. The one on Sunday morning is the only year round market, but I live two blocks from an awesome grocery store called the Good Earth that sells ONLY organic produce.

I've been here for 22 years and love it.

asiostygius wrote:
saph wrote:
Two birds from my recent trip to India, the first one's a hoopoe, clearly running away from the crazy guy with the camera. The second's a roller.

Both with the 180mm 2.8 AIS.

Samy

asiostygius wrote:
John, great landscapes as always, but my jaw was dropping because of this one:


What great colours and sharpness from this humble lens!

If you have an account at flickr, please post some 135/3.5 shots here:
http://flic.kr/g/jeVj3

Thanks Jose!

leighton w wrote:
CGrindahl wrote:
The thing I'm enjoying the photos posted that were taken with Nikki, is the simple fact that even the oldest Nikkor lenses perform well with modern DSLR cameras. As I've added 40 year old lenses to my kit, some of which were produced without sophisticated lens coatings, I've discovered they do remarkably well. I have no objection to Nikon and other manufacturers making improvements to their products and marketing them that way, but sometimes the premium charged for only marginally better performance is wasted on those of us not making a living by selling our photos. I'm very content with my extensive, though modest collection of MF glass. I say modest in terms of what I paid for these lenses. I paid $600 for an 85 f/.4 AI-s in EX+ condition, saving myself a thousand dollars over what the G lens costs. That lens may be great, but I'm hardly suffering. And although I don't have a long history with Nikon lenses, my three years with them has me very much attached to the aperture ring. I can't imagine owning a lens without one...

I agree with you whole-heartily. The other benefit being that these lenses don't seem to be coming down in price which makes them a good investment.

The bummer is they are actually going up in price and the rarer ones are getting harder to find, I should have bought that 6mm 2.8 for $20k.......

djjohnr13 wrote:
leighton w wrote:
djjohnr13 wrote:
I tested two AI/AIS lenses against their modern 1.8G counterparts over the last week, concentrating on resolution at landscape f/stops. The 28 1.8G trounced the 3.5 AI across the whole image frame, while the 85 f/2 AIS has held it's own/surpassed the 85mm 1.8G (still testing). I don't have time to make crops this weekend, but I'll post the .nefs to Dropbox if anyone is interested.

The 28mm f3.5 isn't known for greatness. Put the 1.8G up against the 28 f2.8 AI-s, and you'd have a better comparison.

Huddy put it up against the f/2.0, which is a better lens for my purposes then the 2.8. The 1.8 was sharper with similar OOFA response, if not slightly better. I just don't think the old wides can compare to the new designs in terms of absolute resolution.

Post some samples if you can.

asiostygius wrote:
Thanks Leighton and Scott for the previous comments.

Last week NMFAS striked hard once more, this time I was luck to find really good prices on very good (near pristine) samples of the 135mm f/3.5 AI-S and the legendary 75-150mm f/3.5 E. Each one of them for less than USD 100.00 and with 2 hoods + 2 filters and original caps, what is really unbeleivable for "Brazilian standart prices".

My very preliminary test shots revealed that the 135/3.5 AIS is slightly sharper and have no decentering as my old 135/3.5 AI, while the 75-150 is unbelievably as sharp as the 135mm prime (at 135mm, of course). Though pristine externally and internally:


this is a shot from the seller, a very nice German gentleman living half year in Brazil and half year in Germany


but the infamous zoom creeping is atrocious
Have any of you fixed this problem with a simple gaffer tape with good succes?

Nikon knew about zoom creep, the knob at the bottom of the 80-200mm focusing/zoom ring is there as a lock, turn it clockwise and it locks the ring in place.

nikon nikkor 80-200mm ED ais D3 taken 50mm 1.2 D800 by Rafael CA, on Flickr