kwoodard wrote:
This! THIS!! I want to be able to convert into B/W that looks this good. I would love to learn your process...


I will proceed to highly disappoint you: I have no process! This one is actually a very confusing combination of settings to produce the high-contrast-but-still-a-little-washed-out look. I also have about 5 different versions of it sitting in Aperture that I went back and forth between to decide which I liked the most. That to me is the great part of digital photography, the way we can be very exploratory with processing without ruining anything.

But, if there is any method to what I do, it is to tend to go for high contrast + overexposure. From there it's a kind of random exploration of parameter space.

MDoc9523 wrote:
For anyone (Reagan) considering the 300mm 4.5 EDIF, I can only say that I love mine. It is super sharp and light weight enough to shoot BIF. I went out today to keep in practice following my friendly fowls. The lens is definately worth the money to me


Awesome shots Ray!

–Tony

I am been drawn to this thread, and have gone through the first 226 pages (daunting task lol).

So I have not really owned an AF enabled lens in years, so this thread is GREAT! I had the 85mm 1.8G for a few weeks, but sold it to pick up a Samyang 14mm 2.8.

My question is what to get next. I have seen the amazing shots with both the 75-150 and the 80-200 f/4.5 - and both are pretty cheap. The 25-50 is out of control $$$ - probably thanks to this thread

Is there another lens in the 20-70mm range that is as good as the 25-50? I still have 2000 pages to go through, lol.
Oh and I shoot with a D700

georgms wrote:
Two more images taken with the 16/3.5 at the small lake. A step sideways results in a completely different view through the Fisheye-Nikkor.


Awesome Georg!

–Tony

jhinkey wrote:
Nikki went back-country skiing this morning. The weather more than cooperated.

More to come.

John
Wow, beautiful view John! Love those low laying clouds.

–Tony

Dustin Gent wrote:
Is there another lens in the 20-70mm range that is as good as the 25-50?

Good place to get a basic idea of what is considered a great MF Nikkor is this site:

http://www.naturfotograf.com/lens_surv.html

philipj wrote:
Great work everyone, I'm sorry I can't comment more frequently to go into depth about some of the fantastic shots.

I braved what has turned out to be the worst storm Toronto's had in a few years to get a snowy picture of the entrance gates to Trinity Bellwoods Park. This is a stitch with the 105mm f/1.8 AI-s at f/2.8. Some sloppiness if you pixel peep, but otherwise I'm a fan of how this turned out.


Trinity Bellwoods by philipjohnson, on Flickr
Nice pano Philip! Props to you for going out in that weather. How cold was it?

–Tony

Reagan, John, Curtis, Jose, Phillippe, Ray, Leighton, Georg, Kevin, and Alan, thank you for the comments!

Alan, that shot was @ ƒ2.8. I feel that the 105mm is too soft wide open for portraits. To me, it almost looks hazy, for lack of a better word.

–Tony

Dustin Gent wrote:
I am been drawn to this thread, and have gone through the first 226 pages (daunting task lol).

So I have not really owned an AF enabled lens in years, so this thread is GREAT! I had the 85mm 1.8G for a few weeks, but sold it to pick up a Samyang 14mm 2.8.

My question is what to get next. I have seen the amazing shots with both the 75-150 and the 80-200 f/4.5 - and both are pretty cheap. The 25-50 is out of control $$$ - probably thanks to this thread

Is there another lens in the 20-70mm range that is as good as the 25-50? I still have 2000 pages to go through, lol.
Oh and I shoot with a D700

Welcome to the addiction! I am very partial to the 80-200 f/4.5. I love it!

Took this today with that particular lens. I have been listening to all of the great critique I have received here and tried to apply it with today's shots. This is the first of about 30 I took today. Since I have been really wanting to work on my B/W conversions, I really tried to get my shot "there" so the converting would be easier (which is what everyone says anyway, get it right in the camera first...) I think this is my most successful conversion so far. Oh, this is also straight out of the camera. I had very little to do to this one, I gave it a touch of a "apply image" filter to sharpen the mic and the B/W conversion. That is it! Woohoo!


DSC_6595 by Kevin.Woodard, on Flickr

Jake the Dog enjoying mild weather in the DFW Metroplex today.

Ray, must be a steady hand even at F8 good work
Ron, that O lens looks pretty good for being so old
Georg, I like both of these last 2 the second one best I think

Reagan

MDoc9523 wrote:
Outstanding John!
Philip that shot is amazing!

Kudos to you both. Both winter shots, but mountain blue and urban BW. These are outstanding shots, each in its own way. Well done guys!

kings_freak wrote:
Reagan wrote:
Let's make it 2 dogs in 1 day

501.8 with my old TC 14-A back. Thanks Scott

Reagan
Good looking dog Reagan. How many stops do you lose with the TC 14?

–Tony


You lose 1.4 stops so that makes it a 2.5 at 70 mm

Reagan

John, always enjoy your hiking photos they are wonderful. I just sit and stare at every little detail
Phillip, great work no matter how you did it
Kevin, I like this a lot

Beautiful dog Sam, WE need more dog photos
Tony I know your out there. How about another photo of Emma

Reagan

kwoodard - great shot! Do you get zoom creep bad with that lens? I am heading to Yosemite in 10 days, and am deciding on what other lenses to add. Both the 75-150, 80-200 and the 200mm prime get great reviews - I suppose it just comes down to price for me, then I can add maybe a 35mm prime of some sort..

sbarricklow - great shot of the dog!

Dustin Gent wrote:
I am been drawn to this thread, and have gone through the first 226 pages (daunting task lol).

So I have not really owned an AF enabled lens in years, so this thread is GREAT! I had the 85mm 1.8G for a few weeks, but sold it to pick up a Samyang 14mm 2.8.

My question is what to get next. I have seen the amazing shots with both the 75-150 and the 80-200 f/4.5 - and both are pretty cheap. The 25-50 is out of control $$$ - probably thanks to this thread

Is there another lens in the 20-70mm range that is as good as the 25-50? I still have 2000 pages to go through, lol.
Oh and I shoot with a D700

There are a number of good quality zoom lenses that cover a portion of that range, though none cover it all. The least expensive would likely be either the 28-45 f/4.5 AI, or the 35-70 f/3.5 AI. From what I see the 28-50 f/3.5 and 35-70 f/3.5 AI-s will cost a tad more, but certainly not as much as the 25-50 f/4. A number of us enjoy the 50-135 f/3.5 AI-s which is also very reasonably priced, though likely not as cheap as the Series E lens, the 75-150. The 80-200 f/4.5 AI is a true steal both in terms of price and quality.

Another low cost gem is the 50 f/1.8 AI or AI-s. If I recall correctly, 8 of the lenses I've bought over the years cost less than $100. This is definitely an adventure that can be done on a budget. Happy reading and happy shopping. And don't forget to share some photos with us...

PS - I forgot to mention, and it is very important, that the lenses I'm recommending are the ones with constant aperture. There is a variable aperture 35-70 that is a dog. It will be dirt cheap... for a reason. Its not very good.

Temperatures dropped to 34 this morning but crept over 60 this afternoon. I stopped to take a few photos, including this one shot with the 135 f/2 at f/8 with the PK-13 extension tube attached... uncropped. This is a very sweet lens with tubes.

Dustin Gent wrote:
kwoodard - great shot! Do you get zoom creep bad with that lens? I am heading to Yosemite in 10 days, and am deciding on what other lenses to add. Both the 75-150, 80-200 and the 200mm prime get great reviews - I suppose it just comes down to price for me, then I can add maybe a 35mm prime of some sort..

sbarricklow - great shot of the dog!

You will get zoom creep on either lens, mine is very loose. I have some electrical tape to help with that, but its still bad. I played with the 75-150 and the version I tried was looser than the 80-200. I went with the 80-200 to get more reach on a Dx.

- Kevin

Thanks for all the kudos from today's shots. I'm about to fall asleep after getting up so early and gaining 1,500 ft or so of elevation on skis.

Here's a couple more. Not all from Nikki - I also took the 16/3.5 AI of course. The 50/1.8G was also in the backpack, but it was never used.

Ron, very nice examples of what the old Nikkor-O 35/2 can do in capable hands!

Curtis - lovely spring-colors at your shot with the tubed 135/2! I think I remember the fishermen-shot from last year;-)

Philip, your winterly pano is fantastic! Love the composition and the "snowy" tones.

John, beautiful landscape-shot done with Nikki. edit: just discovered the set posted later - the last shot is stellar - the snow looks like a bed made out of cozy, fluffy clouds.

Sam, very nice portrait of Jake! The clouds are beautiful too.

Kevin, I like the portrait of the singer - very nice conversion. I always try to find something not totally black behind a person on stage to bring a bit of life to the background.