leighton w wrote:
Good to see John and Glen making a return.
Yes, it's been too long.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, I've been extremely busy work-wise, with little time for casual photography.
The SARS-COV-2 virus pandemic has actually given me more time lately to get out, but it's been hard to actually get nice pictures because all the places I want to go have too many people around.
saph wrote:
John, welcome back! Your waterscapes and your mountain views are unique, always can tell who is posting.
Glen, very cool antique bottle, some fine work on it. And the 55, any version, is a must as part of the manual Nikkor experience.
Thanks. It's been a bit dry on the MF Nikkon front the last year. I've been waiting for some sun spots to develop to get the 600/5.6 in action, but it's been blank for the past year or so. 400/5.6 ED-AI is in repair. The 16/3.5 AI gets used on vacations and backpacking trips, but those got cancelled or delayed.
Still have:
16/3.5 AI (x2)
300/4.5 ED AI
400/5.6 ED-AI
600/5.6 ED-IF AIS
jhinkey wrote:
Been a while. The 600/5.6 ED-IF AIS calls from its case every once in a while and we pull it out.
Here's the Mt. Rainier image again along with a 100% image - it was really roiling in the viewfinder - which gives a bit of a painted look at 100%. The 600/5.6 AIS is much sharper than this, but sometimes the atmospherics rule.
Nothing special but just outside the window, and first time developing colour film. Fuji Pro 400H in Plaubel Makina 67. Used the Rollei Colorchem C-41 kit. Kind of tricky trying to keep the temperature constant at 38C (I did remember to convert to ~101F or those colours would not have showed up at all ).
saph wrote:
Nothing special but just outside the window, and first time developing colour film. Fuji Pro 400H in Plaubel Makina 67. Used the Rollei Colorchem C-41 kit. Kind of tricky trying to keep the temperature constant at 38C (I did remember to convert to ~101F or those colours would not have showed up at all ).
So early evening after a trip to Trader Joe's, which is enabling me to have a wee dram while I process photos, I took a few photos using the macro feature, which as Doug noted pushes the lens elements away from the sensor much as extension tubes do. There is a button that can be slid to one side moving the elements. I didn't try to experiment at infinity but doubt it is possible. I set the camera for Manual Mode, 1/125th of a second with the lens set at f/5.6. I was probably shooting around 100mm judging from the lens barrel. Stopping down the lens definitely helps its performance. I'm happy with the results.
And then I decided to convert this image using Silver Efex Pro 2... for something a bit different. I was definitely using the rocking technique to gain focus and was in close.
I might be tempted by this lens, though having shot with George's lens, which is pristine, I'm not certain I'd be satisfied with anything less... There is a fellow on the Buy and Sell board at the moment with a WTB and he lists premium manual focus Nikon lenses. I dropped a message on the thread and encouraged him to stop by here once he has his new kit. He responded that he will... Just saying... some buyers want the creme de la creme of lenses... There are a few of them on this thread...
Just to play devil's advocate here Curtis, so to speak
What does this lens do for you that the 80-200/50-135 doesn't, especially with real extension tubes?
leighton w wrote:
Good to see John and Glen making a return.
Thanks Leighton. This is a great place to visit because of people like you and so many others who hang out here. Even when I'm not posting I enjoy keeping up with the great photography and conversation. In fact, since I'll be returning to work next week my participation might slow down for a while. On the other hand, BC is re-opening the provincial parks on Thursday, so my weekends are likely to find me out with my camera more often; so maybe my participation will pick up again.
saph wrote:
Glen, very cool antique bottle, some fine work on it. And the 55, any version, is a must as part of the manual Nikkor experience.
Thanks Samy; you're one of the folks who consistently make this such a nice place to visit (and there's nobody here who makes it anything but nice to drop by or hang out).
Thanks to everyone else who has been clicking the Like button on my recent posts; you are very kind. Here is a final set of images from the park in Pacific Palisades (near Santa Monica). The first two are brought to you by the 28-50 f/3.5 Ai-s, and the third is courtesy of the 105 f/2.5 P. That coot shares the lake with a lively community of other coots, ducks, koi, turtles, and a pair of swans (the coot is swimming past a swan feather in the photo).
graytrekker wrote:
Just to play devil's advocate here Curtis, so to speak
What does this lens do for you that the 80-200/50-135 doesn't, especially with real extension tubes?
Nothing much... are you trying to dissuade me from BUYING lenses? Shame on you!
leighton w wrote:
Peter, nice image. What it your average temp in the Winter?
Thanks Leighton, compared to temperate climates we have relatively mild winters with temperatures getting as low as 2-3*C (35 - 36* F) . Because SA has a high plateau inland we sometimes get berg winds (katabatic winds) that blow down from the interior to the coast and are caused by coastal low pressure systems. These are the opposite of Chinooks in that the air is heated and we can get tempertaures up to 40*C on odd days in mid winter. Our great fire was fanned by a berg wind blowing up to 60mph on the day. Because SA is arid snow is uncommon but we do have heavy falls on the mountains in winter and nearby passes (40 miles away) are sometimes snowed shut. The Indian Ocean is warmed by the Agulhas current that flows from Souithern Mozambique and that keep us pretty warm in winter. We live in a year round rainfall area with most of our rain in winter.
Being pretty far south (34*) our days get fairly short in winter with just under 10 hours of daylight in mid winter.
It's a mild climate but personally I prefer the icy dry winters of Johannesburg (from -6C) to the damp cold of Knysna, but one can't have everything
Our average day temperature ranges from 10*C to 15*C - today the high will be 19*C
pbraymond wrote:
Peter, the rolling clouds must have been quite a sight. Any video link?
Ray , they always are and tend to come in when the ocean, over the hill, gets colder than the air temperature. Even though I have the facility I haven't shot any video with my camera. Something to look forward to
saph wrote:
Nothing special but just outside the window, and first time developing colour film. Fuji Pro 400H in Plaubel Makina 67. Used the Rollei Colorchem C-41 kit. Kind of tricky trying to keep the temperature constant at 38C (I did remember to convert to ~101F or those colours would not have showed up at all ).
Oosty wrote:
Thanks Leighton, compared to temperate climates we have relatively mild winters with temperatures getting as low as 2-3*C (35 - 36* F) . Because SA has a high plateau inland we sometimes get berg winds (katabatic winds) that blow down from the interior to the coast and are caused by coastal low pressure systems. These are the opposite of Chinooks in that the air is heated and we can get tempertaures up to 40*C on odd days in mid winter. Our great fire was fanned by a berg wind blowing up to 60mph on the day. Because SA is arid snow is uncommon but we do have heavy falls on the mountains in winter and nearby passes (40 miles away) are sometimes snowed shut. The Indian Ocean is warmed by the Agulhas current that flows from Souithern Mozambique and that keep us pretty warm in winter. We live in a year round rainfall area with most of our rain in winter.
Being pretty far south (34*) our days get fairly short in winter with just under 10 hours of daylight in mid winter.
It's a mild climate but personally I prefer the icy dry winters of Johannesburg (from -6C) to the damp cold of Knysna, but one can't have everything
Our average day temperature ranges from 10*C to 15*C - today the high will be 19*C...Show more →
Not bad at all. Sounds like about the same as South Carolina.
saph wrote:
Nothing special but just outside the window, and first time developing colour film. Fuji Pro 400H in Plaubel Makina 67. Used the Rollei Colorchem C-41 kit. Kind of tricky trying to keep the temperature constant at 38C (I did remember to convert to ~101F or those colours would not have showed up at all ).
Nice job on the developing. I had never heard of it so I looked up your camera and had a nice read about it. Very interesting on its development.
saph wrote:
Nothing special but just outside the window, and first time developing colour film. Fuji Pro 400H in Plaubel Makina 67. Used the Rollei Colorchem C-41 kit. Kind of tricky trying to keep the temperature constant at 38C (I did remember to convert to ~101F or those colours would not have showed up at all ).
CGrindahl wrote:
So early evening after a trip to Trader Joe's, which is enabling me to have a wee dram while I process photos, I took a few photos using the macro feature, which as Doug noted pushes the lens elements away from the sensor much as extension tubes do. There is a button that can be slid to one side moving the elements. I didn't try to experiment at infinity but doubt it is possible. I set the camera for Manual Mode, 1/125th of a second with the lens set at f/5.6. I was probably shooting around 100mm judging from the lens barrel. Stopping down the lens definitely helps its performance. I'm happy with the results.
And then I decided to convert this image using Silver Efex Pro 2... for something a bit different. I was definitely using the rocking technique to gain focus and was in close.
I might be tempted by this lens, though having shot with George's lens, which is pristine, I'm not certain I'd be satisfied with anything less... There is a fellow on the Buy and Sell board at the moment with a WTB and he lists premium manual focus Nikon lenses. I dropped a message on the thread and encouraged him to stop by here once he has his new kit. He responded that he will... Just saying... some buyers want the creme de la creme of lenses... There are a few of them on this thread... ...Show more →
Curtis I am glad you took the 35-200 out for several walks. In my mind it suits my needs for good utility when traveling in the Corvette. I find it similar to the 50-135 with an edge on color performance and equally sharp. My 80-200 never impressed me after owning the 70-180, 80-300 2.8 and the 70-200 VR. I carry it because of its range and macro capabilities.
I agree zooms are not going to be as good as or come even close to most dedicated FLs, whether wide, normal or zoom. Doing road trips does not give one the luxury of going home and coming back tomorrow for the shot. It’s usually now or never.
I carry a USMC pocket knife for the past 50 years and it’s not really good for hunting, camping, cooking, cutting or for much else but it’s invaluable when you need a knife, punch, screwdriver, awl or something else. So to that end It’s perfect.
As said before, YMMV but my thinking is I’m happy with mine.
).
