Showing posts with label Lenses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lenses. Show all posts
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Soccer Pics
Last week I shot a high school soccer game. I rented the Nikon 300mm f/2.8 from LensProToGo that I used in the fall for a football game. I had a great time, but froze my butt off! Here are some of my favorites from the shoot:
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Traveling Light
Next week we will be going home for Wes and Amy's wedding. We'll get to spend time with lots of family and friends and I will definitely want to take some pictures while I am there. So the question comes... what gear do I take? Obviously when traveling with two kids, you have to travel as light as possible to allow for all the diapers, car seats, toys, food, bottles, etc. Anything you want to bring is much lower on the priority list.
I could just take the Canon G9 like I did in Canada, but it won't give me the low-light performance I will need inside homes, restaurants, etc. where we will be much of the time. I do have the Tenba Sling Bag which is easy to carry, light weight, and will fit enough gear for a short trip like this (which is why I bought it). So I will be taking my D3 and two lenses: the 18-200 VR and the 50mm f/1.4. You already know that I love the 18-200 VR for almost everything because it covers such a wide focal range and with the VR, I gain a couple of stops that I can shoot handheld. However, I will still need the ability to shoot in very dark restaurants and such, so I will throw in the 50mm f/1.4 (it fits in my pocket so it won't take up any room) and probably will shoot with it most of the weekend.
You know what? I think I will also throw in one SB800 just in case I'm feeling flashy! So there's a quick rundown of an easy way to travel light yet have everything you need to be able to get great pictures. Of course, I'll have an extra battery and flash cards for the camera. Don't ever forget those!
I could just take the Canon G9 like I did in Canada, but it won't give me the low-light performance I will need inside homes, restaurants, etc. where we will be much of the time. I do have the Tenba Sling Bag which is easy to carry, light weight, and will fit enough gear for a short trip like this (which is why I bought it). So I will be taking my D3 and two lenses: the 18-200 VR and the 50mm f/1.4. You already know that I love the 18-200 VR for almost everything because it covers such a wide focal range and with the VR, I gain a couple of stops that I can shoot handheld. However, I will still need the ability to shoot in very dark restaurants and such, so I will throw in the 50mm f/1.4 (it fits in my pocket so it won't take up any room) and probably will shoot with it most of the weekend.
You know what? I think I will also throw in one SB800 just in case I'm feeling flashy! So there's a quick rundown of an easy way to travel light yet have everything you need to be able to get great pictures. Of course, I'll have an extra battery and flash cards for the camera. Don't ever forget those!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Prime Lenses
Many people ask me what kind of lens they should buy. They've bought a DSLR and it came with a kit lens, but they want to expand their possibilities and think a new lens is a good way to do it. I agree! Buying a new lens (although it can be expensive) is a great way to get you to take new and different shots. It's kind of like buying a new guitar. Whenever your creativity goes away and you are never playing for "fun" anymore, buy a new guitar! You'll be playing it everyday again.
This blog will be about prime lenses. A prime lens is NOT a zoom lens. It has a fixed zoom range, but the beauty of these lenses is the very large fixed aperture that accompanies most of them. A prime lens is fast and enables you to shoot in much darker situations without having to use flash. For example, I shot the below picture in my daughters room at night while she was sleeping. The lights are off!!! My 85mm prime lens opens up to F/1.8. So I opened it up, cranked the ISO to 2000 on the D3, and I was able to shoot the shot at 1/100 of a second.
The picture has been untouched in Photoshop or anything else. Yes, it's a little under exposed, but her room was dark. I mean... no lights! There is no way I could have gotten this frame with the F/3.5-5.6 lens that came with my first DSLR. I would have been shooting with a shutter speed of at least 1 second which would have required a tripod and that's not happening because if I wake her up, my wife would use the tripod on my head!
Another great feature about these lenses is that they are so small, you can fit some of them in your pocket. Whenever I travel for vacation, I take one camera, my 18-200mm VR, and the 50mm f/1.4. The 18-200 will do just about everything, but when I need the extra F Stops, I pull the 50mm out of my pocket and voila! Here's a quick picture to show the size of my three lenses:
So... I love these fast, big aperture prime lenses. I have an 85mm f/1.8, a 50mm f/1.4, and a 35mm f/2.0. So get one, open it up, and go shoot in the dark! These are great for no-flash reception shots!
The next question would be this, "which zoom range do I need?" The answer is, it depends. If you want to start out with just one, I would probably go with a 50mm lens. It's a great because you can take a full length portrait of someone inside a room. With the 85mm, you would have to back up too far and in small rooms, you would run into a wall! However, the 85mm is a great little portrait lens! Just for a quick example, here are three shots that will show the difference between the 85mm, 50mm, and 35mm:
This blog will be about prime lenses. A prime lens is NOT a zoom lens. It has a fixed zoom range, but the beauty of these lenses is the very large fixed aperture that accompanies most of them. A prime lens is fast and enables you to shoot in much darker situations without having to use flash. For example, I shot the below picture in my daughters room at night while she was sleeping. The lights are off!!! My 85mm prime lens opens up to F/1.8. So I opened it up, cranked the ISO to 2000 on the D3, and I was able to shoot the shot at 1/100 of a second.
The picture has been untouched in Photoshop or anything else. Yes, it's a little under exposed, but her room was dark. I mean... no lights! There is no way I could have gotten this frame with the F/3.5-5.6 lens that came with my first DSLR. I would have been shooting with a shutter speed of at least 1 second which would have required a tripod and that's not happening because if I wake her up, my wife would use the tripod on my head!
Another great feature about these lenses is that they are so small, you can fit some of them in your pocket. Whenever I travel for vacation, I take one camera, my 18-200mm VR, and the 50mm f/1.4. The 18-200 will do just about everything, but when I need the extra F Stops, I pull the 50mm out of my pocket and voila! Here's a quick picture to show the size of my three lenses:
So... I love these fast, big aperture prime lenses. I have an 85mm f/1.8, a 50mm f/1.4, and a 35mm f/2.0. So get one, open it up, and go shoot in the dark! These are great for no-flash reception shots!
The next question would be this, "which zoom range do I need?" The answer is, it depends. If you want to start out with just one, I would probably go with a 50mm lens. It's a great because you can take a full length portrait of someone inside a room. With the 85mm, you would have to back up too far and in small rooms, you would run into a wall! However, the 85mm is a great little portrait lens! Just for a quick example, here are three shots that will show the difference between the 85mm, 50mm, and 35mm:
Friday, May 16, 2008
Smaller Apertures for Macro
When using a Macro lens to shoot subjects up-close, choose a much smaller aperture. Macro lenses have a very shallow depth of field and if you choose to shoot "wide open" at an aperture of say f/2.8 or even f/4, it will be hard to get your entire subject in focus.
For example, this shot of the leaf was captured with my 60mm f/2.8 macro lens. I chose an aperture of f/3.5. Have a look:
The right leaf is very sharp but the left leaf (which is almost on the same plane as the right) is completely blurred. This shot would have been so much better if both leafs were entirely in focus and only the tree was blurred out. But because I chose such a big aperture (smaller F number), I could not get my subject completely in focus.
Now for the second example. I shot this pear with the same camera and same lens, but I chose f/40. The smallest aperture my lens will allow. Of course, because of the smaller aperture, I needed a much longer shutter speed so I was using a tripod. If you ever watch a very good macro photographer, I will bet you that he/she is using a tripod. Because they know that they will be shooting with a smaller aperture. Here's the picture:
It's a better looking picture anyway because I was inside and controlling the light with two strobes that were shooting through diffusers. However, the point here is that the entire pear is in focus. You can clearly see the subject from top to bottom and from left to right. Much better!
So when you are practicing with your macro lens, remember to choose a smaller aperture!
For example, this shot of the leaf was captured with my 60mm f/2.8 macro lens. I chose an aperture of f/3.5. Have a look:
The right leaf is very sharp but the left leaf (which is almost on the same plane as the right) is completely blurred. This shot would have been so much better if both leafs were entirely in focus and only the tree was blurred out. But because I chose such a big aperture (smaller F number), I could not get my subject completely in focus.
Now for the second example. I shot this pear with the same camera and same lens, but I chose f/40. The smallest aperture my lens will allow. Of course, because of the smaller aperture, I needed a much longer shutter speed so I was using a tripod. If you ever watch a very good macro photographer, I will bet you that he/she is using a tripod. Because they know that they will be shooting with a smaller aperture. Here's the picture:
It's a better looking picture anyway because I was inside and controlling the light with two strobes that were shooting through diffusers. However, the point here is that the entire pear is in focus. You can clearly see the subject from top to bottom and from left to right. Much better!
So when you are practicing with your macro lens, remember to choose a smaller aperture!
Saturday, May 10, 2008
One Lens Solution
If you're looking to buy a lens and can only afford one, or you need a lens that can do just about everything so you don't have to carry too much gear, then look no further than the Nikon 18-200mm F/3.5-5.6 G ED with VR. I own lenses that cost much more and go all the way down to F/2.8, but if I'm going to be shooting all day, or I'm flying home to see the grandparents for the week, this is the lens I grab.
It covers the entire zoom range from 18-200 wonderfully, and with the VR (Vibration Reduction), I can shoot handheld at 2 to 3 F-stops higher. Take an SB800 that I can fire wirelessly and I'm set. I'm not sure what Canon offers that is comparable, because I don't have a Canon, but I'm sure they have something so look into it. Here are a few shots that I've taken with the 18-200 VR:
Monday, May 5, 2008
Macro
I got my first Macro Lens the other day. A macro lens is for up-close photography. It will be great for rings, flowers, and other detail shots at weddings. It's also just fun to mess around with. I took some pictures today with it for fun, and here's a few of them.
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