Lensbaby Macro

I had forgotten that I had a 52mm lens reversing ring that I purchased before the Nikon BR-2A. I haven’t used it much, but I’ve found a new home for it. Along with the 46-52mm step-up ring I purchased for my Nikon P5100 Kit, way, way back, it will now become part of my Lensbaby kit. 

With this setup, You can reverse mount the new generation of Lensbaby optics (such as the Sweet 35 and Twist 60 that I own) 

A Sweet 35 Memorial Day

The last time I used my Lensbaby composer was at the Reeves-Reed Arboretum on my D610. It was great to finally be able shoot aperture priority AE, even if it did mean stopped-down metering. I could concentrate on focusing and composition, and at last work at 50mm instead of 75. 

I quickly learned the drawback of Waterhouse stops. Those little magnetic disks are great fun…until you have to actually use them in the field. Studio work, no problem. But there must be a better way. And there is. 

Last December I treated myself to a Sweet 35, and a new Composer. Not the newest Composer Pro II, but the previous Composer Pro. I was not particularly impressed with the newer model, which actually has a lesser degree of tilt than its predecessor.

I don’t often sell my old gear, but I would be willing to let go of my original Composer. The new model’s wonderfully smooth and damped focus ring and ball pivot are a tremendous improvement. And then there’s the Sweet 35 optic. It was very easy to quickly hone my technique.

I start by setting up a 35mm f/2.5 non-CPU lens configuration. The D610’s focus sensors now go up to f/8.0, so I set the Sweet 35’s aperture ring to f/5.6 this is easily bright enough to compose and then set focus with the matte screen when the sweet spot is off-center (fastest). But if I adjust the focus point, I can use the focus confirmation dot from f/4 (periphery) to f/8 (dead center).

Focusing, even on this overcast Memorial Day, is very easy, and silky smooth. It almost feels like a traditional, old school MF AI-s lens. 

Once I’ve got my sweet spot where I want it, and my composition and focus is in a good place, I reach for that aperture ring and give it a click (f/8) or two (f/11). This is the great part, because now I can dial in the effect I want, something I could never do before.

Later, when I’ve gotten my fill of shots, I swap out to my AF NIKKOR 35mm f/2.0 D. And, I don’t even bother flipping the AF lever on the D610. The NIKKOR 35’s manual focus is also silky-smooth (in that non-damped, auto-focus kind of way) and very satisfying. I even use its aperture instead of the command dial, which the D610 lets me do. Unlike the focus ring, it’s not the best experience, but certainly good enough, and very nostalgic. 

All this extra work and thinking makes me feel like I’m making a photograph, not just taking a photograph. And that means a world of difference. 

No Wide Lenses for Portraits

We know this. But selfies have given way to wide-angle lense use for portraits, and now there’s a 30% increase in requests for corrective dental work in the UK.

So, selfie sticks might actually be a good thing.

First Impressions: Diana F+ Premium Glass Lens

With the success of the Holga HGL-N Project, I could’t help but wonder about the Diana+ Premium Glass Lens. And so, this great little three-element coated glass lens found its way into my stocking this year, along with a Diana-Nikon lens adapter.

On a full-frame DSLR, this 75mm lens makes a great portrait lens, and compared to the standard plastic Diana lens, is super sharp and focuses to within 1 meter. But even better is how it breathes new life into the Diana F+ 120 film camera. Unlike the Holga HL-N, this lens is made primarily for the Diana F+ film camera, with the added plus that it can be used with an SLR with a simple adapter.

However, on a full-frame DSLR the adapter/lens combination makes for a compact setup, with the f/11 aperture being part of the adapter itself. But I can’t help but think how cool it would be if the adapter had the aperture “turret” that the Diana camera does. Looks like mod potential to me!

Compared to the single-element Holga lens, the Diana is brighter and much sharper, though a little more difficult to focus.

What prevents this from being the ideal walk-around lens is its long length. But the thing about shooting at 75mm on a full-frame DSLR is that you quickly get used to its clean, undistorted perspective. You can be a comfortable distance from your subject; the scale of nearby objects doesn’t fall grossly out of proportion; the angle of view is most flattering for portraits and figurature. It grows on you. As long as you’ve got room to foot-zoom, you’re good to go. 

Because this lens is capable of such sharp focus, you’ll find yourself wanting to focus it like any other lens. And with a DSLR, you can certainly do that. But, the Diana lens beckons to be used as a zone focus lens, and its front focus encourages that. No worries, it works equally well either way. I see a Holga/Diana glass lens shootout in the future.

Here are some samples:

Love of Lensbaby

I love Lensbaby; I really do. I bought the Composer, four optics and some accessories when I had my Nikon D90, but didn’t use it very much. When I purchased my Nikon D610, I began to use it more and more, but the aperture disks do slow things down a bit. I like the simplicity of them, and the fact that I can use swap them for the soft focus or special effects apertures. But when Lensbaby came out with the metal-bodied Composer Pro bundled with the Sweet 35 optic, I became immediately enamored with it. But, just now that I’m just getting around to ordering it, the Composer Pro II comes out, and throws a monkey wrench into my plans.

This is where my relationship with Lensbaby gets a little rocky. If the Composer Pro came bundled with the Sweet 35, I might have bought it on the spot. But, instead it comes bundled with the Edge 50. A nice optic, especially since its flat field optic more accurately simulates the “tilt-shift” effect. And, I was looking for something a little wider. Lensbaby can’t tell me if or when the Composer Pro II will be bundled with the Sweet 35, and I’m not prepared to pay $424.95 for it when it has less tilt range than the standard Composer Pro (or my original Composer for that matter.)

Now, I’m also thinkin’ about two other Lensbaby products. Liking the Velvet 56 for sure. But $499.95? (And then there’s the special edition in silver with copper accents for $100.00 more.) For $469.95 I could get the venerable NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4. But instead, I get a lens with one of the worst wide-open performances ever made. Not that I’m opposed to the aesthetic. But more on that later.

The other is the Circular Fisheye, and at $299.00 (right now available for $249.95) it’s both accessible and fun. So, no complaints here.

So while these two hold appeal for me, the Velvet 56 just doesn’t resonate, even though its aesthetic does. And this gets me thinking. When was the last time I encountered such significant coma that it created an ethereal, soft-focus effect? The last time I shot with a Minolta MD lens wide open…on my Nikon that is!

Yep, you read right; below f/4, those inexpensive optical lens adapters turn a normal lens into a soft-focus portrait lens.

The extra length increases the effective focal length, and the optics create coma that imparts a soft glow while letting sharp detail show through. 

So, if you love Lensbaby like I do, but you’re on a budget, choose wisely, and remember there are other options.

New Life for my Canon SD780 IS

The 8MP iPhone 4S bested my 12MP Canon SD780IS in low light. The iPhone’s physically smaller sensor had just the right number of pixels for its size to yield a photographically superior image. 

However, the Canon is now back in the game since Apple crammed one third more pixels, (12.2 MP to be exact), into three quarters of the space. The iPhone 6S images may look good to the casual observer, but zoom in and you can see the over-sharpened, heavily processed results of an overcrowded sensor. 

The iPhone is also just a tad too wide, unless you’re a dedicated 28mm shooter (it’s actually the equivalent of 29mm). So, objects are 18% smaller. This means that cropping to zoom in is even more troublesome. The SD780IS’s 33-100mm zoom lens gives it a significant advantage here too. 

So, the verdict is, while the iPhone’s camera is quite competent, it’s not so much a photographer’s camera any more; it’s a camera for the masses. There are better options out there for aspiring lensmen. 

First Impressions: Holga HGL-N

The Holga HGL-N is a 60mm glass lens for the Nikon F-Mount. Only, you can’t buy one, because it technically doesn’t exist. But, you can make one, if you have a mind to. It’s simply the Holga HL-N with the plastic lens replaced by the glass lens of the 120GFN. And the good news is, you don’t have to actually remove the lens from the barrel; you can simply loosen the stop screw and unscrew the whole barrel assembly. And if you want your 120GFN back, you can just swap ’em back; without the stop screw, they’ll both focus a little bit closer.

Wow! What a difference! I drilled out the “vignetting” mask long ago for use with my full-frame DSLR, and the “real” Holga lens has a much larger aperture on the barrel assembly than the HL-N! That means faster, and sharper due to the glass lens. It solves many problems associated with the original HL-N.

One thing; I think infinity focus might be a little off, just as it is with the plastic lens. But that should be easily corrected with another minor mod.

Here are a few samples. Some are taken with the Holga close-up lenses (also glass) which fit perfectly on the “HGL-N”.

Heading to Holgaville; Next Stop, Dianaland

Taking a break from digital. With the diminishing Holga offerings from B&H, I thought It might be a good time to order a Holga 120GFN. It arrived, along with the 120 Pan from HolgaCamera.com yesterday.

I'm so glad I waited. This new Holga works correctly right out of the box, no mods necessary. I never did get around to modifying my 120FN. The 120 Pan as well. There are slight changes in the tooling of the GFN, but the most noticeable difference is the lens barrel. They got rid of the focus scale insert, and now tampo the scale right on the barrel itself. The tooling of the barrel is also better in general. The 120 Pan is even flocked inside.

As these came directly from Hong Kong, it’s likely closer to the source and thus newer stock. I can’t wait to shoot with these and to spend some quality time with Diana as well. 

First Impressions: AF NIKKOR 35mm f/2.0 D

I’ve been weighing in on the AF NIKKOR 35mm f/2.0 D for nearly as long as the 50mm f/1.8 D. It’s only a tiny bit longer than the 50, but it’s built is a little more robustly. It has more in common with the other D lenses, except that it lacks a bayonet hood mount. Thus I bought it with the Vello equivalent of the Nikon HN-3.

I was surprised to see it shipping with the latest version of the rear lens cap, and no US prefix in the serial number despite its being an official US warranty model. So, this truly is the most up-to-date iteration of this long-lived lens. 

In the hand it feels solid, and the manual focus is like silk. No play (and no viscous damping) in the direct coupled focus ring, unlike the geared G lenses which are difficult to focus manually due to gear lash. Sure, their clutched coupling allows you to adjust focus while you still have the shutter button depressed halfway. But by the time you rock the focus ring back and forth, you’ve missed the shot. G lenses are great, but more evolutionary than revolutionary, and not necessarily a replacement for their ancestors.

The hood is great, comparable to the real HN-3 in terms of quality. But ironically, the narrower Kalt 52mm metal hood I purchased for the AF 50/1.8 works fine too, even with a filter. 

Having followed the great reviews and coming to fully appreciate the versatility of an autofocus 35mm lens that’s so small, light and fast has made this purchase a no-brainer. Especially now that I’m shooting full frame.

I’m fairly sure this will be my new Go-to AF lens.

It’s Like Buying a New Lens

How cool is it that I can still buy a brand new HB-18 hood for my AF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 D? Pretty cool. Back in the day, these were accessories. Today, the G lenses all come with hoods, undoubted subsidized by the cost savings of not having to include an aperture ring.

The hood is circular, so no problems given that the filter threads rotate on zoom. But, it’s also large enough to mount a 77mm filter with a step-up ring. And that’s pretty awesome now that I’m converting over to 77mm filters.

First Impressions: AF 50mm f/1.8 D

Finally, FINALLY! It’s been five years, and I’ve finally scored one of the best values in NIKKOR lenses.

I’ve been pining over this since I first started on my DSLR journey in 2010. There was no point in buying this since I already had the AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4. But now, with the full-frame D610, it makes sense. It’s the smallest, lightest, autofocus 50mm lens, with a direct-coupled, windowless focus ring, and an aperture ring which allows for macro lens reversal. 

It took me a while to get used to its silver markings; I had forgotten that at some point Nikon had switched over to silver from the more traditional white. This is not the same caliber as the other D lenses, like the 20mm D, which has some heft. By contrast, this is light as a feather, and that's a bit disconcerting at first. It feels like it would be right at home on a Holga. But one turn of its direct-coupled focus ring, and it grows on you quickly. With only a filter thread for mounting a hood, it harkens back to the more traditional MF 50mm lenses. But its silver markings give a nod to the now. It’s in a class of its own, and a world apart from the AF-S 50mm f/1.4 G.

Kalt 52mm Metal Lens Hood

As my new AF NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8 D does not have a dedicated bayonet hood, I decided to order this very inexpensive metal hood from Kalt.

My last experience with this brand was many years ago, when I purchased 35mm film canisters from them. I still use them to this day. It’s a well-established brand for generic accessories. I figured, for $9.95 I could’t go wrong.

Well, I was pleasantly surprised to find that this hood is just terrific. Extremely well-machined from aluminum, black anodized, and carrying a simple silver tampo marking: 52mm. Is it flocked inside you ask?. No, even better; machined ribs, and 58mm filter threads at the open end. But most importantly, I can fit the original lens cap inside. Or, I can just add a 58mm cap to the end.

If fits the 50mm AF-D perfectly, and is in fact, smaller in diameter than the lens itself, making it quite compact.

And, at 52mm, it also works perfectly with my Nikon 50mm f/1.8 E, Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2.0 SL II and even my AF-S DX 35mm f/1.8 G when used in DX crop mode.

ECSR

It stands for, “Every Camera Shoots Raw”. They do, it’s just that not all of them allow you to save the raw information. Even my Nikon D50 does, which is awesome since it tops out at a clean ISO1600, which means I can fudge ISO 6400. 

Lately, I’ve been shooting solely in Raw on my D610. But I can’t help but feel it’s taking the easy way out. It’s forcing me to think less, which I don’t like. I don’t think Raw is necessarily a replacement for JPEG. Especially now that I can shoot HDR JPEG. Same goes for shooting in color and converting to B/W. I think there’s value in setting up a color space and working, thinking within it. It’s not unlike choosing a film emulsion, getting used to working with it, and accepting and taking responsibility for the results. 

This makes me want to set up my U1 and U2 banks with settings that let me do just that. I’m wondering what results I would get if I used HDR to shoot in Black and White while dialing up the contrast. 

Hmm. 

My Camera Goes “Zing”

Rainy museum day today, and the perfect opportunity to test out my new Zing camera wrap. And since I bought it for use primarily with the AF-S 50mm f/1.4 G, it gives me a chance to give that a workout too. 

Like every lens I’ve purchased since owning the Nikon D90, I’ve considered how the lens will work with full frame. The 50mm f/1.4 G made it into the stable because it makes such a great portrait lens on APS-C cameras, and eventually the day would come when it would become an essential part of my full-frame kit. And that time is now.

At half the price, had the newer 50mm f/1.8 G been available I’d have bought it over the 1.4. Which is exactly why Nikon waited until they did to release the 1.8. But that’s just fine, because it puts the AF 50mm 1.8 D on my radar, a lens which is as close to perfect as you can get for about a C-Note. 

To be honest, I haven’t used the 50 1.4 it that much; but I have a feeling the Zing-Equipped D610 will change all that. 

The Zing is great when you just need something to protect your camera in transit, guarding against dust, moisture and bumps. After all, neoprene is used for wet suits, and this covers the camera so well, it’d take a lot for moisture or dust to get in. 

I ordered mine in dark grey, which is reversible to black. It’s pretty easy to get off, but tricky to get back on. You sort of rotate the camera counter-clockwise, stuff it in lens first, and twist it into place, stretching the right side up. Then you wrap the flap around the front, and over the lens. The longer the lens, the more you have to stretch it, so normal lenses like the 50mm work great, and standard zooms are a little more challenging. For tele-zooms, they make a larger model.

Once on, it turns the camera into a nondescript grey blob, loosely resembling an SLR. Sort of like a sculpture. A second skin, close to the dimensions of the camera iteself. With lenses shorter than about 2", a bulbous pouch forms at the front, void of lens but offering additional protection nonetheless. It even works with the pancake-sized Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2. So, combined with a compact prime lens, this makes for a great street-cam setup.

It’s about as close to the traditional SLR half-case of the 70’s as you can get. With a modern twist.

More Fujifilm Woes

Just as I was about to publish my review of the Fujifilm X20, I discovered that like the X10 before it, it’s defective. One morning, I turned I attempted to take a photo in my way to work, and noticed that the OVF was actually flickering. And then I noticed the absence of the shooting data along the bottom. Oh, it was there; it’s just that the numbers and symbols had been reduced to outlines, and were practically invisible. I searched the topic, and encountered another person who had exactly the same problem in March of 2013, and then a other in July, intermittently.

I can see no explanation for this. The camera was stored and handled meticulously. I’ve tried resetting everything, and even pulling the battery (but only for a couple of hours). I’ve since pulled the battery and will let it sit for an extended period. But, I am anticipating the day when I will have to take it in to Fuji for repair. 

At this point, my faith in Fujifilm as a manufacturer of cameras is waning. A lot. The whole X10 episode was inexcusable; to release a camera with defective sensor is simply inexcusable. How could it ever have passed QA by a company concerned with image quality; a company with a strong desire to be one of “The Big Three”.

Not including the two Fujis, I have a total of six digital cameras, which have never failed. That includes my Nikon D50, which was purchased used. This definitely does not bode well for Fujifilm. I gave them a second chance with the X20, and this is how I was repaid. 

So, before I finalize my X20 review, I’m going to see how this all pans out, including the service experience, should that be necessary. 

The Fujifilm X30

Leaked: The Fujifilm X30

Only days after receiving my X20, I went looking for more info on the X30 and came upon this…

There’s no question, it’s a good looking camera. A little more modern that the X20, but still has that retro-ish feel. Except for one important fact: NO VIEWFINDER!

At least no optical viewfinder, and a groundbreaking one at that for a “rangefinder”. One that has color-coded shooting information right in the finder. After reading the first impressions review on dpreview, I can say without hesitation that I made the right decision to get the last of a dying breed, and save $100.00 at that. (Not that I would have paid the full retail price of $599.99 for the X30, but still.)

The X30 holds no appeal for me over the X20, and I much prefer the X20 over the X10; They actually got it right except for one thing; they shortened the maximum Image Preview from 3.0 seconds to 1.5 seconds. Why? A typical example of throwing usability completely out of the window and getting it blatantly wrong. The 1.5 second timing is so fast, that at first I thought the image preview was not working. The other major error was removing the option to turn the LCD off altogether from the display button and putting it in a dedicated menu item along with eye sensor, OVF and LCD. All of these options should be part of the display button. This is what happens when you don’t do usability testing on cameras which have user interfaces.

Still, I am overjoyed with this camera. Overall, the menus have improved by being more Nikon-like in their overall function and appearance, and the Q-button is simply genius. I can’t wait to take this out shooting.

But, in defense of the X30, many are criticizing it for not having a 1" sensor. But forgive them, for they just don’t understand the physics of optics. In this camera, sensor size, speed, and focal length range are all in perfect, critical balance; increase the sensor size, and the others must change as well, and not for the better. 

And now for the harsh from me; my faith in Fujiflm as a member of the elite three has waned. I’m happy to own this camera, but I don’t think I would invest in a more expensive offering from them. They just don’t seem to have the experience needed to make a near-flawless high-end camera, which I already have in the Nikon D610.

First Impressions: Fujifilm X20

Faux Pas; All camera manufacturers have them. A recent one for Fujfilm was the X10. A great camera with one major flaw; a defectively designed sensor.

Read more >




Review: Voigtländer Color Skopar 20mm f/3.5 SL II

Voigtländer Color Skopar 20mm f/3.5 SL II

There’s just something about “pancake lenses” that many find appealing, and each company has traditionally offered one or two. But Nikon’s offering (the NIKKOR 45mm f/2.8 P) is a lens for collectors and not for shooters. It just falls short in performance at the borders and edges. The logical option to this lens is the Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2.0 SL II. It’s fast, sharp and even a bit wider; perfect for full-frame, but still very usable on DX.

That said, Voigtländer (one of two brands by Cosina, the other being…Zeiss!) continues their expertise in pancake lenses with this lens, the Color Skopar 20mm f/3.5 SL II. A bit longer and slower than the Ultron, it fills the gap where a manual-focus DX street lens should be, and though not as fast as Nikon’s considerably larger AF NIKKOR 20mm f/2.8, it’s considerably sharper at the borders making it ideal for single-shot panoramas.

The sample pictured is the previous version with a rubber focus ring grip. The latest iteration has a fluted all-metal focus ring, very traditional in appearance. If you’re an SLR shooter, but like the idea of a rangefinder, this gets you a little closer to that experience. Beautifully crafted of black-anodized aluminum, it’s light and has a compactness factor of 19, compared with 15 for the Ultron and 7 for the 45mm NIKKOR P.

What’s Missing Infrared focus index.

What’s Included Front and rear lens caps.

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Aperture Ring Yes. Smooth with positive full-stop clicks, except for f/4; hard stop at f/3.5 instead.

Auto Focus No.

Bokeh Not yet evaluated.

Close Focus 8 inches (0.2m).

Color Rendition Excellent.

Compactness 19 on a scale of 1-500, factoring in diameter, length and weight.

Compatibility Nikon F-Mount with CPU. Works flawlessly on any Nikon body since 1977, and meters on cameras without an aperture sensing tab. Does not seem as sharp on other cameras such as Canon using adapters, even if non-optical.

Construction 9 multi-coated elements in 6 groups with one aspherical element. Metal mount, body, aperture ring, focus ring, inner barrel and filter threads.

Country of Origin Japan.

Coverage 135 film, FX and DX.

Diaphragm 9 curved blades.

Distortion Moderate, about 1.9% of complex distortion.

DX Performance On an APS-C body, this lens would be 30mm at f/3.5 with a 71° field of view; good for street photograph in good light.

EXIF Encoding Yes.

Extension Tubes Works fine with both manual and auto extension tubes, but there are better options.

Falloff Gone by f/8, which is where this lens shines.

Filter Thread Metal, 52mm. Does not rotate.

Ghosts and Flare Minimal.

Hood Optional LH-20 metal hood. Does not work with the domed metal hood that comes with the Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2.0 SL II

Included Standard side-pinch front lens cap, rear cap.

Lateral Color Fringes Not yet evaluated.

Macro Not the best choice for macro, but unmount it from the camera body, preset the aperture, flip it around and hold the filter threads squarely against the mount, and you can get some incredible macro shots bordering on photomicrography.

Manual Focus Focus ring is silky smooth and well-damped with a hard stop at infinity. Has a very usable depth-of-field scale, but no infrared index.

Maximum Reproduction Ratio Not yet evaluated.

Optional Accessories LH-20 metal hood.

RoHS Compliance Not specified on lens. When the chip dies, this will still function perfectly as a manual focus lens.

Sharpness Super sharp at all apertures. Some coma and falloff at f/1.8, gone by f/2.8. Better performance wide open that the f/1.4.

Size 2.5"dia. x 1.1" (63.7mm x 28.6mm)

Spherochromatism Not yet evaluated.

Sunstars At smaller apertures, makes soft 18 point sunstars..

Teleconverters Not yet evaluated.

Variable Aperture Range None; constant aperture.

Versatility A great lens for panoramic images on FX; Works well for street photography on DX.

Vibration Reduction (VR) None. Use speeds as low as 1/30 s, or use “burst” mode to take several exposures and choose the sharpest.

Vignetting Shoot wide open to f/5.6 for a vignetting effect, which is gone by f/8.

Weight Approximately 7.0 oz (199.5g).

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Build Quality ★★★★★

Optical Quality ★★★★★

Value ★★★★

The Bottom Line So thrilled was I with my Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2.0, That I decided to get this as a companion, especially since at the time I was craving a good 30mm street lens for my Nikon D90. On a the D610 however, it finds new life as sharp, compact ultrawide, which has very distinct advantages.

It’s a little trickier to work with than the Ultron, but the rewards are worth the effort once you get the hang of it. Focusing at infinity is challenging, because at infinity, the borders are actually sharper than the center! you just have to set the lens at the hard stop, and have faith. As with any ultra-wide lens, the depth of field is amazing, and even at f/5.6, it ranges from 10' to infinity at that hard stop. So, No worries. Set the focus at 8' to f/8 on the hyperfocal scale, and enjoy sharp focus from about three feet to infinity. Pretty much makes AF and VR unnecessary.

If you’re planning on using any sort of lens shade (always a challenge with any ultra-wide) it seems that  foregoing a filter is the way to go. The 52mm Vello Snap-On Tulip Lens Shade sans filter is probably the most compact option, and the vignetting is practically invisible. But the minute you extend outward with more than one filter, it’s all over. The other path I’d recommend is a 52-77mm step-up ring with the 72mm Vello Snap-On Tulip Lens Shade, which will work well with other setups. But this is really clumsy, and best for critical tripod work. Voigtländer makes a dedicated aluminum shade for this lens (LH-20), but at $45.00, there are much better options, including none since it has very good flare resistance.

So, this lens make much more sense on a full-frame DSLR, and yields some pretty nice single-shot panoramas. Cropping off the corners improves the performance a bit, while sharpness is consistent edge to edge. It’s my go-to lens for this kind of work.

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Sample Images (FX)

NYC from Hoboken, AM. Shot into the sun with virtually no ghosts and flare.

Jersey City, PM. Vertical composition, corrected for perspective distortion.

NYC from Jersey City, PM. Single-shot panorama.

Sample Images (DX)

Monhegan Island

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay

Monhegan Island, Maine

A Mirrorless for Me

On my way to Home Depot, I stopped in to Best Buy to see if they had a Zing Camera Cover. But I found something even more interesting...

I did a double-take as I passed the Sony display featuring the A7 and the Alpha a6000, and I just couldn’t resist. The thing I was most curious about was the viewfinder. Just how close to “real” could a 2.4MP EVF be? Well, I’m still not crazy about them, but I could definitely live with this camera.

The resolution was fine, the refresh rate adequate. But what was working in its favor for me was the sheer amount of info. Once I figured out how to access Manual Focus (I had to use the C2 button), the viewfinder accommodated me by enlarging the view as soon as I rotated the focus ring. These days, when things actually do what they’re supposed to do, I’m impressed, especially when it comes to cameras. But in addition to this little epiphany, there were all kinds of other information that made the EVF worth the price of a “synthetic” image.

Handling-wise, the camera was light, and felt pretty good in the hand, despite the small size and fairly hefty 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. These OSS lenses are about the same diameter as a traditional 135 manual focus lens, but seem to be overly long. To use Minolta AF lenses, the LA-EA4 adapter is required, which adds additional weight and bulk. Good luck figuring out which lenses work with which camera, as the mount is EF, but who knows if the lenses will cover a full frame or not. This guesswork is avoided with the Nikon system. All the DX and FX lenses work with with either camera body one way or another.

The build quality was excellent, with a metal body (magnesium, not brass) and a gloss-black enameled finish, not quite up to the traditional 70’s spec, but as good as we can expect for the current state of the art. As far as I’m concerned, If this is the direction mirrorless cameras are headed, the future is bright. But, the jury’s still out, because Sony, ironically, is the leader in this respect. These are the cameras Nikon and Canon should be making. But instead, they’re focusing on the 1" sensor, which incidentally, so is Sony. Had I not chosen the AE-1 over the XG-7 back in the 70’s, this camera might have been a foregone conclusion. 

I was also quite impressed with the Alpha a6000 which was right next to the A7. While the A7 harkens back to the Olympus SLRs of the 70’s, the a6000 evokes memories of the equally significant rangefinder. Equipped with an APS-C sensor, this camera is more than adequate, although the focus-by-wire approach, which is just plain silly, does not do it justice as does the A7’s more traditional approach. 

The multi-purpose command dial could have been a dedicated exposure compensation dial, aligning it more closely to the A7, but alas, no. Still, it’s miles ahead of it’s predecessors.

These cameras leave me hopeful that when the time comes to retire the DSLR (which is inevitable, I’m afraid) the viewfinders will be up to snuff.

Untermyer Park, Revisited

Literally. This was my second visit to this historic site, and an opportunity to practice what I preach.

Accompanied by my honey, I wanted to travel light. She had an opportunity to put her AF-S Zoom-NIKKOR 18-200mm through its paces on her D3100, and I my Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2.0 SL II on the D610. 

I have to say, on a full-frame camera, 40mm is amazingly versatile. In tight spaces, I had no problems with cropping out important elements, and it always seemed to give me the ideal angle of view. Getting in close was not an issue either, and I had the dedicated 39mm close-up lens with me just in case. 

Focusing was amazing. Very quick and easy with the D610’s three-segment indicator, and no matter how I was holding the camera, I could focus with whichever fingertip I had available. I never missed autofocus.

What I did miss was my trusty Hoya HRT polarizer; don’t have one in 52mm, and didn’t want to bulk up with a step-up ring. With a fast 2.0 aperture, it would have worked great. 

I’ve yet to order the dedicated Nikon CF-DC5 case, but with this lens I’m thinking a Zing camera cover might be a more compact solution. I can definitely see myself toting this setup around often.