aaron_mccormick

<p>good question.</p> <p>I often shoot in areas that may draw unwanted attention from authorities (abandoned buildings), so I have to think about this all the time. 99 percent of the time, if people stop you, they will let you go if it is obvious you are not doing bad shit. But then there is always the bad security guard who calls the cops on you after a reasonable conversation, just because it makes him a feel like a better security guard.<br> If active security is present, I will ask if I can shoot, so that I can be at ease not trespassing.<br> Sadly, in other situations, a load of professional gear strapped on you, and being seen engaged in photography isn't always enough to get you off the hook. With all that photo gear, do people really assume you are there to spray paint, steal, or vandalize? It doesn't matter, because that is not their concern. They just want to know why the hell you are there.<br /><br />About three weeks ago, I was touring NYC, with Ellis Island as the highlight. When I was done, I figured I would drive around Brooklyn and points south (Breezy Point) in order to capture old buildings like the Redhook grain terminal and any possible wreckage left over from Hurricane Sandy. <br> Never even left my car that much, but while I came to rest one time parked and trying to stay warm and eating a DELICIOUS reuben sandwich, this dumpy looking guy from a beat up van walks up to my window and starts asking questions. It was two guys, sitting there on the opposite side of the street watching me for 15 minutes. They were monitoring what I was doing because there was a report of "a suspicious person in the area". OK, probably me. lol.<br /><br /> Long story short, it was the Spanish Inquisition in 5 minutes. My camera gear was a worthy credibility prop, so it was obvious that I was not the "suspicious person" they were looking for. Every question they asked me, I simply routed them back to my hobby or the fact that I was from out of town on a short vacation, driving randomly from one place to the other, not really familiar with the area. (all true) <br /><br /> They searched my car, but found nothing.. patted me down. The guy looking in my car found a corked wine bottle from the previous night's celebration, but was more like: "Ooh, he's got the <em>good</em> stuff!" and they gave me a slap on the wrist. LOL<br> Anyway, all this has got me thinking (again) about credibility props one should have on their person in case they are deemed a suspicious photographer. It's all about credibility, whether on the scene shooting or on the perimeter and you are just leaving and some dude decides to stop you.<br /><br />Why not have a photographer's artist statement on you, about why you shoot the buildings you do, and why architectural history is important to you? Why not use one of several you wrote in graduate school, right?<br /><br />Why not have a 50 or a hundred spot on you, or just a pack of smokes? Just in case someone feels like being a complete jerk? Offer them a gift and they might let you off the hook.<br> Why not have a hard hat and clipboard on you? NOBODY wants to talk to the guy with the clipboard! Possibilities are endless. Most of the time though, just be honest.</p> <p> </p>

<p>I'm glad I'm not a politician, too.</p>

<p>I never, ever shoot with a high ISO. And if I have to, I'll still avoid it and do a long exposure. I took Wouter's quote "out of context", because I completely disagreed with what it said while it was actually in context.. Sorry 'bout that.</p>

<p><em>"If a camera like the D7100 (with completely acceptable ISO3200 performance) doesn't cut it, it's not unlikely that a D810 will not solve a great deal of the problem either."</em><br /><br />Jeez! That was quite the opinionated statement,<br> Or maybe I misread it because it contained a grammatical triple negative (is that even possible?) What about FX lenses? Seems like you are discrediting everything, so I'll strongly disagree with this. Anyhow, the D750 looks superior to the D810.. and for a lot of different reasons!</p>

<p>@ Tom Best. I agree about that D7000 vs D7100 low light comparison. I've noticed the same difference. Not sure about the 800's vs the 750 but I'll have to check it out.</p>

<p>Cool. thanks people. <br />The intel posted has been fully absorbed. I have a long way to go to look into all this. <br /><br />But not so much for what lenses I need (I already know, for the most part)... but for comparing things like primes.... 35mm, 50, 85, and that's about it. I'll see what happens in my research.</p>

<p>@ BeBu<br />Ok, so I lied. I have not finished saying I was done with this thread. <br /><br />Thanks for the conversion numbers, Bebu! And yes. That change will be beautiful.. it even adds one more degree of width angle in comparison to my current Nikkor 10-24mm lens on the D7100<br /><br />But that conversion is mundane for me, at this point. What really interests me is the benefit I will receive from better mid range portrait style lenses with a nice bokeh effect and a shallow aperture. Fixed focal length is something I have never used in the past, but at least I can experiment using my D7100, by restricting myself at a fixed focal range, and this was the point of my original post, in part. But I get it now.</p>

<p>@ Dieter<br /><br />The excellent points you make! <br /><br />I am confident that the supply of info handed over to me has now answered my demand.<br />This thread is now closed by the poster.</p>

<p>LOL, nice one <a href="/photodb/user?user_id=2178860">Jim Momary</a>. Looks like my bitching paid off.<br /><br />I'll start researching that thing tomorrow when I have some extra time. <br> Remember, I'm a noob, guys! </p>

<p>Thanks all,<br /> <br />Before my responses to other people's responses gets derailed or misconstrued in the thread, I think it's time for me to outline my expectations, and why I posted in the first place:<br /><br /> 1) I expect lowest light performance possible in <em><strong>any</strong></em> given situation, since I always shoot in very dark spaces, which is why I chose to upgrade to primes and full frame. The low light qualities of my D7100 are nice, but leave much to be desired, for my taste.</p> <p>2) Cost efficiency in buying multiple primes (as opposed to expensive zooms) is just a no-brainer.</p> <p>3) Image quality, shooting with multiple primes, seems to defeat the purpose of shooting with zoom lenses, in my personal opinion. Again, a wide open aperture with superior low light performance is one of the most important things to me. In addition to that, I am increasingly interested in quality bokeh.</p> <p>4) Ninety percent of my pictures are taken in very low light or tight spaces, or they are architectural exteriors taken at close to medium range. That is how I know I ought to settle for <strong><br /><br />A)</strong> one expensive ultra-wide angle and then supplement it with<br /><strong>B)</strong> a couple of cheaper primes to get some longer shots. Sure, I won't have the reach of the lenses I had on my D7100, but I don't think I will miss it much.</p> <p><em>Also Kent, thanks for your input.</em><strong><br /></strong><br /> I too, have not seen any reviews showing beyond a doubt, that the D810 blows the D800E out of water, so to speak, but you never know unless you own both cameras. But I have also seen reviews showing otherwise, so there simply is no telling.<br /> I can't say I 've ever heard of that Nikon 24mm PC-E, but it certainly looks interesting.<br /><br /><strong><br /></strong></p>

<p><strong>@ JDM</strong><br />Understood, dude. Never said I didn't appreciate the comments, by the way. I was just looking for something more in line with a visual/ comparative (and all inclusive) ratio chart for all the typical crop sensor lenses one might consider for comparison when moving up to full frame primes. I'll just Google it. It's not that complicated. And I'll sleep well, thank you. lol</p>

<p>Yes, I know all about zooming with my feet. I was hoping there was a simple ratio chart that might help me just do a quick comparison of various focal lengths for the Nikon crop lenses versus full frame primes. (in terms of numbers)<br /><br />If people want to call this over-intellectualized, then there is nothing I can do about it. (It's clear I worded things wrong) I'll just Google it, instead. Sorry for wasting everyone's time.</p>

<p>@ <a href="/photodb/user?user_id=1841065">JDM von Weinberg</a><br> I do know about the different words that can be used to describe lenses (ultra wide, wide, etc.)But what do you think? <br> <br />Maybe if I use my kit lens on my D7100 (which is 18-140mm) I can set the focal range to 50mm, and will this be what full frame looks like at roughly 35mm? See, I'm asking about testing these things out in the field. But nothing more, really.</p>

<p>Perhaps you are correct, Peter, and I see you are quoting me about money. <br />But I think you are reading too much into my post. <br /><br />At no point did I ever say I <em><strong>wanted</strong></em> to afford any more than one wide angle zoom and a prime portrait lens.<br /> <br />My goal is to compare full frame versus cropped sensor, so I can visually confirm the focal ranges and field of view through the lens while I am shooting.<br /><br />I've had cropped sensors for several years, so I am aware of what types of lenses I DON'T have interest in, but my uncertainties are more about getting as close a comparison as possible between similar lenses across a range of cropped sensor and full frame.</p>

<p>I plan on getting a full frame camera, which would be an upgrade (for me) from what is a Nikon D7100.<br> Progressing to a D810, the ratio of frame cropping between these two cameras is something like 1.5x less with the D7100 considering focal range.<br> With that in mind, my question is pretty simple. If I want to get an idea (with my D7100 lenses) of what the view using certain (fixed focal length) D810 primes will be, how should I go about doing that? I know it's really just simple math, but still. I read a tip online where someone gave the proper focal range for a zoom lens on an APS-C crop sensor (Nikon) for comparing with a full frame, and that was perfect. I was able to use this advice and see what my field of view would be on a full frame with my kit lens zoomed to a certain focal length.<br> <br />In conclusion, I would like to use one or more of the following lenses that I have now, for my D7100<br> <strong>10-24mm zoom</strong><br> <strong>18-140mm zoom</strong><br> <strong>75-300mm zoom</strong><br> <br /> to see how the view would be using the following prime lenses (one is zoom) on a D810:<br> <strong>14-24mm zoom </strong><br> <strong> 35mm prime </strong><br> <strong> 50mm prime</strong><br> <strong>85mm prime </strong></p> <p>However, I am pretty certain I will only buy the 14-24mm zoom, and 50mm prime. I can't afford anything else.</p>