Surfing, Lanscape and Nature photography

Hi all,

 

I have been wanting to get into photography for a few years now and

finally my finances permit me to buy some decent gear. I travel back

and forth between Denamrk and South Africa, and my primary interest is

taking surfing photos (as well as landscapes and nature). This is

driven by my desire to bring a bit of my home (Cape Town) back with me

to Europe.

 

Currently I am looking at buying a used Nikon f90x and matching this

up with a Sigma 170-500mm. (Another amature surf photographer advised

me to buy this lense). I would then add a wide angle lense for the

landscapes, but I haven't thought too much about that yet.

 

My questions are:

In all your expert opinions how well does this gear fit my needs + how

compatible is the lense/body combination.

I would imagine that in years to come I would go digital, would I

still be able to use my lenses.

Is there any other advice that you think I might benifit from????

 

Thanks for your time.

 

Simon

In the years to come, after purchasing the fine F90X, maybe you will start gathering a collection of Nikon lenses. I'm not sure of the compatibility of your sigma lens with any Nikon DSLR, now or in the future. But the F90X is a great body to get started with in the Nikon World. If you can afford the jump, maybe consider an F100. Your sigma lens is what we consider a slow lens, meaning that the smallest f stop, or biggest aperture opening, isn't that large compared to some other lenses out there. However, if on a sunny beach you may find enough light to shoot and freeze your subject.

How about a camera housing to get right out into the water?

 

http://www.adorama.com/

catalog.tpl?op=details&sid=105297043936200229&sku=EWUAMZ<div></div>

I have definitely thought about getting some watershots but you can't walk before you can crawl...so I need some 'land based' practise first. Besides that, if I'm going to be in the water getting sunburnt when the waves are 'cooking', then I'll be surfing. The sun is very potent in sunny South Africa, so most of my shooting I'll be doing from under an unbrella when I'm surfed out and need to get in the shade. Thanks for the tip!