Building a system around my new F80, comments appreciated.

Thanks to the great advice I have received on my last question, I have

made a buying decision and will buy a new F80 together with a used AF

3.5-4.5/28-70D lens this weekend. As soon as I get it, I will start

saving for more lenses, a flash, filters and accessories.

 

 

 

 

I have created a "roadmap" for further purchases and would like to

hear your comments on it. Please bear in mind that I am an amateur

with a limited budget, i.e. I don't want to spend much more than 1000

Euros (~1200 US$) per year on equipment. My main interests are in

landscape, travel and street photography, plus some portraits and

acts. One aspect in my roadmap for further lenses is to stick with one

filter size (E52) for the next couple of years because it's cheap and

I don't want to invest twice without getting added value.

 

 

 

 

 

 

PURCHASE NOW:

 

 

 

 

F80 new

 

 

AF 3.5-4.5/28-70D used

 

 

AF 1.8/50D new

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROBABLY STILL THIS YEAR:

 

 

 

 

MB-16 new

 

 

SB-28 or SB-80DX used

 

 

AF 4.5-5.6/80-200D used (a cheap and light telezoom which according to

Thom Hogan delivers satisfactory results)

 

 

F301 (N2000) used (cheap offer available, just to see if I like

shooting in MF, and as a backup)

 

 

 

 

FORESEEABLE FUTURE:

 

 

 

 

Manfrotto (=Bogen) tripod

 

 

 

 

AF 2.8/24D used or grey market

 

 

AF 2/35D used or grey market

 

 

AF Micro 2.8/105D used or grey market (also as a general purpose short

tele)

 

 

 

 

OR (IF I GET TO LIKE SHOOTING IN MANUAL FOCUS):

 

 

 

 

FM2n used or FM3A new depending on budget

 

 

AIS 2.8/24 or 2.0/24 used depending on budget

 

 

AIS 1.4/35 or AF 2/35D used depending on budget

 

 

AIS 2.5/105 used

 

 

AIS Micro 2.8/55 used

 

 

 

 

plus maybe a 180mm lens

 

 

 

 

POSSIBLE LATER FUTURE:

 

 

 

 

AF 4.5-5.6/80-400D VR ED

 

 

AF 3.5-4.5/18-35D ED IF

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have received my knowledge about these lenses mainly from the

reviews by Thom Hogan, Ken Rockwell and from reading this site and

forum, so maybe my selection of future lenses and accessories is

somewhat biased.

 

 

 

 

Your comments would be very much appreciated.

Hi ,

 

I have the F80s, and the 50mm 1.4AF D, and I am so happy with its results that I have stopped shooting with my tamron 28 to 300 lens. Like you I was on a tight budget and just went with a tamron lens and the 50 mm. One suggestion I could give is to look at F80s instead of just F80, the F80s imbeds the shooting data between the frames and I find it very useful in analysing my images later for improvement.

 

I am very impressed with primes and am going to get a 24mm 2.8 lens, no more zooms for me. Just my personal experience.

Hajo, I see no big problem with your plan. I don't know what stage you are at in the art of photography, but I'm going to suggest that you think twice about a flash.

 

Most beginners want flashguns, it's natural, but truly, as soon as my knowledge and style became more sophisticated, I never touched a flash again. The irony of flash is that it's more useful during the day - for fill-in - that it is at night where it produces aweful pictures. Unless you use it creatively with ambient light, such as what David Alan Harvey does.

 

I'd like to know if you've considered a digital camera (you can afford a D70?) and if so, why/why not. Keep in mind that film costs money, too, so if you're on a budget, a D70 is, depending on your circumstances, a money-saver IMHO.

Congratulations on picking a film camera, and a fine one too.

 

It's typical for a beginner to want to fill out a kit with a bunch of things, including lenses, flash, etc. I would suggest buying a reading a few good books first, taking some pictures, and then adding stuff as you need it (if you need it). After the camera and one lens (whichever you want, like a 28-105 or a 24-85 or a couple of prime lenses), the next thing on the list should probably be the lens hood that goes with the lens, a polarizer, a yellow filter (if you're doing B&W photography), a tripod. You don't need a flash unless you really need one.

 

I have had many prime lenses and a few zooms for the F80 I had, but I always get the most pleasure from just 3 prime lenses: a 28, a 50, and an 85. Alternatively, some might like a 24, 35, 85, or whatever.

GHajo

 

Seems like more planned buying than I would do at this stage. I applaud the F80

(great camera) and the 50 1.8D. I see the 28-70 gets good reviews -- I would

alternately consider the 28-105D lens, which gives a bit more length and can be used

to explore some macro work. You may want to consider next a tripod and a yellow

filter (if doing B&W). My advice would be to hold off on more equipment purchases

for some time to see where your photographjy takes you and instead spend the

money on film. Consider joining a local camera club to interact with other

enthusiasts.

 

I frankly don't see there is any point in making a list now of what you would buy next

-- just see where things take you. Maybe you would want a prime medium telephoto

(like the 85mm 1.8D) for portraits with blurred background. Maybe a really wide

angle (like the 24mm 2.8D). I'm not sure I'd get the F301 -- you can use the F80 in

manual mode, and if you decide you want a real manual camera with a great

viewfinder, I'd suggest instead a Nikon classic like a used FE-2 or even a used F3HP.

If you want to take sports pictures, you may want to consider a longer telephoto (like

the old 75-300 AF). Who knows, you may even find that after some time you want to

pick up a digital SLR. I'm not sure I'd even get a flash at this time -- I ran out and

bought a good flash quite early, but don't use it that much except for family shots

indoors. My biggest advice is to hold off on your purchases until you play with your

camera and two lenses a bit and see where your interests take you.

 

Have fun.

 

Bob Y.

My Current Gear :

F80 + MD-16,

AFS 25 - 85 f:3.5-4.6,

50mm f:1.8, and AF-D 80-200 f:2.8.

Plan for future :

D70

Manfrotto or Slik Pro-Serires

AFS 17-35mm f: 2.8

Dream Lens:

AFS 400mm f:2.8

Maybe I have misformulated my post, but suddenly some respondents seem to mistake me for a complete dummy. I surely am an amateur, but I have been taking respectable photographs for two decades and I believe to have a fair idea what my next steps in photography could be. Thus I am not a complete beginner, I am simply upgrading my equipment. Please also see my last post: http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=009BRs

 

I was hoping for some comments on the balance, quality and investment strategy for my planned equipment, not the "get a 50mm lens and learn about perspective" kind of answers.

 

Sorry if I have wasted your time and thanks to those who have given me some helpful answers.

<p>Really helpful answer Bob. </p><p>I'm in the same situation as Hajo. (N80 + 50mm 1.8 AF-D + UV + CPL filters) In the past few days I've read hundreds of reviews, forum posts etc. I'm interested in landscape and people photography. 50mm prime fits my environmental portrait and low light shots, but i started having a need for something wider. I'm coming going between a prime and a wide-med. telephoto zoom. My options are 1) 24mm 2.8 prime or Nikkor 2) 28-105 f3.5-4.5 Nikkor 3) 24-85 AF-S f3.5-4.5 Nikkor 4) Tamron 24-135 f3.5-5.6 SP.</p> <p>Money is a concern so the choice is hard. Optical quality of my 50 drives me going on the primes. On the other hand versatility of a zoom is also attractive. I live in Turkey so buying and selling is not that easy as in the US. So my decision should be lasting.</p><p>Best Regards</p><p>Emre</p>

Hajo, 2 things I disagree with on your plan:

 

1. Get the tripod before the MF camera. Your first listed interest is landscape and the added sharpness you will get from a decent tripod will stun you. I have a Bogen 3001BN with 3265 Ball head with Quick Release. Legs and head, brand new, were less than $160 off E-bay, $176.90 from B&H.

 

2. Rather than limit yourself to one filter thread size, why not take a look at the largest filter thread size of any lens you are reasonably likely to purchase in the future and buy all your filters in that size. You can then use step rings, which cost a couple of bucks, for all of your lenses that have a smaller filter thread size.

I'm almost certain after a few months your priorities will change and you may want a different set of lenses and the order of perchasing might change too.

 

Invest initially in "forever" things like a sturdy tripod, a good ball head and perhaps an FM3A body (opens up possibility of fantastic used AIS lenses).

Hajo, I liked the camera so much I bought 2 of them. IMHO. I built a system of a 24, 85, 180 all D. I like primes, some like zooms. I use my Bogen tripod as much as possible,it did improve my photography,Thom Hogan hit it right on the head. I went with the SB-28,great unit. Good luck with your set-up.

Hajo,

 

Your list is well considered and there is nothing wrong with it. I will comment on two items.

 

#1

 

F301 (N2000) used (cheap offer available, just to see if I like shooting in MF, and as a backup)

 

Fine if it is a nice and fully-functional model for a small price. As an alternative, look for an FG which is similar but without the motor and batteries. But again watch the price and condition.

 

#2

 

AF Micro 2.8/105D used or grey market (also as a general purpose short tele)

 

This is a very very sharp micro lens but the effective focal length decreases to about 90mm and this is a gripe. Also, the out of focus details are harsh and that is also a gripe for general purpose shooting. If you can get by with a manual focus micro lense, several other brands get very good reviews. If you can get by with a manual focus portrait lens, the 105mm f2.5 AI/AIS is better than the 105mm f2.8 AFD lens.

I think it is a great choice. I have built my Nikon system around the N80, as well. I started with an N70 but moved to an N80 via a rather circuitous route of equipment exchanges (not really worth mentioning). I was disappointed with the kit zoom that came with the N70 and have since used primarily primes. My lenses include the 24 afd, 35 afd, 50 1.8 af, 85 1.8 afd, and a newly acquired 180 edif non-D. I also have an FM2n and the sb28. I am thrilled with the kit. I have added lenses incrementally over the last 3-4 years. I really tried to figure out the limits/possibilities of each focal length and my style of shooting before adding more gear. The afd lenses work fine with the FM2n; for now, I have no plans of adding AIS lenses. Enjoy your camera.

This is the kind of question a beginner would ask. Sorry if I or others insulted you, but I know I assumed you were new to this. If you aren't, then you can probably answer your own question.

Just 2 comments on your list:

 

1.- Consider the 28-105 instead of the 28-70, you'd get longer reach (to my taste, a 70 is worthless, I'd rather have 24 and 50 primes) and a touch of macro (1:2 at 105mm)

 

2.- I consider Galen Rowell's and Thom Hogan's reviews very valuables, but I can not second their advice on the 80-200 f4,5-5,6: I broke the plastic mount of this lens in a fall that caused no damage to the body. Additionally, I wasn't impressed with its optics, which I found about equal to a similar Cosina lens. I suspect the 70-300 G to be as good (as bad) as the 80-200. I suggest you to go for an older and bulkier 70-210 or 75-300 or skip the slow lenses and save for the 80-200 f2.8. The only real advantage of the 80-200 I could found was little size and weight.

consider just starting out with 77mm filters and step up rings, rather than hamstring yourself with which lenses you can use. what do you really need except polarizer and graduated ND filters anyway? if you plan to work in photoshop, filters are free...

I would buy the MB16 first. Holding the F80 without the bottom grip drives me up the wall as I think having a nice egonomic feel on a camera is very important to get me into the mood to shoot. (The AA size batteries is also a plus.) As for AFD 28-70 (which I also own) I think it will do fine if money is a problem but you should consider expanding your budget for the AFS 24-85 as your mid end zoom once and for all. Wider and longer at both ends, faster AF and silence makes the AFS a better choice IMHO. No need to upgrade later. (I just bought the AFS lens to replace my aging AFD 28-70 - no regrets.)