r_parra

<p>I traded my beloved Nikon 14-24mm for the 16-28mm... yes, the tokina is that good, even on my D800. insane optics at 1/2 the price plus 14mm was always too wide for my taste...</p>

<p>Hi Petr, I was in your same shoes a few of years ago since I only work in architecture/photography and was searching for the best possible image quality regardless of the format. I own both bodies/lenses and have used them extensively in the field so, given your budget, my short answer would be the 14-24mm and D7000 (i own this body too and the D300 is obsolete compared to it)<br>

long version: the 14-24mm is the best wide angle lens available for DX, period! absolutely nothing compares to this masterpiece in terms of sharpness from corner to corner, CA and contrast, I've tried the 16-35mm, 14mm, 12-24mm, Tokina 11-16mm, Tokina 12-24mm and the images made with 14-24mmare always superior by a long stretch. I always hear people saying that this lens is not for DX, that you would be under-utilizing it or overpaying for it since it is made for FX and you can get a DX specific lens for less... My guess is that these people have never taken a single picture with this lens, otherwise they would not make these types of statements.<br>

The 14-24mm lens is AMAZING on a DX camera when it comes to shooting interiors not only because you get the best possible image quality but because the zoom range (21-36mm) is perfect for this type of work, I used this lens with a D300 as my main kit for more than 2 years shooting interiors for architects/designers and about 85% of my wide images were in the 21-28mm range, the other 15% closer to 35mm, only on a handful of occasions I had to go wider than that and used the tokina 12-24. This type of work is more about being creative when composing the image rather than trying to fit everything in the frame.<br>

I now shoot with a D700 mainly because of the 24mm PCE and 28mm PC. I still carry the 14-24mm but use it much less now because on FX became too wide and the 24mm end is covered by the pc-e; the 14-18mm range requires a lot more control at the time of composing the image to avoid the exaggerated distortion and unnatural perspective that are trademarks of ultra wides. You also mentioned the 20mm lens but in my experience it doesn't perform as well as the 14-24 and the corners are usually much softer.<br>

The reason why I suggested the D7000 its because I also own one and find it to be superior to the D300 in terms of image quality, not only at low light but also at the native ISO, specially in the shadowed/highlight areas. In my experience the shadows on the D300 have a lot more noise and it’s easier to blow the highlights than with the D7000. Obviously the D300 is more rugged and considered a “pro” body I find all of this irrelevant when you use a tripod and the main thing you are looking for is to have the tools that can give the best image quality.<br>

I hope you can find my comments helpful good luck with your photography!</p>

<p>I don't know if this stills applies because this was back in 2002 but I lived in Barcelona for over a year and it wasn't that big of a market. The majority of the fashion related work happens in Madrid and that is where the majority of fashion photographers were living.<br>

I did l work and with a few agencies and very few designers, I also did editorials but for magazines outside Spain. At the end almost all of the work I did was not related to fashion (interior and architecture photography)<br>

It is an amazing city but back then I didn't think it was a good place to settle as fashion photographer. Again, this was my experience 8 years ago so things might have changed drastically since then...<br>

good luck!</p>

 

get a D300 and the 14-24 for the same price you would get the D700, don't pay attention to those who say that the 14-24mm is a waste of money on a DX that is just because they just haven't try it yet!!

The 14-24 is still amazing on the D300. I shoot professionally interiors and architecture and my budget didn't allowed for a D3 so I went with the D300 and couldn't be happier with the results I get with the 14-2mm 2.8. When I need wider images I stitch two or three together but 95% of the time the lens is wide enough. I got this lens because is far superior to the Tokina 12-24 and the Nikkor 12-24 (I owned both) the images from the 14-24 are much sharper and the color rendition is fantastic. If you have the money and want the best Nikon lens produced until now just get the 14-24mm and worry about switching to a FF body later on, you defiantly won't regret getting the lens with the D300, the best DX camera out there! killer combo!!!!

Hi, I an an architect and I've been shooting my work for quite a while ( I also shoot for other designers). I stopped shooting in medium format and 4x5 a couple of years ago since the pictures are mostly for personal portfolio and occasional publications and I didn't want to deal with too much equipment. I just got a Nikon D300 but before I used a D70 and was very happy with the results. I did a lot of research and the best option for wide angle zooms was the Tokina 12-24mm (around $500), this lens performed better than the Sigma, Tamron and even Nikon equivalent ( I tried them all). The lens has heavy construction, great color rendition, low distortion and is very sharp. the lens also has great resell value.

I sold it a few month ago when I got my D300 and bought the new Nikon 14-24mm 2.8 ($1700). Now this lens is fantastic! well worth the price but if you can't afford it I would recommend the Tokina without any hesitation.

My other lenses are a 35-70mm f2.8 and a 105mm for close ups and details.

As mentioned in by others you will definitively need a sturdy tripod and maybe some lights (I particularly don't like to use flashes in interior shots but some people do) and start getting familiarized with Photoshop.

The best and easiest way to correct distortion on any of the lenses mentioned above is with PTLens, as a plugin for PS or stand alone software.

Good luck!