[Maciej90]

September 19, 2015 at 8:45 pm

The second part of your last sentence is your answer. ;)
Besides, 18-55 provides you wide angle of view and that is something you will need photographing ocean.
Alternatively you can check Lee or Cokin filters. You buy one glass/filter and you can use it with many different lenses (having dedicated filter holders).

[Maciej90]

September 1, 2015 at 12:27 pm

Hi,
In my opionion, when it comes to making a choice between mirrorless and DLSR camera, it ‘s not only about the size and portability of the equipment or available lens range. It is also about the ergonomics of the camera and the options this camera provides and those that you really need (eg. fast AF, sensor size, really good LV, EVF, great low light performance, video recording, tilt screen, plenty of dials and buttons, battery life etc.) Of course, I’m not going to describe and comapare all the features of these two cameras because I’m sure that you do have some basic knowledge about them. And, of course, I don’t know everything about them. But because you wanted some advice I ‘ll give you mine.

You mentioned that you will be focusing on landscape and portrait. This tells me to mention about sensors and that drives to a quick talk about color and sharpness. Canon – in general – is the master in the aspect of portrait photography because it gives the most natural looking color of the skin on the photographs among all other brands. However photographs taken with SONY are very rich in colors what is very plesent for an eye. And sharpness. Images from Canon are soft and – again – that’s great for portraits where SONY is great for detail.
And because of that I would rather want to have a portrait shot taken with originally natural color of the skin than spend some time for post processing in order to achieve that. Imagine edit 150 shots from a shoot. For me it’s 1:0 for Canon.
Now, the sensor size and a word about lenses. I know that in this example they are the same – APC-S. But if landscape and portrait photography become your favourite area you may want (or need) to upgrade to a full frame body after some time. You may find that you want some wider angle of coverage or even more shallow depth of field. And here is 2:0 for Canon. Sony – at least for now – has only it’s expensive A7 full frame line. Canon has 6D, 5D and 1D.
And lenses. If you get some lenses for Canon APS-C that work also with full frame Canon without any adapters you will save money.

Ok, let’s give SONY something. 1 point for it’s video mode. That includes: reaction time, possibility to use EVF while recording, pretty fast AF.

By the way, 750D is really light (for a DLSR). For portraits or landscape you won’t need big lenses. Canon 50mm (1.8 as well as 1.4) is even smaller than SONY’s SEL 50. Aren’t big and hevy.

As a Nikon user I can suggest D5300. =)

The choice is all yours.

[Maciej90]

August 30, 2015 at 4:05 pm

Glad could help. Stay safe. =)

[Maciej90]

August 30, 2015 at 3:44 pm

Anything from 200mm and over should be ok on your D3200. Of course lens should have VR system, AF motor (AF-S) and it should be fast.
Nikkor AF-S 300mm f/4E PF ED VR might suit you however this is professional lens and so is it’s price… ;)
Nikkor AF-S 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED should interests you more. I know it is slow sometimes but you can always use slightly higher ISO in order to achieve faster shutter speeds for those ‘perfect moments’. I’m sure that during bright days this lens will perform very well – in my opinion even for commercial shots. I think that it won’t disappoint you and that makes the 70-300 VR the best choice fot start. I also believe that aspect of PRICE vs PERFORMANCE of this lens is well balanced but again that is only my personal opinion.

[Maciej90]

August 20, 2015 at 4:00 pm

I would go with 50 1.4 and 18-55. Zoom might be useful and 18mm will be good for some landscapes/street. That would be my choice, however it really depends on what kind of photography you are into.

[Maciej90]

June 21, 2015 at 12:42 pm

Seaview wrote:

Hi Maciej, I’m from Youghal myself but I’m out of town tomorrow for most of the day. The beach is certainly Youghal’s best attraction which goes on for miles. The quays in Youghal are always good for a snap or two but unless you get there early the tide will have gone out, high tide just after 8.00am tomorrow. The rocky area around the lighthouse can provide some lovely snaps, if you’re coming during the day, maybe bring a 10 stop filter to help capture the water. If you want to go for spin, Knockadoon and Capel island are really nice and depending on the weather are very picturesque, a new walk as been open there recently and is certainly a great way to pass away a couple of hours. To the east of Youghal there some beautiful little beaches that can be very rewarding given the right weather. Ardmore village is really nice with its own cliff walk and a lovely beach also. Goat Island, a few miles west of Ardmore village is one of the most beautiful beaches in this country, maybe I’m a little biased :lol: :lol: I’ll let you be the judge if you make a visit.

Enjoy Youghal.

Dave.

Dave,
Thanks a lot for your reply. :)
I ended up on the main beach which was alright until very harsh sun came out from the clouds. Because of that I didn’t have much chance to shoot some landscapes but I got a few good still life snaps.
Maybe some other time I may have an opportunity to explore more. Now I know what’s worth it!

[Maciej90]

June 16, 2015 at 9:15 am

slang61 wrote:

Interesting….
I would be interested in larger capacity cards if you are ever selling some.
STU.

Currently I own 8 gigs only. I may have some other ones in the future but can’t be sure for 100% so I don’t make any promises.
Depending on the camera you have and the file type you are using taking 2 of the above may not be such a bad idea because 2×8 is much safer than 1×16.
This 8GB is still around 100 NEFs from 36MPX sensor and 300 NEFs from 12MPX.

Thanks for your interest. =)

[Maciej90]

June 15, 2015 at 11:45 pm

Hello,

Mark, what make are you using? Nikon or Canon?
If Nikon: there is great Nikkor 10-24 which is very well made and present’s good optic properties. Actually I picked it instead of Sigma 10-20 f/3.5 (didn’t even consider to get cheaper Sigma f/4-5,6 because of its very poor quality body as well as poor optics).
If you are Canon user: Canon 10-22 is terribly made from the outside, hovever optics is OK. My friend has one and for her amateur needs is just fine. I would take this over darker Sigma 10-20, BUT Sigma f/3.5 probably would be the best choice for EOS camera if you are looking for well folded and reliable equipment.
You mentioned Tokina 11-16. Well, it’s a good lens in general, but do you really need f/2.8 shooting landscapes? Personally, I would prefer to have 10mm than low aperture value, because most of landscapes is done at least at f/8, right?

[Maciej90]

June 15, 2015 at 11:16 pm

MIR-1B 37mm f/2.8 however I’m not great with it, yet. :wink:

[Maciej90]

June 15, 2015 at 11:11 pm

Hi,
You won’t find zoom lens with focal lenght between 55-200mm f/2.8. However you can cover this focal range with standard lens such as 50 and 85mm ( both 1.8 ) or 105mm ( 2.8 ). These would give you 75, 127 and 157mm. Did you consider Tamron 24-70? It would give you some zoom and still goes over 100mm f/2.8 on DX. I think that this option is better than using mentioned standard lenses.
Both these solutions have one common advantage: it’s all about FX so if someday you decide to get full frame body you wil already have some appropriate lens.

You asked about advantages of FX over DX. Well, it depends. In general:
(1) image generated by full frame camera at high ISO is less nosier than image taken by crop at the same ISO value.
(2) From FX you will also get better looking bokeh; image will be much blurrier in out of focus areas.
(3) Most lenses show their full potential on FX body (that explains higher price).
(4) FX has wider frame coverage so it’s great for landscape.
And here I can present the advantage of DX over FX. DX gives more zoom as you already know. That’s why 80-200 on FX = 120-300 on DX. FX is wider, DX is longer.

Ask yourself these questions “What do I expect from my camera? What do I really need for photography that I’m in to?” and then try to find the best solution for your needs and expectations. :wink: