The Nikon D4s (B&H / Amazon) updates the already-awesome Nikon D4. The short summary lists some improvements, which while they may appear incremental, overall make for a solid new release by Nikon:
- a newly designed sensor, offering better high-ISO performance,
- an additional AF mode has been added - Group Area AF - for more accurate subject tracking,
- 11 fps continuous shooting with continuous AE/AF (compared to the 10 fps of the D4)
- 'small' Raw size of 8 Mpx,
- 1080/60p video
- faster processing with the new Read more inside...
The anachronistically retro styling of the Nikon Df (B&H / Amazon), along with the digital trappings, really makes this the steampunk D4. Especially so since it has the same top-notch sensor as the Nikon D4 (affiliate)
If you have used a film camera, and specifically one of the F-series cameras, this camera will catch your eye. It's obvious that Nikon is aiming at the same sector of photographers who found the Fuji X100s (affiliate) so appealing. That vintage look and styling definitely brings a Read more inside...
The Nikon 58mm f/1.4G (B&H / Amazon) is an odd focal length. It's not-50mm. More than that, the Nikon 50mm f/1.4G (affiliate) is only $440, and this new 58mm lens is $1,700 ... yup, that's a pretty hefty difference! The price of the 58mm lens is in line with the 85mm f/1.4G … so could one expect improved performance?
I have to admit that the 50mm f/1.4G is my least used lens, along with the fish-eye. I'm just not that excited about using it. The focal length is just not wide enough (like a 35mm might be), nor tighter like a Read more inside...
At the same time that I photographed Anelisa for the review of the Nikon 28mm f/1.8 AF-S lens, I had the brand-new Nikon AF-S 85mm f/1.8G lens (B&H / Amazon) on my other camera body. For every place that I photographed Anelisa with the 28mm f/1.8 lens, I also shot similar images with the 85mm f/1.8 lens. In a way, these two lenses complement each other, if you like working with a dual prime lens setup. A nice wide-angle view with the one lens, while the 85mm is a sweet portrait lens.
Wanting to show off the shallow depth-of-field, I Read more inside...
To test out the Nikon AF-S 28mm f/1.8G (B&H / Amazon), I met up with Anelisa in Brooklyn to try my hand at some environmental portraiture. With such a wide field-of-view, you inevitably have to include the background.
I wanted to show the effect of the shallow depth-of-field of this lens, so I shot at f/1.8 or f/2.0 throughout. When you use a fast (i.e., wide aperture) wide-angle lens, and have sufficient distance between your subject and the background, that shallow depth of field can be used to great effect. It can be tricky Read more inside...
Using Nikon's built-in Time-lapse photography feature
Among the loads of features of Nikon and Canon's latest cameras, is an item which is of specialized interest - Time-Lapse Photography. At the upper end of the spectrum, time-lapse photography is best done by shooting sequences of RAW files. More on that topic here: Camera settings for Time-lapse photography. However, the built-in Time-Lapse feature makes it really accessible. You can immediately see the footage you shot, in-camera. Wonderful to make adjustments to settings or composition or timing while on location.
With Read more inside...
lens review: Nikon 50mm f/1.4G vs Nikon 50mm f/1.8G
The 50mm lens in general is an interesting optic. Not necessarily for what it does, but how it seems to have fallen out and back in favor over the years. For example, in the 1970's pretty much all 35mm film cameras shipped with a 50mm lens. Zooms weren't something that just came with the camera as a kit lens. It was the 50mm lens that was the "kit lens". So the first thing the serious amateur would do, is dump the 50mm lens and get a zoom lens to get some variety in their photographs.
Then over the years, more compact and slower Read more inside...
Itching to try out the Nikon 85mm f1.4G (B&H /Amazon) during a photo session, I had Jessica model for me. During this short photo session, I used the new 85mm f1.4G and the classic 85mm f1.4D side-by-side. As you can see in the photo above, the lens' extremely shallow depth of field and superb bokeh, give backgrounds that just melt away.
My first impression already is that lens is even better than I anticipated ... Read more inside...
I've been very happy with the older 70-200mm f2.8 VR telephoto zoom. Even even though the edges are softer than the center, it never bothered me. With weddings, I am mostly only interested in the center portions of the image being super-crisp. Similarly, the vignetting didn't bother me. I usually add more vignetting in post-processing anyway.
Still, I ordered the new Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 AF-S VR II (affiliate). My first impression - it is a beautiful lens!
Doing a few test shots around the house, and was immediately Read more inside...
With the SB-900 Speedlight (B&H), Nikon's flagship flashgun, it is clear that they did their homework. The SB-800 was a great flashgun, but there were certain things about it that were very frustrating, but the Nikon SB-900 gets all of this right.
A huge improvement is that the SB-900 rotates 180' to either side!
Right there in this image is the main reason to get the SB-900 ... it now rotates 180' to the right, instead of stopping short at the 90' mark like the SB-800. This is a huge benefit in bouncing flash with specific effect Read more inside...
