Needing suggestions about lenses

[writing4me]

Very true Eduardo. I was looking through Ansel Adams book "The Camera" before bed the other night. I was marvelling not only at the images he took with his famous large format favorites, but also at the images he made with simple old 35mm Contax II (rangefinder) and Contax (named simply Contax was the first 35mm SLR I believe in the line?). If you have the book, see his image on page 14 of Stieglitz. Handheld Contax II 1/10 second available light. Lovely lovely lovely! See also page 9 handheld somewhat precariously he stole a moment of conversation between O'Keeffe and Orville Cox ... incredibly charming. Superb depth in the blacks but beautifully delicate in the skin tones. I look at these and think: someday I'd like to be 1/10 of what he was! And as you say, it was done with very old (but quite excellent) gear. -Lynn

> Posted by Eduardo Sobol on Saturday, July 26, 2003 - 5:51 pm: OLD MASTERS had not auto-anything and > his photos are models for us. Think about !

 

[wallerwaker]

Hi all out there!
i really, really appreciate all your comments and suggestions. They are very helpful for me.
But first i want to clarify why i want to make an upgrade.
1-The AF is not required in my pics 90% of the time but i would love to have it for the other 10%.
2- Most important thing for my upgrade is the 17-35mm zoom. I´m a flyfishing lover. I entry seriously in photography mostly for capture the stunning landscapes i visit when i go out fishing and here in Patagonia, there are a lot of nice places to mix the flyfishing and photography (mmmm,lovely blend!!). i think Eduardo understands me as he lives 10 miles away from me.
Too many times the 28mm i have is not wide enough to capture what my eyes are watching and that really drives me crazy! I know i have lot of wide angle primes to choose from in the C/Y mount, but imagine the size and weight of the photo bag + the fishing tackle!!! With that zoom all my problem will be solved as i will use it as the default (and only) lens when i decide to go out fishing. Surely the 24-85 is a top lens, but i feel it is not wide enough for many things i plan to do.
4- about the tele zooms, i already have the VS100-300 as i said in my first post but i rarely use it in 300mm, sometimes for its slow speed (i use almost all the time ISO 100 slide) and sometimes because i don´t do a lot of long tele photography, so i guess the 70-200 will do all the job i need.
best regards,
Alejandro

 

[gavin]

> [Although I love my N1 and nothing else comes close for my needs I'm afraid an N1 might not meet yours. If you taking pictures of flailing fish I fear the auto focus will be willfully lagging forcing your to miss your shot. You should demo one first before buying it. In addition the N1 is not sealed to the elements. Lets face it, when you in an unstable boat things happen, water gets in the boat. Honestly you may be better off with the EOS-1V or F5.



Good Luck!

Gavin ]

 

[simonli]

Alejandro,
1) When the day comes for you to really require AF 90% of the time, the N1/ND/Nx will disappoint you (compared to other brands)

2) How about a panoramic camera. You use the word landscape! It's cheaper/lighter than a N1+17-35. At 17mm, will your subject become too small unless you get close? If 28mm isn't good, then 24mm most probably won't help either. Think 18mm/4.

4) You hardly use 300mm, so, don't zoom to 300!. Your rock solid 100-300 is a superb lens. Stay happy with it. Don't trade for a flimsier 70-200.

Stay with C/Y mount unless you are a newcomer to Contax or want digital. Honestly you don't need N mount. I suggest panoramic. New format, different perceptions, new toy!

 

[raf]

You don't need to switch to an N1 with 17-35mm lens if a wide angle is what you want. What about the 21mm in C/Y mount? It will give you 92 degrees of coverage vs. the 63 degrees you get with a 35mm lens.

 

[rico1]

Alejandro,

I like the C/Y D21 for the urban canyons of Chicago, but would never use a rectilinear ultra-wide for organic settings. For Patagonia, lens of choice is the fisheye (I have a couple), and camera of choice is the swing-lens panoramic like the classic Veriwide. The Veriwide and current-production Noblex offer a cylindrical projection:

http://whistlerinns.com/noblex/noblexproducts.htm

Note the s&le images: straight vertical lines remain straight, but horizontal straight lines are curved. This minimizes angular distortion. Note the Hassy XPan is an ordinary rectilinear design.

Of course, your AF needs and weight considerations remain - perhaps the Nikon F5 and a llama!

 

[rico1]

I forgot mention the other route to the panoramic world, namely digicam plus stitching. You need computer, software, and time to learn the ropes. The potential reward is field-camera resolution without the weight. With a digital workflow, you can use a cheapo lens, fix optical faults and choose any projection you want. A shirt-pocket digital P&S is enough, with optional tripod.

Link to Panorama Tools (free software):

http://www.path.unimelb.edu.au/~dersch/

And in particular:

http://www.path.unimelb.edu.au/~dersch/perspective/Wide_Angle_Perspective.html

 

[kaisern]

>=20 >=20 >=20 > [The EF 24-70/2.8L is a great lens and sharpness is as good as the 24-85 = N but > the disappointing area is the very visible distortion, even at 70mm, you = still > need to be careful not to place a model face closer to the corner of the > frame. N lens is better in this regard although I do hope one day soon t= he N > can autofocus as swift as Canon or Nikon, it may not be necessary to many= user > but it will be a very nice option if needed. Regards, Kaisern] >=20 >=20 >=20