Lexington Avenue

Just a little fun with panoramas. I give you Lexington Avenue — at least a big chunk of it.

D700, Nikkor-S·C 50mm Non-AI f/1.4 @f/2.8

Posted by tai on 2009-10-15 21:38:41. Comments (3) | Tiny link

D3s Leaked

The British Journal of Photography has leaked the D3s specs, which match up with recent rumors. Nikon must think their new 12MP sensor’s high ISO abilities are 1–2 stops better than the D3’s already astounding performance as they’ve bumped the top ISO to 12,800, and added a third HI setting up to the astronomical 102,400. They’ve also added sensor cleaning, 720p video, and an ‘improved viewfinder’. Seems pretty drool-worthy to me.

http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=870000

Update: From the first sample shots, 1–2 stops seems (unsurprisingly) generous. It’s better, but we’ll see just how much once more people get their hands on it. I still say it’s a solid update.

Official Samples

Update 2: After seeing more samples, I take that back. I would say it is 1 stop better, maybe a bit more.

Posted by tai on 2009-10-13 17:46:50. Comments (0) | Tiny link

Columbus Day Parade 2009

I just got back from 59th st. by the glass cube Apple store from where I watched a bit of the Columbus day parade. I didn’t stay particularly long as I’m still a bit out of it due to my annoyingly persistent cold. I did take a number of photos with my Nikkor-Q·C 135mm f/2.8 non-ai though, which I recently AI-Converted.

Posted by tai on 2009-10-12 14:43:43. Comments (0) | Tiny link

Construction Work

I stayed home today with a cold that has been getting progressively worse as I attempted to ignore it throughout the week. There’s some building construction nearby and I’ve had some fun watching their progress.

Welding — Nikon 500mm f/8 Mirror Lens

Posted by tai on 2009-10-09 13:56:10. Comments (0) | Tiny link

Nikkor 24mm f/2 AIS Review

Overall: 4(DX)/3.5(FX) out of 5

Optics: 3.5

Price on Used Market: ~$300–600 USD

Value at $450 USD: 2.5

The fastest 24mm lens Nikon’s ever made [edit: the 24mm f/1.4 is now faster], the Nikon 24mm f/2 AI-S is a super-contrasty lens with good DX performance if you can get past some issues.

Nikkor 24mm f/2 AI-S

Assorted Information

Image Quality

Image quality on this lens is a mixed bag. It’s nice and fast with a max aperture of f/2, and very contrasty from f/2.8 on. Wide open performance isn’t spectacular, the image can have a bit of a surreal look in bright scenery to it due to a halo effect. It has significant flaring and ghosting issues, along with chromatic aberration wide-open. The lens has good definition on DX, but corners on Full Frame have both (correctable) vignetting, and some amount of blurriness. Boke is busy as is common with wide lenses.

Full Frame Example (D700) @f/4 w/circular polarizer

Not the most exciting image in the world, but a pretty decent example of performance on full frame. The IQ in the center is immaculate, whereas if you look at the sides resolution has dropped significantly. Edge performance improves significantly by f/8, but is never perfect. Vignetting is easily visible, too, but I have no problem correcting for it in Aperture when desired.

Operation

It’s not a pancake, but it’s small and light, especially compared to any wide zooms. Focusing is silky smooth, ¼ turn getting you from close focus of 0.27m/.9ft to infinity at which there’s a hard stop.

Final Word

Nikon is currently lacking in fast primes, and this lens fits the bill. However, the 24mm f/2.8 AF-D can be had cheaper, comes with AF, and is just one stop slower. Despite the downsides, there is a really nice feeling to the way the lens draws light that makes it better than my complaints would suggest. It’s for this reason my overall rating is higher than either the optics or value ratings.

More Photos with this Lens

All images with a DX Crop unless otherwise noted

Full Frame (D700)

More Photos of this Lens

Posted by tai on 2009-10-07 22:56:48. Comments (4) | Tiny link