Some shots with the new lens.

[bvar22]

I upgraded to the Nikon 70-200mm F2.8 VR lens this week.
It is HEAVY and LONG, but I'm getting used to handling it.



Monarch 1

190mm F/2.8 (notice the bokeh)


Monarch2

200mm F/5


FlutterBy

170mm F4 1/1000 ISO-640
I am questing for some dramatic "In Flight" shots of the Monarch.
This is the best I've been able to get so far. It was much darker (very overcast) than it appears in the photo.


Lady Bug...Lady Bug

140mm F/2.8


Exotic Sunflower

140mm F/2.8


Watching U

200mm F/6.3 1/125 ISO 640


Minneapolis Sunset

70mm F/8


I love the Bokeh and the sharpness of this lens. It is much faster than the old lens, especially at long zooms. The only drawbacks are the size and weight.
It also has a minimum focus distance of over 4' which is longer than I'm accustomed to.
I have a set of Kenko Spacers that should be fun to play with for "Close Up" Macro.

[insane_cratic_gal]

1. *drool*

I have lens envy now.. nice crisp images there!

[F.Gordon]

2. No pics

:shrug:

[ConsAreLiars]

3. WAAYYY KEWL!

All of them!

The zooming flutterby is unique, and the watchful bunny very cute (in the good sense), and the flower-contemplating ladybug, and the sunset, and the flower. Well, I guess the first two close-ups are nice to have accomplished, but the others are really excellent.

[Blue_In_AK]

4. Very beautiful, Bvar

Great job.

[ET Awful]

5. Beautiful. Congratulations on buying one of the BEST lenses ever.

:).

There's one in my future at some point, I just don't know when (I'll be paying for the new camera for a while).

I need to get something that will allow me to shoot in lower light though.

[bvar22]

16. If you need something immediately for low-light,

I suggest the Nikon 50mm F1.8D (imported, gray market) for under $100.
Everyone should have this lens. It is the most fun lens I have.

Sharp! Great color!


Good Portrait lens. Wonderful Bokeh


With the 1.5 sensor factor, this lens is a 75mm equivalent. This is a small lens, and easily fits in a medium sized pocket when you don't feel like carrying your whole fucking bag. It is great for walking around town and taking pics in crowds. Since it is so small, it is not near as rude or intimidating as sticking a 200mm Zoom in someone's face.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=280x14653

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=280x17147


Nikon also makes a F1.4 version of this lens for about $250, but most feel offers no real advantage over the f1.8 version but costs 2-1/2 times as much.
You can get one here:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=247091&is=GREY&addedTroughType=search

[ET Awful]

17. I actually have one :).

I'm looking to get more length though, not to mention the VR :P

The 50mm is a GREAT lens, I just want something that gives me more distance :).

[bvar22]

20. Cool!

I love my 50mm F/1.8
It is so tiny it looks like a little toy on the front of a D200.
A 20mm Kenko spacer tube turns this little jewel into a great Macro lens, as good as anything on the market costing 10X as much.

[ET Awful]

21. I should get myself a set of those extensions.

:).

Currently, for distance shooting, I have a Sigma 80-400 OS (their version of VR). It's a great lens, but suffers a LOT in low light.

[F.Gordon]

6. Very funny

"I'll post some pix that can't be seen. Everyone comment on them like they can see them and let's drive Frank Gordon crazy."

Seriously, I can't see them. Just those purty red x's.
:shrug:

[JeffR]

8. F.Gordon, are you using IE?

I'm seeing these AOK in Firefox.

[F.Gordon]

9. Yea, and next you'll ask me if I use a Canon, right?

I know how these things work. I didn't fall off the Turnip Truck yesterday. Well, actually I did. But I didn't fall on my head. Well, actually I did.

[JeffR]

10. Conscientious objector in the Canon/Nikon hostilities

I know you know your stuff! Just curious... OK, just nosy.

[F.Gordon]

11. Yes, but I REALLY did fall off the Turnip Truck

:dunce:

I don't know puter' stuff that well. I have to use IE, so why would IE not let me looksie?

[JeffR]

12. dunno

I abandoned IE some time ago, on the advice of a DUer. Is this the only thread where pix aren't showing for you?

[F.Gordon]

13. Yea. The ONLY one

I also tried copying and loading and IE doesn't see anything from the site...up to the images. Oh well. I'll go checksie something.....

Edit: My "idea" didn't work. Guess it's no pixies for me.
:(

[bvar22]

14. Odd.

I haven't changed any settings on my host site, and you have been able to see my pics in the past.
Try "Right Click" on the red "X" and select "View Image".

[JeffR]

7. Fantastic

True to form, I love the sunset pic. Spectacular color.

[F.Gordon]

15. I can see !!!!

O8)

I figured if my problems were being caused by falling off the Turnip Truck and landing on my head the best thing to do is repeat the process. You have no idea how hard it is to find a Turnip Truck this late in the week round' Denver. And you wouldn't believe all the puter' probs I had today. Hopefully I have them all fixed now.
:dunce:

These photos are great!!! Tone... sharp as a tack. Amazing Cream of Bokeh Soup. I hope I don't go "blind" again when you post more photos from this lens.... and any other photos that you post... regardless of what lens you're using.

That being puter' blind crap sucked.

[Maestro]

18. Incredible shots!

The Monarch flying away and the picture of the flower and the ladybug are my favorites!

[Gregorian]

19. I'm canceling my 18-200 order.

Between the build quality and the low light/depth of field, I don't see why I should waste any money on the 18-200.

I take it this lens is of typical Nikon quality, and not the tinker toy build that the kit lenses exhibit?

It is a bit of a shame they're so expensive.

Thanks. This post pushed me over the edge. I'm going "prime".

[Gregorian]

22. Look at this extension tube post...

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1030&message=19665162

[bvar22]

23. I love the Kenko Spacers.

I tried them the first day I got the new lens.

200mm with 20mm Kenko Spacer subject distance about 1 foot. Closest focus (from end of lens)w/o the spacer is about 4', so the 20mm really let you move in close. They come in a set of 3 (12mm, 20mm, 36mm), and can be stacked.


closer crop of above.

I love the Kenko Spacers. There is no glass, so no degradation. There is a slight light loss, about 1 stop, but the metering, AutoFocus, and VR works. I found the AutoFocus to be a joke. It works, but the DoF is so shallow I can't imagine using it...Manual and a tripod is the only way to go.

They fit between the camera body and the lens, so they will work with any lens, though I can't imagine why anyone would use one with a wide angle :shrug:.
The one major drawback is that the field of focus narrows radically. With the 20mm spacer in, I couldn't focus on anything more than 7-8' away.

They are small and easily fit in a pocket. I usually carry one with me just in case.

I'm still playing with them, and haven't worked out the DoF relationships between ZOOM, F/Stop, and size of the Spacer. The above shot is at Full Zoom and F/2.8. The DoF is less than 1/4 inch. I think that if I used less zoom, higher F/stop, and moved closer, I could get greater DoF at the same magnification.

The Set of 3 cost about $150, but if I had it to do over, I would buy only the 25mm spacer for around $70. A real bargain considering that these spacers will convert any lens to Macro.

[Gregorian]

24. The DoF was immediately obvious in that shot.

I had to laugh. I mean it's not appropriate for that shot, in my eye. I love shallow dof. But that is crazy!

Lenses are a study. I don't think I'll ever figure it all out. Now I'm ready to grab an extension tube and see what my kit 17-80 will do. I just don't want to start buying lenses yet. God, some of those guys at Dpreview have $20k in lenses.

I don't know how the extension tubes work other than the obvious. They move the lens farther from the sensor. And that would make the image larger.