Advice & Questions for buying/using Accessories

pixbyjohn

Ben D Bus wrote: »

No strobe experts to advise?

I see there's a pre-owned SB-600 on Berminghams website at the mo. €199. Worth the additional cost over the Sunpak or Nissin offerings?

The SB 600 is a super flashgun and with most nikon cameras there is a wireless remote trigger built in to the onboard flash to allow you use the 600 off camera with ttl and you can also manually control the power too.

Ben D Bus

pixbyjohn wrote: »

The SB 600 is a super flashgun and with most nikon cameras there is a wireless remote trigger built in to the onboard flash to allow you use the 600 off camera with ttl and you can also manually control the power too.

Ended up getting 2 Yongnuo flashes on ebay for less than the price of the SB600. They come with TTL and full manual control as well as slave mode.

nedd

Hi.

I am looking to a second Lens. I currently have a Niikon D5100 with kit 18-55 lens. I want to get something a little longer and I am seriously constrained by budget. I have €200 to spend.

I can get the following new for more or less my budget:

Nikon 55-200 - €170
Tamron 70-300 - €160
Sigma 70-300 - €215

I don't know much about lens quality and I'm wondering what people think about the Tamron and Sigma lenses here? They give me longer zoom for the same price but is it worth it?

My other option is maybe a second hand Nikon 55-300, I haven't looked yet but would hopefully be able to get it close to budget.

Anyone have any opinions or alternatives?

Thanks

dirtyghettokid

nedd wrote: »

Hi.

I am looking to a second Lens. I currently have a Niikon D5100 with kit 18-55 lens. I want to get something a little longer and I am seriously constrained by budget. I have €200 to spend.

I can get the following new for more or less my budget:

Nikon 55-200 - €170
Tamron 70-300 - €160
Sigma 70-300 - €215

I don't know much about lens quality and I'm wondering what people think about the Tamron and Sigma lenses here? They give me longer zoom for the same price but is it worth it?

My other option is maybe a second hand Nikon 55-300, I haven't looked yet but would hopefully be able to get it close to budget.

Anyone have any opinions or alternatives?

Thanks

i'm actually selling my nikon fit sigma 70-300mm. it's a fine lens, but your camera does not have a build in AF motor, so focusing is manual. would that bother you? otherwise, with any lens that you are going to buy, check to make sure that there is a auto-focus switch on the lens.

nedd

dirtyghettokid wrote: »

i'm actually selling my nikon fit sigma 70-300mm. it's a fine lens, but your camera does not have a build in AF motor, so focusing is manual. would that bother you? otherwise, with any lens that you are going to buy, check to make sure that there is a auto-focus switch on the lens.

Ok, so that is something I didn't think of. Neither of the lenses mentioned there have autofocus. I would need autofocus.

so that reduced my options to the Nikon 55-200 only. Even the Sigma 50-200 which does have autofocus is too expensive.

dirtyghettokid

nedd wrote: »

Ok, so that is something I didn't think of. Neither of the lenses mentioned there have autofocus. I would need autofocus.

so that reduced my options to the Nikon 55-200 only. Even the Sigma 50-200 which does have autofocus is too expensive.

definitely have a look for second hand items on adverts.ie

siobhanod93

I want to get a lens hood and a UV Filter for my Nikon D3000 with a 18-55 lens. I don't want to spend a crazy amount of money, but can anybody give me some recommendations please and/or good websites?

brinty

siobhanod93 wrote: »

I want to get a lens hood and a UV Filter for my Nikon D3000 with a 18-55 lens. I don't want to spend a crazy amount of money, but can anybody give me some recommendations please and/or good websites?

Siobhan, Ebay or amazon are you're only man on this, shouldn't cost you more than €20, you'll generally get a bundle of hoods, filters, macro attachments, tripods, cases etc together for a small price. Example below,
http://www.ebay.com/itm/52mm-Lens-Hood-Cap-CPL-UV-Filter-For-Nikon-D3000-D3100-New-/400423521302?pt=Camera_Filters&hash=item5d3b1a0c16

If you contact sellers directly, they'll maybe do you up a whole bundle of accessory items (depebding on what you want) and you could save on shipping costs. It might be a false economy though in that you could end up with loads of stuff you don't need and will never use.

OriginV

Any dealers or stores in Ireland selling the likes of a glidecam or other stabilizers?

r3nu4l

Brand new to digital SLR photography...moving from point and shoot/phones :pac:

So advice please on this card:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0084DWD6E/

I'm thinking of the 64 GB version.
I'm using the entry level Nikon D3300 so just wondering if this card will be suitable for shooting footage with the camera as well as taking photos? Roughly how many photos will go onto a 64GB card?

Thanks in advance.

sebphoto

r3nu4l best practice is to get a few smaller cards instead of one with high capacity.

How many photos on the card?
See this

r3nu4l

sebphoto wrote: »

r3nu4l best practice is to get a few smaller cards instead of one with high capacity.

Thanks sebphoto. Is that in case a card fails?
That's about the only reason I can think of but then again...IANAP (I am not a photographer :pac:)

EDIT: Also, I forgot to ask, can the D3300 handle UHS 2 and 3, or just UHS 1? I can't seem to find definitive information anywhere (or at least I don't know what photography blogs/sites are/are not reliable or trustworthy with information).

sebphoto

r3nu4l wrote: »

Thanks sebphoto. Is that in case a card fails?
That's about the only reason I can think of but then again...IANAP (I am not a photographer :pac:)

All depends from your approach.
Say you're on holidays and have only one card. Say something will go wrong and you would like to repair such card. If you won't have spare one then you won't take any more pictures during your trip as otherwise it won't be possible to recover some (or even all) images.
In my opinion it's better to have couple 8 or 16Gb cards instead of one 128Gb. It's just another electronic device, so I would be really careful, but that's me and my sense of precaution. I shot weddings and I must feel confidence with my gear. It must be reliable.
Think about it.

Re memory cards for D3300, see this

ptyloch

Hi Guys,

Looking for advice on a video head to support a Canon 600D with the following lenses: Canon EF-S 18-135, Canon EF-S 10-22.
I already have a Manfrotto tripod and a three way Manfrotto head but would like to have the video head as well.
Any ideas are welcome!

Thanks

PS: amateur use only :-)

ValueInIreland

Manfrotto have several Video heads. The MN-MHXPRO-2W is a good bet for you at about €135. The MN-MVH500AH is only a few € more at €145. If the budget won't stretch, then there is the MN700RC2 at about €90.

If you have a Manfrotto 190 or 055, there is a really cool replacement Centre Column, where you can easily level a half ball built into the top of the column. Have a look at it here: http://www.manfrotto.ie/search?q=levelling+centre+column

Ps, Manfrotto have had a .ie website for a few months now which shows product stocked by their Irish Dealers - with links to them!

Turquoise Hexagon Sun

Three enquiries:

1. Tripod: I've always had rather flimsy tripods but will be looking for something a bit better but on a budget. I don't use my current tripods a lot but really probably should use one more and I'm thinking it's due to me not having a decent, sturdy one to begin with. I'm on a tight budget (aren't we all :P) so I'm guessing I'd spend 100-150. Is this even possible at that price? To give you context, I like shooting portraits and will use the tripod for video in the future. The rather light, Canon 6D will be sitting on it.

2. I'm also in search of a versatile lens, again mostly for portraits with a little zoom too. Would be nice to find a decent lens that can be wide but have a nice bit of zoom too. 28-135mm might be ideal. However on my old 7D I had that as a kit lens and it was pretty flimsy and broke over time.

3. Sliders for video in Ireland. Any help with this would be great. Thanks.

ptyloch

Turquoise Hexagon Sun wrote: »

Three enquiries:

1. Tripod: I've always had rather flimsy tripods but will be looking for something a bit better but on a budget. I don't use my current tripods a lot but really probably should use one more and I'm thinking it's due to me not having a decent, sturdy one to begin with. I'm on a tight budget (aren't we all :P) so I'm guessing I'd spend 100-150. Is this even possible at that price? To give you context, I like shooting portraits and will use the tripod for video in the future. The rather light, Canon 6D will be sitting on it.

2. I'm also in search of a versatile lens, again mostly for portraits with a little zoom too. Would be nice to find a decent lens that can be wide but have a nice bit of zoom too. 28-135mm might be ideal. However on my old 7D I had that as a kit lens and it was pretty flimsy and broke over time.

3. Sliders for video in Ireland. Any help with this would be great. Thanks.

1. I have a Manfrotto set of tripod legs and for photography they are great, not so much for video.They seem to twist when I'm panning. If I could reccommend something it would be a dedicated video tripod, with double legs. It will be heavier and take up more space but once you put a video head on it you'll see the diference. Amazon and adverts are your friends, though tripods seem to hold their value well. Try the warehouse section on amazon. Do some research on brands, I'm a Manfrotto addict but there's loads more out there.

2. Can't help here.

3. I recently bought a slider called Sunrise second hand and again have to say stick to well known brands for quality. It's my first slider, don't have much experience with them, but got to try a Konova and the difference between it and a Konova was massive,
as was the price (Konova was 500, Sunrise 120 new). Again, research, research...

Turquoise Hexagon Sun

ptyloch wrote: »

1. I have a Manfrotto set of tripod legs and for photography they are great, not so much for video.They seem to twist when I'm panning. If I could reccommend something it would be a dedicated video tripod, with double legs. It will be heavier and take up more space but once you put a video head on it you'll see the diference. Amazon and adverts are your friends, though tripods seem to hold their value well. Try the warehouse section on amazon. Do some research on brands, I'm a Manfrotto addict but there's loads more out there.

2. Can't help here.

3. I recently bought a slider called Sunrise second hand and again have to say stick to well known brands for quality. It's my first slider, don't have much experience with them, but got to try a Konova and the difference between it and a Konova was massive,
as was the price (Konova was 500, Sunrise 120 new). Again, research, research...

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. That's great information

I used Manfrotto but through friends and colleagues and I found them easy to handle and very sturdy. I never thought to buy a video tripod, I'll look on Adverts and Amazon like you said.

It's good to hear that you are a first time buyer of a slider. I'm in the same boat, almost. It's definitely going to be a summer purchase. I'll look up the Sunrise as that's in and around my budget.

Thanks again and let me know if you ever put up your work with the slider, even if it's test footage.

marienbad

I really know very little about photography and I have a Panasonic Lumix G2 camera .

I am looking for a wide angle zoom lens as I need to take some rowing photos .

Is that beyond the capabilities of this camera ?

Any help much appreciated .

cnocbui

The G2 is one of many cameras that are in the Micro Four Thirds system. Cameras in this system all share a common lens mount and lenses and bodies are made by Panasonic and Olympus. Olympus lenses can be used on Panasonic bodies and vise versa.

There is a wide range of lenses available that you can use with the G2 and what lens you require will depend on what lens you currently have so what is needed to go wider can be determined.

Do you currently have the 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 kit zoom on your G2? The 14-42mm part denotes the range of focal lengths the lens covers, which relates to the angle of view, which for that lens varies between 75° and 29° (the shorter the focal length the wider the field of view)

marienbad

cnocbui wrote: »

The G2 is one of many cameras that are in the Micro Four Thirds system. Cameras in this system all share a common lens mount and lenses and bodies are made by Panasonic and Olympus. Olympus lenses can be used on Panasonic bodies and vise versa.

There is a wide range of lenses available that you can use with the G2 and what lens you require will depend on what lens you currently have so what is needed to go wider can be determined.

Do you currently have the 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 kit zoom on your G2? The 14-42mm part denotes the range of focal lengths the lens covers, which relates to the angle of view, which for that lens varies between 75° and 29° (the shorter the focal length the wider the field of view)

Thanks for you reply .

Yes I think I have the 14-42 mm , is that suitable for the job ?

cnocbui

marienbad wrote: »

Thanks for you reply .

Yes I think I have the 14-42 mm , is that suitable for the job ?

I don't know if it would be suitable for the job as I don't know what you are shooting exactly.

Your lens will be able to capture an angle of view of up to 75° - that might give you an idea of how much you can get into a frame from your anticipated shooting position.

This page lists the lenses available for the M4/3 system and which can be used on your G2: http://www.four-thirds.org/en/microft/lense.html

To get a wider field of view than your current 14mm minimum, you would need to look at lenses with a shorter focal length. several lenses on there have a 12mm minimum - which would give you an 84° angle of view. If you need wider than that, the cost of the lenses would become substantial.

What exactly are you intending to photograph, and from where in relation to the subject?

marienbad

cnocbui wrote: »

I don't know if it would be suitable for the job as I don't know what you are shooting exactly.

Your lens will be able to capture an angle of view of up to 75° - that might give you an idea of how much you can get into a frame from your anticipated shooting position.

This page lists the lenses available for the M4/3 system and which can be used on your G2: http://www.four-thirds.org/en/microft/lense.html

To get a wider field of view than your current 14mm minimum, you would need to look at lenses with a shorter focal length. several lenses on there have a 12mm minimum - which would give you an 84° angle of view. If you need wider than that, the cost of the lenses would become substantial.

What exactly are you intending to photograph, and from where in relation to the subject?

Thanks for all your advice , much appreciated .

I don't know if you know Blessington , I would hope to photograph some of the rowing there . The Boats would be mainly 4's and 8's which are 44ft and 62 ft , long respectively .

I would be on the river bank and would be shooting as they come up the lake . The distance would be from as long as I can get to right up as they pass me on the bank . The closest ever to be would be about 60 to 100 feet .

So I am looking to the whole boat as they come up the lake ,

Does that make sense ?

Thanks again .

cnocbui

You're welcome.

I don't think you will need a wider angle lens than what you have. You might well find you actually want a narrower angle lens (longer focal length in mm) so you can have the rowers fill the frame.

Probably the best thing to do would be to just give it a go with what you have and let the results determine whether you want a different composition than your lens is capable of.

Nebaw

Any recommendations on a starter lens? I've wanted to buy a new lens for a while now and after being invited to an event on Monday its giving me a bigger urge to buy one. All I have at the moment is the kit 18-55 it lens. I dont plan on spending too much as I'm still learning and I don't mind buying 2nd hand. Any advice its appreciated and apologies if my question/preferences are irritating.

ptyloch

Nebaw wrote: »

Any recommendations on a starter lens? I've wanted to buy a new lens for a while now and after being invited to an event on Monday its giving me a bigger urge to buy one. All I have at the moment is the kit 18-55 it lens. I dont plan on spending too much as I'm still learning and I don't mind buying 2nd hand. Any advice its appreciated and apologies if my question/preferences are irritating.

All depends on what do you want to shoot. I was recommended a 50mm 1.8 prime lens as a second lens and to be honest it was and still is great. You are not saying what brand of camera have you got so I can only talk about Canon from experience. A 50 mm 1.8 on adverts can be got for between 60 and 100 euro. Expect to pay 120-150 in a shop.

ValueInIreland

It all depends on what you want to shoot, but assuming you are happy enough with the 18-55 (most are actually very good), then something like a 70-200 or 70-300 would be a versatile addition. Prices for a 70-300 start as low as €140 new (Sigma) and go up from there.

LeoB

Hello,
I am looking at lens at the moment mainly for sports. Currently I use a Sigma 70-200 f2.8 most of the time however I find it a little soft. I mainly shoot at f.4 unless the light is very bad. I think this is a good focal length although sometimes I wish I had a little more reach.

I have been looking at 2 canon lens'
70-200 f.4 €649 which is nice and light and 100-400 f.4 (€2249 I will be looking second hand for that). At motorbike racing last weekend I got chatting to a lad who uses only a 70-300 is f.4-5.6 lens €549 canon lens and he showed me a few shots on his laptop which were really good, sharp with plenty of detail.

Few questions I have are, is an extender an option? Can I get my 70-200 serviced/tweeked?

flyingsnail

I believe Hanel in Cork do sigma lens servicing / repairs so it may be worth looking into that.

I have the canon 70-200 F4, and while it is a great lens I often do find myself wishing I could go down to F2.8 as the light fades. There are two versions of the canon 100-400, MK1 and Mk2 so be careful when comparing prices, the Mk2 is supposed to be a good improvement over the mk1 which many people considered a soft lens.

Would the canon 300 F4 IS be an option for extra reach?, it should be about 1000 cheaper than the 100-400.

LeoB

flyingsnail wrote: »

I believe Hanel in Cork do sigma lens servicing / repairs so it may be worth looking into that.

I have the canon 70-200 F4, and while it is a great lens I often do find myself wishing I could go down to F2.8 as the light fades. There are two versions of the canon 100-400, MK1 and Mk2 so be careful when comparing prices, the Mk2 is supposed to be a good improvement over the mk1 which many people considered a soft lens.

Would the canon 300 F4 IS be an option for extra reach?, it should be about 1000 cheaper than the 100-400.

The 300 might be an option ok. I have the offer to use a 300mm at a grass track event coming up But I like the flexibility of the zoom. I rarely if ever shoot at f 2.8 after talking to a pro at a match and from what I heard at a talk one night. Both lads shoot at f.4 and I think my images are a little better at f.4. Only shot under lights once at match and the images were just ok!!

At Motorbike racing however with spectator restrictions the 200 is a little short.