April, 2009 | Photocrati

Nikon 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S IF-ED Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below. Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Nikon 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G ED IF Autofocus VR Nikkor Zoom Lens

Photo Zone

A general-purpose lens that covers a useful focal length range for Nikon’s FX DSLRs. Nikon’s AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6 G IF-ED lens covers a 5x zoom range and provides a suite of convenient focal length settings for owners of the company’s D3 and D700 cameras but is also usable on DX models where the 1.5x crop factor gives it an equivalent focal length range of 36-180mm. Its affordable price tag makes it attractive to amateur photographers. … READ FULL REVIEW

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Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G IF-ED DX AF-S Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below. Get information and user reviews for this lens at Amazon: Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G ED IF AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens

Photo Zone

The Nikkor AF-S 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G IF-ED DX is a lens with many souls. The lens is capable to deliver very good resolution figures and low CAs but on the other hand distortions as well as vignetting are very pronounced specifically at 18mm. However, most users will rarely use large aperture settings at 18mm so the vignetting problem is usually no show stopper. The build quality of the lens is very decent and the Silent-Wave drive provides a speedy and silent AF. All-in-all the price performance ratio of the Nikkor is very sound. … READ FULL REVIEW

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Sigma 50mm f/2.8 EX macro DG AF Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below.

Photo Zone

The Sigma AF 50mm f/2.8 EX macro DG is an excellent lens without any significant optical flaws. Compared to the Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 USM macro it shows less vignetting at wide-open aperture – other than that both lenses perform quite similar. Mechanically the Canon has an edge though thanks to a fast USM AF drive combined with a true IF design (constant length). However, the Sigma is earns some points due to its lower price tag and a more future-proof full-frame design. As such it can be highly recommended. READ FULL REVIEW

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Nikon 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below. Get information and user reviews for this lens at Amazon: Nikon 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-S DX VR ED Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

SLR Gear

The Nikon 18-105mm Æ’/3.5-5.6 definitely raises the bar for Nikon’s current lineup of kit lenses; consistently sharp, even at large apertures, with good resistance to chromatic aberration. Corner shading is prevalent, but it’s not a noticeable problem. Distortion is evident and irregular, but again, you’re probably only going to notice it if you need your straight lines to be absolutely straight. The inclusion of VR to this level of lens is a welcome addition; we don’t have pricing for the lens individually, but There will finally be an alternative to the 18-200mm VR for users who don’t need that range of focal lengths. Nikon was able to improve the optical quality, reduce the weight, and presumably, the end price. It’s easy to recommend the 18-105mm to Nikon shooters as an excellent walk-around lens. READ FULL REVIEW

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Manfrotto 485B NeoTec Tripod Review Round-Up

Manfrotto has introduced what they call the world’s first fully automatic self-regulating tripod – the NeoTec. The NeoTec line of Pro Photo Supports, currently comprising the 458B tripod and 684B monopod, is built around an innovative self-regulating mechanism inside the leg that is said to deliver unmatched speed, stability and ease-of-use. The 458B is also equipped with a number of new features, including a new split column with built-in low angle adapter, enabling users to set up a camera as low as 3.94 inches off the ground. When the center column height impedes the tripod setup, the adapter allows users to switch from normal to low-angle set-ups without having to remove the camera and head each time they change position. The center column can also be used for horizontal settings for unusual angles and macro work. Closing the NeoTec is just as easy. By simply pushing a single release button, the user can disengage the internal mechanism and effortlessly collapse the leg. This design is accomplished without the use of external levers, knobs or screws. In addition, the internal locking mechanism actually enhances the stability of the support as more weight is added, making it the ideal support product for virtually any camera or photo application. READ FULL REVIEW AT Shutterbug.net

If you own or have used this tripod, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below.

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Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX HSM DG AF Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below.

Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG IF HSM Aspherical Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

Photo Zone

The Sigma AF 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX HSM DG is the most extreme full format ultra-wide zoom lens around and it is still a “mainstream” ultra-wide lens when used on APS-C DSLRs. If you’re looking for a future-proof “duo-format” lens in this class – well, here it is. However, there’re a couple of further good arguments in favor of the lens. In the APS-C scope the resolution is very high and even throughout the tested aperture and focal length range and as such more harmonious compared to dedicated APS-C zooms which tend to suffer from edge problems. Distortions are extremely well controlled for a lens in this class and vignetting is generally not a problem except maybe at 12mm @ f/4.5. The only significant issue are lateral CAs at and below 17mm – you better shoot RAW files and correct the issue in your RAW converter, otherwise CAs are too extreme. The build quality of the Sigma is excellent and the fast and near-silent HSM (ultrasonic) AF drive is a welcome feature. The price tag of the lens is fairly moderate in relation to what you get for your bucks. Highly recommended … if you can get a good sample (the tested sample in Canon mount wasn’t quite as good). “¦ READ FULL REVIEW

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Gitzo Explorer 2227 Tripod Review Round-Up

Once in a while a new product comes out which makes you realize you can do more without either spending more money or carrying more gear. Gitzo’s 2227 is such a product. It doesn’t cost more or weight more than other Gitzo carbon fiber tripods of equal size. Yet, it allows you to use a tripod in ways you may have thought of but were unable to until now. These new abilities are particularly useful if you use a 35mm or medium format camera although, as the photographs here show, the 2227 can also be successfully used with 4×5. The Gitzo 2227, and its 4 leg-sections counterpart the 2228, is a wonderful tripod with capabilities which extend what most tripods can do. Is it for you? Why not? Even if you do not need these unique capabilities now, knowing they are available will expand your photographic options and perhaps lead you to create images you wouldn’t have created otherwise. Since the weight and price of the 2227 are similar to Gitzo tripods of comparable size you may want to give it a try? READ FULL REVIEW AT Luminous Landscape

If you own or have used this tripod, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below.

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Nikon 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S DX Nikkor Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below. Get information and user reviews for this lens at Amazon: Nikon 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G ED-IF AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Photo Zone

Quality-wise the Nikkor AF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 G IF-ED DX positioned itself between the AF-S 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G and the AF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G VR – just as you would/should expect it regarding the zoom range and complexity of design … The center resolution is excellent throughout the range. As to be expected the border performance suffers a bit at 18mm and less so at 35mm but it’s still pretty good here. … Typical for most dedicated APS-C zooms the vignetting figures aren’t quite as good – at 18mm and 135mm @ wide-open aperture the results are rather dismal … At 18mm the lens also suffers a bit from rather hefty barrel distortions but this is quite typical for a lens in this class. CAs can be visible without being excessive although purple fringing can intensify the effect quite a bit in extreme contrast situations. … All-in-all a good consumer grade lens and maybe the current value king in Nikon land. … READ FULL REVIEW

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Sigma 70mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro AF Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below.

Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Sigma MACRO 70mm f/2.8 EX DG Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS

Photo Zone

The Sigma AF 70mm f/2.8 EX DG macro is capable to deliver exceptionally sharp results throughout most of the aperture range. The bokeh (out-of-focus blur) is very smooth and buttery. Typical for macro lenses it also produces a negligible degree of distortions. On an APS-C DSLR vignetting is nothing to worry about. Lateral CAs (color shadows at the image borders) are comparatively high for a fix-focal lens but still fairly low in absolute terms and not really field relevant. The AF performance of the lens isn’t overly impressive – the accuracy is fine but it is both slow and noisy. Other than that the build quality is on a very high level. READ FULL REVIEW

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Nikon 28-50mm f/3.5 AI-s Review Round-Up

If you own or have used this lens, let us know what you think! Leave your comments and thoughts below.

Ken Rockwell

If you come across one of these and want a fast, small, fun, sharp and practical manual-focus zoom, this 28-50mm f/3.5 AI-s is a winner. READ FULL REVIEW

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