2009 | Photocrati

Tamrac Adventure 5 Review Round-Up

tamrac-adventure-5 The Tamrac Adventure 5 is a “messenger” type bag designed to hold a digital SLR with up to 7-inch zoom lens attached, plus several addition lenses, flash and accessories. It also can hold up to a 13-inch laptop in a separate side, zippered compartment. The top is Tamrac’s Speed Flap with an Esay Squeeze buckle. Foam padded, movable dividers hold gear separate and securely. There is also a zippered front poclet and back pocket. The bag has both a padded shoulder strap and carrying handle. To complete the convenience the bag has Tamrac’s Picggy Back Pocket, which allows it to slip over the handle of a Tamrac rolling case. READ FULL REVIEW AT SHUTTERBUG.NET

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

Get information and user reviews for this bag from Amazon: Tamrac 5535 Adventure Messenger 5 Photo/Laptop Bag (Gray/Black)

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Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8D ED AF Nikkor Review Round-Up

nikon-80-200mm-f-28d-ed-af-nikkor 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 80-200mm f/2.8D ED AF Zoom Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Photo Zone

Despite its age the Nikkor AF 80-200mm f/2.8D ED is a great lens both mechanically as well as optically (assuming you can get a good sample). The resolution is on a very high level throughout the zoom range and neither distortions nor vignetting are big issues (on an APS-C DSLR). CAs can be visible at times but the problem isn’t overly pronounced. It is a joy to use this lens and the relatively large aperture provides some creative potential in the convenient package of a zoom. The comparatively low price tag is also a good argument to have a deeper look into this interesting option … unless, of course, you can afford the AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8G IF-ED VR. … READ FULL REVIEW

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Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW Review Round-Up

lowepro-slingshot-300-aw The Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW is the largest model of Lowepro’s Slingshot cases. It is similar to the Lowepro Slingshot 200 AW and Lowepro Slingshot 100 AW but significantly larger. There is a lot of room in the 300 – it is essentially a backpack without one of the shoulder straps. The AW portion of the product name refers to the “All Weather” protection provided by a just-the-right-size rain jacket stored under the padded section of the back of the case and held in place by hook-and-loop fastener. Pull it out when needed. ? ?The Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW pads and the case itself are very protective – very typical for Lowepro gear. Quality construction is also typical Lowepro. The external material is a strong, durable Nylon. The case itself is relatively light. ? ?I personally find Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW too large for this style of case – I would rather use a true backpack that distributed the weight better. The 300 can certainly hold a lot, but the size and weight of this configuration is more than I like hanging on one shoulder (the waist belt can help this) or swinging under my arm for accessing. Yes, I can get to the gear without removing the case – this is an advantage. As I’ve said before, we all have different preferences and needs when it comes to carrying our gear. The Lowepro Slingshot 300 AW can carry a large amount of gear, but give serious consideration to a backpack when making your decision. READ FULL REVIEW AT DIGITAL PICTURE

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Get information and user reviews for this bag at Amazon: Lowepro SlingShot 300 All-Weather Camera Bag (Black)

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Canon 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 USM EF Review Round-Up

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Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Canon EF 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 USM Standard Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

Photo Zone:

The Canon EF 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 USM exhibited a quite mixed performance. On the upside the lens is very sharp with very little vignetting throughout the range. Unfortunately distortions at 24mm are pretty hefty as are chromatic aberrations. The build quality is pretty decent and the AF performace is a joy. All-in-all the lens is capable to beat the cheapo EF-S 18-55mm as well as the EF-S 17-85mm IS and regarding sharpness it can even rival the the EF 24-70mm f/2.8 USM L (on APS-C). If the focal length range was more attractive here the lens would have been a killer but as such it is just a good compromise. READ FULL REVIEW

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Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX DG AF Review Round-Up

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Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX DG IF Aspherical Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras

Digital Picture

Like the Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX DG Lens, the Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX DG lens is a well-built, well-spec’d lens with a value price. But, giving up 4mm of focal length range on the wide end results in a much more compact lens. In addition, the 28-70 is priced noticeably lower than the Sigma 24-70. Autofocus is loud but reasonably fast – and is consistently accurate on stationary subjects. AI Servo performance on active subjects proved to be poor – with few keepable shots. The Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX DG Lens is very soft wide open – especially in the upper half of the focal length range. … This lens performs best at 28mm where the results are decent. CA (Chromatic Aberrations) are very well controlled, flare is not. … Vignetting results are normal for lenses with specs similar to the 28-70 with full frame users noticing some corner darkening when shooting wide open. Like the Sigma 24-70, I find the Sigma 28-70 to overexpose by about .2 f-stops on average. The Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX DG Lens is a very well built lens for a reasonable price. Primarily due to mediocre image quality, I do not intend to include this lens in my Canon General Purpose Lens Recommendations. If you consider this an f/4 or f/5.6 lens, you *might* be happy with what you get for the price. READ FULL REVIEW

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Nikon 70-210 mm f/4-5.6 D Review Round-Up

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Ken Rockwell

If a slow f/5.6 maximum aperture is OK for you, then this is your telephoto zoom. I have played with a great many lenses in this focal range, and this one is clearly superior. I’m unsure how much of this is due to my luck at getting a good sample, or if they all are good. This 70-210 AF-D is as sharp as my 80-200 AF-S, better built, focuses almost as fast and focuses closer, and has fewer ghosts. The AF-S lens is handier if you need to go quickly between AF and manual focusing, and of course if you need f/2.8. Also having tested the actual focal lengths, the 70-210 AF-D also goes longer AND shorter than the 80-200, just as the specs suggest. As if you haven’t gathered, this is a lens to get if you need small, sharp, close focusing, inexpensive and don’t need the f/2.8 aperture. “¦READ FULL REVIEW

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Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM EF Review Round-Up

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Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens

SLR Gear:

Based on our tests, the Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM is a solid lens offering in the ultra-wide category. It has a few issues with softness at certain apertures and focal lengths, a little chromatic aberration wide open, as well as some distortion and vignetting to speak of. But it’s also a dramatic improvement in all of these areas relative to its predecessor, which shows that the Canon design team has come up with ways to tackle all of these issues. It’s not perfect, but then again, neither is any other lens in its category, and for what it does, it doesn’t get any better than this. READ FULL REVIEW

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Nikon 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-G Review Round-Up

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Ken Rockwell

This is a great lens for its intended purpose, which is a light-duty do-everything lens for film and FX digital. (Use the 18-200mm VR instead for DX cameras; it’s far more versatile on them.) Be careful if you use this on a pro camera, since the lens is far more delicate than the camera. READ FULL REVIEW

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Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX HSM APO DG macro AF Review Round-Up

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Photo Zone

The Sigma AF 70-200mm f/2.8 EX HSM APO DG macro is pretty impressive large aperture tele zoom lens. The resolution figures are on a very good to excellent level and neither distortions, vignetting nor CAs are really field relevant on an APS-C DSLR. The bokeh (out-of-focus blur) is pretty smooth and buttery – certainly an important aspect here. The mechanical quality of the lens is excellent and the HSM AF drive is both fast and near silent. As such it is a viable alternative to the Nikkor AF 80-200mm f/2.8 ED (or the Canon EF 70-200m f/2.8 USM L) although not necessarily a superior choice. READ FULL REVIEW

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Canon 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 II USM EF Review Round-Up

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Get information and user reviews for this lens from Amazon: Canon EF 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 II USM Autofocus Lightweight Compact Telephoto Zoom Lens

Photo Zone:

The Canon EF 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 USM II is a lens with “potential”. Unfortunately it is wasted due to a very poor mechanical quality based on very cheap plastics. The lens has been simplified to a degree where even the focus ring has been abandoned. Thanks to the unambiguous aperture and focal length range the optical quality of the lens is very good or at least it could be. The formal results are fine if not impressive for such a lens but they vary extremely across the frame – probably also a side effect of the low build quality standards. If Canon had put the optics into a decent lens body it would have been an interesting budget lens but in its current incarnation the Canon EF 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 USM II cannot be recommended. READ FULL REVIEW

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