spraynpray said:
Oh yeeaah. Big, bright viewfinder, split prism and fresnel ring.

I got an original brightscreen with that combo for my D3s. It's wonderful! I can MF like the old days...

framer

Oh yeeaah. Big, bright viewfinder, split prism and fresnel ring.

I think you were an OM guy, too, weren't you, Andrew? The split image isn't the only thing I miss about my OM-2's viewfinder!

jonnyapple said:
Have you considered getting a different focus screen, msmoto? I used the AI-S 50 1.2 for a while, and I just kept pining for the split prism focus screen of days of yore.

Don't get me started Jonny!

I am a devotee of ground glass...have tried a lot of others, but for some reason like the ability to see what is going on all over... As I remember, both of the old "F" bodies I put in a ground glass with a grid on, so as to tell when things were straight. And, my old minolta Autocord...all ground glass.. Of course in the 60's the Deardorf view cameras from 8"X 10" to 11" X 14" were simply a ground glass image.. and upside down. The Sinar 4" X 5 " also, and the Hasselblad's both the 500c's and the little short wide angle one were all ground glass. So, I guess I got used to it and have just not found I wanted to change. Apparently, my vision is screwy enough to be able to see the image on the ground glass in a way that makes it relatively easy to focus

And, i am sitting here waiting for my prize... the one mentioned above....

Have you considered getting a different focus screen, msmoto? I used the AI-S 50 1.2 for a while, and I just kept pining for the split prism focus screen of days of yore.

Today, my Zeiss 28mm f/2 is supposed to arrive, and I am a bit excited about it. Then folks like you , Squamish, start talking about the 100mm f/2 Zeiss, and I am already thinking I would like this as well.

A word about the 400mm f/2.8. This lens blows my mind, even when the TC-14EII or TC-20EIII is on the end of it. But, it requires a monopod, or good tripod and gimbal head.

As to manual focus....I do the 24 PC-E Nikkor on the ground glass screen in the D4 and it seems to work fine. And, as I grew up with manual focus, this is so natural and for me almost easier in shooting portraits (oops, flashback to 1965, under dark cloth, Deardorf View)......

Do you use something like a katz eye screen, Squamish? I would love to have that lens—you have posted some stunning photos from it. I'm a little worried about trusting myself to get focus with only the stock focus screen, though.

ZF.2 100mm f2 Makro Best portrait lens I've ever owned, and I own a 200mm f2 and an 85mm f1.4, so that says a lot. Considering that the Zeiss will likely be my main and essentially only go to portrait lens Im freed up to sell the 200mm and acquire myself a 400mm f2.8 VR2 so that I can improve my birding this winter. Needless to say I am very pleased with it. :]

+1 PB PM the D700 is the best camera I have ever owned and I prefer it to my D800e for its more manageable files, better noise control after 6pm shooting, and instant pop and compatibility with such lenses as the 14-24. The D800e has not blown me away, but I am reasonably satisfied. As far as exceeding my expectations, the 14-24 and 24-70mm lenses back when I used them on my D700 were life changing experiences and changed photography for me. Also ZF Zeiss glass particularly the .2 series and the 35mm is simply astonishing. Photoshop particularly CS4, CS5, and CS6 all would make my list and I'd like to sneak in one more the cheap little 24mm 2.8 Prime with its wonderful star burst in light from its straight aperture blades. I am planning on growing this list by adding the D3s body next year. The D4 is similar but there are a lot of great deals on the D3s and I hear it has really changed people's photography on many levels.

i1 Display from X-rite. Now my printer prints what I expect first time, every time. It pays for itself quickly in ink savings.

Lowepro topload 65 pro AW.

It fits perfectly a D7000 with grip and 16-85. Extra space for SB-400 flash. All in a small and protected package.

Can attach extra camera case for sigma 10-20 or Nikon 35 1.8 or Nikon 70-300.

The D800 and 24-70 have been covered but, I am extremely happy with Adobe and their products. They really stepped up their game with their most recent releases. Can't wait to see what the future brings.

Lets start at the beginning

Nikon F, nuff said

D70 my first dslr
D90 so much better than the 70
D700 could a camera be any better?
D800 blown away by, the dynamic range and the exposure, focusing and CLS accuracy

SB900 wish this was available when I was working full time

Manfrotto 055PROB at last a tripod that quick and easy to use and stays were its put

Lowepro Fastback 400AW the best camera bag in the world

Spider holster, bye bye camera strap ,hide your camera under your jacket

Lightroom 4, do in seconds what took hours in the darkroom

First, it was the 85 1.8G. What an amazing lens given its performance for the price. This lens now goes with me where ever I go. Needless to say, the 24-70 2.8 is permanently on no matter what. Lastly, the D4!! Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz make what you want out of it...but the words you come up with will not do it justice. In fact, at times it leaves me speechless as I shake my head in awe :D

tcole1983 said:
300 F4...I put it off forever and finally got one and wow. I can't get over the great bokeh and how sharp it is. I thought it would be pretty good, but since it was an F4 lens thought it might be not as great as the F2.8's. I have been nothing but amazed by it and wished I had purchased it a long time ago.

I agree with you on that lens. I owned it for 7-8 years, it keeps surprising me. It works great with the TC14E also.

framer

My 35mm 1.8 has exceeded my expectations. I had gotten it through Citibank Thank You rewards, so it was a practically free lens. I only had to pay tax on it.

Focusing is pretty quick, so I got my money's worth on it. Plus the kit zoom didn't give me shallow depth of field like the 35mm could.

I purchased a Thousand Oaks Optical Type 2+ White Light Glass Solar Filter which fits over the front of the 400mm f/2.8 and protects the lens from all aspects of the solar radiation. I was given instructions the sun is not easy to photograph. However, the day was clear, and at 3:07 EDT I shot the sun with the 400mm and TC-20EIII.

The image had some spots on it which looked like dirt on the sensor, but always in the same place on the Sun. Then I looked at the NASA photos of the sun... Mmmm... guess they have the same spots... yup with my rather rudimentary setup, at least for astro photography, I was able to see the Sun spots.

Totally blew me away....

PB PM said:
....
24-70mm F2.8G - Great all around lens, tough as nails. Accuracy of colour reproduction greatly exceeded my expectations.
....

+1

D700, worth every peny. When I got it was looking for usable shots at ISO3200, but get usable shots at ISO6400 too.
24-70mm F2.8G - Great all around lens, tough as nails. Accuracy of colour reproduction greatly exceeded my expectations.
AF-S 300mm F4 - Sharp wide open, focuses fast enough for most subjects. Only thing it lacks is F2.8.

I couldn't agree more about the D800. But since it's already mentioned I'd like to throw some true love out to my Lastolite Ezybox hotshoe softbox. I'm not a pro but this piece of gear has proven itself invaluable to me for the images I've been able to take with it. My 2 favorite types of photography are landscape and portrait so I wanted an economic softbox that had a good reputation knowing I'd use it for years to come. After reading "The Hotshoe Diaries" by Joe MacNally I made an impulse purchase for this softbox. Using it with my SB-900 it renders a very smooth light falloff across the faces of my subjects (mostly my kids so far).

Now that I'm starting to venture out a bit more and offering to shoot portraits for a few close acquaitences (it's win-win, I learn, they get a picture) and seeing that smooth carressing light that eases off to elegant shadows across their faces and bodies I can't believe it's me who took that picture. I had to get a good light stand and speedlight adapter to use with it but it's truly made a positive difference in my photography.

300 F4...I put it off forever and finally got one and wow. I can't get over the great bokeh and how sharp it is. I thought it would be pretty good, but since it was an F4 lens thought it might be not as great as the F2.8's. I have been nothing but amazed by it and wished I had purchased it a long time ago.

135mm f/2 DC: This creative tool is an absolute weapon and my modest skills are not really worthy, but they're benefiting. The ability to throw foregrounds and backgrounds is absolutely ridiculously strong and I'm working on a D90. Jumping to FX shortly; cannot wait to see the additional effects of a larger sensor. I post-process all my stuff routinely, but the RAW files I get from using this lens are unbelievably good. The contrast is great, it's sharp as a razor (again, DX so far--no comment on FX corners) and it's very forgiving if I don't have my settings spot-on. I probably keep 1 shot in 50; when this is the lens it's more than one in 10. AF is fine when I use it. Cannot say enough good things about this lens. I have a couple more expensive pieces of glass, but I don't have any better.

Here's an idea fro a topic: What purchases have met or exceeded your expectations and why.

I'll start with my D800. For those of you who suffer fools like me gladly, you may recall that I bought the D800 primarily to make illustrations I use in operator's manuals and other documentation I do for my clients. I was keen to get high resolution because I don't always know what I want to use in an illustration, and the ability to crop and zoom to a feature I want to emphasize seemed useful to me, as that is what we did in the film days, and I wasn't getting good results when I cropped to much with lower resolution cameras.

I am very satisfied with this capability, especially coupled with Photoshop CS6 where I can move things around to improve the overall image. We can't always control the angles when we photograph some of the equipment, nor can we control the distance to the subject: these are not product shots for advertising, but documentary photographs of equipment in operation. I can take one photo, crop in, rotate, highlight, annotate, and change exposure very quickly, allowing me to use on photo for several different purposes. I get my work done much quicker now, with results better than the Kodachrome days and with no repeat trips to the photo lab.

The D800 exceeds my expectations, and although it doesn't make me a better photographer, used with the new CS6 it makes me look like I'm a better photographer.