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tv shows and camera lenses
New show that I'm watching: The Leftovers. I've watched both eps that have aired and have realllly enjoyed it so far. It's kind of like The Walking Dead without zombies. My only wariness comes from the fact that one of the creators is Damon Lindelof, and well... Lost. That's all I need to say.
Shows I'm done with:
Game of Thrones: The show just brings me more rage than enjoyment, and I feel happier after not watching it anymore. I think it does a lot of things well, but the things it doesn't do well makes me so annoyed that it's just not worth it. My biggest fear is that I'm going to have to find out what happens at the end of the series on the TV show, rather than getting to read about it in the books. :/
Elementary: This show had its charms, especially in S1, even though neither of the leads do anything for me. However, after finishing S2, I am completely done with it. I just cannot stand how STUPID and HYPOCRITICAL Watson is. I understand that showrunners have to constantly create sexual tension by keeping the leads apart, but her sleeping with his brother and feeling something for him is so completely ICKY and boring and dumb. Especially after she had that whole tirade about how she could never trust Mycroft, etc!!! And I KNOW they were trying to be all meaningful, that it was because he was protecting Sherlock that she relented, but it just doesn't have the impact that they want. I *barely* feel anything for the Sherlock/Watson "romance" as it is, but they are trying so very hard to make it something usty and good that I was willing to give it a shot. Then the whole thing with Mycroft happened -- again -- and now I'm just done. It's not good just because you keep them apart, idiots. There's more UST between Sherlock and Watson in Sherlock. There's even more UST between Penny and Sheldon on Big Bang Theory, for god's sake.
In totally different news, I have gone completely camera lens crazy. This is because of the Richard Sherman Celebrity Softball game next weekend, where I want to get reallllllly good pictures. In the last couple of weeks I have purchased maybe five new camera lenses. >.> When my coworker D. found out, he was like, "OHMYGOD WHAT ARE YOU DOING. WHY DIDN'T YOU CONSULT ME." (He's sort of my mentor when it comes to photography and video making, as he does those things on the side, quite successfully.) So I sent him and another coworker, who's also an amateur-pro at photography, my current list of lenses, and got their opinions on which ones they would recommend I keep and which I should sell. They didn't see each other's comments until the end, so I was impressed that they both came up with roughly the same answers (which also lends credibility to them!).
If there are any photography experts out there who want to chime in with your opinion, your feedback would be welcome :) Or maybe this will help other amateurs like me who are curious about what lenses these guys think are worth keeping.
One thing I should note is that my camera(s) and lenses are Nikon, whereas these guys use Canon. However the basics of cameras and lens functionality are the same, so their knowledge should be pretty comparable; it's just that they don't have direct experience with these lenses.
(I've been told that a general rule of thumb when it comes to lenses is that the bigger the difference in focal length range, the harder it will be to get good images from it.)
KEEP:
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S Zoom - D. believes that a 200mm zoom is all I need for 90% of situations, as I'm not a big wildlife photographer or anything. This one is the best of the 200mm lenses on my list because it has the fastest shutter speed and produces extremely sharp images with great bokeh and contrast. Only problem is that it's heavy as hell.
Nikon 50mm f/1.4G SIC SW Prime AF-S - Fantastic low-light lens that helps with taking photos without flash in dark places like restaurants.
Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro - Awesome macro lens for close ups (like of food), but you have to "know" how to use it.
CONSIDER KEEPING:
Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S ED VR II Telephoto Zoom - This was an impulse buy while I was in Portland, because I wanted a zoom lens, it was highly rated, and I wouldn't have to pay sales tax. It is MUCH more lightweight than the 70-200mm lens though, so in situations where I'm going to need to hold the camera for long periods of time, or if there's any risk of damage to the equipment (given that the 70-200mm costs FOUR TIMES as much), yet I still need zoom, this one may be worth keeping around. Returned to Amazon.
Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR Zoom - Longer zoom than 200mm and good to use with sports photography. Compatible with both DX and full-frame Nikon cameras. Has M/A feature - instant manual override - which is cool because it lets you "cheat" when focusing (if the camera's autofocus doesn't get it just right).
Nikon 50mm f/1.8G AF-S FX - Very similar to the 50mm f/1.4G model above, though it will never take better pictures than that one. However, it's inexpensive and may be worth keeping around to use, again, in higher-risk situations (rain and such) just in case.
SELL:
Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Zoom - First of the longer zoom lenses I bought for the baseball game, because I didn't think 200mm would get me close enough to the players' faces. However, the 70-300mm is a better lens, and I don't need both of them. The major differences between the two: a) the 55-300mm is smaller and lighter, so may be better for professional sports events where spectators are limited in the types of lenses they're allowed to bring; b) the 55-300mm is a step down in build quality from the 70-300mm; c) the 55-300mm has a slower autofocus, and there's no manual override; and d) the 55-300mm is only good for DX cameras, so wouldn't work with my D800 (a full-frame camera).
Nikon 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED Autofocus VR Zoom - I then decided, after getting the 55-300mm lens, that maybe 300mm wasn't enough zoom. I would be sitting in the stands at Safeco field, and the diamond was sooooo far away. Maybe I needed a 400mm lens! I haven't actually received this lens yet, so I'm not actually sure how big/long it actually is. It may be too big to bring into Safeco, which would make having it moot. The other thing about this specific lens is that I should have done a little more research before I bought it; it turns out that the autofocus may not work on DX cameras, which is what I would be using (my D5100). However, there have been conflicting reports on this; some say it doesn't work on DX cameras at all, while others say that it works, but is slow. I'll just have to test it out myself. But it's a very highly rated lens that's great for wildlife photography.
Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR Zoom - Very basic starter lens that came with my entry-level D40. Takes fine images for the casual photographer.
Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom - Basic starter zoom lens. Takes fine images and has the flexibility of a longer zoom.
RECOMMEND GETTING:
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Wide Angle Zoom - According to both of my amateur-pro coworkers, there are essentially three lenses that every photographer should have, and a wide-angle zoom lens like this is one of them.
However D. has said that I am not allowed to buy this until I've sold the others, lol. He's not the boss of me, but as my sort-of photography mentor, I feel like I should listen to him (and probably should have at least consulted with him before buying some of these >.>).
Shows I'm done with:
Game of Thrones: The show just brings me more rage than enjoyment, and I feel happier after not watching it anymore. I think it does a lot of things well, but the things it doesn't do well makes me so annoyed that it's just not worth it. My biggest fear is that I'm going to have to find out what happens at the end of the series on the TV show, rather than getting to read about it in the books. :/
Elementary: This show had its charms, especially in S1, even though neither of the leads do anything for me. However, after finishing S2, I am completely done with it. I just cannot stand how STUPID and HYPOCRITICAL Watson is. I understand that showrunners have to constantly create sexual tension by keeping the leads apart, but her sleeping with his brother and feeling something for him is so completely ICKY and boring and dumb. Especially after she had that whole tirade about how she could never trust Mycroft, etc!!! And I KNOW they were trying to be all meaningful, that it was because he was protecting Sherlock that she relented, but it just doesn't have the impact that they want. I *barely* feel anything for the Sherlock/Watson "romance" as it is, but they are trying so very hard to make it something usty and good that I was willing to give it a shot. Then the whole thing with Mycroft happened -- again -- and now I'm just done. It's not good just because you keep them apart, idiots. There's more UST between Sherlock and Watson in Sherlock. There's even more UST between Penny and Sheldon on Big Bang Theory, for god's sake.
In totally different news, I have gone completely camera lens crazy. This is because of the Richard Sherman Celebrity Softball game next weekend, where I want to get reallllllly good pictures. In the last couple of weeks I have purchased maybe five new camera lenses. >.> When my coworker D. found out, he was like, "OHMYGOD WHAT ARE YOU DOING. WHY DIDN'T YOU CONSULT ME." (He's sort of my mentor when it comes to photography and video making, as he does those things on the side, quite successfully.) So I sent him and another coworker, who's also an amateur-pro at photography, my current list of lenses, and got their opinions on which ones they would recommend I keep and which I should sell. They didn't see each other's comments until the end, so I was impressed that they both came up with roughly the same answers (which also lends credibility to them!).
If there are any photography experts out there who want to chime in with your opinion, your feedback would be welcome :) Or maybe this will help other amateurs like me who are curious about what lenses these guys think are worth keeping.
One thing I should note is that my camera(s) and lenses are Nikon, whereas these guys use Canon. However the basics of cameras and lens functionality are the same, so their knowledge should be pretty comparable; it's just that they don't have direct experience with these lenses.
(I've been told that a general rule of thumb when it comes to lenses is that the bigger the difference in focal length range, the harder it will be to get good images from it.)
KEEP:
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S Zoom - D. believes that a 200mm zoom is all I need for 90% of situations, as I'm not a big wildlife photographer or anything. This one is the best of the 200mm lenses on my list because it has the fastest shutter speed and produces extremely sharp images with great bokeh and contrast. Only problem is that it's heavy as hell.
Nikon 50mm f/1.4G SIC SW Prime AF-S - Fantastic low-light lens that helps with taking photos without flash in dark places like restaurants.
Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro - Awesome macro lens for close ups (like of food), but you have to "know" how to use it.
CONSIDER KEEPING:
Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S ED VR II Telephoto Zoom - This was an impulse buy while I was in Portland, because I wanted a zoom lens, it was highly rated, and I wouldn't have to pay sales tax. It is MUCH more lightweight than the 70-200mm lens though, so in situations where I'm going to need to hold the camera for long periods of time, or if there's any risk of damage to the equipment (given that the 70-200mm costs FOUR TIMES as much), yet I still need zoom, this one may be worth keeping around. Returned to Amazon.
Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR Zoom - Longer zoom than 200mm and good to use with sports photography. Compatible with both DX and full-frame Nikon cameras. Has M/A feature - instant manual override - which is cool because it lets you "cheat" when focusing (if the camera's autofocus doesn't get it just right).
Nikon 50mm f/1.8G AF-S FX - Very similar to the 50mm f/1.4G model above, though it will never take better pictures than that one. However, it's inexpensive and may be worth keeping around to use, again, in higher-risk situations (rain and such) just in case.
SELL:
Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Zoom - First of the longer zoom lenses I bought for the baseball game, because I didn't think 200mm would get me close enough to the players' faces. However, the 70-300mm is a better lens, and I don't need both of them. The major differences between the two: a) the 55-300mm is smaller and lighter, so may be better for professional sports events where spectators are limited in the types of lenses they're allowed to bring; b) the 55-300mm is a step down in build quality from the 70-300mm; c) the 55-300mm has a slower autofocus, and there's no manual override; and d) the 55-300mm is only good for DX cameras, so wouldn't work with my D800 (a full-frame camera).
Nikon 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED Autofocus VR Zoom - I then decided, after getting the 55-300mm lens, that maybe 300mm wasn't enough zoom. I would be sitting in the stands at Safeco field, and the diamond was sooooo far away. Maybe I needed a 400mm lens! I haven't actually received this lens yet, so I'm not actually sure how big/long it actually is. It may be too big to bring into Safeco, which would make having it moot. The other thing about this specific lens is that I should have done a little more research before I bought it; it turns out that the autofocus may not work on DX cameras, which is what I would be using (my D5100). However, there have been conflicting reports on this; some say it doesn't work on DX cameras at all, while others say that it works, but is slow. I'll just have to test it out myself. But it's a very highly rated lens that's great for wildlife photography.
Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR Zoom - Very basic starter lens that came with my entry-level D40. Takes fine images for the casual photographer.
Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom - Basic starter zoom lens. Takes fine images and has the flexibility of a longer zoom.
RECOMMEND GETTING:
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Wide Angle Zoom - According to both of my amateur-pro coworkers, there are essentially three lenses that every photographer should have, and a wide-angle zoom lens like this is one of them.
However D. has said that I am not allowed to buy this until I've sold the others, lol. He's not the boss of me, but as my sort-of photography mentor, I feel like I should listen to him (and probably should have at least consulted with him before buying some of these >.>).