Photography

Nikon D40 + Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5 AF DX lens. The AFS-Nikkor 18-70 mm f/3.5 - 4.5 DX G ED-IF lens was Nikon's first midrange zoom designed for the shorter focal lengths required by digital cameras. It was the kit lens for the Nikon D70 introduced in 2004. According to Bjørn Rørslett, it was an excellent optical performer at a bargain price. Contrast is high, colours are vividly saturated, and image sharpness is simply stunning. (Obviously not in fog, though). 18-70 mm corresponds to 28-105 mm on a full frame camera. What particularly distinguishes this lens is its fast (for a kit lens) speed where the telephoto end provides f/4.5 instead of the more usual f/5.6. It weighs only 14 ounces and when teamed with a Nikon D40 the weight is just two pounds. I used routinely to favour a Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f2.8 on the Nikon D2Xs. It gave good clarity and contrast, but I often found it lacking in the telephoto and I think the 18-70mm, although slower, is a better lens for my purposes.

Nikon D40 + Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5 AF DX lens. The AFS-Nikkor 18-70 mm f/3.5 - 4.5 DX G ED-IF lens was Nikon's first midrange zoom designed for the shorter focal lengths required by digital cameras. It was the kit lens for the Nikon D70 introduced in 2004. According to Bjørn Rørslett, it was an excellent optical performer at a bargain price. Contrast is high, colours are vividly saturated, and image sharpness is simply stunning. 18-70 mm corresponds to a 28-105 mm on a full frame camera. What particularly distinguishes this lens is its fast (for a kit lens) speed where the telephoto end provides f/4.5 instead of the more usual f/5.6. It weighs only 14 ounces and when teamed with a Nikon D40 the weight is just two pounds.

Nikon D40 + Nikkor 18-200mm f/3.5 - 5.6 lens.

Nikon D3s + Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AF-D lens. There is something engrossing about shooting with a 50mm lens on a full frame camera. Perhaps it is another form of time travel, a subject which occupies my mind with occasional intensity. Unconventional camera settings for this picture: 1/2500; 800 ISO; f/5.6. A proper photographer would be appalled.

Nikon D3s + Nikkor 35-70mm f/2.8 AF lens.

Photographed with a Nikon D3s and a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AF-D lens.

Canon PowerShot SX120 IS camera.

Having bought the book in the secondhand bookshop at Lacock Abbey, I felt an unstoppable urge to photograph it under Benjamin Carter's sphinx which is supported by the plinth in the picture. The book is open at a reproduction of Evelyn Hofer's 'Portrait in Windowlight' photographed in 1969. Secondhand books are seldom described as 'used' or (worse) 'pre-loved'. I need to analyse why this is so, and whether it means books are held in high or low esteem generally. Photographed with a 50mm f/2.8 vintage Tessar lens on a Canon EOS 40D.

Shot with a Nikon D2Xs and a Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 lens on a TC-16A teleconverter (field of view like 120mm on a full-frame camera). ISO 640; aperture priority set at f/11. The small aperture resulted in a shutter speed of 1/30th; this has given a blur caused by the movement of the girls as they passed. Although a tight composition in the first place, I have cropped it further for effect and presented it in black-and-white because the colours were fighting with one another. The whole picture is entirely accidental. I should have used a lens with a wider angle. the shutter speed ought to have been at least 1/125th, possibly 1/250th. But then it wouldn't have resulted in this picture. Life is full of chance.

Using an 85mm lens on a full frame camera ought to be a similar experience to shooting with a 50mm lens on a cropped sensor SLR such as the Canon EOS 30D. Strangely it feels rather different. This photograph was made with a Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 lens on a Nikon D3s.

Zenith-E instruction manual cover photographed with a Canon EOS 30D camera fitted with a Helios 58mm f/2 lens via an M42-EOS adapter. Unless it was the 200mm Orestegor. Notes inadequate, but definitely one of those lenses.

Nikon D700 + Nikkor 180mm f/2.8 AF lens. A Limbo Lockdown Production™.

A Nikon D3s and Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AF-D lens photographed in available light using a Nikon D2Xs with a Tamron SP 35mm F1.8 lens. 1/40th at f/4 and 400 ISO.

Cropped and greatly processed for an 'arty' appearance, this is a tiny file which could be a disappointment when printed at any size. It probably looks at its best on a computer screen. Canon EOS 40D + Chinon 55mm f1.4 lens.

Photographed with a Nikon D3s and a Tamron SP 35mm f/1.8 Di VC lens. 200 ISO. 1/125th and f/1.8.

Nikon D50 with Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AF-D lens. Converted to black and white and processed in Lightroom.