I think I want a bigger lens

Francois · September 26, 2005

...... but which to choose?

I have a Nikon D70 with the 70-300 mm DG lens for it (which means 450 mm 'real', right?).
I can get a Voigtländer lense of 600 mm for it, but this is not one made for digital camera's, so I am hesitant about it.

I want a bigger lense for my airshow and airfield shots.... nowadays it is a lot harder to get anywhere near the planes, even when you're a pilot

:

Any advice is welcome !!! :dunno

P.S. Having just started my own company and lost a regular income, price IS of importance ! :wink

Kind regards,
Francois

David_S85 · September 26, 2005

Thread moved
Francois, I have moved your post to the appropriate forum.

Francois · September 27, 2005

Oh, OOOPS, Sorry David.....

pathfinder · September 27, 2005

Francois,

I'm a Canon shooter, so take what I suggest with a grain of salt. For shooting airplanes I would suggest the Nikon equivalent of the Canon 100-400 zoom. Nikon makes a lovely 80-400mm VR zoom- you can see it here at B&H--

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=207360&is=USA&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

I just don't know if this may or may not be in your budget. I like shooting airplanes in flight, but it requires good optics. Sigma also makes a 50-500mm zoom, but 400mm of reach is usually enough for planes in the air. Let us know what you finally decide.
600mm will be very difficult to hand hold. A gimballed tripod head will probably be necessary to shoot with 600mm or so at objects in flight.

What is your estimated budget?

Harryb · September 27, 2005

Francois,

I know nothing about the Voigtlander lens. A couple of questiosn for you. How much reach are you trying t get? How much are you willing to spend right now?

There are some options out there but its kind of hard to recommend anythong w/o a bit more info.

Francois · September 28, 2005

Thanks for your replies, much appreciated.

My budget would be more in the range of 400-500 US $ (or the Euro equivalent).

I have the Nikon 70-300 zoom lens (which is the equivalen of a non-digital 450 mm, right?). I used it on a recent air show and noticed I could not get the planes frame-filling in the pictures. They were just a little too far off, so I am trying to find ways to get them 'closer'.

The Voigtlanders are not digital lenses, so the 600 mm is equal to a 400 mm digital I think. They are 'dumping' them for less than 100 $, hence my interest. But before getting on the motor to ride down there for nothing, I figured to get some opinions first.

The Nikon of 1400 $ looks wonderful, but I cannot afford it at this time. I did see quite a few photographers last weekend with huge hand-held telelenses and was wondering about them.. they must have been very sensitive, since the light was not really good.

I'll post a few shots a bit later on so you know where I am coming from....

Harryb · September 28, 2005

Hey Francois,

The 1.5 multiplier comes from the camera not the lens. Any glass' range will be increased by 1.5 when put on the D70 whether the lens was made for a digital camera or not.

Here's a few possibilities in your price range

The Sigma 600mm/f8 mirror reflex maual focus lens
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=47637&is=USA&addedTroughType=search

The Tokina 80-400
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=230092&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

The Sigma 135-400
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=pagination&A=nextPage&Q=&catId=8433&compareCatId=8433&shs=&ci=8433&ac=&al=0%2C0&bl=23&sb=bs%2Cupper%28ds%29&sq=asc&fi=all&pn=2

The sigma 170-500
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=121741&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

You can check out user reviews of these lenses here
http://photographyreview.com/defaultcrx.aspx

or you could go with the availabke TCs for your 70-300 lens
the TC-201 2X TC makes the 70-300 a 140-600 (210-900)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=38013&is=USA&addedTroughType=search

The TC-14a 1.4 TC makes the 70-300 a 98-420 (137-630)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=38009&is=USA&addedTroughType=search

Good luck

Francois · September 28, 2005

Thanks for the great help Harry !! Studying now......

:

I think I want a bigger lens

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