dbutlerman Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 Well I bit the bullet and bought a DSLR, Nikon D60, with two lenses 18-55mm VR, and 55-200mm VR, and it is probably the coolest thing I've ever bought...well expect for maybe my reps Here are a couple of quick photos that I shot with the 18-55mm lens from about 2-5" away...very cool, no tripod or lightbox....Although I probably should have dusted the watch a little first, I never had to do that with my Point-and-Shoot...it didn't make clear enough pictures to notice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadtorrent Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 Great stuff. I need to get a DSLR. A P&S really draws short on macro and indoor lighting stuff that's for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbutlerman Posted August 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 Hey Toadtorrent - I thnk they are the way to go! The prices are fairly reasonable, at least I think. I picked mine up with 2 lenses for $600. Just as a note, these pictures were taken indoors, with the lights off and just the light spilling in through the window shutters, no flash. Big lenses make a big difference! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwatch Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 Wait until you bite the bullet and get yourself a macro! Then the real fun begins!! I bought the Tamron SP AF 90mm F/2.8 DP which has an internal motor so it will Auto Focus on your D60 just fine. It is a great piece of glass - nice and sharp! Enjoy the new DSLR! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smc Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 The glass is where it's at! Before you buy, check out shots on flickr tagged with the lens you are looking at. Just don't buy a camera with a high pixel density like the 15mp canons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThePhilosopher Posted August 25, 2009 Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 Nice shot; however, that lens has a minimum focusing distance of 11" so I don't think you were as close as you thought. Macro lenses are tons of fun, but can be slow to focus in non-macro situations as they tend to hunt a lot among other things like the distance the glass has to travel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbutlerman Posted August 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 hmmm....I had the camera zoomed all the way out...I could have sworn I was that close....I'll go home and re-enact just to check Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugwash Posted August 25, 2009 Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 Wait until you bite the bullet and get yourself a macro! Then the real fun begins!! I bought the Tamron SP AF 90mm F/2.8 DP which has an internal motor so it will Auto Focus on your D60 just fine. It is a great piece of glass - nice and sharp! I'd love to be able to afford a macro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThePhilosopher Posted August 25, 2009 Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 I could quite well be wrong, but that's what the lens is spec'd out to do. Anywho, for Nikon shooters. I'd love to be able to afford a macro. I got my 90mm Macro brand new for $360 on eBay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwatch Posted August 25, 2009 Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 I'd love to be able to afford a macro. @Pug - the macro's aren't as expensive as you might think if you hunt around for a used one. I got mine on Craigslist used for $300.00. Best investment ever! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugwash Posted August 25, 2009 Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 @Pug - the macro's aren't as expensive as you might think if you hunt around for a used one. I got mine on Craigslist used for $300.00. Best investment ever! $300 is not cheap: Anything over $100 isn't really cheap. it may seem it compared to other lenses, but $300 is approaching the price of a spare camera. With a reverser ring and patience, I think I'm doing ok and spending money on a macro won't provide me with $300 of benefits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadtorrent Posted August 25, 2009 Report Share Posted August 25, 2009 Pug...you are doing great with your reversing ring that's for sure!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HunterBL Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 i have a gmtii just like this one and love it, nice choice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbutlerman Posted September 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Thanks! It was my first "good" rep...I had bought others in the past, but nothing that compares to the ones that can be found here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwatch Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Any more photos with the new setup? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbutlerman Posted September 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Any more photos with the new setup? Hi Red - Not of watches but I went down to San Diego Bay the other day and took these with the 55-200mm lens...I also bought a cool Holux GPS Geotagger..it allows me to geocode all the pictures - very fun! Let me know if you want any information on the geotagging... This one isn't as "photogenic" but I still thought it was kind of cool. It's an F/A-18 taking off from NAS North Island (about 2 miles across the Bay from where I was shoot). The birds were on the bank until the After-burners lit off, then they decided to bolt! The DSLR is turning out to be a lot of fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwatch Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Thanks for sharing DB. I would love to find out more about a GPS unit for my camera, but I don't think there is one available for the D40 is there? There is no accessory port on it to my knowledge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbutlerman Posted September 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 Thanks for sharing DB. I would love to find out more about a GPS unit for my camera, but I don't think there is one available for the D40 is there? There is no accessory port on it to my knowledge. Red- I use a Holux M-241 http://www.holux.com/JCore/en/products/products_content.jsp?pno=341 which is a stand-alone battery powered GPS Data Logger. All you do with it is turn it on, allow it to find a couple of satellites, and then turn on your camera and start shooting. It takes a reading of Latitude and Longitude and altitude every couple of seconds and time stamps it. Then when you're all done you turn off the camera and the GPS logger. Then when you import the pictures you hook the M-241 to your computer (either by bluetooth or via USB) and use either the supplied software on a PC or get a program called Houdahgeo http://www.houdah.com/houdahGeo/ and it will read the time stamp in the EXIF date and time of the picture and match that up with the Lat & Lon of the GPS, it then writes that coordinate back to the EXIF data on the image and saves it there. Then you can export that data to Google Earth, or with the Mac iPhoto and Aperture allows you to view where you took the picture on a Map. It does it through a really easy automated process. I attached some screenies to show you: I've also taken some more watch pictures, and I am definitely taking the really close ones about 6" from the watch...and I think they are in pretty good focus... http://www.rwgforum.com/topic/103839-going-franken/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwatch Posted September 3, 2009 Report Share Posted September 3, 2009 That seems pretty cool DB! Thanks for showing me that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raikiri Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 (edited) $300 is not cheap: Anything over $100 isn't really cheap. it may seem it compared to other lenses, but $300 is approaching the price of a spare camera. With a reverser ring and patience, I think I'm doing ok and spending money on a macro won't provide me with $300 of benefits. Everything is relative, $300 is cheap when other macros are up to 4x the price. Your best bet if you don't want to spend loads is a set of half decent tubes. I personally use a Tamron 90mm f2.8, great lens for the money and far beter than any of the cheaper alteratives (reversal ring, tubes etc.). Edited September 14, 2009 by Raikiri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiker01 Posted September 14, 2009 Report Share Posted September 14, 2009 $300 is not cheap: Anything over $100 isn't really cheap. it may seem it compared to other lenses, but $300 is approaching the price of a spare camera. With a reverser ring and patience, I think I'm doing ok and spending money on a macro won't provide me with $300 of benefits. Puggy, You don't have to buy a macro, check out the Kenko Extension Tubes......you're going to love it! They're $170 for a set of 3! Read the review here: http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Kenko-Extension-Tube-Set-Review.aspx Here's some of my gear (the Ext, Tubes are the 3 from the right): Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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