Microcosmos
Not even one to fry in the pan, all to shoot with the macro mode of Huawei P30 pro. Mushroom hunting in the Black Forest, Germany. Click each picture to zoom in
Ecological niches
Click each picture to zoom in.
Macro pictures in space with D800 plus 16-35 mm f/4: a very close view to the International Space Station
Close to the shores of the North Sea, the European Space Agency develops the future research projects aboard the International Space Station.
The ISS high-definition model at the ESTEC
Inside the Esa Columbus module, ISS astronauts run scientific experiments and investigate how (absence of) gravity affects life development.
The ISS Columbus module
Together with the 1:1 Columbus module replica , additional ISS modules are present:
Detail on the shared environments on the ISS
The x-y-z communication doors between the ISS modules
One of the ISS passive connecting modules
Inside the ISS “cupola”, the space observatory where astronauts shoot pictures also to Earth
All macro pictures shot with hand-held D800 and 16-35 mm f/4. Although the 16-35 mm is a wide-angle, it can be used to shoot close-up details thanks to the minimal focusing distance of 29 cm, with a max. magnification ratio 1:4
Urgency in a changing world: the ant case.
I don’t have all the time in the world to collect the flower nectar I need …
… I work in a fast changing environment which turns from juicy and colorful …
… to white and dry …
… so dry that it vanishes with the weakest blow! Click to magnify each picture shot with a Nikon 16-35 mm f/4
Nikon D800 dream-team: a few suggestions for choosing new lenses for your new camera
It is quite difficult choosing which gear to buy for a new camera. You are used to your old gears and, especially when switching brands, a whole new world has to be explored. First questions you have to answer are:
1) What do I need this new lens for?
2) What do I like to shoot with my camera?
3) How much do I wanna spend?
I previously used a Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM and a very nice Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS. The long tele was nothing special and I have seen it often equally compared to the Nikon 70-300mm. The 17-55mm was a precious toy but with the D800 I wanted to give a try to easy prime lenses. The D800, like many others, requires some field work to be fully appreciated and I wanted to focus on it more than on immediately learning a new lens.
So, what I did was:
1) Scavenging lens data online on Nikon photography blogs, something like Ken Rockwell and Nasim Mansurov and other forums, newsgroups and so on.
2) Avoiding pure technical test websites: boring and not really informative as I like to shoot something more than Siemens stars
3) Looking for ebay and new prices
The knowledge I hopefully gained pushed me to own, order or just dream the following lenses:
[Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.4G]
Easy, light, small, very fast, no cons if stopped at 2, still ok if you go down to 1.4. I am very happy with it and the kind of dim light pictures I can shoot now I could dream with other lenses for this price.
[Nikon AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF VR II]
Ordered and hopefully soon on my D800. I did not want another average 70-300 like the Canon I had, I could not spend so much money for the wonderful Nikon prime long lenses, I was not convinced by the quality of Sigma 50-500mm or equivalents. I really do not believe wonderful reviews on barrels like the Nikon 28-300mm being as sharp and fast: I stay far, far away from this all-round lenses … it is like when new “family-movies” are announced: you now it will be no good.
[Nikon AF-S 17-35mm F/2.8 IF-ED]
Still dreaming on it. One day I will get this excellent wide angle, I really want to go down to 17mm for landscapes, this time on a Fx camera! If you have one home and you do not use it donate it to me!
[Nikon AF 200mm F/4.0D IF ED MACRO]
Another wild dream. THE macro, as I could see and read around, with a long focus distance to have 1:1 whatever fearful subject you shoot.
[Nikon 135mm f/2 DC]
Many call it the portrait king … maybe one day when I will win the lottery I will finally buy also this one
So, I hope the several hours I spent online might be useful to you too in choosing the lenses you need, if your needs and wishes are similar to mine. Enjoy shooting!
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