- Location
- Ellicott City, Maryland, USA
- Name
- Christian (Otto) Beyer
Congratulations, that's one hell of a deal. I paid for my Oly 100-400mm 1.100 £ and for the Oly MC-14 250 £ both used but in excellent condition (until they met me of course 😛 )An as good as new Oly 100-400 with an extra new 1.4 Oly teleconverter for 900 Euros. Usual commercial price roughly 1600 Euros. One happy buyer.
From what I can gather, there seems to be some consistency across the range of Viltrox products and although I don't yet own any of their lenses, I think I'm a fan. The only reason I haven't got any of their lenses to date is the priority I place towards the rangefinder system, but that 16mm F1.8 now thankfully available for Nikon Z, looks to me to be "the one", particularly given Nikon don't do a native prime lens like for the system.View attachment 523679
The newly released Viltrox 35mm f/1.7 reached me via pre-sale. After some rather varied experiences as of late, I kept quiet about this.
However, I needn't have worried: The lens is well made, fully functional and renders quite a nice image (though I have precious little to show for it - it cold and dark outside, and not much to photograph in here, though I did find something).
Not-so-fun backstory: Viltrox actually didn't put my name on the address label! It took quite some effort to have the post deliver the parcel to me - as a matter of fact, I had to go and fetch it from a storage facility because I was at work when they attempted their second delivery. First time something like this (the left-off name) has happened to me ...
M.
To test my new printer, I did a comparative 5"x7" print on my new Pro-200 (left) and my old XP8500 (right), and took a macro shot to compare them:My latest, rather big, acquisition, is a Canon Pixma Pro-200 A3+ inkjet printer.
I was rather surprised by how much more detailed and more color-accurate this prints than my previous A4 six-ink Epson XP8500.
A little addendum about the Viltrox 35mm f/1.7: This is now "officially" my stay-on lens for the Nikon Z fc - it's optically at least as competent as the Z 28mm f/2.8 SE, a lens I like a lot, but find slightly bigger than necessary, considering its rather modest specs. The Z 28mm may be even more versatile due to its even shorter MFD (0.19m vs 0.33m), but the one-and-a-half stops of additional light gathering capability is more useful to me, and it's not as if a 0.33m MFD is bad for a 50mm-e (53,5mm-e, more precisely) lens.View attachment 523679
The newly released Viltrox 35mm f/1.7 reached me via pre-sale. After some rather varied experiences as of late, I kept quiet about this.
However, I needn't have worried: The lens is well made, fully functional and renders quite a nice image (though I have precious little to show for it - it cold and dark outside, and not much to photograph in here, though I did find something).
Not-so-fun backstory: Viltrox actually didn't put my name on the address label! It took quite some effort to have the post deliver the parcel to me - as a matter of fact, I had to go and fetch it from a storage facility because I was at work when they attempted their second delivery. First time something like this (the left-off name) has happened to me ...
M.
View attachment 523978
Did I mention I am a huge Crumpler addict. Ever since I got my first Crumpler bag (Jimmy Bo 150, in 2010) I have been using them exclusively as my hip holder setups or on short walks over the shoulder like mini-sling bags (my right shoulder can't take large loads from sling backpacks).
I randomly saw an ad on evilBay for this lightly used Crumpler Quick Escape 800 in camo colour with bright red interior for 27 £. I wanted it because I wanted to replace my current (same model) bag as it has a hole near the zipper and it can let rain in.
View attachment 524012
I don't know how it happened but I don't always feel safe with the bag in bad weather because of it. The bag has rainproof construction (to a certain degree) and it has a pocket at the bottom with a rain cover for heavy rains too.
And I just couldn't refuse a colour scheme that I love very much. So, at the moment I have the Jimmy Bo 150 (one zoom lens + camera or 2 primes + camera), the Quick Escape 600 (2 small zooms + camera or 3 primes + camera), and 2 Quick Escape 800 (1 large zoom, 2 primes/small zooms + camera or 3 primes, flash, diffuser and camera or 2 cameras, 2 zooms and 2 primes).
PS. The difference between the older Crumpler Jimmy Bo series and the newer Quick Escape (discontinued for most sizes) is that Quick Escape have the rain cover in a pocket st the bottom (for the 400 size and
I just got the TTArtisans 27mm for my X-E2. I like it a lot more than the original XF 27mm. It's quieter and it has the aperture ring. So far I'm liking the output. And I know I shouldn't say it, it looks pretty good on my mostly black XE2. Sleek little nicely built lens.A little addendum about the Viltrox 35mm f/1.7: This is now "officially" my stay-on lens for the Nikon Z fc - it's optically at least as competent as the Z 28mm f/2.8 SE, a lens I like a lot, but find slightly bigger than necessary, considering its rather modest specs. The Z 28mm may be even more versatile due to its even shorter MFD (0.19m vs 0.33m), but the one-and-a-half stops of additional light gathering capability is more useful to me, and it's not as if a 0.33m MFD is bad for a 50mm-e (53,5mm-e, more precisely) lens.
Both lenses render a nice image, but the Viltrox has clearly more attractive OOF rendering - and I suspect that it's not only because of its faster maximum aperture: It's very well corrected for CA, whereas the Z 28mm, while not bad in absolute terms, sometimes shows some LaCA and does suffer a bit from LoCA. The Z 28mm also a little soft ("glowy") at its MFD - the Viltrox isn't.
The only other lens that comes close in terms of usefulness is the tiny TTArtisan 27mm f/2.8 - it makes the Z fc jacket pocketable in a pinch, but it's no match optically for either of the admittedly bigger lenses already mentioned. Its vintage vibe makes shooting with it fun, though.
I like all three lenses, and if I was forced to choose, would probably still pick the Nikon, but for my current preferences and objectives, the Viltrox is it. I didn't expect this to happen, so am all the more happy with this outcome (I'd already chided myself for buying another prime for the Z fc), especially since this little warrior is far from expensive, and I actually think it's somewhat sturdier than the Nikon, too.
M.
Yes you should.And I know I shouldn't say it, it looks pretty good on my mostly black XE2.
I had one mounted to my XE3 that I recently sold. That was a nice looking combo as well.TTArtisans 27mm
Sadly, it turns out that a 31.5" (says 32" on the box) monitor is simply way too big. It felt like sitting right in front of the TV!Just ordered a big, and long-overdue, upgrade for the PC! https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod..._premium_metallic_grey_31_5_va_3840x2160.html
I went back and forth between 32 and 27, I ended up with a Samsung 27" 2 1/2 years ago and I am happy with that. This is what I ended up with.Sadly, it turns out that a 31.5" (says 32" on the box) monitor is simply way too big. It felt like sitting right in front of the TV!
I need to do some more research what to get. My previous monitor was (okay, is) a 24" slightly curved Samsung model with 120 htz refresh rate, but only 1080p. I'd like at least 1440p, and probably around 27". If I can find 100% sRGB, higher than 60 refresh rate, and (maybe) HDR for a good price, I'll probably go for it.