Tools of the Trade

Tools of the Trade
Originally uploaded by Cajie.

In an earlier post, a friend asked me to post about my photographic equipment. Well, here it is.

Besides my trusty D70, these are the list of lenses, that I have collected over the period:

a) AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D. This has got to be my most favourite lens. It is so sharp and fast, that I hardly need to do any sharpening in post-processing. On a film camera, this would be a "normal" lens, but on my D70 (with it's 1.5 crop factor), this lens translates to a moderate telephoto of 75mm. Excellent for portrait work. This lens is currently the best buy from Nikon.

b) Nikkor 80-200 f/2.8 ED AF-D. At around $800, this lens is not cheap, and at 2.85lb, definitely not something you can hang around your neck (unless you have a very thick neck). But it is a fast lens (f2.8), that is great for low light photography, and sports.

c) Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM. The fastest lens in my arsenal at f1.4. Great for low-light photography. It is also what photographers call a "normal" lens, because when mounted on the D70, it translates to 45mm. Great for general photography.

d) Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 HSM. Super-wide angle lens that I love for outdoor photography.

e) Nikon AF 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G. This is a great general purpose lens that I use a lot. I had purchased this along with the D70, and I must have taken atleast 80% of my photos using this lens.

f) Speedlights. As you can see, I have 3 external flashes. The main one that I mount on the camera is the SB-800. I use the other 2 flashes whenever I am doing portrait work. Simply place them on each side of the subject and I have an instant studio!. They work using wireless signals, so I can place them anywhere in the room to create creative lighting.