The new Nikkor 85mm f1.4 G is expected to be a perfect portrait lens.
Yesterday, Nikon announced the upcoming release of four new Nikkor lenses (available in September), two or three of which are aimed primarily at amateur photographers. However, nestled in among the bunch is a lens that will have broad appear to portrait and wedding photographers: the Nikkor AF-S 85mm f/1.4G . As we all know, the range from 80 to 105mm is classic for portrait work. With today’s Nikon APS-C sensors, the 85mm becomes a 127mm, which is still very close to that range, making this lens suitable for photographers working with full frame or crop sensors.
But what’s so great about this lens in particular? At f1.4, it will give you an extra 2/3rds of an f-stop of extra light over the f1.8 model. Not really a big deal, especially considering the performance of today’s VR lenses (which provide a full 4 stops in many circumstances) and CMOS sensors at high ISOs. No… what today’s photographers are interested in is the shallow depth of field and bokeh (ie, blurred quality of the out-of-focus portion of the image). The lens features 9 rounded aperture blades to keep the background bokeh buttery smooth.
“But wait!” you say. “Doesn’t Nikon already offer an 85mm f1.4 lens with 9 rounded aperture blades?” Continue reading »
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Which 70-200 Lens Should I Buy? A Quick Guide
Canon's 70-200 lenses, and a Sigma thrown in for good measure. Not to scale.
With the release of Canon’s latest offering, the EF 70-200 f2.8 USM IS II, Canon has at least 5 pro-quality lenses in the same focal length range. If you include the original EF 80-200 f2.8 from the 1990s (now discontinued, but still available used), the count is up to 6. And then there are the offerings from Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, and the other third parties. Tokina’s lens in this range, now over 8 years old, has fallen out of favor, and I’ll leave it out of this comparison. Tamron’s offering is very impressive optically, but does not currently have image stabilization. Sigma has recently announced the addition of a new, image stabilized version of their very popular lens (and we can hope for some minor improvements to image quality that is already very good). Continue reading »
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Canon Announces New Model of Iconic Lens : 70-200 f2.8 IS II USM
The New Canon 70-200 2.8 IS II USM
[UPDATE: Now that this lens is available and has been tested, I've published a comparison between this AMAZING lens and several others in the same focal range. You can find it here: Canon 70-200 lens comparison ]
Today, Canon announced the release of their updated model of the 70-200 f2.8, a workhorse for photojournalists and and other photographers who enjoy its wide apertures, snappy auto-focus, and (usually) crisp optics. Don’t get your credit cards out yet… it won’t be shipping until at least April, according to Canon USA. Read the rest of the article for a quick summary of the key differences. Continue reading »
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