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**Official TPT NIKON Pimp Club** Join us instead, Canon has cooties!

52K views 641 replies 133 participants last post by  sam86 
#1 · (Edited)
All you Nikon representers stand up and claim your Nikon pimp club membership! Doesnt matter if its a DSLR or a Point and Shoot, we want YOU *points finger* to join the Nikon Pimp Club*! *and Coalition against Canon! :hihi:

Figured this would make for a good Nikon thread in general as well, where we can share tips, info, ask questions, etc that are specific to Nikon cameras and the Nikon brand...

So go on and claim your membership number! I'm starting it at #001 with myself, and the membership number will go in order based on whoever joins next! Let me know if you want to join by posting in the thread, and I'll add you in!

Oh yeah and don't forget, Nikon rules, Canon drools! :icon_lol: :icon_wink

#001 - TickleMyElmo
#002 - SkyGrl
#003 - jahmic
#004 - scream-aim-fire
#005 - Moody636
#006 -Assassynation
#007 - Da Plant Man
#008 - zainey_04
#009 - AzFishKid
#010 - msjinkzd
#011 - manini
#012 - Nubster
#013 - bsmith
#014 - Minja
#015 - jeepn4x4
#016 - lonnie123
#017 - nvladik
#018 - AesopRocks247
#019 - IWANNAGOFAST
#020 - audioaficionado
#021 - Ibn
#022 - smg980
#023 - orchidman
#024 - williamsonaaron
#025 - Basil
#026 - fusiongt
#027 - alfalfa
#028 - flwrbed
#029 - H82LOS3
#030 - Green Thumb Aquatics
#031 - crowconor
#032 - Joeangel
#033 - vasteq
#034 - Chlorophile
#035 - Patriot100%
#036 - Fornstar
#037 - Dan Knowlton
#038 - Jacob928
#039 - AquaStudent
#040 - Miles03
#041 - xev11
#042 - pandjpudge
#043 - Budget Aquarist
#044 - BetterWetter
#045 - Regenesis
#046 - discuscraze
#047 - WATduh
#048 - indigo
#049 - teah
#050 - mcqueenesq
#051 - smithron
#052 - youjettisonme
#053 - stewardwildcat
#054 - trit0n2003
#055 - wahhshoang
#056 - acitydweller
#057 - cradleoffilthfan
#058 - OrangeSoda
#059 - .shawnD.
#060 - kubalik
#061 - kezg
#062 - CryptKeeper54
#063 - KenRC51
#064 - Lagarb
#065 - LipzyDaizy
#066 - amygirl11
#067 - reefdive
#068 - honda237
#069 - Jubs
#070 - ryc120
#071 - agimlin
#072 - viwwo
#073 - teonguyen
#074 - atomicjade
#075 - Kunsthure
#076 - haoly123
#077 - Fuze
#078 - discusonly
#079 - seachaz
#080 - Adri.
#081 - Darth Toro
#082 - concepts88
#083 - MABJ
#084 - jester56
#085 - SMB
#086 - howze01
#087 - JerSaint
#088 - sam86
#089 - DBlauJ
#090 - Bananariot
#091 - Judge Judy
#092 - shift
#093 - El Funko
#094 - scbrooks87
#095 - tommypham
#096 - Synyster1337
#097 - Icegoalie32
#098 - tippeecanoe
#099 - michael09
#100 - Elppan
#101 - papwalker
#102 - sarazorz
#103 - nofearengineer
 
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#17 ·
Hehehe :hihi:

ugh...i know this is in good fun...but i've had enough canikon fan/warfare across the rest of the interwebs....seeing it here would not be cool imo ><
Already happens every time someone posts a what camera should I buy thread on here, maybe this will keep everybody seperated :icon_lol:

Can i join even if I don't have a nikon! I really REALLY want one.
Sure! Nikon admirers clearly know their cameras, and will soon have their very own Nikon anyways :thumbsup:

If I counted correctly I would be a Nikon pimp 007. I have a Nikon D5000

We should also post one or more of our best shots.

Here are some of mine:







These are uploaded from my cell so there not at full resolution. I'll upload the originals when I get home from work.

- Zain
Nice pics!

Good job everybody! Nikon is where it's at! :D
 
#7 ·
Canikon. For a real camera just get a Pentax. Does as good or better. Just costs less.

A real friend would never let a friend shoot Canikon.
 
#20 ·
Why would you want a nikon? Why would anyone in their right mind want a nikon? Or a canon for that matter. Their copiers stink too.
 
#14 ·
If I counted correctly I would be a Nikon pimp 007. I have a Nikon D5000

We should also post one or more of our best shots.

Here are some of mine:







These are uploaded from my cell so there not at full resolution. I'll upload the originals when I get home from work.

- Zain
 
#30 ·
I have had my d3100 for about a year. What a revelation! My wife and I purchased it a few months after our daughter was born (but I was pushing for one for a while for aquarium related duties). I never realized how incapable the p&s's I owned over the years were till I got my Nikon. I thought I was doing something wrong (im not anything to brag about by any means but after reading countless threads/write ups/whatever info I could find and putting that into practice and still producing pictures that simply lacked what I was looking for). Then after the first series of pix I shot with the d3100 and the first upload to the PC, I knew right then and there that it wasn't me, it was the cameras that lacking. Again, I am not even close to being a true photo enthusiast but the d3100 just makes it so easy!

So next on the wish list is a tripod and a nice macro lens. The 18-55 that came with the kit is a very good (in my newbie opinion) all around lens but for proper macro shots it just isn't the best. I'm accepting recommendations!

I have also been wanting to DL some editing software but refuse to pay the $$$ that is required to get PS or any other editing programs. Any direction there would also be helpful.
 
#31 ·
The Nikkor 60mm Macro is a fine lens. If you want a little more reach, the Tamron 90mm Macro is hard to beat. All three shots above are from the Tamron 90mm Macro. Sigma makes a really nice one that is over 100mm...can't remember exactly what it is...150mm maybe.

And do yourself a favor and grab a 50mm f/1.8 aka the Thrifty Fifty. IMO that is one lens that should be in every Nikon DSLR shooter's bag. You can find them for $100 or less and they are fantastic.

Editing, look at Gimp...it is comparable to PS but it's free. You can also get Photoshop Elements for not much money. Commonly for less than $50. It's just a watered down PS but has all the main things you need to do processing. I personally like Light Room but it's costly. You might be able to grab an old version of Nikon Capture for cheap or even a newer version from someone that doesn't need it. Capture NX2 is an excellent program that is included with some Nikon cameras and much of the time, people that buy them are using PS and sell off the Capture program cheap.
 
#33 ·
I'm just use to the 18-55 lens I have which I think is the mm of it. When you say 60mm or 90mm are those set and you can't zoom or am I completely missing it?

My manager snagged the same camera/lens I got in my kit but his also included a 55-200 (I believe) lens too with his kit (from Costco for only $200 more than what I paid I think). That would be a good macro lens right?

I haven't even dl any of the free software that you recommended in other threads. I guess I'll just check out that gimp tomorrow at work and see what it's like.

Do you have any input on taking HDR shots or could tell me how to do it? Some of the HDR shots I have seen look unbelievable.
 
#34 ·
Good to see you here Nubster!

Ohh yeah, forgot about the pics! These are all shot in AUTO mode with no flash or tripod.
Nice pics! And yeah, it can be quite the revelation when people start using DSLRs instead of point and shoots. Sure, the DSLR may be more expensive, but you only have to buy it once, and you'll have great image quality for years to come and the flexibility of new lenses, instead of buying $200 point and shoots year after year searching for good image quality or when they break. Might as well spend the money once and get the real thing instead of going from point and shoot to point and shoot until you've spent enough money to where you could have had a DSLR...

Also, if you're a student or know one, Adobe offers 80% off all their products to all students, no matter their major or full time/part time status. This means you can get Adobe Lightroom 3, the gold standard of efficient image editing, for $90, which isn't bad at all...
 
#36 ·
HDR requires HDR software. There are ways you can mimic it in PS but true HDR needs the HDR program. HDR is really cool looking though. I had a program but I lost it when my last computer went down. I never really got the chance to play around with it.

And yeah, like TickleMyElmo said, when the lens is just a 60mm or 90mm or whatever, it is a prime lens which means it's a fixed focal length. Generally they are sharper lenses but they are also more expensive. I really like shooting primes but sometimes I like to have the ability to zoom. Right now I have 30mm, 50mm, and 90mm primes in my kit and one zoom that goes from 70-300mm. If I had the money though, I'd probably replace them with a couple nice zooms and keep the 50mm and 90mm Macro.
 
#37 ·
Photoshop CS4 had HDR in it but it stunk. CS5 has it and they've really improved the algorithms for HDR. No need any more to go to Photomatix now.
 
#41 ·
Prime means it's a fixed lens not a zoom.

1.2 is a faster lens than 1.4
 
#45 ·
Great info guys!



So when your saying faster you mean it is able to capture enough light more quickly in order to produce a decent photo?

After doing a quick google search for 'prime f1.2 or .4 it was apparent to me very quickly that a 1.2 was much more than a 1.4, about 3x as much or ~$1000.

Like Graph said its a fixed focal lenght (they are most often referred to as prime lenses) the F number refers to the apature,the lower the F number the larger the apature and hense the faster the lense(can capture light) F1.2 can be quite expensive in primes and anything lower that F1.2 goes into stratispheric costs (not that the average person would need it). 50mm f1.4 is a good compromise as it can perform very well for most of the situations you will be likely to use it in, you will also get some exercise from it due the "manual" (walk closer or further away) focus element to using one.

no bashing from me as its all about the image produced and not about the equipment that produced it.

I like setting my camera to manual and doing the tuning (not sure what the proper term is but this seems like it will get my point across).

So to put it in lay terms. A 50mm prime lens would be like taking pics with the lens my camera came with (18-55), all the way zoomed in or all the way zoomed out? I'm thinking zoomed out.

I would just have to put the lense right up to the glass to get a good close shot of say a bristle nose plecos face where the nostrils, eyes and bristles were in the shot?

If money is an issue, the 50mm f/1.8 is an excellent lens and can be had for about $100. Very sharp, great walk around lens. The other suggestions are good though. If you can swing it, the Tamron 90mm Macro, Nikkor 60mm Micro, and Sigma 150mm Macro are all great lenses but will set you back $300-400.

For macro, I personally suggest a tripod and shutter release. Of course with some practice you can certainly do it free handed.

Okay so with a 90mm prime lens it would be like taking pics with the lens I have (again, 15-55) roughly at about twice the distance? Pretty sure the nikor lens that I have is f1.8.

Right now I took a break from taking all the hardscape out of my L183 starlight tank to see how the plecs are doing and to snap some pics. I'm allowing the mulm/pieces of DW to settle so the water clears and I can get better shots.

But I think after that I'm going to hot up Craigslist and see what's doing on there lens wise... ;)
 
#44 ·
If money is an issue, the 50mm f/1.8 is an excellent lens and can be had for about $100. Very sharp, great walk around lens. The other suggestions are good though. If you can swing it, the Tamron 90mm Macro, Nikkor 60mm Micro, and Sigma 150mm Macro are all great lenses but will set you back $300-400.

For macro, I personally suggest a tripod and shutter release. Of course with some practice you can certainly do it free handed.
 
#46 ·
Faster means that when the lens is set at the largest aperture (smallest number like f/1.2) it allows the most light into the sensor which in turn allows you to use a faster shutter speed. Very useful in low light situations or when you need fast shutter speeds to capture action. Generally, the faster the more expensive, kinda like cars...lol

50mm fixed, or prime means that your lens will be at 50mm all the time. It can not be adjusted. There are markings on your zoom lens. Set it to 50mm and look through it. That is were you will be at with the 50mm prime. There is also a minimum working distance with all lenses. Macro lets you get up very close. That is why they are best for taking very up close shots. A 50mm will not allow you to get up and person but you will be able to crop the photo to get that closeup shot.

Yeah, you will be able to get closer shots further away with the 90mm. That's the only advantage using a 90mm over a 60mm macro lens, it allows more space between you and your subject. That is useful when shooting things like insects that will take off if you get too close. When shooting something like a fish tank, focal length with a macro lens is not that important. Keep in mind though, a macro lens is an excellent prime lens that can be used for a lot more than just macros. Some of my best general shots have been with my 90mm Macro.

For used gear, join up over at www.nikoncafe.com. You have to be a member 30 days and meet a minimum posting requirement, but it's so worth it as there is a VERY active sales section with great gear all the time. Fred Miranda is another good one. Finally check www.keh.com for excellent used equipment. That is all the deal in and they have great customer service and their ratings on the used stuff is very conservative.
 
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