New Member, Greetings

RickKr · Nov 28, 2024

New member, initially interested in macro and close-up photography for things I make and in the immediate, bamboo fly rods. Been wanting some decent camera equipment for a long time and recently picked up some used Nikon, D7200 and AF-S Micro Nikkor 60mm f/2.8 G ED. I'll likely get some more general purpose lenses, but I'm going to take some time on those.

I dabbled in B&W in the late 1970s and very early 80s, studied the Zone System, had a cold light head for my Beseler 23C, but life and not having the "eye" that I hoped for stalled that. Used a Nikonos when I was into whitewater canoeing in the 80s and have a lot of slides. Been using PointNShoot cameras since and have taken a lot of pictures that just stay stored away. I thought I'd get to scanning a lot once I retired, but life has just been too busy.

I am first and foremost a hobby metal machinist and have been taking photos of things I'm working on using my iPhone, which is handy and fast, but I've always been frustrated by less than satisfying results. I understand the newer phones allow for various controls, but I find it cludgy. I'm hoping the new-to-me DSLR will allow me to take more statisfying images. The two photos below were taken with the D7200 and are far better than what I had been doing, but I see room for improvement. I've been looking into focus-stacking as one method. I'll continue with this in the Macro subforum.

Rick

Jeff15 · Nov 29, 2024

Hello and welcome ....

Strodav · Nov 29, 2024

Welcome and enjoy the forum. The D7200 is a great camera. It has one of the best DX sensors ever built in terms of image quality. I will never part with mine. That 60mm macro lens is amazingly sharp, but you may want to look at a 105mm macro to get you a little more distance from the lens to the subject. I have a version made by Sigma and it is also an amazing lens. You may also want to see if you can get a good deal on a used D850 with a focus stacking feature, which is really helpful for macro photography.

RickKr · Nov 29, 2024

Thanks for that feedback. I've been thinking about getting a 105mm macro, but think I'll see how what I have works. In the camera equipment, I was guided by a good friend who is an experienced macro photographer and we were working within my budget. I was not much aware yet of focus stacking, in-camera capability was not on my radar. The D850 looks great, but it would have been beyond my reach at this point. For focus stacking, I'm going to try manual stacking first, using a NiSi 200S rail.

My first attempt at focus stacking (Helicon) showed that I can do it, but I've been studying a lot since this. I tried something else with my iPhone and it was dismal failure.

Rick

First image in the stack.