Showing posts with label 85mm. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 85mm. Show all posts

Taking Christmas Photos With Different Lenses

I was bored today and longing for Christmas decoration photos and even though it was still a smidge too light outside, I went for it. I'm in the process of trying to find my favorite lens for taking ornament pictures, but I'm struggling. Since the 105mm lens rarely leaves my camera, I just assumed it would be the best, but I don't think it is. 

I used my 40mm macro last year for most of the photos, which is one of my faves, but I honestly don't think I've touch it since I got the 105mm. I think I'm gonna dust it off next week and see how it looks on the 750. I've already used my 35mm a couple times this week and I'm honestly still so impressed with that lens. I'm kicking myself for not using it today, but hopefully next week sometime.

I'd also like to add that we were able to get tires on the car yesterday and thankfully made it Poplar Bluff to Christmas shop. It wasn't the best, but we did get a few things. The most exciting part was getting to try the new Beyond Chicken from Panda Express!

Anyways, here are some pics with a few different lenses, enjoy!


Tokina 11-20mm 2.8 lens:

Love the wide angle lens for getting pictures of the entire room.

It's kinda trippy.

It would be so much better if it was dark outside.

See, the effect isn't the same.

The tree is still beautiful, but it's too light outside.

New Rudolph ornament.

Last one with the Tokina.


Nikon 105mm 2.8 lens:

The 105mm has great depth.

But I don't think it's aperture is wide enough for the look I want.






High ISO Santa.


I like the warmth of this picture.




Nikon 85mm 1.8 lens:


The 85mm lens is so smooth!


And so crisp.


You can't hardly beat this lens.



The only downside is the ratio. It's around 1:7 and you need a 1:1 for good ornament pics.


Great present pictures with the 85mm lens.




This is one of my favorite ornament pictures. I feel it captures vintage Christmas.



The ornaments that I painted.

I think they look nice.



Back to the Tokina for s minute:

Waited a couple hours and took some more of the tree.

See how much better the Christmas tree lights look when it's dark outside?

I tried some high ISO settings here and thing they make for some vintage Christmas tree photos.

Something about this Christmas tree takes me back to the early to mid 90s.

These pics would've been better if the lights around the door were on, oh well.

Nikon D750 - My Dream Camera!

 I feel weird posting about this, but I'm also really excited at the same time. I never like posting about things that I get because I never want to come off as a boaster, because that is NOT the case. I am so, so, so thankful that I was able to purchase this camera and thank God for allowing me to be able to afford it! 

I absolutely did not purchase this camera new - it's still going for like $1400-$1800 new! I've been scouring eBay for weeks now looking for a good, used D750 with a low shutter count. I also looked on Facebook Marketplace, but that was a bust. I found a guy in STL that had one for a really, really good price, but he only responded like two times and then nothing. I ended up finding a newly listed D750 on eBay Saturday night and messaged the guy and asked what he would accept as an offer. After talking back and forth, he ended up going down $150 with free shipping!

I got this camera for a literal fraction of the price, even cheaper than what the lowest bids are going for! I know I already said it, but I'm gonna say it again - I am SO thankful and thank God I was able to purchase it! I'll continue to be thankful for years to come, lol. 

I've wanted a full frame camera for year now. Pretty much ever since I got my D3300 for my birthday 8 years ago. I never thought I would be able to afford one because they hold their value so well. That's why I got a D5600 over three years ago instead of a full frame. The D5600 is an amazing camera - which I also bought used - and I doubt I'll ever part with it. After all, it's a DX camera and I have a few DX lenses (including my Tokina), so I'd kinda like to keep it around. 

The cool thing about the D750 is that it has an automatic crop when you attach a DX lens which is amazing! I've literally only had it for 7 hours, so I haven't tried a DX lens on it yet. I started with my 85mm and then tried my 105mm, only because they weren't in my case. Man, the difference is astronomical! The 85 preforms beautifully and I can't wait to do a photoshoot with it with actual people. The 105 is beautiful too, of course. It really amplifies the bokeh of the lens and does amazing things with lighting.

Since I'm entirely new to FX, it's going to take me a while to get used to all the new button locations and how to tweak stuff. I've always used SnapBridge to transfer pictures to my phone, but since this is an older body FX it doesn't have Bluetooth, only WiFi. Thankfully there's an app called Wireless Mobile Utility that allows you to transfer photos via the cameras WiFi. The only downside is I have to turn the camera on to enable WiFi and then connect with my phone. That's what I love about the Bluetooth on my 5600 because I don't even have to touch it to activate the Bluetooth. 

Oh well, that's a very small price to pay!

I think I've made this post long enough. Naturally I'm going to post some pictures I took today. It's nothing special because I was rushing due to the plummeting temperatures outside, not to mention it was getting dark really fast. Hope you enjoy! 


Here's the beauty that is a Nikon D750!

The screen doesn't swivel like on the 5600, but it does pull out. The guy also has screen protectors attacked to the back and the top.

Always wanted a camera with a top display!

This is the very first pic I took. Completely random Lazarus Naturals CBD bottle. Took this with the 85mm lens.

These are all our fall decorations that got packed up today. This picture and the following ones of Max were all taken with the 85mm lens.

Max was the perfect model.

He wouldn't make direct eye contact.

He's a very shy boy.

See how nice these pics are??

It really makes the 85mm look like a $1000 lens.

Still no eye contact.

I finally snatched his toy and held it above him.

He's also very nosy.

Now time for the pics from the 105mm 2.8 macro lens!

See how amazing the lighting looks with minimal tweaking?

I'm obsessed.

I can't imagine how these pics would look edited.

These weeds were legit the only good thing to take pics of.

Found one of these dried up little star weeds.

Of course, had to find a leaf. LaVaughn said this reminds her of The Walking Dead for some reason.

I lost a little too much light, so these didn't turn out great.

More weeds with awesome bokeh!

It blows my mind.

This one looks like something from a Louisiana swamp.

One last weed.

Tried to test out the focal range with the fence posts.

Definitely awesome.

It's time for some Christmas decorations!! Got the ornaments hung from the kitchen lights.

They're so pretty.

It was a smidge overexposed, but not bad.

Last minute ladybug on the curtain.