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Looking around for an older, used DSLR camera

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albert01 said:
You're correct many of the filters are cheap and inexpensive, using poor quality materials and manufacturing methods.

For an inexpensive set I was looking at e.g.

Digital Concepts Close Up Lens 67mm Set +1 +2 +4 & 10X Macro w/ Soft Case

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-Co...642061?hash=item4d6434784d:g:hBoAAOSwEIFZzA~T

Over an inexpensive Super Wide angle fisheye + macro lens

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Super-Wide...085886?hash=item234cc8d67e:g:2K4AAOxyUgtTOcEo

Any recommendations for better quality macro lens or macro lens set?

Do you have any examples for a " true "macro" lens"?

I'm always open to suggestions and paying for better quality and performance.
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I have bought about a DOZEN, (and I am not exaggerating), UWA adapters from eBay.

Without exception ALL were JUNK, (some were not even "WA" they were just "fuzzy".

I kept trying, (and wasting money), because UWA (14mm) was my favorite lens back in film days and I want it back.

As everyone here knows I now shoot with a "bridge" camera and thus am (was) sadly limited to 24mm, (but the Nikon P-500 specifically because it had 22mm-EFL WA but that also was a mistake because the camera was too-slow to use).

So in a quest for (14mm-equivalent) UWA again I kept buying the adapters from eBay.

FINALLY I got a RAYNOX 3062 and found it "satisfactory" for my purposes. However I also then got a Raynox 5072 and find it is even better, (very sharp and equivalent to a separate UWA lens).

So I can only "warn" you about this "cheap" adapter because I surly did not have any luck with them.

But also as mentioned, (U)WA and "macro" are very separate.

What you have there is a SCREW-OFF part of the WA-adapter that can individually serve as a "close-up" adapter, (without the UWA part).

Again, I can't specifically comment on that particular lens, it may be an exception ... but be aware and warned if you feel it is useless after you get it.
 
I found a set of

new Macro extension tube set. It has 3 tubes, larger, medium and small. Tube has Nikon Ai (F) mount.

However the country of manufacture is China so I'm not certain of their quality. Perhaps for the price and quality perhaps are good enough for posting pics of items on forums, eBay, etc.

I'm now thinking of concentrating on a good set of macro tubes and an actual 1:1 macro lens.

I also need some sort of zoom lens, but will take my time as I'm not in a big hurry.

I'm not yet familiar with the various aftermarket brands and manufactures of digital photo equipment. So it may take some time to research to find tubes, a Macro 1:1 lens and zoom lens of good quality without breaking the pocket book as some prices I've read so far for a macro lens start at around $500.00 for a better quality macro lens?
 
The budget is extremely low but you may find a bargain. Digital cameras are not so durable as old film cameras so you will have a higher risk to spend your budget on something that will die soon on you.

If you want Nikon look at least at Nikon D90 and 18-105 mm VR lens. Take care to have less than 20000 photos. It is a camera that was launched in 2008 (so more than 9 years ago). Mine is working still very well but the rubber from the back is detached. It survived a nasty fall in an unpadded bag.

Here are some photos with Nikon D90:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/X7VNkBJiVrVxp6mz1

https://goo.gl/photos/rKdrWCKPd54APqCw8

https://photos.app.goo.gl/chTlIGOIWvrMV0Ur2

--
Victor
Bucuresti, Romania
 
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albert01 said:
I found a set of

new Macro extension tube set. It has 3 tubes, larger, medium and small. Tube has Nikon Ai (F) mount.

However the country of manufacture is China so I'm not certain of their quality. Perhaps for the price and quality perhaps are good enough for posting pics of items on forums, eBay, etc.

I'm now thinking of concentrating on a good set of macro tubes and an actual 1:1 macro lens.
Click to expand...
You have to be careful with tubes. If you get tubes without any electrical contacts, you can't use them with "G" lenses because you won't be able to set the f/stop. You also lose autofocus but that's not a big obstacle for close-up work where manual focus is more common anyway.

If you get a 1:1 macro lens, you probably won't need tubes. At 1:1, the lens will cover a field that's about 1" X 5/8".
albert01 said:
I also need some sort of zoom lens, but will take my time as I'm not in a big hurry.

I'm not yet familiar with the various aftermarket brands and manufactures of digital photo equipment. So it may take some time to research to find tubes, a Macro 1:1 lens and zoom lens of good quality without breaking the pocket book as some prices I've read so far for a macro lens start at around $500.00 for a better quality macro lens?
Click to expand...
You can get a brand new 40mm Micro Nikkor for $250. But with macro, your life is easier with a longer focal length so you may want to look for something around 90mm or more. The good news is that almost all macro lenses, from Nikon or from third party manufacturers, are quite sharp so if you find, say, an old 90mm Tokina for a good price, you should jump on it.
 
albert01 said:
The angle of view of a fisheye lens is usually between 100 and 180 degrees while the focal lengths depend on the film format they are designed for.
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Just being picky, but the focal length stays the same. The angle of view is determined by the format (sensor size), and this is a frequent topic for discussion when comparing so-called "full frame" cameras and "crop" cameras such as Nikon DX.

I'm rather fond of wide angle, and these lenses are also particularly handy in situations where access is limited.

This was taken in a very small historical museum...



d6b9e5749d684600a6b9ceb57fa9d9c0.jpg


While in this case, the only view of the playground was from a walkway within a few meters of the structure...



d1cfcdcb325744388f902d7733b32b02.jpg
 
Taking a closer look at the auction pic the Nikon lens appears to be 18-70mm ??? 6-4.5G AF-S DX ED. Definitely a G lens which have no aperture ring.

"G-Type NIKKOR Lenses. A G-type lens does not have an aperture control ring and are intended for use on Nikon DSLRs that allow the lens aperture to be adjusted via the camera's command dial"

I found a set of Vivitar Macro Manual Extension Tube Set for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Also found a set of Kenkos for the Nikon but they're considerable more expensive than the Vivitars.

Kenkos for Canon are less expensive than the Vivitar for automatic Nikon F-mount.
 
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albert01 said:
Yes that's what I'm wondering about if the lens I will receive is a G.
Click to expand...
If you're getting the camera with an 18-70, that's a G lens. Also, zoom lenses tend to do odd things when you put them on extension tubes. Odd things like not being able to focus at all, or having lots of field curvature or only working at one end of the focal length range. Depends on the lens.
albert01 said:
At this point I have already purchased a D80 and not going to spend hundreds of dollars to upgrade to a D90 or better. What's important for myself is to get out there and take good photos and photos that I like, using and improving my existing photographic skills instead lying around worrying about if newer technology is capable of doing the work for me, possibly improving my performance of taking photographs.

Sort of like purchasing a new car to improve your driving skills. Some of the worst drivers are driving brand new vehicles with all the latest technologies.

I found a set of Vivitar Macro Manual Extension Tube Set for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Also found a set of Kenkos for the Nikon but their considerable more expensive than the Vivitars.
Click to expand...
The Kenkos of which I'm aware have electrical contacts allowing autofocus and aperture control of "G" lenses. I would guess that a set of tubes described as "manual" will lack these contacts.
albert01 said:
Kenkos for Canon are less expensive than the Vivitar for automatic Nikon F-mount.
Click to expand...
The Nikon F mount is now a mongrel, combining electronic control of aperture and autofocus with mechanical levers doing the actual stopping down of the diaphragm. In fact, if you want extension tubes to be fully compatible, they would have to have a shaft going through them to allow autofocus with "screwdriver" lenses; I am not aware of such tubes. The Canon mount is purely electrical with no moving junk.
 
I ordered a Vivitar VIV-CL10-67 - 67mm 67 Close-Up Closeup +10 Macro Lens Filter set.

Approx. the same price there is a Vivitar VIV-CL-67 filter set however the VIV-CL10-67 has multi-coated lenses where the VIV-CL-67 does not.

Anyway I'll perhaps also order a Vivitar extension tube kit to see how well it will work with the D80 and it's lens.

Which should work good enough for now to achieve better detail for description and communication purposes. I sometimes use closeup photos to further describe certain problems and events. These types of pics don't need to be anything spectacular, award winning, mind blowing, impress friends, etc.
 
"If you re-read my post about the D80 camera with posted pics. I stated I went ahead and purchased the D80 for $199.00 that came with a lens."

Sorry, I did miss that. Good choice.
 
I'm currently looking spare for batteries and found a multiple aftermarkets rated 2,200 mah and higher with price range of from ~$8.00 to ~$15.00 each.

Some are set in packages of two or more for an ~$8.00 each price.

Are the aftermarket worth their value or better to find Nikon OEM's?

I'm also looking for some kind of SLR or DSLR zoom lens or macro zoom lens (min 200mm) either manual or automatic.
 
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albert01 said:
I'm currently looking spare for batteries and found a multiple aftermarkets rated 2,200 mah and higher with price range of from ~$8.00 to ~$15.00 each.

Some are set in packages of two or more for an ~$8.00 each price.

Are the aftermarket worth their value or better to find Nikon OEM's?
Click to expand...
My local camera shop doesn't even stock OEM Nikon batteries, which list at about AUD$129 for the D7100. I eventually bought an after-market (ProMaster) for about $40, but I was in no hurry, since I get nearly 1000 shots from a single charge.

I've had no worries with a handful of after-market batteries for Nikon and Sony. My D7100 has a "Battery Condition" menu item, and the after-market battery responds exactly the same as the OEM.

The only thing to watch with cheap batteries is that they don't swell and become stuck in the battery compartment.
 
albert01 said:
I'm currently looking spare for batteries and found a multiple aftermarkets rated 2,200 mah and higher with price range of from ~$8.00 to ~$15.00 each.

Some are set in packages of two or more for an ~$8.00 each price.

Are the aftermarket worth their value or better to find Nikon OEM's?

I'm also looking for some kind of SLR or DSLR zoom lens or macro zoom lens (min 200mm) either manual or automatic.
Click to expand...
I've bought a bunch of no name batteries.

For my camera bodies Nikon D90 and below . . . no name batteries seemed to work fine.

(I bought these batteries for my Nikon D100, D70s, D90 and a Canon 10D I had along the way.)

I'd toss them in and they'd last for days.

Just make sure the batteries have the same rating or more.

Best Buy may even have batteries.

For Nikon D7000 and newer, so the newer style battery, I would say . . . stick to Nikon.

I picked up no name batteries, and they just don't last. I now only use them to keep the camera going while I charge the real Nikon batteries.

I picked up a 3rd party battery from Best Buy, and it does better than the no name batteries, but probably 3/4 of the longevity as a real Nikon battery.

Take care & Happy Shooting!
:)
 
albert01 said:
I'm currently looking spare for batteries and found a multiple aftermarkets rated 2,200 mah and higher with price range of from ~$8.00 to ~$15.00 each.

Some are set in packages of two or more for an ~$8.00 each price.

Are the aftermarket worth their value or better to find Nikon OEM's?

I'm also looking for some kind of SLR or DSLR zoom lens or macro zoom lens (min 200mm) either manual or automatic.
Click to expand...
Everyone's got their own opinion re. after market batteries.

Personally, I never buy anything else as Nikon ones (in my case) are ridiculously over priced and perform no better than the cheap ones.

Having said that, some after market batteries work or last better than others.

I I always use ones made by Ex-Pro and in years of doing so, they've never let me down.

There are other good ones, of course.

Have a hunt through these forums and you'll find several threads on the subject.

Don't be put off though, by the critics, foretelling doom and gloom if you use these batteries.

While they can and sometimes do fail, that can also be said of "real" ones.

It's really your choice but my experience has all been positive.

I can't help you re. a lens.


"It's good to be . . . . . . . . . Me!"
 
I was looking around on eBay and found several that are rated 2200 mah and higher

e.g. EN-EL3E Battery + Charger for Nikon D50 D70 D80 D90 D100 D200 D300S D700 Camera

I did have a list somewhere. Anyway my experience with cylindrical cell lithium such as 18650's is to stay with well known name brands such as Samsung, Sony and others as the inexpensive ones from China rated at e.g. 4000 - 5000 mah actual capacity is around ~500 mah when fully charged.

You can actually tell by the weight of the battery. Quality lithium feel heavier.

Anyway I'll probably just purchase a pack of the $8.00 En-EL3e's and forget about the overpriced Nikon OEM's which most likely are made for Nikon, possibly by a company that also makes less expensive aftermarkets? I suppose it's possible Nikon manufacture's it's own batteries. Many large companies including IBM, HP, etc outsource certain types of products.

The actual battery pack quality often correlates to the brand of cylindrical cells used to create a battery pack such as an EN-EL3e battery. This supply of cylindrical cells often come from only a few battery manufactures who manufacture and supply a certain "quality" battery cells worldwide, ( to manufactures that create battery pack to be installed and used with certain types of products.)

Lesser quality lithium cells will actually have lower capacity than there rating. A good cylindrical cell charger that capable of charge and discharging lithium usually will provide you with a lithium capacity after it cycles a battery (charge / discharge / charge, etc.)

For lithium cylindrical cells I use a programmable charger, which essentially allow the user to control a charge through various settings.

SkyRC MC3000 - MC300 Review

However you would most likely need to cut open an EN-EL3e and isolate each battery in order to actually determine a battery pack's capacity.

=============

As for finding a zoom lens. I'm looking at auto focus lenses and started to narrowed one down to a - Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II Zoom Lens

This is a Nikon VR II lens. Not really an expensive lens, more of a cost effective lens. You can find new ones for around ~$100.00 to ~$150.00, pre owned ones in good condition for around ~$60.00 to ~$100.00

There are also older VR series lens lenses which are less expensive than the VR II series.

The VR II lens is an upgraded version of the Nikon VR lens that came about earlier. Both are good lenses, however the VR II has some advantages of the VR such as image stabilization, more f-stops, etc

Difference Between Nikon VR and VR II

There were a few older manual zoom lenses I'm also looking at. I suppose I could just use one of those instead of going with an autozoom lens.

The Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR or VRII seems like a fairly good choice to supplement a Nikon 18-70mm lens.

I'm also looking at 1.x to 2.x teleconverter(s), which are good for conditions where's there's enough light.

Update:

Picked up a Brand New Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II Zoom Lens

for $100.00 via a best offer. From what I've read online this is a remarkable lens for the price.

Regularly $349.95 on sale from Nikon for $149.95.

AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II

Review by Ken Rockwell
 
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albert01 said:
I was looking around on eBay and found several that are rated 2200 mah and higher

e.g. EN-EL3E Battery + Charger for Nikon D50 D70 D80 D90 D100 D200 D300S D700 Camera

I did have a list somewhere. Anyway my experience with cylindrical cell lithium such as 18650's is to stay with well known name brands such as Samsung, Sony and others as the inexpensive ones from China rated at e.g. 4000 - 5000 mah actual capacity is around ~500 mah when fully charged.

You can actually tell by the weight of the battery. Quality lithium feel heavier.

Anyway I'll probably just purchase a pack of the $8.00 En-EL3e's and forget about the overpriced Nikon OEM's which most likely are made for Nikon, possibly by a company that also makes less expensive aftermarkets? I suppose it's possible Nikon manufacture's it's own batteries. Many large companies including IBM, HP, etc outsource certain types of products.

The actual battery pack quality often correlates to the brand of cylindrical cells used to create a battery pack such as an EN-EL3e battery. This supply of cylindrical cells often come from only a few battery manufactures who manufacture and supply a certain "quality" battery cells worldwide, ( to manufactures that create battery pack to be installed and used with certain types of products.)

Lesser quality lithium cells will actually have lower capacity than there rating. A good cylindrical cell charger that capable of charge and discharging lithium usually will provide you with a lithium capacity after it cycles a battery (charge / discharge / charge, etc.)

For lithium cylindrical cells I use a programmable charger, which essentially allow the user to control a charge through various settings.

SkyRC MC3000 - MC300 Review

However you would most likely need to cut open an EN-EL3e and isolate each battery in order to actually determine a battery pack's capacity.

=============

As for finding a zoom lens. I'm looking at auto focus lenses and started to narrowed one down to a - Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II Zoom Lens

This is a Nikon VR II lens. Not really an expensive lens, more of a cost effective lens. You can find new ones for around ~$100.00 to ~$150.00, pre owned ones in good condition for around ~$60.00 to ~$100.00

There are also older VR series lens lenses which are less expensive than the VR II series.

The VR II lens is an upgraded version of the Nikon VR lens that came about earlier. Both are good lenses, however the VR II has some advantages of the VR such as image stabilization, more f-stops, etc

Difference Between Nikon VR and VR II

There were a few older manual zoom lenses I'm also looking at. I suppose I could just use one of those instead of going with an autozoom lens.

The Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR or VRII seems like a fairly good choice to supplement a Nikon 18-70mm lens.

I'm also looking at 1.x to 2.x teleconverter(s), which are good for conditions where's there's enough light.

Update:

Picked up a Brand New Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II Zoom Lens

for $100.00 via a best offer. From what I've read online this is a remarkable lens for the price.

Regularly $349.95 on sale from Nikon for $149.95.

AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II

Review by Ken Rockwell
Click to expand...
I suspect the difference between batteries for older cameras (D90 or older) and newer batteries (D7000 and newer) is that the newer batteries are said to have a chip in them.

Loading…

www.dpreview.com

The last post in that thread (at bottom) points out that Wasabi batteries are ok for the D7000 or newer.

But that is why I think the older cameras you get away with the real cheap batteries.

As I said . . . I never had an issue with even the real cheap brands with the older cameras.

One "plus" for going old!

Take are & Happy Shooting!
:)
 
Also look at refurbished cameras. I bought a Canon 70D from the Canon site for $700 with full warranty. they were selling for $1200 new at the time. Nikon may have the same type of site.

Loading…

shop.usa.canon.com
 
Most of my experience is with SLR cameras, started back in the days when SLR cameras had no automatic features and no batteries except for perhaps a flash.

One would manually become part their camera, all the setting eventually became second nature where one would not need to observe any camera settings.

Today's DSLRs are all electronically driven through software menus and button controls.

Once the photographer become accustomed to the menus, slide wheels and buttons then too the camera controls become more second nature. However you may be required to observe through the view finder where the settings are actually as it's difficult if not impossible to actually feel software menus and lcd readouts.

The eye is fairly quick but not necessarily as quick as touching and feeling. I guess sort of like how a blind person just knows where thing are without sight.

In a previous post I listed my first DSLR camera with pics that I recently purchased from an eBay seller. The camera is a Nikon D80 with it came with a Nikon 18-70mm lens. The camera has only an 1840 shutter count and was described as sitting in a closet unused for more than three years. It's described to be cosmetically an 8 out of 10.

I also looked at other Dxx series, a D80, D200 and D300. The later two have metal bodies and are considered to be semi professional cameras.

Whey the D80? Primarily there was a 1. a lens 2. a low shutter count and 3 appeared to be in good condition with little use.

Cost was more than some other D80 with lenses however those either did not have a shutter count or had much higher shutter count. Same was true with other Dxx series, D90's, D200's and D300, which all were higher in cost

I started with SLR photography years ago with my own dark room using a Nikon F2 which paid $500.00 for back in the 1970s.
 
Take care with evaluative metering of D80.

It is heavily influenced by AF point and is on the hot side (trends to overexpose).
 
baloo_buc said:
Take care with evaluative metering of D80.

It is heavily influenced by AF point and is on the hot side (trends to overexpose).
Click to expand...
 
It is good to know about that idiosyncrasy. With Nikon D40 I had the same issue and that teach me a lot about when to use exposure compensation. With newer camera bodies I didn't have the problem at all.
 
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