New member with a new camera / lens!

Fester

Hi,

Got my first DSLR lens combo. My first SLR was almost 16 years ago but was Nikon F70D. Proud owner of D800, 24-70mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Nikkor lens ,B+W 77mm Clear UV Haze with Multi-Resistant Coating filter, 64GB ultra SD and extra battery for now. Very excited to learn many new tricks (I'm a novice/starter!).

Looking at everyday prime lens and light travel tripod stand plus a stylish bag (messenger) that can carry above plus a 13" MacBook retina! Any suggestions will be appreciated!!

Thanks!!

paulr

Congratulations Nice outfit, now you have no excuses, From what you have written, you are venturing on carrying some pretty heavy equipment on your travels,Macbooks and 24-70 lenses and other primes + your other extras will soon add up,. If you are to get the best from your gear, give some serious thought to what tripod you buy. With all high end Nikon Pixel cameras, any form of camera shake will soon show.

sevencrossing

welcome Fester

the D800 and 24-70mm f/2.8G is a fantastic combination

I would hold buying a prime until you have a better idea what you want

eg

wide angel 24mm f 1.4
macro 105 mm f 2.8
super tele 800 f 5.6

For tripods and bags try to do a search* as both subjects have been extensively disused, as have all the lenses I have mentioned

I personally hate messenger bags as they can lead to sever back ache. I would look at the use Low Pro flipside

* the forum search is, I am afraid, not easy to use

Golf007sd

@Fester: Shoot about a 1000 images with your combo them after seeing what focal length you like best..then come to us and we will give you some ideas.

As for bag look at Lowepro. For tripod and bullhead...what is your budget?

Fester

Congratulations Nice outfit, now you have no excuses, From what you have written, you are venturing on carrying some pretty heavy equipment on your travels,Macbooks and 24-70 lenses and other primes + your other extras will soon add up,. If you are to get the best from your gear, give some serious thought to what tripod you buy. With all high end Nikon Pixel cameras, any form of camera shake will soon show.

Thanks

For tripod I'm interested in Manfrotto BeFree Compact Lightweight Tripod ...thoughts?

Fester

welcome Fester

the D800 and 24-70mm f/2.8G is a fantastic combination

I would hold buying a prime until you have a better idea what you want

eg

wide angel 24mm f 1.4
macro 105 mm f 2.8
super tele 800 f 5.6

For tripods and bags try to do a search* as both subjects have been extensively disused, as have all the lenses I have mentioned

I personally hate messenger bags as they can lead to sever back ache. I would look at the use Low Pro flipside

* the forum search is, I am afraid, not easy to use

Thanks for the feedback. Will research more on the forum

Fester

@Fester: Shoot about a 1000 images with your combo them after seeing what focal length you like best..then come to us and we will give you some ideas.

As for bag look at Lowepro. For tripod and bullhead...what is your budget?

Hi. It's a good idea. Will definitely try!

For bag and lens and stand, I'm ok with spending up to $600-700 more. Let me know your thoughts! Thanks!

Vipmediastar_JZ

I have a caselogic book bag picked up at best buy on clearance for under 25.00 it holds my mbp 15 and has a compartment that fits the d800 with 24-70 mounted. Space my other lens, straps, battery etc... Its my road trip bag.
For a messenger bag i picked up a swiss gear Zinc messenger bag at best buy. It took me a while to find one that i was happy with. It will not fit laptop but an ipad it will. Its my daily bag.
It fits the d800 with 24-70 mounted and safely 2 other lens and if you are feeling lucky a third lens on top of the 24-70 with a layer of padding of course. Enough room for the extras and two side pockets. One for water bottle and the other fits gum,breath mints and small hand sanitizer bottle.

Fester

I have a caselogic book bag picked up at best buy on clearance for under 25.00 it holds my mbp 15 and has a compartment that fits the d800 with 24-70 mounted. Space my other lens, straps, battery etc... Its my road trip bag.
For a messenger bag i picked up a swiss gear Zinc messenger bag at best buy. It took me a while to find one that i was happy with. It will not fit laptop but an ipad it will. Its my daily bag.
It fits the d800 with 24-70 mounted and safely 2 other lens and if you are feeling lucky a third lens on top of the 24-70 with a layer of padding of course. Enough room for the extras and two side pockets. One for water bottle and the other fits gum,breath mints and small hand sanitizer bottle.

Hi, I have Tumi computer bag (messenger) that also fits (snugly) my D800 with 24-70mm. But then I need to take my headphones and accessory kit out AND find a pouch for my camera so it doesn't get scratched etc while putting in or pulling out from this front pocket. Other idea is to probably fit them separately but I'd hate that.

I like your feedback to look for a bag in sale...I think I'm gonna do that. I've gotta admit that I hate the traditional camera bags...so am looking for something stylish. I'll also look at lowepro ! Thoughts on the light weight travel tripod? Thanks again!

Photobug

I have had many bags over the years and use two right now. I love my Lowepro back pack for small trips or small hikes. For big trips I sold my huge Lowepro back pack that would hold a laptop and bought the ThinkTank International roller bag. Works great and will hold two DSLR's and lots of lens.

Second the suggestion to shoot about 1,000 pictures and come back for suggestions on lens. That way you can provide some guidance what mm range your interested in.

Finally, great lens on your D800. Get out there and take pictures and enjoy it.

Msmoto

Tripod advice....Use "L" Plate on camera, and purchase a tripod with an ARCA Swiss clamp. You will not regret it. I am a believer in a sturdy tripod...like good for 39 pounds......with a good ARCA Swiss stye ball head. Do not skimp on this part of your kit.

HipShot

I've heard nothing but good things about the 24-70mm lens, Fester. So I'm saving up for one.

I'm in a big-city area, so I can get used stuff on Craigslist pretty easily if I'm patient. You might try that for the tripods. I picked up two really nice Manfrotto tripods and a monopod from a local seller for $200. Included three different tripod heads. The only blemish was, one of the leg extension clamps on one of the tripods was slightly damaged. Still works great!

Photobug

The first time around I bought a flat plate for the camera. And have three months realized that the "L" plate is significantly better than a flat plate. Msmoto is right on with her recommendations. So when I bought my D7100 I ordered a RSS "L" bracket. It makes changes from horizontal to vertical so much faster and the lens remains balance over the triplod.

Be wary of tripods that flex and are not sturdy. This is not the place to skimp on a good tripod. You don't have to buy a Gitzo just buy one that does not flex when you push on it and can support way more than your equipment weights.

Symphotic

A D800 and the 24-70 is a great setup.

I use a Thinktank Retrospective to carry the exact kit you mention, plus a strobe.

Tripod, heads and plates can add up to real money fast, but if you buy the best you can afford now, you'll save in the future. The advice about L plates above is excellent.

kyoshinikon

Welcome and enjoy that setup. Id recommend the Tenba Messenger bag I use mine far more than my Tamrac or lowerpro bags as it is slim and robust. I typically stuff my 15" Laptop, a d700 28-70mm, d7000, 14-24mm and a 80-200mm in it and it has room for more. It is a very practical bag. I paid $135 for mine (the large model) and it holds up fantastic...

paulr

Fester, Have a good look on Ebay regarding tripods, You can save at least 50% on prices and they are fairly safe to buy, {Little damage} I bought all mine there, and I have a few.

ChasCS

Congrats on the awesome kit, you have made a great choice and purchase. Enjoy...

The idea for me, of having just one go to bag to carry all, does seem nice, on the surface.
But what if you get a lost or God forbid, your valuables stolen in that precious bag?
You lose it all. That would be a night mare in and of itself, not even thinking about insurance. Um ok now I am!!

Outchh!! I can't carry it all on my shoulder anyway, so slip my iPad 3 in portfolio case, into a large inside pocket, of my jacket. Now, having only one lens to date, it's simple to carry it on the camera, in the Lowepro. If I had a separate lens or two to pack around, I'd simply add another Lowepro 'lens' bag to my vest or belt. But I still think I would rather decide what kind of photography I chose for the day and just go with that lens, and not haul the whole store with me. But that's just my Pain in the neck!!

Please have a look at the Vanguard tripods, they are built tough and have a valuable Fall Promo going on, that will provide you with a great second high grade ball head grip for your tripod, for a very nominal handling fee of $15.99.
All their tripod heads have dual bubble levels. If you don't trust the built in level in your D800 camera.

I haven't tested mine yet, against these bubble levels so I can't confirm or deny either way... Just saying.

Have fun, and enjoy your awesome camera.

Welcome to the D800 family!! Brother where Art thou? Hahaha

WestEndBoy

I will offer some contrary advice.

Buy the 50mm 1.4G for about $400-500 at B&H, use that alternatively with your zoom, and then decide what you want. Shooting the prime will force you to adopt a different style of photography than the zoom. With the prime you zoom with your feet and are forced to think about your pictures more when you take them. Also, the 1.4G will be 4X better at light gathering than the 2.8 zoom. You will rarely need a flash. That is like getting four times the ISO. When you figure out your style, then you will know what is next.

PB_PM

Wide aperture primes are only useful until you need more depth of field, so keep that in mind. If you shoot at F8 all the time paying extra for a F1.4 is pointless.

WestEndBoy

My D800 in P mode doesn't go to F8 unless it is sunny out (maybe not quite, but almost). I was at a party the other night using my 50mm 1.4G in P mode without a flash and it often defaulted at 1.4 with ISO going to 600-1,000. 2.8 would be ISO 2,400 - 4,000, which would be starting to get quite noisy (I have my ISO Control set not to go above 3,200).

It was not dark. The party was in a hotel with the lights on, but at night.

Wide aperture are very useful when the light is on the low side and you don't want to use a flash.

kyoshinikon

“Every artist has thousands of bad drawings in them and the only way to get rid of them is to draw them out.”
-Chuck Jones

Shoot Shoot Shoot

What PB_PM owns vs what he used are two different things. His shooting style may not be supported well by primes... With that said 90% of my gear is f/2.8 annddd I love it! In fact I am considering dumping some of my zooms for primes. While the most distinct valeu of a wide aperture prime is its DOF they have many other uses over zooms depending on how you shoot. #1 sometimes ISO 6400 is still not enough. I hate to say this but I have busted out the 50mm in some horrible lighting situations I didn't want to ruin with flash. #2 it is discreet. An 85mm prime is much less intrusive than a huge honking 70-200mm. #3 It is very light and small. My back is often sore after a day of hauling a full 2.8 kit around. #4 they tend to be sharper at the corners wide open. Sure a 24-70mm is tack sharp at f/8 but still isnt a 50mm 1.4 sharp at f/2.8, #5 they are simple. They dont get in the way of your(at least my) shooting mentally. #6 They are great trainers. Limits can not only be healthy but hey can force you to be intuitive and go out of the box. Being stuck with a 35mm forces me to get into the action instead of peeking in with my 18-200mm zoom. Additionally I end up thinking more about composition and my subject instead of what tool/zoom I want to shoot my subject at.

I own two 28-70mm's I have done many jobs where neither makes it out of the bag and just my 50mm. We all have different perspectives and we all come from different shooting styles and walks of life. What I love you may not. PB_PM most likely has the gear that suits his style, Jshickele his gear to his, Msmoto got gear that suits his style, and me mine. Find out what you want to shoot.

There is a reason my favorite camera isn't even a Dslr. My favorite camera is a 1934 Speed Graphic. My favorite photos come from it because I not only care about every shot but It forces me to get it right the first time. With the limitation of not relying on the camera to do any work my focus is no longer on the gear but the experience. Its lens is a prime lens too, a 101mm extar.

PB_PM

To reiterate, I find them useless because I don't use a narrow depth of field. Bokeh lust beyond me.

I have used wide aperture lenses, such as 85mm F1.4D. I also have a 50mm F1.8G, but rarely use it (thus it is not listed). I mostly shoot wildlife and landscapes, so I simply don't need super wide apertures lenses.

WestEndBoy

And Fester, I see that you want a stylish bag. I like a stylish bag too and don't like black (I bought the silver Coolpix A, too bad the D800 does not come in silver).

You might want to look at Billingham, though they are a little expensive.

Cheers.

WestEndBoy

Kyoshinikon, I get you.

Someday I might buy the 70-200 2.8G, maybe after they upgrade it, and the 17-35 2.8G after that long due upgrade is made. That would be my travel lens kit. I would use them when the 50mm 1.4G does not work. But now I am thinking the new 58mm fits in the middle quite nicely. The point is, the default lens for me is the standard fast prime, not a zoom.

Some people may find the 2.8 zooms heavy for travel. In that case, the F4s would be great choices.

Geez, I just spent $6,000.........

Vipmediastar_JZ

Well I outgrew my messenger bag and I picked up Nikons Messenger bag Nikon DSLR Laptop Shoulder Bag #13205 but it is a bit too boxy I like the space though.
Fits the d800 w/ grip and sigma 35 mounted, sb910 and 85mm 1.8g in main compartment with room for more. However I will order the Tenba DNA 15 and give it a try. It appeals me a bit more for the top zipper for easy access during my street shooting.
This year I want to try the DIVVY bikes and ride for an hour and shoot the city and the bag has a strap to secure you further. I'm also getting a Op/tech harness OP/TECH USA Bino/Cam Harness #5301422 to mount the camera to my chest.
I cant wait for spring to fully show up in Chicago.