I’ve made some changes to the equipment I shoot with so I thought I’d make a revision to the camera bag post.
The first change was to sell the 20mm wide angle Nikkor lens I originally had and replace it with an AF-S Nikkor 16-35mm 1:4 G ED wide angle zoom. Shooting primarily landscapes, I normally shoot with a wide angle lens. I liked the flexibility the 16-35mm gave me over the fixed 20mm prime lens. I may be giving up some image quality with the zoom but the flexibility of going from 16-35mm more than makes up for it. This lens has become my primary lens for landscapes.
The next addition to the bag was the AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm 1:2.8G II ED with VR. This overlaps my 24-120mm Nikkor but for many instances this is a better choice. I’ve found I use this more and more now that it’s in my bag. The image quality is outstanding and the fast f/2.8 aperture does come in handy from time to time. My 24-120mm zoom has now become a general purpose lens for shooting odds and ends. I still use it a lot but not for landscapes. For that purpose I either use the 16-35mm or this lens. That did leave a bit of a hole in the coverage however. 16-35mm and then 70-200mm. To fill that gap I added:
A nifty fifty. Everyone needs one of these. A nice 50mm normal lens. In this case it’s an AF-S Nikkor 50mm 1:1.4G. This lens is tack sharp and it’s fast with a f/1.4 aperture. This fits right in the middle of the 35-70mm hole I mentioned above. I don’t use it often but when you need it you need it.
I’ve also added a set of soft edge neutral grad’s. These are from Haida and are on high quality optical glass. They are very neutral with very little color cast. I have 0.6, 0.9 and 1.2 densities. This translates to 2, 3 and 4 stop neutral grads. These are the 100mm x 150mm size. I decided to take a chance on the Haida brand based on some reviews I’d read online. So far I’m very impressed. Many neutral grads color shift towards blue and some shift it a lot. The Haida’s are very neutral with perhaps a bit of a warming shift rather than a shift towards blue. Their price is also quite a bit cheaper than the top brands. Based on this experience I also picked up Haida 6 stop and 10 stop neutral density filters. Same high quality optical glass but in the 100mm x 100mm size. I use these to get long exposures for smoothing out waterfalls and breaking surf. These all fit in a nice zippered filter case.
There’s quite a lot of discussion lately as to whether you need neutral grads or just bracket your shots and blend them in Photoshop. Both are viable options. I like to get the shot as correct as possible in the camera. It’s my personal preference. So for me adding neutral grads to the bag was a no brainer.
That’s about it for the changes for revision 1. Quite a bit of change actually with the lens lineup. One lens I’ve been eyeing is the Nikkor 24-70mm but at $1,800 I just can’t justify it yet. Maybe rev 2 of the camera bag…
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I have a very similar set up. I have the trinity of the Nikkor zooms, from 14mm to 200. I also have the same 50. But I would suggest adding a T-III teleconverter. Gets your 200mm up to 400mm 5.6 for about $600. Thats way cheap considering the price of a 400mm. I was curious about what tripod you use? I also bought the older 24-70mm that is not image stabilized which is way cheaper than the new one, but it is so handy, I find this lens on the end of my camera quite often, and I am very happy with them. You need to get yourself a drone sir. You will love it. I have the Phantom 4 Pro, and for a little tiny camera it takes amazing photos. Check them out! https://flic.kr/p/29V9nY7 thanks sharing all the great tips!
Thanks for the comment Jeff. I have added a lot to my equipment since this post. I probably need to do another update. As far as tripods I have three. All Gitzo carbon fiber. My main tripod is a GT3531LSV topped with a Really Right Stuff BH-55 ball head. My biggest gear addition is a D850. Love it. Still have the D810 as a back up. And a drone is on the list.