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Steve Bingham back to Nikon!

Posted: Sat 18 Jul 2015 21:17
by Stany Buyle
A spontaneous message from Steve in the Fuji section that makes me happy :
Steve Bingham wrote:Hello, Stany!
:lol: I'm back! After brief visits to Fuji and Sony, I now have a Nikon D7200 and the brand new Nikon 16-80 f2.8-4 VR. I will be testing it next week with my ISO 12233 charts. I bought my wife a new Nikon 7200 and gave her two of my "old" lenses and she had so many questions I decided to return to Nikon. The D7200 and new 16-80 make a VERY light package. Fun to use.
Now he's back I would love to know the details from the roundtrip he made among different camera brands and what finally pulled the trigger to come back to Nikon...

Welcome back Steve!

Rita and Stany Buyle

related topic :arrow: From Nikon D7000 to D800e - Steve Bingham...
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related topic :arrow: Nikon D7000 review...
tutorial section: by Steve Bingham: :arrow: PS CS 5 to PS 4. Many tricks and tutorials.
tutorial section: by Steve Bingham: :arrow: Masking

Re: Steve Bingham back to Nikon!

Posted: Fri 31 Jul 2015 19:45
by Steve Bingham
Thanks, Stany!

I tested the Sony 90mm macro and found it to be the sharpest lens I have ever tested. I just saw where DXOmark agreed with me (I used my ISO 12233 charts). Nice. So when I switched back to Nikon I was able to test the new Nikon 16-80 f2.8-4 on these same charts. I was amazed! At 80mm the Nikon performance was equal to the Sony at 90mm and yet I was only using a APS-C Nikon D7200. Also, apparently Sony's 90 becomes a little shorter at 10'. Not unusual for a macro. The Sony had a one stop advantage, but at f5.6 they both looked identical, right up to the very extreme corners. Here are my findings for the 80mm end:

I originally posted on the Nikon DX forum. It should have been posted here. I was using an ISO 12233 chart and an older Edmunds Scientific chart. Both were 2' x 3'.

Still testing. However, this lens, so far, is nothing but amazing. I would say it might be one of the best DX lens Nikon has made to date - at least at the long end. At 10' the 80mm covers 2' x 3'. Some very slight pincushion distortion. Very slight. Easily corrected when ACR comes out with this particular lens correction data. There was a little CA in the corners, but ACR took care of it all. The resolution was stunning - right into the corners. From f5.6 to f11 it is almost impossible to separate center resolution from corner resolution. Even wide open at f4 the resolution was excellent. The sweet spot at 80mm? F5.6 and f11 . . . just as you would expect.

I would rate resolution right up there with my Sony/Zeiss 55 f1.8 and the new Sony 90mm macro - maybe better! (yes, I had both and tested them both)

Now I need to test 16mm and then distance landscapes. Quality control on my sample was excellent. The resolution was perfectly concentric - at least perfect enough that I couldn't determine a difference in my sample. Expensive? You bet! But, finally the DX gets some new pro glass! Best of all, we get a very useable range zoom that only weight 1 pound. And all this with VR and 4 elements of ED glass!

Re: Steve Bingham back to Nikon!

Posted: Fri 25 Sep 2015 06:35
by ADeVos
Welcome back Mr. Steve!