The October issue of California Fly Fisher with a selfie taken in the California Sierras.

Cover Image

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Original Image

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I have had issues with the Tamron 24-70 as well. My problem has been a lack of sharpness on the right side of the frame. B&H replaced the lens once with no improvement. I then sent the lens along with my D750 to Tamron and they tried to adjust it and told me it was in spec and as good as it could be. However it was still less sharp on the right. Because of that, when I needed a wide angle zoom I tested both the Nikon 14-24 and the Tamron 15-30. The 15-30 appeared almost identical in sharpness to the Nikon, but after my experience with the 24-70 I spent more money to buy the Nikon and it is a phenomenal lens.

You can check my comparison shots with the Nikon vs Tamron in an earlier post at http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-391340-1.html

I don't expect psychic, just a Nikon tech to know as much or more than someone who just this year bought their first Nikon camera.

I was out shooting today and when my battery got low I switched to a fresh one. As soon as I did that ERR began to flash in the top display on the camera. Switching batteries and lenses did not help. I called Nikon tech support and they had me reset everything with the camera and still no luck. Her best suggestion was that my Transcend memory card was not on their "approved list" and that must be the problem. I tried to explain to her that I have used those cards since I got the camera and was well into this one when the failure occurred. Not to mention the fact that it happened just when I changed the battery and not the card. I can access the menu functions and view pictures on the memory card, but neither live view of the viewfinder work.

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After getting this far into my message it occurred to me that the inability to see through the viewfinder might be a mirror issue. I decided to look into the camera with the lens off and noticed that the mirror was stuck in the up position. I simply pushed the shutter button and the mirror popped back down and now the camera works fine. So I am going to change my thread a bit to my impression of Nikon tech support.

Before buying my Nikon D750 I had always been a Canon user. Having called their tech support several times I was very impressed with their level of knowledge. The support staff were actually photographers who knew the cameras inside-out. Shortly after getting the 750 I was in Yosemite and had a problem getting the focus box to move in live view. I finally called Nikon for advice and they had me try a few things to no avail. While on hold with them I notice a switch under the info button that had been moved to L, which apparently locked the position of the focus. I switched it back and lo and behold, no more problem. What amazed me is that the "tech" hadn't been aware of this obvious possibility.

I could tell that the tech today was reading information from a screen as she attempted to solve my current issue. She had me reset the camera and when that did not work, told me to send it in for service. Once again I figured out the problem on my own and was amazed again that the tech didn't think to have me check the mirror. I really like my new Nikon camera and lenses, but am quite dismayed at the lack of knowledge displayed by the Nikon tech staff. Not to mention the fact that Canon support is available on the weekends while Nikon is not. While both Nikon and Canon produce excellent cameras and lenses, Nikon clearly lags far behind in tech support.

So a couple of questions? Should I go ahead and send in the camera to have it checked out or just consider it was a fluke since this has never happened before? I am also unclear on what happens when the camera settings are reset as they had me do. Once I got it back up I can see that all of my settings are still there, exposure adjustment, bracketing, timer, and focus are all still the same. I would have thought that resetting the camera would have wiped those settings. Am I misunderstanding what resetting the camera actually does? Thanks.

Phil

I have $8000 worth of equipment coverage with Farmers for a little over $100/year and it also covers everything everywhere.

When I bought my Nikon D750 (my first Nikon after switching from Canon) I also bought the Tamron 24-70 F/2.8 based on excellent reviews. In tests I noticed fuzziness on the right side of the frame, so exchanged it for another with the same results. I then sent it in to Tamron for adjustment but no improvement. Finally, I sent it along with my D750 and they finally told me that this was the best the lens could do which was very disappointing. I wish I had tested the lens against the Nikon version before committing.

When I was looking at a wide angle zoom I again considered the Tamron 15-30 as it has VR and is less expensive than the Nikon 14-24. I took many test shots with the two and this time it appeared that the two were virtually indistinguishable in terms of quality, both being excellent. In the end I went with the Nikon just because of it's stellar reputation and my experience with the Tamron 24-70. However, the Tamron 15-30 does seem to be a great lens.

Try zooming to 100% and you can see the sharpness of the two wide angle lens across the frame as well as the fuzziness in the Tamron 24-70 at the right side.

Nikkor 14-24@15mm F/8

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Tamron 15-30@15mm F/8

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Nikkor 14-24@24mm F/8

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Tamron 15-30@24mm F8

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Tamron 24-70@24mm F/8

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Tamron 24-70@70mm F/8

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Thanks for all of the great suggestions everyone. It looks like good weather for the next couple of weeks in the Banff area, so we may hop in the car and head north from Sacramento.

My wife and I are planning to take a driving trip from Sacramento up through the Canadian Rockies and I was looking for some suggestions on places to go, especially good landscape spots. I am familiar with Banff and Jasper, but understand that Alberta has some beautiful provincial parks as well. We have been to Glacier National park a few times but wanted to head up north. Any suggestions of places to visit or books that might provide guidance to prime photo locations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Phil

I bought the D750 a few months ago and a 14-24 F/2.8 lens recently. I had been planning to eventually add a D810, but the sharpness with the 750 and 14-24 lens is so amazing that I have been rethinking the need for more pixels. I attached a self portrait taken at ISO 100, F/11 and 1/8 sec the other day which has not been sharpened. I was impressed at the sharpness of the words on my hat at 100% zoom. I also like the high ISO performance of the D750. Below is my first attempt of night photography, ISO 1000, F/2.8 and 30 sec.

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Thanks for the helpful suggestions everyone (with a couple of obvious exceptions). I have been happy with my Lowepro 300 and am going to look at the 400 or 500 to accommodate my new gear which I will happily carry through the mountains even though it is somewhat heavy.

Phil

Having recently upgraded my Canon T4i to a Nikon D750 and some larger lenses, I can no longer fit everything in my Lowepro flipside 300. My ideal new pack will hold at least the D750, along with a 24-70 F/2.8, 14-24 F/2.8, and 70-200 F/4 lens and perhaps a second camera body down the road. I do a lot of hiking in the mountains and carry a Slik U-212 tripod. The tripod is a bit large for my current pack but will work. I know a lot of you have similar gear and perhaps have found a good pack.

Phil

I have heard great things about the Canon 16-35 F/4. A friend of mine has it and loves it.

Thanks. I'll give that a try.

I set up my camera on a tripod and just switched out the lenses. I understand your concerns and can check this. However, I have done a number of side by side comparisons in many different locations and the results always come out the same with softness on the right side of the 24-70. Tamron has offered to have me send the lens back again along with the camera body so they can try another adjustment.

Phil

I bought a Tamron 24-70 F/2.8 lens in March to go with my new Nikon D750. I immediately noticed fuzziness along the right side of the frame and Tamron had me exchange the lens. I did so and still had the problem, so I sent it in for adjustment and still have the problem. This past week I have been evaluating the Nikon 14-24 F/2.8 and Tamron 15-30 F/2.8 to decide which to buy. I have taken a large number of comparison shots in a wide variety of locations and while the Nikon seems to have the edge in sharpness, the Tamron is very close. However, both are vastly superior to the 24-70 on the right side of the frame.

I am attaching three shots I took this morning, all on a tripod at f8 and ISO 100. I would appreciate any opinions on the sharpness of the 24-70 lens. I am wondering if this is as good as it gets or I just have a poor example. Thanks.

By the way, the D750 is my first Nikon, upgrading from my Canon T4i. What a great camera! What really amazes me is that I barely use HDR any more since the dynamic range is so good. I can underexpose an image by 2 stops to get the sky right and then pull every detail out of the shadows.

Phil

Tamron 24-70

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Tamron 15-30

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Nikon 14-24

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