Putting older, no longer used very good lenses on new SLR bodies is really a good idea. Don't forget fellow hoggers that the old Minolta AF lenses work without an adaptor needed on Sony's new generation of DSLR camera's like the A77II and others. These old Minolta lenses have excellent, rich, color that the newer lenses cannot match.

I use super cheap 3X3 plastic filters that I hand hold over my 16-35 Nikon f4 lens on a D800 with super results. Why would you pay more for being around water and the elements? My whole pack cost me less than $20.00 and included 30 filters via amazon, and yes, many of my photo's have won photo contests and have been printed to 16X24, my standard display size. I know most will disagree with me. "How could I put such cheap stuff over an expensive lens?" But, my results speak for themselves, I will continue to sink money into expensive lenses and let the awards and sales fall where they may.

Just don't take any pictures inside in a gambling area.

My first 300 was a used Minolta 300 2.8 for my Sony A77, got it for 900.00 and it was in great condition, did not have the focus lock buttons but was, is, super sharp and very fast. Have it on a black rapid attached to the lens collar which is upturned to the top position. Not extremely heavy and easy to hold. Yes, focuses fast.
My other 300 2.8 VR II, is the Nikon, it is also very fast but a little bit heavier than the Minolta, I like the color orientation of the Minolta, very rich colors, if I put the Nikon on Vivid, I get a similar result. Please do not go cheap on a 300 2.8, their are enough great deals on used to make it within your budget.

Learning to see a good photograph. My first assignment was for my students to bring in a photograph they liked and explain why they liked it.
Second class was on composition, rules of thirds, leading lines, center of interest, keeping it simple, mergers, and prospective.
I gave each student a camera the second class, a black card board that measured 4X6 inches with a hole in the middle about the size of a 35mm frame. I told them to take pictures with it, hundreds a day, hold it vertical, horizontal, zoom out for telephoto and hold close for wide angle, get high, get low. Their next assignment included defending their favorite photo by explaining how the rules of photography taught in the second class applied to each photo. My students didn't shoot until the 4th class.

Is Kakyo working for someone else and trying to blacken B&H's reputation? Or is it true? I have never, never, never, had a problem like his. Just tell them you wish to return the item because it was not what you ordered. They will refund your money and you can go on with your life without having to air your dirty laundry upon the world. Get a life before it is too late.

Pressing the lens hood against the window glass on a moving train may cause extreme vibrations from the movement of the train transferred to the window glass. You may want to hand hold as your body will absorb a lot of the train movement and result in better shots. Hold the camera as close to the window glass as you can and shoot at the highest shutter speed available. Tilt camera as you look through and see which angle is best for reflection. Use of a polarizer may be helpful for glare but it will slow your shutter speed down. Practice at home looking out through a window to check reflectance. Some modern European trains have non-reflective glass, this glass is slightly tinted which again will slow the shutter but the result through these newer windows can be quite pleasing.

Shooting waterfalls is fun but more fun would be to blur your waterfalls using a slow shutter speed. Enter a ND filter, the one for the smaller zoom will cost you way less than the one for the cannon zoom. A tripod would also help, at least a 5 sec. exposure ranging up to 30 seconds would be nice.

Photography for me was a hobby, happy, happy, happy. Then, as a freelance UPI photographer and wedding photographer for over 40 years, satisfied but not real happy, now retired and doing it as a hobby once again, happy, happy, happy.

One of the best flashes Nikon ever made was the SB800, you can get one in excellent ++++ condition on Ebay for a good price. With this unit you can add extra flashes that will be controlled via your camera. You can add another SB800 or 900 or even a new SB910. These flashes work wirelessly with each other and you can build an excellent system for pennies on the dollar by getting a good used SB800. And, if you decide to sell the unit, you will not be out much. You can use cords to connect flashes or get wireless units out of B&H. There is a good book you should look at, Nikon Creative Lighting System, Digital Field Guide third edition by Ben Edwards. This book might answer a lot of your questions and concerns.

The perfect lens is the new Tamron 8-2000 mm f 1.1 lens for Canon, Nikon, and Sony, the lens weighs 10 ounces and sells for $499.95. Available at your local camera dealer and most mail order houses, and amazon. Release date to be announced.

How expensive do you want to go. You can get a vivitar 95mm circular polarizer and UV filter pair, both for 29.95 from amazon right this very minute. But watch the posts that come in on how cheap this option would be and how in will effect your IQ and all that, and more. But, it comes down to , what do you want and how much are you willing to pay?

I always have my 4-8000 MM F 1.0 experimental Nikon lens attached to the camera and in this way I never have to switch lenses so I have never experienced this particular problem.

Sounds like your in auto ISO. Take it off and set ISO to 400 and shot some outdoor stuff in A at f 11. That should be a fair test.

This is an age old problem with many shades of gray. If you are a public figure, film star, mayor, city council member, etc. you have no expectation of privacy, and are fair game. That is why their so many photographers who give us all a bad name out their.
I visit NYC a lot, I swear, the camera's are every where. It seems no one has a sense of privacy. I shoot medium telephoto, 250 mm to 400 mm. If I shot someone at a great distance I do not ask for permission. If I published the photo and their face clearly shows and/or recognizable I need permission. If I am shooting for my self, No, I do not bother. It is a very gray line we walk.
I shot a 5 year old at a Mall with his hands up a gumball machine dispenser, trying to get a gumball, the expression on his face is priceless. I still have that photo 35 years later but can never display it in my studio for sale because his face is very recognizable even all these years later, that is why their is a "NFS" in big letters under this photo. If the kid or his relative every show up I'll give them the photo.