A friend of mine here in Hawaii took a chance (based on trusted 3rd party recommendation) on an Innorel Ch5 CF gimbal (Chinese). He already has their heavy duty tripod. Aliexpress. $145 delivered. Weights in at 2.3 +/- lbs. Holds about 60 +/- lbs. TWO year warranty. Really nice fit and finish. Smooth movement. After 4 months and a ton of field work, he is very pleased. I am considering one for travel.

As far as a head for big lenses, I use/love a Wimberely. A note....On a photo safari in India earlier this year, the 2 of the 3 pros in group use the Wimberely WH200. According the them, for their heavy duty (big lenses, pro bodies) field work, nothing else would do. Bullet proof, outstanding performance.

Amplify the votes for the nikkor 85mm 1.8. I actually have had outstanding performance with the older AF D. Build very well. Optically excellent. Focuses a little slow. Shot many events with it. Relatively cheap.

I own mostly Nikon glass but I have ONE Sigma: 120-400mm 4.5-6.5 OS. AF quick working. Sent it to C.R.I.S - chandler AZ (authorized Sigma repair facility). $99 plus $28 for shipping (I live in HI). They had it one week and now it works like new. The Tech that fixed my lens told me they see just as many Nikons as Sigmas AND Nikons are often more expensive to repair.

Aloha Joe. #1 Will you ship to Hawaii? #2 What form of payment do you accept? #3 Is the battery an EN-EL 18 or 18a? Thanks -- Rod 808 657 8686

After retiring 3 years ago, my wife and I began our long delayed global traveling bucket list. I purchased a mefoto global traveler (aluminum). After 17 countries and 8 months on the road, "0" problems I consider it one of my best photo accessory acquisitions. Rated at 26 pounds. Packs well in a 22"" roller bag. In a pinch, it was used to support a nikon D4 with a 400 mm 2.8 attached. 14 lbs. Results were totally usable. The carbon version will save you on the sunny side of 1 lb. Same load bearing. Good luck!!!

I have had good luck with B&H (three purchases over the last 3 years) and Roberts (two purchases this year). As advertised, no problems, fair prices.

I have owned both (still own a D610). 50000 +/- plus clicks on each. In short, you won't go wrong with either. Both have great weather sealing, are well built (slight edge to the D700), and great to shot with. Not sure whether nikon still makes parts of the D700 but I am fairly sure they do for the D610. Both are terrific cameras capable of outstanding images. The D610: a bit better on power, somewhat better in low light (although still a bit weak), slightly better color depth, dual card slots (important to my workflow) and the extra 12 MP is noticeable in the extremes using big zooms. Prices are about the same (THAT does not make sense). For me, the edge goes to the D610.

I use flash just about everyday for events, real estate, low lighting shots outdoors (such as sunset shots) in Hawaii. My Nikon flashes have been terrific BUT they are expensive and not durable at all. Two of my Nikon's were damaged (hard to justify repairing flashes today) in a drop of about 1 foot onto a thick carpeted floor. For replacements, I needed lightening powerful enough to overcome intense mid day sun, as well as remote placement that demanded radio control. Price was an issue. So I picked up TWO Yongnuo YN 560 III speedlites ($49 each on sale), plus a set of FOUR Yongnuo RF 605 N wireless triggers ($66). $170 total. After 7 months of intense use, with lots of bumps and knocks, excellent performance and not a problem.

Dawn patrol itself is almost worth the trip and crowds. Not to be missed. The rush to the senses was a terrific experience. Get there early. And once the balloons are inflated and the launch begins, the pace is fast! We stayed downtown and took the first bus (3:45?). We did not regret it as it allowed time to scout out the best spots. Take the fastest, widest lens you have. My 50mm 1.8 was plenty fast but not wide enough. My 16-35 F4 was much plenty wide but not fast enough. I compensated with higher ISO (Nikon D4 auto 5000-10000). Ended up with quite a few outstanding shots (maybe 50%). The rest were throwaways due to noise and poor composition. If I had to do it again, any camera with strong low light capability and a wide, sharp, zoom @ f2.8 would have been ideal.

Not a Canon shooter (Nikon), live in Hawaii and have very limited options for service. I have used Nikon's service...excellent but expensive! Recently a friend told me about C.R.I.S. in Chandler Arizona. I believe they are Canon certified. They have repaired my Sigma 120-400mm 4.5-5.6 and my Nikkor 24mm 1.4. Terrific job. Fast, high quality workmanship, good customer service and cost about half of the the quotes received from Sigma and Nikon.

My d610/d4 combo have seen a lot of action (tens of thousands of shots) traveling the globe in far less than ideal conditions. Dirty sensors are a fact of life AND getting sensors cleaned by your local camera shop is not an option (i.e. there are none). So I watched the Tony Northrup and Angry Photographer YOUTUBE instructions, purchased the Altura kit from Amazon and learned to do it myself. There is a learning curve to make certain you don't use to much solution and leave smears behind. You must be careful and take your time. But now, not a problem. 1 to 2 minutes, 1 or 2 swabes, no smears, no specks. Good luck!

Youtube has A LOT of informative videos on photographic lighting. I bought a set of Yongnuo YN 560 iii SLs (great price, work fine) for a project, watched a several yongnuo "how to's", and no problem

I have a set (4) of Yongnuo RF 605N triggers for my Nikon Flashes (1 sb700, 2 sb600s). They cost me about $60-$70 and have been just fine going on two years under regular use. Dropped them several times. No problems. Great range, fairly well built, easy on batteries, reliable, intuitive. Manual is a waste of time. So if you already have lighting system AND you want something cheap that is fairly plug and go, you might want to consider them. NOW...if you are buying a into a "lighting system", everyone pro I know (3) uses 100% Godox and is very satisfied. Good luck.

In regards only to the 24-120 F4...I am a fan. The 24-85 is good glass (tried it for a weekend), but the 24-120 just worked better for me.

Cannot speak to how well that lens will perform on the D850 but pared with my d610, VERY satisfied with the IQ. A little weaker at the long end, soft mainly at the edges. But overall, outstanding for travel when space and weight are restricted. Over past three years, 16 countries, 30000 + shots, every type of weather imaginable, not a problem.