I love my Nikon gear. I believe that I am a decent photographer and spend almost all of my time on the composition. The images from my Nikon are sharp when I want them to be and have blur when the composition ‘needs’ it. What am I missing?

We take pride in our gear. I shoot with the Nikon Z6 and now have 4 lenses. In total, this gear has cost me in the range of $8,000 CD. As well, we feel threatened by non photographers taking ‘the easy way out’.
We photographers have to rebel ‘ How impertinent for a non photographer to pull out a phone camera and produce stunning photographs’!
I think there is gear for multiple purposes. I must admit to using my inferior (to 11 even) iphone when convenient.

PS - I received my Z lens 105 f/2.8 yesterday!

Lots of excitement about an issue well beyond the control of anyone period. So, grab your camera gear, go out for a walk and expend your energy on creating works of art.

A photograph is more than a good exposure. Pointed in the ‘right’ direction, it is hard to beat the cell phone camera. However. The photographic image is meant to convey a story to the viewer. It is important to grab the viewer emotionally and transport them to your destination. The ‘correct’ exposure will seldom be achieved in today’s cameras because correct is part of the artistic license that we are striving for in our images. I’ve seen some very poor images from ‘photographers’ who have no idea about light, composition and the principles of design.

Only Bill_ de made sense in this post. If you presently shoot Nikon, you might consider the ergonomics as a contributing factor in what you buy next. My conclusion in photography and golf, ‘people position themselves way ahead of their capability’. Average golfers tee off from the furthest tee, delaying the game for all; average photographers boast about their newest equipment but haven’t got the knowledge and skills commensurate to the gear.
I shoot with a Nikon. Z6. I don’t care that Sony and Canon have multiple mirrorless options. I don’t know what I don’t know. What I do know is that the 6 is a technological marvel. I’d be surprised if I use more than 5% of its capabilities and I am an experienced photographer. I love the 6 and the bew Z lenses. This system medts my needs; but I gave learned to be humble in this life. Hubris burns you every time!

Where did the camera discussion start? I thought that the post was about lenses!

GAS carries on To complement my ‘kit lens’. I have subsequently added the 14-30, the 85 1.8 and will soon add the 105 macro.

I have produced a book titled ‘the Photographic Image - from the ordinary to the extraordinary’. I base my teaching on the knowledge of the rules of composition, elements of design and the understanding and knowledge of light and colour. Ine cannot specialize in a genre until one understands and can apply consistently the basic tenets of composition. In learning a new language, the goal is fluency in all interactions. A person who learns a language but only wants to learn baking lingo has not attsined fluency.

I have a class of twenty students. They are seniors who sometimes act like children. This was an opportunity for a joke; its not true. The people are wonderful seeking out socialization and learning. We have fun snd it is a safe environment. The terms comprise anywhere from 10 to 14 weeks and each session is 2 hours.it is primarily a course on cimposition, yet they need to listen to the technical areas when critical to the topic. Case in point. I shoot mostly in aperture priority. To be successful in this mode, you must know and understand exposure compensation. This past term was very successful as I introduced the notion of a personal photographic project; each participant chose a theme and produced a body of work on that theme. We actually produced a book of photographs comprising four images from each person; professionally printed and bound.

Photos program on my Mac - I believe that I can categorize myself as advanced in photography: I have taught various groups fir 5 years; I enter competitions; I have had obe- person shows. I have sold many images over the years. I managed with Picasa and now with Photos on my Mac. I know that I need to ‘up my game’ with post processing software but frankly am fe
Arful of the learning curve and my lack of patience for such. Is there a program better than Photos but not as complicated as LR?

Does anyone know if Nikon is developing a macro lens for a Z mount.?

I think that the mist important element is the exposure and you nailed it. The 50mm is the minimum focal length but the most accurate as a comparison to how our eyes see .notwithstanding this, i will likely acquire the 85z lens fir my z6 camera. One of my rules is to always capture the catch lights in the eyes. I like natural light snd often place the subject near a window . I avoid windows that receive direct sunlight as i don’t want to carry diffusers with me. I always shoot at eye level to the subject. Looking up is ok for family shots but for more formal situations, keep the eyes at the same plain as the camera. I have shot several school programs at the request of the school. I require them to identify those children whose parents do not want their child photographed. No questions asked; full compliance by me. Lastly, your background is way too busy. Use a wall or a door. I purchase cloth at dseeing places for my drops.

I load the images as soon as I get home. Often, I leave the card in the in the image transfer device or loose on my desk. I have learned through heartache to place the card back in the camera and format it then and there. I have a two cards but never carry them loose for fear of loss; these little guys are expensive!

Give the stuff to my daughter to sell. She is amazing at her yield. I am talking tongue in cheek. She offers products to her network on social media.