Nikon Coolpix P4 8.1MP Digital Camera with 3.5x Vibration Reduction Optical Zoom Review

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(More customer reviews)Sure, it's not as stylish, light in the hand or has as many fancy options like you do in other digicams (Casio---great features but terrible optics) but what Nikon has here is an 8 megapixel camera that shoots dang good pics with almost full manual control and a Vibration Reduction system (which WORKS 'cause I took pics of cool signage the other day and did it from my car while driving in traffic and all the pics were sharp despite me going 30 mph and holding the camera with one hand out the window). It's many scene modes provide one with instant settings for when you don't have time to use the apeture priorty or apeture and shutter speed priorities. Macro mode provides extremely sharp detail. It also has a COPY mode that you use to take pics of newspaper articles or anything out of a mag or book. It shoots in b&w in this mode and the text is easily readable. It's AF system is excellent and fast. For the flash you have several options to choose from, including red eye reduction, which WORKS perfectly on portrait shots, and backlit.
I've also got a Canon Powershot S2 IS and wanted a camera I could stick in my pocket and I'm glad I chose this Nikon after looking at Casio, Pentax, Sony and Kodak.
The thing to remember about digital cameras when selecting one is to focus (pun intended) on the quality of the lens (Canon and Nikon are the best) and the image sensor and it's workings, again Canon and Nikon lead the field.
So if you're looking for a digital camera stick to Canon and Nikon and forget the rest of them no matter how cool sounding or looking their digicams are. What you want in the end is a good clean sharp pic to print and to send via e-mail and both Canon and Nikon provide just that.

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Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Zoom Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras Review

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(More customer reviews)This lens has only two "faults." First, it is big and heavy--quality construction often yields a heavy lens. Second, once the photographer has seen the results that this lens can produce, there is a likelihood that he or she will be unhappy with the other lenses in the camera bag.
Results first: the images are razor sharp with this zoom mounted on my Nikon D70s. I can get shots that I never could get before because this lens is so crisp that subjects taken at a distance nevertheless can be cropped to produce an acceptable close-up image. Subjects taken at more normal distances are breathtakingly sharp--as if shot with an excellent prime lens. This is a fast lens (F/2.8 throughout its entire zoom range). Almost more importantly, this lens has the best "Bokeh" that I have ever experienced in a lens. "Bokeh," to the extent that I understand the concept (it is a Japanese word meaning roughly "unfocused"), is a word describing whether the out-of-focus portion of an image (i.e. a blurred background in a photo in which only the subject is in focus) has a pleasing look to it. This lens produces wonderful, creamy Bokeh. The sharpness and Bokeh, combined with the excellent bright color rendition of this lens, makes this one a true classic.
I have occasionally experienced minor ghosting on this lens when shooting into a very bright subject, i.e. the sun reflecting off of the ocean. This is a normal shortfall of a zoom lens comprised of a multitude of elements, and I have sometimes experienced this. But such occasions are rare.
The autofocusing action of this lens is very good. Even birds at very long distances usually produce a quick, snappy autofocus lock on my Nikon D70s. Very seldom does it "hunt" for an AF lock, and these occasions are likely due to operator error rather than the lens. This lens also features Vibration Reduction (VR) which enables it to produce acceptable images below what an F/2.8 lens would otherwise be suitable for. The VR really works, too, although it is by no means a panacea for dim lighting.
This is one of Nikon's professional lenses, and the quality of construction is excellent. The critical mount is metal, and the entire lens is built like a tank. The lens comes with a nice squeeze-style lens cap, and a very good lens hood that can be easily reversed for storage.
The reader can see that I am extremely enamored with this lens. The reason is that, notwithstanding its bulk and weight, this lens produces the best nature shots that I have ever managed to take, by far.

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Compact, lightweight G-type fast telephoto zoom lens with Vibration Reduction (VR).

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Nikon TC-17E II (1.7x) Teleconverter AF-S for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a very good teleconverter, which of course gives a 1.7 times magnification to your lens. It is said to have been specifically been designed to go with the Nikkor 70-200 VR lens (and it also is compatible with certain other Nikkor lenses; see the Nikon website for a compatibility chart).
Nikon makes three teleconverters in this series, the TC 14E II, the TC 20E II, and this TC 17EII. The former two teleconverters give a 1.4 times, and 2 times magnification, respectively.
After considerable research, I went with the TC17E II on the theory (which is the common impression of many Nikon photographers) that this teleconverter is the best trade-off between image quality and extra reach. Of course, the more magnification that a teleconverter affords, the more degradation of image quality it will introduce.
After several shoots using the 70-200VR, the TC17E II, and the Nikon D200, I have been able to form some pretty good impressions, most of them favorable. All teleconverters will adversely affect image quality, which degradation will range from the imperceptable to the significant. My impression of this TC is that if you stop the lens down to around F8, the degradation is imperceptible, i.e. essentially nonexistent. With the lens wide open and at maximum zoom, there is some degradation of sharpness, although it is still possible to produce acceptible images under those conditions. Bottom line is that the TC 17E II is fine under reasonable light conditions. I have used it to shoot fast-moving birds under early morning light conditions, and the 70-200VR/TC 17E II combination has produced some extremely satisfactory images--and giving the lens the extra reach that was necessary to produce these images at all. Accordingly, in my opinion the TC 17E-II fulfilled its purpose--to give extra reach to the zoom without significantly degrading image quality.
The TC is beautifully and solidly built, with the same level of durability that went into the superb 70-200VR. I use this TC with my 70-200VR most of the time.
A fine teleconverter for those who need extra reach for some of their applications and this is a viable and economical alternative to buying a second, longer lens.

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The TC-17E II teleconverter works with the AF-S and AF-I lenses. It extends the focal length by 1.7x, while still maintaining high focus. In addition, it does not have a large affect on lens speed, and is compatible with the updated VR function (as seen on professional lenses).

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Nikon 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G ED IF Autofocus VR Nikkor Zoom Lens Review

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(More customer reviews)This lens gets an unfair bad rap from a lot of amateur snobs and pro-wanna-be's.
After reading all the mixed reviews, I figured at the price it would be a reasonable stopgap while waiting for an 18-200VR. So far I've been more than satisfied with this lens. I get good contrast, and sharp images through the middle 80% of its range. Contrary to some of the negative reviews I've read, focus is reasonably fast, and more than adequate for action sports in good light. Granted it's not a low light lens. I have other lenses for this purpose, but cost me over $900. each and don't have the versatility of this lens.
I finally did receive my 18-200VR, and have to admit it is an improvement due to the added range, but light gathering is comparable, and within the 24-120's range, the two function with about the same results. Overall, average quality of shots taken with both lenses is about the same.
Having said that, even with the 18-200 VR, I still have to use my 85mm 1.4 and 80-200 f/2.8 for shots where extra aperture or sharpness are needed.
In summary, if you plan on having a couple spcialty prime lenses and one multi-purpose zoom, then either the 24-120 or the 18-200 will do as a great walk around lens. Unless you're only going to buy one lens for the life of your camera, why spend the extra money on the latter?

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VR technology helps eliminate image blur caused by camera shake, particularly when shooting in low-light conditions, allowing photographers to use shutter speeds about three times slower than they would ordinarily use to get sharp, well exposed images.Another feature of the AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED lens is Nikon's exclusive Silent Wave Motor Technology for fast, accurate and nearly silent focusingIn addition to Vibration Reduction, the AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED lens includes a selection of Nikon advanced technologies such as Manual/Automatic mode, two Extra Low Dispersion (ED) glass elements and two Aspheric lens elements, Silent Wave Motor Technology (SWM), Internal Focusing construction (IF), Super Integrated Coating (S-IC) and G-Type design.The G-Type feature is designed for the newest Nikon 35mm and digital SLR models that allow aperture control directly from the camera body. The design facilitates better lens handling and helps photographers keep a more positive grip on the camera. This firmer grip and balance helps photographers get sharper images, even as they adjust exposure and quickly shoot their pictures.Distance Technology (included in D-type and G-type Nikkor lenses) provides precise distance information from the lens. This information is incorporated into exposure calculations for both ambient light and flash illumination, as well as combinations of both. The distance information enables more precise and great body balance

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