Chris Ross Photography's photostream  

When I am not at work, or being a husband and father, Photography is usually the forefront thing on my mind, and I am usually out scouting for areas, or trying to catch that perfect image I have in mind. I love to drive to places unexplored, and I always keep my camera gear with me. I started into photography in 2004 when the Nikon D70 allowed the poor man a window into digital photography. I have been with Nikon ever since and I primarily use the Nikon lens trinity: 14-24, 24-70, and the 70-200 f/2.8's. All this included with my Induro 8x tripod and various Lee filters (including the SW150), my bag weighs in at a whopping 43.2 lbs. I have been exploring lighter means of gear when I travel by foot. I am a wide angle junkie, so more often than not I carry my 14-24-70 lenses with me on my D700.

I get a lot of questions thru Flickr mail regarding the limited use of filters on the 14-24, so here is my verdict from 2 years of continued experience.

The Good:
my experience is that if you have the spare cash and are addicted to wide angle at any cost, the extra 3 mm will surely impress you, especially when you close in on a foreground subject and get down and dirty. The ability to pull in the sky and foreground to such a level is very exhilarating to me, and with the addition of the SW150 Lee filter system, it allows even greater possibilities. The resolving power of the 14-24 f/2.8 is second to none. It really makes my 12mp d700 seem like it has twice the mp count. Images are always sharp from center to edge, and the quality of images from this lens is blatantly excellent when I pop up well made images on my 30 inch cinema display.
Another great area where this lens excels is when shooting the night sky. Wide open at f/2.8 at 14mm, this lens screams to be used for astrophotography.

The Bad:
The limited use of filters with this lens is the most glaring challenge to me. Not being able to use a polarizer when shooting waterfalls is bothersome especially when you have so much wide angle to use. I am considering buying the 17-35 f/2.8 replacement if Nikon ever comes out with an update. It would be very nice to have some type of ND filter that covered the bulbulous front end of the 14-24, like the plastic cap that comes with the lens, but have the front end a 10 stop filter.

The price is another set back. For a specialty lens that this is, the price of admission is steep. Like I said, if you have the spare cash and love wide angle then this kind of investment seems to make sense.

So there you have it- my experience with the 14-24. If you have any other questions, please feel free to email me @ chrisrossphotography@gmail.com

I look forward to getting to know you on Flickr, and who knows, possible run into you out in the great outdoors!