Best Photo Purchase I Have Made

From my Photography Tips Blog

Best Photo Purchase I Have Made

Last week I posted an article about the Worst Photo Purchases I Have Made so now for one about the best purchases I have made.

50mm f/1.8

When I was starting out in photography I only had two lenses and those were the kit lens that came with the camera. While decent enough to get the job done after awhile I felt that I was being held back by them.

So after spending hours online watching videos and researching what a good upgrade would be, I decided on a 50mm f/1.8. What was nice starting with this lens was the price did not break the bank at $219.

With this lens, my landscape photography looked so much sharper and cleaner a much-needed improvement.

I still have this lens even though I do not use it as much anymore I always have it in my bag.

24-70mm f/2.8

My next best purchase was buying a 24-70mm f/2.8. This is the lens you will see on my Nikon D800 almost all the time. The only times I take it off are when I am doing wildlife photography or packing the camera in a smaller bag.

Again this led to much better landscape photos since I was able to go wider at 24mm over the 50mm. Another advantage this lens had over the 50mm was its range of 24-70mm.

That meant I could use it for everyday shooting and not have to worry about the subject being too close or too far away.

Sony A7R

Now I picked up this camera last year used for a good price. It had a low shutter count and no real flaws.

My main camera is my Nikon D800 but I wanted something just as good for a backup. Most people would probably go and buy another D800 but not me.

I wanted something different and I have been reading and hearing a ton about Mirrorless cameras. I already have the Sony A5000 that I use for some of my videos on YouTube.

At the start, the only lens I had for the A7R was the Sony 50mm f/1.8. Nice lens but like the 50mm Nikon has limited range.

After doing some more research I decided on getting a lens converter so I could attach my Nikon lenses to the sony camera. I also picked up one for Canon lenses.

Now I can use all my current Nikon and Canon lenses on the camera and the images come out looking great. The only downside to the converter is that you have to use manual focus.

Once you learn or relearn how to manual focus you will have no issues getting great photos.

Worst Photo Purchases I Have Made

From my Photography tips blog.

Worst Photo Purchases I Have Made

I am sure we all have at one time or another made a purchase we late regretted. I know myself have made a few of them over the years.

Ring Light

The first one I regret was a ring light. At the time I was interested in doing macro photography. As I soon found out lighting was a very important part of doing macro photography I started looking for a solution.

I did not have enough lighting in my room to keep the shadows of the lens off the subject. So I went to amazon and bought a cheap Polaroid ring light.

Now I will say there is nothing wrong with the ring light itself. It works as it was intended to. In fact, I still have it sitting in a box in my closet just in case I need it.

The issue I had with the ring light was the coiled cord. Whenever I put my Tamron 70-300mm macro lens into manual focus the cord would pull on the lens taking it out of focus.

The other issue I had with it was when I tried to use it for my YouTube videos to give me more lighting. It worked but around the whole video, there was blown out areas from the light.

The reason I regret the purchase was not because the item was faulty but I have only ever used it two or three times.

Polaroid 48 Macro LED Ring Flash

Filters

Another item that I bought and do not have much of a use for are a couple of filters. I bought these back when I was shooting film before I was able to get a 1-megapixel digital camera.

The two filters that I had purchased were a softening and macro filter.

The softening filter did just what it sounds like it would do soften the image for an artistic look. On the cover of the box, it showed a bride looking pretty that was supposedly taken with this type of filter. I have NEVER used the filter for any photographs.

Polaroid Optics 52mm 3 Piece Special Effect Camera/Camcorder Lens Filter Kit (Soft Focus, Revolving 4 Point Star, Warming)

Again another filter I never really used was the macro one. It has a clear hole in the middle and the rest is frosted out so only what is right in the middle will be in focus. Interesting idea but again I have never found a use for it.

I do not have an example of the Macro filter but you can check Amazon and you will see the new better versions there.

I have had tons of other items I have bought and never used but these are the ones that sprung to mind while thinking about this post.
What are some of your worst photography purchases? I know I am not the only one out there that has done this.
Let me know in the comments below!