Tag Archives: Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm f/4-5.6D

Nikon D70, Nikon 70-210mm f/4-5.6 and Sandhill Cranes.

I took a day trip to the Hiwassee wildlife refuge in Tennessee. My camera gear was the Nikon D70, Nikon 70-210mm f/4-5.6 and a tripod.

I read about the sandhill cranes at the Hiwassee wildlife refuge. Apple maps got me in the vicinity and then I spotted a boat ramp from afar. There were some observation decks to overlook the broken bottles, trash and sandhill cranes. I must admit I was embarrassed for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. How about get off your lazy ass and clean the dump up? Probably working from home? Plus some lady had her dog unleashed chasing the sandhill cranes. Nice. She drove a white Subaru and I left a note on her windshield. Drop me a message!

The old Buddha proverb that says, ” the best camera is the one you have.” So I was kinda impressed when I looked at the photos on my computer and even had one printed out poster size (20″x30″) and hanging on my wall now.

Probably my biggest complaint about the Nikon D70 is the small lcd screen, which makes it hard to see if the exposure is correct. But the white balance is pretty damn good where you don’t have to adjust it. So you take your chances with gut instinct and experience, like the old film days. Is it okay to complain about a camera that was introduced in 2004?

I probably have less than 100 dollars in this old kit. Fun.

Now do i wish they all could be California girls? Yes! Do I lust to be able to zoom-in with built in stabilization on a 15 thousand dollar lens? Yes! Plus the latest Nikon camera, kevlar kayak and a white Subaru? Yes!

Which brings me to that song:

Well, East Coast girls are hip
I really dig those styles they wear
And the Southern girls with the way they talk
They knock me out when I’m down there
The Midwest farmer’s daughters
Really make you feel alright
And the Northern girls with the way they kiss
They keep their boyfriends warm at night….

Testing the Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm f/4-5.6D lens.

I paid 62.00 dollars for this Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm f/4-5.6D lens. After hiking a couple miles, it started to feel really heavy. The lens weighs about 600 grams. The lens is a push and pull. It hangs awkwardly from my camera strap. I bought it from MPB.com in excellent condition. Now a 1987 lens in excellent condition, it can vary from who is inspecting it. I’d say it is in good condition on the outside, but has some fungus dots on the inside. So I would probably rate this a good condition lens at the most. At 62.00 dollars I can’t complain too much and will keep it. I’m pretty happy with MPB.com for the most part. Packing and shipping is excellent these days. Plus, they still offer free shipping. Also, I bought a battery for 8 dollars for the Nikon D700. Can’t beat that deal!

These old lenses are great except for not having vibration reduction. I have to crank up the shutter speed to get sharp photos. Plus, the weight is a turn off. But the quality build is the great part about vintage lenses. They feel good in the hand.

I’m shooting this lens on the Nikon D700, which is my main camera now. My only other camera is a Nikon D70. I sold my Nikon D7100 and Panasonic G6. I like the photos from the Nikon D700 better than the Nikon D7100. The Panasonic G6 photos were great, but the camera felt fragile. But I miss being able to crop my photos from the high mega-pixel cameras. Plus, the light weight of the Nikon D7100 and the feather weight of the Panasonic G6 felt great on the body!

I’ve noticed there are a lot of injured geese this year. This poor guy has a hole in his head above the beak. 

I’ve only shot with the Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm f/4-5.6D lens one day and my initial impression was I like the Nikon 28-85mm AF better. Mid-range lenses make more sense to me. Most likely I will bring this Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm f/4-5.6D lens out on special occasions. I’m looking forward to taking it under the cliffs and seeing how it does with mountain climbers. Probably a tripod would be the best, since the lens has no vibration reduction. I blew my last climbing shoot by having the shutter speed cranked up and losing the valuable light. 

Some turtles across the lake. Too far to even try getting a good shot. But I guess I did capture a photo? What am I trying to capture? I have a feeling this lens will be doing a lot more time on the shelf than on the camera. 

I’m telling you the Nikon D700 has some special sauce. The photo below with the single turtle on the log is funky. The log is sitting in the water, yet it seems abnormal. You could call it flawed, but I like it. It’s a special sensor in the Nikon D700 that you slowly start to notice. It has a soul. My Nikon D7100 took just regular photos. The Nikon D200 has some magic too.

For now, I’m attaching my Nikon 50mm f/1.4 NIKKOR-S Auto and living the simple life!