Author Topic: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC  (Read 13999 times)

Fons Baerken

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #15 on: January 13, 2016, 07:23:12 »
To clarify, you use the 135 DC isn't that so, Elsa? At least you did when I visited you last September.

That is correct Bjørn.
I just wish my studio was 1 m longer -  or 2 or 3...

Well i remember Elsa mentioning she was using different glass in her studio :o
i suspect a 70-200 ;D

Erik Lund

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #16 on: January 15, 2016, 13:53:50 »
Lovely images Elsa!

...
I just wish my studio was 1 m longer -  or 2 or 3...
I know a lot of men with the same wish....  ::)
Erik Lund

elsa hoffmann

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #17 on: January 15, 2016, 14:51:48 »
Lovely images Elsa!
I know a lot of men with the same wish....  ::)

Metres?? Erik -  :o :o :o
now I have learned something new  ;D
"You don’t take a photograph – you make it” – Ansel Adams. Thats why I use photoshop.
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Frank Fremerey

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #18 on: January 15, 2016, 15:17:32 »
In film days I shot a lot of portraits with135mm and even with 300mm at times....

Then I had to learn the 85mm is much more practical for real world room size...

Now I use tge 85 also outside an do cotextual portaits at 50 .... 35 .... even 24 ....

Those current HiRes Bodies allow for all details needed in the big picture ...

105DC. Certainly a sweet piece of glass too.
You are out there. You and your camera. You can shoot or not shoot as you please. Discover the world, Your world. Show it to us. Or we might never see it.

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Tom Gresham

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #19 on: January 25, 2016, 17:15:14 »
I'm new here, but thought I'd add to the discussion of the DC lenses.  This is the 135mm f/2 DC.

Great photo! You must have a really good camera.

Bjørn Rørslett

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #20 on: January 25, 2016, 18:28:22 »
Mind the Watch Dog

With the 105 DC

bjornthun

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #21 on: January 25, 2016, 18:56:48 »
Metres?? Erik -  :o :o :o
now I have learned something new  ;D
Is that what they call "Extreme Makeover"?  :o

Bjørn Rørslett

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #22 on: January 25, 2016, 19:08:29 »
Someone out there might be interested to learn the 105 DC does IR pretty well. (In fact, so does the 105/2.5 and 105/1.8 Nikkors).

Bjørn Rørslett

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #23 on: January 25, 2016, 20:01:08 »
If you are into 'bokeh', the 105 DC might be the solution ...


Bjørn Rørslett

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #24 on: January 26, 2016, 21:57:13 »
Another example of the "über bokeh" of the 105 DC. The Df is a willing assistant to bring out the delicate hues.

Scented Mayweed on a road verge

Jakov Minić

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #25 on: January 26, 2016, 22:08:10 »
The mayweed is a beautiful image Bjørn!
I see myself buying this lens in the future :)
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ch96066

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #26 on: June 07, 2021, 22:15:35 »
This thread was the reason I got a 105 2DC.
When it hits, it is superb with a lovely 3d effect and presence.
My issue (on my second copy now) is that it is my most unpredictable lens to get focus right.

Is there a proposed best way to af tune this lens (e.g. flat target vs 3rd object)?
Makes sense to try fine tuning at different R/F settings or just stick to 0? I know that changing R/F needs refocusing on the field.

I have tried a version of lens align and also FOCAL on 810 and auto af tune on 500 and 850.
Either Iam the worst finetunist there is or there is something else in play (i.e. distance variance...)

Thanks to anyone for any thoughts.

Here's one with the Fuji S3 Pro...

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osmosis

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #27 on: June 20, 2021, 09:34:48 »
This thread was the reason I got a 105 2DC.
When it hits, it is superb with a lovely 3d effect and presence.
My issue (on my second copy now) is that it is my most unpredictable lens to get focus right.

Is there a proposed best way to af tune this lens (e.g. flat target vs 3rd object)?
Makes sense to try fine tuning at different R/F settings or just stick to 0? I know that changing R/F needs refocusing on the field.

I have tried a version of lens align and also FOCAL on 810 and auto af tune on 500 and 850.
Either Iam the worst finetunist there is or there is something else in play (i.e. distance variance...)

Thanks to anyone for any thoughts.

Here's one with the Fuji S3 Pro...

I've only had my used copy of a 105mm DC f/2 for about a week but the shots of guinea pigs and people I've made did look great (when in focus). As it was difficult to get good results it prompted me to buy Reikan FoCal Pro (I have other prime AF/D lenses). I'd read that autofocus with this lens is rather hit and miss and you can get a high proportion of dud images.

Yesterday, I calibrated the lens to my D750: I set the DC ring to 0. D750 on a tripod 4m away from the printed target taped to a wall. The "+/- Calibration" test showed I needed -12 AF fine-tune. It also showed a higher than average range of astigmatism and more than typical variability in autofocus (compared to other users' results). But both of those are still 'acceptable'. Made me worry nonetheless that my copy is a poor one.

I haven't had a chance to take 'real' shots with the new setting but am hoping for the best. Others have said the real 0 position for the DC ring isn't always 0; it could be -1 or +1, for example. So your idea of testing with it in different positions makes sense and something I will probably do at some point.

With it being a rather pricey lens and so much positive talk around it, it hasn't yet matched my expectations. However, what has put my mind at ease was reading a professional photographer's take on this lens - that it's a tricky beast to deal with and it ISN'T as sharp as other lenses. It will always be soft toward the wide end and it's sharpest around f/8 (my FoCal tests also showed this). You also have to take into account that as a portrait lens, that's a good thing because it softens the details most people don't want to see in an image of themselves.

So if you haven't already, continue your tuning with the flat FoCal target and see what happens. Good luck!

Ilkka Nissilä

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #28 on: June 20, 2021, 11:00:18 »
It depends also on the camera body. I mostly have good experiences with the 105 DC and love the results very much. But with my old D800 it was a disaster, trying to get it to focus correctly at long distances it required fine tune -20 and at close distances a setting of 0. So it was basically impossible to use on that body
if I expected to photograph subjects at varying distances with AF. I then got D810 which resolved the problem and a single fine tune setting was good for the whole focus range. I mostly use it now in studio lighting as a lighter alternative to the 70-200/2.8 and haven't done wide-aperture photography with it for a while.  You could take your camera and lens to Nikon service and ask if they can improve the focusing.

Stopped down, the 105 DC is very sharp. It is mostly soft and low contrast at f/2. I love it as it produces beautiful, detailed rendering of hair and clothes but does not amplify skin blemishes, it sort of dims out the blood vessels within the skin whereas the typical modern lens produces a lot of sharp and contrasty imperfections in skin. I find the 105 DC effortless in this sense, but you just have to figure out how to get correct focus with it. :) A bit of a challenge.

ch96066

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Re: nikkor 105mm f/2 DC
« Reply #29 on: June 20, 2021, 11:19:38 »
Thank you both Ilkka and Osmosis for the responses.
A friend who is professional product photographer has promised to help me finetune it.
He loves his and considers it to be one of the sharpest lenses he has at f2 if focused properly.

Once I have some luck I will revert with feedback.
Everything in moderation