au.was.here.

it's here! finally, just today! it was such a long 15 days waiting for my Ebay purchase to arrive at the local post office... i kept checking the post office for it, i even beat the notice's arrival at my door. as soon as i heard it has landed, i was there in less than an hour.

so it's here now and i couldn't be happier with my new toy. it's a preowned, circa late-1970's 55mm Micro Nikkor f3.5 AI! looks like it's in pretty good condition for it's age, too. yey! my first REAL macro lens ever! i opted to get this baby for 2 reasons: firstly, i cannot afford the macro lens on my wishlist yet (which is the Micro Nikkor 105mm f2.8 VR). secondly, this is one of the lenses that, they say, has a reputation for making the Nikon brand legendary. i can see why already. i love the color and the contrast it produces. and most of all, it's tack sharp. i actually think it's even sharper than my nifty fifty (the cute nickname they call the 50mm prime, which are actually pretty sharp glass). there is an f2.8 version of it but it is the f3.5 that has the rep for sharpness so it was the one i put my bids on. i guess it IS good because it even has it's own group on Flickr.

this is the first test shot i took off the lens. just my messy desk (ok, perhaps i should have aimed elsewhere.) but check out how sharp it is and how saturated the colors are. no post prod here. click to enlarge and see the details better.

then i reaimed and refocused and took a macro of the 50mm on the desk. still decently sharp despite being handheld at shutter speed of 1/25... and i don't have steady hands. bet it would be sharper on a tripod.

this is a photo my other lens--the 50mm f1.8. this shot was taken with the newly arrived 55mm micro. compare it with the photo of the micky nikky above, taken with this 50mm prime. which is sharper?

lucky for me, i won this at a low price too! USD$77 (+ $40 for the shipping to here). most of those that closed at Ebay at the time i was bidding were closing at around $100 already. i actually tried sniffing around at Hidalgo first but wasn't lucky enough to find a copy of it, although M20 there says they do occasionally have one of these for sale. it think it's really a great deal for lenses with such superior optics. of course, that is if one doesn't mind the totally manual controls--no autofocusing, no metering, and i was surprised that even the aperture can only be controlled via the aperture ring. but of course, since what i have is a D40, it could also be that a better cam like a D200 (or my dream D300) will at least meter with it.

how can i complain though. i was only too happy to have stumbled upon the info that this is THE alternative for someone with no budget for the more expensive macro. and even if i eventually get one, i'll probably still keep this just for the nostalgia.

already positioning for the next purchase: cheap extension tubes (P880 bucks!) to increase my focal length. hoping to capture a portrait of some fly or bug next up :-D