Shooting from a low angle is on the first page of my playbook. Handholding a lens like the Z24-70 and using the LCD monitor is pretty simple. Change up that lens to like the Z180-600 and I need support. I went looking for a flexible support for the Z180-600 and came back with the sweet Benro Tortoise Columnless Tripod #0 Carbon Fiber TTOR03C+GX25 head, 3 sections. Folded up, it’s only 11″ and maxes out at 16″. Carbon fiber, goes completely flat and weighs a 2lbs, it fits the bill perfectly. On a side note, it comes in the cutest little case! The Benro Tortoise “Mini” (as I call it) is now standard equipment whenever I go out to shoot. I love it!

For all the road miles, family events, and general all-around fun this little machine has experienced and captured since 2013, it looks pretty darn good! The Coolpix A is a small, pocket camera from a bygone era that still produces really amazing files. Capturing Nefs on a SD, its all-glass lens was a bit ahead of its day. It captures video, fits in a shirt pocket, and for us, has been the family camera for a very long time. On rare occasions, I post photos here taken with it from my seat at the window. You can, on rare occasions, find them used these days, and they are making a huge renaissance amongst my peers. Why am I mentioning it now? You might be like me, a photog who likes the convenience of the iPhone but want a card you can put in a computer, a file you can finish in your workflow. For you, I offer the suggestion of picking up a Coolpix A, still amazing all these years.

Every lens I’ve ever owned that accepts a filter has had a filter. Always has and always will ’cause life is tough on glass. When you come back from an A2A, stand a lens front element down, and you come back and find a puddle of oil, you thank your lucky stars you had a filter attached! In the field when goober hits that front, I fog it with my breath, hit it with the cleanest part of my shirt, and keep on going. Those filters give their life so I can keep on going!

Six months ago it was time to replace four of them on the Z400f4.5, Z70-200f2.8, Z50f1.2, and Z24-70f2.8. And one as been added to the Z180-600. At the time, it just so happened that the new Arcrest II filters literally just started shipping (reached out to my friends at Bedfords!). One cannot miss that gold box, it’s a standout. I love what they have done to the filter ring. What Nikon did, I haven’t a clue but it feels so robust though it is a tad slimmer than the stand NC filter. According to the User’s Manual, the ARCREST II uses “Nikon’s proprietary “Flat plane system” technology for mounting to frames, loads on the glass has been significantly reduced minimizing glass distortion.” That translates to me as just Nikon magic (or great engineering).

It’s the glass that makes these the gold standard (couldn’t help myself). This is how Nikon explains the glass, “ARCREST II Protection Filters are crafted by Nikon utilizing high-performance glass, to protect your Nikon lenses. The filters are designed with a “Zero-One AR Coating” for ultra-low reflections and easy cleaning of water or oil residue. An anti-static coating reduces the adhesion of dust and dirt onto the filter’s surface. The ARCREST II high-performance protection filters preserve as much of the lens’s imaging power as possible, improving optical performance with attention to detail in every area.”

After six months of sand, grit, bird poo and aircraft oil, the glass looks perfect! They just stay clean from everyday dust and the few times I’ve had to clean them, easy pezzy! I’m wondering now if I will have to replace them like I did the old filters because of wear. I love them, the Arcrest II are the Gold Standard!

“Why so many telephotos?” This incredibly good question keeps appearing in my inbox, and it’s truly a good question! I need to start by saying, I love long glass, always have! Long glass is essential for my two passions, critters and aviation (and gets used for landscapes as well). But why three telephotos, you might still be asking. One general answer that covers all three lenses, they work brilliantly with the Z1.4x and the Z2x, which is essential. All three are extremely sharp. That said, ….

The Z600f4TC is my go-to long lens cause its sharpness is like no other lens I’ve shot with, and with a simple flick of the finger, it’s a 840f5.6. There are too many times working with critters, taking a teleconverter out of a pocket, attaching it, is just too much motion, and the moment is lost. There are times when critters come physically closer and when at 840mm, it requires just a flick of a finger to be back at 600mm. Along with the gorgeous limited DoF of f4, the ability to add the Z1.4x and Z2x, the flexibility and brilliance make the Z600f4TC a standout!

The Z180-600 was a total blow-away to me, wow, what a lens! When the 180-400TC left the locker, I never thought I would have a lens to replace it as it was stunning. Much to my delight the Z180-600 more than replaces it. The first truly, major biggie is that the Z180-600 focuses down to nearly 8 feet (the Z600f4 is nearly 14 feet). With the Z 9, Z 8 or Z 6III attached, the balance and lightness of the package makes it easy to hand hold and very mobile. The almost nothin MFD is mind-blowing for photographing small birds! And being a zoom, as the bird gets too big in the frame, ya just zoom back, brilliant! You combine that fact  with it is a zoom and works magnificently with the teleconverters, I don’t understand why everyone doesn’t have one. If that were enough, the Z180-600 is brilliant on the flight line for aviation!

Finally is the sweetie, the Z400f4.5. This incredibly light, sharp lens is magnificent for so many applications in wildlife photography. Being small and light, it’s easy to transport, especially on a shoulder strap alongside the Z600f4TC on a tripod. It is my go-to lens for birds in flight photography.

Each of these lenses has attributes the other don’t share, carving out in the gear locker their own unique problem-solving quality. They are tools permitting me to bring back the visual story I have in my heart. And there you have it, the long winded answer to the telephoto question, and it’s a good one.

The Z 9 loves to deliver speed in stills and video. The MacBook Pro M4 loves it even more. I want to feed my two beasts the best cause they keep me fed. That’s where ProGrade Digital CFexpress™ Type B 4.0 Memory Card (Iridium) comes into play. I’ve moved up in space and speed, a demand of video and shooting more and more video. Now, just to be clear, Current CFexpress cameras will not be able to take advantage of the maximum speed of this card. Until CFexpress 4.0 cameras are introduced, the benefit of this card is tripling the speed of your workflow when downloading content with the ProGrade Digital PG05.6 USB 4.0 Reader. Putting these attributes into written form, I turn to ProGrade … “ProGrade Digital has developed its new CFexpress™ Type B 4.0 Iridium class memory cards with next-generation performance leveraging PCIe Gen 4 interconnect with NVMe host controller interface for use in future Mirrorless, DSLR and high-definition cinema cameras. Available in 400GB, 800GB, and 1.6TB capacity and performance levels provide read speeds up to 35500MB/s – CFexpress Type B cards are ideal for quickly off-loading high volumes of video or RAW photos and sustained write speeds up to 850MB/s and 1500MB/s respectively – perfect for uninterrupted, cinematic capture of RAW 4K or 6K video. The CFexpress Type B Iridium cards are VPG400 rated.” And there you have it, ProGrade Upgrade Time.

And remember to ALWAYS do a FULL FORMAT of new cards in the camera before you use them for the first time :-)

Yes, it is just at home in the office or briefcase, but I wanted the ProGrade Digital 2TB Ultra-Portable SSD for the camera bag. You see, when I’m out shooting with my friends (which is quite often), we tend to take photos of each other. At the end of the shoot, it’s a mass passing around of files. Yeah, you could use AirDrop or a hundred other ways, but this is by far the fastest, easiest, and funniest way to do it. The USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface provides transfer rates of up to 10Gb/s (1.25GB/s), with compatible with USB-A and USB-C ports. The super secure and near water/dust proof caps, their rugged metal design can take in the field punishment. The Read / Write speed of up to 1000MB/s, sharing files is a snap!