Farpoint 5000
Lane Frisch
It's back! The mother (or Grandmother) of all flashlights! At a foot long, this extra-sturdy rechargeable LED COB flashlight shines an ultra-bright 5000 lumens and has the ability to charge your phone and other devices with its USB output. Has (3) beam settings (max/low/strobe) with an adjustable slide focus and a range of 150 meters. The 6000mAh powerbank has a USB port, and comes with a USB to C charging cable. This high-impact plastic beast, lasts 90 minutes on high, or three hours on low. Weatherproof, and the power cord stores in the handle. Watch the video at the end of the photos!
I recently bought this pair of Oberwerk 20x80's, and put them on an old parallelogram mount (hobbyist-built in the mid-90's) with a flimsy tripod. I LOVE the binoculars - what a difference compared to my Nikon 7x35's. The mount is letting the whole setup down, though, and making it a pain to use. I think that I need something sturdier for both the parallelogram mount and the tripod. I'd love to know if someone else has been on this journey recently, and how things worked out for them.
I'm looking at potentially picking up the Farpoint UBM or Orion Monster for a mount. The Monster comes with a tripod, and should easily be able to handle the weight of the binoculars (7 lbs), since it says "up to 15lbs". Seems a bit more expensive than the same combination from Oberwerk ($600 vs $515 IF Oberwerk gets their 5000 series tripods back in stock), but it has one more degree of freedom according to the ad copy.
I'm very excited to get back into this hobby. I was an avid stargazer 25 or so years ago with an 8" dob and a pair of 80mm binoculars. I can afford good equipment now, and I have a young son who is really getting into the hobby as well. My level of patience has changed for the better in that time, and I also am fortunate to have access to a very dark-sky site in the warmer months, so it's worth it to have better equipment this time around. I'm sure I'll be digging through these forums for thoughts on telescopes as summer approaches too, but one thing at a time. ?
I did search for "Monster" before posting, BTW. I was looking more for comparison with the Farpoint model that Oberwerk sells, but I think that given their lack of matched tripods (out of stock until at least the end of Feb unless I want a solid maple one) is enough to push me toward the Monster mount. I can order the Monster on Amazon and have it here in 2 days or less, which is also nice.
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Perform comprehensive visual screening in minimal time. Screen under a variety of conditions, including monocular, binocular, near, distance, and intermediate. The Optec 5000P can also function as a peripheral vision test. Adult and pediatric visual acuity testing, color and depth perception, as well as vertical and lateral phorias.
Clean and disinfect the forehead activator bar and surrounding area gently with disinfectant wipes or a soft, slightly damp, and lint-free cloth with alcohol. We have used 70% isopropyl alcohol to clean and disinfect our equipment surfaces. Clean gently with a damp cloth and never spray alcohol directly on the screener surfaces.
I own a Nikon D5000, the kit lens (18-55mm, f3.5-5.6) and a 35mm, f1.8 that I bought when I got fed up with the poor low light performance of the kit lens. I take photos for my own pleasure and for a blog I write about my family's move to Oxford, England and am finding that while I love the performance of my 35mm in dimly lit cathedrals, I need the range (at least) of the 18-55mm to bring more of these beautiful spaces into my photos.
From my readings (here and elsewhere) it seems that I need an aperture of 2.8 to get the results that I am enjoying with my 35mm on either a wide angle or mid range zoom. The problem is, I can't decide what sort of set up would be best and most cost effective. I have been reading (too much probably) and have become confused over whether I should get a wide angle zoom lens (like a 10-24mm) or just a wide angle prime lens (since I seem to like my 35mm so much) or a mid range zoom like the 17-55mm, f2.8. I doubt that I will be upgrading to FF anytime soon, although I may upgrade my camera to a D7000 at some point (for better high ISO performance and to get autofocus on a Tokina 11-16mm if I went that route). Ah, see--my head is spinning with all of this!
My dream would be to find a cost effective solution that allowed me to travel light (no more than 3 lenses--prefereably 2, as I do now) and survive without a triopod (since I usually have an adorable 2 year old on one hip and a camera in the other!). I am open to any suggestions on lenses I haven't mentioned (even non-Nikon) or even upgraded camera suggestions.
You can start with Tamron 17-50/2.8 VC. This will give you a fast aperture and stabilization for handheld images at dark settings. Obviously an upgrade at D7000 could be very helpful - I found it to be MUCH better at high ISO than D5000 and D300. D7000 will enable you to use AF with Tokina 11-16.
On the other hand... at UWA you do not have to be afraid of manual focus. In the past when I owned a D5000 I used a CV 20/3.5 on it for some work and it was not hard to get it on focus. It would be much harder to use telephoto lenses without AF on your camera.
I really can't tell you what's right for you. Personally, (and I know that you wanted to avoid this), a tripod will be the most cost effective solution. You can get a nice tripod with head and quick release plate/L bracket for a few hundred dollars. If you're really worried about weight, you'll have to spend more to get a carbon fiber tripod, but they're worth it.
Mihai: Thanks for your suggestion. I will check out the Tamron, as I don't know anything about that brand.. The 'numbers' look good though. :) And thanks for letting me know your experience with the D7000 vs the D5000--I had been looking at it because of my interest in the Tokina but was happy to read about the ISO performace--so I appreciate you mentioning that too. And good point about focusing the UWA. I'll keep that in mind as I search around. Did you find 20 to be a good/usable focal length? Thanks!!
Richard: To be honest, I really don't know the answer to 'how much a 2.8 will help for wide angle' either! I know that my 18-55mm struggles in low light--especially now that I am used to (and very much like) the 35mm lens--so I assumed I would need a 2.8 at least to avoid that in any new lens I buy. In outdoors or in well lit conditions, the 18-55mm does fine but I don't find it does very well in dimly lit conditions (cathedrals and such). Maybe this is my inexperience or inability to use it to it's full potential but, as I said, I have no trouble with the performance of the 35mm---just need more reach than it provides. I have considered a prime but didn't know what focal length to choose would be best if I had to pick just one (rather than a range, as with the zooms)--so I had no idea they were that pricey! Eek! Hmm, maybe I will have to stick to thinking about a zoom lens of some sort after all...
It's not the 18-55 lens itself that doesn't do well in places liike a dark church, but rather, it's that you're using it to do something it was really not designed to do. It starts out with a relatively slow aperture at the wide end, and then it gets worse as you zoom into things. They make these kit zooms good and cheap, with the cheap part being achieved by not having very large glass.
I hate tripods like the plague and I rarely use mine, but there are certain kinds of photographs when you have to use one or else be satisfied with less than stellar results. If you are interested in nice interior shots of cathedrals, you may simply have to bite the bullet and use one... as long as you're not interested in people and their decisive moments. Or, you can often find other ways to support a camera (a cheap bean bag resting on something can work wonders, and so can even a hand on top of a pew, against a wall, etc.
The churches and cathedrals I know are all fairly dark inside, beyond the light that filters in through the side windows. Even a "fast" f/2.8 constant aperture zoom might have some trouble with that when used handheld.
What I'm saying is that buying an expensive new lens might be nice, but it won't necessarily solve your problem. There's a lot of difference in light gathering ability between your relatively cheap f/1.8 prime lens and the most expensive f/2.8 zooms.
P.S. My constant search for camera support opportunities quite often lead me to points of view and angles that others miss. Come to think of it, so does my regrettable insistence on not using a zoom lens unless my life depends on it.
Leslie: Sorry--I think I wasn't clear when I said 'travel light'. I'd like to keep my DSLR--I only wanted to travel light in the lens sense. Taking only two with me at a time if I could help it. Thanks for the camera links though! It is looking more and more like I may end up with a 7000 and the 11-16mm...but I'll take a look at that Tokina 12-24 you mentioned!
Carl: Agreed. I am going to take my 18-55mm out today and see how it does in terms of range. If I find I need wider (as I think I do), I'll keep on the hunt with the Tokina and a newer DSLR. I do have a small tripod, but as Mihai mentioned, they often aren't allowed in churches---and truthfully, I often don't like using it. But, I should try that too (when possible)...
Pierre: Agreed. I can't fault the lens itself--it performs fine in outdoor, well lit conditions as I said--I just need something else for low light. Like you, I am not into the tripod use. Most of my photos are, as you described, "of people and their decisive moments". More like travel/daily life photojournalism. But taking architectural shots is something altogether different and I may have to support the camera in some way (the pew idea is a good one!). Your PS comment made me laugh--I wine annoyingly every time I take my 35mm off (as sometimes I do try to use the 18-55mm). That is why I've considered going the UWA prime route---to prevent future whining. haha!
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