New to DSLR...

[PhOtoSITIVE]

Hi everyone! I am fairly new to DSLR but have been serious about capturing life's moments since I was 9...I used a 35 mm film camera as a youngster and then graduated to a point and click. I've had my Nikon D3400 going on two months and have been practicing every day! Let me know what you think of my 'Cloud Fortress'. I am open to critique and thoughts!
Cloud Fortress

 

[Derrel]

I enjoyd seeing some of your water drop shots, and the slow-speed shots of the birds in flight near the feeder. You've got the right ideas to make some spectacular photos. Keep shooting, and keep working with the D3400! It's a powerful,compact, easy-to-transport d-slr camera. It has good higher-ISO capabilities, and since it is a 3xxx series, it can also utilize many unmodified pre-AI F-mount lenses in fully manual modes, something that the 7xxx series and up cannot do!

 

[PhOtoSITIVE]

Thank you Derrel! Definitely going to keep practicing. I will have to look more into the pre-AI F-mount lenses. I have been spending most of my time learning my current lenses and how to use the available light.

 

[Derrel]

Pre-Ai would be made from 1959 to about 1977 for Nikon-made lenses, some are a bit newer, the conversion to Ai was not immediately done in 1977 on all Nikon lens models. Some of the cool ones would be the 55mm f/3.5 Micro~Nikkor macro lens, often $35 or so in BGN shape: the front lens element is protected by the deep barrel recess, with a dime-sized front element being wayyyyyy over 1 inch back inside the filter threads. Other neat ones are 135/3.5 or 135/2.8. 50mm f/2 pre-Ai. 105/2.5 pre-Ai. In Ai, the 135/2.8 Ai is neat, and so is the skinny-barreled 200mm f/4 Ai model.

There are also pawnshop-type lenses in F-mount, made and sold by multiple Japan lens-makers, and sold as Vivitar, Quantaray, Kiron, and so on.