Sunny Daze

I’ve been eying up the local sunflower fields for a couple weeks now. We are a little behind because of this cooler summer we’ve had in the midwest this year. I’m not complaining, but I am wishing for a humid streak so my tomatoes ripen!

Well, I headed to the Lake Michigan shore to catch the sunrise and was met with a thick blanket of fog that started about 10 miles inland. There was no sunrise, but to my delight I ended up being blessed with a beautiful early morning foggy sunflower field to photograph. It was truly magical!

The Nikon 105mm f/2 DC

I was recently able to splurge and get the lens I’ve been pining over for the past 6 months.

The Nikon 105mm f/2 DC!

This is one of Nikon’s best portrait lenses and is said to be their sharpest 105mm.

But besides that, it has a very unique feature called “Defocus Control”, that’s where the DC comes from. This has often been misunderstood as a soft focus lens, but in fact it’s quite the opposite. When used properly, your subject stays in focus and the background is enhanced with the best, amazing, creamy bokeh that you’ve ever dreamt of!

I really like bokeh. So naturally I wanted this lens.

There are only two lenses that are made with this DC feature. The Nikon 105mm f/2 DC and the Nikon 135mm f/2 DC. And now I am the proud owner of a 105!

I’ve been able to practice shooting with it over the past week and have been really impressed with the results.

I think the most impressive thing is the color and clarity that is possible.

Here is a little gallery of some of my favorites from this past week.
These are the JPGs straight from the camera. No edits, just resized.
Please click on the picture to see the full resolution.

I am looking forward to doing some actual portrait sessions with this lens. Hopefully the weather turns around soon! I’m ready for green grass, leaves and spring flowers!