Over the past few months I’ve had a number of readers contact me at my office or via email and inquire about the Nikon 1 gear that I use and why I selected various components. I thought that providing a list of my gear may be of interest and benefit to some readers so here is a “What’s in my bag” article as it pertains to my Nikon 1 gear.
First of all, my primary camera bag for my Nikon 1 gear is a Tenba Discovery Large Shoulder Bag. I selected this bag for its range of internal dividers, pockets, overall storage capability, and its lower profile. The coffee cup in the photo is to provide a sense of scale. (And yes…my bag is very well used!)
I also like that the top flap opens away from my body making it easy to find gear inside the dividers. I find the lower profile really works well with smaller Nikon 1 gear. This Tenba bag also holds a lot of gear as you’ll see in the next image.
So, what’s in my bag? Here’s a complete list of gear:
- 3 – Nikon 1 V2 mirrorless cameras
- 1 – JVC GC-XA1BU Adixxion Action Camera with charger
- 3 – Nikon 1 CX 10-30mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lenses (one fitted with a 40.5mm Vivitar variable neutral density filter, one fitted with a 40.5mm B+W polarizer, and one with a standard 40.5mm UV filter)
- 1 – Nikon CX 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 VR lens with tripod foot
- 1 – Nikon CX 10-100mm f/4.5-5.6 PD VR lens
- 1 – Nikon CX 30-110mm f/3.8-5.6 VR lens
- 1 – Nikon CX 6.7-13mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens
- 1 – Nikon CX 32mm f/1.2 lens
- 1 – Nikon CX 18.5mm f/1.8 lens
- 1 – Nikon CX 10mm f/2.8 lens
- 3 – Tamrac N-45 Foam Padded Leather Quick Release Camera Straps
- 3 – Nikon MH-28 battery chargers
- 2 – Nikon EN-EL21 batteries (plus one battery in each camera)
- 1 – Nikon ME-1 shotgun microphone
- 1 – set of Vello auto-focus extension tubes for Nikon 1
- 1 – 77mm Nikon polarizing filter
- 1 – 77mm Marumi variable neutral density filter
- 1 – 52mm B+W polarizing filter
- 1 – 52mm Hoya variable neutral density filter
- 1 – Tenba SD card holder with 16 SD cards -mainly SanDisk and a few older Lexar (although I am no longer buying Lexar SD cards due to quality issues), either 16GB or 32GB, various speeds based on card age
- 1 – Vello IR remote control for Nikon
- 3 – Manfrotto quick release plates
- 1 – bag of assorted step-up rings ( 72-77mm and 62-77mm used most frequently)
- 2 – pairs of Sensei filter wrenches (48-58mm, 62-77mm)
- 1 – Sensor gel stick
- 1 – Purosol lens cleaner with Pearstone lens cleaning cloth
- 1 – Oben TT-300 table top tripod
- 1 – Giottos Ball.Pod
- 1 – Matin blower
Plus, from time to time I cram in a rain sleeve, and if I’m not worried about it poking out by an inch or two from one of the front pockets, I’ll sometimes pack my Tamrac Zipshot tripod.
I think this detailed listing drives home a couple of key things that I love about using the Nikon 1 system – its size and lightweight!
Here’s a quick run-down of some of listed gear with some comments about why I chose it, and how I typically use it.
Table of Contents
Nikon 1 V2 Camera Bodies
When I use my Nikon 1 V2’s for client work it is usually for safety and industrial videos. I find the cameras are ideal in terms of their size, lightweight and good 1080HD 30p video capture. The Nikon 1 V2’s meter almost identically to my Nikon D800 so I can integrate footage from both types of cameras with a minimum of fuss. I often have my D800 and 2 or 3 V2’s recording a scene at the same time to give me a range of angles and perspectives. This can add quite a bit of production value for clients.
Manual focusing on most Nikon 1 lenses needs to be done through the camera body which is a bit of a pain, but it’s just one of those trade-offs that needs to be made when doing video work with Nikon 1 gear.
For personal stills shooting I rely on my Nikon 1 gear most of the time and very seldom use my Nikon D800 and FX glass, unless I’m shooting wildlife or birds with my Tamron 150-600mm.
JVC Adixxion Action Cam
On very rare occasions I need to take video clips underwater, often hand-held or with a small action cam mounted on a miniature tripod. The JVC Adixxion Action Cam is an affordable choice that produces acceptable 1080HD video. I like this particular camera as it incorporates a standard tripod thread so no ‘unique’ mounts are required for it. I can use it on the same mounts as my Nikon 1 bodies and I can also use my Manfrotto quick release plates on it. (I know this isn’t a Nikon 1 product…but I pack it in with my Nikon 1 kit)
Nikon 1 CX 10-30mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lenses (non-PD)
Nikon basically forced people to buy this kit lens when a V2 body was purchased. Rather than sell my additional copies I add speed and functionality to my bag by fitting variable neutral density, polarizing, and UV filters on different lenses. That way I can quickly switch lenses and avoid having to mess around changing filters. The 10-30mm non-PD lens is the least sharp of all of my Nikon 1 lenses. They do cover a useful focal range and are very lightweight so I use them quite a bit. Working the RAW files in post can help image quality significantly.
Nikon 1 CX 30-110mm f/3.8-5.6 VR
This is a surprisingly good lens for the purchase price. It is almost as sharp as my Nikon 1 primes and is my favourite lens to use with extension tubes. When I need to get into very tight quarters when shooting video this lens is the one I use most often with one of my very small tripods. Under these challenging conditions it can produce some amazing results. It is also a great travel lens, delivering good image quality and excellent reach for its diminutive size. The VR is very effective and I used this lens quite a bit in museums while in Greece, at times shooting at slower shutter speeds. It also has a fairly short minimum focusing distance which provides additional flexibility.
Nikon 1 CX 6.7-13mm f/3.5-4.5 VR
This is a really nice lens that delivers good sharpness (on par with the 10mm f/2.8 and 18.5mm f/1.8 primes) nice colour rendition and VR to boot! It is great as a landscape lens and also comes in very handy when shooting video in tight quarters. I usually have a B+W polarizing filter fitted on mine.
Nikon 1 10-100mm f/4.5-5.6 PD VR zoom
This is my ‘go to’ lens for Nikon 1 video work. The power zoom provides very good control, is smooth, and very quiet. It is especially effective when doing slow ‘push or pull’ zooms in scenes. The wide focal range gives this lens a lot of flexibility. It’s sharper than the 10-30mm but falls a bit short of the 30-110mm in this regard. It is a rather heavy lens so when travelling I typically use the 10-30mm and 30-110mm rather than take this lens. A 72-77mm step up ring allows me to quickly mount either my 77mm polarizer or variable neutral density filters on it.
Nikon 1 CX 70-300 f/4.5-5.6 VR
Without question this is my favourite Nikon 1 lens. It is sharp throughout the focal range, renders colours beautifully and is a joy to use. For birders and wildlife photographers who use Nikon 1 bodies this is a ‘must have’ lens. It is expensive, but worth every penny.
Nikon 1 Primes
Nikon makes three prime lenses for the Nikon 1 system and I own all three of them: 10mm /2.8 (efov 27mm), 18.5mm f/1.8 (efov 50mm), and 32mm f/1.2 (efov 86mm). As expected all are quite sharp and perform well. I use mine mainly for client videos when working in dark conditions and very seldom take still photos with them.
Nikon ME-1 Shotgun Mic
Perhaps best rated as an ‘average’ performer the ME-1 is small and doesn’t require batteries so it’s a good addition to my bag for general purposes. I often replace this with my Rode VideoMic Pro when I need something a bit better in my bag.
Tamrac N-45 Quick Release Straps
All of my cameras, including my D800, have these straps on them. When working on client projects I often have to switch between taking stills and video clips so having quick release straps is critical for me as I often need to remove straps when using a slider, skater dolly or jib. I find these straps provide a good level of security and comfort.
Vello Auto Focus Extension Tubes for Nikon 1
These tubes are very affordable and provide additional capability to Nikon 1 lenses, especially the 30-110mm. These are very handy when extreme close-up video clips are required. These extension tubes have plastic flange connections so some care is needed when using them as the flanges are not overly robust. I’m hoping Vello updates these tubes and changes to metal mounts.
Vello IR remote control
An affordable remote that works well with Nikon 1 cameras for both stills and video.
Small Tripods
Packing smaller sized tripods like the Oben TT-300, Giottos Ball.Pod, and the Tamrac Zipshot, adds even more flexibility to Nikon 1 gear. The light weight of the Nikon 1 camera bodies and many of the Nikon 1 lenses means that these small sized tripods are excellent choices as they can provide a good level of stability and take up minimal room in your camera bag.
Overall, I find that I can pack a high degree of video and still photography shooting flexibility into one shoulder bag when using my Nikon 1 gear. The small size and light weight of this gear also makes it a very practical choice for travel photography.
Article and images Copyright Thomas Stirr. All rights reserved. No use, duplication of any kind, or adaptation is allowed without written consent.
Thomas, thank you for this. When I shot with a V1, I loved the 6.7-13. A beauty of the lens was that it would focus anywhere, thanks to the small CX sensor in the camera. When I went to a full-frame Canon 6D, I found that the otherwise superb 16-35mm F/4L IS USM lens was a real bitch to focus when zoomed to 16mm in low light or when trying to focus on distant objects in daylight. It’s a problem with all ultrawides because the central focus spot is so tiny, compared to the 16mm image on the full-frame sensor. This was never a problem with the 6.7-13, as the focus spot was much larger proportionately to the CX sensor. My solution is with the full-frame lens, so far, is to focus at 35mm, hold the shutter button halfway, and zoom to 16mm before shooting. It works great but is obviously not ideal for shooting anything that moves. I have yet to try focusing with all focus points activated. Maybe get a Nikon D500 that has as many focus points as the stars in the Milky Way? :)
Hi George,
Thanks for sharing your experiences and perspectives!
Tom
Now, that the cat’s out of the bag, all that remains is to start taking pictures like Thomas: that’s a tall order! Excellent insight into your gear and thanks for peppering them with some spicy images! Thank you for sharing!
You’re welcome Ravi – glad you enjoyed the article!
Tom
The article is most imformative and the photos superb! I will have to look into that bag! You have me beat for V2 bodies. I have only two. :) You made me want the wide angle zoom even more. That’s one of a few more lenses I want. Thanks much for a look at what’s in your bag! Delightful article!
Thanks for the positive comment Vernon – much appreciated. The Tenba bag that I use is currently on sale at B&H. I’m not sure how many they have left at the sale price. Using the B&H link at the end of the article helps us out…if you plan to purchase through B&H. The 6.7-13mm is a very, very nice lens. DxO rates it as sharp as the Nikon 1 primes.
Tom
Thanks for the information, Thomas.
I’ve recently gotten the Nikon 1 J5 and am enjoying it with the 10-30 & 30-110. I’ve also tried a few of my FX lenses with the FT-1.
I will be adding the 18.5, 6.7-13, and 70-300 fairly soon. That should give me a very portable and well-rounded travel system for a trip I’m taking this Fall.
Hi James,
You’re adding some great items to your kit! I agree…once you’ve added those lenses you’ll have well-rounded travel system. I think you’re going to love it!
Tom
Thomas — as usual you have provided us with some very valuable information (and lovely pictures as well). I have just recently purchased the Nikon 1 v3 with the kit lens (10-30mm). I also purchased the Nikon1 70-300 lens. WOW! I went to Kauai to try it all out and I found that I mostly used the kit lens. I think I’ll have to get used to the long lens as I am more accustomed to a full frame camera (D800) and the crop factor on this lens was beyond what I need for landscape photography. Also, I am accustomed to using a viewfinder on my D800 camera so I thought I would appreciate the viewfinder on the v3. But that viewfinder doesn’t seem to focus well (although it is perhaps old age and bad eyesight). I feel that I will have to get accustomed to the v3 viewfinder or start using the screen on the back of the camera. I have many questions for you but I’ll limit myself to this one: I understand you use DxO for post-processing and you export to disk using DNG. Is there a particular reason you use that file type (as opposed to others available)? Thanks again for the post!
Hi Kathleen,
Thanks for the positive comment – much appreciated!
In terms of landscape photography with the Nikon 1 series you may want to have a look at the 6.7-13mm Nikon 1 lens. Nice and sharp…beautiful colours and a good range of wider angle images are possible.
You will notice a big difference between the viewfinder on your D800 and any Nikon 1 V-series camera…your D800 will be far brighter and give you a much more detailed view. It takes some time to get used to the difference, but once you do I think you’ll be fine with it. I find using the back screen is a pain, especially in bright sunlight. I had to change my glasses specifically because of EVF use. My old glasses automatically go darker in bright sunlight which made the EVF almost unusable for me. My new glasses don’t have that feature on them and shooting with my Nikon 1 v2’s is MUCH better in terms of viewing.
In terms of my process in post I don’t ‘export to disk’ with OpticsPro 10, I ‘export to application’. In my case I export into CS6. Once exported the file then automatically opens up in CS6 so I can make additional adjustments and also use my plug-ins such as the Nik Suite and Topaz. Nasim suggested that I use a DNG file since this format works really well with Photoshop and Lightroom. I used to export a TIFF to disk, but using a DNG file and then ‘export to application’ is much faster and easier.
Tom
Hi Thomas
I was reading that you switch to sandisk after having problems with bent pins in your D800
My comment is not related to nikon 1 system, but to CF cards, personally I have old cf to pcmia adapters, I do not use them any longer as adapters, but I found them very handy for testing cf first insertion.
they are better than card readers for this because you must enter cf card straight, like in a camera, and all card sides are supported, with card readers you will find quite a lot of mechanically unsupported card, lateral movement, and you are not completely sure if the card was inserted in the right way or a little twisted.
It is better to bend a pin in an old useless adapter than in a camera body. I found this very practical, and I will like to share the tip.
Hi Nestor,
That is a great idea – thanks for sharing it! I was lucky that my Nikon dealer was able to gently put the pin back in its correct position, otherwise it could have been an expensive repair.
Tom
Thanks, Thomas, and beautiful photos. I think I’ve seen most of these in your other V2 posts, which is why I bought this camera. I don’t need this much gear but it’s nice to know what’s possible. I would like to get at least a polarizer for each lens, and I’d like to get the Nikon 1 70-300 lens at some point, but otherwise I’m pretty happy with the kit zooms that came with the camera.
Hi Cindy,
Always good to hear from you! I’ve been running pretty hard lately so I did use mostly older images to illustrate the capability of various lenses…I think there’s only a couple of new images in the assortment. If you’re looking for filters it does pay to buy better quality brands like B+W for example where you can. Some of the Nikon 1 lenses use quite small filters which have limited selection. Another option is to get some step-up rings which would allow you to use larger size filters on some of the smaller lenses. It does look odd – but still gets the job done.
Tom
That’s no cat coming out of that bag… I’m very jealous:-)
I like to use that 30- 100 for macro as well. The results always surprise me. Here’s what I shot a few days back with it. These are the dead flowers of the hydrangea, I noticed how pretty they can look in the right light, and the teeny tiny snails that live in them.
I’m not as adept in photoshop, nor do I have the right equipment, so these are close to coming straight from the camera. They did needed to be resized quite a bit.
Very interesting images that have a surreal look about them…thanks for sharing!
Tom
Thank you! That’s my imagination let loose. Results in seeing dragons with lace wings in dead leaves:-)
Next to it, the dreary reality it comes from:-)
The artist sees beauty in things that others miss.
Tom
Wouldn’t dare call myself that, but I have always noticed and am fascinated by so many things I see and how the light affects it. Can you give me some advice? I have slept poorly, I can now buy a 32mm 1.2 Nikkor for 450 euros. This is a huge amount for me, money I can not easily spare, and I am wondering if it’s worth it. How do you enjoy this lens?
It is a very good lens that performs very well indeed! Along with the CX 70-300 I would consider it a ‘pro’ Nikon 1 lens. I use mine mainly for client video work and very, very seldom use it for still photography as I much prefer shooting stills with zoom lenses.
Whether it represents value for you at 450 euros really depends on how much you would use this particular focal length and how often you would need an f/1.2 lens.
On a personal basis if I had to choose between this lens and the Nikon 1 30-110 f/3.8-.5.6 I would choose the zoom…but that’s just me and my shooting style. I like the added functionality of zoom lenses and I rarely need to shoot with lenses at less than f/5.6 so for me the 32mm f/1.2 is a ‘specialty’ lens. For other folks who do a lot of portrait work or want to get as much bokeh as they can, they would likely choose this lens instead.
Before making this purchase I would examine the types of images you take, or would like to take in the future. I would then look at the Nikon 1 lenses that you currently own and then try to determine if 450 euros is best spent on this lens to meet your shooting requirements. I know in Canada I could buy the Nikon 1 6.7-13mm f/3.5-5.6 and the 30-110mm f/3.8-5.6 together and spend less than the 32mm f/1.2 would cost me. For my shooting style the two zooms would get far more use than would the 32mm f/1.2.
Tom
Thank you so much for your really helpful answer. The length of the lens is a bit unfortunate, I don’t do portaits often and when I do it’s mostly of my dogs or my chinchillas. I also own the 60mm 2.8 on the Olympus and the 35mm Nikon 1.8, which I use with the adapter on the Nikon 1. I do often notice I have to step back further than I anticipated. I don’t use them very often.
The reason I’m so fixated on this lens is that I’m hoping to finally be able to catch my chichuahuas playing in the evening. This is not easy, they move very fast, and always in poor light.
All those compromises are very frustrating; you buy a very fast lens on a larger sensor, and you’ll need to stop it down so to get more into view than just one eye, thus making it less fast in low light. I had read this lens is sharp when used wide open and was thinking that with the larger depth of field of the Nikon 1 it would be great to capture fast moving subjects, plus dogs and flowers sharp from front to back with still a nice bokeh? I used to own fast compacts, so I know the advantage of a large depth of field combined with lens speed. Still that price… The wide angle zoom you mentioned is also very interesting… and of course that wonderful totally out of reach 70- 300… Isn’t saying you prefer to use a zoom a bit like swearing in church in photography land?;-)
The 35mm f/1.8 would have an equivalent field-of-view of about 95mm on a full frame camera….so if you need to ‘stand back’ to use it I’m not sure how much better the 32mm f/1.2 Nikon 1 would be for you. Rather than the 32mm f/1.8 it may make sense to look at the Nikon 1 18.5mm f/1.8 as it would allow you to shoot in a bit closer and you’d only lose about 1/2 stop of light….and that lens is a fraction of the cost of the 32mm f/1.2. It is quite a sharp lens for the price as well. If you shot the 18.5mm at f/2.8 you should have depth-of-field about the same as shooting a full frame at f7.1-f/8 . The other thing you could do is buy a small LED light and use it on partial power to get the additional light you need.
LOL…loved your comment about ‘swearing in church’. I have always loved shooting with zoom lenses and have never hid that fact. Other than for video I hate primes…and use them as ‘specialty’ lenses. Other folks love them which is their prerogative of course. I wrote an article about the prime/zoom debate on my photography blog.
Tom
Owww my eyes! My eyes! My dear man, don’t you know you really can not be a real photographer if you do not love to use primes? You have to zoom with your feet! Even if that means wading through water and climbing that tree. It’s the only way to be a professional. Or so I’m told…:-)
Well, maybe then there still is hope for me too. Up until recently I have never taken the ‘likes’ or my own photos seriously, because I always found I was still learning, but one day I really hope to ‘do something’ with my photography.
I own the 18.5mm and I think it’s great, but 2.8 is not fast enough for this. Extra light won’t help, oth dogs are ‘second hand’, came with problems, and one was teased with a laser light and now has a fixation on lights and shadows. So when he sees lights, the playtime is over. He also doesn’t like the camera, just this afternoon he showed me what he thinks of it…
This took him 1 second:-)
I did it! I bought it, Thomas!
Sounds like you got a great deal! Let us know how you like the lens.
Tom
The lowest price here is now 650 euros. I got it for 450, which is a lot less, but still a lot of money, so it better be good;-)
Surprising.Please share more with us.
Thanks Razz! If Photography Life readers are interested other members of the team may share the contents of their gear bags as well.
Tom
Thomas, I see you are using 3 V2 bodies. Why not the V3?
Hi JayKay,
The Nikon 1 V3 is a really nice camera and does a lot of things very well indeed! When I did my V3 review I did enjoy using it.
When using my Nikon 1 V2’s for client projects they are used primarily for video work and there are some issues with the V3 that don’t make that camera a good choice for me. For example, I sometimes need to use my V2’s with a shotgun mic mounted on the shoe while using the EVF. The V3 doesn’t allow me this shooting option as the EVF is detachable and mounts to the shoe.
The most important issue is that my V2’s perform almost ‘dead-on’ the same as my D800 up to ISO-800 in terms of exposure so I can integrate footage from either camera format without having to adjust the exposure in post. This is important because when shooting video I use all manual settings. The V3’s sensor performs differently than does the V2 and D800…about 2/5 of a stop or so darker at identical manual settings. It is enough that it is noticeable when comparing video clips. If I used the V3 with my other Nikon gear I would need to adjust the exposure on all of the video clips I took with it in post which would add time and cost to my client productions. This simply does not make sense for me.
Tom