Customer Reviews

Nikon System Handbook

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This latest edition of the "Nikon System Handbook" is really starting to irritate me. First of all, many of us who have bought and read any of Moose's books pretty much know that he's a bought and paid for Nikon agent, but this edition seems to lack any sort of quality control whatsoever. I routinely find technical errors on nearly every page. With some of the lens descriptions he's merely plagiarized Nikon's factory spec sheets and descriptions but he never bothers to put them into current year context. If you are basing lens and camera buying decisions upon Moose's comments, keep in mind that Moose is not that long with his Nikon experience, and guess who's PAYING for those lenses? His standard phrasology of this and that lens being "tack sharp" gets boring and is frankly inaccurate. If Moose would actually READ his own book I would think that he would surely see the inaccuracies that he's spreading around. If you want more accurate Nikon equipment reviews (...)buy anything from Peter Braczko, e.g., the Nikon Pocket Book. Bjørn is not a paid Nikon field agent,--he's a Norwegian outdoor photographer with some of the best practical experience with things Nikon. Moose is a babe in the woods by comparison.

This is the one book to have if you own a Nikon camera. I can't think of a single thing that is not covered in detail here, and with clarity often missing from the factory manuals. The lens section is the real gem...far superior to the Magic Lantern series Nikon Lens book, which is very incomplete. I have both, and when I want lens information, I turn to The Nikon System Handbook. It has every lens in it, as far as I can tell, and every different model of every lens, to boot! (The Nikon Lens book just sits there on the shelf.) Buy this book.

This book (I've got the 5th Edition, and am odering the 6th - May 2000) is an indispensable reference for anyone who collects, uses, buys or sells Nikon lenses, cameras and accessories. Use it to find out about an item you see offered on eBay, or use it to write about the item you want to sell. Use it to learn about a Nikon item you have no owner's manual for, or use it to figure out which part of the Nikon system you want to buy next. (Disclaimer. I use only Nikon cameras -have owned 10 of them, so far, and mostly Nikon lenses, though I have owned 3 Tokinas - but Moose likes them, too.) Book is well organized and very readable.

This guy obviously knows a lot about photography, but he makes a lot of statements that are nothing but fluff, and are not bourne out by fact. He pans lenses that everyone else in the Nikon world raves about, and always pushes the most current Nikon gear, even when some of it is poorly rated by the rest of the community. If you want a good pictorial overview of the entire Nikon system, with serial numbers, production dates, etc .... then get the Brackzo book or the Nikon Compendium. This one is a lot of personal bias, heresay, and not a very useful reference. After you've seen the Brackzo book, you'll realize what a silly little exercise this one is, and what a waste of money and time it is.

Gee, I wonder which camera manufacturer pays this spokesperson to give us his honest and unbiased "opinions"? And the public is supposed to pay for it? I like Nikon equipment but the author's reviews of much of the stuff is full of hyperbole and marketing bunk. Unless you are a collector get Nikon's free catalog for the information you need. In addition, if you own Nikon equipment read your owner's manual which contains much more information than this overpriced book.

Owning older Nikon equipment and/or wishing to purchase some, this book is useful. I purchased this book to identify when certain Nikon lenses were in production. I had to update my knowledge of the Nikon world. This was most helpful when I had to replace a lens I had dropped...OOPS...In addition the Flash chapter was illuminating in regards to the many speedlights that Nikon has to offer. Listing the benefits and drawbacks to certain models helped me meet my needs on Ebay. However, more subjective than objective, it still is worth the price if you're in the market for used Nikon equipment.

I am not sure whether he has used those cameras or not, but
too many mistakes, non-exist features, wrong descriptions ...

This is a "must" for any Nikon photographer or collector. Moose covers every SLR in Nikon's history (OK, this ed. was released before the F100). Just an amazing depth of facts on each model (and sub-models: e.g. FM2 vs. FM2n). You have to buy this book before you buy any new or used Nikon SLR - especially used - anywhere! Oh, and Moose this Bud's for you!

Whether an occasional hobbyist or a hardcore enthusiast, this is a neat reference text. You can consider it a wonderfully comprehensive Nikon System catalogue on steriods.

Not only does it have a large majority of lenses, bodies, and accessories ever offered by Nikon, it offers opinions and reviews that are downright candid and down-to-earth.

The lens section is great if you're looking for a lens to fill in the gap in your selection. The photos are also nicely done.

It's a nice and handy reference to complete your knowledge about your Nikon system. The user has a lot of opinions, but he makes these plain, and is neither preachy, nor apologetic.

The accessories section is not complete, in that it doesn't talk about the smaller items. But then again, it's the lenses, the bodies, and the flashes that this book shines in. A good balance between technical talk, and down-to-earth photography lover to another.

Well worth the money if you're into Nikons.

Keep shooting!

taj d.

amateur photographer

I don't have the newest edition of this book, but it does not matter if you only purchase vintage Nikon equipment. This book has indepth information on all the Nikon SLR equipment and accesories made in the last fourty years. I find this a true asset when you are a collecter of Nikon equipment. Unfortantly, not all the reviews on items are detailed enough to inform, also because new equipment is introduced yearly it is never up to date. But, still the book is worth getting if you don't have an older edition. Not to bad.