18mm - 200mm?? Thoughts

[cottj]

I have a Nikon D5000, and a limited number of lenses. I never take them all out unless I'm specifically going to 'photograph' something, and this means I inevitably have the wrong one with me! I currently have an 18mm - 55mm which came with the camera, a 70 - 200mm and a Tamron which goes to 300mm but off the top of my head I can't remember the minimum. I do a lot of wildlife photography, and my eyesight isn't brilliant so I need an autofocus! I'm considering an 18mm - 200mm as a more all purpose lens, or 35mm - 270mm. Any thoughts/help/suggestions? Thanks.

 

[hashcake]

Too be honest the longer the focal range you can afford the better when it comes to wildlife.
You havenn't meantioned your budget but the Sigma 150-500 f/5-63 OS is quite popular amongst people into wildlife photography.
The problem with a super zoom lens with a long focal length from 18/50/55mm is that one you get to the maxium range you will lose image quality and that is the last thing you will want if you find yourself using the maximum range of the lens.
I learned the hard way with a Tamron 18-270, although for the price it is a good budget lens, I thought it would be good enough as an all round lens but wasn't good enough for shooting small birds.
I would perhaps stick with the 18-55 lens and look at either a used or a new Sigma 150-500.
I'm not trying to encourage you spend a lot of money, just trying to save you money from making the same mistakes I made

 

[cottj]

I thought I'd ask the question without budget... I can always put it on the credit card and pay it off in bits!!

 

[Bobsyeruncle]

I use an 18-200 as an everyday lens, and it's great for many things, but not really long enough for wildlife.

 

[hashcake]

I thought I'd ask the question without budget... I can always put it on the credit card and pay it off in bits!!

This hobby can be quite expensive, credit cards come in handy

 

[cottj]

I use an 18-200 as an everyday lens, and it's great for many things, but not really long enough for wildlife.

I'm probably going to end up with two more; and the 18-200 being the more 'everyday'.

 

[hashcake]

I'm probably going to end up with two more; and the 18-200 being the more 'everyday'.

2 she says, make it 3 when you also decide to get into landscapes as well

 

[Nod]

As a general walkabout lens the 18-200 is great but it is undeniably on the short side for wildlife. There is the Nikkor 18-300 as well which might be stretching the budget a little (it's about a hundred quid dearer than the 18-200 new) and is rarer 2nd hand. TBH, since you already appear to have a range of lenses available, I would buy a bag to hold them (or even just the 18-55 and the Tamron ?-300!) while out and about - there are some quite small bags available, although you may well end up with several as the kit expands (GAS!!!)

 

[ecniv]

get a nice lowpro bag stuffall your lenses in and practice fast swapping.. ?

18-200 I liked when I first started, but I could never get as crisp photos as the ones claimed on flickr to be shot by the same lens.
After I got the 105mm macro nikkor, I started to use the 18-200 less, and eventually got rid of it... Current bag of lenses in siggy - link to flickr for types of shots too (each lens should have a album of pics to see).

Mainly it is what works for you, experiment, rent (instead of buying) to try over a long weekend and if you find the lens you like, look used (budget being tight) or new for that lens...

best thing, go on a talkphotography meet in your area, see what other focal lengths ppl are using and if there are other nikon users with different lenses, ask nicely to try them out ?