Nikon Lenses

jordanogrady

jordanogrady

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Going to pick up my first DSLR in the morning fingers crossed! Got a D40 from PC world end of line stock for £195.

Now... I was going to buy the D60 and get the VR lens kit.... but this is going to be so much cheaper.....

Suppose my question is.... are the VR lenses good, I basically want an all round lens to have a go with, nothing megga expensive, will the stock one be ok, or am I better off upgrading to something like Nikon 55-200mm VR.

Also what are these nifty fifty's that peoiple go on about..... I cant find a nikon post with lens help, if someone has a link, or can briefly describe what lenses are going to be suitable for me... I know its a difficult question as it really depends what i'm shooting... basically going to egypt in 2 weeks and would like some nice holiday pics, also going to see a concert (michael jackson) when we get back so something with a little zoom i'm thinking, then I love my dog, so something for close up stuff too.

Sorry for being a complete newbie, I'm a member of some other forums where people ask silly beginner questions all the time!

Jordan
 
cheap lenses = cheap pics - there is no substitute for high grade profesional lenses - anything else is a compromise. Get the VERY best you can afford - even if you can't afford them!
 
the 55-200mm is a pretty good place to start (assuming you've got the 18-55mm kit lens too). I'd also look at either of the 35 or 50mm Nikon primes too for use in low light...
 
Deleted.

But some people talk poo on here.
 
You CAN you an AF 50mm f/1.8 on the D40/D40x/D60 BUT these cameras do not have the focus motor in the body and so rely on the lens's focus motor. This is ok on newer AFS lenses but AF lenses will be MANUAL FOCUS on these cameras. Still useable but manual....
 
The D40 is a great camera capable of producing very good results, the only downside is it has no AF motor in the body so you're looking at either nikon AF-s or sigma HSM lenses, tamron have also started making lenses with a motor in which are worth considering, of course every nikon lens made in the last 30 years will work on your camera using manual focus

My money would go on a tamron 17-50mm if I could afford it, if not the 18-70mm nikkor is very good and can be bought secondhand for £120-£150
 
wack61 said:
My money would go on a tamron 17-50mm if I could afford it, if not the 18-70mm nikkor is very good and can be bought secondhand for £120-£150
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Agreed - those would be the first two I'd look at.

Both are excellent and are well capable of professional, publishable results.
 
Boldonian said:
The Nikon 35m f1.8 is a fantastic lens for the money. Will AF on the D40 /D60 as well. Just got one myself , infinitley better than the nifty fifty on a crop body and only £180 new. Total bargain in my book.
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The thing with the Nifty 50 is as you say with crop sensor it then becomes a 75mm excellent portrait lens.

Love my 50 especially for low light and since no flash in museums great for that.

If you can drop on the Nikor 18-70 as mentioned that is a cracking lens i want one myself.

Start off with something like these especially untill you decide exactly what you want to shoot before looking at the bigger zooms.

Welcome to the forum i noticed your location also.
 
If you want good results that will please you and give acceptable A4 prints and will not be selling or publishing your pictures the 18-55 kit lens is great. You will not often find a need for VR at these focal lengths.

For a bit more reach the 55-200 AF-S VR is excellent value and also gives great results for what you seem to want.

With these 2 lenses you will have a good starting point to find out where you want to go without having spent a fortune.

You can then concentrate on focusing, composition, exposure, WB, sharpening, contrast, DoF, etc etc :D

Of course there are better lenses - but at a price, as suggested you may wish to buy second hand although you may have to wait a while before your chosen lens comes up.
 
You might as well can try out the 35mm F1.8!
I just it quite a lot with my D90, sharp and fast focus!
 
get the tamron 17-50 as suggested above. you will love this lens as i do. if the 50mm is too short get the 18-70mm. but if you are getting D60 i would say get the D40 instead :) better value
 
jordanogrady said:
Just been to pick up my new D40, £195 bargain in my eyes!

Now I just need a decent starter lens! Its got the standard one that comes with it, but i'd like a bit better one to see where i'm at!

Is something like this a good starting block

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=250447411172

Jordan
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That would be my recomended lens for the D40 (and the Tamron 17-50).

Don't go mad and pay too much though, I bought one full of dust here for £65, and a boxed mint and immaculate one for £95 (Ebay)
 
puddleduck said:
That would be my recomended lens for the D40 (and the Tamron 17-50).

Don't go mad and pay too much though, I bought one full of dust here for £65, and a boxed mint and immaculate one for £95 (Ebay)
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Cheers mate, will keep an eye on a few, or if anyone wants to sell me one cheap.. let me know :)
 
Lazlo Woodbine said:
I just clicked on the link and it seems to have gone for £2.20! Someone got themselves a bargain!
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exactly what i thought! had to read it twice

this is helpful for me too as im going to france in the summer and want some holiday shots and basically have the same needs as jordanogrady so thank jordan for making this thread. hope we dont bid on the same lenses now haha
 
josh mcgarel said:
exactly what i thought! had to read it twice

this is helpful for me too as im going to france in the summer and want some holiday shots and basically have the same needs as jordanogrady so thank jordan for making this thread. hope we dont bid on the same lenses now haha
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Not a problem mate!

The lens sold somewhere else, so the bidding has ended!

Really newbie question here, but when i'm taking pics the numbers at the bottom, when looking through the view finder are really blur! Why is this! Also when taking photo's on AF mode, they are blue, but turn out clear! I cant work this out, is there a button to chancge the focus or something?

REally feel like I need a better lens than the standard!

Are the nifty fifty's good for close up shots???

Jordan
 
Really newbie question here, but when i'm taking pics the numbers at the bottom, when looking through the view finder are really blur! Why is this!

Adjust your "diopter", its a little switch on the right of the viewfinder - don't be afraid of the user manual, its pretty handy :)
 
puddleduck said:
Really newbie question here, but when i'm taking pics the numbers at the bottom, when looking through the view finder are really blur! Why is this!

Adjust your "diopter", its a little switch on the right of the viewfinder - don't be afraid of the user manual, its pretty handy :)
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Cheers mate, literally got the camera, put it on charge then went out! Came back, put the battery in, and started messing! Its not like a true man to read instructions :LOL:
 
jordanogrady said:
Cheers mate, literally got the camera, put it on charge then went out! Came back, put the battery in, and started messing! Its not like a true man to read instructions :LOL:
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I never read mine either.. but it is really worth having a look as a newbie, waste of trees otherwise :LOL:
 
Nikon 18-55mm VR
18-135mm - like the 18-70mm
And possibly another 18-70mm.... Nikon

what are these worth, any worth mr making an offer. Got a chance to buy one or two.
 
jordanogrady said:
Was going to buy a how to DVD as I hate Reading! :LOL:
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You don't have to go to Reading to buy DVDs. It does have a very good a shopping centre, sure, but there must be some shops closer to Doncaster that sell them.

Plus, if you hate Reading, you'll really hate Slough.
 
StewartR said:
You don't have to go to Reading to buy DVDs. It does have a very good a shopping centre, sure, but there must be some shops closer to Doncaster that sell them.

Plus, if you hate Reading, you'll really hate Slough.
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Hahaha plonker.
 
£195 is an absolute bargain, I wish i had checked PC world, just paid £279 on Amazon. Did they have many left?
 
I'm the wrong one to ask - I'd rather sell my kidneys that use cheap glass...actually that's a lie - I'd rather sell your kidneys than use cheap glass...

Shorter zoom ratios are better in terms of image-quality as a general rule, but are better value in the long-term if you can't afford lots of seperate lenses...

To start with, decide what kind of photographs you're likely to be taking as that will have more to do with lens choice than any other factor. Once you decide on that, go for the best glass you can afford, even if it means buying 2nd-hand - easier to upgrade a single camera body once you outgrow it than to collect lots of cheap-er lenses and then realise you've outgrown them...
 
The problem with the above is that you are assuming "cheap" means no good, and in many cases this just isn't the case.

No one can tell the difference between a Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 or a Nikon 17-55 f/2.8 DX blind-tested. Both Thom Hogan and Photozone rate them the same. One is cheap - one isn't :)

Cheap doesn't mean poor. In many cases you pay for "build quality" (and the label!) not optical performance.
 
That's the caveat - most 3rd party lenses would die where I use them...
 
puddleduck said:
No one can tell the difference between a Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 or a Nikon 17-55 f/2.8 DX blind-tested. Both Thom Hogan and Photozone rate them the same. One is cheap - one isn't :)

Cheap doesn't mean poor. In many cases you pay for "build quality" (and the label!) not optical performance.
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Having owned both of those lenses (2x the 17-55) I can say +1, agree with it, build quality is a main factor when bying some of the higher end lenses.

you can still get some fantastic lenses for the money, cheap doesnt mean crap, just remind me the price of a 50mm 1.8? :LOL:
 
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