Nikon prime lens or zoom?

[c22w1]

Hi

I can't afford a good quality 500mm prime so what would be the best option out if the following please:-
Decent zoom, say Sigma 150-500mm and use the resulting images at full res
Or
Good quality Nikon 300mm prime and cropping, having the same image but obviously at a lower resolution.
Which would give the best result for definition and sharpness etc?

 

[Nod]

Depends to some extent on the body it's to be used on. With the D800, I would be tempted to go the 300 and crop route although even the f/4 300mm Nikkor will be more expensive 2nd hand than the 150-500mm Sigma is new. Best bet would be to visit a shop with both options and see the results for yourself.

 

[c22w1]

Sorry I should have said, its for a D7000, visiting a shop is not an option for me unfortunately, there are no camera shops nearby, all have closed. There used to be 3 or 4 in Doncaster but not anymore. That Internet jobby is good for prices for bad for local shops.

 

[corpy]

300mm f4 with a tele con 1.4 makes a good combo , i used a canon 300 f4 with great results and i'm sure Nikon 300mm are as good !

 

[Nod]

A friend of mine uses a 300 Nikkor (not sure which one) on his D800 and crops in quite heavily to good effect. Your D7000, being a crop sensor, effectively does much the same and will give the same angle of view as a 450mm lens would on a full frame sensor. You should be able to crop in a bit to your camera's pictures and still get good results - play!!!

If you can find a 150-500 (or 50-500) Sigma at a reasonable price, you should be able to move it on for similar money should you feel the prime route would be better for you. Not sure if there are any available in the classifieds here but I'm sure one or more of the good 2nd hand dealers will have one for you.

 

[crieffy]

I've had Sigma's 50-500 (non OS model) and the 150-500 OS on my D300, but I was never completely satisfied with the results. Quite often needed stopping down to f8 for sharpness, hence a lot of light was generally needed - which is usually somewhat lacking in Shetland

I hired a 300mm f4 af-s from lensesforfire and was so impressed with it I bought one soon after. Very sharp at f4, and works very well with a 1.4x teleconverter, and quite well with a 1.7x, though autofocus will hunt more in low light.

Pretty much everything here is with the D300, 300mm and 1.4x combo > www.flickr.com/photos/crieffy/sets/72157622571613961/

John