Which lens?

mtracerz

mtracerz

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Im looking at buying myself a D40 for my xmas (since I cant see santa bringing it for some reason :lol:) Been looking at various ones over the past week and just waiting for the right one at the right price to appear.

However, I'm a complete newbie at the photography game, and have no idea which lens I will need to go for?

What would be a good starting lens? I will need it for every day general shots, aswell as nature / sports.

Wont really be able to break the bank too much on this one, but would like to know what options were open to me.

Thanks in advance :)
 
how about a sigma apo 70-300mm for nature and sports stuff, can be had for just over £100 S/H and the 18-55 kit lens for generel walk about should be ok to get you started till you want to upgrade and spent a lil more on lenses
 
smalls said:
how about a sigma apo 70-300mm for nature and sports stuff, can be had for just over £100 S/H and the 18-55 kit lens for generel walk about should be ok to get you started till you want to upgrade and spent a lil more on lenses
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ah, great. that not too expensive at all.
Shall keep an eye open for one of those too then. What kind of price does the kit lens go for s/h?
 
The 18-55mm kit lens on the D40 is actually pretty good for a kit lens. I've still got my D40 even though I've gone through a D200 and a S5Pro, I still use it a bit.

The sigma 70-300mm is a good lens, make sure you get the APO one.

If you want to do portraits I'd recommend the 50mm f1.8, though it will only be manual focus on the D40, its produces some lovely bokeh!
 
If you're going for a prime I'd get the 35mm AF-S dx. It will focus on the D40 and is a very good lens. If you think you'll need a bit of zoom then possibly the 70-300mm or the 55-200mm. I have the 55-200mm because it compliments the kit lens nicely.

To be honest, I've stopped using the kit lens (18-55mm). I initially thought I couldn't live without it because it's quite a versatile lens. But after getting the 35mm prime I usually have either that or my 55-200mm on. So I reckon 1 of those 2, depending on what you like to shoot, would be the best option.
 
A 'prime' lens is a fixed focal length lens, for example a 50mm lens, as opposed to a zoom lens. The benefit of the prime lens is that there are fewer lens elements and is normally of superior optical quality. Prime lenses usually have a wider maximum aperture than zoom lenses and so are more beneficial in low light.

The downside is that they are not as versatile as zoom lenses.
 
The 'nifty fifty' which you will hear mentioned a lot is a 50mm lens which is inexpensive (£70) and has a wide maximum aperture of f1:8.

Wider aperture lenses (fast lenses) tend to be more expensive but the 50mm 1:8 is very popular due to it's price.

A large aperture has two things going for it........

Firstly - it's wide so allows light in easily which allows you to take shots with faster shutter speeds in low light (hence the name fast lens) when a smaller aperture would require flash.

Secondly - it gives a narrow depth of field which allows you to (more easily) have your subject in focus whilst blurring the background.

Large apertures / shallow depth of focus can take a bit of getting used to so this lens is a great cost effective introduction.
 
redhed17 said:
A 'prime' lens is a fixed focal length lens, for example a 50mm lens, as opposed to a zoom lens. The benefit of the prime lens is that there are fewer lens elements and is normally of superior optical quality. Prime lenses usually have a wider maximum aperture than zoom lenses and so are more beneficial in low light.

The downside is that they are not as versatile as zoom lenses.
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First off, thanks for the detailed reply.

So if im going to be looking at nature being my main interest, would it be better for me to go for a zoom or prime?

Im going to guess zoom, however well aware im probably totally wrong, going to need to read up on understanding what all these lens purpose and advantages are.
 
dinners said:
The 'nifty fifty' which you will hear mentioned a lot is a 50mm lens which is inexpensive (£70) and has a wide maximum aperture of f1:8.

Wider aperture lenses (fast lenses) tend to be more expensive but the 50mm 1:8 is very popular due to it's price.

A large aperture has two things going for it........

Firstly - it's wide so allows light in easily which allows you to take shots with faster shutter speeds in low light (hence the name fast lens) when a smaller aperture would require flash.

Secondly - it gives a narrow depth of field which allows you to (more easily) have your subject in focus whilst blurring the background.

Large apertures / shallow depth of focus can take a bit of getting used to so this lens is a great cost effective introduction.
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Yeah iv read quite a few threads regarding the 'nifty fifty'
What kind of range does this come with though? You mention the depth of field, which im guessing would be effective for the likes of focusing on a bird and blurring out the area of tree you dont want, however does it have a good reach?
 
I think you'll get more advice on lenses for Nature pics in the Animals and Nature forum, but something to keep in mind when buying any equipment is how much do you want to spend? Generally you get what you pay for when it comes to lenses.

So it is balancing act as to results/cost/and how serious you want to take things. :shrug: A 70-300mm lens is a good starting point for £100-£160, but then you may soon upgrade, so do you go for a higher mid quality lens straight from the off , or then again, do you go for top quality. :shrug: Dependent on your chosen subject, you may need a lens with a bit more reach as well. :eek: Decisions decisions. :lol: Good luck. ;)
 
mtracerz said:
Im looking at buying myself a D40 for my xmas
What would be a good starting lens? I will need it for every day general shots, aswell as nature / sports. ...
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comments from a D40 newcomer........

the user manual is rubbish
goto Amazon and buy "Nikon D40 Field Guide" by D Busch - excellent

also the camera may come with the original kit lens, usually a 18-55mm so you'll just need to add a zoom

i bought a Nikon 55-200 AF-S VR here for £130 (VR is Vibration Reduction = a good thing to have when using longer focal lengths)
 
There's been some good advice gven already and I wouldn't want to contradict any of it. If, however, you're going to be buying the body and lens(es) separately then I would not discount the Nikon 18-105 AF-S or 18-135 AF-S lenses for general purpose use. Neither have the reach for wildlife (i.e. birds/animals) but compliment the D40 nicely.

Whichever lens you decide to go for you need to bear in mind that for auto-focus on the D40 it'll need an internal focus motor - either AF-S or AF-I in Nikon parlance.

HTH :)
 
dinners said:
The 'nifty fifty' which you will hear mentioned a lot is a 50mm lens which is inexpensive (£70) and has a wide maximum aperture of f1:8...
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new here, which allows me 1 "dumb" question a week ..:D

isn't the "nifty 50" term used for a Canon prime ---OP is buying Nikon D40

or is it a generic term ?
 
mtracerz said:
Yeah iv read quite a few threads regarding the 'nifty fifty'
What kind of range does this come with though? You mention the depth of field, which im guessing would be effective for the likes of focusing on a bird and blurring out the area of tree you dont want, however does it have a good reach?
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a 50mm lens is a prime lens with a fixed focal length
just to confuse the issue... the Nikon sensor is smaller than a "full frame" camera and a 50mm lens on a smaller sensor will "appear" to give the same image size/coverage as a 75mm on an old standard 35mm camera
others can explain better ..........

so if you buy a body only - I'd buy a 35mm or 50mm prime
then add a 70 - 300mm for birds

if you get a body complete with usual 18-55 kit lens, just add a 70-300mm

check out the "Classified" - I bought there - very helpful Sellers !
..
 
Yardbent said:
new here, which allows me 1 "dumb" question a week ..:D

isn't the "nifty 50" term used for a Canon prime ---OP is buying Nikon D40

or is it a generic term ?
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Pretty much a generic term for cheap wide aperture 50mm lens :thumbs:
 
mtracerz said:
could you define a 'prime lens' for me?
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if you fancy some reading..........

try Ken Rockwell excellent reviews about Nikon and Nikkor lenses

D40..........."here"
55-200 VR..."here"

these reviews are cross-linked to others - all you need to know about D40....:thumbs:
 
Yardbent said:
if you fancy some reading..........

try Ken Rockwell excellent reviews about Nikon and Nikkor lenses

D40..........."here"
55-200 VR..."here"

these reviews are cross-linked to others - all you need to know about D40....:thumbs:
Click to expand...

ended up getting a 40d mate :)

but thank you for the help.
 
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