[Glenn]

Hi,

I am buying a Nikon D50 digital camera and I am looking to get the Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G ED-IF AF-S DX Zoom Nikkor Lens to go with it.

This is the lens that normally is sold with the D70 kit. If anyone has a good used one for sale or knows of one at a good price pelase let me know. I am looking at eBay and there are lots of them available there and I may go that route if necessary.

Thanks,
Glenn

[Man-Fai Wong]

Before you buy one off eBay, you might want to check out Nikoncafe.com to see if anybody is selling one over there. You might end up w/ a better deal over there or one in better condition perhaps.

You might also enjoy the general community over there, if you were looking for a camera/photography forum site w/ a slant towards Nikon.

Happy shooting...

_Man_

[Glenn]

Hi,

Thanks, I will check out Nikoncafe.com,

Glenn

[Rob Gillespie]

The prices have come down recently as a lot of people are selling them off to make way for the new 18-200 VR.

Ultimate Nikon lens bargain though is the 50mm 1.8D. Killer sharpness and low-light ability.

[Man-Fai Wong]

Well, if you don't mind used and can get it for $150-200, I hear the Nikon 70-210 can be a great bargain too for a tele zoom.

I have the 50 f/1.8. Yeah, it's a good bargain, but I'm not too crazy about this focal length (on a DX body anyway) and rarely use mine. Most people use it (or the 50 f/1.4) for formal portraits and maybe certain kinds of indoors (semi-)action photos -- I've used it on occasion for the latter myself. If you don't shoot such, you might be better off spending the $$$ on something else, maybe even the 60mm f/2.8 micro or Sigma 50 f/2.8 macro, if you like shooting macros at those focal lengths. OR maybe an SB800 speedlight -- or a good diffuser for the speedlight.

Personally, even if I want to shoot portraits, I'd rather go w/ something a bit longer like 85 f/1.8 (or f/1.4 if you can afford it). Or if I'm shooting candids indoors, I'd prefer the 35 f/2 most of the time.

_Man_

[Glenn]

Hi,

I will probably buy a 50mm 1.8D just for general use. Then later maybe I will buy a larger zoom, I will look into the 70-210 to go along with the 18-70.

Thanks,
Glenn

[Rob Gillespie]

Glenn I have the 'D' version of the 70-210. I boughht it off eBay for £230 and will get a similar price when I sell it in the near future.

Nice lens. Sharp and fast to focus but personally I find it heavy and a bit clunky to use. When I get my hands on the 18-200 it'll go up for sale.

I love taking the 50 1.8 out because it's dead light, dead sharp and I find the fixed length (admittedly a tad long, as Man says) helps me to think about composition a bit more. I've also just got the Tokina 12-24 but haven't had chance to really do much with it yet. It'll get a good workout when I'm in Glen Coe next month.

I'd love to get the 85mm. And the 60 macro (or 105). And the 70-200 VR

Man - how do you find the 35mm F2? I've heard good things about it but then the Sigma 30mm 1.4 came out. Your thoughts on that one?

[Man-Fai Wong]

Hi, Rob.

I don't have the 70-200VR, but I do have the Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 and find it good enough for my needs in most instances. Yeah, there are times when I wish I have VR, but so far, I have not been able to justify the much higher price tag (and the extra cost associated w/ upgrading). Yeah, like all(?) Sigma lenses, it does have a bit of yellow cast and softer contrast than roughly equiv Nikon counterparts. Maybe someday I will bend and take the plunge for the upgrade -- almost did a couple times.

I like the 35 f/2. I'd say it's about as sharp as my 50 f/1.8. It's a tad heavier and about the same size (and can use the same lens hood for DX bodies). I use a clip-on Nikon hood for it (and the 50 f/1.8) -- it's designed for 50mm lens and might cause vignetting if shooting the 35mm on a FF body (ie. film). Edges are a bit soft when the lens is opened wide much like my 50 f/1.8. I got it maybe a year before the Sigma 30 f/1.4 came out. Haven't seen the Sigma in action, but I suspect it's a bit softer than the Nikon 28 f/1.4 at or near wide open w/ a bit of yellow cast thrown in (as I pointed out above about Sigma lenses). I might consider upgrading to that at some point since the street price seems much lower than I expected.

I was also considering the Sigma 20 f/1.8 before, but maybe they will come out w/ something better for APS-sized digital bodies like they did w/ the 30 f/1.4. In the meantime, I still use my 18-70DX when I need to go wideangle. I did also consider getting the Tokina 12-24, but I'm not sure I really need to go *that* wide.

Yeah, I agree that using a fixed focal length lens does help train oneself to see better for composition. And actually, I very often use a fixed focal length lens as my walkaround.

Are you getting the 18-200VR? I told my sister to get one for her D50 since she doesn't want to lug around extra lenses (or a pod). I'll probably get to check it out when she finally does -- but that might not happen til summer.

_Man_

[Rob Gillespie]

I will be getting the 18-200 definitely. It looks to be a very promising lens and the VR will help a hand-hold kludge like me.