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I'm a novice when it comes to choosing the right lens and I need some advice. Basically I want to buy 2 lenses, one for low range and another for long range. I had in mind a 17-55mm or 10-20mm and 18-200mm Nikon lenses. I was just reading some reviews on the 18-200mm and now don't know if it's a good buy or not. What would you guys recommend? I want to spend less than $700 on each if possible. Should I go Nikon or Sigma?
All inputs welcome.
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__________________ E46 M3 Vert AA HKS SC Stg 2, Porsche Cayenne / 997S
Last edited by boostedtwin; 04-29-2009 at 08:13 AM.
Reason: tx
I love my 18-200mm, as people say it is a great walkaround / do-it-all lens and seems to do it all pretty well. I'd start with just that then see where you find limitations, you'll probably want something wider later such as the Sigma 10-20mm depending on what you photograph or you may want something longer/faster if for example you are doing sports photography.
Buying lenses can become an addiction pretty quickly, the only good point is they tend to hold their value pretty well so you can get money back especially if you buy used.
Thanks for the advices. Talking with a friend photographer, he suggested going with Tokina 11-16mm 2.8 and a Nikon 70-300mm VR.
Seems like you'd have quite a gap in the middle with those two. What sort of things do you intend to be photographing, what sort of distance, moving or stationary objects etc?
Car shooting, landscape, regular shooting on vacations and such. Now I realized that I have a big gap there... What do you recommend? Initially I was going to go with the 18-200mm lens but they told me the 70-300mm has a much better quality on the pics. Should I go something else instead?
__________________ E46 M3 Vert AA HKS SC Stg 2, Porsche Cayenne / 997S
I would get the older 80-200 F2.8ED, You can pick up a nice used one for $6-800, its a great pro quality lens.
For wide angle zoom....not much that is great in your price range. There may be some good deals on the 17-55, its great lens and people are probably dumping them as they move to FF and the new 24-70.
BTW, the Tokina 11-16 gets great reviews, so maybe pick up that and a 50mm 1.4 or the 1.8. They are cheap and you will love them.
I think I'm going to keep the ones I bought and just get something between. I'm watching a few on ebay, what do you guys think of the Nikkor 17-55mm f2.8 AFS? They retail for $1k but there's a quite a few on ebay going for less.
Also, 2 other options: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX or Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC. Which of the 3 would be best?
I'm going to look into the 50mm 1.8 as well.
__________________ E46 M3 Vert AA HKS SC Stg 2, Porsche Cayenne / 997S
I would stay with Nikon, don't go Sigma path. I have 18-200 lens and its a great lens. However I would rate it as 8 in the 1-10 scale. It does have noticeable destruction and it's f stop will change depending on your zoom. Other than that I think its a great zoom lens. I'd get that lens 50mm f/1.4G, this is a brand new lens and it is amazing! Great for low light, travel, portraits and it will give you a much better image compared to 18-200. Just make sure you go with a new 50mm f/1.4G not the old one, although the older version is also good but this new model had the best reviews on the net.
I would stay with Nikon, don't go Sigma path. I have 18-200 lens and its a great lens. However I would rate it as 8 in the 1-10 scale. It does have noticeable destruction and it's f stop will change depending on your zoom. Other than that I think its a great zoom lens. I'd get that lens 50mm f/1.4G, this is a brand new lens and it is amazing! Great for low light, travel, portraits and it will give you a much better image compared to 18-200. Just make sure you go with a new 50mm f/1.4G not the old one, although the older version is also good but this new model had the best reviews on the net.
Why not Sigma? I heard they were pretty good and fairly cheaper than Nikon.
So you saying, go with the 50mm 1.4G and forget about the others? I can only get one lens now, just spent $3k on the camera and other lenses. The 50mm 1.4G goes for $470 now. The Nikon 17-55mm 2.8 is going for around $700 used. Which is a best buy?
__________________ E46 M3 Vert AA HKS SC Stg 2, Porsche Cayenne / 997S
Need help choosing pair of lenses for Nikon D300
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