all around lens

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lucien

Senior Member
Hi, this is my second post and at least it's in the right section now. I'm new to the board and photography in general. I have a medium range lens and I'm trying to build my collection on a budget. 28-200mm, and 75-20mm I have. Out of these 2 lens which one should I choose. I like the prime but is an all around lens more bang for the buck? And will picture quality drop if I pick up a 18-55mm

1) Nikon af-s Nikkor 18-55mm f3.5/5.6G ED II

2) Nikon af-s Nikkor 50mm 1.8 D

an all purpose lens would be great and more useful but will I lose anything if I get the prime instead

Thanks in advance,
 
J

J-see

Senior Member
Personally I like primes but while many are indeed sharper than most zooms, the disadvantage is their fixed focal length. You can always shoot the same shots of a longer focal length with a prime, with some effort, but never those of a shorter. It implies the 18-55mm can do everything the 50mm does but the opposite is not true.

You have to decide what you prefer but when building a kit, primes are usually the more expensive way of expanding it. With the 18-55mm you increase your current range from 28-200mm to 18-200mm. When you get the prime, nothing changes there.

The choice will be; sharpness or range.

Even if you'd prefer the prime, give the 35mm some thought. I'd personally would pick that one over the 50mm.

Also; I shot many a sharp shot with the 18-55mm. It's not as if that one is soft. Depending your cam, the difference in sharpness between both might not be that massive.
 
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W

wornish

Senior Member
lucien said:
Hi, this is my second post and at least it's in the right section now. I'm new to the board and photography in general. I have a medium range lens and I'm trying to build my collection on a budget. 28-200mm, and 75-20mm I have. Out of these 2 lens which one should I choose. I like the prime but is an all around lens more bang for the buck? And will picture quality drop if I pick up a 18-55mm

1) Nikon af-s Nikkor 18-55mm f3.5/5.6G ED II

2) Nikon af-s Nikkor 50mm 1.8 D

an all purpose lens would be great and more useful but will I lose anything if I get the prime instead

Thanks in advance,
Click to expand...

There is always a trade off between a zoom and a prime. Whats right for you personally only you can judge.

The prime will give you more detail than the zoom.

but ...you lose the flexibility of composition that the zoom gives you.
but... you can almost always zoom with your feet unless you are in a tight space.

If you do go down the prime route then you end up having to swap lenses more often and could risk missing a shot, and have to carry more weight around if you have multiple primes.

So its really down to you.
 
T

TedG954

Senior Member
The 18-55 will be a fine lens for your camera and it will provide very good photos.

Of the lenses you noted, the 18-55 would be my choice (I have one).

Good luck.
 
L

lucien

Senior Member
thanks so far, If there are anymore suggestions I would appreciate it. I'm kind of leaning towards the 18-55. I like the flexibility
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
The advantages of primes, in my opinion, is that (typically) they are lighter/have less bulk, they're typically faster (lower aperture) and images are often sharper and deliver far less distortion. They're also less expensive generally speaking. Personally, I don't see their fixed focal length as being a disadvantage at all. Yes, they will require you to get more involved with your shooting since you'll be zooming with your feet and that's a good thing. I don't worry about "missed" shots, personally; I only concern myself with the shots I did get. You're going to miss shots no matter what. That's just part of it.

All that being said, I like zoom lenses. I own and shoot zoom lenses. The advantage of zoom lenses is... They zoom.
....
 
N

nickt

Senior Member
As everybody said, its up to you. 50mm prime can be a bit much if you are shooting indoors in normal sized rooms. You may not be able to back up enough. Some like the 35mm as j-see said. My everyday most used lens is the 18-105. It really covers a lot of situations. Refurbs go for around $200.
 
F

fotojack

Senior Member
I have 2 zoom lenses...the 18-55 and the 18-105. My preference? The 18-105. It's an all around general zoom that offers the wide angle of the 18 with the reach of the 105. And like nickt said, they're cheap (inexpensive). The IQ is nothing to sneeze at either. Very good lens for the money.
 
hark

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
You've received some positive comments towards the 18-55mm zoom so here's a benefit for the 50mm: it is an f/1.8 lens which means it is faster. It will focus better in low light situations plus it will allow you to have a shallower depth of field. As the others have said, choosing one lens over the other is a matter of personal preference. Both lenses have their advantages...you just need to decide which advantages are important at this stage of the game. :)

Welcome. :cool:
 
H

hrstrat57

Senior Member
Never shot with a D40/50/60/70

Does a D lens autofocus on that camera?

I would recommend the prime but if not a 35 F/1.8 G DX or 50 F/1.8 G for the OP because I think they are the proper learning tools.

If the OP is really just after snapshots the kit lens pair (18-55 VR and 55-200 VR ) is a solid low budget choice. Nice choices for snapshots in bright light......I use my kit pair with the D300 on walkarounds all the time, lightweight and surprising good IQ. I was shocked at how good they are ( tho bokeh can be a bit busy much better than other brands kit glass) On a 6 MP camera they will shine brightly methinks.

Sorry tho don't know much about the D50 so users of it should of course chime in and recommend.
 
H

hrstrat57

Senior Member
Hmm appears D glass will autofocus on D50?

https://support.nikonusa.com/app/an...-i-use-with-the-d100,-d80,-d70s,-d70,-or-d50?

Any members/Users with successful experience AF D glass on the OP camera model? If so the OP can explore the wide range of D AF glass.....my signature is full of them and the value that goes with them!! (cheap and good!)

Love!

Of course the best advice is make friends with a good LCS that sells both used and new Nikkor lenses and demo on your camera! Buy what appeals to your eye and the way you want to shoot (and budget of course)

:)
 
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Englischdude

Senior Member
with the 18-55 you will gain 10mm focal length. do you need this? check the exif data of alot of the pics you have taken in the past and see what focal length you have been using until now. if you see that alot of the pics are around the 50 mark the the clear decision for me would be the 50mm AFD. Fantastic lens for the money, razor sharp, fast for low light. go to a shop and take your camera, shoot some pics between 18 and 28. is this focal range interesting for you? Could you even borrow one from a friend for a while? The way I see it you have a huge focal length covered already, what you are missing is a fast prime. the 18-55, while being a great lens, is also quite a conflict in focal length with a 28-200. if you really want to explore the wider end is it not worth considering a zoom lens somewhere in the 10-30 range? Then you have wide angle right up to telezoom covered.
 
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lucien

Senior Member
I've created a monster LOL. I'm going to go with the 18-55mm. Thanks alot guys. There is so much knowledge/experience here. I'm using an iPad now but one of the posters mentioned lens for sale. I'll check them out when it comes time to buy
 
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lucien

Senior Member
Yeah I kinda got the 28-200 because the camera was body only when I got it. And I needed a lens Then I went and got a Nikon at 75-240. Now I need a 18-55mm. Later down the road, I'll see what range I need/missing
 
A

aroy

Senior Member
I have both the 18-55 VR-II (which came with my D3300) and 35mm F1.8DX. Both have their use. The zoom is a versatile all purpose lense when light is good. For concerts, weddings and indoor functions I use the 35mm exclusively. Once you get used to it, a prime is pretty flexible and barring very wide shots the 35mm serves extremely well especially at F1.8.

One good thing about the 18-55 is that it can focus very close at 55mm and serves as a semi-macro, plus you can go to 18mm is space is a constraint.
 
L

lucien

Senior Member
Aroy, unless I'm mistaken. The prime your talking about isn't the prime I seek. 55mm, I think your mentioning a 35mm, is that a better lens than the 55mm? You have to go easy on me because I'm new to the game lol. All's well that ends well. I'm going to go for the 18-55 I think everyone knows were talking in mm's here. Aperture is another thing. And they are both 1.8 The lens is determined, I just got this camera last month so everything in on hold lenswise til. Summer time. I need the practice anyway.

I'm glad to be in the NIKON club and even SRL land ;)
 
S

skene

Senior Member
Well what ends all is your budget constraints... If you are like most people, and just starting to get into this as a small hobby prepare yourself as what you seek may end up costing you more in the long run. If you are well behaved, it would be better to save money to purchase the better glass, and none is the wiser.
If you are trying to figure out a good way of getting some premium glass with slight benefits of a prime, then prepare to spend a bit more of your funds as while there are a few lenses that fit the bill, it may not fit your budget.
Lenses like this I would include are:
Nikon 17-55 F2.8
Tamron 17-50 F2.8

These would help give you a basic range with better low light capabilities. However they do come at a cost (quality/price). For information on them it would be best to use google, as it would provide you with more information.
 
A

aroy

Senior Member
lucien said:
Aroy, unless I'm mistaken. The prime your talking about isn't the prime I seek. 55mm, I think your mentioning a 35mm, is that a better lens than the 55mm? You have to go easy on me because I'm new to the game lol. All's well that ends well. I'm going to go for the 18-55 I think everyone knows were talking in mm's here. Aperture is another thing. And they are both 1.8 The lens is determined, I just got this camera last month so everything in on hold lenswise til. Summer time. I need the practice anyway.

I'm glad to be in the NIKON club and even SRL land ;)
Click to expand...

. The D50 has a focus motor, so all the "D" lenses will autofocus. The most optimum lense is the 50mm F1.8D which retails for around US $100.
. The 18-55 VR-II is an excellent all round lens as long as there is enough light.
. The 35mm F1.8DX is also an inexpensive lens that I use regularly for indoors functions.

My only contention is that with newer bodies like D3200/D3300 which have excellent high ISO capability and high MP, there is very little justification for acquiring a D50, unless you want "D" lens compatibility and higher flash synch speeds.
 
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