Recommend a wide landscape lens for me, please

Basic camera D60, currently have 35mm f1.8 and 18-105mm lenses
Im going to stick with my 35mm for general shooting but would like to change the other one. Generally I dont use much outside of 18-24mm range for scenery and landscapes so was thinking of a wide zoom such as the tokina 12-24mm (II model has AF) which is about in my budget once Ive sold the other lens.
The main thing Im not happy with the 18-105 is that is a bit soft which is not what Id expect from a decent nikon lens.

I assume your budget is around 300 quid then? Depending on how wide you want to go, I would also take a look at the Sigma 10-20 f/4-5.6

well if we are talking uk proper money then it would be max £350

you mean sigma 10-20?
Im just a little worried about them as they have had mixed reviews - the original or gray market lenses are quite different quality

oops, yes - the 10-20mm.

I have the Nikon 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G and I can't say enough good things about it (check my blog for some shots I've taken with it). If you want to stretch your budget a little you could get a used or refurbished one for less than new.

thanks, I have looked and in the UK at least I still cant afford the nikon version (refurbished are generally around £500), despite the great reviews it has had. Im probably looking at the sigma 10-20 or tokina 12-24mm in my price range, unless anyone has any other suggestions, or a definate opinion tokina vs sigma?

edit - just found a used nikon for £334, but still open to suggestions as it is not in excellent condition

Before you scrap the 18-105, I suggest you go into the shooting menu and enter the "set picture Control" area and after picking your preferred shooting area (standard, neutral, vivid, etc) adjust your sharpening to about +7 or so. I thought my lens was a bit soft too until someone posted in here the same info I just recommended. My pictures became noticeably sharper and I have thoroughly enjoyed this lens ever since.

co2jae said:

Before you scrap the 18-105, I suggest you go into the shooting menu and enter the "set picture Control" area and after picking your preferred shooting area (standard, neutral, vivid, etc) adjust your sharpening to about +7 or so. I thought my lens was a bit soft too until someone posted in here the same info I just recommended. My pictures became noticeably sharper and I have thoroughly enjoyed this lens ever since.

Click to expand...

That was probably me, and yes... Changing that setting made a huge difference for me when I was shooting my D40 and on my D5100 as well; and with all my lenses.

so thats the cameras own software editing the photo as its saved? does it affect the raw image? Ive just done three test shots with neutral, medium low sharp, high sharp, but they all look identical in raw, perhaps it only affects the jpegs

I'll defer the question to H-Fish......

bechdan said:

so thats the cameras own software editing the photo as its saved? does it affect the raw image? Ive just done three test shots with neutral, medium low sharp, high sharp, but they all look identical in raw, perhaps it only affects the jpegs

Click to expand...

It doesn't affect the Raw but the image you see on the LCD is a jpeg embedded in the Raw files so these settings do affect the appearance of the image on the LCD even when you shoot Raw.

​

I thought so, well thanks for the suggestion anyway, I hadnt really explored those settings, I post process my images anyway so can increase the sharpness better with software than the cameras built in, I think I was just a bit disappointed with the 18-105, its definately better than the kit 18-55, and wasnt bad at the price I bought it (£140).
What do you think of the other lenses suggested sigma 10-20 or tokina 12-24 or other?

as an aside - ive bought a holga nikon lens from ebay for £13 as a fun project, not arrived yet though

bechdan said:

What do you think of the other lenses suggested sigma 10-20 or tokina 12-24 or other?

Click to expand...

I have a Tokina f/2.8 11-16mm that I love; very sharp and very good contrast. It's the most difficult lens I have to use effectively, but it's an excellent lens, hands down. Expect some barrel distortion at 11mm but the correction is a snap in Photoshop. I toyed with the idea of the Tok' 12-24mm instead but wanted the constant f/2.8 of the 11-16mm.

"The main thing Im not happy with the 18-105 is that is a bit soft which is not what Id expect from a decent nikon lens."

Is it the lens or your technique and maybe the settings you use....

Ive tried everything I am capable of, even on a tripod its still soft, ken rockwell review confirms my thoughts too.
Im always happy to try new techniques tho

bechdan said:

Ive tried everything I am capable of, even on a tripod its still soft, ken rockwell review confirms my thoughts too.
Im always happy to try new techniques tho

Click to expand...

Did you adjust the sharpening in the setup menu as suggested in Post #6?

Because that really does do a LOT to improve image quality. The default setting is quite soft.

Not in RAW it doesnt, read the previous posts
Anyhoo, im looking for a sharper lens, not editing software

Horoscope Fish said:

I have a Tokina f/2.8 11-16mm that I love; very sharp and very good contrast. It's the most difficult lens I have to use effectively, but it's an excellent lens, hands down. Expect some barrel distortion at 11mm but the correction is a snap in Photoshop. I toyed with the idea of the Tok' 12-24mm instead but wanted the constant f/2.8 of the 11-16mm.

Click to expand...

What makes it difficult to shoot with?

bechdan said:

Ive tried everything I am capable of, even on a tripod its still soft, ken rockwell review confirms my thoughts too.
Im always happy to try new techniques tho

Click to expand...

"The photos are nice and sharp most of the time, but if you're looking closely, the 18-105mm is Nikon's fuzziest lens in the corners at 18mm. Even the $100 18-55mm is better."


Seems it's Fuzzy in the corners at 18mm....If your being swayed by Ken the lens to get is the 18-55

I usually shoot wider, then crop to the desired image size...

bechdan said:

What makes it difficult to shoot with?

Click to expand...

It's not difficult to shoot with, it's difficult to shoot with effectively. I'm sorry if the statement confused you and I can see why it would. My use of the word "effectively" is going to be really hard to explain.

An "effective" shot to me is one that really works on some level. There's a difference between a shot that looks okay, one that is technically correct; and one that really works or has "wow factor" to it and, typically, it's a compositional tool that makes the difference. The Tokina 11-16mm has a lot of very powerful aesthetic potential that I find difficult to unlock, I guess, is the best way I can put it. This is a personal issue and no fault of the lens. I hope I'm making sense here...



...

I get it. I had the same problem when I had the Tokina 11-16. It was a great lens with huge potential but i could not master it often enough to suit me. of course I seldom use a tripod and I now think that lens should be used with a tripod whenever possible. I am not sure there are any great wide angle lenses out there at that price point.