Where Should My Priority On Glass Purchase Be For Automotive Photography?

I am fairly new to photography in general, and recently purchased a Nikon D3200 kit with 18-55mm, and have also purchased a 55-200mm, and a 35mm 1.8. A lot of my pictures will be automotive, basically what a person doing car shows would use (Will not be doing a ton of car shows, mostly pictures of custom cars that I personally own, or have worked on). I see my 35mm getting the most use so far.

Also, I see a lot of talk about filters when shooting cars, particularly to deal with automotive glass/glare, etc. What filters should I purchase for this? Any links on this would be appreciated! I am new to this, but this is my personal car that convinced me it was time to step out of point and shoot...(Not particularly clean here, it is actually my daily driver...)

To deal with Glare/reflections you should definitely get a polarizer. That should be all you need for filters.

Your shooting DX so the 35 is all you really need...and the CP filter of course...maybe a cool flash...

Now I think maybe the 28 would be the really cool glass to have to do cars. And if your shooting FX? I think the same thing the 28 (or the 35).

You might add a 60 macro for the detail shots...

That is what I would use but that is just me...

John has already addressed filters.. regarding Lenses... You have a good start.. I see most of your car shooting to be covered by the set you have. The 35 Prime will give you excellent quality and also max control on DOF. Your 18-55 is good if you need a wider view...

I would use what you have and after a couple of shoots, ask yourself then what you need! When you tell yourself too many times you wished you had XX, then you will know... at some point, you may see an 18-105 as a benefit if it covers your entire shooting range for a show with one lens.

You will know that yourself after shooting a couple. Good luck and share your work when you can!

Pat in NH

I am sure I will be only shooting DX, I have the D3200 now, and don't plan on upgrading unless the rumored D7200 comes to fruition. Are there different versions of a "Polorizer Filter" (I.E. If I go in and ask for a "Polarizer Filter" am I going to be laughed at, and asked "What kind?". lol! What does "CP" mean in "CP Filter". Thanks!

Circular Polarizer.

This is a link to my local camera shops page with polarizer filters (I like to support them, they are super helpful/patient with me), Anything on this page stand out as a go to filter for my needs?: Kenmore Camera - Polarizer

NFA Fabrication said:

I am sure I will be only shooting DX, I have the D3200 now, and don't plan on upgrading unless the rumored D7200 comes to fruition. Are there different versions of a "Polorizer Filter" (I.E. If I go in and ask for a "Polarizer Filter" am I going to be laughed at, and asked "What kind?". lol! What does "CP" mean in "CP Filter". Thanks!

Click to expand...

Yeah, CP filter or circular polarizer, all the same. Technically there are linear polarizers but for modern cameras you want the circular polarizer. Here is some polarizer info: Understanding & Using Polarizing Filters

The advice has been spot on so far. If your goal is to capture the automobile then you probably have all you need. That said, you can get some very cool and interesting perspectives if you add an ultrawide or even a fisheye into the mix. Definitely not a priority, but you should consider it down the road.

Polarizer will basically take away most/all of glare if you're shooting at an angle where there would be glare. I have a very generic, but a clear example-



I used a linear polarizer, but its roughly the same as a circular. Without it, whole surface had that steady glare. (and excuse my playing with HDR emulator in photoshop w/ this one)

To answer your question.
There are three lenses to look at
Tokina 11-16
Nikon 24-70 2.8
Nikon 14-24 2.8
I am not a fan of the Nikon 17-55 2.8
You want WIDE ANGLE stuff for what you are going to do. You don't need a CPF (Polarizing Filter) unless you are getting glare from the windshield. If these are vehicles that you have control over placement of where there are parked you should never need a CPF.
I do have a thread on here about shooting car shows also. The issue with the 35 is that the focal length is still 52.5mm You want something that you can get close and get wide. Spend the money on great glass for this. Don't cut corners with the glass. You can also use the kit lens at 18mm to give you great wide angle.
And a suggestion, the idea of shooting the car is for focus to be on the car, so don't clutter the background with trees, lake, etc. It can highlight the photo, but shouldn't take away from the car as the main center point.