Beginner and hopeful enthusiast looking for advice on lenses

Hi!

I few years ago I bought a D60 because it was relatively inexpensive and it was a lot better than my previous point and shoot that just died. Came with the 18-55mm lense. I really enjoy this camera and I'm now playing with all the manual settings and so is my wife.

I got some money to invest in that new hobby and I'm looking for lenses and general advices. I have about 500$ now, and I guess our next birthday present will all be related to photography. So that budget will be inflated to more than a thousand if I wait just a little or buy in advance.

I like to take pictures of my young kids, animals and landscapes. And I really enjoy sunsets and when it starts to get dark. I'm currently planning a trip to Tuscany next year and I'll be shooting a lot of landscape too. We also really enjoy the bokeh effect.

I've narrowed to the following lenses so far... They are all AF-S because of my D60 and eye vision limitation.. Manual focus is just not for me.

35mm 1.8g
50mm 1.8g
50mm 1.4g

Any other suggestion or what I should go for next ?

I'm wondering if I'll see much difference between f/stop 1.8 and 1.4 still being an amateur or if 1.4 would be a wiser buy down the road. Also, the price is quite different between 1.4g and 1.8g and it lets me buy some more stuff. I have the same question about 35mm vs 50mm... or maybe both? I don't mind walking a bit to take a picture.

Should I start looking for a new camera body and AF lenses instead?

Also, for the bokeh / shallow depth of field, I'm not sure I'm doing the right thing, but to achieve it, I usually zoom at 55mm, use the minimum (smallest number) f-stop and aperture priority mode ( 5.6 I believe with my lenses at 55mm ) and I try to focus on something relatively near me.

Thanks a LOT for the help!

As for the lenses you have listed here, the 50mm f/1.8 is the best buy. It's an outstanding lens that can be had for under $150, and considering the huge price leap to the f/1.4...it just makes the most sense for an all-purpose lens. You'll find that the "Thrifty Fifty" is a first upgrade for a lot of budding photographers. Because you like to shoot landscapes, you could also get a lot of use out of the 35mm prime. Either of these lenses will help you achieve those shallow DoF shots that you like, and with much more success than an f/5.6 lens.

My biggest concern is your D60 body, which is outdated. You might want to take a look at the D3000 and D5000 models, as they are definitely in your price range.

I also had your doubts and bought the 50mm 1.8, as the price range to the 1.4 is too much for 1/2 stop.

2 months ago i got a 35mm f/2 as I'm trying to use lens that later on can be used in FF. With your current D60 35mm will be too much for landscape, today I mainly use mine indoors and for some specific portraits with my kid.

Altough your body is a bit old, i tend to disagree on moving to a D3000/3100/5000/5100. You will only gain some sensor/processor improvement, you will still be missing internal focus and more commands outside the menus.

Two possible options:
D80 (older sensor close to your D60)
D90, with a much better sensor (allows higher ISO than the D80) but more expensive than the first option.
These options will allow you to use AF-D lenses, that are cheaper than AF-S.

It doesn't make much sense to go from one outdated model (D60) to another (D80), especially when there's not much to be gained. That's like trading in your 1979 Pinto for an '83 Chevette. You also have to take budget into consideration, and while the D90 is a great camera, it's also much more expensive, discontinued, and a bit advanced for a beginner.

With what you know about what I like and if you I gave you a 1000-1500$, what would you buy for me?

Only lenses?
A D5100 + 50mm 1.8g + ?
A D7000 + AF Lenses?
Any other idea?

That's the budget I'll have in like 3 months and I don't really mind keeping my D60 + 18-55m combo as cheap combo that I use for more hazardous hobbies! =)

With your budget, I'd start with a 18-200. It would give you nice reach for kid pictures and some wild life. This is not the wildlife photographer's dream lens, but it is an all around lens that comes in very handy for trips and travel photography (have a look at my Mallorca Gallery all taken with this lens).
For your sunset shots, I'd get a good tripod to help you get the shots you want without having to go high iso, and maybe if you have money left (which you should), get a Nikon flash (D700 or 600).

Of course the D7000 is a fantastic camera, but you probably will have more photo opportunity with the 18-200 than just the D7000 and the kit lens.

If you were trying to produce poster size prints, my advice could be different, but for what you said you like, this is the route I would go for now. Keep in mind that you will still want to get the D7000 one of these days, but the lens should get you more for now.

As usual, this is only my personal opinion and other will think differently.

Well, with that budget I'd get a D90, the 50mm AF-D and a tele ( nikkon 70-300 VR or the Tamron VC USM if you don't mind owning a 3rd party lens). Your 17-55 is rather nice optically, so you can keep it for landscape.

The D7000 has a great sensor that allows higher than average ISO but since it's new the price is quiet high.

Regarding the fact the D90 is an older model, I still people shooting D80s and D200 with great pics, no matter what you buy in the end it will depend on the photographer.

With that, and if you like shooting with the D60, you can put all money in good lenses: a AF-S 50mm, a 70-300 and maybe a used sigma 10-20 that is great for landscapes.

My 2 cents

I'm a film shooter with little digital experience but I think it would serve yourself better to stay away from expensive fast glass...buy a flash or something if you need to do lowlight work...and although I absolutely prefer primes myself I also like the idea of having a good all around zoom for a digital body as suggested by Marcel above. If I had a thousand - fifteen hundred I would pinch a few more ghitas and buy a D300S and a big memory card...then at Christmas get some glass...

Thanks everyone ! Just to let you know, I bought a 50mm 1.8g and Hoya 58mm UV filter today to go with it. Already having fun with it and much better bokeh !

I'll start looking at the D5100/D7000 for my next purchase in a few months. I also need to decide if I'll prefer to go for wide-angle or telephoto for my next purchase. Might also for a cheap 55-200 for a quick impulsive buy.

Thanks again!

trembl27 said:

Thanks everyone ! Just to let you know, I bought a 50mm 1.8g and Hoya 58mm UV filter today to go with it. Already having fun with it and much better bokeh !

I'll start looking at the D5100/D7000 for my next purchase in a few months. I also need to decide if I'll prefer to go for wide-angle or telephoto for my next purchase. Might also for a cheap 55-200 for a quick impulsive buy.

Thanks again!

Click to expand...

Congrats on your new lens. Great choice. For landscape photography, do you feel that your kit lens is not wide enough? You've mentioned that you'll be traveling soon and I would recommend a good walk-around lens or something wide. The 16-85mm comes in to my mind but it won't give you the bokeh that you are looking for but it offers versatility and sharpness. It's good for outdoors but you'll need a flash for indoors. Try the 35mm f1.8G if you are loving the 50mm f1.8G.

Hi gqtuazon!

I also considered the 35mm 1.8g. However, as I'm still a beginner, I'm wondering if I'll see the benefits over a 50mm. What are the real life case where I would want a 35mm instead?

I imagine indoor shots or more "landscape" as it would be nearer to what the eyes see, but could be wrong!

For the general purpose lens, I guess I'll buy one before my trip. My feeling is that the 18-200mm would be the best all-around lens if I only want to carry one ( or anything 18-??? depending on budget )

Thanks!

Number one real life case...when you need better/more DOF relative to a subject...don't ask me why you would need to do that because it is your photographs you intend to make! That being said the 50 has it's charms as well...

trembl27 said:

Hi gqtuazon!

I also considered the 35mm 1.8g. However, as I'm still a beginner, I'm wondering if I'll see the benefits over a 50mm. What are the real life case where I would want a 35mm instead?

I imagine indoor shots or more "landscape" as it would be nearer to what the eyes see, but could be wrong!

For the general purpose lens, I guess I'll buy one before my trip. My feeling is that the 18-200mm would be the best all-around lens if I only want to carry one ( or anything 18-??? depending on budget )

Thanks!

Click to expand...

On DX, the 50mm in general is too tight for indoors such as your room unless you have a big house or room to work with. The 50mm will give you an approximate 75mm equivalent field of view and it's perfect for head and shoulder shots. The 35mm will work better for group shots and still provide a faster aperture in order to lower your ISO.

Thanks for the advice again. I did not know the 35mm was better at DOF/Bokeh. Right now, the 50mm is very good according to my standard. I just need to get used to taking the picture from further away! However, I'm starting to experiment with it and I agree that it's a head/shoulder lens. Tried to photograph our "new" bedroom that we have just finished redecorating and let's say I swapped back to my 18-55mm.

Right now, I'm trying to sort what will be my next purchase. The 50mm is really great, I got my 18-55mm that is good, too, for indoor and all around.

Needs in no particular order : New body, Wide-Angle, telephoto, all-around lens for traveling "light". I think I'm set for my "portrait" lens with my 50mm and I don't plan on buying an 85mm f1.4 at $1500.

If budget was no problem, I guess I would go for D7000, 10-24mm, 70-300mm, 18-200mm . I need to find out if a "lower end" model would be plenty for me and in what order I want to continue. (NAS infected). I just looked at my credit card redeem points total and I have $1000 in gift certificate waiting to be used. So I guess I could go for any of them pretty soon or more depending on used/lower end lens availability.

I don't think I'll carry a bag in Italy as I'll be going with my 2 young kids ( 6 and 2 years old ) and I'll keep it simple.

Feel free to keep giving the advice! Really helps sorting all my thoughts. Thanks again!

You'll get a significant performance with your lenses using a D7000 (body only) coming from a D60 especially in low light situation at higher ISO. Once you have that, try the Tokina 11-16mm f2.8 for landscape photography. Add a SB 700 if you don't have a flash yet. I think that will keep your gas at a decent pace. Don't forget to buy UV filters to protect your lenses and extra batteries for your flash or camera since you will be out on a trip. Happy to add NAS on your wishlist.

BTW: Don't tell your wife I mentioned this list...YOU didn't hear it from me.

I am also a 50mm happy user (in a D90) but i decided to buy a 35mm f/2 that i mainly use indoors. Together they make a fine team

For a wide-angle, besides the 10-24 (high cost) and the Tokina that was mentioned before, you can always consider the 12-24 Nikon DX or a 10-20 Sigma. I have the last one as i didn't want to make a big investment on a lens I use just for landscape, but regarding ultra-wide lens the 10-24 rules.

Hi, I intend to get the D300. I have a AFS 70-300 mm VR lens. Should I go for AFS 18-55 mm VR lens?

I know D300 did not use AFS lens. What else can I purchase for general landscape photography?

Regards