Confused about autofocus lens choices

I've had my D5100 for about a month. There are so many lens choices and I am confused most of the time which 300mm telephoto lens will autofocus on my D5100. I'm not familiar with all of the AF verses AF-S differences.

Any advice will be appreciated.

Whenever you see AF-S that means the lens has an internal motor, so it'll auto focus on your D5100.

The AF and AF-D are lenses that auto focus only if the camera body has a motor built in (d80, d90, d200, d300, d7000) and all FF) besides some older models.

And the G lenses will also work (AF) with your camera.

Another Oklahoma person. That is 3 of us now. I'm in Sapulpa.

Eye-level said:

And the G lenses will also work (AF) with your camera.

Another Oklahoma person. That is 3 of us now. I'm in Sapulpa.

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Up towards Tulsa huh? I'm down near Beavers Bend State Park. It's the nicest part of the state I think. Lots of wildlife photography.

Thanks for the lens information.

Way down in the corner huh? Yes from Talequah on down there it really is the nicest part of the state. My family used to live in McCurtain county way back around statehood. Good to meet you!

Eye-level said:

Way down in the corner huh? Yes from Talequah on down there it really is the nicest part of the state. My family used to live in McCurtain county way back around statehood. Good to meet you!

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I can be in any one of 3 states in less than 30 minutes. Not that it's an advantage necessarily. Not much going on in a one horse town. Our town is so small, both city limit signs are on one post.

It’s about an hour and twenty minutes to Texarkana.

We had a district meeting in Tulsa a few years ago and did a team-building exercise by floating the Illinois river in Talequah. We rented canoes and just had a blast. I must admit, that river has some of the clearest water that I've ever seen. It was nice.

A buddy and me were floating the Illinois one time drinking, fishing, and having a good time. My buddy finds this old bottle and a genie appeared and said you have one wish. My buddy wished that the river was beer. Poof the genie made it so. I said good job now we have to pee in the boat! LOL

Phillydog1958 said:

We had a district meeting in Tulsa a few years ago and did a team-building exercise by floating the Illinois river in Talequah. We rented canoes and just had a blast. I must admit, that river has some of the clearest water that I've ever seen. It was nice.

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If you like to float rivers you should come down to Beavers Bend State Park. Geat camping, cabins and fishing.

My brother in law stays in a cabin there at Beavers Bend every year. I know he likes it down there.

Eye-level said:

And the G lenses will also work (AF) with your camera.

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Aren't all the G lenses AF-S lenses anyway, therefore able to autofocus on the D5100?

As mentioned, if the lens is of AF-S nomenclature then it will auto focus on the D5100.

SS381 said:

Aren't all the G lenses AF-S lenses anyway, therefore able to autofocus on the D5100

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Be careful, the G type lenses were introduced back in 2000, the early one were basically D type lenses with the aperture ring removed, but still used the mechanical focus drive, which won't work on the D5100,

This is the early 70-300 AF-G type lens that still used the mechanical drive of the AF-D type lenses :-

Ahh apologies, was looking at more recent G lenses which were all AF-S hence my earlier post.

You enlightened me too thanks NP.