Camera Lenses

[WNYBuckHunter]

So I know a few of you are into photography, and take some really nice shots. I figured Id ask your advice about what lens to get for my camera. I have a Nikon D40 that works great for me, but all I have is the factory 18-55mm lens, which is fine for close shots, but I want something with more zoom capability. Eventually I want to get a really long range telephoto lens, but for now, I just want something that I can use for general use as well as reaching out there and getting shots from a pretty good distance. Im not a professional photographer, and dont want to carry or even have a ton of lenses around, just maybe 3 or 4 tops that will cover most situations.

[Elmo]

I'm a Canon guy so I don't know much about specific Nikon lens.  The first thing you need to specify is how much are you willing to spend?  $1000.00 is the cut off mark that seperates the pro level lens from the rest.  Also, what are you planning to use it for?  Saying long zoom isn't enough.  Are you shooting nature/animals?  If so, what kind?  The deer 100 yards away and the hawk 400 yards away are two completely levels of zoom.  Will you be shooting a son/daughter's soccer game?  For that you need a super fast lens to deal with the action/speed.  Even more so if it's a night game.

I shoot a lot of sports and nature.  My bread and butter is the Canon 70-200mm L F/2.8 IS (the original version - they came out with an upgrade 2 years ago).  The Nikon equivalent is the Nikon 70-200mm F/2.8 VR.  (They also came out with a VR II in 2009)  This lens isn't cheap but this is what the extra money gives you:

[Elmo]

1. to get a better idea of the picture quality, click on the pictures themselves.  When this site shrinks it to fit, it makes it a littler blurry.

2. First rule of thumb.  Prime lens (no zoom) will always give you better picture quality then zoom lens.  Unless you simply can't, your legs are the best zoom.  Second rule of thumb.  If you're going to use zoom, don't get one with a large range.  In other words, a lens with a 18mm to 100mm zoom will not be anywhere as clear as a one that is 28mm to 100mm.  Not everyone is willing to spend a small fortune on a lens so you have to ask yourself what are you willing to sacrifice.

3. The "F" is the speed of the lens.  That's where the money goes.  The lower the number, the faster the lens.  Fast lens allows you to capture fast moving objects in low light situations.

The pictures.  The 1st pic was of a squirrel on my way home.  Its was 10 feet away and I was at 185mm.  (I try to avoid going all the way because lens cause tend to distort a tiny bit at max zoom)  2nd pic was taken by my girlfriend 10 feet behind the 3rd base bag at my Sunday softball league.  I cropped the picture.  She only had it at 115mm zoom.  3rd picture was at a Mets game.  This the 9th inning so 10PM at night.  I was in the walkway if you've ever been to CitiField.  That's also at 185mm.  The last picture was at one of my friends games.  He is the offensive coordinator for a high school.  This was a night game.  I was standing at the 35 yard line.  The last 2 pictures are not possible with a slow lens.

[Elmo]

Oh, I keep forgetting.  Check out this site:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/dx-dream-team.htm

[WNYBuckHunter]

Thanks for the advice. To answer some of your questions, first, I do not want pro level stuff, Im not that into it and never will be. Second, I want to be able to do action shots at a medium range (kids sporting events, etc) and nature/scenery shots at long range. I am going to keep the lens I have now, as it does great with close up stuff.

Ive seen the Nikon 70-200 for under $150 used, so that would be a good purchase to me if that is what I should use for mid range stuff. What about longer range?

[Elmo]

Once you get past 200mm the lens that reach that far are usually pretty expensive.  Nikon has a 70-300mm lens.  I don't know how good that is.  Again, I'm a Canon person.  You can also get a teleconverter.  It's an attachment you add to the base of a lens.  I reduces the speed of the lens but it essentially acts as a magnifying glass and doubles (depending on the teleconverter) all existing zoom.  You should also check out Tamron and Sigma lens as well.  They make lens for both Canon and Nikon without the glossy brand name.

I'm also not sure if you're talking about the same 70-200mm I'm talking about.  If you see a 70-200mm at F2.8 (the F2.8 is the operative number) for $150 you grab it before whatever drug the seller is on wears off.

[Localqdm]

wny, have you ever looked into digiscoping.  It definitely has its limitations, but if you aren't looking for pro (but can still get excellent results) with extreme zoom capability on the cheap, it may be the way to go.  One of the big limitations is light, you are limited by the size of the eyepiece on the scope. 

You can get excellent results w/point and shoot through a scope done right, with enough light.  I made my own drilling a couple of holes in a board, one for the spotting scope, the other for a camera mount (1/4--20 thread for both).  With extreme zooms (multiply your camera's zoom by the scope zoom--if your camera is 2x optical and your scope is 20x you are zooming 40x) the pic tends to shake bad with every heart beat.  So I can rest the end of my board on something (truck window) and the near end on my shoulder to steady and focus. 

Yeah its pretty redneck, but it works and i can't even imagine what a 40x zoom lense for a camera would cost.

[Localqdm]

With that set up you can take pics 300+yds away without a lot of loss in quality, if you have enough light and a decent scope.  with a camcorder that has a 20x zoom multiplied through your scope's 20x you are zooming 400x and could see very well half a mile away, not kidding.  Keeping her steady and autofocused become the hard part.  All my stuff is on my other computer or I would try to show some examples.  The video I posted a week ago or so wasn't focused because I hadn't used that particular camcorder set up before, and it was a quick grab get the buck on video kinda deal, and the scope and camera weren't mated well, and then I compressed the video pretty good to post it.  That buck was a few hundred yds away and I was hardly zoomed with the camcorder.

[WNYBuckHunter]

Toruk, thanks. I was gonna ask if Tamerons were any good, as I see alot of them for sale and they seem to go for less than the branded Nikon lenses.

Local, I havnet tried that, Ill have to give it a try.Not exactly what Im looking for, but something to play with for sure.

[NYDeer]

If your looking for something in particular, you can try http://www.keh.com/

They stand behind thier stuff, and the 'more used' stuff works fine for casual photography..

[WNYBuckHunter]

Thanks for the link, Im actually looking more for used unless I get a great deal on new.

[Elmo]

Both, Adorama and B&H have extensive used departments:

http://www.adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=category&cat1=Used

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/browse/Cameras-Photo-Gear/ci/2871/N/4294247179