Nikkor 17-55 2.8 lens opinions needed
- This topic has 13 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated May 5, 2009 at 2:31 pm by
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Andrew
I am trying to by a 1st lens for the D90.Matt
Im with you on this one but I do a lot of boat fishing.
Brett – I am as well. I’m working on trying to gather some answers now on my own, and will certainly be posting some questions in the next few days. Would certainly be interested to know what else you’re looking at.
I’m thinking about getting something fast in that focal range, and then something a bit slower for zoom.
Im with you on this one but I do a lot of boat fishing. What would be the second lens you would buy?
I have a Sigma 10-20mm that I’m very happy with, but there are a lot more lenses in that range now than there were when I bought the Sigma a few years ago, so I don’t know if I’d buy it again if I were starting over.
I don’t know if the Nikon 12-24 is worth the extra cash, but the Tokina 11-16 2.8 is intriguing, and there are some posters here doing some great stuff with the new fisheyes that’re out there as well.
Brett,
I’m very new to this so I’ll tell you what I did for my first purchase. I could only afford one good(not incredible) lens so I went with the Nikon 18-200. Being a rookie I figure it is capable of doing most everything I would need at my current skill level. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been out fishing yet, mostly just around town and at home. I’m very happy with it so far. I also bought the 50mm 1.8. I bought the 50 for taking a lot of portraits of my daughter. I know its not the best portrait lens out there, but it is a lot of bang for the buck IMO and I really like the lens. I’ve used these two for about 4 months now and feel very comfortable that they were good purchases for starting out. That being said, I envy anyone with a 70-200 2.8 😉 and would love to have a Tokina 11-16 2.8 as an ultra wide. The 50mm 1.8 has showed me how great fast lenses are, which has pointed out some of the weaknesses of the 18-200. Unfortunately for me the 70-200 2.8 won’t be in the budget for a long time, but the Tokina may be with a birthday approaching.
Heres a few results from the 50mm 1.8. I know you can look at some of Neal Osborn’s stuff if you want to see some good results from the 18-200. I probably have more stuff right now that would show the shortcomings of the 18-200 than how good it is, but thats because I often try to use it for things it can’t do well(stopping fast action), which is my fault not the lens’.
Brett,
I’m very new to this so I’ll tell you what I did for my first purchase. I could only afford one good(not incredible) lens so I went with the Nikon 18-200. Being a rookie I figure it is capable of doing most everything I would need at my current skill level. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been out fishing yet, mostly just around town and at home. I’m very happy with it so far. I also bought the 50mm 1.8. I bought the 50 for taking a lot of portraits of my daughter. I know its not the best portrait lens out there, but it is a lot of bang for the buck IMO and I really like the lens. I’ve used these two for about 4 months now and feel very comfortable that they were good purchases for starting out. That being said, I envy anyone with a 70-200 2.8 😉 and would love to have a Tokina 11-16 2.8 as an ultra wide. The 50mm 1.8 has showed me how great fast lenses are, which has pointed out some of the weaknesses of the 18-200. Unfortunately for me the 70-200 2.8 won’t be in the budget for a long time, but the Tokina may be with a birthday approaching.
Heres a few results from the 50mm 1.8. I know you can look at some of Neal Osborn’s stuff if you want to see some good results from the 18-200. I probably have more stuff right now that would show the shortcomings of the 18-200 than how good it is, but thats because I often try to use it for things it can’t do well(stopping fast action), which is my fault not the lens’. I’m rambling now so I’ll stop.
Nice work!
Just my two coppers.
Don’t rush into lens purchases when your first starting out. There are litterally dozens of top notch lenses available, that when bought will seem like the cats meow. I know and understand how difficult it is not to get some but rushing out and spending $$ on a lens or two is a fast way to spend $$ where you dont want to. I’m not suggesting what you buy won’t be good (that possibility exist) what I’m suggesting is you buy something that in time, you discover isn’t suited to what you really enjoy shooting and thus ends up being a paper weight.
IMO the fastest way to fall into that trap is to replace your “kit” lens.
Is it the best glass in the 17-50 range? No, but the glass itself isnt bad, its surprisingly good. It is built cheap and might fall apart in a stiff wind but both Canon and Nikon’s kit lenses atleast optically are more than up to the job while your learning/starting out.I used my kit lens for 2 years, acquiring my 400mm first, (what I really wanted to do…wildlife), then the 85mmf1.8, and then my macro (180 f3.5) before replacing it.
Fast glass is invaluable and the nifty 50s by both Canon and Nikon are worthwhile. You may not use them alot but they are dirt cheap (relatively) and when you do need them you’ll thank every star you have that you have a fast lens in your bag
70-200mm
For arguements sake lets say you have $1,000 burning a hole in your pocket. You *could* spend that on a lens to replace your kit lens. Ok, so you have a better lens but what else? You could buy a 70-200mm giving you focal range coverage from 17 right out to 200mm.I’m in year 5 of my plan. A plan I mapped out around the same time I bought my first body. I’m one lens away from completing my lens line up. Map out the types of lenses you’d like to own, then prioritise them.
It takes years to get the lenses you want and doing it ad haocGreat topic!
I think John is right about getting used to the main lens and trying to work with it.
But it sure is tempting to get a ultra wide lens and start shooting those magazine cover pictures! 🙂Are these wide lens shots only domain of SLR’s or are there any compact cameras which come close in terms of wise lens as well as manual capabilities?
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