Equipment Which Nikon Lens

[Prime]

Hi,

I am in a conundrum as to which lens to buy.

I would like to replace my rather tired 18-55mm lens. The lens came with my D50 and has become rather floppy. As I am a student on a limited budget, i mostly buy second hand lenses.

My local camera shop currently has several lenses that would be a good fit but I'm a little lost on what to get.

My current gear is a Nikon D50, 50mm F1.8D, 70-300mm F4.5-5.6G and an 18-55mm F3.5 - 5.6G ED (1) lens. I also have a Nikon extension tube. In the long term I want to get an ultrawide zoom and a new body funds willing

Which would be a good investment?

AF 35-70mm f2.8D
AF-S 18-105mm f3.5-5.6 VR
AF 28-105mm f3.5-4.5D

They also have a D40 and 18-55mm kit lens for the same price.

Any advice would be appreciated?

[eddie_dane]

Originally Posted by Prime

Hi,

I am in a conundrum as to which lens to buy.

I would like to replace my rather tired 18-55mm lens. The lens came with my D50 and has become rather floppy. As I am a student on a limited budget, i mostly buy second hand lenses.

My local camera shop currently has several lenses that would be a good fit but I'm a little lost on what to get.

My current gear is a Nikon D50, 50mm F1.8D, 70-300mm F4.5-5.6G and an 18-55mm F3.5 - 5.6G ED (1) lens. I also have a Nikon extension tube. In the long term I want to get an ultrawide zoom and a new body funds willing

Which would be a good investment?

AF 35-70mm f2.8D
AF-S 18-105mm f3.5-5.6 VR
AF 28-105mm f3.5-4.5D

They also have a D40 and 18-55mm kit lens for the same price.

Any advice would be appreciated?

I have the 35-70mm lens and without knowing what you really want to shoot, I can tell you that this is a great lens from an investment standpoint. I purchased one second hand years ago because I needed something to fill in the gap between my 17-35 and my 70-200 and Nikon had just come out with the new 24-70 but it was way to expensive. My plan was to buy this lens until I could get the 24-70. I've never really thought about it since.

It's not going to be a "wide" lens on your D50 but it is a great all-rounder and is one of my go-to lenses for portraits. It's built like a tank. It can be prone to flaring. I purchased a rubber hood for mine to help with that.

[Prime]

Originally Posted by eddie_dane

I have the 35-70mm lens and without knowing what you really want to shoot, I can tell you that this is a great lens from an investment standpoint. I purchased one second hand years ago because I needed something to fill in the gap between my 17-35 and my 70-200 and Nikon had just come out with the new 24-70 but it was way to expensive. My plan was to buy this lens until I could get the 24-70. I've never really thought about it since.

It's not going to be a "wide" lens on your D50 but it is a great all-rounder and is one of my go-to lenses for portraits. It's built like a tank. It can be prone to flaring. I purchased a rubber hood for mine to help with that.

Thanks. I am kinda leaning towards the 35-70mm as well. (Although they have two at different prices so I need to find out why)

Um, I shoot all sorts:

I tend to shoot candids of people rather than portraits.
Some landscape but a fair amount of scenery, nature, events.
I'm also doing the photography for our solar car project.

I use my camera for holiday shots, work and our solar car project - where I am one of the designated photographers, family and fun.

[JazzXP]

The only problem with the 35-70 is that it won't autofocus on your camera body.

[dead beat]

With that focal range, surely the 35-70mm is more suited to FX. You will lose so much at the wide end on a DX camera if you go for that lens.

When I upgraded my 18-55 kit lens, I went for the 17-55mm f2.8 which is superb, however this lens is rather expensive. Out of the lenses that you have listed, I would say that the 18-105 would be the most usable on your camera, but without a budget, it is hard to suggest an alternative.

[fathazza]

Originally Posted by JazzXP

The only problem with the 35-70 is that it won't autofocus on your camera body.

It will actually

[eddie_dane]

Yeah, the D50 has a focussing motor. That and the high flash sync speeds are why I still use mine.

[Prime]

Edit: That too ^^

Originally Posted by JazzXP

The only problem with the 35-70 is that it won't autofocus on your camera body.

It will. That is one of the great things about the D50 The D40 on the other hand

[wuyanxu]

Originally Posted by Prime

Some landscape but a fair amount of scenery, nature, events.
I'm also doing the photography for our solar car project.

You will struggle to shoot landscape without wide angle.

35mm on a DX is more or less 50mm, your field of view will be very narrow.

I'd go with 18-105mm. it's not a fast lens, but it is a modern lens with VR, it should perform well in most situations. You've got the 50/1.8 when need faster shutter in low light situations.

[GregTheRotter]

I cant understand why anyone wanta 35-70mm lens on a DX body tbh. Personally I'd either try to pick up a used 18-55 VR, or go for the 18-105 VR.

[eddie_dane]

Like I said. For a lot of types of work, the 35-70 might not fit the bill. I have used it many, many times as a portrait/short tele on DX bodies. I was testifying as an owner to it's image and build quality. I don't have any experience with the other two so I didn't have anything to add.

It also may help that another reason why I got the 35-70 is that I knew that I would be moving to FX soon so being able to use it on either was a big bonus. I use it about 50% on my FX body (which makes sense - since this lens was developed for 35mm film bodies back in the day).

edit: Also, the push-pull zoom design of this took some time to get used to. It's totally a non-issue now but it broke my brain when I first got it.

[Prime]

Originally Posted by dead beat

With that focal range, surely the 35-70mm is more suited to FX. You will lose so much at the wide end on a DX camera if you go for that lens.

When I upgraded my 18-55 kit lens, I went for the 17-55mm f2.8 which is superb, however this lens is rather expensive. Out of the lenses that you have listed, I would say that the 18-105 would be the most usable on your camera, but without a budget, it is hard to suggest an alternative.

I didn't give a budget because i don't know how rands here will translate into pounds in terms of cameras.

My budget is R3000 which is the cost of a second hand SB 900 (roughly)

http://www.kameraz.com/second_hand.html Should give you an idea of second hand prices here.

the 17-55 is out of budget. I looked at it.

[dead beat]

Originally Posted by Prime

I didn't give a budget because i don't know how rands here will translate into pounds in terms of cameras.

My budget is R3000 which is the cost of a second hand SB 900 (roughly)

http://www.kameraz.com/second_hand.html Should give you an idea of second hand prices here.

the 17-55 is out of budget. I looked at it.

Well in that case, as I stated before, I would suggest the 18-105 as the most sensible option.

[Prime]

Originally Posted by dead beat

Well in that case, as I stated before, I would suggest the 18-105 as the most sensible option.

yes, sorry I was trying to leave the office, didn't have time to answer your post as well.

I think I am going to go with the 18-105 lens. I will go mad without the width. Though I do prefer the build quality in fx lenses.

[JazzXP]

Originally Posted by Prime

Edit: That too ^^




It will. That is one of the great things about the D50 The D40 on the other hand

Well... crap.... hahahaha, here I was thinking the D50 sat between the D40 and the D60... silly me!

[Prime]

Originally Posted by eddie_dane

Like I said. For a lot of types of work, the 35-70 might not fit the bill. I have used it many, many times as a portrait/short tele on DX bodies. I was testifying as an owner to it's image and build quality. I don't have any experience with the other two so I didn't have anything to add.

It also may help that another reason why I got the 35-70 is that I knew that I would be moving to FX soon so being able to use it on either was a big bonus. I use it about 50% on my FX body (which makes sense - since this lens was developed for 35mm film bodies back in the day).

edit: Also, the push-pull zoom design of this took some time to get used to. It's totally a non-issue now but it broke my brain when I first got it.

I like push pull zooms. I find them intuitive. I have an Series E 70-210 zoom and you can zoom and focus in one action

Originally Posted by GregTheRotter

I cant understand why anyone wanta 35-70mm lens on a DX body tbh. Personally I'd either try to pick up a used 18-55 VR, or go for the 18-105 VR.

As much as the optics are good on the 18-55, I don't feel enamoured by the build quality and durability. Plus the front element rotates which is infuriating with a filter


I went with the 18-105.

Thanks for the advice