Wide-Angle Lens for Nikon?

Olivia Green · May 16, 2018

Hi again,
After studying and reading a lot about DSLR's and lenses, I've finally come to conclusion to buy
Sigma 10-20mm 1:4-5.6 EX DC HSM for my Nikon D3200. I'm planning a trip to Europe and have a Nikon D3200 with 18-55mm kit lens. I know its great for landscapes but I do not want to be constrained by lens once I reach there since then there would be no option then.
Just wanted to know if its the right decision. Also, read somewhere that there is no autofocus and it has to be done from the Camera itself. Need help on this too.

Rika Guite · May 18, 2018

Sigma 10-20mm works great with Nikon D3200. Also, what is the reason to choose Wide Angle Lens?

shane.haumpton · May 18, 2018

Indeed Nikon has a lot of lenses to be proud of that fall into this category. I would wholeheartedly recommend too the lovely 14-24.

Another excellent option to consider is the 17-35 2.8. This lens is a little less committed to the wide end of things, so you may find it more suitable for travel, etc. where you don't want to be carrying around extra glass. Like the others Nikon has to offer in its price range, using this lens properly will give you images so sharp you'll cut yourself if you aren't careful.

LostBoy1 · May 18, 2018

I'm actually looking at buying a wide angle right now as well.

Does anyone know how the Tokina AT-X 11-20 f/2.8 compares to the Sigma?

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

shane.haumpton · May 18, 2018

This is just my opinion:

The two lenses have similar performance. What you've left out is your camera body.

If you are using a full-frame camera, of the two lenses you provided, I would select the Sigma. It will reach normal length that's useful for many photos plus it is plenty wide for my taste.

If you have a crop sensor camera you might want to go for the wider lens if you are particularly fond of very wide shots. However, my personal taste would be to stay with the Sigma. 35mm is a normal normal on the crop sensor lens so the Sigma will go wide and a little long.

Keep in mind that you can always stitch photos together to make a panoramic in post. This gives you options for greater detail, especially in landscapes. For example, the following was shot using a 50mm lens…

Braineack · May 18, 2018

17-35mm is not wide on his d3200 crop sensor. 1mm wider than his 18-55mm.
at 10-20 the sigma is much wider.

Olivia Green · May 22, 2018

Rika Guite said:
Sigma 10-20mm works great with Nikon D3200. Also, what is the reason to choose Wide Angle Lens?

As I mentioned, I feel my 18-55 is not enough to take picture of scenery's or landscapes. Its just my assumption and I don't want to be constrained by lenses on my trip.

Olivia Green · May 22, 2018

shane.haumpton said:
This is just my opinion:

The two lenses have similar performance. What you've left out is your camera body.

If you are using a full-frame camera, of the two lenses you provided, I would select the Sigma. It will reach normal length that's useful for many photos plus it is plenty wide for my taste.

If you have a crop sensor camera you might want to go for the wider lens if you are particularly fond of very wide shots. However, my personal taste would be to stay with the Sigma. 35mm is a normal normal on the crop sensor lens so the Sigma will go wide and a little long.

Keep in mind that you can always stitch photos together to make a panoramic in post. This gives you options for greater detail, especially in landscapes. For example, the following was shot using a 50mm lens…

Stitching seems to be a professional work while I'm just an amateur photographer. And you forgot to upload the photo :345:

SCraig · May 22, 2018

Olivia Green said:
Hi again,
After studying and reading a lot about DSLR's and lenses, I've finally come to conclusion to buy
Sigma 10-20mm 1:4-5.6 EX DC HSM for my Nikon D3200. I'm planning a trip to Europe and have a Nikon D3200 with 18-55mm kit lens. I know its great for landscapes but I do not want to be constrained by lens once I reach there since then there would be no option then.
Just wanted to know if its the right decision. Also, read somewhere that there is no autofocus and it has to be done from the Camera itself. Need help on this too.

"HSM" in the lens nomenclature stands for "Hyper Sonic Motor" which is the Sigma autofocus motor. I don't understand why it would not work, but I personally would not buy a lens that did not properly autofocus with my camera body.

Destin · May 22, 2018

Olivia Green said:
Rika Guite said:

Sigma 10-20mm works great with Nikon D3200. Also, what is the reason to choose Wide Angle Lens?

Click to expand...

As I mentioned, I feel my 18-55 is not enough to take picture of scenery's or landscapes. Its just my assumption and I don't want to be constrained by lenses on my trip.

Just as a warning; many, many people buy wide angle lenses hoping to “fit it all in” to the photo. They quickly find that they’re terrible for that purpose because if you’re more than a few feet away from an object or scene it will appear to be *very* tiny in the frame.

Wide angle lenses are fun to work with, but you need to know how to use them to get the most out of them. They should be used for their unique perspective rather than just to “fit it all in.” Wide lenses work best when you get in *very* close to a subject or have a really interesting foreground to include in a landscape image.

I honestly think that if you buy a wide angle lens and try to use it to take landscape photos while you’re traveling, there is a good chance you’ll be disappointed in the results.

I know because I made the same type of mistake when I was new.

This article can explain in more detail. Give it a read and make sure a wide angle lens is for you:

5 Mistakes Beginners Make With a Wide Angle Lens & How to Avoid Them

mrca · May 22, 2018

My favorite wide angle travel lens is the nikon 16-35 f4. It is smaller and lighter than the workhorse 24-70 2.8, wider and most importantly has image stabilization (VR, IS) good for 4 stops. It allows me to brace on a wall, pillar or pew in a museum or church where tripods aren't permitted-and who wants to carry one when touring a city- and hand hold at a full second. Shooting 3 frame bursts has shutter pressed and released on 1 and 3 and 2 is usually tack sharp. A couple series and you can get the shot. At a half second, even better results.

Destin · May 22, 2018

mrca said:
My favorite wide angle travel lens is the nikon 16-35 f4. It is smaller and lighter than the workhorse 24-70 2.8, wider and most importantly has image stabilization (VR, IS) good for 4 stops. It allows me to brace on a wall, pillar or pew in a museum or church where tripods aren't permitted-and who wants to carry one when touring a city- and hand hold at a full second. Shooting 3 frame bursts has shutter pressed and released on 1 and 3 and 2 is usually tack sharp. A couple series and you can get the shot. At a half second, even better results.

Agreed, that’s a great lens.

But it’s not wide on a crop sensor.

mrca · May 22, 2018

Destin, I was just tossing that out as image stabilization being a consideration. It's why I am selling my d500 after receiving an 850. Worst of all, my circular 8mm fisheye isn't circular on crop.

dennybeall · May 22, 2018

If I could only take one lens on that trip it would be my Nikon 18-140.

snowbear · May 22, 2018

Stitching is not that difficult, you just need the software. The trick is to overlap your individual images (I go about 1/4), try to keep the horizon straight, and us manual mode. This is a 12-shot panorama using a 50mm lens on a crop sensor body. I stitched with an older version of Photoshop (CS2, I think)

Tidal Basin Panorama by Charlie Wrenn, on Flickr