Am new need help.

[rottee]

Im very new to photography and Im thinking of buying either nikon d50 or d80 secondhand can people advice me which lenses I would need to get as I intend to photograph dogs doing schutzhund which involves them in movement running also distance from the dogs will be involved but also will do photos of them still?
I am enrolling in a college course just need advice to get me started.

All advice is really appreciated

 

[Flash Harry]

Long lens or zoom, 70- 200mm or so, with wide aperture constant, F2.8, Harry

 

[CCarsonPhoto]

Primes are nice and fast, not to mention fairly cheap compared to zooms.

 

[bigtwinky]

Depends on what your budget is. I'm assuming that you going into college, and having to buy a second hand older generation camera means you don't have thousands of dollars to spend.

It is general consensus that it is way more bang for the buck putting money into a new, high end lens than putting it in a camera body. A great lens will last a looong time, a body will be upgraded.

For your needs, as you will probably be shooting indoors, fastish moving subjects, and require distance, you are looking at a 70-200 f/2.8 lens with VR (vibration reduction). This lens is in the $2000 range.

Other options are Sigma and Tamron equivalent lenses. Really, what to look for are a wide aperture (f/2.8) and a long range.

Primes can be an option, but a fast prime is often more expensive than a zoom. I'm also thinking that for a dog show, the shooter may not have that much foot room to move around to adjust his focal range with a prime, so a zoom might be handier.

 

[tday01]

If your budget doesn't afford an expensive or faster lense I would recommend a less expensive zoom lens and shooting with a higher ISO. Unless you planning on making very large prints, this may be a good option for you.

 

[bigtwinky]

Are you taking 1 course in college or actually going into a photography program?

 

[bigtwinky]

A fellow board member has an 18-250 lens, nikon, that is a pretty damn nice lens for sale. Check out his thread, might be interesting

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/buy-sell/181279-sale-sigma-18-250-hsm-os-nikon-mint.html