Best lens to pair with a prime 50mm?

vancity · Feb 9, 2013

Hey all, new to this forum but I'm planning on purchasing a new lens but i'd like some more advice.

I currently have a nikon d3000 with a 50mm 1.4g lens (which I love)
And I'm upgrading my 17-80mm lens to something a little more wide.

Was thinking the sigma 10-20mm. Thoughts?

I am going travelling in a couple months for a long term backpacking trip. I only want to bring two lenses max.

I know there's something missing but I'm not sure if i'll really need to fill that gap.

djacobox372 · Feb 9, 2013

vancity said:
Hey all, new to this forum but I'm planning on purchasing a new lens but i'd like some more advice.

I currently have a nikon d3000 with a 50mm 1.4g lens (which I love)
And I'm upgrading my 17-80mm lens to something a little more wide.

Was thinking the sigma 10-20mm. Thoughts?

I am going travelling in a couple months for a long term backpacking trip. I only want to bring two lenses max.

I know there's something missing but I'm not sure if i'll really need to fill that gap.

Ultrawides like the 10-20 are special use lenses, a 70-200 f2.8 would be my suggestion.

You also may consider selling your 1.4g and upgrading to the newer 1.8g--youll make $$ in the exchange and have a sharper lens--what good is 1/2 a stop wider if its fuzzy wide open like the 1.4g is?

Read the comparison here:
http://photographylife.com/nikon-50mm-f1-8g-vs-f1-4g

bc_steve · Feb 9, 2013

I'm quite happy with my Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8. As far as backpacking with it, it is a little on the heavy side, but solidly built. I did quite a bit of research before buying it, and it got very good reviews.

Not sure how much it would bother you though to have such a gap between 16mm and 50mm though.

tirediron · Feb 9, 2013

Tokina's 11-16 is generally regarded as the cream of the 3rd party UWA crop, however it depends on budget and intended use.

vancity · Feb 10, 2013

I don't have a particular desire to upgrade my 50mm, but I have a 55-200mm which I never use. I don't plan on really taking many photos up closer than what my 50mm gives me.
I just need to figure out a good wide angle. I will basically be taking photos of my friend + whatever she's posing beside/infront of, inside pubs/restaurants/ect and landscape.