d50 lens questions

[symbolicart]

I decided that i am going to buy a d50 body and need help deciding which lens
to get. I take a wide array of pictures, be it a portrait of my son or a sunset, anything really.

I have a 300 or so dollar limit for my first lens and wanted to know whats the best all around starter lens.

thanks for the help.

 

[Alex_B]

I am not a Nikonian, so I cannot give specific advice, but a decent zoom from 20ish to 80ish mm will do.

Or, if the main thing will be portraits, a fast (wide maximum aperture, 2.8 or below) 80mm prime is a good idea. But then you will lose versatility towards the wider end and indoor images of your house or wide landscape shots are out of reach.

 

[forzaF1]

I know it sounds cheep, but I started out with a 28-80mm lens when I first got my old D50 a while back. It's funny that you ask now, because I just sent the D50 and that lens off to Adorama for some extra cash to go towards a 17-55mm, etc. About the lens, I was very pleasantly surprised at how good the pictures turned out just in the first few days of shooting with the D50. If you know how to fiddle around with the camera, even a relatively cheep lens will go pretty far.

Good luck man,

John

 

[gmarquez]

If your needs are versatility and price, you might take a look at the kit lens that comes with the D80, the 18-135 (ED 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G IF DX). It's a sharp lens, it's versatile (18 to 135mm), and it's relatively inexpensive (about $320). It has some drawbacks (the vignetting at very wide angles), but for the price, I like it as a walk-about lens, ie it has enough range to not have to switch lenses. Right now it's my only lens.

Reviews:
http://www.bythom.com/18135lens.htm
http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/18-135.htm