Getting a D90. Advice on lens choices please?

[ks0385]

I am looking to get three lenses to start with. At first I decided on the 35mm Prime Lens with a 55-200mm lens. Then I started thinking about getting the 18-55mm as well. Both zoom lenses would be the VR versions.

I plan on shooting almost everything. "Portaits", hang-outs, cars at shows, nature, landscapes, cities. Just anything and everything I can think of.

Main reason for wanting the prime is for the quality of the pictures. I don't mind having to "zoom" with my feet. I played around with a 18-55mm set to 35mm at a store and it seemed okay.

So mainly I am wondering if I should get the 35mm or the 18-55mm first. (Personally leaning towards the 35mm...)

Thanks.

 

[Breaux]

I'm a strong believer in prime lenses. It comes down to: are you more interested in image quality or convenience?

 

[dyyylan]

I love the 18-105 VR that I got it with. Also bought a 50mm f1.8, I use them both equally

 

[Aye-non Oh-non Imus]

Just a random thought here, but what if........ what if, you get the two zooms and then see which focal length you find yourself shooting the most. That might give you a clue where to spend the money later. Although, I would suggest an external flash before another lens. Those two kit zooms can be quite sharp with enough light.

 

[ghache]

I love the 18-105 VR that I got it with. Also bought a 50mm f1.8, I use them both equally

+1

 

[mwcfarms]

I love my D90, great choice. I took the 18- 105mm lens as much first choice and then the 50mm prime. Only because for the price it was supposed to work well in low lighting. Maybe do as suggested and get one lens see where you mostly shoot and what you mostly shoot and then go from there. Have you shot with a DSLR or SLR before?

 

[ks0385]

I love my D90, great choice. I took the 18- 105mm lens as much first choice and then the 50mm prime. Only because for the price it was supposed to work well in low lighting. Maybe do as suggested and get one lens see where you mostly shoot and what you mostly shoot and then go from there. Have you shot with a DSLR or SLR before?

I've only shot with P&S's and I also have a Nikon P80 which is kind of an SLR I guess.

I ordered only the D90 body, so I'm not getting the 18-105mm. Hmmm.

 

[farmerj]

the three lenses I bought with mine...

16-85 VR f/3.5-4.5
70-300 VR f/4.5-5.6
50mm F/1.8

Would be nice to have a f/2.8 lens for the 16-85 and the 70-300. But they do quite nicely.

 

[jdag]

To add fuel...I prefer the 35mm f/1.8 over the 50mm f/1.8.

 

[MGriff240]

I just picked up a Sigma 28-70mm and love it. Very sharp for the price.

 

[mrpink]

The VR option on the 18-55mm is unnecessary to say the least. If you can find one for a decent price, I would say get it. But a non VR 18-55 will give you the same results. Used a non-VR should only set you back about $80. $100 for the 50mm 1.8 or $199 for the 35mm 1.8 AF-S, I have had both and find them to be almost interchangeable on a D90.

The 55-200mm VR is a nice lens, and I highly recommend one to most. I do not see a lot of use for this lens in the areas of interest you listed, other than nature and I don't think 200mm is long enough for most wildlife. I think the $250 would be better spent on a Tokina 11-16 2.8 or Sigma 10-20 2.8. These two ultra wides will come in handy for your cityscape and car show photography. The prime would be your portrait and "hang out" lens. The 18-55mm will fill in any gaps.

I would highly recommend looking for a SB-600, coupled with the D90's commander mode you will be able to do alot more with your photography in terms of creativity. It is $200 well spent in my book.

Post up some photos. Let us know what you picked.




p!nK

 

[KmH]

Aspire to Nikon's "poor man's trinity"

AF-S 12-24 mm f/4G
AF 24-85 mm f/2.8-4D
AF 80-200 mm f/2.8D

The 35 mm f/1.8 is to short for portraits, even on a 1.5x crop sensor. (to much barrel distortion which is inherent in wide angle lenses) 85 mm and up is good for portraits.

The AF 50 mm f/1.8D should be a staple lens for just about every Nikon shooter because they are inexpensive for the aperture.

More and more I am recommending people, with care, buy used gear so they can get better performing gear.

 

[Vinny]

Since you have a wide list, you'll need a wide variety of focal lengths.

For Portraits use an 85mm which would give you about 127mm equivalent. Most of the books I've read on shooting portraits say at least 105mm.

Wide angle is not so wide angle on a D90, every focal length gets multiplied by 1.5 so an 18mm which in a 35mm would be very wide angle is 27mm on a D90.

Landscapes & cities you can use almost any lens depending on what you are trying to capture. If want to shoot animals you need a long focal length.

If you do decide on a zoom try not to double up on a prime unless you have a specific purpose for it. I agree that it may be better to buy a zoom (or rent one if you can) and see where in it's range you like to shoot mostly. As far as what to get my first camera had only a 50mm lens and for me it got boring after a while, I found it limiting. Once I was able to afford new lenses I bought zooms and it opened up more possibilties.

 

[cnutco]

Did you get any help from all these posts?

Is there anywhere that you can rent lenses from around you. As you can see, there are many different likes for different people. Rent some and see what you like the best to use for what you want to shoot.

 

[ks0385]

Thank you guys for responding. Some of the lenses listed are way out of my price range at the moment. Even the 85mm is a bit much at the moment. What if I get some spacers along with the 35mm, would the quality be as good?

55-200mm is a definite.

18-55mm Non-VR is very likely (Read some reviews on the non-vr and more people say it's even sharper)

35mm very probable.

And I don't know that there is any place around me that will rent lenses. I'll do some research.

Thanks again.