Help with choosing a Landscape and prime lens

PlanetPenwith

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Hi there,

I'm new on this forum, please forgive me if this kind of question has been asked before...I'm VERY busy and just don't have the time to search a forum, apologies to you.

I currently have a Nikon D60 and will be upgrading to a D7000 soon. I was wondering if I could harness the collective expertise on here in the hope you may help me in choosing a couple of lenses:

Lens 1 - Landscape (something like a 10-20 or what do you think?)

Lens 2 - A Prime (for portraits/low light/general use...what's best, a 35mm 1.8, a 50mm 1.8 or what do you think?

I have a tight budget - £500 for the landscape and £200 for the prime



Is that enough info for you? Let me know if it's not

Many thanks for looking and helping me out :)
 
Landscape: Tokina 11-16

Prime: Either 50mm or 85mm... I think that 35mm is going to be a bit short, or you'll need to get uncomfortably close to your clients.
 
I'm VERY busy and just don't have the time to search a forum, apologies to you.

In the end this will only limit your understanding of the gear you need. I read forum posts, reviews, etc, for months before I invest in new glass usually, but to each his own.

Lens 1: I use a Tokina 11-16 2.8 that I'm pretty happy with. None of the ultrawide crop sensor zooms are perfect, so you make compromises. I chose the Tokina because it was almost as sharp as the sharpest options, and much less distorted than most options. It does suffer some CA. The Sigma 8-16 is wider and sharper but has crazy distortion and doesn't accept filters. The Sigma 10-20 3.5 (not the variable aperture version) is a pretty nice option as well, but I preferred the Images from the Tokina.

Lens 2: Portraits/low light/general use is quite broad and to me describes more than one lens. For low light I'd be looking more at 1.4s than 1.8s, but 1.8 will still do the job, especially with the noise performance of the d7000. 50-85 is generally considered portrait on a crop body, but since you also want low light and general use, the decision would likely be between 35 and 50 for me. Shorter focal length means you can handhold a slower shutter, and I usually prefer a 35 to walk around anyway... 50 seems a bit tight at times.


*disclaimer: The paragraphs above will be tons more useful to you if you actually research. What I've said is just my opinion, I have no idea how you shoot or what you like. Lenses are expensive, and there is no best choice (besides buying all of them). Flickr is great for seeing sample images taken with various lenses, and photozone and lenstip are nice for more lab-oriented technical reviews.
 
Landscape: Tokina 11-16

Prime: Either 50mm or 85mm... I think that 35mm is going to be a bit short, or you'll need to get uncomfortably close to your clients.

Hi,

Thanks for taking the time to reply and the input, much appreciated. I heard the Tokina was a sharp piece of glass. What are your thoughts on the Sigma 10-20mm 3.5? I think you are right regarding the 35mm being too short for portraits, so maybe I will look at the 50mm or 85mm (depending on cost) - I take it by the 50mm/85mm, you mean Nikkor?

Thanks again

Best wishes
 
I'm VERY busy and just don't have the time to search a forum, apologies to you.

In the end this will only limit your understanding of the gear you need. I read forum posts, reviews, etc, for months before I invest in new glass usually, but to each his own.

Lens 1: I use a Tokina 11-16 2.8 that I'm pretty happy with. None of the ultrawide crop sensor zooms are perfect, so you make compromises. I chose the Tokina because it was almost as sharp as the sharpest options, and much less distorted than most options. It does suffer some CA. The Sigma 8-16 is wider and sharper but has crazy distortion and doesn't accept filters. The Sigma 10-20 3.5 (not the variable aperture version) is a pretty nice option as well, but I preferred the Images from the Tokina.

Lens 2: Portraits/low light/general use is quite broad and to me describes more than one lens. For low light I'd be looking more at 1.4s than 1.8s, but 1.8 will still do the job, especially with the noise performance of the d7000. 50-85 is generally considered portrait on a crop body, but since you also want low light and general use, the decision would likely be between 35 and 50 for me. Shorter focal length means you can handhold a slower shutter, and I usually prefer a 35 to walk around anyway... 50 seems a bit tight at times.


*disclaimer: The paragraphs above will be tons more useful to you if you actually research. What I've said is just my opinion, I have no idea how you shoot or what you like. Lenses are expensive, and there is no best choice (besides buying all of them). Flickr is great for seeing sample images taken with various lenses, and photozone and lenstip are nice for more lab-oriented technical reviews.

Hiya,

Many thanks for your input, I do appreciate it. Apologies for the "low light" words, I should have said "fast lens". Your post was very informative and helpful, thanks. I do research but I just wanted some peoples opinions and thanks for yours, it has helped.

Best wishes
 
Let me be the third to suggest you will enjoy the Tokina 11-16.
 
Landscape: Tokina 11-16

Prime: Either 50mm or 85mm... I think that 35mm is going to be a bit short, or you'll need to get uncomfortably close to your clients.

Hi,

Thanks for taking the time to reply and the input, much appreciated. I heard the Tokina was a sharp piece of glass. What are your thoughts on the Sigma 10-20mm 3.5? I think you are right regarding the 35mm being too short for portraits, so maybe I will look at the 50mm or 85mm (depending on cost) - I take it by the 50mm/85mm, you mean Nikkor?

Thanks again

Best wishes

I would suggest you look at the Sigmas for the portrait range... the 50mm 1.4 noticeably outperforms the Nikkors... it is known for wonderful bokeh, and for sharpness and clarity. Ditto for the 85mm Sigma 1.4. The 50 can be had for in your budget range, also.. the 85 is about 2x that)

I use the Nikkor 10-24 DX on my D7000, and am extremely pleased with it. Very sharp, smooth controls.

Just keep in mind that any of the FX style lenses are going to have a 1.5x crop dues to the sensor size in your D7000. So a 50mm is effectively 75mm (field of view wise). If you shoot indoors a lot.. the 85mm (127.5) may make it too tight for you due to a lack of room.
 
Last edited:
Landscape: Tokina 11-16

Prime: Either 50mm or 85mm... I think that 35mm is going to be a bit short, or you'll need to get uncomfortably close to your clients.

Hi,

Thanks for taking the time to reply and the input, much appreciated. I heard the Tokina was a sharp piece of glass. What are your thoughts on the Sigma 10-20mm 3.5? I think you are right regarding the 35mm being too short for portraits, so maybe I will look at the 50mm or 85mm (depending on cost) - I take it by the 50mm/85mm, you mean Nikkor?

Thanks again

Best wishes

I would suggest you look at the Sigmas for the portrait range... the 50mm 1.4 noticeably outperforms the Nikkors... it is known for wonderful bokeh, and for sharpness and clarity. Ditto for the 85mm Sigma 1.4. The 50 can be had for in your budget range, also.. the 85 is about 2x that)

I use the Nikkor 10-24 DX on my D7000, and am extremely pleased with it. Very sharp, smooth controls.

Just keep in mind that any of the FX style lenses are going to have a 1.5x crop dues to the sensor size in your D7000. So a 50mm is effectively 75mm (field of view wise). If you shoot indoors a lot.. the 85mm (127.5) may make it too tight for you due to a lack of room.

Thanks for the info, the Sigma seems ok to me...but the price is a sticking point. Here in the UK it's £330+ The 2.8 version is £244+. Thats out of my price range at the mo (but I could be able to save for longer). Nice of you to take the time to help, I appreciate it.

Best wishes
 
These reviews/comparative revies would be worth reading:

Juza Nature Photography - Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM Review
Juza Nature Photography - Sigma, Canon, Tamron and Tokina APS-C Wide-Angles
Juza Nature Photography - Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DC (vs Sigma 12-24 on FF)

In addition with a £200 price cap you're really limiting yourself on the portrait lens; I'd be tempted to say sink all the money into either a good wide angle or portrait lens. Granted it means you have to save for longer to get the other, but good money in glass really shows up in the image quality and also longevity of the gear.

http://www.camerapricebuster.com/
is a good place for prices on UK camera stock.
 
These reviews/comparative revies would be worth reading:

Juza Nature Photography - Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM Review
Juza Nature Photography - Sigma, Canon, Tamron and Tokina APS-C Wide-Angles
Juza Nature Photography - Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DC (vs Sigma 12-24 on FF)

In addition with a £200 price cap you're really limiting yourself on the portrait lens; I'd be tempted to say sink all the money into either a good wide angle or portrait lens. Granted it means you have to save for longer to get the other, but good money in glass really shows up in the image quality and also longevity of the gear.

Camera Price Buster - UK Camera Price Comparison
is a good place for prices on UK camera stock.

Thanks for this, very interesting reading, made me think of getting the sigma 10-20mm 3.5 for my landscape lens. I was always going to be compromised on budget...alas I don't have the funds to get the best or near it....now if I won the lottery, well, that's a different matter! ;)

Best wishes
 

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