Micro Lens for a Dx body

[GoonjoshGoon]

Hey guys im relatively new to photography and im looking to build upon my camera bag i currently Shoot with a d3000 and a 50mm 1.8 lens. I want to get in to close up/ micro photography im just not sure what lens to invest in? I think nikon makes a 85mm for this thats for a Dx body right? But would i get better results/magnification with using the Micro lens built for 35mm cameras or a FX body? Please help me guys

 

[kundalini]

The D3000 is a DX, cropped sensor body (1.5x for Nikon). 35mm and FX are synonymous.

You can use FX lenses on a DX body. Some of the functions may not work, like AF, but with macro you will typically be using manual focus anyway.

I read about the 85mm when it first came out, but honestly can't remember much about it. I wasn't looking for another macro lens though, so the news wasn't of a particular interest anyway. The 105mm f/2.8 is the gold standard for Nikon. My copy is brilliant.

 

[Garbz]

Remember any lens you buy for the DX bodies will limit you in the future should you take you photography far enough to upgrade to a 35mm camera. Given how phenomenal the 60mm and 105mm macros perform I see no reason to go a DX specific lens.

 

[Overread]

Also note that focal length won't affect the magnification factor of the macro lens when at its closest focusing point. The frame that you get with a 60mm will be the same as 100mm and a 200mm macro lens. What will change is the fact that the longer focal length macro lenses will be further away from the subject once they've focused at their closest point and will also give a greater degree of blur to the background areas of the shot.

 

[djacobox372]

Actually DX is better for macro photography, even with FX lenses--DX will give you greater magnification which is the goal of macro work.

The simplest thing would be to add some macro tubes to your existing 50mm f1.8. This will decrease your minimum focus distance, allowing you to get closer to your subjects.

Even if you decide to buy a macro lens later, the tubes will make it that much better.

When choosing tubes there are two types to choose from, inexpensive non-cpu tubes that will not retain light-metering or autofocus, or the more expensive tubes that retain metering and autofocus. Which you choose has to do with which lens you buy, new AF-S macro lenses are pretty expensive. A nikon 105mm f2.8 micro AF-S cost around $900 new $750 used, the older manual focus 105mm f2.8 micro ais cost around $250 used.

The cheaper manual focus lens is just as good optically as the new lens, you just wont have metering or autofocus (with or without tubes on the d3000).

Cheaper yet would be the 105mm f4 micro ais lens, or the 60mm f2.8 micro (af or ais).

 

[Derrel]

The new DX Nikon 85mm macro is quite affordable. It's rather own the Tamron 90mm AF-SP Di however.