£150 DSLR lens required, help!

[ukaskew]

Right, FZ20 has actually gone now. I need a lens for around £150 fairly rapidly, and it must be a Nikon AF fitment.

It is for the winter months so much not motorsport to worry about, will just be for landscapes and possibly a holiday, macro capabilities would be a very welcome bonus.

Not sure what range would be best suited as a starter, this will be my one and only lens for at least the rest of the year.

Some ideas:

Nikon AF-S 55-200mm f/4-5.6 DX - £140

Sigma AF 28-200mm f3.5-5.6 IF Aspherical DG Hyperzoom Macro (new type) (Nikon AF Fit) - £170

Consider the fact I'm coming from a point and shoot, so anything remotely acceptable is probably going to blow me away at this stage.

 

[Matty]

http://www.amateurphotographer.com/forums/ubbthreads.php

Might help you in terms of advice.

 

[ukaskew]

Eh why is this in Wanted? I thought I posted in Technology. I'm not actually asking if anyone has one, I'm looking for advice!

 

[Adamhodg]

 

[ukaskew]

Cheers Has the "moved to" flag been removed recently?

 

[Rich]

Slighly over budget but how about?

Special offer
18-50mm F3.5-5.6 DC & 55-200mm F4-5.6 DC Twinpack
Nikon Fit £172.99

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/index.cfm?photo/lenses/sigmalens.html

Though I think I would be going for a walkabout lense I would be keeping for a few years and spend a little more to be homest.

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/photo/lenses/popups/sigmalens_1770mm.html

17-70mm F2.8-4.5 DC Macro
Nikon Fit £237.99

Wish I had got the above from my 350D rather than the kit lens at the time.

 

[Rich]

Worth a read too, helped me buy my lenses:

http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/

 

[Spammy]

If you can get hold of the Nikon 18-70mm within your budget (maybe 2nd hand) then go for it as it's a nicely built lens with relatively good macro capabilities. If you're shooting landscapes I wouldn't go any higher than 25mm, preferably 18mm at the wide end.

 

[ukaskew]

Cheers for the links and advice, got a Nikon D50 today with the kit lens for £399 from London Camera Exchange in Bath. Mind boggling handling and performance, I'm blown away! Will spend a few months learning the ways of my first SLR and then start thinking about new lens etc.

 

[Rich]

Good old London Camera Exchange, got the 350D from the local Cheltenham Branch. Enjoy the new tool Chris.

 

[Spammy]

If you decide you want the 55-200mm Nikon, I have one in mint condition for sale

Good luck and nice choice of camera, I used my D50 over my D200 last night!

 

[ukaskew]

A few samples from an excited little child! Only taken about 80 shots so far and messing up a lot of stuff, but so much fun...and you can actually see what you are taking a picture of in real-time, amazing

Pleased with the macro performance already, will have some more fun with that over the next few months.

 

[theduck]

my dad has a couple of DSLR lenses for sale, practically brand new as he bought the camera as a package then decided to upgrade all his lenses. if i remember i will ask him what lenses he has and if they'll fit

 

[unofficialPete]

should have brought a Canon then you could try mine on at the airfield days

Glad you've gone SLR though, I don't know the nikon range but the kit lens should be wide enough for good landscape, on a complete tangent to whats been suggested have you thought about a prime, the Canon 50mm f/1.8 is a sharpe bargain and has made my kit lens redundant, imagine the Nikon equivalent is just as cheap and sharpe, cost me £40 for someone to pick up in Hong Kong. RRP £86.

Awesome for:
Low light shooting
Portrait
Macro (when combined with tubes)

Good link:
http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/

 

[ukaskew]

should have brought a Canon then you could try mine on at the airfield days

Glad you've gone SLR though, I don't know the nikon range but the kit lens should be wide enough for good landscape, on a complete tangent to whats been suggested have you thought about a prime, the Canon 50mm f/1.8 is a sharpe bargain and has made my kit lens redundant, imagine the Nikon equivalent is just as cheap and sharpe, cost me £40 for someone to pick up in Hong Kong. RRP £86.

Cheers for the comments and advice. Really liked the feel of the D50 so I went with that purely because I felt more comfortable with it.

There is indeed a Nikon 50mm f1.8 and it is also very cheap, someone else also recommended it to me as a great lens to pick up fairly cheap, so I will be at some point.

What lens/equipment are using these days? I always have a look at your deviantART and am amazed at the shots you are getting.

 

[unofficialPete]

Thanks, nearly ALL my recent shots are with the 50mm f/1.8, with and without extension tubes! Love it to bits, bought a sports zoom (70-200mm) and havn't had a chance to use it yet lol the 50 is on all the time..