Best Zoom Lens

kam123kam123
edited July 2013 Posted in » Nikon D3100 Forum
Hi everyone, I just bought a brand new Nikon D3100 body for very reasonable £220 and found this forum after doing a search for tips on suitable lenses. Although I'm not a complete newbie to the world of photography, I am when it comes to DSLR's. I've been using a Fuji X10 for the past year and briefly dabbled with micro 4/3rds format before that.

After reading this forum for the past couple of days I've narrowed down my choice of lenses to
1 x telephoto zoom - Tamron SP AF 70-300 F/4-5.6 Di VC USD or Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm F4.5-5.6 G ED VR
1 x Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G DX or Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm f/1.8G prime. Maybe a wide angle prime or zoom lens also.

Would be nice if the lenses were future proof should I eventually decide to go full frame, but it's not essential because if I did upgrade, the D3100 would be passed down to my teenage daughter.

Come to think of it, would it be wise to buy both the 35mm and 50mm lenses or is that just pointless? Of the two zooms I've listed which would be the better choice?

Thanks, and great forum.

Comments

  • kravattisolmukravattisolmu
    edited August 2013
    Hi Kam and welcome! Those are good options, but to make it more difficult I would add in Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 HSM OS. For some reason the fast midrange zoom prices have collapsed lately.

    I'm trying to get a used Sigma but people are still selling them 400 pounds used (yes more than brand new)! It won't work on full frame, but it might be the only lens your daughter will use when you pass on the camera. It's also a 77mm filter, which most full frame lenses tend to use, so you can safely buy filters for it and save them for future lenses.

    So one option would be the Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 zoom and Tamron 70-300mm VC. After experimenting, see if you even need a prime. Tamron is 295 pounds brand new now. It's insane what you get for the money. Just remember indoor events are not what you're going to shoot with this without loosing your hair. ;)

  • kam123kam123
    edited August 2013
    Over the weekend I bought a used AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR for £110 from a neighbor and a brand new AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G DX.

    I'm pretty confident that 18-105mm is more than adequate for my present needs and went for the 35mm for the times when better low light performance is needed.

    Now to get out and take some pictures.
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