Nikon Lens Questions

kailey

Hi! Newbie SLR user here so I apologize if this is basic 101 knowledge.

I am planning on purchasing a Nikon D3200 and wanted advice on what lens to get. I don't really want the kit lens so I was thinking of purchasing the 50mm lens or the 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX Lens.

I am moving to New Zealand so this camera (and lens) will be mainly used for pictures of landscape and everyday photography. Would either of these work?

I also wanted to know the difference between the Nikon 50mm f/1.8G AF-S NIKKOR FX Lens and the Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor Lens? Which one do you reckon would be easiest for a first time DSLR user to use?

Thank you so much!
-Kailey

kailey

I just realized there is a thread for lens questions! Whoops. Moving this post over there.

bruto

First of all, remember that the D3200, like all the DX format Nikons except for the D7xxx, has no internal focus motor so it cannot auto focus any lens that does not have its own motor. The D lens will meter, but will focus manually only. If you want AF, get the AF-S lens.

Different people have different preferences for focal length. 50mm is a short telephoto in DX format whereas 35mm is what many consider "normal". Both the 50mm and the 35mm are considered fine lenses and great bargains. You will have to hunt far and wide to find a negative opinion on the optical virtues of either.

The kit lens is not very pretty and kind of plasticky, but in fact it's very good, sharp, and works surprisingly well. If you can afford to wait you might consider trying it first to see which focal lengths you gravitate to. If you can't wait, I'd tend to go for the 35mm. You can crop later, but you can't make a narrow picture wider.

Keep the kit lens around because it makes quite decent wider angle shots, which you may well find you want for scenery.