D7000 + lens buying advice wanted

[Lexi]

I am buying a Nikon D7000 and getting a good deal on the lens, any Nikon lens I want. I'm your average non-serious but more than beginner enthusiast and will be using the camera for family photos, car stuff and taking with me on vacation to shoot touristy things like buildings, landscapes, stuff inside museums etc . Not looking to break the bank here and get a wild lens just something solid that should do me for 90% of the situations I'll run into. I'm thinking of the AF-S DX 18-105mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR (67mm) or AF-S DX 18-200mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR II (72mm) to give me a healthy mix of up close and zoom in capability.

I want some reasonable ability to zoom in some far away stuff but at the same time I don't want a massive lens to lug around. Is the 18-200 really much bigger/heavier than the 18-105 ? And is it worth spending the extra couple of hundred bucks or should I get the 18-105 and a lessor name 200 zoom ? The camera bag I already have is a Lowepro Rezo 160 so I'd like the camera w lens on it to fit in there so its not a PITA to carry and use.

And what about the flash ? Which one matches up well to a D7000, again not huge but still useable for family pics at the house, shooting cars/airplanes in a large musuem, that kind of thing.

[peoples_car]

D7000, 18-200VR, SB600 flash, some memory cards, and you're done.

[Lexi]

SB-700 current model - same deal ? Or should I wait and see what the low light performance is like on the D7000 ? I can get the SB700 new for sub $300 but only this one time.

[valfaw]

why buy a huge camera for what you are talking about using it for???

seriously.

it'll get left at home more than a smaller camera would.

the market is ripe with a nice selection of smaller just as capable options out there to consider now.

[jhayesvw]

I have to agree.
Nikon and Canon both make very good smaller cameras for those purposes.
You wont like carrying a dslr setup all the time.
I know its tiresome for me, so I just use my stuff for wildlife.

[Lexi]

I already have a G9 and a J1, both great small cameras. Problem is they have a mind of their own when it comes to auto focus and the manual focus is cumbersome and slow. DLSR is quick which is what I need w kids. There isn't time to fiddle with menus and focus settings.

[Mk1Racer]

I'm a Canon guy, so I don't know much about the Nikon line, but if I were going to shoot indoors, I'd want something a bit faster, as you can't always use a flash. I know Sigma makes a 17-50 f/2.8 in a Canon EF-S mount, do they also offer that in a Nikon mount? I'm not really a fan of "one lens that tries to do it all", as they usually don't do anything well. Maybe a medium length zoom and a fast prime? Something like a 50 f/1.4 maybe?

[mk2dub4ever]

SB-700 current model - same deal ? Or should I wait and see what the low light performance is like on the D7000 ? I can get the SB700 new for sub $300 but only this one time.

Get the SB-700 !

I ditched my SB-800 for the less powerful and compact SB-700 because the head now swivels 360 degrees !

I was always annoyed not being able to bounce the light to the rear right !

[mk2dub4ever]

Oh and if you are getting a deal on a Nikon "only" lens get the 50mm f1.8G prime. It's crazy sharp at 1.8, much better than the original 1.8D and even sharper than my 1.4D (which I sold to get the 1.8G)

All entry level Nikon zooms are crap. You will want to get a Tamron 17-50 2.8 or Sigma 17-50 2.8.

If you really want a Nikon zoom get a 16-85mm, I have one and its solid and sharp (still pumps the dust) but it's probably the best current standard zoom from Nikon.

Do not get a 18-200 lens, those things are "Dust Pumps" !

[Lexi]

Get the SB-700 !

I ditched my SB-800 for the less powerful and compact SB-700 because the head now swivels 360 degrees !

I was always annoyed not being able to bounce the light to the rear right !

I'm debating the 400 vs 700. I did have a Canon equivilant with sideways bounce and while it was a bit heavy it was handy too

Oh and if you are getting a deal on a Nikon "only" lens get the 50mm f1.8G prime. It's crazy sharp at 1.8, much better than the original 1.8D and even sharper than my 1.4D (which I sold to get the 1.8G)

All entry level Nikon zooms are crap. You will want to get a Tamron 17-50 2.8 or Sigma 17-50 2.8.

If you really want a Nikon zoom get a 16-85mm, I have one and its solid and sharp (still pumps the dust) but it's probably the best current standard zoom from Nikon.

Do not get a 18-200 lens, those things are "Dust Pumps" !

I decided to start with a basic lens, was thinking of getting the Nikon 35mm. Any reason to get the 50 over the 35 ? And why is the 18-200 a dust pump, which Nikon zoom is not in that case ? thnx

Hopefully ordering today

[peoples_car]

I decided to start with a basic lens, was thinking of getting the Nikon 35mm. Any reason to get the 50 over the 35 ? And why is the 18-200 a dust pump, which Nikon zoom is not in that case ? thnx

Hopefully ordering today

I've had the 50 f/1.8 for a couple years now and just bought the 35 f/1.8 a couple weeks ago. I've probably taken more shots with the 35 over the past two weeks than I have with the 50 over the past year.

IMO, it's a much more "usable" field of view on a crop sensor camera than the 50, which turns into more of a designated portrait lens when not mounted on a Full Frame sensor. The OOF area on the 35 is pretty funky though..

[mk2dub4ever]

I'm debating the 400 vs 700. I did have a Canon equivilant with sideways bounce and while it was a bit heavy it was handy too





I decided to start with a basic lens, was thinking of getting the Nikon 35mm. Any reason to get the 50 over the 35 ? And why is the 18-200 a dust pump, which Nikon zoom is not in that case ? thnx

Hopefully ordering today

Get the SB-700, has a lot of built in functionality and you can use it as Optical slave with CLS

Super zooms create vacuum inside the lens as you Zoom in (from 18mm to 200mm) they suck air through the lens between the lens barrel.

Better sealed lenses will suck air through your camera body (through the memory card door seals, buttons etc)

I had a Sigma 18-200 OS once on a Canon and you could even feel the lens slow down with pressurized air inside the lens as you close it down from 200mm to 18mm, it was funny actually.

Another problem with super zooms is that after a while the front element (barrel) becomes slightly loose and you start getting centering defects (front glass element starts sagging and is no longer precisely parallel to the rear element)

As for the 35mm 1.8G Ive tried 4 of those over the years and they are great for sure but for myself I found the standard focal length (what your eye normally sees is 50mm) was odd,

The 50 has a better portrait /subject useability in my opinion and has less CA's. Ive had 4 of the 35 1.8G's and all had horrible purple/green fringing wide open. I like to use my lenses wide open and dont like sitting for hours in Post-process to fix the flaws.

Both 1.8G's are great. I am eyeballing the 85mm 1.8G at the moment as well.

[Lexi]

All great info thnx ! I am still on the fence with the flash. 400 is nice 'n small and I could actually bring it to museums etc but I know from my Canon experience the 700 has many advantages probably biggest for me is to shoot sideways. Not that I do that a lot but it does happen and I use the flash at home or in-laws 99% of the time so lugging it around really isn't an issue.

The OOF area on the 35 is pretty funky though

Care to post any examples or what you mean ? I am leaning towards the 35 for a number of reasons including that I would like to be able to shoot detail shots up close and I think the 50 may not be able to do it. Worst case I can always upgrade, neither lens will break the bank.

Ok I understand what you mean about "dust pump", is this an issue on all lens or would something like a 55-200 or 70-300 be a better choice. I'm going to hold off on my zoom lens for now and just stick with a prime and figure out what suits me best.

[mk2dub4ever]

The SB-400 is a direct flash, the bounce up option is mediocre. You can do just as good with the Built in flash + diffuser.

I personally recommend fast glass + VR for Museum, no need for flash. You are already starting with D7000 which has good High ISO performance (tested Wife's 7K vs my D300)

The 35mm 1.8G is a good lens, dont get me wrong, the in-camera JPG conversion usually fixes the CA problem.

I don't know for me the 35mm was a little odd outdoors. Indoors the 35mm is about 52mm in FX so it's not too bad. It is only a personal opinion.

Both lenses cost the same, the 50mm has slightly better build and has af scale. Google some "35mm vs 50mm on DX" results, Im sure other people will be able to point out their views and opinions.

For me the 35mm wasn't really wide enough as I'd like it to be so I use my tamron 17-50 VC instead.

Nikon is promising (pattents filed) some wide angle primes in the future, 18mm 1.8G DX being one of them. That's wide.

[Lexi]

I've googled 35vs50, read plenty of threads on DPreview and still can't say one is better than the other 100%. I think this is a creamy vanilla vs french vanilla item where both are good in their own right and it really comes down to personal preference.

And yes that's one reason I'm going with the D7000, it has amazing low light peformance. I had (have) a Canon G9 which is great but low light sucks like it did on all cameras of that era. I replaced it wiht a Nikon J1 and rarely if ever use the flash, its great in low light. Pics I'd never even bother to attempt on the G9 and easy peasy on the J1. I would expect simular if not better with the D7000.

BTW, will this card work with the D7000 and is it pretty decent for $45 ? My Class 4's aren't cutting it with the J1 on burst mode and the D7000 will only put a higher load on it.

http://www.adorama.com/IDSDUIC1064.h..._source=pgrabl

[mk2dub4ever]

I'm sure the memory card will work, the camera was designed to take huge memory cards for the shear Video storage alone. As long as its Class 6 or higher you will be fine.

Sweet thing about the Dual SD card cameras, you can use both slots at the same time (backup). We used ours 1 for Pics, 2 for Video.

But I recommend having a couple of 8GB cards for pictures only. There have been many cases of SD cards going corrupt. Its good idea to keep your photos on a few cards just in case.

[mk2dub4ever]

furthermore, as peoples_car pointed out, he took more shots with the 35 than the 50.

There are options in Lightroom I believe and other 3rd party apps which will take your library of photos and show you which focal length you use the most. It's a good way of prioritizing your lens list.

It helps if you own a zoom lens and just wonder what focal length you use the most.