[Padfan9]

I have a Nikon D3200 and can buy one or all of these:

I love taking still and moving shots.

1. Nikon 24-85 mm F/3.5-4.5 AF-S IF G ED Lens

2. 55-200mm vibration resistant

3. 35mm 1.8

What do you guys think?

[RickFLM4]

Might want to check out the photography subforum in OT. There seem to be some pretty knowledgable people there.

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by Padfan9

I have a Nikon D3200 and can buy one or all of these:

I love taking still and moving shots.

1. Nikon 24-85 mm F/3.5-4.5 AF-S IF G ED Lens

2. 55-200mm vibration resistant

3. 35mm 1.8

What do you guys think?

The 35mm 1.8 "prime" (fixed focal length) would be my first choice, although there are a few drawbacks.

Most importantly, since your largest aperture is f1.8, you'll have the most flexibility in your shooting. f1.8 is BIG, and it's nice to have the room to play. You can get a lot of bokeh (the blurry background effect you see) without having to resort to photoshopping it in. You can shoot low light without having to slow your shutter speed, crank up ISO or exposure compensation. This yields better photos with less distortion. And when doing rolling shots, you can use faster shutter speeds than you could with the other lenses.

The downside is that you have no zoom, but that's actually a plus. It teaches you to get into position to compose your shots, and forces you to become a more aware photographer. The other downside is that 35mm is pretty tight. Your Nikon 3200 is not a full frame DSLR, so you must multiply the focal length by 1.5 to get a true focal length. In other words, that 35mm lens is actually working as a 42.5 mm lens on your camera. If you could get a prime lens with a smaller focal length, it'd probably be better for camera shots.

The 24-85 is an interesting choice. It's a zoom, and in a good range, but the price range you are looking at means that you are limiting your aperature. The 3.5-4.5 means at 24mm you're at f3.5 minimum and at 85mm you're at f4.5 minimum. Meaning, not zoomed you're in decent shape but when zoomed, you're pretty limited in how you can manipulate the pictures. It might be a good lens if you feel like you "need" a zoom.

Don't bother with the 55-200. Really, don't even think about it. First of all, the 55mm is too tight for your non-full format camera. It's only good for when you need to shoot far shots...like your kid's play or a football game from afar. Plus, it's a cheap lens. The aperatures are worse at 4 - 5.6. That means zoomed, the max you can get is 5.6. You won't take good pictures, and you'll be extremely frustrated by the lack of viewing area. I have a 70-200 2.8, and while it is a beautiful lens, it's very impractical and has very limited use. I use it for taking closeups of wildlife, and my kids sports games where I can't get within 100 feet of the action.

It looks like your budget is a few hundred. I'd try to get a prime lens with a slightly shorter focal length, like the 24mm or 28 mm 2.8's. They're about $300-$350 and they'll give you more room to compose a shot.

Also, look on Nikon's site for remanufactured lenses. Better yet, go to a rental site like lumoid.com or borrowlenses.com and rent two lenses for a weekend. Do some shooting with them and see which one suits your camera and style better. That way you won't waste money on a lens you can't work around.

Good luck!

[mephiska]

I concur with the 1.8 lens advice. I have an older Nikon D60 35mm and a few weeks ago we picked up a Nikkor 1:1.8 AF-S lens, namely for baby pictures. I just walked outside and tested this lens out on my beater truck. The background is blurred nicely, and most of the truck is in focus (though you might want to focus it on a point somewhere on the middle of the car then frame it and take your shot). This is just a quick sample of the type of pictures you'll get with a 1.8 lens.



Disclaimer: I know nothing about photography. I just know that this fixed 1.8 lens takes really good looking photos, especially baby photos. And after this experiment I'll be bringing this camera & lens along with me when I pickup my M3

[qspring]

Originally Posted by Padfan9

I have a Nikon D3200 and can buy one or all of these:

I love taking still and moving shots.

1. Nikon 24-85 mm F/3.5-4.5 AF-S IF G ED Lens

2. 55-200mm vibration resistant

3. 35mm 1.8

What do you guys think?

What do you have already?

If you can get them all, do it. They will all offer something different

[Padfan9]

Originally Posted by initialgemini

What do you have already?

If you can get them all, do it. They will all offer something different

I just have the 18-55 that came with it. I just got a 55-200 and 35mm for a great deal from someone I trust so I think I am set with those for now! I like taking long distance shots of my Cf roof and with cool backgrounds.

[qspring]

Originally Posted by Padfan9

I just have the 18-55 that came with it. I just got a 55-200 and 35mm for a great deal from someone I trust so I think I am set with those for now! I like taking long distance shots of my Cf roof and with cool backgrounds.

Looks like we have similar taste! Love the BSM.

I think the 55-200 and the 35 prime will give you plenty to work with.

The IS will come in handy too when shooting at upper focal lengths.

[Kortho]

I always like having the lower F stops so I usually use a Leica summicron or summilux, and it's hard to beat the Leica glass.

[qspring]

Originally Posted by Kortho

I always like having the lower F stops so I usually use a Leica summicron or summilux, and it's hard to beat the Leica glass.

That's mighty sharp glass you have.

[x.shell]

Originally Posted by Padfan9

I just have the 18-55 that came with it. I just got a 55-200 and 35mm for a great deal from someone I trust so I think I am set with those for now! I like taking long distance shots of my Cf roof and with cool backgrounds.

A prime 35mm 1.4 is a great lens to have. It's the lens I take with me if I can only take one. It seems like you have the equipment part squared away. You just have to work on your craft now. Good photography is just like racing cars; 80% driver/ 20% equipment.

Here's my first tip. Never, for the love of god, use that nasty HDR filter; especially when you can see the halo'd edge. HDR photography can be a great way of enhancing emotion in a photograph IF DONE CORRECTLY, but I haven't seen a filter effect so abused since the vasaline-soft-edge-80's-glamour-photo.

[M3Fahrer]

I like the 35 1.8, it's a sharp lens and takes great pictures. Since it's not a zoom you have to walk forward and back to get the right frame.

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by ex o

A prime 35mm 1.4 is a great lens to have. It's the lens I take with me if I can only take one. It seems like you have the equipment part squared away. You just have to work on your craft now. Good photography is just like racing cars; 80% driver/ 20% equipment.

Here's my first tip. Never, for the love of god, use that nasty HDR filter; especially when you can see the halo'd edge. HDR photography can be a great way of enhancing emotion in a photograph IF DONE CORRECTLY, but I haven't seen a filter effect so abused since the vasaline-soft-edge-80's-glamour-photo.

[IMG]http://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/att...1&d=1442172792[/IMG]

Yup, this.

OP, those lenses will serve you well to learn. Composition is really much more important. Some people have a great eye, others do not. It's something you can learn with practice. Mine is terrible, but I have been working on it.

Your shot with your car on the pier has great composition, but you'll need to tighten up the focus and the lighting doesn't highlight the car as well as it could. But you will learn it takes practice. Looks like from your shots you have a good eye. Take lots of shots, and look at what works. Get a good book on photography and learn what the settings do. I suggest David Bush guide, he walks you through the camera well.

Good bokeh:

Edit: the photo I posted is horribly out of focus when uploaded. It appears that it's my iPad, and made yours look out of focus.

[Needsdecaf]

Externally hosted shots:

Bokeh:



Changing the fstop makes the depth of field change, varying the effect of the shot:





Composition and positioning:



Juxtaposition of size:




All shots taken with my D5200 (weaksauce) and my 24-70 f2.8 (crazy piece of glass called "the beast" by pros).

[Junkball]

I bought a NEX-7 and the Zeiss f1.8 prime lens to accompany it specifically for my ED and couldn't be happier. Eventually I will get around to posting the pictures. I was more than happy with the results.

[Kzang]

Can you guys please explain why the left side of my photos come out blurred or not as sharp as the right side of my photos?

I am using a few months old Canon 70D with kit 18-135mm IS STM lens and polarizer filter cover with a canon petal lens hood.

Here are some samples.

103 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

102 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

105 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

119 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

[cmplaya]

Originally Posted by Padfan9

I just have the 18-55 that came with it. I just got a 55-200 and 35mm for a great deal from someone I trust so I think I am set with those for now! I like taking long distance shots of my Cf roof and with cool backgrounds.

Nice car but looks like it is glowing like ghosting around borders of car from processing. Luminosity masks might help more with that

[cmplaya]

Originally Posted by Kzang

Can you guys please explain why the left side of my photos come out blurred or not as sharp as the right side of my photos?

I am using a few months old Canon 70D with kit 18-135mm IS STM lens and polarizer filter cover with a canon petal lens hood.

Here are some samples.

103 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

102 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

105 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

119 by Nam Ji, on Flickr

Because the objects on left side of photo here are further away from your focal distance than right side objects

[Inspired]

35mm 1.8 if you are on a budget. 24-70 f2.8 if you aren't. The 24-70 is one of the best and sharpest lens Nikon makes.

[Kortho]

Originally Posted by initialgemini

That's mighty sharp glass you have.

Thanks, I am a bit partial to that Leica magic, took this with a Leica T and a summicron the other day. It's a compressed file so not as clear as it really is.

[Kzang]

Originally Posted by cmplaya

Because the objects on left side of photo here are further away from your focal distance than right side objects

So is there a tip to avoid this from happening or is it just a nature of photography? Thanks.

[Kortho]

Originally Posted by Kzang

So is there a tip to avoid this from happening or is it just a nature of photography? Thanks.

Increase your F stop to widen the focal plane and bring objects of varying distances into focus.

[cmplaya]

Originally Posted by Kzang

So is there a tip to avoid this from happening or is it just a nature of photography? Thanks.

is a nature of photography. people pay a lot of money for wide aperture lenses to get the shallow focal depth look to draw the viewer's attention to particular subject especially for portraits