First Nikon purchase- lens upgrade deal or scam?

<p>Hi all!<br>

I've just made my first "big" Nikon purchase. I've been saving up a long time for this! I am a novice, so although I did some research, I decided that basic lenses and a D-90 body would be a good start for me to learn.<br>

So I bought the D90 body along with these 3 lenses:<br>

- Nikon 18-55mm AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor f/3.5-5.6<br>

- Nikon 70-300mm f/4-5.6 AF Zoom- Nikkor<br>

- Nikon 50mm AF Nikkor 1:8 D<br>

I know these are relatively inexpensive and simple lenses, but hopefully a good start.<br>

After the purchase, I was notified that I could "upgrade" which would eliminate the 50mm lens but upgrade in the following ways:<br>

1. The standard Nikon 18-55mm lens will be upgraded to the Nikon G type DX.<br /> 2. The standard Nikon 70-300 lens will be upgraded to the Nikon G type IF (Iternal Focusing) ED (Extra Low Dispersion).<br>

Now, I am buying this with USA warranty, all new, purchase protection, etc. So I am not too worried about receiving knock-offs or grey market, but I am wary of agreeing to this switch. I figured a lot of people out there would be able to look at this and immediately know if this is a deal or a scam. Feel free to give me your honest opinions!<br>

I also wonder about the necessity of VR lenses for a novice like me. In the future I'd like to try them out, but do you think they are worth the investment from day one?<br>

Thanks in advance!<br>

Jess</p>

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<p>Have you checked the seller at http://www.resellerratings.com/ ?</p>

<p> </p>

<p>You should be wary. That 18-55 is already a G-type DX. You are being scammed. If it's not too late, cancel the order and get it instead from a legit dealer.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>1. The standard Nikon 18-55mm lens will be upgraded to the Nikon G type DX.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Uh? are you sure you have this right? ALL Nikkor 18-55 are G (means no aperture ring) and DX (means they only work on small sensor cameras. Perhaps the upgrade is from the non-VR to the VR version? <a href="http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/lineup/lens/af/dx/af-s_dx_zoom18-55mmf_35-56g_ed_2/index.htm">This one</a> is the current non-vr version, <a href="http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/lineup/lens/af/dx/af-s_dx_18-55mmf_35-56g_vr/index.htm">this one</a> is the VR version.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>2. The standard Nikon 70-300 lens will be upgraded to the Nikon G type IF (Iternal Focusing) ED (Extra Low Dispersion).</p>

</blockquote>

<p>This makes more sense. The only, I believe currently produced version of the 70-300 is the IF-ED VR, <a href="http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/lineup/lens/af/zoom/af-s_vr_zoom70-300mmf_45-56g_if/index.htm">here it is</a>. It is a very fine lens, while <a href="http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/technology/archives/lens/af/zoom/af_zoom70-300mmf_4-56d/index.htm">this one was the old version</a>, no longer produced, which is the one you were likely offered in the first place.</p>

<p>If these are the upgrades you are offered, both make sense (by the way, this would make both your lenses VR), since in the 18-55 you gain a somewhat better (not much) optics and VR, in the 70-300 you gain a significantly better optics, very good AF, and VR. If they offer you this for no extra charge and you only have to let the 50 go, I would say go for it. The 50 1.8 is very cheap anyway, you can buy it anytime if you feel you want it (with a DX camera, I would very seriously consider the 35 1.8 dx instead / also). Especially the 70-300 is not a basic lens at all, it is indeed one of the finest consumer-grade lenses in my opinion, and it is likely to serve you well for a long time.</p>

<p>Unless you have misread/miscopied what they told you about the 18-55, however, you should likely be careful because something is a bit fishy...</p>

<p>Cheers</p>

<p>L.</p>

Ditto. The 18-55 is already a G lens, and obviously DX. You shouldn't have bought the 70-300, though. You might regret it. The 55-200 VR is really a better lens for the same price, unless you make the leap to the 70-300 VR, which is a substantially better lens than either, but at three times the price. They are all G lenses (not that that matters), but only the 55-200 VR and the 70-300 VR have AF-S (as Nikon's internal focusing is properly denoted).

 

Are you sure the soliciting email came from the seller and not some third party? There are unscrupulous companies that gather up recent purchase information and target the new customers with these scams, but those offers don't come directly from the seller. One last word of advice, from someone with over 15 years of experience buying things online: If it smells like a scam, it's always a scam. Honest vendors are very transparent and precise in the language they use to offer you deals. An honest vendor wouldn't have made these mistakes. Only a scam phishing website with unscrupulous phishing bots would have sent you that email.

<blockquote>

<p>Nikon 70-300mm f/4-5.6 AF Zoom- Nikkor</p>

</blockquote>

<p>That is immediately a red flag. The current popular 70-300 is a f4<strong>.5</strong>-5.6 AF-S VR. The f4-5.6 (instead of 4.5-5.6) is one of the two older versions. Most likely they are throwing the very cheap non-ED vesion to you: <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/207359-USA/Nikon_1928_AF_Zoom_Nikkor_70_300mm.html">http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/207359-USA/Nikon_1928_AF_Zoom_Nikkor_70_300mm.html</a><br>

That lens only worths about $150.</p>

<p>The shop you are dealing with has all sorts of bad signs. I would buy the camera else where.</p>

<p>Scam.</p>

<p>Just buy those from BH Photo or Adorama. Be careful when dealing with weird sellers such as this one offering you bogus upgrades. I once tried to order flash from one of them "cheap" places and after they tried to upgrade me to some super duper batteries for 50 dollars more and I said no way, they canceled my order and said the unit was out of stock. I shop at BH since.</p>

<p>Check your store with resellerratings.com immediately.</p>

<p>Then, if they don't check out, cancel your order immediately.</p>

<p>it's a pity how people save for a long time, like the OP, to make their big purchase, only to get seduced by one of the scam operators, and then screwed with the old bait-and-switch routine... when will we ever learn, if it's too good to be true...<br>

i hope it isn't too late for this person, who at least has the presence of mind to realize something doesn't seem quite right...</p>

<p>Thanks, guys!<br>

I did my homework on the seller- and everything checks out. This is not once of those super cheap package deals- I am paying a decent amount of $. I emailed the seller to ask for more specifics about the lenses, including photos.<br>

I also visited the Nikon site and read about the lenses I should receive, and looked at the values. The 3 lenses total $427 according to Nikon set prices, so I realize these are not advanced/pro level!<br>

I also purchased using a purchase guarantee, so I can cancel at any time and get a full refund. I may do this when the seller replies with the specifics.<br>

Thanks again!</p>

<p>Are you in the US, is the equipment imported by Nikon or is it gray market? Have you compared prices to BHPhoto or Adorama?</p>

 

<p>I continue to not understand why people purchase online from sources other than B&H or Adorama. If the prices are a lot better then it is a scam. If a dealer's prices are nominally better than Adorama or B&H it isn't worth giving up the value of dealing with the largest, most reputable dealers in the U.S to save a very little amount.<br>

Refund guarantees and all the rest are of no value to me since with B&H or Adorama you get all that. I can understand if you want to go into a local store and support it and enjoy the tactile experience of holding items you are buying and working with a salesperson. But if it is an online purchase, posts such as this one are sadly all too frequently the result of dealing with others. This type of strangeness just doesn't occur at the big guys. </p>

<p>Jessica, please tell us the name of the store you are buying from.</p>

<p>i hope you were able to cancel your order. don't wait for their reply on your email.<br />just get the D90 with the kit lens --- 18-105mm. the prices of the lenses being offered to you totals<br>

to about $350 only. how nuch are they offering you the body?</p>

<p>The less reputable stores and sites often package older or lesser quality lenses to get rid of them to people who don't know better. Who is the dealer? Did you check them with the BBB and/or resellerratings.com? This could be a ligitimate deal in that you are not being robbed, but you are getting lower quality lenses than you could get for a comparable or slightly higher price from a reputable dealer. Also if the camera and lenses are grey market, Nikon USA will not honor the warranty.</p>

<p>Even if the prices are reasonable, I would cancel the deal and get better lenses from a reliable dealer. Others have mentioned B&H and Adorama who are very reliable. I use them and I also use Abes of Maine.</p>

<p>What is all his costing you?</p>

<p>Okay everyone! I asked for your opinions and advice, and I took them! I may be a novice, but I don't want to get screwed! I canceled my order. I had paid $1,370 for the 3 lenses I mentioned and D90 body. I called them and they were very apologetic about the lens mix-up; indeed posting the 18-55mm as an "upgrade" when that lens was already guaranteed with my kit. I was certain to get the lower quality 70-300mm lens. I am embarrassed to admit that I went for a package deal, which had lots of cheap accessories (I knew this going in but was only concerned with getting a good body/lenses).<br>

BUT the order was canceled and my paypal account was credited with the refund.<br>

In place, I found what I suspect to be an awesome deal on B&H- thanks for the heads up guys! Here is the link to the deal I got: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/588977-REG/Nikon__D90_SLR_Digital_Camera.html<br>

For those that don't want to check out the link, I got the 18-105 & 70-300 mm VR lenses along with the body. After the instant rebate, it was only $1,400!<br>

I also purchased a 4gb memory card and awesome looking backpack from them.<br>

Any other suggestions of "must haves" to get me started? I can't wait to start taking photos! I will definitely watch tutorials, but I'm really interested in knowing if I need extra lens filters, wide angle lens modifier things, etc....<br>

Thanks again- you guys really helped me out! I know that all of this is super elementary to most of you, but hey, we all start somewhere, right?<br>

Cheers!</p>

Hey! It sounds like you're now getting a much better pair of lenses from a great dealer for almost exactly the same price! Those other stupid accesories are really just trash filler to make you think you're getting a better deal than you are. They'll throw in a cheap tripod, cheap wide angle adapter, cheap lens cloth, cheap memory card, and cheap camera bag, and pretend the whole mess is an additional $99 value, when you're better off without such cheap garbage. Now you're liberated of all that junk, and you have two terrific lenses instead. Congratulations. Pity that the 50mm doesn't fit in your budget anymore, though. That's always a great go-to lens for dark places and close-up portraits.

<p>Congrats and WELCOME! You did make a great choice going with this package.</p>

<p>Post later with your first impressions and some images</p>

<p>RS</p>

<p>CRAIG! Now I want the 50mm lens too! It's not an expensive one, do you really think I should get it? Would those 3 lenses then be a good basis to start exploring with? I should mention, I am obsessed with gardening and plan on taking lots of close up pics of my plants (and the various creatures that choose my garden as habitat!). Is the 50mm a good lens for that type of shooting? I wouldn't mind shelling out a bit more for 1 more solid lens to round out my set-up.....(or should I just learn to use the other 2 lenses first, haha?)<br>

Suggestions???</p>

 

<p>jessica, you did the right thing.i would also suggest looking at the the 35/1.8, which is a better focal length for DX for every day shooting. for close ups of plants, and also as a short portrait lens, though, the 50 would be better. you can add a close-up adapter to turn it into a semi-macro lens. but for stuff like low-light/no-flash indoor pics, the 35 gives you more wiggle room in tight spaces.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Jessica,</p>

<p>I second Eric...the 35mm f/1.8 is a much better focal length for DX...BUT...</p>

<p><em><strong>I'm going to give advise I'd normally not give, but you've made your purchase...</strong></em></p>

<p>Use the zooms for now...when you feel you've outgrown the lenses (not likely for a while), or need a low light lens, you can re-evaluate...besides, the 50 f/1.8 is only about $125... hardly noticeable when you start looking at $2000/lens for "pro" lenses </p>

<p>great move.</p>

<p>i will second richard {and 3rd eric? :-)} on the 35mm and the 50mm lens. you're on a roll anyway, get both. i'm sure you'll have plenty of room in that backpack. or when you walk around with the 18-105mm anyone of those primes will fit in one of your pockets.</p>

<p>there will be times that you will just mount the 35mm and the 50mm in your pocket or vice versa. i have done that in my D90. have fun with your new toys. but please budget at least for the sb-600 flash along the way.</p>

<p>Ramon- you're killing me!!! On one hand I'm drooling over the idea of several new lenses to play with, on the other I'm looking at my meager grad student stipend! ;-)<br>

Okay, so what is this flash that I need?<br>

Would anyone recommend buying some of these lenses used? Or is that just asking for trouble?</p>

<p>Jessica, the D90 plus the 18-105 and 70-300 AF-S VR is a very good starter kit. I would use that for a few weeks and see what else is missing for your photography before buying more lenses. Only you will know what you need.</p>