Upgrading glass for F80: suggestion request

[SolaresLarrave]

I'm trying to update/upgrade my Nikon gear and have come to a point in

which I only know that I want to make changes, but don't know which.

Recently, I purchased a 24-85G AFS f3.5-4.5 lens... which is intended

to replace my kit lens (the much maligned 28-80D f3.5-5.6, late version).

 

Let me list the inventory. You can recommend what to sell/buy.

 

Nikon AF 50/1.8,

Nikon AFS 24-85 f3.5-4.5 (en route, probably arrives today)

Nikon AF 28-80D f3.5-5.6

Sigma AF 70-300 DL f4.5-5.6

 

I'm inclined to keep the Sigma (I don't use it much), sell the kit

lens and get a micro (either 60mm or 105mm). Recommendations?

Suggestions? WWYD?

 

BTW, I like wide-angles, portraits and macro. Not much of a landscape

shooter, but won't shy from doing it ocassionaly.

 

Thanks in advance for your advice!

[johnmyers]

I would keep the 50mm, and sell the 28-80 and the 70-300. Then with that money, and some more saving over the months/years, invest in the nikkor 60mm 2.8D micro, the nikkor 20mm 2.8D (or 17-35mm 2.8D) and a good fixed telephoto and/or telephoto zoom.

 

Macro is incredibly fun. I have Nikon's Micro-Nikkor 60mm f/2.8D and that would be the absolute last lens I would part with. It is simply incredible.

[arnulfo_rosas]

Same as above, but I would buy a 105mm (Nikon preferably but a Sigma is really good) instead of the 60mm (I know it is a superb but with insufficient working distance).

 

Zoom: 80-200 2.8 (expensive but worth every single $ spent on it), or

Fixed: 85 1.8 AFD and 180 2.8 EDIF AFD

 

in both combinations you spend about the same amount of $$$ for about the same quality; the only drawback of the zoom is that it is too heavy for your N80 (a MB-16 would be compulsory).

 

Regards

[nico_.]

If you hardly use the Sigma because you don't need its range that much, there's no point in selling it and getting a bazooka of a 2.8 telezoom instead. You'll use it even less because it weighs a ton and you're likely to leave it at home anyway. I used to have an older version of the 70-210/2.8 Sigma (approx 1.3kg) that I took out only a few times because it was simply to heavy to carry around. I sold it for a good price and put the money into a decent wide angle zoom. If you are into portraits, have a look at the 85/1.8.

[SolaresLarrave]

Thanks for all the advice! I think the fate of the kit lens is sealed. Today, my new workhorse came in... and what a delight it is: no AF noise, quick focusing and the range is nice enough (24-85).

 

The kit lens will hit the FS ads soon. So will the Sigma... although, at times, a nice zoom is worth to have, but then a Nikon 105 may do the trick in a pinch. The odd thing is that the reason I bought the Sigma zoom was, precisely, macro. I've used it as telephoto, mostly for birds, but then, they never get really close.

 

I guess I'll sell both and then get a decent macro, either Sigma or Nikon. The reviews for the 60mm are really amazing, but then, not always do I want to be that close to my subjects, to I may go for the 105/2.8 glass. Again, thanks a big lot!

[Rick Waller]

Another recommendation here for the longer macro lens. While the 60mm is excellent optically, unless you are shooting inanimate objects (like stamps or coins or such), I think you will definitely appreciate the extra working distance afforded by the 105. In addition to extra working distance, the 105 has a narrower field of view which is also quite useful in many macro applications.

 

One last point - if the Nikon 105 is out of your price range, I can tell you that the Tamron 90mm macro is an exceptional performer for a lot less dough. I tend not to favor Tamron lenses (and I have never had much luck with Sigmas, although I freely admit that my experience with Sigma lenses goes back many years - I hear that their quality has greatly improved in recent years), but I have used the Tamron on several occasions and I mean to tell you that the images are VERY sharp.

 

Oh - and since you said that you do a fair amount of portrait work, the 105 (or the 90mm) macro makes a pretty good portrait lens as well. Some argue that these lenses are too sharp for portraits, but I have never quite understood that logic. If you shoot a woman with wrinkles and you want to soften them, there are lots of ways to "diffuse" the shot, either with filters or in PS. To me, there is no such thing as a lens that is too sharp.

[akira_sasaki1]

I think a 60 or 105 Macro are good choices, and so is 20/2.8 or 24/2.8, but how about instead of a lens, going with a Speedlite instead? SB50 or SB800 would be good. With SB50, you can use it with the flash on the body and get both direct and bounce lighting effect. SB800 will give you much more power.

 

See here:

http://www.bythom.com/sb50review.htm

http://www.bythom.com/sb80review.htm (similar to SB800)

[fred_lefebvre]

About your zoom... I used to have a Nikon AF 70-300mm G (crappy plastic zoom) and found I did not used it much, mainly because the extra size and weigth were not worth the results I was getting from it. I replaced it with a used Nikon AF 180mm IF-ED f2.8. This lens has all the reach I want, is half the weight and size of a fast 80-200 zoom, is super sharp and doubles as a very good portrait lens when you have the room to work with it. Oh... and it's cheap. I paid 450$ Can for mine.

[SolaresLarrave]

Akira, I already have the SB-28 (plain vanilla, not the DX version), a bracket and a SC-17 cord. It performs miracles, but I use it in P (no use trying to outsmart the camera when using a speedlight! :) ).

 

Regarding the long-focal length lens... I may go initially for the micro. I wish I did a lot of portrait, but my in-laws and wife have resigned themselves to be the usual targets. Fortunately, being winter and not having too much to do in macro, I'll have a little time to think about my choices... and save!

 

Again, thanks a lot, Fred and Eric, for all your advice!

[johnmyers]

No no no! Winter's the BEST time for macro :-D<div></div>

[SolaresLarrave]

John, you've convinced me...

 

Damn! I'm gonna need a macro lens sooner than I thought...

 

Thanks for posting that imaginative photo!!