low light Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 Thinking of getting a D80 as my first digital camera. I have quite a few lenses that I use with my Slr's which are 18-35 F3.5-4.5, 45 F2.8p, 50 F1.8, 85 F1.8 all Nikon,28-70 F2.8 and 105 F2.8 macro Sigma lenses. I was going to get the body only for 542 GBP and just use these lenses but have heard good reviews about the 18-70 kit lens. Should I go for the kit lens or will my lenses be okay? Would love the 17-55 F2.8 but that's out of my price range. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShunCheung Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 Anthony, you already have a pretty decent set of lenses. I assume you Sigma lenses are AF ones, so all of them are compatible with the D80. I think you should be just fine getting a D80 body only, and add lenses later on as you see fit. For example, if you prefer wide, you might be interested in a 12-24 zoom for the D80. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oski Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 read Philips's advice http://philip.greenspun.com/photography/nikon/system Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cameradude Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 Wow, you've got some good glass! Maybe a good wide angle lens and if you need a telephoto. Pretty good line up, but what are you shooting? Looks like you can do a lot with what you have, don't necessarily need to drop dough right this moment, I find it hard to contain myself too! I already miss my 28-70 f/2.8 that I just shipped out yesterday. Funny thing is I sold it so it would get more use, I guess its just the fact that I can't reach into my bag and use it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marike1 Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 One thing that you'll get with the 18-70, is it make a nice walking around lens. You have some very good lenses, but depending on the type of shooting you do, seems like you'll be changing lenses quite a bit. Your 18-35 may be a little short on the long end, and your 28-70 2.8 is not wide enough starting at 42mm. With my D70, I use Nikon 18-70 DX and 70-200 VR lenses, and a 50 1.8 for low light situations. So I'm covered from 27-300. A agree with Shun that the 12-24 would make a terrific addition on the wide end. It's on my wish list. And while the 18-70 can't be compared to 17-55 F2.8, it's got some pretty exotic glass with 3 ED and 1 aspherical element. Also, it's an AF-S lens, so focusing is fast and quiet. (My 24 2.8 is quite noisy in comparison). As far as the D80: great choice. I can't wait to get my mitts on one, and I'll use my D70 as a second body. Too bad about the plastic lens mount on the D80's 18-135 kit lens. I was very dissapointed to read about the mount. I can understand plastic mounts on the D40 & D50 kits lenses at their price points, but B&H is selling the 18-135 for 400 USD. Yikes! No thank you. I'll stick with the 18-70 and I assume, Anthony, that is why you aren't considering the D80 kit lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael s. Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 I'd agree with getting a feel for what the camera does with your current lenses before shopping for more. And I'd strongly disagree with what I understand to be P. Greenspun's advice, to the extent that I correctly read the linked article to recommend to the "average family" that they begin with a $500 body (the D50) and then hang nearly $2000 in lenses on the end of it, some of them quite large. The "average families" I know don't want that kind of size, weight, or price tag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_in_PA Posted November 23, 2006 Share Posted November 23, 2006 BUT... If you can get a decent "kit" lens at a good price with the camera, then I would certainly consider carefully getting the 18-70, if you want a "walk-around" lens, or, of course, my beloved 18-200, the ultimate walk-around lens, imho... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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