Lense Comparrisons

[louise wilkins]

<p>I am an amature photographer shooting with a Nikon D60 and an 18-200 lense. My areas of interest are nature/scenic photography and usually shoot at the most zoom I can. Though I like the general purpose of my lense, I really would like one or two good glass lenses but don't know what I really want. I have read many posts about different lenses and the numbers and math just confuse the heck out of me. I'm wondering if there's anywhere I can get photographic shots of the same scenes using the different kinds of lenses. Whether it is an on-line source or book, it's worth it to me to find. I'm more a visual person so being able to see what different lenses would show would be of such great benefit to me.<br>

Thanks to anyone who can help me!</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>If you find yourself using the 200mm end of your 18-200 frequently, it will help to know what you're finding lacking in the results you're getting. It may be, for example, that if you're going for a landscape shot that requires that telephoto reach, you might be a lot happier with the results if you simply stop the lens down to more like f/8, and use a tripod to keep the camera steady for nice, sharp results. If you're using that lens wide open (as wide open as it gets, at 200mm, which is f/5.6), the results can be a bit soft. But just changing your technique a bit can make huge differences in what you produce. A good tripod being one of the most important "new lenses" you might actually buy.<br /><br />If, on the other hand, you're finding you need more reach than your 200mm zoom will give you, the 70-300 might make sense... but the difference between 200mm and 300mm isn't as dramatic as many people expect that it will be.<br /><br />Out of curiosity, why do you find yourself pushing out all the way to 200mm regularly - is it because you're shooting subjects to which you can't get closer... or becuase you like the compositional look of the longer focal length? Understanding a bit more about your situation will help with better advice here, and will get you some more specific pointers.<br /><br />As for what you were asking for, here's a somewhat random example. Tamron (another lens manufacturer) has a "zoom simulator" widget on one of their web pages. <strong><a href="http://www.tamron.co.jp/en/lineup/b001/gakaku.html">Take a look here</a></strong> for an example that covers 10mm to 270mm. It will help you get see how a given focal length correlates to the resulting field of view.</p>

[conwaygroup]

<p>Louise, you already have a tool to show you the field of view of all lenses in the 18 to 200mm range. Use the lens you have.<br>

A good study for you would be to find a static scene and take a series of images (using a tripod) each at a different focal length. In other words, you could shoot one at 18mm, the next at say 24mm another at 35mm, another at 50mm all the way up to 200mm. Keep the aperture setting the same for all shots. I would suggest something around f/8 or f/11 because most lenses perform better in this range. Upload all of these photos to your computer and you will be able to study the differences in field of view and depth of field found at each setting.<br>

Good luck!</p>

[trevans]

<p>And while you're at it, turn off the VR while you're using the tripod. ;-)</p>

[carl_becker2]

<p>The D60 does not have a auto focus motor in the body. If you want AF then you should be looking at AF-S type lenses. If you don't use a tripod then as Matt suggests get one, a good one will last a long time. If you look at your exif data you can figure out which focal length you use the most. If you are using f11 then I am not sure you will see great improvements unless you get top of the line glass. I have had much success using Bjorn's reviews at:<br>

<a href="http://www.naturfotograf.com/index2.html">http://www.naturfotograf.com/index2.html</a></p>

[elliot1]

<p>"I really would like one or two good glass lenses" You already have an excellent glass lens.</p>

<p>If you sometimes find 18mm not wide enough, you may want an ultra wide lens</p>

<p>If you sometimes find 200mm not strong enough to zoom in with, you may want a stronger zoom lens.</p>

<p>If you shoot in poor lighting and find your camera has trouble focusing or you have to set your ISO higher than you like, you may need a faster lens (faster aperture).</p>

<p>If you don't have any issues, enjoy your current lens - you don't need another. Many people have only one lens and the one you have is probably the best one to own when you only own one.</p>

 

[trevans]

<p>And to re-iterate what Matt Laur and Elliot are saying, your lens is a <em>good</em> lens. It's definitely a cut above kit lenses. When we hem-and-haw about this class of lens, it's like people debating the relative performance of sports sedans... they all outperform entry-level things anyway. We're splitting hairs.</p>

<p>Since you said you enjoy landscapes and outdoor photography, you really should be shooting at smaller apertures for a bigger depth of field anyway. Again like Matt suggested, stop the lens down to at least f/8, or even to f/11, and see if you like the images it yields.</p>

<p>Since you said you learn visually, why not look online, pick out a couple of lens lengths that interest you (say, 18, 24, 35, 50, 85, 135, 200), set your current lens to that focal length, and take a representative shot. Mounted to a tripod of course. Then go to the next length. Once you're done, go home and look at the shots you have and see if any of the lengths appeal to you; if one or two stand out, you could get some mighty fine prime lenses in those focal lengths.</p>

<p>Keep in mind, with your D60, that unless they are AF-S lenses you will be focusing manually which <em>is not the end of the world</em> since your subjects (like trees and hills) don't tend to move fast enough that you need quick autofocus. Kids, sports, and animals are an entirely different story.</p>

[Peter_in_PA]

<p>Evaluate what you don't like about the lens, as others have said. If you want to go wider, go wider, if you want to go longer, buy longer. If you find yourself always shooting wide open and want more quality, get ready to drop some bucks. If you can shoot at f8 most of the time, I think you'll see no difference between stuff shot with this lens and stuff shot with a lens three times the price, all things being equal.</p>

[mark_drutz]

<p>If you want to see a comparison of a wide range of focal lengths there are several good basic photography books that should do that. I can't name a specific book but when you look at books make sure that the pictures reflect the 1.5 crop factor of the D60.</p>

[louise wilkins]

<p>I want to thank you all for your responses. All great information and I'll take it and experiment with focal lengths. Thanks!</p>