bob_geoghegan

<p>50-135 f/3.5 AIS. Lovely glass, great balance and those cool DOF scales.<br>

Bob G</p>

Raon,

The great thing about the D300 for someone in your situation is its compatibility with older lenses like the ones you've probably got for the FM3A. It allows you to pick up great glass cheap. To throw in a curve-ball... you could even opt for a used D200 at 50-60% the cost of a new D300. Backwards lens compatibility is still there and most creative controls are as well. The D300 is a better camera, for sure, with big strides on the autofocus, high ISO quality, in-camera .jpg processing, etc. But if learning the new technology is a big part of what you'll be doing for the next year or so, you may be better off saving ~$700-900 on the body. Then put ~$310 of that into an SB-800 and the rest carefully toward lenses as you see what you want most. Just a thought.

Bob

I'd probably go for the 105/2.5 for that application, but since I don't own one (yet), how 'bout the 50-135/3.5 AIS? It's not as fast but is very sharp and can be found in good shape at the same price range. I can't vouch for it as a portrait lens, but wide-open is no worry and there's minimal distortion in the 70-120 mm range. Handling on a D200 is great.