Quote:
Originally Posted by peteallen84
I have recently bought a Nikon D3100 as my first digital SLR, and am looking for some new equipment. ......I have heard good things about the Nikon 50mm f1.8 G AF-S lens, and wondered what people's thoughts on this lens, and it's standing as a good all round lens. I don't want to break the bank, and I have looked at the Nikon 50mm f1.8 D AF lens, but I have heard that the autofocus doesn't work on the D3100, and as a newbie, autofocus would be quite handy for me.
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I recommend the Nikon AF-S Nikkor 35mm 1:8G. It's a 35mm prime lens which, when the camera crop factor is taken into consideration, amounts to using a 50mm lens on a 35mm camera. I believe your camera has an APS-C sensor, like other Nikons except for full frame cameras. Full frame cameras' sensors are 1.4 times bigger than yours. Hence the crop factor. A 50mm lens would be the equivalent of a 70mm lens on a full frame camera. The 50mm on a full frame camera is considered the 'normal' lens, so a 35mm lens on your camera would be considered 'normal.'
This lens is cheaper than the 50mm lens. I paid $199 for mine, and it's excellent. Sharp, and you really don't need a larger aperture than f/1.8. It comes with a lens hood, too.
Regarding autofocus, I have a Nikon D80 with the autofocus built into the camera. I also have a D5100 which has no built-in autofocus, but the 35mm lens has its own autofocus and works well with both cameras. The 'AF' in the name means Autofocus. All lenses with AF are autofocus.