lens purchase advice

[montanophotography]

Hi guys -

I am new to this forum and have registered in order to ask for some advice on the pruachase of lenses for a D3200 body bought new in January.

I was looking for some advice regarding the purchase of suitable camera lenses for starting out in surf & landscape/seascape photography.

So, I own a nikon D3200 - a DX 1.5 crop sensor camera. Now, it was November last year when I decided I really wanted to give this a go and get properly into surf photography. Until that point I knew nothing about DSLR cameras really. After saving up over christmas I was able to buy it from Amazon for £409, with subsequent £40 cashback from Nikon in the form a of a prepaid visa card. Since then I've done a lot of reading up on lenses suitable for what I want to do and lenses suitable for a Nikon DX format. camera also. I think I know exactly what I need - and seeing as I know nobody with any real photographic knowledge or experience, I was really hoping you guys could offer up some sound advice on what you would advise, knowing what my budget is and what lenses I am looking to buy?

My total budget is £500 for lenses and perhaps lee/hitech filter equipment for landscape photography. This is split between £250 on an Amazon Gift Certificate and £250 cash.

The lens kit I would like to build with a £500 budget is -

• 18-70mm wide angle zoom for landscape and surf photography taken from the shoreline.
• 70-300mm VR telephoto zoom for surf photography close ups of surfers, taken from the shoreline
• 50mm f/1.8G prime lens for portraits and in water surf photography

I must stress that I am very aware there are many different combinations of lenses which I could go for - what I am finding difficult for sure is to make the most suitable compromise in regards to matching what money I do have with the best value for money equipement. For example, I know I could pair a 50mm f/1.8 prime with a cheap 55-200m zoom for about £200 total, and perhaps invest in a quality second hand wide angle lens such as the 12-24mm or the 10mm fisheye lens. Or even buy the 18-70mm for £90 on ebay (general price) and pair this with the 70-210mm D lens for £150 on ebay) general price). However, I am aware the 70-210mm will not autofocus on a D3200 as both do not have a focus motor built in. Ken Rockwell seems to love the 70-210mm for the autofocus speed, which seems perfect for action sports photography use I propose but would be useless on a d3200 without autofocus.

In addition to lenses, for landscape photography, I have been looking at getting set up with a filter kit. What I seem to be leaning towards at the moment is the Lee Filters Foundation Kit (Holder) + Adapter Ring + Hitech 100 Prostop 10 ( a 10 stop ND filter) for £172 from Teamworks Photo in London - this seems to be the very cheapest price anywhere for these three items. I have looked at other filter systems and manufacturers but I want to go with Lee because of the range available and the materials seem to be the best/ most hard wearing/ durable??

Lastly - I would like to obtain a waterproof housing for the d3200 and lens port for the 50mm f/1.8G. I have been looking at Aquatech, but don't really know anything about any other manufacturers. Does anyone you have any recommendations for housing manufacturers or suppliers? If so, because I know they are vastly expensive (to someone on my budget anyway!) - £900 + - are you aware of any suppliers who may offer the product on a credit/finance basis to spread the cost??

Any help much appreciated becuase I could really do with the advice on what equipment to buy. Thanks

I wouldnt say I am stuck - but there is so much choice out there, when you're not an expert on Nikon leneses, it can be confusing deciding what is best to invest your hard earned cash in.

Matt

[changing]

Matt,

You don't say what lens you already use. If it is, say, a 18-55mm, then there is no point duplicating that range with other lenses.

Instead of giving us a list of lenses that you have already thought about, why not tell us what type of shots you find that you cannot take with your existing lens - then we can think about what lens might be best to overcome that problem.

Regarding filters - yes Lee are good. But they are very expensive and I question whether you will notice much difference between them and a set of "Chinese Cheapies". I would seriously suggest buying a set of a filter holder and two or three ND or ND Grad filters for about £12 including postage direct from China on eBay. Once you know what you want to use them for and in the unlikely event that you find their quality lacking in some respect, you can upgrade later without having lost much money.

[montanophotography]

Hi,

Ok great, thanks for the advice - I will have a look on ebay for these now.

Regarding lenses - apologies - my 3200 came with the 'kit' 18-55mm lens. Now, I decided to sell this on ebay because of the possbile pairing up of a 18-70 + 70-300mm VR. The 18-55mm sold for £85 so I was quite pleased with this as it has significantly contributed to my funds for a lens whole lens kit.

Regards,

Matt.

[changing]

OK.

If I were in your position, I would probably go for two Sigma lenses:

10-20mm
18-200mm

Between them, those cover most of the options apart from seriously long telephoto and remember that, with your DX camera, the 200mm lend of that zoom is equivalent to 300mm on a35mm or FX camera.

When I was shooting with a DX Nikon D300 I used both of those lenses and found them to be superb. When I switched to an FX body, they were no longer suitable and I had to replace them.

You should be able to pick them up secondhand on eBay and stay just within your budget.