Question
from Elaine about Choosing a Camera Lens
-
I have just purchased a Nikon D40x SLR. I am a novice hoping
to improve.
What additional camera lens would you suggest? I am non-specific in my
subject matter at the moment! Just willing to learn.
Great site by the way.
Regards,
Elaine
Answer -
Hello Elaine,
Thank
you for
your kind remark about Better-Photographs.com
The
Nikon D40x is
a good choice of camera and I am assuming that you purchased it with
the 18-55
mm lens.
As you are
not
specific about your subject matter at the moment then I suggest you
wait a
while before purchasing your next lens. Take lots of pictures with your
current
lens and in time, you will probably find that you wish you had a lens
that
would either -
-
take in a
wider angle, more of the subject you wish to photograph (e.g. vast
landscapes),
in which case you'll want a wide angle lens.
or Choosing a Camera Lens
-
bring you
closer to the subject (e.g. wildlife) where a telephoto will be your
choice.
When
you are more
sure about your "preferred" type of subject, it's then the time to
consider your next lens. You will have a choice of either a Nikon or
one of the
many Nikon compatible alternative - Sigma, Tamron, etc... If you go for
one of
the alternative brands, all of which are of very good quality these
days, you
will probably find that you can purchase two lenses (a wide angle and a
telephoto) for not much more than one Nikon lens.
Unless
you have a
good reason to purchase a fixed length lens then I would recommend a
zoom lens
in either case. They are a little more expensive than fixed length
lenses but will
give you greater flexibility in framing your shot.
When
you do
decide what you need, buy a lens with the widest aperture (lowest f
number -
e.g. f2.8) you can afford - this is especially important for telephoto
lenses.
The wider the aperture the faster the shutter speeds you can use and
the greater
control possible over depth of field. There's more about this in the Focus
article.
Hope
this helps
you. Let me know how you get on.
All
the best,
John
