Outdated already
November 19th, 2006 @ 8.03 pm
Last summer I got my D50 with the kit 18-55mm lens, and then around New Years I purchased a 70-300mm lens so I could do some Ultimate photography. On Monday I was talking with a potential wedding photographer and he mentioned the new D40, which I hadn’t heard of yet, and I already knew about the D80, all from Nikon. The D40 has a msrp of what the D50 can be purchased at now, and it doesn’t have all the features even my camera has, but it’s still great for the soccer mom who wants more than a point and shoot. The D80, priced a bit higher than my camera was when I got it looks a bit nicer than mine, but nothing I’m going to shell out some cash to upgrade to. I’ll wait a few more years before I do that, I love my D50 so much, even if it isn’t a “pro” camera. When I do finally upgrade, I’ll probably be looking in the upper end of the consumer dslr’s, or the lower end pro models, but that won’t be for a while unless Beverly finds a good use for a dslr of her own (She does seem to be using it more than me at recent sporting events…).
No, on to lenses. I’m seeing the D50 selling with a 28-80mm lens now, which is in my opion not as good as my 18-55mm lens. Yes, I wish mine would zoom closer than 55mm, but I wouldn’t sacrifice the 18mm end for anything, and I hear the glass is better in my lens than the 28-80mm one. With my 70-300mm lens I didn’t spend much money, and so I didn’t get the greatest glass, but it’s still been great to have. What I’m seeing Nikon offer now that I would really want is their 18-200mm DX VR lens. Not only does it cover nearly everything my two lenses cover, it also has vibration reduction. Rather than having to switch lenses to get wide angle team-on-the-sideline shot before going back to the awesome layout in the endzone, I would simply have to zoom out, and hit the shutter. But since this lens is in high demand (and therefore hard to get and expensive, around $750-1000), I could go for an 18-135mm DX VR lens. It would really cover everything except the sports photos as I find myself wanting to zoom in more with my 18-55 lens for shots of friends and family, but that’s a $400 lens. Or to simply replace my 18-55mm lens with one that lets in alot more light (f2.8 at all ranges, as opposed to my f3.5-5.6), I could spend $1,400!
But rather than rambling on about some lenses and cameras I can only dream about right now, I should be out taking shots with what I have. One thing I have learned is that it’s not how expensive your camera is, but what you do with it. Knowing your equipment and how to use it can help you to get amazing shots from the “lousiest” of cameras. Sure, the expensive ones can help in tough conditions, but with enough light any camera can take amazing shots.