Newbee Question Telephoto Lense

I recently bought a Nikon D70s as my first digital camera. It came with a
18-70 MM lense (3.5-4.5) I'm still in the beginners learning curve. I would
like to buy a telephoto lense to expand my photo opportunities but am a
little confused over the different lenses. In browsing on the Internet, and
this newsgroup, I see 55-200mm, 70-200mm, and 70-300mm, etc. Nikon lenses.

I'd appreciate some advise as to which telephoto lense would be most
useful/efficient for me. I'm still learning to shoot digital but feel that
my 18-70mm lense limits what I can shoot other then close ups (I don't have
any specific telephotoshots in mind). Any sugestions would be appreciated.

"Sidney Friedman" wrote in message
.. .
I recently bought a Nikon D70s as my first digital camera. It came with a
18-70 MM lense (3.5-4.5) I'm still in the beginners learning curve. I
would
like to buy a telephoto lense to expand my photo opportunities but am a
little confused over the different lenses. In browsing on the Internet,
and
this newsgroup, I see 55-200mm, 70-200mm, and 70-300mm, etc. Nikon lenses.

I'd appreciate some advise as to which telephoto lense would be most
useful/efficient for me. I'm still learning to shoot digital but feel
that
my 18-70mm lense limits what I can shoot other then close ups (I don't
have
any specific telephotoshots in mind). Any sugestions would be
appreciated.

Those are all common zoom telephotos for beginners. I was in nearly
your shoes this spring, and I chose to add a 75-300mm Tamron to my Canon
Digital Rebel + 18-55mm kit lens.
What will you be shooting, and what is your budget? This lens is a
staple for many photographers (the 70-200ish zoom), and buying a good one
now may be worthwhile if you can put up $1100.

Dave

"Sidney Friedman" wrote:
I recently bought a Nikon D70s as my first digital camera. It came with a
18-70 MM lense (3.5-4.5) I'm still in the beginners learning curve. I would
like to buy a telephoto lense to expand my photo opportunities but am a
little confused over the different lenses. In browsing on the Internet, and
this newsgroup, I see 55-200mm, 70-200mm, and 70-300mm, etc. Nikon lenses.

I'd appreciate some advise as to which telephoto lense would be most
useful/efficient for me. I'm still learning to shoot digital but feel that
my 18-70mm lense limits what I can shoot other then close ups (I don't have
any specific telephotoshots in mind). Any sugestions would be appreciated.

It's pretty hard to pick a lense without any idea what you are
going to do with it! Of course, when you are learning...
that's half the fun too; you go buy a lense and then find out if
it is fun for you, or not.

With a Nikon you have a huge range of possibilities, because you
can go cheap, or you can go professional quality too.

For example, if you are willing to invest the necessary coins,
lenses that have wider f/stops are more productive, and so are
lenses with optics good enough to shoot wide open. The best
demonstration of the difference in quality between lower cost
and higher cost lenses is perhaps in the 400 to 600mm telephoto
range. You can buy any of several brands of 500mm mirror
lenses, or a fair number of zooms that range up to 400-500mm,
any of which sell new for less than $200. You can even get good
pictures with them too! It just requires the right
circumstances and knowing what the limitations are. But you
can't just go out and shoot the same kind of shots that you see
in the magazines... because those lenses are *all* pretty
crummy!

A good 400-600mm f/4 lense costs real money. But you can use it
wide open... in light where the others won't work.

That particular focal length is a useful example because the
price range is wide and matches the quality of the product, and
the feature range is not as significant. Except for the feature
range the same is true, but with not quite the same exaggerated
results, for shorter focal lengths.

In addition to wider apertures and better optics when shooting
wide open, another point is the quality of the auto focus
mechanism. It may not bother you if it is slow when you are
shooting pictures of a landscape. But sporting events, as one
example, often involve rapid changes in distances and the
(in)ability to follow the action makes or breaks which lense is
suitable. Inexpensive lenses limit your photo opportunities.

So what you might do depends on which lense you buy. And what
you want to do obviously affects which lense you should buy. I
would recommend, for example, that quality be a higher priority
than features. Wider apertures and better optics trump more
zoom range. For example, your current zoom has a very useful
focal length range, but won't handle many available light
situations well. You might consider pair of fixed focal length
lenses, for example a 20mm f/2.8 and a 50mm f/1.8 lense. The
50mm lense is relatively inexpensive, but a 20mm f/2.8 is a bit
more costly.

The next step up in focal length is a little different. I would
recommend you take a long look at finding a used Nikon 80-200mm
f/2.8 ED AF lense. There are several different variations, so
do some research and figure out which one is the right one.
They have a very well deserved reputation. For example, I would
take that any day over a Sigma 50-500mm zoom, which is probably
the best of the other telephoto zooms. But everyone has different
priorities, so the f/2.8 aperture that I find essential may not
be as important for you.

--
FloydL. Davidson http://www.apaflo.com/floyd_davidson
Ukpeagvik (Barrow, Alaska)

Thanks for your replies David and Floyd,

I would prefer not to spend more then $200-$300 for a telephoto lens until
I'm more expert. I suppose my main purpose of the lens would be for nature
shots where I can't get too close and for shooting objects and scenes from a
distance. Another question I have is am I limited to Nikon lenses or would
any AF brand do? I would prefer Nikon due to the quality. My wife has
telephoto and fisheye lenses on her Nikon 35mm film camera but I don't think
they are compatible with my D70s.


"David Geesaman" wrote in message
...

"Sidney Friedman" wrote in message
.. .
I recently bought a Nikon D70s as my first digital camera. It came with
a
18-70 MM lense (3.5-4.5) I'm still in the beginners learning curve. I
would
like to buy a telephoto lense to expand my photo opportunities but am a
little confused over the different lenses. In browsing on the Internet,
and
this newsgroup, I see 55-200mm, 70-200mm, and 70-300mm, etc. Nikon
lenses.

I'd appreciate some advise as to which telephoto lense would be most
useful/efficient for me. I'm still learning to shoot digital but feel
that
my 18-70mm lense limits what I can shoot other then close ups (I don't
have
any specific telephotoshots in mind). Any sugestions would be
appreciated.

Those are all common zoom telephotos for beginners. I was in nearly
your shoes this spring, and I chose to add a 75-300mm Tamron to my Canon
Digital Rebel + 18-55mm kit lens.
What will you be shooting, and what is your budget? This lens is a
staple for many photographers (the 70-200ish zoom), and buying a good one
now may be worthwhile if you can put up $1100.

Dave

"Sidney Friedman" wrote in message
...
Thanks for your replies David and Floyd,

I would prefer not to spend more then $200-$300 for a telephoto lens until
I'm more expert.

Been there, done that. But within 3 months I was finding the
limitations already. But I shoot a lot of sports, and fast autofocus and
wider apertures (reasons I want to upgrade) will mean a lot less for your
intended purposes. As well, the cheaper lenses are usually lighter. Not as
durable in absorbing abuse, but easier to carry about in the field. Just
watch shooting these cheap lenses wide open - if you keep them around f/8
you'll get consistently sharper results than wide open.

I suppose my main purpose of the lens would be for nature
shots where I can't get too close and for shooting objects and scenes from
a
distance. Another question I have is am I limited to Nikon lenses or
would
any AF brand do?

Any will do, but Nikons are well regarded, and the only option at the
top of the line. The only thing you may find is needing to use a tripod or
monopod for longer shots if you're using slower shutter speeds. In sports,
I usually have 1/250s or faster, so camera shake is less of an issue.

I would prefer Nikon due to the quality. My wife has
telephoto and fisheye lenses on her Nikon 35mm film camera but I don't
think
they are compatible with my D70s.

I'm a Canon guy, but I *think* all Nikon AF lenses, film or digital, are
compatible. That's one of their selling points over the Canon lenses. By
all means, test hers first.

I suspect you'll be quite happy with any $200 telephoto zoom combined
with a monopod. Light, mobile, fast, and affordable. Of course, that's
assuming you don't use your wife's lens.

Dave

"Sidney Friedman" wrote:
Thanks for your replies David and Floyd,

I would prefer not to spend more then $200-$300 for a telephoto lens until
I'm more expert.

Can you learn to be an expert without using the tools of an expert?

I suppose my main purpose of the lens would be for nature
shots where I can't get too close and for shooting objects and scenes from a
distance.

For a lot of things a zoom that goes up to 200 or 300mm would be
just the ticket. For other things, birds for example, 500-600mm
is about the minimum. What kind of nature shots???
Hummingbirds at 100 yards are one thing, and the lady across the
street is another.

Another question I have is am I limited to Nikon lenses or would
any AF brand do? I would prefer Nikon due to the quality.

When it comes to telephoto, Nikon's quality is *great*... but
you can't buy it for $200-$300.

As far as auto focus, just about all of the various
manufacturers are selling AF lenses that work with Nikon
cameras. As I noted, some of them work better (faster,
smoother, less noise) than others. Note that the maximum
aperature makes a difference too, because the camera cannot
sense proper focus without enough light.

My wife has
telephoto and fisheye lenses on her Nikon 35mm film camera but I don't think
they are compatible with my D70s.

I'm not sure about the D70. I would assume that the fisheye is
*not* something you want to try. The rear lense element
probably sticks back into the camera too far...

The telephoto probably does "work". But how well depends. If
this is an AF lense, it probably works perfectly! Note the
effective focal length on a digital camera is 1.5 times that of
what it is on the film camera, because the sensor is smaller
than the film image. Hence a 100mm lense gives the same results
on a digital Nikon as would a 150mm lense on a film Nikon.

If it is an older AI lense, it of course can't auto focus, but
metering will work.

There are a lot of charts available, which you can find with
google. The D70 will not work with pre-AI (manual focus lenses
made before 1977) and will not work with F3AF lenses (early
1980's?). It will work with everything else. With AI, AI-S and
E lenses the metering will not work. With anything else you get
full functionality of the lense, hence a manual focus lense will
require manual focusing.

What kind of film camera is it, and what is the designation of
the lense? (And how precious is it to the boss?)

--
FloydL. Davidson http://www.apaflo.com/floyd_davidson
Ukpeagvik (Barrow, Alaska)

Most Nikon lenses are usable in some fashion on the D70s. You do not
get full function usage of autofocus/metering with all. There is a page
in the D70s manual that details which are not compatible. Lenses that
require that the mirror be locked up (Nikon 21mm/f4 for example) cannot
be used.

Floyd Davidson wrote:
Can you learn to be an expert without using the tools of an expert?

With all due respect, I don't think one's equipment has much to do
with it, as long as you're not using complete trash. Eugene Atget took
pictures in the 1920s that are superior to what most of us probably do
today, and his tools were much more primitive; he started in 1897 with
equipment that was obsolete even then.

--
Oh to have a lodge in some vast wilderness. Where rumors of oppression
and deceit, of unsuccessful and successful wars may never reach me
anymore.
-- William Cowper

Sidney Friedman wrote:
I recently bought a Nikon D70s as my first digital camera. It came
with a 18-70 MM lense (3.5-4.5) I'm still in the beginners learning
curve. I would like to buy a telephoto lense to expand my photo
opportunities but am a little confused over the different lenses.

I took some comparison shots with the Nikon 70-300G and
the Nikon 70-300D ED and found the ED version to have
much better contrast. I was going to buy the ED at AUS$679
when the camera shop lowered the price of the G from AUS$359
to AUS$200. Figured I'd save the money and put it towards a
better zoom later.

This and several other pictures here were taken with the 70-300G

http://web.aanet.com.au/miwa/mike/photos/photo35.html

-Mike

In article ,
Floyd Davidson wrote:
If it is an older AI lense, it of course can't auto focus, but
metering will work.

In which universe is that?

With AI, AI-S and
E lenses the metering will not work.

Ah, not in this universe then.

With anything else you get
full functionality of the lense, hence a manual focus lense will
require manual focusing.

The simple rule is (but there are exceptions): with manual focus lenses the
light meter in the D70 will not work.


--
That was it. Done. The faulty Monk was turned out into the desert where it
could believe what it liked, including the idea that it had been hard done
by. It was allowed to keep its horse, since horses were so cheap to make.
-- Douglas Adams in Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency