The Best DX Format Lens?

Hi,
I intend to upgrade my D200. I have pretty much decided on the D700. I am going to wait a little longer, to see what might be announced later this year. In the meantime, I would like to get a better lens for the D200. I have read that the 17-55 2.8 lens is really excellent in terms of sharpness, and optical quality. Is this "the" wide angle zoom for DX format. If I do go full frame, then this is not the lens I want to buy. Would the 24-70 2.8 FX lens be the better choice, even if I have it on the D200 for awhile? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Chris

Chris,

I currently own the 24-70 f/2.8 and it is one sharp zoom and I use it on my D700! By the way, for high ISO performance and image quality it is hard to go wrong with that camera. However, if you are into more pixels expect to see a D700x by fall at 24+MP. Of course, going with the higher pixel count will take away frame rate and high ISO.

As to lenses, I'm looking to go with the 17-35 mm f/2.8 as my super-wide zoom for landscape. Doesn't mean the 24-70 cannot be used just depends on your shooting style, as I have been reminded by the pros in this forum.

VR, Glenn

Hi Chris,

All the Full Frame Nikkor lenses with work very well on the DX format. However not all work as well on the FX format and furthermore if you use a DX lens on an FX format camera you will be cropping (reducing the pixel count).

So if you are serious thinking of upgrading to an FX format camera in the near future then I would look at lenses that suit the FX format as it will work on the DX format too! The lens you mention, the 24-70mm f/2.8 works fine on both FX and DX bodies.

Check out Ken Rockwell's website as he has an article entitled Nikon FX Lenses

Hope this helps a bit.

Chris: I am in the same place as you - but waiting for the D700x - I want the higher pixels in the FX format. If you are going FX, why bother buying a DX lens now? I have my eyes on 17-35 2.8 for a long time, but can't afford. 14-24 is the another wide lens that excites me too, but you can't use filter on it

This is something I too have very carefully considered. I'm currently using a D300, but am looking at buying a refurb D700 sometime next year. I will not even consider a "D700x" though. I do a lot of my photos in very low light and the D3x/D700x would be a big step backwards for me since it's not very good at higher ISO. Back to lenses. I can pretty much buy whatever I want, and I want the best. I looked very closely at the 24-70mm f2.8 and rejected it. Here's why. It's only 24mm at the wide end. That's not nearly wide enough for a DX camera. Second is the size, much larger than the 17-55mm 2.8. What advantage do I get for carrying that extra weight? Nothing. While the lens is a good fit on a D700, it's not a good fit for a D300. The performance of the Nikon 17-55mm f2.8 is outstanding, and it's relatively compact. I bought a used one on eBay for <$900. I'll use it on my D300, and then when I eventually buy another camera I'll simply resell the lens. I'll likely get what I paid for it, or even more. If I bought a 24-70mm I'd have about twice as much money tied up but it wouldn't be doing anything for me. I would likely not find a good deal on a used on either. Let's say after waiting at least half a year to buy a D700, Nikon comes out with a really killer replacement for the 24-70mm (something that is quite possible.) I would then have a lens that didn't really fit the D300 and had just lost some value on the resell market.

I look at camera gear as a SYSTEM. The D300 & 17-55mm are a natural fit and work very well together. The wide angle is wide, and image quality is optimized for the sensor. I have about a thousand bucks less tied up in that system, free to put on something else such as another big monolight. When the time comes, I can resell the lens for what I paid for it and then buy whatever is Nikon's best mid range zoom. Seems like a no-brainer to me.


Kent in SD

Before you get your D700, you might want to check out the new D300S

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Digital-SLR/25464/D300S.html