Posted by Kate Silvia on February 14, 2010 at 8:51 PM
Hi everyone,
I've got a "newbie" friend who needs some lens suggestions and I've run out of ideas. She's buying the Nikon D90, wants a lens with some decent zoom and speed to shoot her daughter doing gymnastics meets in low light/no flash allowed situations. She's new to the craft but is eager to learn a lot and jump into photography with both feet. Cost is a factor. She's considering the Nikon VR 55-200mm f/4-5.6. Are there some really great third party lenses out there she should consider? Any reviews on that 55-200?
Posted by Brent Reid on February 15, 2010 at 12:21 AM
Kate,
I do a lot of indoor sports and performance photography, and find that a lens speed of f2.8 or better is crucial to getting satisfactory results. In most gyms, the lighting level is too low for a zoom like the 55-200/f4-5.6 to freeze the action.
A 70-200mm f2.8 zoom would likely work, and faster prime lenses like a 135mm f2 would work even better.
Your friend should know that VR is of no use when trying to freeze action, so she might keep the cost within her budget by purchasing a used, non-VR lens in excellent condition on a reputable buy-and-sell forum like www.fredmiranda.com.
Brent.
Posted by Gene Lugo on February 15, 2010 at 4:28 AM
If cost is a consideration, a reasonable entry point would be a used camera and lens. For just a little more than the cost of a new D90 your friend can obtain a used D200 and an excellent 80-200 F2.8 AF-D with the two rings - one for focus and one for zooming. The lens is such a good design it is still available new, and represents one of the best values in this focus range.
The D200 body can be found for around $500 used and the lens for around $600. It's hard to get a better performing package for $1100-$1200. If $1500 is not a stretch, then a D90 would be an even better companion to that lens.
Posted by Frank Field on February 15, 2010 at 5:34 PM
Among Nikon's DX bodies, the D90 is the right choice at the moment because it has the best low-light characteristics (able to shoot at higher ISO for a given noise level) -- see www.dxomark.com. Higher ISO performance of the D90 is better than even the D300S. A DX body is perferred for the added effective reach due to 1.5x crop factor and given your friend's budget considerations. If looking for a zoom, I think one needs an f/2.8 lens for the given shooting conditions. The 80-200 mm f/2.8 zoom is still being sold by Nikon, performs fine on a DX body and sells for less than half the price of the 70-200 tho the 80-200 lacks VR. One could also consider the 180 f/2.8 AF-D lens -- exceptionally sharp and much lighter so easier to hand hold.
If budget were not a concern, the D700 with exceptional high ISO performance would be the way to go and perhaps pair that with a 300mm f/4 AFS lens.
Posted by David Bostedo on February 15, 2010 at 5:42 PM
Only one thing to consider, is that if you aren't free to move around a lot for framing purposes, a zoom lens rather than a prime will be really really useful.
Posted by Frank Field on February 15, 2010 at 7:53 PM
Among Nikon's DX bodies, the D90 is the right choice at the moment because it has the best low-light characteristics (able to shoot at higher ISO for a given noise level) -- see www.dxomark.com. Higher ISO performance of the D90 is better than even the D300S. A DX body is perferred for the added effective reach due to 1.5x crop factor and given your friend's budget considerations. If looking for a zoom, I think one needs an f/2.8 lens for the given shooting conditions. The 80-200 mm f/2.8 zoom is still being sold by Nikon, performs fine on a DX body and sells for less than half the price of the 70-200 tho the 80-200 lacks VR. One could also consider the 180 f/2.8 AF-D lens -- exceptionally sharp and much lighter so easier to hand hold.
If budget were not a concern, the D700 with exceptional high ISO performance would be the way to go and perhaps pair that with a 300mm f/4 AFS lens.
Discussion
6 repliesI've got a "newbie" friend who needs some lens suggestions and I've run out of ideas. She's buying the Nikon D90, wants a lens with some decent zoom and speed to shoot her daughter doing gymnastics meets in low light/no flash allowed situations. She's new to the craft but is eager to learn a lot and jump into photography with both feet. Cost is a factor. She's considering the Nikon VR 55-200mm f/4-5.6. Are there some really great third party lenses out there she should consider? Any reviews on that 55-200?
Thanks
http://www.bythom.com/nikon.htm
I do a lot of indoor sports and performance photography, and find that a lens speed of f2.8 or better is crucial to getting satisfactory results. In most gyms, the lighting level is too low for a zoom like the 55-200/f4-5.6 to freeze the action.
A 70-200mm f2.8 zoom would likely work, and faster prime lenses like a 135mm f2 would work even better.
Your friend should know that VR is of no use when trying to freeze action, so she might keep the cost within her budget by purchasing a used, non-VR lens in excellent condition on a reputable buy-and-sell forum like www.fredmiranda.com.
Brent.
The D200 body can be found for around $500 used and the lens for around $600. It's hard to get a better performing package for $1100-$1200. If $1500 is not a stretch, then a D90 would be an even better companion to that lens.
If budget were not a concern, the D700 with exceptional high ISO performance would be the way to go and perhaps pair that with a 300mm f/4 AFS lens.
If budget were not a concern, the D700 with exceptional high ISO performance would be the way to go and perhaps pair that with a 300mm f/4 AFS lens.