5 Lenses that Every Nikon Shooter Needs to Know About

s.smith

This article is about 5 Nikon lenses that fit into that category – the go-to lenses for pros and serious amateurs alike. If you shoot Nikon, these lenses should be part of your arsenal.

https://www.photographytalk.com/photography-articles/6517-5-lenses-that-every-nikon-shooter-needs-to-know-about

Ironheart

Seriously, the 800mm? Pretty specialized (and expensive) lens. The rest are pretty reasonable choices.

heartyfisher

LOL Cool ... I have none of them :-) and don't intend to get any of them either :-)

Pistnbroke

Rubbish No to all except the 800 mm

Gjesdal

Before I read the article I thought "that's pretty harsh statement @Pistnbroke ", but then I read it. I've got 2 of those and Search Results although I don't regret buying them at the time, I probably wouldn't have done so today.

Killerbob

I have or had 4 of the lenses mentioned - the 105mm, the 70-200mm, and I had the 50mm and the 70-300mm - and most I am/was pretty happy with. The Nikon 50mm was traded in for the Sigma 50mm ART, and the 70-300mm was simply to rubbish. I changed that one for the Nikon 80-400mm, and was subsequently a much happier camper.

If I was listing a few much have lenses, I would have added the 24-70mm f/2.8, as well as the 85mm f/1.4.

pictureted

Not a well thought out list. The lack of a mid-zoom, inclusion of the silly-big 800mm and the silly little 50/1.8 and mediocre 70-300… Well, at least not what I'd choose.

The Nikon's I've become most fond of are the 20/1.8G, 24-85VR, 70-200/4 and 200-500VR. If I carry anything else, it's likely to be the Voigtlander 58/1.4 (I much prefer it to the Nikon 50/1.8G) and the Zeiss 100/2 Macro or Nikon's 200/4 Macro.

heartyfisher

pictureted said:

Not a well thought out list. The lack of a mid-zoom, inclusion of the silly-big 800mm and the silly little 50/1.8 and mediocre 70-300… Well, at least not what I'd choose.

The Nikon's I've become most fond of are the 20/1.8G, 24-85VR, 70-200/4 and 200-500VR. If I carry anything else, it's likely to be the Voigtlander 58/1.4 (I much prefer it to the Nikon 50/1.8G) and the Zeiss 100/2 Macro or Nikon's 200/4 Macro.

I like your list better :-) .. I have a Tammy 24-70 and a Sig 150 F2.8 macro.. and I have been eyeing the 20 1.8 and 200-500VR.. I have also been attracted to the 35 F1.8 VC and Sigma 50-100 F1.8 (Looks like it usable in 1.2 crop mode!)

ttyWhite

Hi, the link is helpful one. But do you have any idea that what kind of len should I choose to take ir photography

spraynpray

@ttyWhite:

Welcome to NR.

The same lens you would use if the shot was going to be a normal spectrum shot.

DenverShooter

I have the new Nikon 800mm F/5.6 (1000mm F/7.2 with included teleconverter) and its a rocking lens. Once you have one you will find lots of reasons to use it.

Denver Shooter

s.smith

ttyWhite said:

Hi, the link is helpful one. But do you have any idea that what kind of len should I choose to take ir photography

Thank you ttyWhite and Welcome to NR.

ttyWhite

I simply want to shoot IR photos, as these photos are very attractive to me. So any idea on the lens to choose between?

Ironheart

@ttyWhite You would use the same lens as you would to get the photo you want. So if a 75mm lens gives you the Field of View (FoV) you want, use that. If you like wide-angle shots, use that. Perhaps a better question would be, what do you want to shoot? A whole forrest or a single tree?
(yes, this is completely off-topic, but the article in photographytalk was lame anyway )

Paperman

The author has wasted his time writing & I have wasted my time looking ( and now responding ) at the so called " 5 lenses to know about " ....

harlequin2

An interesting selection. I have the 50mm 1.8G out of all those and it gets a lot of use. I also have a Tamron 16 -300 zoom and that gets stuck onto the D3300 body to make what is to my mind, a perfect "traveller's kit". Covers just about any situation, its small, light and not a huge expense if it gets lost/stolen/drowned or whatever. And the best image sensor in the business!
BTW, if you fit an SD card with "EZ-share" you have built-in wi-fi which is quite handy...

Nikoniser

Ironheart said:

@ttyWhite You would use the same lens as you would to get the photo you want. So if a 75mm lens gives you the Field of View (FoV) you want, use that. If you like wide-angle shots, use that. Perhaps a better question would be, what do you want to shoot? A whole forrest or a single tree?
(yes, this is completely off-topic, but the article in photographytalk was lame anyway )

This is not really true.... many otherwise good lenses have IR hotspots and its helpful to pick a lens with an IR focus point marked.

Nikoniser

Ironheart said:

@ttyWhite You would use the same lens as you would to get the photo you want. So if a 75mm lens gives you the Field of View (FoV) you want, use that. If you like wide-angle shots, use that. Perhaps a better question would be, what do you want to shoot? A whole forrest or a single tree?
(yes, this is completely off-topic, but the article in photographytalk was lame anyway )

This is not really true.... many otherwise good lenses have IR hotspots and its helpful to pick a lens with an IR focus point marked.

John_B_Gouge

I have one of them - the cheapest!!

Rx4Photo

s.smith said:

If you shoot Nikon, these lenses should be part of your arsenal.

Seriously ???

I had the Nikon 50. Sold it. Love, love the Sigma 50 f/1.4 Art.
I had the Nikon 70-300mm. Sold it. Don't miss it.
The Nikon 800mm ?? ... unfortunately MOST Nikon shooters can't put this in their arsenal.
The article mentions nothing wider than the 50mm. How boring as some of the most interesting and dramatic photos are accomplished with wide angle or ultra-wide lenses.

Not a good compilation of lenses in my opinion.

paulr

No mention of the 24-70 lens in that list I have a 24-70 and a 800 I know which i use most,and it ain't 800mm

TriShooter

Great comments that are on the mark on a subject that depends on what you want to shoot. Regardless any article that recommends the Nikon 70-300mm as being a lens to know about is suspect. Buying 70-300mm lens is a stop gap at best.

The new 80-400mm beats the 70-300mm like a drum as Killerbob said above.

Anyone with an FF camera is well served to stick with the 24-70mm and 70-200mm at the beginning and then add the 14-24mm and the super telephotos after they know from experience if or what they need. The 14-24mm is a spectacular lens but still a specialty lens unless you are shooting a lot of landscapes and house interiors.

I love my fixed focal length lenses like the Carl Zeiss 135mm, but again it is more practical to keep a record of what you shoot before buying fixed focal length lenses. When someone decides on a fixed focal length, it pays to research it because Sigma's ART line is impressive, and if you can tolerate manual focusing Carl Zeiss's new lenses are a joy to use as well.

MegapixelSchnitzel

Its amazing how different we all are, but yet similar. There is only one lens on that list that I own and have justifiable use for (the 70-200 VR). I do think the 800 would be a chick magnet at Photokina, though.

dissent

Yeah, the 80-400G is better than the 70-300G. But the 70-300 is $500 and the 80-400 is $2300, so there's that.

I've got a decent copy of the 70-300G, and I'm not ready to give it up yet. Feels like a feather on my D7000 after swinging the D7100/200-500 combo around for a while at the Oshkosh airshow.

tc88

I agree with TriShooter and other complainers about the 70-300mm. Any list that includes it other than the "temporary stopgap list" is rubbish.

pictureted

tc88 said:

I agree with TriShooter and other complainers about the 70-300mm. Any list that includes it other than the "temporary stopgap list" is rubbish.

I did not like the 70-300G on my D7000/D7100 and got the 70-200/4. When I picked up the D810, I stayed with the 70-200/4. On the D500, on the other hand, the 70-300 has been excellent. The wide zoom range, small size/weight, capable VR and decent AF make it a real winner.

Rubbish? Not my copy. Stop gap, no. Regular kit, yes. The biggest failing of the 70-300 is the lack of a collar for tripod shooting at 300mm, but it's really a lens for hand-holding and going light.

If I want to shoot wildlife with longer focal lengths, I'll use the 200-500VR, but for a walk-around or a parade, give me the 70-300 on a D500 for all day shooting.