CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 Does anyone have a good (reasonably priced) source? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 photography forums such as fredmiranda.com and http://www.pixtus.com/forum/ are good sources for direct person to person used gear. keh.com is another great resource for used gear - they are especially known for ULTRA conservative condition ratings and excellent customer support. otherwise - clist, ebay, etc, and use the same danger radar as you do for audio gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 This particular time I was actually looking for a new lens. I wanted to get my daughter a lens for her D3100 for Christmas. I'm afraid I'd be an easy mark for a less than scrupulous seller as I don't know a lot about lenses, especially auto focus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 gotcha - new lens market is pretty much set when it comes to price. you can probably negotiate with a local shop, otherwise your best bet will be amazon, b&h, adorama, and ebay. if i recall, that model does NOT have an in-body focus motor, so you will need to buy lenses which contain the focus motor if she is to have AF capability. this should give you all you need to know: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nikon_F-mount_lenses_with_integrated_autofocus_motors Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 Good info, looks like I need to look for a lens with an AF-S in the title. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilbert Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 I purchased all of mine from B&H Photo. Their competetively priced, not the cheapest, but competatively priced, plus I've experienced good customer service with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJkizak Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 B & H Photo/Video in New York sells a lot of used stuff that they check out to make sure it's OK. They are very reputable and you can even return the used items, but not sure how much they charge for the returns. If your looking for new stuff they have that too and a lot of it in inventory. I have purchased items from them since 1965. JJK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 I'll check them out, thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 Anything wrong with THIS ? Critique? Looks like it's on sale till Saturday. Good looking reviews too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 Anything wrong with THIS ? Critique? Looks like it's on sale till Saturday. Good looking reviews too. for the intended recipient and likely usage, not a single thing wrong with that. it will give her good versatility and very decent performance for quite a long while. protect your investment and spend another $16 on one of these so that she keeps the lens dust and smudge free without scratching anything. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/546023-REG/Nikon_8228_Lens_Pen_Pro_Kit.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 protect your investment and spend another $16 on one of these so that she keeps the lens dust and smudge free without scratching anything. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/546023-REG/Nikon_8228_Lens_Pen_Pro_Kit.html I normally use the end of my sleeve[]. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardP Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 The wide end of a 55-200mm is not very wide; it becomes an 83-300mm on the DX 1.5x sensor size of your camera, which is squarely in the short-to-long telephoto zoom range. The range wide enough to get most of the inside of, let's say, a 15x15 room, or a wide angle landscape, would be closer to 18mm, hence the popularity of 18-xx zooms: 18-55, 18-70, 18-105, 18-200, even the extreme 18-300. The most versatile of those would be the 18-70, 18-105, or the 18-200. Now, if you got the 55-200 for a good price, you could complement it with the $100 18-55, and cover it all. As for sources, definitely B&H or Adorama (don't use any other NYC sellers; many are outright crooked), or Amazon, if actually sold by Amazon and not an 'affiliated seller.' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 The wide end of a 55-200mm is not very wide; it becomes an 83-300mm on the DX 1.5x sensor size of your camera, which is squarely in the short-to-long telephoto zoom range. The range wide enough to get most of the inside of, let's say, a 15x15 room, or a wide angle landscape, would be closer to 18mm, hence the popularity of 18-xx zooms: 18-55, 18-70, 18-105, 18-200, even the extreme 18-300. The most versatile of those would be the 18-70, 18-105, or the 18-200. Now, if you got the 55-200 for a good price, you could complement it with the $100 18-55, and cover it all. As for sources, definitely B&H or Adorama (don't use any other NYC sellers; many are outright crooked), or Amazon, if actually sold by Amazon and not an 'affiliated seller.' Good info Richard, thanks. I believe her camera came with an 18-55 (or something like that) when she got it. That's why I wanted to get her something a little longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang guy Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 I have bought my wife a few SLR's over the years, and the 83 mm minimum will make her back up to take pictures. I know, that is what my wife had to do. She had the same Nikkor lense. Having the ability to be at 18mm up to 200 mm is actually more handy than you think. Taking lenses on and off isn't allways practical. Here is the 18-200 Richard was talking about. http://imaging.nikon.com/lineup/lens/zoom/normalzoom/af-s_dx_18-200mmf_35-56g_ed_vr2/index.htm I'll have to look what the wife has. she has several lenses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 8, 2011 Author Share Posted December 8, 2011 IHere is the 18-200 Richard was talking about. http://imaging.nikon.com/lineup/lens/zoom/normalzoom/af-s_dx_18-200mmf_35-56g_ed_vr2/index.htm It looks like a great lens but buying her an $850.00 chunk of glass would put my Christmas budget in a tailspin. I've got 3 kids, a wife and extended family to buy for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted December 8, 2011 Share Posted December 8, 2011 i could argue all of the points mentioned here in favor of the 18-200, but seeing as how I'm a prime snob I would say I am a bit biased. The 55-200 is an excellent shooter, the range is good, the price is good, and for the intended shooter the situation is ideal. No point in making the young lady paranoid to hold her expensive gear, let alone use it. Having restriction in her attached focal range will teach her to work within her gear's limitations to acheive a particular composition, etc. Once she gets some time and practice under her belt, she will learn what she prefers to shoot and her style - and will start gravitating towards cameras/glass to fit that need. I used to chase after all sorts of glass until i started shooting weddings, which dramatically altered my needs. 11-16, 50, 55, 70-200. All fast glass and all for a specific use, and i learned to switch glass in advance of the need or to make a shot work with what i had attached. Quit doing weddings and now i have a little micro 4/3rds with a single 20mm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Invidiosulus Posted December 8, 2011 Share Posted December 8, 2011 The Nikon af-s 35mm 1.8 is a nice lens and is fast enough to let you start playing around with a shallower depth of field. I would certainly check out the used section of adorama.com ,Keh.com and bhphotovideo.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I'd recommend KEH. Been a customer for almost 20 years. Extremely reputable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted December 9, 2011 Moderators Share Posted December 9, 2011 I would have never thought it would make much difference but a lense with VR really works well. I bought a nikon 300mm with VR and have to say it's hard to belive how much it helps with low light/slow shutter speeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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