Recommended for what? We recommend getting those lenses where you understand why you need them. In terms of focal length, most kit lenses cover that already.
DX camera recommendation
- Thread starter renol
- Start date
no.
it's better to acquire the best at the start, so you don't need to worry about upgrading:
get the AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED, AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED and the AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR. this will help you cover a wide range of photography genres.
also, not forgetting the AF-S NIKKOR 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR if you decide to do sports or wildlife photography
I would recommend that you stick with your kit lens (18-55mm) and know what are limiting you then upgrade your lens. If you have deeper pocket, get the 18-200mm kit, you will have most (if not all) of the focal length covered. And only upgrade when you find out what you are missing.
Also not to mention, please put aside some money for more essential accessories such as dry cabinet, tripod and external flash.
Get the dry cabinet first. If you are shooting alot of low light shots or architecture shots, or generally shots that required very steady hands, you might want to get a good tripod (w. Tripod head)(forget about the free ones that they gave you, I mean, they can serve you for a while but it is better that you invest into something more stable). As for external flash, it is up to you. For a starter, you can use the build in flash most of the time.
Those accessories (tripod, tripodhead and dry cabinet) can easily set you back a couple of hundreds of dollars. So do take note of that.
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Just get a DSLR with kit lens, and you are good to go, don't think about getting more or better lenses for the time being,
spend more time and efforts on acquire photography knowledge and hands on practise, this is very important, else your photography hobby will be short-lived.
Thanks for the recommendations but I doubt I will get those lenses first till I have deeper pocket.
Thanks all for your advices.
If I am going for D7100 Kit with AF-S 18-105mm VR DX Lens, the lens is sufficient for a start?
I am right that only Nikkon lenses are covered with international warranty but not the Body?
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Yes the 18-105 lens is sufficient for a start, it is a versatile lens that can do a lot. Only not very good in low light because of the small aperture. But usually larger aperture lenses are more expensive, and don't have as much range.
body is Nikon sg warranty while lenses are covered under worldwide warranty, however you need the proof of purchase in order for the warranty to be effective.
Thanks but I still need to get a flash right?
Thanks because I intend to get the body and lenses from Hong Kong.
Actually we do not know if it is okay for a start. Because none of us know what focal range you will be comfortable with. However, it would be pretty safe and the price difference will not be that great if you go for an 18-55mm kit lens plus a 55-200mm lens (Nikkor lens). That will cover most of what you will need, right up to zoo and bird park shots easily.
As for flash, I would advise that you use your own internal flash for the time being... before jumping into an external flash.
Do buy a dry cabinet too.
Thanks for the value advice.
I will be taking scenery which includes low light shooting most of the time and minimal sports shooting.
Scenery is quite stationary, usually (if not we should get away there soonest :bsmilie
- a good tripod will be your best friend and expensive fast lenses are not really necessary.In that case, a tripod is very important. Do looked into getting one if you are shooting in low light situation (especially when shooting landscape and scenary) and you might want to shoot at the lowest possible ISO (which mean your shutter speed will be pretty slow). You can looked to the following brands of tripods which had excellent value for money - Sirui (can check TKfoto for this brand of tripod) and Benro (can check with Benphoto). Do invest in a good tripodhead too. If you are using alot of panning and most of your shot are landscape shots, then I would advise you getting a panhead (as oppose to a ballhead). Although there is nothing wrong with using a ballhead to take landscape photos (I did that, but I find that using panhead would be slightly easier). Do factor in around S$2XX for your tripod + tripodhead.
As for occassion sports photography, the 105mm focal range might be enough if you are able to stand close enough to the action. Many people would have gone for at least 200mm and for low light sports action, a fast lens might be needed, but I would still advise that you stay with your kit lens at the moment and rent faster lens as and when you need it.
Scenery is quite stationary, usually (if not we should get away there soonest :bsmilie
Thanks for the valuable recommendations.
Is Rakuten a good website to purchase the D7100 with kit lens?
Never heard of. What speaks against any of the local shops? Use your phone / send emails, get quotes.
Just get down to a physical shop be it locally or in hongkong or anywhere else so you can take that camera you want, feel it, play with it for a while then decide if it was for you. Why do you want to take the risk and order online, then pray if the product will reach you, and if it reach you, pray that nothing is wrong, or if you like the handling or not? Of course it is easy to order from the net and wait for the camera to come in if you are in the US... if you don't like it, you can still return it. Not sure if this is possible in Singapore.
Would like to echo the same about tripod, especially since you said you shoot landscapes. Get a good one. Try to give extra headroom for the weight (say if your lens + cam body = 2 kg, get something that can accommodate more than 2 kg). From what I read, problem is, awkward shooting angles + long lens might shift the overall centre of gravity (that's why you see some tripods have hook to hang more weight).
I have a colleague in the office whose 5D mk3 + 16-35 mk2 dived into shallow water of Maldives because his tripod was not sturdy enough. He ended up using Canon S120 for the rest of his Maldives trip. The 5D mk3 was dead beyond salvation. The 16-35 mk2 has been sold for parts
The same goes with dry cabinet, try to give extra headroom if space & budget permits.
I have a colleague in the office whose 5D mk3 + 16-35 mk2 dived into shallow water of Maldives because his tripod was not sturdy enough. He ended up using Canon S120 for the rest of his Maldives trip. The 5D mk3 was dead beyond salvation. The 16-35 mk2 has been sold for parts
The same goes with dry cabinet, try to give extra headroom if space & budget permits.
Would like to echo the same about tripod, especially since you said you shoot landscapes. Get a good one. Try to give extra headroom for the weight (say if your lens + cam body = 2 kg, get something that can accommodate more than 2 kg). From what I read, problem is, awkward shooting angles + long lens might shift the overall centre of gravity (that's why you see some tripods have hook to hang more weight).
I have a colleague in the office whose 5D mk3 + 16-35 mk2 dived into shallow water of Maldives because his tripod was not sturdy enough. He ended up using Canon S120 for the rest of his Maldives trip. The 5D mk3 was dead beyond salvation. The 16-35 mk2 has been sold for parts
The same goes with dry cabinet, try to give extra headroom if space & budget permits.
Thanks and noted!
Just another question, will it be better if I just go for the body only and purchase a better lens?
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Go for the kit lens first, unless you know what you already want. Plus don't looked down on the kit lenses, they are great and value for money. Get the kit lens, play with it for a while, know what you want, sell off the kit lens and upgrade lens.
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As long as your knowledge is limited you wouldn't know what is better for you. Better specs on paper do not automatically equal to any substantial advantage for you.
Get the kit lens. Learn from there.