When I started Project 365, I had only a 50mm lens. Money prohibited us from buying another, but our tax refund recently came through and I promised myself a new lens with it!
It was a very tough decision. For a non-professional, buying a new lens is difficult! I wanted something a little more all-purpose than the 50mm and something that would be good to use outside. After looking at dozens of lenses and reading hundreds of reviews, I finally decided on….
A Nikkor 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-S DX VR ED! The primary reason I chose this was that it was the cheapest lens on the market with great reviews that would allow both a wide angle and somewhat of a telephoto zoom. I’m not going to be taking a lot of pictures of animals in the wild or at the zoo, but I want to be able to capture my kids or pets playing across the yard without walking up to them.
The lens has a silent motor in it which is surprisingly quiet, especially when compared to the 50mm! (I’m not sure how much this matters, as I don’t take a lot of pictures of wildlife that might be frightened by the sound.) It also came with a lens hood, which I need to read more about, and a really nice bag for the lens which I’ll likely rarely use for its original purpose. I got a UV filter (which will stay on it all the time), a circular polarizer and a neutral density filter for it. (They came in a pack.) My camera bag just got a lot fuller and I’m happy to report that my 50mm lens and all the new accessories fit inside it wonderfully!
It’s not great for low light at all. I even had problems taking pictures outside right before sunset. I expected this when I bought it and considering the max apertures, it’s not a surprise. Some negative reviews I read complained about the weight and I was expecting to find it very cumbersome since I’m so used to my smallish 50mm lens, but I wasn’t bothered by the size or weight at all.
This shot was taken at 105mm, of the tiny little flowers growing in our front yard. It can’t really do what I consider to be macro photography, but I’m certainly able to get a lot closer to things than I was able to with the 50mm. Below is a shot of the same flowers as close as I could get with my 50mm, and then one taken with the 10x close-up filter on the 50mm.
I’m going to Bloggy Boot Camp in Austin this weekend and I’m super excited that my new lens got here in time for the trip! I’m hoping that the boot camp will kick my butt back into gear and get me blogging again, but at the very least you can expect tons of pictures from me when I return! I’m sure I’m going to feel a bit like a dork since I’ve been absent from blogging for so long and I also didn’t get my act together in time to have little cards printed out with my info on it. Oh well! I know I’ll have fun regardless.
That is awesome! Congrats! I am looking at that for my next lens. Have a great time in Austin!
Twitter: @PhotoLynda
Thanks!
It was a difficult decision between this and the 18-200. I felt the cons of that were price and weight (it’s over a pound!)
I wish I just had a few thousand dollars to throw away so I wouldn’t need to agonize over which ONE lens to buy!
I really like the first daisy picture — how big can you export it? I would love to see it as a desktop wallpaper, but this new iMac’s resolution is 2560 x 1440.
Twitter: @PhotoLynda
Thanks Mariann! The original is 2364 x 1689 (I’m pretty sure it’s cropped).
All my photos are creative commons licensed and if you’re logged into flickr you should be able to go to Actions > View All Sizes and download originals. Not sure how great this one looks blown up though…
Twitter: @kg_photography
Congrats on the new lens. I love love love when I add a lens to my collection. I really have to stop, but now I’m eyeing the lower aperature lenses. I must refrain.
Your pictures are beautiful. Happy to be reading your words again! Have fun at bloggy boot camp!!!
Twitter: @PhotoLynda
Thanks Kimberly! I’ve missed reading your blog too – in addition to not blogging, I haven’t been reading them very much.
I really hope this boot camp motivates me!
Twitter: @speedymom
Sweet Lens! Enjoy it!
Twitter: @PhotoLynda
Thanks Kristal!
Twitter: @VsAfterBedtime
with all the work you put in during the 31dbbb challenge, who could blame you for taking a break!
on another note, I would sooo love to have a digital camera with a pro lens. I had a film camera, a Rebel, years ago. Got some amazing pics that I never could get from a point and shoot. I’m sooo jealous.
Twitter: @OnLindenWay
Woo hoo! A great new “toy”! I’m sure you’ll have a blast with it. It sounds like a great choice – I was looking at something similar as my “basic first” lens on a DSLR (which I’ve still not bought, so ha-ha on me!) — anyway — I think it’ll quickly become a new pal for your photography.
Have an excellent time in Austin — looking forward to hearing all about it!