Prime lenses?
 

I just got my D90 last week and I'm loving it. I've been bitten by the photography bug. :p

I'm considering getting a prime lens because of some great things I've heard about them here on YT. Should I? What do they do differently than, say the kit lens that came with my camera? Will they help me get the bokeh effect I love so much? What else? :confuse2:

Which prime lens do you recommend for a Nikon D90?

You can't go wrong with this one , and at that price. This lens has an almost cult following (note the reveiws!). Plus, it's super light and small - so it's a FAB walk-around lens.

You have total control over the aperture, which is so fun. This lens is wonderful for the aperture priority setting :). Also, great for low light settings.

I love THIS guy's flickr - and this is his set of 50mm Prime (a selection) pics. He may be using the more pricey 1.4 Nikkor Prime lens, but regardless...this is what you could do w/ a prime....

There are other options too, but more expensive...depends on where you're at, but I LOVE the 1.8...love it!

Yes, I looove the pic's in that link - that's the look I want. So you think this 1.8 will allow me to get similar results?

Sorry, Ann....I know you've told us about prime lenses before and I hated to ask again. :p I was hoping for an answer tailer-made for my camera...and I got it! I think I'm going to just go ahead and order the one you recommended - I really want to get that bokeh effect.

Thanks!!

He may also be using the full frame camera. The D90 has the 1.5 crop factor. A 35mm lens is equivalent to a 50mm lens. A 50mm lens is 75mm. This relates to field of view. The D90 makes things smaller, like cropping.

This is a good option too - Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX Lens

I'd already ordered the one that Ann linked before I saw your post. It has excellent reviews so I hope it will be able to produce the effect I want. Thanks for letting me know about this lens - I'm thinking I may need to start my photography 'Wish List'. ;)

He uses a Nikon D40. That's the reason I started following him, bc that's the camera I started with :).

I've just been looking at some of his other pictures - wow! I'm definitely impressed. But, my favorite set is the one you linked of his 50mm shots - I keep going back and looking at those pictures.

The 50mm lens gets great reviews, & it's inexpensive to boot.

I just finished re-reading the big DSLR thread (the stinky). If I had remembered it earlier, so many of my questions would've been answered there. That's ok though - I got to see the flickr link to those great photos this way. :)

WOW, Those photos in that link are beautiful!!

Aren't they? I love the cherry on the train track and the Dining in Manhattan.... really I love them all.

I know :)...I just love that guy's pics! He takes the simplest things, and makes them stunning. I could stare at that dang picture of *chalk* for the longest time, LOL!

That's a Prime for ya, love those primes...so fun.

The lens you just ordered is a wonderful lens. I used it for over 20 years, and you definitely will get great depth of field with it. I have a Nikon D300 and several film Nikons. I needed to replace it, so I got the new 50 1.4G, but only because I wanted something that I could use with less light I also recommend the 35 1.8 Nikon lens for a wider angle if you find the 50mm is too tight, but you will love the 50 mm too. I use several zooms, but the primes are great for low light and shallow depth of field,and eventually you will find great uses for both. Enjoy the camera and the lens.

I know - that is a great pic! I keep going back to the one of the two yellow lines on the curving road. It's very soothing, but it makes you wonder what's around the next bend....

:D:D:D HI!! Cool, a new camera friend! I also have the Sigma 30mm1.4 - and it does have a wider angle - and super fast, but chunkier, by far (has motor in lens, btw). The only reason I have it is bc I started w/ the D40 - and the Nikkor50mm1.8 won't AF on the D40 - so I had to spend the add'l $$$ for the Sigma HSM for the AF (was having some blurred vision, so didn't want to manually focus my 50mm on my D40).

Anyway, once I got my D90 - I can now use my 50mm1.8 :). I do still pull out my Sigma though....I go back and forth about selling it, but ahhh well. :rolleyes:

I love that pic too. His whole flickr is so inspiring to me bc it makes me feel I can just go around my house and try taking a picture of a pencil :p.

Wow love those picture's!! I want the 35mm.

Is this the one you're a-thinkin'...?

If yes, it's a nice one :D!

Plus, you'll get your AF, YAY! And at a decent price, right? :thumbup:

I was ticked when I had my D40...and had to pay a lot just to get AF on a prime :thumbdown.

Your sigma is a wonderful lens. I don't think I'd sell it, unless you aren't using it. When I got my Nikon 50 1.4g, I debated whether to get the sigma 50 1.4, which is probably better than the Nikon, but it is twice the size and defeats one of the reasons why I love using the small prime. The new Nikkor 35 1.8g is a great lens for a wonderful price. It is about the size of your 50 mm, and the reviews make it very tempting. I hope it is allowed, but here is a link for a terrific photography forum. This link is about the Nikkor 35mm lens. The people in the Nikon forum are real gearheads, but they are very nice and helpful. The other forums are amazing if you are interested in beautiful photos and great information.

I've been seriously interested in photography for many years and have been using Nikons for over 20. Any questions about anything Nikon I could help with, but other things relating to photography I can also assist with if anyone has any questions.

My true love, though, is my little girl Ashley, who looks just like Marcel. Your picture of him looks like it could have been one of mine when she was a puppy. I had 3 yorkies when she was little, but she is my only one left now. Ashley will be 17 in July, and we are doing everything possible to keep her healthy, happy, and active. I have recent pictures of her since I went digital 2 years ago, but all of my older pictures are film, so I'd need help where I work to scan them to show her to you when she was little. Thanks for all of the work that you do with this forum. I have visited your blog, and it is wonderful.

Lisa

I forgot to add the link. The forum is fred miranda.com and this is the link where they discuss the lens: Nikkor 35/1.8G DX - It's Great! - FM Forums

Yep this one!!

I bookmarked this forum - thank you for the link. And thanks for the input on lenses, too! It's great to have you here....I am a newbie to dslr's. I've been planning my purchase for a few months and was finally able to buy my D90 a week ago. I've had 2 photography classes this week (perfect timing) and I'm loving it! Ann has been a HUGE help to all of us just starting out with dslr's and photography in general. It'll be great to have another brain around! :)

Hey Ann - we learned about White Balance tonight (you weren't kidding - it really DOES exist :p) We've also gone over aperatures, ISO's, spot metering, auto focus points......gosh I can't remember what all we've covered this week. The next class starts in about 3 weeks and I'm so excited! This is instructor is really good I think. :D

Haha! Good point! I have all kinds of things laying around here so I shouldn't have any problems finding a subject to practice on my new lens with. The new lens should be here Saturday - they've already shipped it out!!:D

Nope, I'm wrong. I just checked my order on Amazon again and since UPS doesn't deliver here on Saturdays, the scheduled delivery date is TOMORROW!!

If there are any questions you have, you can ask me anything. I started in high school, but have pursued photography seriously since then. It took me a long time before I bought my digital camera, and I spent countless hours learning about white balance and other things relating to digital. There's always more to learn. At this point, my weakest leak is postprocessing. I have learned a tremendous amount by looking at the forums at fred miranda.com. Pictures of dogs are in the people forums. Have you considered going to Nikon's one day workshops? There are two of them. I went many years ago to the Nikon School workshop. It is one day, but you learn so much. It is for people of all levels. I would also recommend Bryan Peterson's books, particularly Understanding Exposure. It is sold at Amazon. If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend that you get it. He also has online courses at his Perfect Picture School of Photography. Work slowly. Test out pictures using different apertures, and if you can spend a little time looking at the fred miranda forums in the areas that interest you, you will grow tremendously as a photographer. Also, check out the Nikon forum at fred miranda. They have a thread on page one or two (today page one) called Your Best Nikon Shot. The pictures are amazing.

Lisa - so wonderful you're here :D!!! Yup, that's how I feel about the Sigma...just can't quite bring myself to sell it, bc I do like it, even though it's much heavier than the 50mm1.8 (and was pricier). Ack, it's already paid for, so you know how that goes. Until I really lust for some other lens...I'll just hang on to it.

So great that you have experience bc I swear, there seems to be no end to what I could learn about cameras. I've had my D90 for only a little over a year (had a D40 before that), and still feel like I know just a little.

You mentioned film too...did you ever do darkroom? Oh sigh. I also have a SLR and used to have a little, basic darkroom in my place (in Denver) and I *love* that smell of the chemicals :p (still have an enlarger in my garage :rolleyes:). I really miss that...

I would love to see pics of your Ashley...17, that's amazing :)...she sounds just precious.

You know what we could probably use a thread about...ugh: HISTOGRAMS...I don't use mine. I feel resistant toward them :tongue4:. Do you think they're useful...or just meh?

And thanks so much for your comments on my goofy blog :).

Yay on the white balance :D! It really can help bc there are so many different kinds of light that you take pics in - it really can change things to play around w/ it. ISO is such an easy switch too. Your class just sounds fab!

I have had my camera for almost two years, and I still need to learn much more. I never had a point and shoot, so when I went digital, I went from the Nikon F100 to the D300. I bought Thom Hogan's ebook, which I found much easier to read than the manual. They're not expensive, and you probably will find it worthwhile. I can help gather information on histograms over this weekend, if you want. I do think they are very useful, but I haven't mastered them much. This is one of those things in the digital world that I don't know at a great depth. I learn quickly and like to be able to help others, so if you want me to get something started, let me know. I did use darkrooms, and I loved it. I am a perfectionist, so I spent many hours in the darkroom trying to get things just right. I am more of a purist, and I'm not crazy about the idea of manipulating reality, unless it's for the sake of art, so photoprocessing that alters the scene or events to a great extent doesn't interest me. Once I figure out how to attach a picture to a thread, I will show you pictures of Ashley. Our life revolves around taking care of her. We take her to see her doctor at least every two months to make sure that we are doing everything she needs to keep her healthy. She still walks a couple of miles a day, and would walk longer if I wasn't so protective. She still runs around, plays, and acts like a baby, but she gets tired more easily. Her doctor is amazed at how fast she is. He is Chinese, and he is referred to as The Miracle Vet. He uses holistic medicine, does acupuncture, comes up with the formulas for the herbs that he and other vets use, and has cured so many dogs whose doctors told their owners that their dogs had no hope for survival. He also uses conventional medicine, and I trust him completely. You can PM me at any time if you have any questions or post them here.

I bet you love that D300, it's such a nice camera. Please don't go to too much trouble on the histogram thing...I wonder how much people really use them. Maybe Bonny will have this covered in the class she is taking and be able to fill us in :D. I don't know why I'm so bugged by histograms, but I am...I just need to find out if they work for me or not.

You're so lucky to have spent so much time in the darkroom...it's such a poignant experience...seeing a picture in the chemicals, developing before your eyes. I could have used my equipment so much more, and just didn't - oh well.

Your vet sounds wonderful, that's so key. It's great to have you here :).

The new lens was already here when I got home from work. I've been playing with it a bit and I think it's probably the lens I'm going to have the most fun with. :) I've taken pictures of things - just stuff I don't really want pictures of - and gotten a decent bokeh effect on some of the shots.

What mode(s) do you usually have your camera in when you're using this lens? So far, the A mode is my favorite overall.

Would love to see some picture's lisaly!

Thanks for asking. I don't have a flickr account, so I have all of my digital photos on my computer. I have been trying to attach one photo as a start, but it has not allowed me to do that. I don't know what I am doing wrong. I'll keep trying. I'd love for you to see my sweet, baby girl.