Lens help, basic advice needed!

[Chumpalot]

Hi all, hope you're having a good evening.

Whilst I think I have made my mind up as to what my first SLR should be(D90), I'm having a bit of trouble understanding (rather more differentiating) what lenses I might need and what ones do what.

The kit I have my eye on comes with an 18-105mm lens which as I understand it is a good 'everyday' lens and will probably keep me occupied whilst I learn the ropes.

Now, when I decide to upgrade my kit and purchase another lens (let's say for zoom shots), would I go for a 50-200, or 70-200? What is the difference here? Or would this be a waste as the current lens I have is good for up to 105mm?.... What about an 18-200 lens? Would this make my 1st lens redundant? Is there a relation between 'mm' and how far one can use the lens to zoom in?

I do apologise for the many questions. I guess what I need is a sort of beginner's guide to lenses and focal depths. Whilst I've read a few articles on the web on these subjects none of them really explain the difference in simple terms.

Your help is greatly appreciated, thank you in advance.

Cheers

Dave

[denno75uk]

I find this a good way to come to terms with the difference in focal lengths.
The 18-105 would be a great lens to be going on with, focal length wise. An 18-200 is a very convenient type of lens, but the drawbacks of slow apertures and distortions at 18 and 200mm may mean it's not for you.

[Chumpalot]

I guess I need to establish what type of shots I'm going to be taken and make my lens choice from that?

At the beginning, the 18-105 will be sufficient for most landscape shots and wide angle views I think. I would like to add a macro lens and a decent zoom lens at a later date.

I'm slowly getting my head around the acronyms and what it all means. It's a steep learning curve

Thanks for the link

Dave

[Martin.D]

Originally Posted by Chumpalot

I guess I need to establish what type of shots I'm going to be taken and make my lens choice from that?

I think that would be a good start:

Landscapes
Town
Closeup
Portrait
Sports
Wild life

The list goes on, but there are lenses for each of the above. Search the internet, seek advice across the forums. Look to other people's Flickr account's to see what they have shot with, decide what it is you want to shoot then pick mid range / above for better results for the super lens you need..

I too are looking for new lenses - mainly Wide Angle (Skateboarding) and Urban (24mm - 70mm) ..

but instead I bought a new Canon 50D body! So the lens will wait another week or 2..

[Yandros]

Originally Posted by Chumpalot

Hi all, hope you're having a good evening.

Is there a relation between 'mm' and how far one can use the lens to zoom in?

The focal length (the 'mm' figure) is the angle of view of a lens. On the D90 (and other 'DX' cameras), 35mm has about the same perspective as a human eye. 18-35mm is wide, 10-18mm is often considered 'superwide'. From about 50-105mm you get a range often used for portraits (people plants and animals). 70-300mm is a popular range that works for a lot of sports and wildlife shooting, and above 300mm for birds and small/distant subjects.

You can express any DSLR zoom as a 'times x' magnification lens just by dividing the long end by the wide end. However it doesn't tell you anything about what the lens is useful for. For example a 10-20mm superwide is a x2 zoom. A 200-400mm mega telephoto birding lens is also a x2. See the problem? So the focal length(s) tells you what sort of view you'll get from the lens

[Chumpalot]

Thank you for your reply, very helpful indeed.

I have now got my head around what lenses do what. As Darren has said in a previous thread of mine, I will try and get as much use as I can from the 18-105mm first before purchasing another lens.

I just wanted some clarification I guess

Thanks again

Dave