DSLRUsers.com

Hi there all

I have just purchased a Nikon D40 as my first SLR after using a couple of compact camera (Ixus ii & Casio EX-Z57). Have a half an idea of some photographic principles, but still getting there. Most shots I take are portraits, but have also enjoyed getting some macro shots of flowers and insects in the past with the Ixus. I have also used this camera with an underwater housing and have been excited to see the difference between colours in underwater flash images and what I observe through the naked eye. Bought the new SLR as we have our first child arriving soon and I wanted to get to know the camera first.

Have enjoyed reading some of the posts through out this site, a rich resource indeed. Although, I wonder if some of the questions I have are not already answered deep in the dialogue somewhere.

I have just got the standard 18-55 lens with the d40, but once I have gotten used to driving the camera will get a lens with a longer focal length. Have seen many people referring to the 18-200 Nikkor VR lens and this seems to have a great range. Am also wondering about the 70-300 VR Nikkor lens. I want to use this for closeups on birds and other animals within approximately a 10 metre range and for macro shots. Was also wondering if other lens brands are worth considering? Do any of these also have a a form of VR construction? Would be good to keep the budget intact. Any ideas or advice would be valued.

regards
steve

Steve,

Welcome to DSLRUsers.

I don't have either lenses, but from what I read they are both pretty good. I'm actually hanging out to buy a 70-200mm VR and don't want to have to buy a lens twice. Tamron, Sigma and Tokina all make lenses for Nikon. They are also quite good, but I don't believe any of them have the equivalent of VR.

While zoom lenses can be used for macro, you will get better results with a prime lens designed specifically for macro. Nikon make 3: 60mm, 105mm and 200m. Sigma have some good ones: 105mm, 150mm and 180mm. Tamron has a pretty popular 90mm macro lens. You need to consider what you are shooting as to which is the better focal length.

what Andrew said....with your d40, you have to be use an afs lens, other wise it will not auto focus.

Pa makes a good point. That will limit the possibilities - unless you are happy with manual focus.

The Nikon 60mm and 200mm macro lenses are not AF-S.

The Sigma 105mm macros won't AF with the D40, but the other two (150mm and 180mm) should: http://www.sigmaphoto.com/news/news.asp?nID=3289. Note that link tells you which Sigma lenses are compatible in addition to the macros.

Tamron lenses probable won't work with the D40: http://www.tamron.co.jp/en/news/release_2007/0213.html

Hi Steve, and welcome!

I have a D40 and the 18-200 Nikkor VR lens and am very happy with the combination. You will always want more though! Particularly if you want to get into macro. As has been mentioned the D40 will only autofocus with AF-S lenses, I have had non-AFS lenses on my camera and it just means you have to do an extra step to focus before taking the picture (and may not always get it right ....) For macro stuff you will probably want to manually focus anyway so it shouldn't be an issue there.

Good luck with your new toy, I have found it a very easy camera to learn and it is a great entry level camera into the world of DSLR. I just wish it came with a talent attachment .....

Cheers,
Elena PS If you do get the 18-200, you won't be able to use the on-board flash as it creates a shadow on the bottom of the image due to the length of the lens - only an issue for indoor pics really .... can buy an external flash to overcome this ...

I have the 18-200 VR lens.. and while I use it on a Fuji S5pro I've found it to be a cracking lens.. fast, sharp and a great range.. I'm well pleased with it..

*crying that Canon doesn't have a similar lens*

Thanks all for the info, has been great reading the advice. I went missing for a while as we just had our first baby at the end of January and I got a little side tracked. So happy I bought the camera a few weeks before so I could get used to driveing it - still getting there though. Have been taking so many photos of the little man and have been really happy with most of the results.

Has anyone bought lenses through HK supplies? Am probably going to get the 18-200 at some point in time. If I become a more industrious user of this forum I hope to take advantage of the purchasing arrangement through the site.

Cheers
steve

I have purchased a lot of equipment (body, lenses, batteries etc) from HK Supplies and they have always come through for me. So far I didn't have to go through any warranty procedures, but from what I hear it's pretty painless. Sometimes they take a while to ship things out, mostly during busy periods (christmas) or when they are understaffed. But the longest I had to wait was I believe around 2 weeks.

shteeve5150 wrote:Has anyone bought lenses through HK supplies? Am probably going to get the 18-200 at some point in time. If I become a more industrious user of this forum I hope to take advantage of the purchasing arrangement through the site.

Steve, many of our members have purchased from HKS, either directly, through eBay, or through this forum's facilities.

If you look in the Trader's Opinions section, you'll see that our members have been dealing with them satisfactorily for well over three years.

If you look in the Bargains section, you'll see that we have a direct connection with HKS, and qualified members can buy stuff from them, through the forum, and even better prices than through HKS directly.

As Tim mentions, sometimes, like when Poon is away and they're a bit short staffed, things slow down a little. But OTOH, I can also tell you that we had two different orders, placed on Wednesday last, for which the members will have their new toys in their hands tomorrow!

In one of those instances we've actually set, I believe, a new record: the money was paid about 12:30pm on Friday, and the goods shipped within seven hours or so! But that's the exception, not the rule. Typical delivery time is regarded as seven to ten days.

To find out about becoming qualified for this, and how to order, and what to expect from the ordering processes, you need to read the FAQ.

While you're in the FAQ, you might see that you need to have a meaningful location in your profile, and you might also note that simply stating a capital city name does not qualify as being considered as a meaningful location: suburb - something just a bit more specific - is really what is required here.

Thanx for your cooperation.

gstark wrote:But OTOH, I can also tell you that we had two different orders, placed on Wednesday last, for which the members will have their new toys in their hands tomorrow!

Just checked the tracking on these.

Both seem to have already been cleared through customs. One of the items is in SYD awaiting delivery. The other is still in transit to BNE, but I expect it to be on a truck tomorrow.

Thanks Gary for the info, will attend to specific location details in a moment.
Congrats on a great little site and fostering a respectful, informative and diverse community.
steve

shteeve5150 wrote:... Have been taking so many photos of the little man and have been really happy with most of the results.

steve

G'day & welcome

So, where are the photos? Welcome to the forum, there are a few of us Perth folk but as far as I know, we've never managed to get together for any mimi-meets or shootings. Perhaps it's time to try arranging one?

Cheers
Bob in Bull Creek

Hi Bob
Yeah, I will have to get some up. Have been a little reluctant as most of them have been on Auto with no photo modification afterwards. They have just been happy snaps so far, so not terribly interested in critiques at the moment.

Watch this space though, once I get a little more settled and into a routine, will start experimenting a little more with camera.
steve

I would be interested in a "mimi-meet". What is a "mimi-meet"?

Hi there,
im pretty sure he meant miNi-meet.. which is as its name suggests - a small gathering of members

as for the AF issues with most lenses, what other members mean when they say that you need an AF-S lens is that the D40 series of cameras lack an autofocus drive mechanism in the camera body. And most lenses appear to rely on this mechanism to drive the focus mechanism of the lens.
AF-S lenses have inbuilt silent focussing motors inside the lens and hence will work on teh D40 series.

Tamron i believe have started to make a small number of D40 series compatible lenses.
Sigma - generally just look for lenses with the HSM feature (Sigma's version of AF-S)
Tokina - afaik, no D40 AF compatible lens exists.

as has been noted, the lenses will mount happily on the D40 series, but you will need to manually focus them.
hope this helps a little

-j

Thanks for the further explanation Seeto.
I didn't have any old lenses to use so the D40 suited my purposes. But, I am consious of keeping an eye on this element when I get around to purchasing my next lense.

steve

shteeve5150 wrote:Has anyone bought lenses through HK supplies? Am probably going to get the 18-200 at some point in time.

Yes and Yes. I bought my 18-200 from Poon (HK Supplies) through this forum. Also bought other stuff from him. I did have to wait a while just recently, when I ordered something that Poon did not have in stock at the time, but it did come, and have had no problems.