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D7000 + Lens Decisions

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rajeevrai

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I have sold my Pentax K10D & plan to move to D7000 for faster Focus & Low Light capabilities but working on the lens decision. I am a amateur photographer with keen interest in outdoors , street photography and primarily taking pictures of my kids, modeling for me at indoor dance events or playing outdoor sports.

Reason to move to D7K is low light focus performance of Nikons, other wise feature & function wise the new Pentax body K5 is also good. Used my friends D90...

The lens choices i have shortlisted are based on preliminary research (no time now since already sold my K10D)......on what is available but not what is good...or right investment, for now i have some favorable pricing available to me available on Nikkor....so would not consider that as constraint..Please also recommend other brand better lenses which could substitute Nikkor with better price/performance.....like Tamron or Sigma....

For now considering

Option 1: Just kit lens 18-105 and 70-300mm

Option 2: 16-85 and ( 70-300 VR combination or 55-200 VR or 55-300 VR)

Option 3: 18-200mm and & buy other primes or wide angle like 12-24 or 10-24 mm later..

In addition how big of a difference is between SB700 and SB900 flash units. I am guessing SB700 should be sufficient for my needs.
Any help on the lens selection is appreciated..
--
RKR
 
Since you mentioned low light and indoors being primary needs I would recommend looking at faster glass than the zooms you mentioned. I own or have owned most of the zooms you mentioned and they are great but aren't the best for indoor low light. I would look at the 35mm f1.8, 50mm f1.8 and the 85mm f1.8. One or two of these might be the best way to get started.

Even if you go with an all around zoom like the 18-105 I would add one or two of the above primes to your setup.
 
Here's a couple of research sites on lenses:
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/
http://www.dxomark.com

Generally, a faster lens will focus faster and cleaner on the D7000. The slower zooms like f/3.5-f/5.6+ might hunt a bit for focus and not always end up where you would like, imho. Steer for the sharper lens or you'll begin doubting your sharpness later even with PP work.

Some zooms, i.e. the expensive FX f/2.8 ones, can run circles around the DX lenses in sharpness and more so with focus speed and accuracy and even surpass some primes. Just better overall, but you get what you pay for too. When you hit the $2,000+ lenses, you will definitely see an increase in quality of your images with less throw-aways for softness and the speed at which your camera's AF settles in on AF too. It's rare I see the green AF triangles in my viewfinder with those lenses on the D7000 body. I'm reminded of that slowness when I put on the 'kit' DX lenses that came with the camera, or even the DX lenses that I bought afterwards thinking "This will be a sharpness improvement" when often it is not. Many here did that with the 18-105mm kit lens to the 18-200mm lens early on. So did I. Now I rely more on the 24-70mm f/2.8 and the 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII FX lenses but they sort of smarted the Visa card too.

On the SB flash decision, I always go for maximum power. Outdoors you'll need all you can get for iTTL-BL at times if the subjects are at any distance. I even use some older and larger 1800 w/s studio units outdoors at times too if the SB-900 can't fill the bill. With a pair of those, I can hit f/32 at 25 feet and with a softbox too for groups. Indoors not so much so you can get by with less, just at some point you may need the extra power and then you'll wish you had sprung for the 'bigger gun.' I did that by getting the cheaper SB-600 and after my issues outdoors with flash fill beyond 6 feet, so I went to the SB-900, and even followed that with another refurbished one ($100 less) for remote lighting that your D7000 can do in Commander Mode. My SB-600 hasn't seen sunlight in some time now since the SB-900's appeared. Very disappointed with it, but they discontinued it too.

Mack
 
Based on the inputs and other reviews here is the initial thoughts please shower your wisdom , i have 1 -2 days to make a final decision....

I do want the zoom and speed yet not ready to plunk 1000$+ on each glass

This combo - what can i change ..

a. 16-85 f/3.5-5.6
b. 35 mm/F1.8 prime
c. 70-300 mm F3.5-5.6

What are the alternatives..i do not need more than 200mm zoom but saw that for me 55-200 and 70-300 are close enough in price

--
RKR
 
I own the 35mm f/1.8, and the 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6.

I love both lenses, the 16-85 primarily for street photography because of the equivilant 27mm of coverage on the wide end. It is also, perhaps, the sharpest of all the DX general purpose Nikkor zoom lenses. I've compared it hands-on to the 18-200mm VRII and then much costlier 17-55mm f/2.8 and was very pleased with the results.

As far as the 35mm f/1.8 goes: best bang for your buck. It's lightweight, fast to focus, and clean all across the frame.

Good luck whichever way you choose to go!
 
My current kit is 85/1.8D, Sigma 30/1.4, Tokina 12-24, and 300/4 AF. (I also have the 18-105 but find that I don't use it much). I can definitely recommend this kit... the 85 and 30 (substitute the 35/1.8 if you want to keep all Nikkor) work well together, the 12-24 is a great inexpensive UWA, and the 300 is perfect for wildlife (relatively light, and great IQ). I greatly prefer primes to zooms, due to the speed and IQ.

Just my $0.02

Cheers
--
--Wyatt
http://photos.digitalcave.ca
All images (c) unless otherwise specified, please ask me before editing.
 
I think you have a good selection with these three.
--

'A man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of the time he will pick himself up and continue on.'
Winston Churchill
 
I had the chance to use the D7000 for a couple days with the 18-105 lens. While the lens was ok from the image quality standpoint I was a bit disappointed with it regarding focus speed (no problem with accuracy).

I currently have an Oly E-30 with 14-54 2.8 and it was able to focus as fast or faster in dim light interior than the D7000. Also, if I disabled the focus assist light on the D7000 it sometimes failed to find focus (with this lens) while the E-30 still found focus, and quickly at that (without a focus assist light). I mention this because while the focus assist light is a nice feature, it can be obtrusive depending on the situation. May or may not be an issue for you. Was seriously considering the purchase of the D7000 but have shelved that for the moment based on the focus performance compared to my current gear. Would have liked to try it with the 16-85 or a faster lens (particularly without the af assist light, hate to have to rely on that so much).
 
re: focus speed. It's not the D7000, it's the lens.

I shoot the D7000 with the Nikon 24-70 as my walkaround lens. Focus is lightening fast and deadly accurate, even in VERY low light; 'course you have to pay for that kind of performance.

To the OP; the selection you've summarized sounds very good. Another vote for the cheap but great 35mm 1.8 -- fantastic value.
nrwhitman said:
I had the chance to use the D7000 for a couple days with the 18-105 lens. While the lens was ok from the image quality standpoint I was a bit disappointed with it regarding focus speed (no problem with accuracy).

I currently have an Oly E-30 with 14-54 2.8 and it was able to focus as fast or faster in dim light interior than the D7000. Also, if I disabled the focus assist light on the D7000 it sometimes failed to find focus (with this lens) while the E-30 still found focus, and quickly at that (without a focus assist light). I mention this because while the focus assist light is a nice feature, it can be obtrusive depending on the situation. May or may not be an issue for you. Was seriously considering the purchase of the D7000 but have shelved that for the moment based on the focus performance compared to my current gear. Would have liked to try it with the 16-85 or a faster lens (particularly without the af assist light, hate to have to rely on that so much).
Click to expand...
 
As i continue to look at the reponses an alternate idea sprung up which is about close to $350 more cost effective....was wondering if make sense

a. kit lens 18-105 in place of 16-85
b. 35 mm prime
c. 70-300 mm VR zoom

the questions is the PQ & sharpness, speed of focus between 18-105 and 16-85........?

--
RKR
 
rajeevrai said:
As i continue to look at the responses an alternate idea sprung up which is about close to $350 more cost effective....was wondering if make sense

a. kit lens 18-105 in place of 16-85
b. 35 mm prime
c. 70-300 mm VR zoom

the questions is the PQ & sharpness, speed of focus between 18-105 and 16-85........?

--
RKR
Click to expand...
My opinion is get the 16-85 and not the 18-105. Reason being that you will need the 16 more than the 105. My opinion is supported by many others, but there is probably an equally large camp that recommends the 18-105. BTW, my 16-85 focuses quickly.
--

'A man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of the time he will pick himself up and continue on.'
Winston Churchill
 
I also came to Nikon from Pentax (k-x, even though I kept most of my Pentax gear). I have not tried the 16-85, but I have had very good results with the kit lens (18-105). AF is much faster than anything I had ever seen with my k-x. I have the Tamron VC 70-300, which I am also very happy with ( it is supposed to be as sharp and fast as the Nikon version). I went a slightly different route with primes. I got the Tokina 35 mm macro. I don't think it replaces the Nikon 35 mm 1.8, but I always wanted the Pentax 35 mm macro limited and the Tokina for Nikon is much cheaper than the Pentax (around $300). It is very sharp, macro is wonderful but the AF is screwdriven and I suspect not as fast as the AF-S Nikon lens. I also got the inexpensive 50 mm 1.8 which is a great lens. There is a new version of this with faster AF, but optically probably very similar and not that much more expensive.

So in summary, the last solution you mentioned is very worthwhile. You should even look at the Tamron 70-300, and that may save you some money if you really want to get the 16-85.
 
this might be a good starting combo for the d7000.

the 70-300 is f4-5.6
rajeevrai said:
Based on the inputs and other reviews here is the initial thoughts please shower your wisdom , i have 1 -2 days to make a final decision....

I do want the zoom and speed yet not ready to plunk 1000$+ on each glass

This combo - what can i change ..

a. 16-85 f/3.5-5.6
b. 35 mm/F1.8 prime
c. 70-300 mm F3.5-5.6

What are the alternatives..i do not need more than 200mm zoom but saw that for me 55-200 and 70-300 are close enough in price

--
RKR
Click to expand...
--
eap_44

Nikon D7000
18-200 VR II
35 f/1.8
SB700
 
I'd start slow, see if the body and perhaps a beginner lens is what you want, then move from there. Some points :
  • IMO, there is no reason to choose the 16-85 over the 18-105 if you're on a tight budget. Frankly both lenses, optically , perform very closely. The 16-85 wins on build, maybe slight in CA and distortion (both correctable) and of course is 2mm wider, but the 18-105 is no slouch and is a great deal.
  • The 70-300, if you need it, is one of the best bang-for-buck lenses in the Nikon lineup. Frankly I'd buy this over the 55-300 because it's a FF lens and from what I've read focuses faster than the 55-200/300 (I haven't used the 55' zooms but I've used the 70-300 and it's a pretty quick performer). Even if you don't plan to move to FF, it's a good lens in its own right and pretty darn sharp.
  • Get the SB700
  • The 35mm f/1.8 is a great lens, but I find 50mm just a really boring focal length. Unfortunately, choices are limited when you get down to the 24mm range for fast primes - I've really considered trying out a Sigma 24mm f/1.8. It's not an HSM lens, but it has a pretty darn good close-focusing performance and gets decent results.
I'm a huge fan of the 35mm (equiv) range, loved my Zeiss 35/2 on my Canon 5D2, so not having this on a crop camera sucks (I can't afford the Nikon 24mm f/1.4)

I own the Sigma 10-24mm lens for 2 days now and so far it's pretty nice. it's not fast (f/4-5.6 aperture) but pretty good if you need wide.

--
JL Smith
http://jl-smith.smugmug.com
 
Thanks for the feedback. Kind of an expensive proposition, isn't that about a $1700 lens? Olympus fixed aperture zooms are pretty expensive also, their 35-100 f2.0 is around $2500 (14-54 is about $600, by the way). Have you tried the 16-85 lens and if so how does it compare to the 18-105 and 24-70?. Figure it's about the same price range as what I'm comparing to. That and 16-18 mm is more what I'm looking for on the wide end anyway, 24 is a bit too long.

Regarding the 24-70 on the D7000, is this fast autofocus dependent on the focus assist light? As I mentioned on my E30/14-54 setup my autofocus is without a assist light (although it is available via pop-up flash). Perhaps a personal preference but I don't like the use of focus assist lights if I can avoid it, makes the photographer too conspicuous.

Have been looking to upgrade but am finding the E30, despite it's shortcomings is not a bad camera, just wish I new where oly was going. Guess I'll wait, go take some pictures, and see what technology brings down the road.
JakeB said:
I shoot the D7000 with the Nikon 24-70 as my walkaround lens. Focus is lightening fast and deadly accurate, even in VERY low light; 'course you have to pay for that kind of performance.

To the OP; the selection you've summarized sounds very good. Another vote for the cheap but great 35mm 1.8 -- fantastic value.
nrwhitman said:
I had the chance to use the D7000 for a couple days with the 18-105 lens. While the lens was ok from the image quality standpoint I was a bit disappointed with it regarding focus speed (no problem with accuracy).

I currently have an Oly E-30 with 14-54 2.8 and it was able to focus as fast or faster in dim light interior than the D7000. Also, if I disabled the focus assist light on the D7000 it sometimes failed to find focus (with this lens) while the E-30 still found focus, and quickly at that (without a focus assist light). I mention this because while the focus assist light is a nice feature, it can be obtrusive depending on the situation. May or may not be an issue for you. Was seriously considering the purchase of the D7000 but have shelved that for the moment based on the focus performance compared to my current gear. Would have liked to try it with the 16-85 or a faster lens (particularly without the af assist light, hate to have to rely on that so much).
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
D7K +

Thank you yes i am leaning towards 18-105, 70-300, 35mm and SB700, does it all if i skip 16-85 and later i can swap the 18-105 if i need to with 16-85....

Great idea...u added clarity to my thought process...
--
RKR
 
I agree on the 16-85.
Cope said:
rajeevrai said:
As i continue to look at the responses an alternate idea sprung up which is about close to $350 more cost effective....was wondering if make sense

a. kit lens 18-105 in place of 16-85
b. 35 mm prime
c. 70-300 mm VR zoom

the questions is the PQ & sharpness, speed of focus between 18-105 and 16-85........?

--
RKR
Click to expand...
My opinion is get the 16-85 and not the 18-105. Reason being that you will need the 16 more than the 105. My opinion is supported by many others, but there is probably an equally large camp that recommends the 18-105. BTW, my 16-85 focuses quickly.
--

'A man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of the time he will pick himself up and continue on.'
Winston Churchill
Click to expand...
 
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