D750 kit lens, worth it or no?

Pepitobenito said:

So I'm 90% sure I'm going to be upgrading to a D750 in the next few months, only I'm wondering if I should bother with the kit lens or skip that and just get the body. Right now, I use a Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5 for everyday/general use, and a Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 for night shooting/landscape. I know the kit lens is technically good value, but I'm just wondering what situations it would actually be superior in to the point of justifying dropping an extra $500 (CND) over just buying the body, if any. I don't mind spending the extra but it'd feel like a waste if I just ended up leaving it at home/in my bag all the time. It's tough for me to really judge it just by looking at numbers on the internet, rather than getting my hands on it.

Click to expand...

No use getting it, if you not going to use it.

I just borrowed my friend's D750 + kit lens and used it at a parade. The lens is very capable and does a good job.

It has some distortions towards the edges but DXO corrects it very well and I suspect that Nikon's Capture NX-D would do the same as well.

I tried indoors, in low light, and it performs noticeably better than my D7200 + kit lens under the same conditions.

Whether the extra cost is worth it depends on what you plan to do with it. For example, if you eventually plan to shoot with a couple of primes, or buy the exotic 24-70/2.8 then the kit lens becomes redundant.

All the best.

Pepitobenito said:

So I'm 90% sure I'm going to be upgrading to a D750 in the next few months, only I'm wondering if I should bother with the kit lens or skip that and just get the body. Right now, I use a Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5 for everyday/general use, and a Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 for night shooting/landscape. I know the kit lens is technically good value, but I'm just wondering what situations it would actually be superior in to the point of justifying dropping an extra $500 (CND) over just buying the body, if any. I don't mind spending the extra but it'd feel like a waste if I just ended up leaving it at home/in my bag all the time. It's tough for me to really judge it just by looking at numbers on the internet, rather than getting my hands on it.

Click to expand...

I received my D750 last week from B&H with the kit lens but also purchased a Nikon 50mm. My other Nikon is the D300 with DX lenses. I read a lot of reviews before deciding to purchase the kit rather than the body only and the 50mm.

You seem to have other lenses that you can use with the D750 and may not have a need for the kit lens. The price of the 24-120 alone is almost $1,100 on B&H so I opted to pay the additional $500.00 and the 50mm was approximately $450.00.

I feel like I got two lenses for the price of one. I also didn't want to crop my photos with the DX lens. I have tried them both out and am very pleased so far. I am interested in night shooting and was very happy with the results from both lenses.

I hope this helps,

Mina

The kit lens is sharp and performs well on the D750. If I could bring only one lens with me on a trip, I would choose this lens over the 25-70 F2.8 because of the substantial extra reach of the 24-120. Its a great all around lens and a bargain as a kit lens.

Pepitobenito said:

So I'm 90% sure I'm going to be upgrading to a D750 in the next few months, only I'm wondering if I should bother with the kit lens or skip that and just get the body. Right now, I use a Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5 for everyday/general use, and a Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 for night shooting/landscape. I know the kit lens is technically good value, but I'm just wondering what situations it would actually be superior in to the point of justifying dropping an extra $500 (CND) over just buying the body, if any. I don't mind spending the extra but it'd feel like a waste if I just ended up leaving it at home/in my bag all the time. It's tough for me to really judge it just by looking at numbers on the internet, rather than getting my hands on it.

Click to expand...

I don't have the kit lens with my D750, and won't ever use it for my shooting style and requirements.

Your Sigma is designed for APS-C ("DX") cameras--it will be largely a waste to use with this full-frame ("FX") camera. If you like using single lens, wide range zooms, then get the kit lens.

However, if you're getting the D750 specifically for improved image quality, invest in some better lenses if you'll use them for the types of things you shoot. If all you do is ultra-wide night shooting / landscapes, then you don't need another lens. If you do more, then maybe it's worth either getting the kit lens or better lenses in the ranges you need--for example, you could do a normal 50mm F/1.8 or slightly wide 28 or 35mm F/1.8 for general/street shooting or a ~100mm F/2.0 for portraits, etc.

For the kit price I think it is a very good all-rounder and makes sense (I bought it as part of the kit). If you are planning on only or mostly sticking to primes - or if you are saving for a top 24-70 f/2.8 then perhaps it doesn't make sense.

My most used lens besides my 70-200 2.8VR2....Well i only have those two, but they suit me just fine

Since you won't have a standard lens that covers the full FX frame after upgrading going with the kit is a no-brainer. I bought my 24-120 18+ months before it was available as part of a kit, for more than 2X as much as the difference in the kit price, and I have no regrets whatsoever. I'm more than happy with the images it produces.

You're always going to have people who tell you to avoid anything less than a D810 w/ 24-70.

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like opinions on both sides of the fence. Looking at the price difference currently, however, it's looking like the kit will be closer to $900 CND more than just the body, so I suppose the next question is what alternatives exist, if any? I think I have my wide angle covered, but for everyday/multi-use, is there something comparable to the kit lens for cheaper, or better/more flexible for a price equivalent to the extra $900 I'd end up paying for the kit?

I just know that I abandoned my D3300 kit lens rather quickly and have never touched it since, and would hate to do the same if the money would be better spent elsewhere (though admittedly the Nikkor 24-120mm seems much more flexible and powerful than the 18-55mm that came with the D3300). This is just my only point of comparison as I haven't had a chance to play with any FX camera yet, or even a lens of this range. If this lens is indeed something seasoned D750/FX users do continue to use even with an array of other lenses, then I'll certainly invest the extra.

Pepitobenito said:

So I'm 90% sure I'm going to be upgrading to a D750 in the next few months, only I'm wondering if I should bother with the kit lens or skip that and just get the body. Right now, I use a Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5 for everyday/general use, and a Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 for night shooting/landscape. I know the kit lens is technically good value, but I'm just wondering what situations it would actually be superior in to the point of justifying dropping an extra $500 (CND) over just buying the body, if any. I don't mind spending the extra but it'd feel like a waste if I just ended up leaving it at home/in my bag all the time. It's tough for me to really judge it just by looking at numbers on the internet, rather than getting my hands on it.

Click to expand...

Personally, I can see that the 24-120mm F4 might be a convenience lens for a videocentric user, and the D750 was badly mismarketed as a videocentric body.

The 18-250mm is obviously not going to cover a FX image circle, so you're going to need something wider than 14mm, which is insanely wide on a FX body. Go through your EXIF data for your 18-250mm shots and find the most common focal lengths that you used for your "keepers." That might give you a better idea if you need a midrange full frame zoom lens or just a couple of primes.

The 24-120 is something like a Swiss army knife of lenses. There are better options for specific tasks. But it's very versatile, so the ideal lens to have mounted if you don't know what may come your way to photograph. Very popular as a walk-about lens.

m+k

Pepitobenito said:

So I'm 90% sure I'm going to be upgrading to a D750 in the next few months, only I'm wondering if I should bother with the kit lens or skip that and just get the body. Right now, I use a Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5 for everyday/general use, and a Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 for night shooting/landscape. I know the kit lens is technically good value, but I'm just wondering what situations it would actually be superior in to the point of justifying dropping an extra $500 (CND) over just buying the body, if any. I don't mind spending the extra but it'd feel like a waste if I just ended up leaving it at home/in my bag all the time. It's tough for me to really judge it just by looking at numbers on the internet, rather than getting my hands on it.

Click to expand...

First off, is the Sigma 18-250, an FX lens? I don't know that lens personally, but the little searching I did on it makes it seem like it's a DX lens. As such, it probably won't let you use the whole D750 sensor at some focal lengths. If you're buying an FX camera, I would think you would want to pair it with an FX lens. If not, then why bother with the D750. Get the D500 or D7200 instead and save some bucks.

As for optical quality, dxomark indicates there's a pretty big difference between the 24-120 and the 18-250 (though the comparison is quite apples to apples because it's a DX vs. FX comparison). You can see the two ratings pages here:



If you look at the detail info on sharpness vs. focal length and aperture, you'll see a pretty big difference.

Personally, though I own a wide variety of FX lenses, the 24-120 is my most used lens on my D750. I will defer to a Tamron 15-30 for ultra-wide work and to long teles for specialty work, but for the mid-range with some flexibility, the 24-120 is my go-to lens. I used it all over a recent Italy trip and got spectacular results.

Pepitobenito said:

I just know that I abandoned my D3300 kit lens rather quickly and have never touched it since, and would hate to do the same if the money would be better spent elsewhere

Click to expand...

The 24-120 is not in the same league as kit lenses you find bundled with DX bodies. Same with the 16-80 available as a bundle with the D500. That said, maybe look at purchasing the bundle from a US supplier? Not sure of any additional fee's you may incur but the CDN difference looks to be more like ~680 in that case. Alternatively, look at picking up the body only and a used / separated from bundle 24-120 from FredMiranda, Craigslist, etc.

OK. As you made it clear that you're sensitive to price, I am thinking that you won't probably buy the 24-70/2.8 or multiple primes for now.

With that in mind, I think that the bundled 24-120 kit len is your best-cheapest option at $500 USD. If you consider alternatives such as Sigma 24-105, it is $800 USD. Nikon 24-85 and Tamron 28-75 are also around $500 with lesser focal range.

The only other cheaper option would be the 50 mm F/1.8, which doesn't give you any flexibility with respect to focal length.

--
New FZ2500 album: https://flic.kr/s/aHskQU7Thb
All Flickr albums: https://www.flickr.com/photos/satya_a/albums