Nikon D200 and lenses

[gns1497]

I am relatively new to serious digital photography. I'd like to start doing some portraits of my kids to start, and some landscape/wildlife pics, and who knows, I like shooting so much, I may want to do it part time as a hobby for other people to try and pay for some of my equipment. :)

I have had 2 digital cams and currently have the Nikon 8800VR. I am contemplating an upgrade because I want to get more serious about it. I just took my first photography course this weekend and learned enough to know that I really need to upgrade my camera for the results I am looking for. So, I was told this was a good place to go to get advise for new equipment. So here goes...

I am seriously thinking about the D200 because I love my Nikons. This will be my third and have had good experiences with them. I know the Canon's may be a little cheaper, so any Canon equivalents out there?

Say I do get the Nikon D200, I want a lens that will do f/2.8, and am having problems finding a reasonably priced Nikkor lens that is labeled f2.8. Most start at f/3.5 until you hit the $800 lenses. Any suggestions?

Also, I have read the reviews at B&H on the battery grip made by Nikon and most seem to think its way over priced for the quality.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=cart_accessories&A=details&Q=&sku=407308&is=REG&addedTroughValue=407284_REG&addedTroughType=accessory_cart_detail

They talk about the flemsy batter holders, cheap plastic housing, etc...


I found a Targus that will work on the D200 and its less expensive, but cant find any reviews.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=cart_accessories&A=details&Q=&sku=489692&is=REG&addedTroughValue=407284_REG&addedTroughType=accessory_cart_detail


Any Nikon D200 users out there with an opinion on a good quality grip?



Thanks to all for the help!

[ELAY]

Can't help you with the battery grip issue, but I have been looking at (salivating over?) lenses for a while, so I have some thoughts.

I think you are right about the price range if you are looking for zooms in the AF-S lineup. You can find some fast primes in the AF lineup though that will not set you back so much:

50 1.8 AF, which retails for about $115 new; there is also a 1.4 for about $275 or so

60 2.8 AF micro, which goes around $375

85 1.8 AF, which if memory serves me goes around $400

and there is a 35-70 2.8 which goes around $450 (on a DSLR that won't get you very wide, but it does give you nice focal length for portraits).

If you are looking at the new AF-S lenses, your best option might be to get the 18-200 VR assuming you can find one. It only goes to 3.5, but pick up a fast prime and an ultra-wide (you don't really need it to be fast if you are shooting typical wide angle shots) and you would be off and running.

Interested in your camera choice -- the D200 is a fantastic piece of equipment, but the D80 gets you a lot for $600-700 less and would be very well-suited to what you have described. Is it worth considering?

EL

[jdepould]

DEFINITELY get a 50 (1.8 or 1.4 is up to you). I've been eyeing the 85 myself, but it probably won't be my next purchase.

[uvsub]

I agree with above. Elay has a point. Had a D80 with the battery grip (179$ for grip). Image quality excellent, battery grip is overpriced and I bet it's the same quality as the D200 version. Grip for D80 seems like overkill since the battery life is excellent.

As for D200 battery life, I'm averaging over 500 raw shots with LCD review. I heard all the bad stuff about battery life with this camera and so far I'm really happy. I did buy an extra battery but have no intentions to buy the grip.

50mm 1.8 is a great little lens for a ridiculously low price.

[gns1497]

I agree with above. Elay has a point. Had a D80 with the battery grip (179$ for grip). Image quality excellent, battery grip is overpriced and I bet it's the same quality as the D200 version. Grip for D80 seems like overkill since the battery life is excellent.

As for D200 battery life, I'm averaging over 500 raw shots with LCD review. I heard all the bad stuff about battery life with this camera and so far I'm really happy. I did buy an extra battery but have no intentions to buy the grip.

50mm 1.8 is a great little lens for a ridiculously low price.

Ok guys, I'm still relatively new to this, so anyone have any links to the lenses? I'm also unsure of the difference in 1.8 and 1.4? What measurement is 1.8?

[jdepould]

D200 eats batteries like crazy especially with VR. I wish I had the $$$ for the MB-D200, but I don't and I can't get the college to buy it. I can shoot for days (weeks of light use) on one charge with the D50, and I'll go through 2 or 3 (or more) on the D200, side by side, shooting the same stuff.

The difference between the two 50's has less to do with the max aperture (1.8 and 1.4, respectively) and more to do with build quality. The 1.8 is aimed squarely at consumers and the 1.4 is aimed more in the professional direction. The nice thing about primes, however, is that you can get stunning image quality for much less than you would pay for a zoom lens that comes close. Even if I had thousands of dollars in a lens budget, I would hesistate to get the 1.4, it's a law of diminishing returns thing. Yes, the 1.4 is better than the 1.8, but not $200+ better.

[ELAY]

Ok guys, I'm still relatively new to this, so anyone have any links to the lenses? I'm also unsure of the difference in 1.8 and 1.4? What measurement is 1.8?

My fault, I think for being lazy and not indicating what the figures referred to in my initial post. The first number in my lens descriptions is the focal length in mm; the second is the maximum aperture, ie. lowest f/stop.

So the difference between the 1.4 and the 1.8 is that while both are 50 mm, the 1.4 opens to f/1.4 while the 1.8 opens to f/1.8. I have the f/1.8 and love it -- it is so cheap and such a good low light lens that you pretty much owe it to yourself to buy it no matter what else you do.

As for links, you will find their commercial descriptions at any photo retailer like B&H. Thom Hogan reviews a bunch of lenses here (http://www.bythom.com/nikon.htm), but he is a bit tilted to pros. Ken Rockwell also reviews Nikon lenses, here (http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/nikkor.htm), and is a bit more consumer oriented. He has very strong opinions however, and while i often find myself agreeing with him on things, I don't always. The rest of his site is worth browsing around if you are in the market for a Nikon DSLR.

Not to introduce further complexity, I should also probably mention that there are a number of third party manufacturers making Nikon-compatible lenses, like Sigma, Tokina, etc.

Again my suggestion is maybe to start with a serious look at the Nikon 18-200 VR -- consistently well reviewed, and gives you one lens that shoots all the way through the conventional range, for about $800. You can then shoot with it for a bit, and decide what else you want/need. (If you spend any time at all on the Rockwell site you will hear lots about this lens.) If you added the 50mm f/1.8, you would have a pretty good kit.

EL

[gns1497]

Anyone have any experience with the Lexar w/UDMA 300x Compact flash and the D200?

What about the Sandisk Extreme III 133x?

I've heard the sandisk stuff is much faster than Lexar in the Nikons, but 133x up to 300x seems like a big difference to me?

[jdepould]

Anyone have any experience with the Lexar w/UDMA 300x Compact flash and the D200?

What about the Sandisk Extreme III 133x?

I've heard the sandisk stuff is much faster than Lexar in the Nikons, but 133x up to 300x seems like a big difference to me?

The Extreme III works well for me. All of my cards are SanDisk Ultra II or Extreme III (SD and CF) and they've been good for me so far. The buffer on the D200 is big enough that it's less of an issue than it is with other bodies.

[henryp]

Ok guys, I'm still relatively new to this, so anyone have any links to the lenses? I'm also unsure of the difference in 1.8 and 1.4? What measurement is 1.8?

There's a useful thread on intermediate f/stops here (http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00CRUg).
Offhand I believe the difference between f/1.4 and f/1.8 is 1/3rd of an f/stop. One stop double or halves the quantity of light passing through.