need advice on next purchase

[jmyus]

i have a D60, and im pretty sure when i dropped my camera, my kit lens got messed up. my photos are blurry, except for the subjects face. when i put on the zoom lens, they are fine. so, i am thinking about putting a new lens on my christmas list! i mostly take photos of my kids, and the outdoors. i have done some reading about the 85m f1.8, does anyone have any recs for me?
thank you, in advance!
-megan

[Almond.Butterscotch]

Well, first off, just know that the 85mm f/1.8 will not autofocus on your D60.

That said, what you described as a problem- "my photos are blurry, except for the subjects face"- that sounds like bokeh, not an issue. Dial your aperture down and you'll get a deeper depth of field.

But then again- why wouldn't you want bokeh in portraits? That's EXACTLY what the 85mm is best for

[jmyus]

yes, but when photographing 2 little boys, one is in focus and the other is not. or, if im shooting just one, their hand will be blurry, but face is in focus?! i usually shoot in Auto and i dont have this problem when i use my zoom.
thank you for the info about the 85m not AF on the D60, good to know, and not for me!
any other suggestions on what lens i should be looking for?

[Almond.Butterscotch]

Well do this first- go to Aperture priority mode (A on the dial) and spin the dial until the number after the f is around 8-16 (or as 'big' as you can go and still have manageable shutter speeds) and then see if you still have one in focus and the other not.

Thats just how DoF works- if you shoot in auto (or P {Programmed auto} for that matter) the computer makes all the decisions.

Its all human error here.

[Nicole]

Originally Posted by jmyus

yes, but when photographing 2 little boys, one is in focus and the other is not. or, if im shooting just one, their hand will be blurry, but face is in focus?!

That still sounds like a depth of field issue. It would be very helpful if you were able to post an example photo with the settings that the camera selected. It may be that in order to get the right exposure, the camera selected too wide of an aperture which made only part of the photo be in focus. It doesn't sound broken to me though from your description.

Originally Posted by jmyus

i usually shoot in Auto and i dont have this problem when i use my zoom.

What are you meaning with zoom and kit lens here? Are you talking about two lenses, and if so, which lenses? I'm guessing that one is the 18-55mm lens?

In any case, a kit lens is a lens that is bundled with a camera, it can be many different lenses, so this doesn't really get too specific. For example, the 18-105mm, the 18-70mm, the 18-55mm, all of these are kit lenses. And a zoom lens is any lens that zooms (e.g. it doesn't have just one focal length). So technically, your kit lens is probably a zoom.

[jmyus]

i have two lens that came with my camera, a 18-55mm, and a 55-200mm. i find myself using the 55-200 most b/c of he blur issue with the 18-55.

[jml79]

hmmm... Both of your lenses are capable of a fairly shallow depth of field. What is strange to me is that the faster 55-200 (at 55mm) is giving you better results. It should theoretically have a shallower depth of field. If you are not interested in learning the more technical points of how to control the depth of field, try using the auto modes on your camera. Using landscape mode should force the camera to have a large in focus area or large depth of field. Portrate mode should do the opposite, a very narrow in focus area or shallow depth of field. Sports mode will try it's best to have a fast shutter to catch any motion without blur.

To test if your lens is broken, go outside on a sunny day, put your camera in landscape and take a few photos. If your lens is working most/all of the photo should be in focus. If it's not working then a large part should be blurred. Compare it to the same shots from the same place with your 55-200 lens.

If it is broken, a replacement depends on your budget and how far you want to go in photography and what you are taking pictures of.

[jmyus]

thank you jml! i twill try that, next time i see the sun...which in cleveland may just be june!?