Nikon D80 and New Lense - WTB

[DarkLantern]

Hi all,

Heres my dilemma, enviable as it may be.

Currently i own a Nikon D80, great unit and is teaching me alot. I have 1 lense 18-200Nikkor 3.5-5.6 DX. Loved it whilst in africa. A good all rounder.

But i have the opportunity to purchase another lens, thanks to a significant (B'Day) and a tolerant wife (Keeps me out of trouble).

What to BUY:

I have pretty much decided on a wide angle lens......

The complication is that i would love to move to a fx camera, subject to the WAF (wife acceptance factor) . So i want to be able to move up with that lens.

Quality of photo is paramount, but value is also important. So i want to get the best value for my dollar.

Suggestions would be appreciated; followed by a why? Price range - about AUD1000 (USD800) but dont let that stop a suggestion.

All Help appreciated.

Thanks

Roger

[candleman]

well,.. i'm really not in the know with wide angle stuff. i just dont go there..

but,
the only one i could suggest is a used 14-24mm f/2.8

its one of the three "Holy Trinity" Nikon lenses..
New they are around NZ$4000 in Oz you could probably get a new one for AU$3000-3500

so its one of their best.. but its also designed for full frame obviously.
there are several Dx wide angles to choose from tho'
i cant comment on those because i just dont know them.

all the best

[inkista]

This whole "I'm gonna move up to full frame, so I don't want to buy any DX lenses" thing really only makes sense if you're planning on doing it SOON. And that's because glass holds value, particularly high-end glass.

Yes, your camera body will depreciate straight into the ground--it's computer electronica, being continually obsoleted every year or so.

But the glass isn't. It's just as usable (if you take good care of it) five years from now as the day you bought it. Check out the prices of used lenses on eBay or KEH.com.

A 12-24 DX goes for $900 new on Amazon here in the US. On eBay, the lowest price a used one went for recently was $699.

As long as the mount doesn't get orphaned, you typically don't lose a whole lot. If you look at it as paying, say, $40 a year to rent a lens for five years, there's really no reason not to get a DX lens, until you have a D3x or D700 (or their successors) in your hot little hands. Once you do, you sell your DX glass and go buy FX glass.

Why hamper yourself with longer focal length than you'd like for five years, if what you really want is a wide angle view?

Just a thought.

[DarkLantern]

In the wide angle lenses is the sigma 10-20mm worth getting.

It is slightly cheaper with a wider angle.

I am unsure about the quality verses the 14-24 Nikkor.

Thanks

Roger

[DarkLantern]

Thanks you make alot of sense.
Will readjust back to a dx lens and worry about the fx stuff when necessary.

Thanks