Before I buy, can I ask for some advice...

[F_M-R2]

Hi guys,

Just bought a new Nikon D40 with kit lense, Ive seen all the arguements for and against it but Im happy with what I am getting for small money. Its my first DSLR and have been using a Kodak z650 before this.

I want to buy a couple of things along side it and one thing is a lens with a bit more zoom since I like taking sport/wildlife pics.

I am looking at this Sigma HSM (Motorized lens) on fleebay and looks good, well to me but I thought here would be a good place to run it by before I buy.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/SIGMA-70-300mm-DG-MOTORIZED-Len...

Im a student on a budget but theres no point me buying this now if I should wait a month or two to get some more cash together for something else.

[Gemm]

I don't think that lens on the link is HSM. Would AF work on D40? I'm not sure.

[F_M-R2]

Didnt actually notice that it didnt say HSM, was distraced by the Motorised bit i reckon.

Heres a link to the same lense in a local shop here, 100 european dollars more expensive. They say its suitable for D40.

http://www.camera.ie/Product.php?Product=1255

Heres the list of their lens', you can see their "Special Offer" note. Its the 3rd one down.
http://www.camera.ie/Show.php?Category=SLR-Lenses&...

Edited by F_M-R2 on Saturday 15th March 13:28

[andynoquantum]

How much is "a bit"? I bought a Nikon AFS 50-200 for my D40, and it was OK for most things, but also bought a 70-300 AFS which is superb

The Nikon AF will work fine, you'll just need to focus manually. I dont know about the Sigma, presumably if it's Nikon fit you're OK

[Simpo Two]

The advert says 'MOTORIZED to work with the Nikon D40, D40x and D60!' so it looks OK.

andynoquantum said:

The Nikon AF will work fine, you'll just need to focus manually.

?!

For AF to work on the D40 you'll need lenses marked AF-S (if Nikon) or HSM (if Sigma). Mint second-hand lenses are a great way to save money.

Edited by Simpo Two on Saturday 15th March 19:41

[andynoquantum]

Yeah, I mean they'll work. As in, they'll work

[RobDickinson]

Remember Sigma ususaly have a number of versions/revisions of lenses out there, a current one may not be the same as a used one (i.e. new one may well have HSM, a used one may not).

[F_M-R2]

Excellent, so it seems like it will be compatible with the d40 anyway.

I suppose the main thing going through my head is how much more will this lens zoom compared to the kit 18-55mm kit lens? I am relative newbie to photography and a coomplete newbie to DSLRs so if there is some obvious way to tell I dont know it yet.

The main things I will be using my camera for will be wildlife/scenery shots which could be anywhere really but the wildlife ones would normally be in surrouding land and various zoos/wildlifee parks so I'm not always too close to the subject. Trackside photos will inevitably end up in the memory card aswell

So would a 70-300mm be the right type (at least) to go for?

[andynoquantum]

The one I got is the Nikkor AF-S 70-300 4.5-5.6G with VR.

It's quite a beast on the body, be prepared for neckache if you're leaving it on walking around

Think it was £349 @ Jessops

[RobDickinson]

For Zoo wildlife 70-300 is fine, your likely to use it more closer to the 300 end, and for birds etc and in the wild your prolly wanting 300-400 minimum.

Remember without IS/OS/VR your going to need 1/focal length(*1.5), so at 300 your going to want 1/500th shutter speeds or so to keep things steady.

[Simpo Two]

F_M-R2 said:

I suppose the main thing going through my head is how much more will this lens zoom compared to the kit 18-55mm kit lens? I am relative newbie to photography and a coomplete newbie to DSLRs so if there is some obvious way to tell I dont know it yet.

Any lens with a variable focal length is a 'zoom' lens; it doesn't refer to the actual focal length or magnification. So instead of asking 'how much more will this lens zoom?', the question is 'how much longer is it?'

Forget the x3, x5, x10 zooms of compact-land. In DSLR-land we use millimetres of focal length to understand what field of view (FOV) a lens will give us. The smaller the FOV, the greater the magnification. What the lens is doing is chopping a rectangle out from the view before you, and shrinking or expanding it to fit the image size.

Comparing an 18-55mm with a 70-300mm, the maximum focal length of each is 55mm and 300mm. Hence, if you imagine the FOV that 55mm gives you, 300mm will take about one-sixth of that and expand (magnify) it to fill the frame.

70-300mm lenses are affordable and (IMHO) long enough for most needs, so for a starter lens and/or until you decide you need different, I think it would be an ideal next step.

[andynoquantum]

Not my best work ever, but serves as a good comparison

Uncropped, untouched jpegs from roughly similar distances using the 200 and 300

200mm on a D40




300mm on a D80

Edited by andynoquantum on Monday 17th March 07:17

[F_M-R2]

Thanks for all of the above lads. Bought the lens from a US ebay shop on Sunday and it arrived today at lunch time. Happy days. Now I've got a couple of days off to play with the new toys.