handicap18
<font color=blue>Husband, father of 3, and Disney
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2005
- Messages
- 4,860
The Sigma 30mm is very good. Its also about $400. Nikon has a 50mm f/1.8 that is also very good and it goes for about $110.
The Sigma has the focus motor in the lens so it is recommended a lot of those with the D40, D40x & D60 which don't have the focus drive in the body. The Nikon 50mm f/1.8 doesn't have a focus motor, but the D80 & D90 have a focus drive so it works fine with these bodies.
I have both lenses. I like the 30mm better for Disney low light stuff because of the focal length. The 50 is a bit on the tight side, but will still do well, especially for its price tag.
For a zoom up to 300, I really recommend the 70-300mm VR lens. It is more expensive than earlier Nikon 70-300's or the Sigma or Tamron, but having VR is a GREAT feature, especially at the long end. With these lenses zoomed out to 300mm the lens get pretty long and makes it harder to hold it steady and makes for a lot of lost photos due to camera shake. The VR counter acts that and keeps the lens steady and you age more keepers. Its also a very sharp lens for its class and price.
When I went to Disney in '06 I used a Quantaray 70-300mm that I'd had for a number of years. I ended up with a lot of losts shots because of camera shake. So I went and bought the Nikon 70-300 w/VR. On our '07 trip it performed wonderfully and I got a lot more keepers. I also used the lens a lot for my DS t-ball games over the spring and summer. Also nice to have when we do a trip to the local zoo.
The Sigma has the focus motor in the lens so it is recommended a lot of those with the D40, D40x & D60 which don't have the focus drive in the body. The Nikon 50mm f/1.8 doesn't have a focus motor, but the D80 & D90 have a focus drive so it works fine with these bodies.
I have both lenses. I like the 30mm better for Disney low light stuff because of the focal length. The 50 is a bit on the tight side, but will still do well, especially for its price tag.
For a zoom up to 300, I really recommend the 70-300mm VR lens. It is more expensive than earlier Nikon 70-300's or the Sigma or Tamron, but having VR is a GREAT feature, especially at the long end. With these lenses zoomed out to 300mm the lens get pretty long and makes it harder to hold it steady and makes for a lot of lost photos due to camera shake. The VR counter acts that and keeps the lens steady and you age more keepers. Its also a very sharp lens for its class and price.
When I went to Disney in '06 I used a Quantaray 70-300mm that I'd had for a number of years. I ended up with a lot of losts shots because of camera shake. So I went and bought the Nikon 70-300 w/VR. On our '07 trip it performed wonderfully and I got a lot more keepers. I also used the lens a lot for my DS t-ball games over the spring and summer. Also nice to have when we do a trip to the local zoo.
) then I'd say go for it. The D80 remains a great camera, and there are no doubt some deals to be had since the introduction of its successor. Not having used a D80 (except for messing with a friend's for a few minutes) I can't really speak to the overexposure issue except to say that many people say the same about the D300, and I haven't really found it to be the case. It definitely exposes more to the right than my D70 did, but the D70 had a tendency to underexpose, so I often kept the exposure compensation set to +.3 or +.7. You could just do the opposite with the D80 if you find it to be a problem.
