Thread: Looking to upgrade D70. Stick w/Nikon and my current lenses or switch to Canon?

Oh c'mon. It's not like I'm going to photoshop myself into the solar system with a unicorn horn.

What should I be looking at for lenses?

I'm thinking I may buy the body only, pick up smmokan's Sigma 18-125mm. I'm assuming this is a worthy upgrade over the 18-55 kit lens(or maybe not, I just read a couple decent reviews of the 18-55 kit lens)?

50mm - any reason not to get the Canon EF II?

Wide - I'm not sure where to start here. What's good on a budget?

I wouldn't go with the 50. It's a great lens but just too long on a crop body for a standard walk around*. The 35 f/2 is awesome although more expensive but it is closer to the 50mm equivalent on a crop body (56mm). For a super wide the rokinon 8mm fisheye is nice but I prefer the Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 which isn't really cheap.

*i sometimes walk around with my roki 85 1.4 (great lens) but it is effectively 136mm so you need to know it has its limitations. If you want a 50 equivalent go with a 35 or 28.

Well the 18mm on the kit lens is pretty wide so not sure you need another one, at least not right away. Absolutely get the prime (I do sometimes wish it was a 35mm since the t2i is cropped but for the price it can't be beat). If you're patient and watch slickdeals.net they post deals on the T2i's fairly often. I picked up the t2i w/ kit lens, the 55-250 lens and a uv filter for $550 on kind of a price fluke on amazon. As far as it feeling cheap, I've dropped it a few times and taken it out in some extreme cold conditions. Had it for coming up on a year and a half now and no problems.


This is the kit lens wide open. Like I said, not fisheye wide or anything but wide enough for the avg shooters need.

And you keep saying "on a budget" for everything. You'd probably be better off getting one or two nice lenses rather than three or four budget lenses. It depends how serious you are about your image quality how much you have to spend and a bunch of other factors. But as far as the budget lens goes the 50 is hard to beat. Like I said I'd love it to be 35mm but for $100 it's worth it.

dfinn - I have a pristine 28mm 2.8 that would be nice on a crop body. I actually want to replace it with the 35mm as it's just a bit too wide for my taste. Focuses fast. Super clean. I can send you pics or whatever....

It's $259 new at B+H/adorama and I'd like to get $185 shipped for it, that's a bit less than what the nicer used ones go for at your favorite auction site. LMK or price police, whatever.

It'd be a hair wider than a normal 50mm on a full frame which should be pretty ideal.

Originally Posted by nobueno

And you keep saying "on a budget" for everything.

I'm sure some of you spend $1000 on lenses and don't think much of it. I'm probably not going to do that. This isn't my job, it's just a hobby that I'm looking to get back into after being out of it for a while. I'm just looking for opinions on what is out there that is going to be pretty decent and not break the bank.

I was also really happy with my 50mm prime on my D70, which is also a crop body. I found it to be a great portrait lens and usually a pretty good walking around lens. I'll check out the 35mm though.

I have always wanted a wide lens. Definitely something wider than the stock 18.

Originally Posted by ml242

dfinn - I have a pristine 28mm 2.8 that would be nice on a crop body. I actually want to replace it with the 35mm as it's just a bit too wide for my taste. Focuses fast. Super clean. I can send you pics or whatever....

It's $259 new at B+H/adorama and I'd like to get $185 shipped for it, that's a bit less than what the nicer used ones go for at your favorite auction site. LMK or price police, whatever.

It'd be a hair wider than a normal 50mm on a full frame which should be pretty ideal.

That sounds interesting, mind telling me a little more about make/model so I can read up on it?

This is probably the lens. $239 on Adorama. Nice lens but 1.8 vs 2.8 is a huge difference in the amount of light it lets in. As long as you've used the 50 on a cropped sensor and didn't mind it i'd say go w/ the 50mm for sure.

That's it, I didn't know there was a grey market...

You guys buy non canon glass? :fm

Originally Posted by dfinn

Can the GH2 take Nikon GED lenses?

With the right adapter, I believe it can, but you need to make sure that aperture can be controlled. If the lenses' apertures are camera controlled only, then the price of an adapter goes shooting through the roof. So, manual aperture = likely good to go with a cheap adapter.

Hah. Didn't even notice that. Sounds slightly shady but it says it's warrantied if bought through them and Adorama is legit. I haven't bought any yet but that's basically because I've only bought the 50mm on top of the two kit lenses I got w/ the camera.

Originally Posted by ml242

That's it, I didn't know there was a grey market...

You guys buy non canon glass? :fm

grey market makes it a hudgetastic PITA to get warrantied if something is wrong.

Originally Posted by systemoverblow'd

grey market makes it a hudgetastic PITA to get warrantied if something is wrong.

So does buying something used.

Agreed about the grey market stuff. I'll buy it when the discount is enough though. Sometimes you can knock $100 off the price of sub $1000 products, other times it's the same price anyway.

But to clarify: I'd be pretty surprised if this Canon prime lens shits the bed anytime soon. They're workhorses, without the extra moving (and non moving) parts of the zooms.

Originally Posted by Chainsaw_Willie

Yeah, the D700 was announced either at the same time or very close to the same time as the D3 and there was a lot of speculation that the D700 cannabilized sales of the D3 (same sensor, smaller body). I'm betting Nikon will wait a good six months or more to release the D800 this time around.

ETA: D4 specs aren't quite what I expected. Hmmm. Wondering if the D800 will use the new sensor or the D3X sensor. And still no 60fps???

[nikon tangent]The D700 was announced 11 months after the D3. It did cannibalize D3 sales, but by that time Nikon has sold a lot of D3's to the prime market of pros looking for FF. That said, I believe the D800 rumours/speculation that it will be a different beast of a camera compared to the D4 (versus the D3/D700 similarities). Depending on setbacks in Thailand and Japan, I'm guessing we'll see the D800 by the end of summer, but potentially another year off.

The D4 has industry-standard 60fps in 720p. It will probably be a while longer until it is an option in 1080p; processing power is a hurdle, as well as manufacturers protecting their mid-market video cam business (which already took a hit with the 5DMII, 7D popularity). [/nikon tanget]

Originally Posted by Dr. Scientist

The D4 has industry-standard 60fps in 720p. It will probably be a while longer until it is an option in 1080p; processing power is a hurdle, as well as manufacturers protecting their mid-market video cam business (which already took a hit with the 5DMII, 7D popularity). [/nikon tanget]

Ummm.... Sony has 1080p60 in its mid-range DSLR's. There is no reason Nikon and Canon can't do it in any new cameras. And if anyone should be worried about poaching their video camera market it would be Sony.

Originally Posted by systemoverblow'd

Ummm.... Sony has 1080p60 in its mid-range DSLR's. There is no reason Nikon and Canon can't do it in any new cameras. And if anyone should be worried about poaching their video camera market it would be Sony.

Touche! I overlooked the a560/a580 lurkers. I still don't see 60p ending up in Canon/Nikon semi-pro/pro models super soon.

Originally Posted by smmokan

So does buying something used.

I don't know about Canon, but with Nikon getting a grey-market lens is way worse for warranty coverage. Nikon USA will still fix a Nikon USA-imported lens that you've bought used, but they'll charge you for the service. If you send them a grey-market lens, though, they'll send it back to you, and the only way to get it serviced is to use a third-party service company in the US and pay for it, or to mail it to Nikon's HQ in Japan for warranty service.

Must haves for your budget lenses:

Sigma 17-70 2.8 - Fantastic, tack sharp, under $350 on POTN used
Canon 50 1.8 "Nifty 50" - Under 100 used
Canon 18-55 2.8 is fantastic
24-70 2.8L is amazing but around 1k


For video, you're really going to want primes. When I shoot vid I use my 50 1.8, 16-35 or rent a prime.

I'm planning on picking up the Nifty 50 this week. I'm thinking my next purchase will be the Tokina 11-16.

I ended up getting the 18-55 IS kit lens. I think it only cost me an extra $60 and used ones are selling for more than that on ebay.

Gregger, what's POTN?

For Nikon shooters, the Tokina 11-16mm is the only way to go. Since you're shooting Canon, don't overlook their 10-22mm.

Originally Posted by outabounds

For Nikon shooters, the Tokina 11-16mm is the only way to go. Since you're shooting Canon, don't overlook their 10-22mm.

Why would you not suggest the Tokina for Canon? I love mine.

Originally Posted by dfinn

Gregger, what's POTN?

photography-on-the.net It's a great forum that leans heavily to Canon shooters. But it is a great resource for anyone.

Originally Posted by systemoverblow'd

Why would you not suggest the Tokina for Canon? I love mine.

I love mine, too. Just pointing out that Canon shooters have options.