Sigma lens

[edwing206]

Well, I'm tired of having my D50 sitting on my table because all the lenses I want are way too expensive. So until I my birthday comes up in August I want a lens so I can just starting using my camera and get used to it. Someone I know is selling a Sigma 28-80mm f/3.5-5.6 for $65 shipped to my door. Is this lens at all decent? Is the $65 worth it? thanks

 

[lexiticus]

I wouldn't recommend it, the 28-80mm range isn't very wide, and it and the Nikon version of it are basically regarded as their "worst" lenses

Why not pick up a 50mm f1.8 if you don't have any lenses for it, Its an Excellent lens and can be found used for 80-120$ easily

 

[edwing206]

Well, I mostly want to shoot my reef tank and not sure how the 50mm would do. I borrowed my uncle's and could not focus on anything small like corals or fish very well. And when I did focus on the fish it was far away shots.

 

[Panos Kazanelis]

I would go with the 50/1.8, too. The best quality money can buy at ~90$ :smile:

 

[Chris101]

With a 50 f/1.8 you should expect sharp pictures with good contrast. The problem with cheap older zooms is that they do not have those qualities.

ps, it isn't the lens that's important for reef tank shots, it's the lighting.

 

[lexiticus]

Well, I mostly want to shoot my reef tank and not sure how the 50mm would do. I borrowed my uncle's and could not focus on anything small like corals or fish very well. And when I did focus on the fish it was far away shots.

Well the lens itself doesn't focus very close (not a very good Macro mode), but for the price the lens is amazing, Also you can buy a cheap extension tube and get much closer focusing shots (Manually focusing but still) The lighting is the most important part and the 50mm f1.8 is much much brighter than the Sigma 28-80, which also won't focus very close.

In the price range I am assuming you are in, I doubt you will find a better lens than the 50mm f1.8
If you buy the 28-80 now, You WILL sell it later on when you get even a half decent semi wide zoom (18-70 etc...)
But with the 50mm f1.8 unless you get the 1.4, you will always keep it.

 

[Chris101]

I prefer filter-style, screw on close-up lenses to extension tubes, unless I am going for extreme flatness of field. They preserve auto-everything, AND the full aperture of your lens.

 

[weiran]

If you can stretch to it the Nikon 35mm f/2 focuses much closer than the 50mm and provides a more useful ~50mm equivlent focal length.

 

[Tierdaen]

Get a used 55/3.5 macro or a Sigma 50/2.8 Macro. Those will get you pretty close, and can be found quite cheap. The former of course will be manual everything, no metering or autofocus. Sigma also makes a 28/1.8 lens with very good close-up performance, but it's more than $200 new.

The majority of general purpose zooms will not focus close enough to make you happy, and the majority of primes people like to recommend are well out of the price range I assume you're working with.

The simple truth is that lenses cost money, and if you have specific needs and wants in lenses, you're likely to spend more on lenses than you do on the camera bodies. The ways to cheat this are to shoot with old used manual focus lenses, but even then you can spend quite a bit of money. Shucking out a few hundred for a D50 is nice, but isn't particularly useful if all you want to stick on it is a $50 low-grade zoom lens.

 

[clickcanada]

I feel your pain. I just bought a house and I am in WAY over my head there, so my lens lust will be just that for now.

I did manage to pick up a nearly new 50 f/1.8 a few weeks back though for about $100, and it was well worth the $$ IMHO. It might not be the best glass for taking micro pics, but it will do a great job of a lot of other stuff. It will also allow you to play with a fast lens and have fun with DOF.

The only other option I can think of is the Sigma 70-300 DG macro. They can be had for about $200 if I remember right, and do some nice close up work with the macro.

Best of luck with your decision.

 

[lexiticus]

I feel your pain. I just bought a house and I am in WAY over my head there, so my lens lust will be just that for now.

I did manage to pick up a nearly new 50 f/1.8 a few weeks back though for about $100, and it was well worth the $$ IMHO. It might not be the best glass for taking micro pics, but it will do a great job of a lot of other stuff. It will also allow you to play with a fast lens and have fun with DOF.

The only other option I can think of is the Sigma 70-300 DG macro. They can be had for about $200 if I remember right, and do some nice close up work with the macro.

Best of luck with your decision.

Heh, and if you did want a Sigma 70-300 APO DG Macro, I'm still selling mine ($120 USD)

 

[Nuteshack]

picked up my 50 1.8 brand new for 99 bucks ..can't beat it for the doe

 

[edwing206]

Thanks for the replies guys.
lexiticus, I saw pics with the Sigma 70-300mm on pbase and they looked good. How much would shipping be to Seattle? I looked up a map and your not too far north from me. An do you have pics taken with the lens? Both using the macro feature and just regular shots? thanks

 

[robthorn]

hey edwing are you placing the lens right on the glass? that is how I got the best shots in my old 265g sps dominated reef. best thing I did was get rid of the tank. it's amazing how much money I have now compared to my paycheck to paycheck lifestyle with the tank. try up against the glass from the end of the tank and then shots from a few feet away.
do you have halides?

 

[edwing206]

Thanks for the advice. And yes I do have halides.
So you don't have any tanks now?

 

[robthorn]

NO tanks probably forever. I got tired of having to stay home because of the tank. Who can you trust with thousands of dollars in livestock? not that my friends aren't trustworthy but you have to know what I mean. anything can and will happen to a reef aquarium. Especially when you aren't at home. It has relieved so much stress.
the Halides should give you plenty of light. did you try to focus manually? if there isn't enough light my camera won't focus but I can still grab the ring and do it myself. sometimes I am too close and the ring is stopped so no dice on that picture.