Lens Recommendations

Hello, I have a Nikon D3000. I'm a total newbie and I'm forcing myself to start using manual mode, we're taking a cruise to Alaska next year and I'd like to get some great shots. I currently have the standard 18-55mm lens, but I'd like to get something better with a powerful zoom for the trip. That said, I don't want something so big it's hard to take on excursions.

I'm also deciding if I should buy a good lens or rent a GREAT lens for the trip, has anyone ever done that?

Any recommendations or tips are appreciated!

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Alaska is a challenge as you can't get a too big lense. For a budget the 70-300 is worth a look and even to buy used is a good option. Alaska screams to have even longer but beyond the 80-400 you are talking very expensive even to rent a week. I shot a 70-200 and managed to get some nice shots but at times did wish for 400 it more

Since you have a D3000, you must make sure you have a DX lens- and not an FX lens, due to the cropped sensor. If you aren't shooting any low light photos, I would recommend renting, or buying, a Nikon 18-200 VR lens. It is not a "pro" lens but it is a huge step up from the 18-55 kit lens. With the views you will see, you will want wide angle as well as zoom. The 18-200 VR is perfect as an all purpose walk around and vacation lens. And the vibration reduction (vr) will ensure sharp photos. Hope this helps:)

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You might take a look at the Tamron 18-270 or for somewhat more the 16-300.

Since you have a D3000, you must make sure you have a DX lens- and not an FX lens, due to the cropped sensor. If you aren't shooting any low light photos, I would recommend renting, or buying, a Nikon 18-200 VR lens. It is not a "pro" lens but it is a huge step up from the 18-55 kit lens. With the views you will see, you will want wide angle as well as zoom. The 18-200 VR is perfect as an all purpose walk around and vacation lens. And the vibration reduction (vr) will ensure sharp photos. Hope this helps:)

 

 

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You don't need to be limited to dx lenses. FX lenses work fine on a crop body -- just can't go the other way.

And all-in-one lenses are mediocre compromises.

I'd recommend renting the Nikon 80-400. That will give you the range to capture amazing wildlife shots. It will give you the highest possible image quality for those once in a lifetime shots.

How are some images I took in 2008 in Alaska. I put the focal length on each image. You can also click on the image the information on what lens I used is below the image. Hope this helps.

How are some images I took in 2008 in Alaska. I put the focal length on each image. You can also click on the image the information on what lens I used is below the image. Hope this helps.

 

This tells me a lot. Thanks for posting the focal length.

Thank you all so much. I decided on this one, and found a great deal on a used one. Now to start practicing!

http://m.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product/Camera-Lenses/AF-S-VR-Zoom-Nikkor-70-300mm-f%252F4.5-5.6G-IF-ED.html

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Please don't lock yourself into manual mode. You'll miss shots constantly having to adjust your settings, or blow the exposure and have to fix lots of shots. Aperture priority is a very safe way to go, as the camera has a very large latitude with which to get the shot (most lenses have 6-7 stops of aperture range, while many cameras have 16-18 stops of shutter speed range).

For Alaska, it's unfortunately all about your budget. I went all out a month ago, taking three cameras and four lenses (15/2.8, 24-70/2.8, 70-200/4, and 200-400/4IS that had a built-in extender making it a 280-560/5.6IS with the flip of a switch). I still didn't have enough focal length for some shots. My wife ended up with two cameras and five lenses (14/2.8, 24-105/4IS, 70-200/4IS, 300/4IS, and 100/2.8IS Macro) though never took more than four lenses on any one adventure.

The theory that pro's and "people who know what they're doing" shoot Manual is only partially correct. They can shoot Manual. Most I've spoken with use either Shutter or Aperture Priority almost exclusively.

While I'm no pro, I only use M for long-exposures or portraiture. My vacation shots are about 95% S and 4% A, with 1% M. Shooting in S mode allows me to freeze the action or blur it for motion effect.

The theory that pro's and "people who know what they're doing" shoot Manual is only partially correct. They can shoot Manual. Most I've spoken with use either Shutter or Aperture Priority almost exclusively.

 

While I'm no pro, I only use M for long-exposures or portraiture. My vacation shots are about 95% S and 4% A, with 1% M. Shooting in S mode allows me to freeze the action or blur it for motion effect.

I almost went into this explanation in my post above, but since this reply is here, I'll say a wholehearted "me too" (almost, just backwards). I shoot 95% Av, with the remainder being S(Tv for us Canonites) when I feel that it's more important to control the blur than dial it in via aperture/ISO, or M for the occasions when I'm "bringing my own light" aka studio strobes (and therefore I could care less about a proper exposure for the ambient).

And honestly, with many cameras P is a perfectly fine option, because most cameras offer "Program Override": you can let the camera pick things for you, but if you think you want to override by manually controlling the aperture OR the shutter, you can turn the appropriate knob to do so, letting the camera still control the other variable.

I'll chime in on "real photographers only shoot manual". It's like saying that "real farmers only plow with horses." A lot of really smart people spent a lot of money developing the complex exposure algorithms contained in your camera's tiny brain. As someone who has shot in Aperture Priority about 98% of the time, I attest to the benefits of being able to manage the depth of field with aperture adjustment while letting the camera figure out the shutter speed and even the ISO lately. As Peety mentioned, even P mode is a good alternative and I have recently been amazed by what some newer cameras can do while set on "intelligent auto" or whatever each brand calls their full auto mode. I still prefer aperture mode, but if you're unsure of the setting needed for a shot, switch to P and don't miss it.

You will find an Alaska cruise much like a potato chip...one is definitely not enough!

Dave

Thank you all! You're right that I don't want to miss a great shot for the sake of saying I did it in manual mode. My main reason for wanting to do that was to force myself to learn how the settings work together to get the types of shots I like. I will definitely experiment in all of the modes. Does anyone have any online resources they recommend to learn more? How much photo editing do you typically do, or do you keep the photos as they are straight off of the camera? I love photography and used to do it a lot in high school but it's been so long I feel like I'm starting over.

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My wife loves her Nikon D5100. For her walk-around lens she takes her Tamron 18-270 lens on all of our cruises.

Thank you all! You're right that I don't want to miss a great shot for the sake of saying I did it in manual mode. My main reason for wanting to do that was to force myself to learn how the settings work together to get the types of shots I like. I will definitely experiment in all of the modes. Does anyone have any online resources they recommend to learn more? How much photo editing do you typically do' date=' or do you keep the photos as they are straight off of the camera?[/quote']

 

I recommend you buy a copy of Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. Just a fantastic reference.

 

For editing, it's mostly ranking the shots so we can whittle it down to a reasonable number for presentation. Our first cruise was 5400 shots narrowed to 175 for show, and our second cruise was 9500 shots down to 300 for show. Our recent cruise was 15,000, and will probably be 375-400 once we're done. After that, it's basic tune-up stuff: 'clarity', 'vibrance', adjust 'exposure' for a good histogram, contrast where reasonable, and of course WB correction to suit conditions.

Sorting and editing after a cruise usually takes me a couple of months, minimum. Most of that is time allotment, as I have to earn my next cruise fare, but I try to take my time. One shot can take a minute or an hour, depending on how much I think it needs. At minimum, each one gets cropped to a common size (1920x1080, 1500x1125 or 1500x1500) and renamed.

Another good thing about Program mode: you don't flub your shots with the wrong settings. For instance, when I shoot airshows, I drop the shutter speed for propeller aircraft to get motion blur in the props. Inevitably, I forget to bump it back up and screw up fast-moving jets. Drives me crazy!

Another good thing about Program mode: you don't flub your shots with the wrong settings. For instance, when I shoot airshows, I drop the shutter speed for propeller aircraft to get motion blur in the props. Inevitably, I forget to bump it back up and screw up fast-moving jets. Drives me crazy!

Been there, done that but I'm getting better. What I need is a good course on how to best use the editing software (I use PS Elements). I kind of go with what I like but it would be good to get some tips.

I prefer A mode so I can control the depth of field and amount of diffraction I want to accept. If I need more stutter speed I up the ISO.

Manual is used when I want to override the system because of high-contrast or back-lit situation. I could also continue in A mode and dial in a correction.

framer

Thank you all! You're right that I don't want to miss a great shot for the sake of saying I did it in manual mode. My main reason for wanting to do that was to force myself to learn how the settings work together to get the types of shots I like. I will definitely experiment in all of the modes. Does anyone have any online resources they recommend to learn more? How much photo editing do you typically do' date=' or do you keep the photos as they are straight off of the camera? I love photography and used to do it a lot in high school but it's been so long I feel like I'm starting over.

 

 

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The suggestion for Bryan Peterson's book is a good one. It can get a little deep but is has good solid info.

 

I wrote an article on low-light photography that covers the basics of exposure and how the three main settings interact. It was intended for beginners and may help you ramp up for Peterson's book.

 

http://www.pptphoto.com/articles/lowlight.html

 

There are several other newbie-friendly articles there too.

 

As for editing, I always keep a copy of what came out of the camera (minus the blurries, dupes and "what was I thinking?" shots). I shoot about 95% JPEG and use Lightroom for most of my edits because it doesn't actually change the original file. If I change a photo significantly in Photoshop or Elements it will always be on a copy in case I want to start over. I usually don't edit much for other than color touch-up and crop/straighten but sometimes you get a shot that just begs to be tweaked!;)

 

I have been shooting since I was about ten years old and I feel like I star over every two years lately. The tech is amazing and changing monthly. It's a great time to be a photographer.

 

Dave

"Pros" and advanced shooters do not necessarily shoot in full manual mode --- As expressed here, many very advanced shooters will rarely use full manual.

But.. advanced shooters do *understand* the modes of their cameras, and understand when to use which mode. I mostly shoot M with auto-ISO. But for example, there may be times in low light, where I'll switch to an automatic night/twilight mode and jpeg... knowing the camera will do things internally, that otherwise I would have to do with post processing.

If I'm only concerned with a high shutter speed, I'll switch to S mode. If I want to do multi-exposure bracketing, I'll use A-mode.

Also comes down to the camera body -- If you have 2 control dials, shooting M is about as easy as shooting S or A. But if you only have 1 control dial, then shooting fully M is annoying. When I had a mid-level body, with just 1 control dial, I did 95% of my shooting in A or S. Additionally, that camera couldn't do auto-ISO in M mode. Yet another reason to stick to A or S. WHen I switched to an advanced body with 2 control dials, I found shooting M to be just as simple as A or S, but with better results -- I prefer a slightly faster shutter speed than the camera usually chose, in order to really prevent camera shake.

So it's a fiction that advanced shooters have to shoot in full manual. But, it is true that advanced shooters understand the modes of the camera, and rarely rely on pure full automatic settings.

Just bought a Tamron 18-270 and will be taken along with my Sigma 10-20 on my next trips, and that's 1 more than I ideally want to take on board!

Aperture priority for me most of the time, shooting Raw, at ISO100 but bumping it up when light is lacking.

How are some images I took in 2008 in Alaska. I put the focal length on each image. You can also click on the image the information on what lens I used is below the image. Hope this helps.

 

Thank you for posting the fabulous pictures with the focal length.:D

I'm a pro photographer who specialises in event and wedding photography. I also do a bit of studio work. I shot Nikon. I will only shoot in manual mode in the studio as I can control all the lighting factors and I also have time to make adjustments. When shooting outdoor events, especially weddings, I have less time and like to shoot many shots quickly. I just turn the camera to aperture mode so I can control the depth of field and let the camera do the rest. Modern DSLR cameras do a fantastic job in choosing correct settings. You can also use P mode which will let you adjust either shutter or aperture and it will make the other adjustments for you. I always shoot in RAW mode which gives me more scope for editing photos more accurately in Lightroom. You've got a fantastic little DSLR there.

In regards to lenses, my only recommendation would be to handle/test lenses before buying. As mentioned by someone else, it's a good idea to hire lenses before buying so you can try them out first. Good lenses are very expensive but investing in a good quality lens will be something you only do once. You may upgrade camera bodies over time but you will never need to upgrade a top bit of glass. Pay particular attention to the lens weight and size as you don't want to be carrying round a huge lump of glass around on your holidays. Professionally I use the Nikon "holy trinity" of lenses although I would never dream of taking them on holiday. Too heavy and large. If I really must take a DSLR with me, which is rare, I take a Nikon 18-200 VRii lens. This lens has plenty of reach for me on a DX body.

Anyway, good luck with your photography and I hope you capture all the memories of your trip. One last piece of advice... It's already been mentioned.... You can't delete a photo you never took - always best to take lots of photos knowing there is a delete button!

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