# looking for a lens for Nikon D3100



## Geniusdudekiran (Dec 6, 2010)

18-55mm is fairly cheap quality and just generally sub-par, but good for wide shots. I would suggest the 18-105mm Nikkor, I love mine and rarely swap lenses for my purposes -- perfect for tank shots, portraits, landscapes, and almost anything I shoot. If I'm not shooting any of these I'm usually shooting wildlife (i.e. birds) in which case I whip out the 55-300mm.


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## SMB (Oct 10, 2012)

All the off camera brands make lenses with Nikon mounts, Tokina, Tamron, Sigma.
Look at the used B&H photo site. You are looking for Dx format lenses. Not sure one lens does it all, kids, dog, fish tank...
The Nikon 18-200mm Dx VR lens has always been a good walk around lens. If you are looking to get serious about fish then a macro lens at some point.


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Don't be afraid to use prime lens. A great quaility len's is the 50mm prime or 35mm prime. They are cheap and are excellent. I would highly recommend getting one of those until you can save up a decent amount for a Lens you really want and isnt sub-par


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## Kai808 (Jul 19, 2011)

You can also get the Nikon 18-300mm. It's a $1000 but you will get a lot of use out fo that range and lenses don't depreciate too much.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

Thanks for the help guys, I will keep an eye out for a good deal on some 18-200mm or 18-105mm lenses. 

Do the off camera brand lenses automatically come with the Nikon adapter or do I have to buy that separately?


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## IWANNAGOFAST (Jan 14, 2008)

the off brands are made to fit the nikon bodies so you don't have to get an adapter. I have a sigma 55-300mm and it's not bad.

My main go to lens is the nikkor 18-105mm, it's a decent lens that's not too expensive and can be used for almost any situation. You can get wide angle shots to really close up.

I also have an 85mm nikkor micro lens that's great for macro shots, gets super up close to shrimps


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## sidefunk (Apr 22, 2010)

Many people love the 18-55, for the price and quality it has received many good reviews. It really is a great lens for all around stuff like shooting your tank and family stuff. Pairing it with a flash will be the real thing to help improve your image quality for tank shots. Personally, i am not sophisticated enough to see that big a difference in the image quality, especially not if you just want to share pics online. Many people have also told me that the image quality at f8 is just as good as much more expensive lenses. 

As stated above the 35 and 50 1.8g lenses are awesome. However, I would recommend starting with the 18-55 like you have been seeing on e-bay. That way you can get a good feel of what focal length you like shootings with and can pick up one of those nice primes if you start getting a little more serious.


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## Patriot (Dec 22, 2010)

Prime is the way to go. They will force you to think outside the box because you have to move around.


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## killswitch (Nov 7, 2012)

tharsis said:


> I will be taking pics of my kids and my aquariums/pets mostly, but I will also want something for landscapes etc.


The Nikon 18-55mm kit lens is a cheap plastic mount. I would personally skip it unless thats all my budget allows.

I suggest the Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 (Non-VC). Its about $300 brand new though. It can come in a Nikon F-mount so theres no need for adapters. You can do landscape and mid-zoom shots with a constant aperture.

Primes are nice and sharp but it might not be versatile enough for the uses described. Youll find yourself running back and forth just to get the subjects in frame. If you dont midn that then the Nikkor 35mm or 50mm f1.8 is a winner.


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## albino_pleco (Nov 26, 2012)

Prime lenses are the best. You can the 18-55 on craigslist for next to nothing for your landscape pics where speed does not matter. everything else a prime lens will give your photos a pro look for a small price.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

Thanks for the help guys, I think I will avoid a prime lens for now as I want something more versatile and it really needs to be < $100. 

I found this on craigslist: Nikon/Nikkor 55-200mm lens f/3.5-5.6 for $60

http://providence.craigslist.org/pho/3443345857.html

Is this lens compatible with my camera and will I be able to take pics of my fish with this lens? 

thanks!


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## albino_pleco (Nov 26, 2012)

Yup, its compatible. With no vr and slow as a snail you will be able to take nice blurry pics of your fish!


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

are you saying that because it is a nikkor or because it is 55-200mm?


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## albino_pleco (Nov 26, 2012)

The focal length and brand have little to do with it. Nikkor/Nikon is the same thing, its Nikon brand. That lens will be ok at best on bright sunny day taking pics of your kids. I think it will struggle focusing on a fish in a tank. I would recommend at least a lens with a max aperture of 2.8. Your wife may have got you into a hobby more expensive than fish keeping! I looked at your tanks I think they are awesome and combining the hobbies can be very rewarding.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

Thanks for the compliment, I appreciate it  

I agree about combining hobbies, I have always enjoyed taking pics of my fish and my tanks to share on this site and I would like to be able to do that with this camera. 

I don't have very high standards at this point for quality of shots, so I need to get an idea of what you mean by blurry pics of fish. I have a canon powershot that has served me very well for taking close up shots of fish/plants, and I would like to be able to do that without having to buy a $300-$500 lens haha. 

So the problem with this lens is the aperture size, not the focal length?

I guess I need to do some real research lol.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

Is this an ok lens? It is dirt cheap on ebay and the auction ends in an hour. 

NIKON 35-80MM F4.0-5.6 D AF MACRO LENS


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## TickleMyElmo (Aug 13, 2009)

tharsis said:


> Is this an ok lens? It is dirt cheap on ebay and the auction ends in an hour.
> 
> NIKON 35-80MM F4.0-5.6 D AF MACRO LENS


No, pass on it. Its really meant for FX cameras, and its really no better than the kit 18-55. In fact, it's probably worse....


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

glad I didn't get it haha...I figured there had to be a reason for it being so cheap and that it was discontinued!


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

I love my Nikon 50mm 1.8. For $100...I don't think there is a better lens value out there. You can do general aquarium photography with it, only problem is it's a bit long in focal length to do full tank shots unless you have a small tank or large room. It's an awesome lens though for the kids and as a general walk around lens. The 30mm focal length is great too. For landscapes, I love my Tokina 12-24mm but you are looking at a $400 lens. Cheap as far as lenses go, but not cheap as far as my wallet goes...lol Check out keh.com for used gear at great prices.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

Yeah I think I am starting to lean towards a prime lense instead.

I will check out keh.com, thanks for the heads up.


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

Yeah, primes tend to be sharper. I love primes even though I've only had a few. My best shots have been with a prime lens.

KEH is great. They rate everything but they are very conservative in their grading. It's not uncommon to get something that's listed to be in fair condition and it actually be in excellent condition. Anything that's listed as excellent or like new is good to go and if there's an issue, they will take care of it.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

Sorry for another post... I feel like I need my hand held throughout this process haha. 

Is this a good deal?

http://providence.craigslist.org/pho/3475429159.html

I don't mind that I will have to manually focus, I usually do anyways.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

annnd the saga ends with me getting a Nikor 18-55mm lens haha. 

...Christmas present from the father in law. 

I was playing with it a bit today and it takes some good pics for my purposes so I am very happy with it. I will probably look into getting a better quality lens down the road but for now this will do just fine. Thanks for the help


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## jester56 (Oct 28, 2012)

It'll probably do fairly good for you as an overall use lens. I wish I had some of the nicer lenses mentioned. But as long as my wallet is as thin as my budget, my 18-55 will do! Glad you found a solution...


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

The kit lens will give you an idea of what focal lengths you need for going with a prime. A 30mm or 35mm will go well with your crop camera. 

Also look into speedlite flashes. They will help a lot with kit lenses getting enough light into your tank. Yongnuo speedlites are inexpensive and very good. Cowboy Studio triggers are also inexpensive and very good.

Any lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8 or larger is considered a fast lens. A maximum aperture of f/5.0 or smaller is generally considered a slow lens.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

2in10 said:


> The kit lens will give you an idea of what focal lengths you need for going with a prime. A 30mm or 35mm will go well with your crop camera.
> 
> Also look into speedlite flashes. They will help a lot with kit lenses getting enough light into your tank. Yongnuo speedlites are inexpensive and very good. Cowboy Studio triggers are also inexpensive and very good.
> 
> Any lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8 or larger is considered a fast lens. A maximum aperture of f/5.0 or smaller is generally considered a slow lens.


Yeah the 50mm prime lens that was suggested in my tank thread would be good but to get a FTS with it requires that I stand really far from the tank...a 35 mm will allow a little more versatility I think. 

I definitely see the issues with my lens regarding the larger aperture.


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Get a good tripod also, it will allow you to take shots at smaller apertures for greater depth of field with slower shutter speeds.

The larger the aperture the shallower the depth of field.

A true macro lens around 100mm in focal length is a good lense to look at. Also a remote trigger will help with blur when using a tripod. Using mirror lock up and delayed shutter actuation are also very helpful with tripod use.

Lightroom and Dxo Optics Pro are good post production programs to bring out the best of your photos at a reasonable price.


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## tharsis (Oct 9, 2009)

i have a tripod but I definitely want to get a remote trigger and an external flash.


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Neutral density filters and circular polarisers are good to have also.


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## jmhart (Mar 14, 2008)

SMB said:


> All the off camera brands make lenses with Nikon mounts, Tokina, Tamron, Sigma.
> Look at the used B&H photo site. You are looking for Dx format lenses. Not sure one lens does it all, kids, dog, fish tank...
> The Nikon 18-200mm Dx VR lens has always been a good walk around lens. If you are looking to get serious about fish then a macro lens at some point.


 
Love my 18-200mm. Just an all around great lens. So versatile. The wife and I tend to travel a lot, including internationally, so space and weight are often important. The 18-200mm is perfect. Also takes great tank shots.


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