Just bought a Nikon D40

So the wife and I have been getting into photography as a hobby quite a bit lately, today we just made the plunge into DSLR's and bought a Nikon D40. To those of you who are camera savvy, what direction do I go now as far as lenses go. I'd like a good macro lense eventually but that's not a priority, as the 18-55mm that comes with it does decent close shots. I foresee this hobby being much more expensive than flashlights, and I think i'm going to go hide my wallet now.

I'll post my favorite shot from today once it gets up on photobucket so you guys can give me some pointers

[URL=http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm178/jeremyi05/?action=view&current=e2716d7f.jpg]
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Congrats on your purchase, that's one nice camera you got there! I'm just a beginner as well, so don't take my comments too serious. The posted photo is underexposed and not focussed properly I think. Try to improve those 2 factors and it will look much better I think.

If I were you I would not buy any more lenses for now. The 18-55mm is a good lens to start and I would rather improve my photography skills on this lens before buying something else.

The shot was taken in-doors, so it is a bit dark, but I could lighten up the RAW file and change that. I was probably pushing the up close limits of the lense in this picture, as I was extremely close, but the ones I tried focusing manually instead of letting the camera do it didn't really turn out any better. I cant wait to walk through the woods with it tomorrow.

I won't be looking to buy any lenses any time soon, until I figure out what type of pictures i'll be wanting to take alot of. Seems like I may want to go for a macro lense first since I really enjoy taking close pictures of flowers and such.

Anyway, thanks for the comments Erasmus.

Well, I still consider myself an amateur, but have been highly interested in photography since I was ~12yo or so..

I'd say the lens you have now is decent (as matter of fact, VERY good in the wide-angle area).. You might want to have one more zoom-type lens that goes from ~50-200mm (35mm equivalents). That will likely cover most of your zooming needs for quite a while to come. After that, you might be in a better position to find out which kind of photography you, as well as your wife, tend to do the most of and gather lenses toward what you guys want.

But, yes, the photo hobby will make any flashaholicism seem like true and utter child's play!

I still can't wait until I get a steady income and be able to afford one of those 'super' DSLR's.. The ones that are ~$1500-2000 for the body alone. That can easily handle ~3200 ISO without much noise.. Full size CMOS!
(Hmmm. Those are MY wet-dreams! :mecry: I prefer not to tease myself on reading up about the most current features.)

I have the Nikon D40 with the 18-55mm lens.

I took these pictures with it.







The Nikon D40 has a feature called "Trimming" where you can "zoom" in on the picture.


The second picture is from the first shot.

I have a Canon 30D with Sigma 150-500 zoom, Sigma 10-20 fish eye and a Canon 28-135. I can't say enough about these Sigma lenses, I lovem.
One of the best(if not the best) website to learn from is dpreview.com
Don't forget about a battery grip, I can take around 1000 pics before I need to charge the batteries. If you plan on using the manual settings may I suggest taking a beginners course at your local college. I played with my manual settings for weeks and still did not get what I wanted, until I took a couple courses.

nikon users.. huh

I've no idea how useful DPReview is, I can't get on with the thread view.

Macro is difficult to do well and virtually impossible without a flash.

My personal list of things to get:

- lens 1 - 18-55 kit
- memory cards x2;
- real bag
- second battery
- lens 2 - 50-200 or so
- lens 3 - prime 50
- external flash
- tripod
- grip
- extended lenses, 3-400mm / primes / wide-angle / macro
- remote release
- radio triggers for flash and camera
- another tripod for the flash
- reflectors / grey card
- background

that should keep you going. I don't see a tripod as being that important; I've had my DSLR two years now and got a usable tripod last week....

Understand what you want to do with the camera before investing in nice glass!

Please note also that filters are NOWHERE on that list and I do not see the point, with a single exception being circular pol.

Bret - a happy Pentax K10D user

I'll agree with some of what others have posted already. If you are looking for a second lens, there are a number of zooms that will compliment the 18-55mm you have already. Specifically, the Nikkor 55-200mm VR. It picks up right where the 18-55mm stops.

And a circular polarizing filter. That can make all the difference between mediocre shot and an amazing shot.

I have the D60 and I love it! I have a few of my pics on here in this post. I use photoshop when necessary and also just for fun. I have an 18-55mm nikkor VR lens, 55-200mm nikkor VR lens, 100-300mm Tamron lens, 28-105mm Tamron lens, Nikon 35mm A6006 film camera, Old-school Pentax 35mm film, 16gb SDHC memory card, circular polarizer filter, UV filter, a good tripod, shutter remote for long exposures, as well as a good camera bag to carry most of it in.

Cool! I am also an amateur and have been for many many years. I realize that the zoom lenses have come a long way but my gut tells me that you can still get a better shot with a fixed focus lens. I may be a dinosaur in this perception and am willing to be corrected by those in the know. You have asked for some recommendations on lenses to consider and I suggest the Nikon AF-S Micro-Nikkor 60mm f/2.8G ED Macro Autofocus lens. This suggestion is based on a few assumptions and qualifications.

• You are willing to commit to the Nikon platform
• You are likely to get more and more into this great hobby

I use this lens more than any other lens and it is good for portrait as well as macro work. I am of the opinion that the glass that the light enters is the most important part of the camera and that as time goes on you can always upgrade the body but a good lens can stay in your quiver and not let you down.

In the old days of film SLR, I recall that most cameras (35mm) came with a 50mm "normal" lens. I figured out after a while that I rarely wanted a normal lens. I either wanted a wide angle or slightly telephoto for portrait or distant subjects. I also found that I wanted macro ability because I am interested in small items and critters. With the half frame DSLR's a 60mm lens like the one I suggest is effectively a pretty good portrait lens and the macro lets you get the close up's.

I have been shooting with D70's for a few years now and just recently purchased a D300 body. I can really appreciate the difference in image quality between the two cameras but the lenses I have remain the same, with no need of upgrading.

i have been an amateur for a while (LOL), but i have a D80 with 18-200mm VR and a 12-24mm f4.0 and a SB400 flash.

i have been using the 12-24mm f4.0 ALL THE TIMES. I just love the wide angle. i can see more. and the distortion at wide angle actually makes some interesting views. just beware and don't take pic of people at wider than 14-15mm because of the distortion. the people looks distorted and doesn't make very pictures.

the lack of zoom range does bother me some time, and i guess that's why i have the 18-200mm VR. VR does help in low light and tele situation.

i picked the SB400 flash because its light weight and compact, and you will need ext flash to clear 77mm lens (the built in flash will cast a shadow)

SB400 does have its limitation (power, limited bounce angle, etc)

and also a polarizer can be handy from time to time too

I also have a D40 as recommended by my brother who is a professional photographer. He uses Nikons exclusively through choice and I think it is a great camera for someone like me. I want decent photos, without having to learn how to use the damn thing!!!

If the mods feel like removing this link feel free, it isn't intended as advertising, I hardly think he would get much trade from this userbase!!

www.ryanmontgomery.com

His blog link is usually full of photos and woth a read. You may even catch a glimpse of my kids, Sophie and Ethan!!