I am a Canon user who is interested in trying the D300. I am not familiar with Nikon lenses. I would like to have a lens in the 18-80mm range or so, and I want good glass, not bargain glass. I am ready to pay for good glass. Is there a good midrange zoom that goes a bit wider? Also a wide angle lens, probably zoom, down to 12mm or so. I know the Zeiss lenses are great, but I don't think they're autofocus and I would like to stick with autofous only. I like to keep to smaller lenses when possible, but will opt for the bigger lens if the smaller lens is markedly inferior. Will consider f/4 but f/2.8 is better. Not knowing the Nikon lineup, I'd appreciate some guidance.
So what 2 (or 3) lenses would you recommend for a basic kit? Not interested in tele lenses at this point, only up to 75-100mm at the high end.
Or since it is a DX sensor, a more useful range may be the 17-55 f/2.8 (35mm eq: 26-82mm) + 12-24 f/4 (35mm eq: 18-36mm). I personally feel that in the range you've given, that the 17-55 f/2.8 is a fantastic performer, and infact, that is the lens that's almost glued to my primary body
However, if you feel that in the future you may go with a FX sensor, then you may want to pick up the 24-70 f/2.8 instead.
Thanks, guys. From my experience with Canon cropped bodies, I think the 17-55 will be better. Also, I doubt I will go to FF sensor unless they can package it in a smaller body like the Canon 5D. I used Canon's 24-70/2.8 on a cropped body, and found that I wanted something wider for general use.
You should work a 50 1.4 into the mix somehow... I consistently get results at f2.2 and above that rivaled my Canon L primes (including 85L). I ran with both systems for quite a while because I couldn't ever imagine selling my 85L and 135L lenses, but after using the D300 + 50 1.4 I started to see some of the same great IQ.... Obviously the 85 and 135m lenses are different animals with different purposes, but my point is from a pure IQ perspective, the D300 + 50 1.4 held up quite nicely...
