Sigma 24-105, Nikon 24-120 or ?, Please help with lens selection
I was a Nikon film shooter years ago, and will be returning to Nikon DSLR\'s following a very frustrating year with Pentax. I was not impressed with the metering and their auto focus is awful. I have chosen a D7200 an feel confident it will fill my needs. Where I am having issues is choosing a lens. We have a ranch where we breed sheep and livestock guardian dogs. We also show our dogs. I will need a camera and lens combo to fill three distinct roles, here are the criteria:
Ranch photos: I need a lens to take photos while we are out doing chores or hiking on the property capturing images for our web site, to send to potential buyers, and occasionally for publication in industry magazines. Most of the time we are capturing moving dogs. The focal range that has worked best is standard to mid tele range - 24-35 on the low end to 100-150 on the long end. We used a Sigma 50-150 HMS that was a bit too long on the short end, but otherwise nice. a super bright lens is not required here, but used if available. This is also the area where a sealed lens seems to make sense.
Show photos: when we go to dog shows we need a lens that can capture moving dogs (somewhat more predictable movement than ranch work) following dogs around a ring, coming at and away from the camera. most shows are outside for breed competitions and inside for group or best in show competitions. Lighting inside is your average fair grounds arena lighting; warm artificial light with open door and natural light streaming in. The distances outside are about the same range as ranch work, but inside sometimes requires us to work at the longer end of the same range more often. This an area that could use a brighter lens, or at least, be able to shoot an f4 lens wide open. 2.8 DOF on moving dogs is a crap shoot, so I may need to rely on higher ISO performance to cover the gap.
Whelping box: We need to photograph and document puppies in the whelping box, which is fairly small (8x8) and a flash is a no no for developing eyes. This needs to be wide to normal and fast enough to allow the use of ambient light. f4 may work in a pinch, but they may get grainy.
SO - These are the contenders - Nikon 24-120 f4 which has a great range, and depending on which review you read is very good to good enough on a DX format. The sample variation scares me a little because I would need to buy this one on the used market. I like that it would allow the use of the in camera corrections and should have no compatibility issues going forward. It is weather sealed to some degree and is not a complete boat anchor. I worry that it may find me wanting for more in the sharpness category and after the Pentax experience of 5-10% keeper rate, I really would like nice sharp photos.
Sigma 24-105 f4 - Range is fine ( I can crop to get the framing if I want longer) it appears to be sharp and well built according to the reviews here and elsewhere. I like the dock fine tune ability, but worry about the bugs that can arise from backwards engineering and competitive animosity. It is quite heavy and has no weather sealing of any kind. I really think if it had some sealing I would buy it. I don\'t go photo shooting into a rainstorm, but have got caught in a few. My main concern is dust. let me know if I am being too worried about this aspect.
I know I will need a fast prime or wide to normal fast zoom to cover the wide end, and a flash for indoor event snaps. I also plan on a longer lens like the 70-200 f4 in the future.
So with all of that background crap out of the way - what the heck do I do??!!! I have rolled this over in my head so many times I feel like a zombie. If anyone has suggestions other than those above, I am all ears.
All help is greatly appreciated.
Nick
Nov 15, 2015 at 02:34 PM
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