Which macro lenses?

im thinking of getting a macro lense and quite fancy the 50mm F1.4 or F1.8 but how do i know what size they are and will they fit my nikon D80 ? do any of you have one of these lense and which is better ?even tho there is a price differant! lol
http://www.microglobe.co.uk/catalog/...af-nikkor-lens
http://www.microglobe.co.uk/catalog/...FSbMXgodol1JWQ

I use the 1.8. Its certainly not a macro lens though. I use mine for GP and portrait use. Portrature is the main/popular function for this lens.

Nikkor lenses will fist all DSLRs from Nikon so dont worry about that . The numbers indicate the highest apperture value

The 1.8 is excellent value for money so imo its not worth getting the 1.4 unless you plan on shooting in really low light conditions at a higher shutter speeds

Depending on how much you want to spend and how serious you want to get with macro, you can buy dedicated macro lenses or a lens which can be converted to macro by flicking a switch on the lens itself...

There are alot of choicesout there but there are some consistant performing ones..

Sigma 17-70mm f/2.4-4.5 £259
Can be used for gp shooting too

Sigma 105mm f/2.8 £289
Prime lens = better quality, faster shooting but more expensive

Nikon 60mm f/2.8 £319
Again another prime

Tamron 90mm f/2.8 £329
Prime lens

There is also the Tamron 70-300mm f4-5.6 £170. It has an average performance but is still a pretty popular "starter lens"

TBH i dint shoot much marco but there are others such as Mel and GH that do. They will no doubt be able to help you more than me!!

what a GP? will hope they can help lol , im just confused about lenses as i already have 18-135mm 1.3 5 but could'nt get close enough to the subject ! have been using close up cokin filter which like but want to get much closer and sharper !

GP = General Purpose.

Ill explain the numbers ect below:

EG:
70mm = Focal Range
F/2.4 = Maximum Apertue - the smaller the number you see - the faster the lens and better it is to shoot in low light conditions
EX DG = Designation - see my lens explanation in the newbies section
79x95mm/525g = Size and weight
62mm (extra number featured on lens) - Thread size for filters


HTH

thanks KK ,back to do more research ! lol

A sight to behold methinks

lol!! That would be interesting wouldnt it!!

Oh dear, I missed this thread

I use this lens ..



Canon EFS 60mm f/2.8 and the results can be really good ...

Sorry - I also missed this before

As KK said, the two lenses you mention are not Macro lenses, both are commonly used for portraiture. If you want to get into Macro photography there are several different options available to you:

• Buy a dedicated Macro lens - this is the best route IMO
• Attaching an extension tube - this brings the focusing distance closer
• Attaching a close up lens (which actually is more like a filter) to the front of your own lens, this is a relatively inexpensive option
• Purchasing a bellows

There are other options such as using a teleconvertor (although this won't change the working distance) so you need to see which route suits you best. As mentioned above I feel that the best route (if you want to get into Macro photography) is to purchase a dedicated Macro lens. Obviously you have a Nikon, so my lens is irrelevant although I have the 100mm Macro. When deciding on a Macro lens you need to decide what type of Macro photography you wish to do and this will determine (along with the cost!) what focal length you go for. Commonly you get the following focal lengths:

• 50 - 60mm, this distance is great for flowers and stationary objects, although as Mel has shown you can get some good shots of insects if they will allow you to get realatively close (or if you don't mind cropping).
• 90 - 105mm, these give you a greater working distance than then 50 - 60mm range and give you a better chance at capturing shots of insects etc (you don't have to get so close).
• 180 - 200mm, this is oviously the best focal length for insect photography however it comes at a price - for a decent lens in this range you are looking at almost £1000.

Most Macro lenses tend to double up as good portrait lenses

There are several lenses you may wish to investigate further (I don't know if you like purchasing third party lenses or not, so I have included a few for you to consider - Nikon tend to call them Micro lenses, just to be different ):

50 - 60mm Range

• Sigma 50mm f2.8 EX DG Macro Lens - Nikon Fit
• Nikon 60mm f2.8 D AF Micro Nikkor Lens
• Nikon AF-S 60mm f2.8G ED Micro Lens
• Sigma 70mm f2.8 EX DG Macro Lens - Nikon Fit

90 - 105mm Range

• Tamron 90mm f2.8 SP Di Macro Lens - Nikon Fit
• Tokina 100mm f2.8 AT-X Macro Lens - Nikon Fit
• Sigma 105mm f2.8 EX DG Macro Lens - Nikon Fit
• Nikon 105mm f2.8 G AF-S VR IF ED Micro Nikkor Lens

180 - 200mm Range

• Sigma 180mm f3.5 EX DG Macro Lens - Nikon Fit
• Tamron 180mm F3.5 SP AF Di Macro Lens - Nikon Fit
• Nikon 200mm f4 AF Micro Nikkor Lens

You can also get the Sigma 150mm F2.8 EX DG Macro Lens - Nikon Fit. It really is up to you what you choose, you need to decide on the focal length you want and then whether you want to get a lens from your own manufacturer or a third party lens (I prefer to get manufacturers lenses, but that is solely my own personal preference ).

Good luck (and HTH ).