some buying advice please

[Franglais]

thanks anyway mate, the reason i dint list the canon 50D as one of my options is because its to expensive, its £800 body only over here and £1050 with a 17-85mm lens, id rather get the nikon D90 and be able to get another lens or 2. i am hoping to get it either tomorrow or at the end of the month. if anyone has any suggestions im still open to hear them.

I have seen several reviews in the French Press (Chasseurs d'Images) that say that the Canon 17-85 is a bad match with the latest generation of DSLR's. It is just too soft to match the resolving power of the sensors. Put it on a 18Mpix DSLR and on a 12Mpix DSLR and you don't see any difference in the amount of detail because the lens was already at its maximum at 12Mpix.

It's unfortunate because it is nicely built, covers a useful range and it is cheap. But for the 7D Canon released the 15-85 which is much better - at twice the price.

[Kag12]

I have seen several reviews in the French Press (Chasseurs d'Images) that say that the Canon 17-85 is a bad match with the latest generation of DSLR's. It is just too soft to match the resolving power of the sensors. Put it on a 18Mpix DSLR and on a 12Mpix DSLR and you don't see any difference in the amount of detail because the lens was already at its maximum at 12Mpix.

It's unfortunate because it is nicely built, covers a useful range and it is cheap. But for the 7D Canon released the 15-85 which is much better - at twice the price.

Thats definitely something to keep in mind!
which lens would be better for a D90? the 50mm or the 35mm?

[Franglais]

Thats definitely something to keep in mind!
which lens would be better for a D90? the 50mm or the 35mm?

Both the 50mm f1.8 and the 35mm f1.8 DX will work on the D90 with no problem. I use both on my D300 but I prefer the 35mm :

- I find that the "normal" view of the 35mm is more useful than the "mild tele" view that you get with the 50mm. But this depends entirely on what you use it for. If you want it for informal portraits under low light then the 50mm is nice
- The 35mm is full AF-S which means that you can adjust the focus manually just by touching the focus ring rather than having to mechanically uncouple the autofocus (on the 50mm f1.8)
- As the 35mm is AF-S it also works on my motorless D60 (but that doesn't concern you)

When you get your 18-105 (or whatever), leave the zoom at 35mm and then at 50mm for a while and see which is more useful.

BTW: The 18-105 VR is a nice lens by all accounts - but it's still mostly plastic. If you want something more noble with a metal lens mount then there's the 18-70, 18-200VR, 16-85VR or the 18-55 2.8