HELP picking out LENSES?

[LaurenGress]

Hello All

My name is Lauren and i am looking for a new lense for my birthdayyy. I have a Nikon D-40 with the standard Lense. I enjoy going to local shows usually(metalish) where the boys feel the need to dance around and kick people but i love getting photos of the band and crowd. However we all know that the standard lense doesnt really capture these moments. I would like advice as to what Lense i should get! I also enjoy taking pictures of my friends so something that would work for that. I like to take the straight on kind of edgy urban photos. Inside and outside. PLEASE HELP. my budget is somewhere under 450-500 dollars so lets keep it in that range.

Also an attachable flash works well for shows? and ideas i was researching and thinking about a NIKON SB-800 SPEEDLIGHT FLASH (would that work?)

all thoughts would be appreciated


Thank you so much for your time
-Lauren

[Byron Lentz]

I would consider a 50mm 1.8 prime, should be about 150.00 I have an SB-600 and a SB-800, both work very well, but the 600 is usually about 100.00 less.

[LaurenGress]

Thank you Very much : ]

[Franglais]

I enjoy going to local shows usually(metalish) where the boys feel the need to dance around and kick people but i love getting photos of the band and crowd.

I'm having a little bit of difficulty imagining what sort of photos you want to do but I imagine you're interested in photos of the band from somewhere close to the front, without a press pass.

If you're surrounded by a bunch of boys kicking one another then you need a very compact setup for use in a close crowd. A medium telephoto prime (not a zoom) a good solution (50mm or 85mm) to allow you to eliminate most or all of the crowd and just get the stage. A wide aperture lens (f1.8 or f1.4) is almost a necessity because even at 1600ISO there isn't much light and you need to have a fast shutter speed (1/250s is good) to freeze the action on stage.

Normally I would say the 50mm f1.8 is a good choice BUT IT WON'T AUTOFOCUS WITH THE D40. You could do manual focus with the focus-assist spot but you need to be really precise plus the focussing ring on the 50mm is really light and easy to jar. Nikon just announced a 50mm f1.4 AF-S which will autofocus with the D40 but it's much more expensive.

The SB800 and SB600 work fine with the D40. For concerts they destroy the ambience plus they do make you rather visible (the promotors forbid photography at the gigs I go to)

The edgy-urban photos sound interesting. Most of the time you can use the standard 18-55 kit lens, it's not very noble but it's versatile. Don't be afraid to use 1600ISO indoors and press theshutter release gently to avoid camera shake (I use 400ISO as my basic setting and let auto-ISO increase the ISO when the shutter speed drops below 1/60). If you can use flash then try bouncing the flash off the ceiling - it gives you a very natural effect.

[LaurenGress]

Thank you all. i have a KIT by my house so i'll go check it out. I appreciate your time

[Franglais]

Do post the edgy-urban stuff if it comes out. It sounds interesting and raw. Could be a budding Nan Goldin here.. (Actually I hope not. M. Goldin had rather a hard time when she was young).

[Ron Kruger]

Great advice, Franglais.

[jetrim]

I agree w/ Franglais, the Nikon 50mm f/1.4G AF-S Auto Focus Nikkor Lens is about the only one that will meet your needs, integrate properly with your body (so the AF works correctly), and stay within your budget, though just barely, as it's listing at most online places at @ $440.00, local shops will certainly be higher. On the down side, some have described this lens as being almost *too* fast as it only stops down to f/16 which may cause problems on days when shooting in full midday sun.

[Photo-John]

I used to shoot a lot of punk rock shows when I was in my twenties. My favorite lens was a 17mm f/2.8 (that's on a 35mm film camera). I would shoot with a really slow shutter speed and use the flash to freeze my subject. I got lots of blur, streaked lights, and fun photos that gave a good feel for the show. If you've got flash and you don't mind some blur, a really fast lens isn't necessary. It is always nice to have more light, though.

[Frog]

I'd get the new 50mm afs f/1.4 which will auto-focus with your camera.
I'm seeing $439.
You will have to be close to the action, I'd guess.