best nikon/nikon fit macro lens

Naturenutz · #1 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 06:39 PM

Just wondering what is the best money cab buy nikon or nikon fit macro lens .I want to upgrade my gear to be able to get photographs of very top quality/clarity,.I am thinking nikon d300s but i am not up to date with latest lenses.I have read reports that the new 105 vr lens is one to beat,but would like your guys/gals opinions or approval.I think i have the field craft,so now i need the quality to take things further than i can with the limited light allowances of my zoom compact.Plus eventually i will get a long lens but that will have to wait until i win the euro lottery

.

DrNickBurton · #2 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 07:32 PM

Macro is an area where it is difficult to go wrong - there are plenty of excellent lenses to choose from, some are Nikons, but lenses by Sigma and Tamron also shine in this field.

If money is no object, from what I have read, the Nikkor 200mm f/4 AF micro is about as good as it gets for sharpness. Plenty of working distance too.

The 105mm VR is awesome, and works very well indeed with teleconverters. I would use it myself still, but I do alot of macro on a D700 and prefer something with a bit more working distance. These days I use the Sigma 150mm, which I find is as sharp as the Nikon 105mm VR, but with faster focusing (the 105mm VR focusing really is very slow).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naturenutz

Just wondering what is the best money cab buy nikon or nikon fit macro lens .I want to upgrade my gear to be able to get photographs of very top quality/clarity,.I am thinking nikon d300s but i am not up to date with latest lenses.I have read reports that the new 105 vr lens is one to beat,but would like your guys/gals opinions or approval.I think i have the field craft,so now i need the quality to take things further than i can with the limited light allowances of my zoom compact.Plus eventually i will get a long lens but that will have to wait until i win the euro lottery

.

Boddie · #3 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 08:22 PM

Yep, you'll get a few people on here say that the Siggy 150 is hard to beat. I used to love my Sigma 105 but it is now just an expensive paperweight having now invested in the 150

Naturenutz · #4 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 08:46 PM

Thanks guys,i will look at the sigma,i used to own a sigma 70 - 300 zoom back when i had a film nikon 801s.Really liked that lens and plenty of working distance which scares me the 105 might not have enough of for flighty bugs/insects.often shadow can spook them,thats where the 300 zoom was great,so im partial to sigma.i am not really worried about the make but i prefer nikon cameras,so as long as the lens fits nikon and is top quality thats fine.I have got to the stage where i want a top lens so i cant blame my gear

.
I am into insect macro,s at the moment,the teleconverter mentioned interests me as ive seen what a difference that extra close up can make.will the sigma work with a teleconverter on a nikon camera?
cheers guys

DrNickBurton · #5 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 09:07 PM

My experiance with the Sigma 150mm is that, unlike the Nikon 105mm VR, there is a noticeable drop in IQ when you use it with a TC (I tried it with a 1.4x Sigma TC).

This is a shame, but it's not that big an issue, as long as 1:1 magnification is sufficient for your needs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naturenutz

Thanks guys,i will look at the sigma,i used to own a sigma 70 - 300 zoom back when i had a film nikon 801s.Really liked that lens and plenty of working distance which scares me the 105 might not have enough of for flighty bugs/insects.often shadow can spook them,thats where the 300 zoom was great,so im partial to sigma.i am not really worried about the make but i prefer nikon cameras,so as long as the lens fits nikon and is top quality thats fine.I have got to the stage where i want a top lens so i cant blame my gear

.
I am into insect macro,s at the moment,the teleconverter mentioned interests me as ive seen what a difference that extra close up can make.will the sigma work with a teleconverter on a nikon camera?
cheers guys

eeyore · #6 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 09:09 PM

the other make worth looking at is the tamron - i have the tamnron 90mm and IQ even with the 2xtc seems to be pretty good.

pressld2 · #7 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 09:16 PM

I use a sigma 150mm on my D300 and I think it's an outstanding combination. I don't recall ever trying it with my teleconverter (which is a Kenko Pro 300) but I use it often with extension tubes which have no effect on IQ.

It's great at every aperture but I find it is sharpest at f11 so you may want to think about either the Nikon close-up flash kit or a ring flash to get the best out of it. You'll probably want to think about that whichever lens you go for.

Dave P.

Naturenutz · #8 (**permalink**) 07-01-2010, 09:37 PM

thats great,lots of information there to think about.ive been leaning towards a fixed lens but its a trade off with having to get so close to the subject.Guess i need to narrow down the most common situations ill use the lens with.sometimes i need distance between the subject and camera,but then if i had a 300 zoom id probably lose quality. decisions grr .thanks for all your replies, has helped me focus more thoroughly.at the moment im leaning to the sigma 150 or nikon 200 f4 although need to read up on the 200.
.

eeyore · #9 (**permalink**) 08-01-2010, 03:12 PM

the 300mm zoom lenses that have "macro" in the name are something of a misnomener generally giving only 1:4 (or ocasionally 1:2) - some of them are decent lenses but by no stretch of the imagination are they true macro lenses.

All the lenses mentioned above are true macro lenses giving 1:1 or better and generally with f2.8 max appertures.

if you need distance for photographing dragon flies etc then you probably need either the sigma 150 , tamron 180 or nikon 200 , while if you are going to concentrate your macro on more inanimate subjects like flowers and fungi then you are best off with a sigma 105, tamron 90. or nikon 100

DrNickBurton · #10 (**permalink**) 08-01-2010, 03:59 PM

Dave, which extension tube do you use? Do you get full metering and AF?

Quote:

Originally Posted by pressld2

I use a sigma 150mm on my D300 and I think it's an outstanding combination. I don't recall ever trying it with my teleconverter (which is a Kenko Pro 300) but I use it often with extension tubes which have no effect on IQ.

It's great at every aperture but I find it is sharpest at f11 so you may want to think about either the Nikon close-up flash kit or a ring flash to get the best out of it. You'll probably want to think about that whichever lens you go for.

Dave P.