Bought a Nikon D40

[MPeer]

So after much contemplating, I've decided that I'm going to spend the bulk of my money on the lens instead of the body. I have purchased the Nikon D40 with the 18-55mm kit lens from B&H, who gave me a good deal at $449 with free shipping.

I'm fairly new to photography so hopefully with more practice and familiarity with the camera, my next purchase shall be the 105mm Nikon macro lens.

Any suggestions for someone starting out with a DSLR?

 

[InLimbo87]

Congrats on the new camera!

I'd suggest "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. Good beginner book on the basics of using shutter speed, aperture, iso, etc to create the picture you're looking for...

 

[latazyo]

magic lantern guide is ok

peterson's books are great, IMO

look into 3rd party macros if you're interested in using the 105 for macro only (if you want it for portraits you may want the AF)

 

[xtm]

Re: Bought a Nikon D40

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13402929#post13402929 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MPeer

Any suggestions for someone starting out with a DSLR?

I'd start saving up for the 18-200mm VR Nikkor lens If you don't mind swapping lens, the 55-200mm VR is a great complement to the 18-55mm. Get the VR it's worth it.

 

[MPeer]

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

The VR lens is probably the next lens after the macro lens I'm going to purchase.

 

[MJSavage]

I have the Sigma 150 macro and would buy it again. It is very sharp and works great with my D40.

Mike

 

[maxalmon]

You'll love the 105VR MACRO, this is my lens of choice and I'm also using the D40, soon to upgrade to the D300 as I've become totally addicted to photography since I started doing macro work.

While this is not the most interesting coral, it's one of my best macro images to date. Took me a while to get the coral staged and for all the tentacles to stop moving around.

 

[VoidRaven]

Re: Bought a Nikon D40

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13402929#post13402929 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MPeer

Any suggestions for someone starting out with a DSLR?

Practice practice practice...and then practice some more. The beauty of digital is that practice costs nothing compared to the days of film!

Other than that, enjoy your photography. Photo people/forums are just like RC. Some people claim they are knowledge gods but are not even close; some actually are but will never ever even think of accepting that title from anyone; and EVERYONE has their own opinion on gear and what works for them. The trick is taking it all in, assessing all the info, trying a few things on your own, and finding the path you feel most comfortable with to get the results you desire.

HAVE FUN and HAPPY SHOOTING!!!

 

[JHemdal]

I think you need to make sure that you get the 105 AF-S VR micro, and not a regular AF 105, because that won't autofocus with your D40 (If I understand correctly). I know manual focus is used for critical macro use, but I still use autofocus from time to time. Somebody else mentioned it, if you had to use just one lens for that camera, I would think that the 18-200 VR AF-S would be it. I use it as a pseudo-macro, it can focus to about 14" from the end of the lens.

Jay

 

[MPeer]

Holy cow! Thanks for the advices guys!

I'm waiting for the UPS guy today. The camera is supposed to come in any time now. Woo hoo! Sorry for the over excitement, this is my first DSLR. I'm going to start practicing.

 

[t5Nitro]

Easiest way to learn is just play around with it. Maybe read the manual that comes with it and learn how to adjust the settings. Obviously if you're willing to read a bit and want to learn about everything, one of the books already suggested is a good way to go. I never read any books, I just played with the settings and you get the hang of it after a while