Favorite Lenses on DX Bodies
My most widely-used lenses on the DX-sensor format body (a.k.a. Nikon, DSLRs before the D3) are
17-55 mm f/2.8
85mm f/1.4
30mm f/1.4 (Sigma)
The 17-55mm range is a favorite on the 1.5x sensor crop format. I think the new 24-70mm f/2.8 on the D3 is going to be an outstanding combination. 85mm f/1.4 is great for portraits, although a little long on a DX body. The Sigma 30mm f/1.4 is an oustanding, fast lens IF you can find a decent copy. It took me 5 tries to get one that didn’t have issues like HSM motor squeaking, infinity-focus issues, close-in focus miscalibration, aperature deformation (non-symmetric aperture), etc.
Yes, there are other nice lenses out there which I also use, but the three above sastify 70% of the shooting. The 70-200mm f/2.8 and 12-24mm f/4 come into play for most of the other times. The new 14-24mm f/2.8 is looking really nice for FX, full-frame shooting on the D3. I can’t believe Nikon didn’t leave the option for a polarizing filter on this great piece of glass. Maybe the 17-35mm f/2.8 will make its comeback now.
What’s missing from the Nikon lineup?…
Updated primes with AF-S (internal focusing motors) and VR
300mm f/4 VR, an updated wide-angle tilt-shift lens
If there’s time, an updated 28mm f/1.4 would be great
The D3 and the 24-70 + 14-24 combo is a great start, though! Now’s a great time to get a used D2Hs, D2X, or D200. The best bargain out there is the D40, in my opinon, or the D40x if you want to splurge…