Some Nikon dSLRs are almost always purchased with a lens, The entry- and mid-level Nikon dSLRs, including the Nikon D3100, are often bought by those new to digital photography, frequently by first-time SLR or dSLR owners who find the AF-S DX Nikkor 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR or AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II, both with vibration reduction, irresistible bargains.
Other Nikon models, including the Nikon D300, D700, and D3/D3x, are generally purchased without a lens by veteran Nikon photographers who already have a complement of optics to use with their cameras.
I bought my D3100 with the 18-55mm VR lens, even though I already had now a (large) collection of lenses, because the VR was an attractive feature, and the lens is perfect to mount on the camera. Depending on which category of photographer you fall into, you’ll need to make a decision about what kit lens to BUY, or decide what other kind of lenses you need to fill out your complement of Nikon optics. Here I will cover “first lens” concerns.
When deciding on a first lens, there are several factors you’ll want to consider:
Other Nikon models, including the Nikon D300, D700, and D3/D3x, are generally purchased without a lens by veteran Nikon photographers who already have a complement of optics to use with their cameras.
I bought my D3100 with the 18-55mm VR lens, even though I already had now a (large) collection of lenses, because the VR was an attractive feature, and the lens is perfect to mount on the camera. Depending on which category of photographer you fall into, you’ll need to make a decision about what kit lens to BUY, or decide what other kind of lenses you need to fill out your complement of Nikon optics. Here I will cover “first lens” concerns.
When deciding on a first lens, there are several factors you’ll want to consider:
- Cost. You might have stretched your budget a bit to purchase your Nikon D3100, so the 18-55mm VR kit lens helps you keep the cost of your first lens fairly low. In addition, there are excellent moderately priced lenses available that will add from $100 to $300 to the price of your camera if purchased at the same time.
- Zoom range. If you have only one lens, you’ll want a fairly long zoom range to provide as much flexibility as possible. Fortunately, several popular basic lenses for the D3100 have 3X to 5.8X zoom ranges, extending from moderate wide-angle/normal out to medium telephoto. Either is fine for everyday shooting, portraits, and some types of sports. for my I have "Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG APO Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens".
- Adequate maximum aperture. You’ll want an f/stop of at least f/3.5 to f/4 for shooting under fairly low light conditions. The thing to watch for is the maximum aperture when the lens is zoomed to its telephoto end. You may end up with no better than an f/5.6 maximum aperture. That’s not great, but you can often live with it, particularly with a lens having vibration reduction (VR) capabilities, because you can often shoot at lower shutter speeds to compensate for the limited maximum aperture.
- Image quality. Your starter lens should have good image quality, because that’s one of the primary factors that will be used to judge your photos. Even at a low price, several of the different lenses that can be used with the D3100 kit include extra-low dispersion glass and aspherical elements that minimize distortion and chromatic aberration; they are sharp enough for most applications. If you read the user evaluations in the online photography forums, you know that owners of the kit lenses have been very pleased with its image quality.
- Size matters. A good walking-around lens is compact in size and light in weight.
- Fast/close focusing. Your first lens should have a speedy autofocus system (which is where the Silent Wave motor found in all but the bargain basement lenses [older, non-AF-S models] is an advantage). Close focusing (to 12 inches or closer) will let you use your basic lens for some types of macro photography.
