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alphasha

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sharon
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Hi guys,

I have a nikon d5000 with the 18-55 lens and a Tamron 70 - 300 tele macro and absolutely nothing else .

I hoped someone could give me some advice on what type of other stuff I should be adding to it cheap lights, lens & flash, filters etc.

I want to do some:

1) indoor pics/portraits of my family (babies - grown ups)
2) my dogs working in the shooting field
3) friends horse eventing.

I have just finished my AS and feel a bit disapointed that after nearly a year I know no more than I did at the start (nothing complete novice)in terms of what kit I need to do certain jobs (our lecturer has actually been let go as a result of the lack of teaching ;( ). So I am hopefully going to self teach through the net tutorials etc and joing the local camera club.

I have a very small budget so probably second hand but I am practical and am able to make back drops studio boxes etc but need to know what to start with and build upto.
Thanx
Sharon
 
A 50mm / 35mm f1.8 might be a good addition to your gear bag, great for the indoors pics and portraits and a good all rounder for your dogs and friends horse events if you can get close enough.

Fairly cheap to buy, one of Nikons cheapest lenses, and even cheaper second hand :thumbs:
 
Indoor studio light kit on a budget - Interfit EX150 kit. I got mine for £199 at jessops last year, being for indoor home use they were all I needed in terms of power and accessories (kits contains 2 lights, one softbox, one umbrella, 2 light stands and all cables needed.

Backdrop stands/holders can be had for £40 on ebay, I bought one with two backgrounds (black and white) for £63.
 
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Def agree with alex, I love my 35mm 1.8, I had it on my camera for ages, i almost forget to change it to my zoom, although, if you have a bit more money what about 50mm 1.4. you do not want to end up debating (like I am doing now) if you should have gone for the 1.4 instead. Having said this the 1.4 is almost double the price of the 1.8, and I do not think you would regreat the 1.8 for a minute
 
Another shout for the 35mm 1.8.

In all but the dimmest room my flash stays in the bag. It's a joy to use, and has made the camera viable for good indoor shots. I had wanted to experiment with lighting, but it's not as important to me since I picked up the 35.
 
I own the 35mm 1.8 and can say its the lens i tend to use the most. Portraits are far superior to the standard kit lens. I know everybody says ebay is "dodgy territory" but thats where i got mine second hand for £122. Only downside is of course its a short range prime so shooting dogs running in fields and horse racing/show jumping your going to need something with a little more reach.
 
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Cheers looks like I will be trying to find a decent 35mm 1.8 first then.
 
My first additional lens was the 'nifty 50'. I'm so happy with it, now to add some filters and start playing. :)

Edit : I realise this is a different camera, but I assume similar results are to be had.
 
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Hi,

You could probably do with a flash gun of some sort... bit like the af360 in jessops... maybe a sb900/sb700 or some such.

For 30 (or less) ukp you can get a remote for your camera. Then you'd either have an off camera flash or a remote shutter (self portraits, long exposures)

What do you like shooting and do most of your pics end up at a particular mm ?
If so you may want to consider a prime lens at that mm.


I have the 35mm f1.8 - well worth it. Also have a 50mm f1.4d which I found I was too close, although very good also.
I like macro so the 105mm complements that, although I think I might have gone with a sigma 150mm now... more working distance to the bugs.
I also went wide. Ultra wide, 11-16 tokina.
For length, I went used and m42 - the 300mm tair lens is hefty, but good :)

If there are any meets in your area/local to you it might be worth turning up - doesn't matter if there isn't other nikon users - you can still check out other peoples lenses and discuss/practice shots...
 
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