Lens For Nikon D3200 ?

[paulkane1]

Hello ,I am a complete novice to photographery,I have a small Nikon D3200 Camera,what Lens would you recommended both Long,and,Macro for it?
I'm interested in wildlife,flowers insects ,etc.

Yours Kindly Paul

 

[Stu Meech]

As ever, the answer probably depends on your budget.

But good choices to look into, for small-ish money, are:

Nikon 40mm f/2.8 macro
Nikon 55-200 VR
Nikon 55-300 VR
Tamron 70-300 VC

 

[FishyFish]

I have a D3200. The cheapest way to get good macro shots is a set of extension tubes (cost about £25), or a reversing ring and an old prime lens - I use a reversed 28mm - (reversal rings cost around £10, plus the cost of an old second-hand prime lens, or whatever else you have to hand). For a dedicated macro lens, I can highly recommend the Sigma 105mm f/2.8 O HSM. It also works well as a standard telephoto lens.

These were shot with my D3200 and reversed 28mm lens:


Weevil 100616 by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr


Ladybird Larvae 100616 by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr

These are with extension tubes and my 18-55mm kit lens.


Varied Carpet Beetle (Anthrenus verbasci) by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr


Ants 120316-3 by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr

And here're a couple of recent shots using my Sigma:


251-366 2016 - Just hangin' in there by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr


Whoa there! by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr

I also have a 55-200mm VR lens (as Stu mentions). For the price (less than £100) it's decent, but the Tamron SP AF 70-300 F/4-5.6 Di VC USD is supposed to be very good (if more expensive).

Here're a couple of shots from my 55-200 VR (the ducks were only a few feet away - I don't want to give false expectations of the zoom range! ):


Mallard #005 by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr


Mallard #007 by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr

 

[paulkane1]

Thanks Kindly,for your help,I have to say ,your photos are lovely ,epically the ducks.Where could I buy the bits and pieces,to make up the Macro Lens?i live in Belfast.

Yours Kindly Paul

 

[FishyFish]

Thanks Kindly,for your help,I have to say ,your photos are lovely ,epically the ducks.Where could I buy the bits and pieces,to make up the Macro Lens?i live in Belfast.

Yours Kindly Paul

These are the extension tubes that I bought: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00QUL8SGQ

This is the reversing ring I bought: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00U7Q1ZFG You can use any lens with it (as long as the filter size matches), but it's better to use a manual lens with an aperture ring so that you can easily alter the aperture.

There are lots of videos on Youtube on using extension tubes or reversal rings.

 

[paulkane1]

Thanks Kindly,Have you any photos of Flowers,and,Birds,espically ,Goldfinches?

 

[FishyFish]

Thanks Kindly,Have you any photos of Flowers,and,Birds,espically ,Goldfinches?

Sadly, no. Bird photography isn't really something I do much of. The only birds I have are some waterfowl (taken at quite close range) and some starlings that were atop the lamp-post outside my house (probably 15-20 feet distant):


Streetlight Starlings by fishyfish_arcade, on Flickr

I think this shot was probably cropped (and I definitely lightened the birds in Lightroom - not as well as I would do nowadays either! ). I think you'd really need something with more reach than 200mm for bird photography.

 

[FishyFish]

Oops. Double post...