[hkanitkar]

hi guys i need some help regarding camera lenses.
i have a NIKON D100 along with 3 decent lenses ( 2 regulars and one 70-300 zoom). i am planning to buy a good quality Telephoto lens priced around 15k (possibly a brand new NIKKOR) and a converter of around 3 to 5x capability.
please suggest place to buy in mumbai or pune.

[EVO6]

Try this store in Dadar ..
Go to there site on the following url.
http://www.jjmehta.com/aboutus.html

[gkrishn]

i am planning to buy a good quality Telephoto lens priced around 15k (possibly a brand new NIKKOR)

Are sure about the budget? A Quality telephoto lenes is not possible in this price range.

and a converter of around 3 to 5x capability.

Teleconverters exist only for 1.4x and 2.0x. May be u can buy two 2.0x put them in serial and use it. Also before buying them, check if ur existing lens will work with them. For ex that 70-300 will not work with them. Also the optical quality will degrade by their usage.

[SMG]

70-300 is already a good range, beyond that only lens with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) makes any sense. Without OIS , you have to use tripod or something similar to reduce camera shake.

[hkanitkar]

hey thanks gkrishn for the info ... one guy from mumbai told me that converters are available upto 8x range - even i was quite surprised to hear that...

one mistake on my side - i am looking for telephoto lens around 25-30k (not 15k..... got a 24-120 lens for same camera for about 18k )

and yes SMG, i am lookin out for lens with OIS or VR( thats what they call it for a nikkor lens).. and already have a tripod with me

[airfoil]

You may want to consider buying a compatible 500mm mirror lens as well as a 2x converter if a powerful telephoto is what you're looking for. You'll lose depth of field owing to the cheaper optics and the addition of a converter will only worsen image quality while bringing in a host of other gremlins.

But hey, you can probably find a 500mm mirror lens for around 5-7.5k, whch makes it a rather nice cheap high power lens to have as part of your arsenal.

Phoenix/Samyang and Vivitar are OK brands to look for.

Here's an example:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...516991292&rd=1

[Rudra Sen]

Originally Posted by hkanitkar

one mistake on my side - i am looking for telephoto lens around 25-30k

A good telephoto lens from camera maker (Nikon in your case) would cost way above your mentioned price.

Originally Posted by gkrishn

Teleconverters exist only for 1.4x and 2.0x. May be u can buy two 2.0x put them in serial and use it. Also before buying them, check if ur existing lens will work with them. For ex that 70-300 will not work with them. Also the optical quality will degrade by their usage.

A 1.4X converter will cut down your opening by 1/2 stops. Example: A lens with maximum opening of f3.5 will be f5.6 and for using 2X converter, it'll be slightly less than f5.6. Not to mention the quality drop.

Originally Posted by SMG

70-300 is already a good range, beyond that only lens with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) makes any sense. Without OIS , you have to use tripod or something similar to reduce camera shake.

Lens having image stabilizer would be way expensive than 25-30k. A 70-200 IS lens cannot be cheaper than 90k unless second hand or badly used.

Originally Posted by airfoil

You may want to consider buying a compatible 500mm mirror lens as well as a 2x converter if a powerful telephoto is what you're looking for.

A mirror lens or catadioptric lens will have only one opening. 500mm lens will have f8 and 1000mm will have f11. Quality cannot match with a regular lens. Only thing going for any mirror lens is it's price and weight.

[SMG]

You might want to check this:

Nikon Zoom Telephoto AF VR Zoom Nikkor 70-200mm
f/2.8D G-AFS ED-IF Autofocus Lens (Vibration Reduction) - Black *Body

US Price: $1449.45

Description:

Silent Wave Motor for ultra-high-speed autofocusing and super-quiet operation
VR (Vibration Reducution) operation offers the equivalent of using a shutter speed 3 stops faster.


The best lens in this range. Sharp! Fast! VR! Heavy, but not unacceptably so. Great flexibility. Becomes a Macro with extension tubes (get the Kenko's). The 1.4x tele-extender is as sharp at 300mm f4 as the Nikon 300mm f4 prime. Spanks the 80-400mm VR in every way except price. Cool looking hood. It really is one of the greats.


OR

This:

Nikon 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED VR AF Zoom-Nikkor Lens (vibration reduction) with hb-24 hood & cl-m1 soft case - USA with 5 Year U.S.A. Warranty

US Price: $1329

Description:

Result of VR (Vibration Reduction) is equivalent to using a shutter speed three f/stops faster

VR is automatically detected during panning operation. Two modes of VR: Image plane and Viewfinder

3 ED glass for high resolution and high contrast even at maximum apertures

Filter does not rotate during zooming

[hkanitkar]

thanks for the info guys.. i have decided to wait for some time so that i could get the 80-400 VR lens from US