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d50 and ...
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All round use is hard to answer. It depends very much on the person.
The 50mm f1.8 from Nikon is a very good lens optically, and for that low price it is almost mandatory. Nice as portrait lens, and when a low light lens is required.
But, with the 1.5x conversion factor of an APS-C sensor size DSLR, it is not a "standard lens" (50 x 1.5 = 75mm).
A better suited single focal point lens as standard lens is the 35mm f2 Nikkor.
More suited for alround use however are "standard" zoom lenses. The 18-55mm that is the standard kitlens from the D50 is actually your best choice if budget is limitted. Often underestimated, I actually put it above the 18-70 kitlens from the D70s, and definitely above the 18-135mm kitlens from the D80 that is a bit of a dog in my opinion (and not a very cute dog).
If you have more to spend, or need a more light sensitive (bigger max. aperture) standard zoom lens, the Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 macro or the Tamron 17-50 f2.8 (check if the Tamron focusses accurately on your camera) are attractive alternatives. So can be the Sigma 17-70 f2.8-4 macro.
It is up to you what you consider "all around use", for me all round use is 12mm up to 340mm at the moment, I use that range all the time. And a 90mm macro too.
A 50mm 1.8 is a GREAT lens to start off with. Shuffling your feet isn't that hard to do -- and it's all about learning what kinds of shots YOU like to take. You can really experiment with depth of field and low light, which a lot of other slower lenses wouldn't allow.
Buy the 50mm, then in 6 months you'll know what you want to add on to your kit.
Buy the 50mm, then in 6 months you'll know what you want to add on to your kit.
I just got the D50 last week with the kit lens 18-55. I am certainly no expert on the technicalities of what makes a lense "good" or "bad". But what I do know is that the pictures I take with this camera and this lens are fabulous! Additionally, it is a very light, very easy to handle combination which makes the whole setup very enjoyable to use. Bottom line is that my pictures are very good in my opinion.
My .02.
Enjoy your new camera and congratulations!
My .02.
Enjoy your new camera and congratulations!
You'd take the 18-55 mm lens over the 18-70 mm? Get a bad copy of the 18-70 mm as well, did you? That lens is just better than the 18-55 mm, flat out.
This is coming from a person who agrees with you that the 18-55 mm kit lens from Nikon is underrated. It feels cheap, but optically, it's not "cheap." The only problem is flare, but just follow the general rule of not shooting at the sun and you'll be set with that lens. People don't realize that the difference between one lens and another isn't generally the sharpness. That's not a great reason to get another "general" lens to replace the 18-55 mm. I mean, I'd never replace the 18-55 mm lens with a Nikon 18-70 mm lens because I don't see much point in doing so.
Um....anyway, the 18-55 mm lens is tops. I think it's as good a deal as the 50 mm f/1.8, and that's not supposed to be a sharp lens either, especially not below f/2.8. But does anyone NOT recommend that lens? Hellz no. It's a great lens, good in low light, and cheap. Booya, you have a winner.
I agree with anyone who said the Nikkor 18-70. The kit is a good deal, sure, but if people have poor things to say about their kit lens and you aren't getting the kit anyway, get the 18-70. It'll give you the ability to make fairly close shots and fairly far ones, as well. It's considerably more money, though...
I agree, I have the 18-70mm Nikon lens for my D50 and I am very satisfied with it. I'd recommend it definitely. It'll give you enough options until you actually know what else you need.
Another vote for the 18-70. Great lens for the money - you can find them for around $200 lightly used.
Couldn't agree more about the 50mm f/1.8. Its one of my most used lens.
To the OP. Congratulations and enjoy your new camera.
You will need a lens that is wider. The 50mm is a mild telephoto on a DX body. Get on the zooms that goes to 18mm. I have the 18-70 and use it quite a bit. But I also like and use my 50mm f/1.4 and 85mm f/1.8
The things I liked about the 18-70 orver thr 18-55 are
1) The front element does not rotate so I can use polarized filter
2) "true AF-S" allows for manual focus override
3) the slightly longer focal length
4) slighter faster f-stop
If yoou have the $$ look at the 17-55 f/2.8 but it's big and expensive.
The best thing to do is shoot with one lens for a while and keep track of the images you miss. then buy a lens they would get you the most missed shoots. I'm betting you'd want a wider lens. An 18-x zoom.
The things I liked about the 18-70 orver thr 18-55 are
1) The front element does not rotate so I can use polarized filter
2) "true AF-S" allows for manual focus override
3) the slightly longer focal length
4) slighter faster f-stop
If yoou have the $$ look at the 17-55 f/2.8 but it's big and expensive.
The best thing to do is shoot with one lens for a while and keep track of the images you miss. then buy a lens they would get you the most missed shoots. I'm betting you'd want a wider lens. An 18-x zoom.