nikon 85mm AF-S DX micro lense

Hi their I have recently purchased a Nikon d90 with the kit 18-105 lens I also purchased a tokina 10-17 for wide angle but not sure about what lens for macro. I was originally looking at the 60mm but was a bit concerned about how close you have to get to the subject. I am now looking at the Nikon 85mm AF-S DX micro. Just wondering if anyone is using this lens and if it would be a better choice over the 60mm. also I am looking at purchasing the nauticam housing for the set up and wondering what the best ports to use would be.

Hi their I have recently purchased a Nikon d90 with the kit 18-105 lens I also purchased a tokina 10-17 for wide angle but not sure about what lens for macro. I was originally looking at the 60mm but was a bit concerned about how close you have to get to the subject. I am now looking at the Nikon 85mm AF-S DX micro. Just wondering if anyone is using this lens and if it would be a better choice over the 60mm. also I am looking at purchasing the nauticam housing for the set up and wondering what the best ports to use would be.

Hi Matt,

congrats with your D90, i'm sure you're going to enjoy it. I don't know whether anyone uses the 85 mm micro lens, because most use a 60 or 105 mm. A lot of people use the 60 mm with a Teleconverter to increase the focal length.So with a 60 mm + 1.4 TC you'd effectively also would have an 84 mm at the expense of 1 stop of light and, depending on the quality of the TC, some sharpness. Advantage is that you keep the closest focussing distance in case you want to go to higher magnification. Now the problem is: the new Nikkor 60 mm (with Internal Focus and AF-S), is not compatible with any of the Teleconverters i tried. And i'm hoping that the newly updated Kenko TC will support the new 60 mm. Otherwise you have to get an old 60 mm or a 3rd party macro lens. But off course you also can try the 85 mm and my guess is that you'll be one of the happy few that use it, you'll need flatport with it.

cheers, Udo

Matt,

the Nikon 85 micro should be a good compromise between the 60 and the 105: a little bit more working distance at maximum magnification than the 60, a faster and more reliable autofocus compared to the 105. On top of that the 85 has the same price of the 60 (US$ 530) compared to the more expensive 105 (US$ 870). Should you need greater magnification in the future you could had a 1.4 teleconverter or a +4 diopter.

All the Best ..... Francesco

Depends on the conditions where you plan to use it. I have a 50mm and a 90mm macro lens with my D80. Diving in the UK I frequently use the 50mm, in low vis it lets you get closer and helps inprove clarity and contrast and reduce back scatter. In better vis in the UK or overseas I use the 90mm for the greater working distance and get shots of creatures too timid to let me get close enough to shoot with the 50. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

Thanks for the help I think will give the 85 a go I am sure I wont be disappointed. I live on the gold coast in Australia the vis here isn't to bad so I am sure the lens will work great.