Now that all the camera body gifts have been unwrapped and unboxed—including the ones you gave yourself—what follows next is the inevitable "which lenses should I get?" question.
When I'm asked the question (or see it in forum posts) the most popular variant is not just which lens to get, but which of several, sometimes many, lens sets should they get. My response to that is usually "keep it simple, silly" (KISS).
The proper starting out travel/versatility "kit" is simply the 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR for the DX bodies (Zfc, Z30, Z50II), or the 24-120mm f/4 S for the FX bodies (Zf, Z5, Z6III, Z7II, Z8, Z9). Why? Because they're both excellent mid-range zooms (and on DX you get some image stabilization that's not in the bodies). They both go from pretty wide to moderately telephoto, which is where you should probably start if you're thinking all-around usage.
KISS DX
DX is probably simpler to discuss than FX, because (buzz, buzz) the choices are few. The KISS principle says:
- 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR
- 12-28mm f/3.5-5.6 VR and 18-140mm f/3.5-6.3 VR
- 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR and 50-250mm f/4.5-6.3 VR
- 12-28mm f/3.5-5.6 VR and 28-400mm f/4-8 VR
That's exactly the order I'd suggest you consider your basic lens options. It's also the order of increasing capabilities.
Low cost, fast aperture primes are proliferating in DX, but none have VR, so they lose some versatility (you start substituting faster aperture to get shutter speed). If you're getting lost in selecting a prime for a DX camera, you're really lost and should stick to the zooms until you really understand what's truly missing from your basic lens set (typically portrait isolation, which suggests 56mm f/1.4 or f/1.8).
KISS FX
With FX it is far more easy to get lost in lens choices, as there are simply many more choices and the lens VR need is rendered mostly moot by sensor VR. Here’s my suggestions to consider (again in the order I’d suggest you consider them):
- 24-120mm f/4 S
- Any pair (or trio) of the Tamrikon f/2.8 zooms (17-28mm, 28-75mm, 70-180mm)
- Any 24-70mm zoom paired with the 70-180mm f/2.8 zoom
- The f/4 set: 14-30mm f/4 S, 24-120mm f/4 S, and I'm going to surprise you here: 400mm f/4.5 VR S
- The f/2.8 trio: 14-24mm f/2.8 S, 24-70mm f/2.8 S, and 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S
Again in the order you should consider, and (mostly) in the order of increasing capabilities.
Primes have also proliferated for FX, and since the FX cameras have sensor-based VR, you don't lose the extra versatility as you do with DX. But again, if you're getting lost in selecting a prime for an FX camera, you're really lost and should stick to the zooms until you really understand what's truly missing from your basic lens set (typically portrait isolation, which suggests 85mm f/1.4 or f/1.8).
KISS Summary
If you're veering outside one of the base sets I noted above, then you apparently have specific needs or likes, and you probably already know what you're going to get.
You need to be honest with yourself: are the photo opportunities you usually have ones where you want to carry your gear all the time with it being svelte and accessible, or do you really carry that 40-pound backpack stuffed with extra gear all the time, and have the time to pull out and set up exactly the right tool for the job? 90% of you are in the former category, I'll bet. More than two lenses just gets to be travel unfriendly, plus most of your photography is likely to happen as you travel (street photography, travel photography, landscapes on vacation, and so on).
"Wait a second," you're going to argue, "if I'm going to photograph X today then I need a lens for X. Tomorrow may be different." Sure, but in so arguing you're also telling me you already know what lenses you need for all the photography "jobs" you are going to undertake. Perhaps you meant to ask "is the 20mm f/1.8 S or 24mm f/1.8 S the right lens for astrophotography?" ;~).
What I'm talking about here is for the "got a new body, need a new basic lens set" crowd. These folk are going to have a hard time suggesting something better than the sets I outlined above.
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Bonus: I'm always amused when someone does a deep analytical focal length dive on all the photos they've ever taken and comes back with the "I only use my zooms at the two extremes, so maybe I should just get two primes." Probably not. Yes, your lens is effectively equivalent to two primes, but you also don't have to be changing lenses with the zoom or carry an extra lens around with you. You also need to check whether or not you were using perspective properly at those two focal lengths, or just zooming from the same position.
This, by the way, is one of the reasons why Nikon needs its own version of the Sony 28-70mm f/2GM: that lens is what I'd call a top level 50mm f/2 prime, as well as a 28mm f/2, 35mm f/2, and 70mm f/2 prime that are all very near top level. Four excellent primes in one lens. Of course, I'm not sure anyone who has one is disciplined enough to use it that way; I'll bet they use zooming rather than controlling perspective most of the time ;~).
