PHOTOGRAPHERS ONLY: Christmas photo lens?

Hi! I have a nikon DSLR with a DX sensor. I'm taking my family's christmas photos and I'm wondering what the best lens would be for this. I'm looking for something wide, possibly f/ 1.8, but I want to get the best value possible. Also, I'm not sure whether I should go with a prime or zoom lens. It must have a good AF-S so that I can fire a remote.

The widest DX lens that is f/1.8 is the AF-S 35 mm ($200).

It is a "normal" lens so you will still have to backup a bit to get your whole family in the cameras frame.

Truly wide angle DX lenses cost quite a bit, but take a look at the available lenses here

http://www.nikonusa.com/...index.page

And what the angle of view is for specific focal lengths are here

http://imaging.nikon.com/.../index.htm

When shooting groups, I use either a AF-S 24-70 mm f/2.8 (about $1, 900) or my AF-S 24 mm f/1.4 (about $2, 200)

As you can see, the cost of specific lenses can get rather expensive.

No-one makes a zoom lens with a maximum aperture of f/1.8.So, you're going to have to compromise. Either choose a zoom with a wide aperture (typically f/2.8; these tend to be heavy and expensive), or a prime with an aperture of f/2 or wider (lighter, cheaper).In the latter case you will need to zoom with your feet.

If you have a kit lens like the 18-55mm then use that.

f/1.8 is too large an aperture for group shots anyway, the depth of field will be too shallow. Therefore a fast lens is not required.

For group shots you should be looking to set your aperture to around f/4 to f/5.6 - so that everyone is in sharp focus.

A good prime is always a good choice, whenever you celebrate Christmas

Even a 35mm lens will probably not be wide enough for a big group in many houses, so I hope your home has one big room! You should probably look for a 24mm or 20mm, and rest content with an aperture of f2.8. If you have the kit zoom lens of 18mm to 55mm you can use the numbers on that to judge what width of lens you need.

For general use on small collections of people then a 35mm would generally be suitable.

What' your budget?

In order of preference

24-70 f2.8 (1000$+)
50 f1.8 (140$)
18-55 kit lens (You already have it probably)