In article
>I'm looking for a good macro/general purpose lens for a Nikon N2020. My
>sister wishes to use it primarly for close up macro work, but some
>zoom/general purpose capabilities would be nice. Willing to spend $100 >-$400.
You didnt say if you wanted AF, but I will assume so, even though
AF is not very practicle with macro. The 55mm f2.8 Micro Nikkor
is hard to beat as an excellent general lens that is also a macro
lens - you should be able to find a used one at a reasonable price
(the 28-105mm Ser. I you mentioned is a barely adequate performer,
(well below the Nikkor), and not very good as a macro lens).
The 35-70mm f3.3-4.5 AF Nikkor is decent, gets to 1:4 (with good performance), and is cheap. Sorry not to be more helpful, but
you are asking for what everyone wants: the fast wide-angle/telephoto zoom that focuses realy close and has great performance throughout
its vast zooming, focusing, and aperture ranges (and it's cheap!).
I was about to write that there is no such lens (at any price!),
but there is one that comes close: the Tamron SP 28-135mm f4-4.5.
It is pretty darn good, though the need to switch focus rings
around 7 feet is a bit of a pain.... They sell used for about $300.
Hope this helps.