'Lens' me a hand- Canon 550D
Discussion
I'm looking at getting my first decent camera and have had a look at the Canon 550d which I think I have decided on! I've read the bundled kit lens 18-55mm IS doesn't do the camera justice, so I guess I'll be looking at body only and then a lense.
Budget for lense (£150) will dictate it needs to be a jack of all trades to begin with so what should I be looking for in the focal range etc?
I like to take pictures of landscapes, buildings and people if that helps.
Many thanks for any advice - it's soooo confusing for a noob!
Budget for lense (£150) will dictate it needs to be a jack of all trades to begin with so what should I be looking for in the focal range etc?
I like to take pictures of landscapes, buildings and people if that helps.
Many thanks for any advice - it's soooo confusing for a noob!
Not sure where you heard that but I'd check again.
The views I've heard of the 18-55 IS are that it's an unbeatable lens for the money. It's a lot sharper than the previous non-IS.
In saying that I haven't actually used one... but lenses get very expensive very quickly so I'd suggest the 18-55 is a great starting point to learn from if you are new.
If you do have some money then the inexpensive 50mm 1.8 is a absolute must have while learning.
The views I've heard of the 18-55 IS are that it's an unbeatable lens for the money. It's a lot sharper than the previous non-IS.
In saying that I haven't actually used one... but lenses get very expensive very quickly so I'd suggest the 18-55 is a great starting point to learn from if you are new.
If you do have some money then the inexpensive 50mm 1.8 is a absolute must have while learning.
Range is a really tricky one to answer... 55mm is guaranteed to annoy you a bit in not having enough zoom.
In saying that some people like long zooms, some grow to like wide angle, so it's a learning curve to work out your own personal preference.
FWIW - I'm a wide angle man myself as I love the intimate feeling a 30mm can give in a portrait. But I know plenty of people who hardly ever take a 200mm off their camera.
In saying that some people like long zooms, some grow to like wide angle, so it's a learning curve to work out your own personal preference.
FWIW - I'm a wide angle man myself as I love the intimate feeling a 30mm can give in a portrait. But I know plenty of people who hardly ever take a 200mm off their camera.
If you can stretch then IMO *the* best every day lens for a Canon crop is the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS. It is wide enough (just) for landscapes, fast so it is great for low light and it is super sharp.
Something in between the 17-55 and the 18-55 (in terms of price and quality) is the EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS.
Something in between the 17-55 and the 18-55 (in terms of price and quality) is the EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS.
Lens choice very much depends on what you want to shoot, theres no point going for a wide angle lens if you want to shoot birds or motorsport, likewise no point buying a telephoto lens if you want to do landscape stuff.
If you want to do low light stuff a prime lens is a good idea because they typically have a wide aperture, so can let in lots of light. Many primes are expensive, but the 50mm f1.8 is cheap (£70 or so I think). The other upside of a prime is they are normally razor sharp, the downside is they are a fixed focal length.
If you want to do close up work Canon to a 100mm macro which seems to be a pretty nice lens, £300-350 I think ??
If you want a "zoom" lens you could do worse than the Canon 55-250. Its an unbeatable lens for the money. It just about fits the OPs budget too, but note this would be in addition to, rather than a replacement for the 18-55. You wont replace the 18-55 with anything better for £150, I think you'd have to be looking at the 17-55 f2.8, 17-40L or the 24-70L, all are mucho cash.
a 10-22 is an UWA (ultra wide angle) lens, so typically would be used for landscape, but can be used for anything really - wherever you need to get a wide field of view.
Have a look at this: http://www.tamron.eu/en/lenses/focal-length-compar...
by moving the slider you can see what effect focal length has. I'm not sure how this works out as it doesn't seem to take in to account the crop factor (a crop camera affects the field of view), nevertheless it'll give you an idea.
If you want to do low light stuff a prime lens is a good idea because they typically have a wide aperture, so can let in lots of light. Many primes are expensive, but the 50mm f1.8 is cheap (£70 or so I think). The other upside of a prime is they are normally razor sharp, the downside is they are a fixed focal length.
If you want to do close up work Canon to a 100mm macro which seems to be a pretty nice lens, £300-350 I think ??
If you want a "zoom" lens you could do worse than the Canon 55-250. Its an unbeatable lens for the money. It just about fits the OPs budget too, but note this would be in addition to, rather than a replacement for the 18-55. You wont replace the 18-55 with anything better for £150, I think you'd have to be looking at the 17-55 f2.8, 17-40L or the 24-70L, all are mucho cash.
a 10-22 is an UWA (ultra wide angle) lens, so typically would be used for landscape, but can be used for anything really - wherever you need to get a wide field of view.
Have a look at this: http://www.tamron.eu/en/lenses/focal-length-compar...
by moving the slider you can see what effect focal length has. I'm not sure how this works out as it doesn't seem to take in to account the crop factor (a crop camera affects the field of view), nevertheless it'll give you an idea.
UWA
18/365 - Porsches - January 18th 2011 by Oliver Meads, on Flickr
IMG_3308 by Oliver Meads, on Flickr
18/365 - Porsches - January 18th 2011 by Oliver Meads, on Flickr
IMG_3308 by Oliver Meads, on Flickr
As above - don't believe anyone who tells you the EF-S 18-55 IS is no good - its an excellent lens (unnlike it's non IS predeccessor which was a bit pants).
There's nothing you can get for close to £150 that will beat it (except for the EF 50 f1.8 prime but that's quite restrictive compared to a standard zoom)
More money will buy you a combination of bigger range, wider apperture and better build quility - but like for like you'll be pushed to see a huge difference in image quality.
Candidates for better walkaround lenses are EF-S 15-85, EF-S 17-55 and EF 24-105 F4L - but these are all a lot more than £150.
I have a Sigma 17-70 f2.8/4.5 that I used on my 400d for a while - it was a popular upgrade from the original non IS EF-S 18-55 and you'll get one of those used for about £150 - but frankly the new EF-S 18-55 IS is better.
There's nothing you can get for close to £150 that will beat it (except for the EF 50 f1.8 prime but that's quite restrictive compared to a standard zoom)
More money will buy you a combination of bigger range, wider apperture and better build quility - but like for like you'll be pushed to see a huge difference in image quality.
Candidates for better walkaround lenses are EF-S 15-85, EF-S 17-55 and EF 24-105 F4L - but these are all a lot more than £150.
I have a Sigma 17-70 f2.8/4.5 that I used on my 400d for a while - it was a popular upgrade from the original non IS EF-S 18-55 and you'll get one of those used for about £150 - but frankly the new EF-S 18-55 IS is better.
Edited by Seight_Returns on Wednesday 26th January 11:02
The 18-55 IS kit lens is a lovely peice of glass and cheap too, below are a couple of photo's I took recently with this lens on a 450D. As mentioned anyone that says the lens isn't good is talking complete rubbish!!
The other lens you should pair it up with is the 55-250 IS lens, its extremely sharp and can be got hold of new off the bay for about £140, thats what I paid for mine. Normally they are around the £110 mark or so second hand.
Both those two lenses will keep you going while you get experience and then want to upgrade at some point.
The other lens you should pair it up with is the 55-250 IS lens, its extremely sharp and can be got hold of new off the bay for about £140, thats what I paid for mine. Normally they are around the £110 mark or so second hand.
Both those two lenses will keep you going while you get experience and then want to upgrade at some point.
Edited by 350Wedge on Wednesday 26th January 11:58
350Wedge said:
The 18-55 IS kit lens is a lovely peice of glass and cheap too, below are a couple of photo's I took recently with this lens on a 450D. As mentioned anyone that says the lens isn't good is talking complete rubbish!!
The other lens you should pair it up with is the 55-250 IS lens, its extremely sharp and can be got hold of new off the bay for about £140, thats what I paid for mine. Normally they are around the £110 mark or so second hand.
Both those two lenses will keep you going while you get experience and then want to upgrade at some point.
Indeed, both of those are very sharp and great value. The other option, especially since the OP mentions landscapes and buildings, would be to get the 18-55 IS and start saving up for a 10-20mm or thereabouts UWA. I find I use mine (Sigma 10-20mm f/4) for about a quarter of my shots.The other lens you should pair it up with is the 55-250 IS lens, its extremely sharp and can be got hold of new off the bay for about £140, thats what I paid for mine. Normally they are around the £110 mark or so second hand.
Both those two lenses will keep you going while you get experience and then want to upgrade at some point.
Edited by daveake on Wednesday 26th January 12:11
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