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Canon EF 90-300mm Lens
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Ok I am considering buying this lens and I was wondering could anyone give me some advise on this lens and whether or not is is a good buy for 279 euro brand new as I’ve read some bad reviews about it !
Thanks
It all depends what you want to do with the lens.In other words will it cover your needs.On a digital camera with a 1.6X Crop it will work out something like, 112mm to 370mm now that not great if you are taking landscape shots. Have a google on the lens and compare it with say Sigma for the same price.But I will ask the question again “What kind of photos do you enjoy taking”? then decide what lens you need or lenses.
Hmmm…well my main interest in Photography would be music and live bands as in local wouldn’t dream of bringing my Canon 400d into a metal gig I also enjoy Architectural and Wildlife photography
Well the 90-300 would cover all those different types of photography.
Found some reviews of the lens here..have a read
http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=008YBR
http://www.photographyreview.com/cat/lenses/35mm-zoom/canon/PRD_388576_3128crx.aspx
Endless wrote:
Hmmm…well my main interest in Photography would be music and live bands as in local wouldn’t dream of bringing my Canon 400d into a metal gig I also enjoy Architectural and Wildlife photography
I’d say the lens is too slow for this. By slow I mean the aperture f/4 f5.6. I’ll mean your shutter speed could well be too long in the generally low light conditions at gigs. You should consider a prime lens. The Canon 50mm f1.8 is fantastic value, and though build quality isn’t great and autofocus isn’t much to write home about (though AF will always be tricky in low light – much better to maual focus on what you want, and go from there), it’d be a great candidate.
Also consider the Sigma 70-300mm f4-f5.6 APO (the APO is important – they have another similarly named lens which isn’t in the same league). It’s got a wider range, is cheaper than the Canon, very sharp, at least up to about 230mm, and all round a great lens for the price. It also does a reasonable job at closeup photography.
John
Thanks for that!
So I’m in a bit of a tizzy two people recommending two different lenses.
Something I love in photos is sharpness especially in animal ones I’ve seen some fantastic shots ffrom Dublin Zoo on here and as im going there in the last week of August I’d love to have my new lens so out of the two which would you recommend for this?
Endless,
In the 70/75/90 – 300 range there are quite a lot to choose from. If you take a look at this page (down near the bottom) http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/default.php?cat=1&type=1380&man=8&filterwords=&go=SEARCH&comp= you will see that they range in price from ?128-?729 (Sterling). At the end of the day you get what you pay for. I have read that the cheap Canon zooms (anything cheaper than the 70-300 IS USM) in that range all suffer from a bit of image softness at the 200-300 zoom range which is the last thing you want to hear for shooting at the zoo. I have the 70-300 IS USM f4/5.6. While it is not a particularly fast lens i.e. maximum aperture is f4/5.6, it is sharp in the 200-300 range and it does have the added benefit of the Image Stabiliser (great if your subject is not moving). If you are using a long lens, you are not using a tripod and you have shaky hands like I have, the Image Stabiliser is invaluable. In terms of its sharpness I would rate it almost as good as Canons professional “L” lenses.
The Sigma APO has the reputation of being sharper than the cheap Canons.
Hope this has not complicated things more. :shock:
So from what you have said is there sharpness or softness in the 200-300mm range of a Canon 90 – 300mm f4.5-5.6?
From reading reviews people have said the 70-300mm is much better with sharpness in the 200-300mm range is this true and what would the price for a 70-300mm be?
If you need to see how good a budget lens (I got my Nikon version for ?150) like the Sigma 70-300 APO can be check out our very own Madra Rua’s zoo shots at http://www.flickr.com/photos/madrarua/sets/72157594521589718/ As far as I know he shot all of them with this lens.
From what I’ve seen of this lens from him, and others on here, it’s pretty much unbeatable at the price. I haven;t shot a huge amount with mine yet, but what I have shot I’m happy with :D
I dont think I recommended that lens to you endless,all I said is that it will cover what you want to use it for.As for image quality of then lens ,thats what reviews are for,or someone that owns the lens will tell you how good the quality is. I owned the Canon 75-300 USM III prior to upgrading and it was a good enough lens for what I was doing,I was happy with the sharpness and it served me well for what I payed for it.The Sigma that was also mentioned ,I know a few people that have that lens and they are happy with the results too. One thing I have experience of in the past is to rush into buying something and then realize later that I should have waited and bought the other lens for the extra ?150. So take your time,read the reviews and ask plenty questions. Is there anywhere you can test out the lens on your camera before buying.Even to step outside the shop and take a couple of photos????
Endless wrote:
So from what you have said is there sharpness or softness in the 200-300mm range of a Canon 90 – 300mm f4.5-5.6?
From reading reviews people have said the 70-300mm is much better with sharpness in the 200-300mm range is this true and what would the price for a 70-300mm be?
Endless,
From what I have read the 90-300 would be soft at the 200-300 end.
I have found that my 70-300 IS USM is sharp in that range. I would expect to spend around ?550 for the 70-300.
The difference between the 70-300 and the other cheaper Canon lenses is that the 70-300 has a special UD lens element which is also commonly found in the more expensive L series of lenses.
Hi Endless,
I hope I don’t confuse you even more here but here goes.
I use the Canon EF75-300 1:4-5:6 III USM which is a few years old now but I’m sure it can be categorised with the ‘cheap’ canon zooms. I tend to agree with the comments above, it is a bit soft, and if I decide to persue wildlife photography more vigourously I would probably upgrade. But it does a reasonable job and is fine for what I need at the moment although the f/5.6. may be a little slow for you at the long-end.
Most of the images on the flora/fauna page of my website are taken with this so feel free to have a look. Note that very few of these have been sharpened in PS so you will get a reasonable feel for the characteristics of the lens.
http://www.garyhawkinsphoto.com/gallery_53925.html
Hope this helps, although not sure if it does!
Gary
Found a good site in Hong Kong that have great prices and they have free shipping and further more if you get caught for VAT ,just send them the receipt and they will refund you what you payed.Bought the ST-E2 from them without any problems and looking at the 5D at the moment.
heres a link to the Sigma 70-300mm mentioned (hope its the right one, someone confirm please)
http://www.onestop-digital.com/catalog/product_info.php?currency=EUR&cPath=24_28&products_id=275
I would like to thank everyone on their tips etc!
Well I’ve spent the last hour reading reviews of lenses and I think I will get the Sigma 70-300 DG APO!
Not to sound stupid but will this be compatible with my Canon EOS 400D ?
Endless wrote:
I would like to thank everyone on their tips etc!
Well I’ve spent the last hour reading reviews of lenses and I think I will get the Sigma 70-300 DG APO!
Not to sound stupid but will this be compatible with my Canon EOS 400D ?
Endless,
There should be no problem with that lens as long as you order it with the Canon Mount as it comes in other mounts too. Some of the older Sigma lenses can have issues with newer cameras and therefore need to be rechipped by Sigma. The only time you might possibly have a problem with this lens is if say for instance in the future you upgrade your camera to the 400D replacement or the replacement for the replacement. However, my guess is you will have many years of happy use with that lens.
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