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Ideal lens for DSLR Canon 350D
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Hi All,
Impressed with the site and ideas I seen so far. Just moved up from a Kodak CX6230 to a DSLR Canon EOS 350D and want to go further in the photograph hobby. Anyone know what’s an ideal lens for taking both landscape and portrait pictures. Still learning the workings of it.
Banjo. :)
Banjo wrote:
Not more than 400 euros, the wife would kill me.
It’s comforting to hear that I’m not the only one with that “problem”! :(
Banjo wrote:
Not more than 400 euros, the wife would kill me.
I have a 30D with a Canon 17-85mm IS attached almost 100% of the time. It is a little bit more expensive than your budget, but might be worth saving for. Most of my recent work displayed here is with that lens.
A slightly more wife friendly option might be the Sigma 18-125mm f/3.5-5.6 DC (around ?200).
From: http://www.ephotozine.com/equipment/tests/testdetail.cfm?test_id=377
Verdict
As a walk-around lens, this design from the Sigma stable scores well over the normal offering of ?kit? lenses, giving extended focal length at the long end and improved performance at the wide end. The reduced need for lens changes on the digital SLR?s that it is made for ensures less chance of the dreaded dust getting at the sensor whilst, at the same time, the light weight and compact size will reduce neck ache after long days carrying it around. It?s ability to cover everything from landscape through portraits to short telephoto work makes and ideal addition to the camera kit.In summary, the positive points of the Sigma 18-125mm f/3.5-5.6 DC lens are
Compact size and weight
Good build quality
Out-performs most ?kit? lenses especially at the wide end.
Good range of mounts available.Negative points are:
Drop in performance at longer focal lengthsThanks SteveD,
I see what you mean about the canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM, 649 euros on the komplett.ie site.
The Sigma 18-125mm for 299 euros on the same site looks to be a better option at the mo and a lower risk of having my legs broken.Also thanks lahinch_lass, budget of lens never enter my head. Just mad to take the new camera out for a test run this weekend.
Hi Banjo
I just noticed that the member ‘Gerard’ has the 17-85 for sale down in the ‘For Sale’ section of the forum….! Might be worth making him an offer…!
Richie
Did you get the kit lens (18-55) with the 350D? If so, work with it for a while. It is not as bad as it’s reputation would make out. It’s opens pretty wide at 18mm and is OK considering what it costs. Like you’ve just noticed, getting something better costs a lot of money.
Yeah, I got the lens included. I know what you mean, no point upgrading yet till I know the ins and outs of the canon. Tried out the camera today before going to work at the river. Impressed so far, just keep at it till I improve. Uploaded some pics on the gallery site if ye want a look. https://www.photographyireland.net/album_personal.php?user_id=231
Thanks for the tip Richie, will keep an eye on that forum from now on. Going to hold off till christmas though.
Banjo.
Zooms will excel at neither in your price range. As an off-the-wall suggestion, how about trying manual focus lenses from 35mm film systems via an adaptor? The adaptors for EOS cameras are cheap enough (?20 maybe from Chinese eBay suppliers), and you can pick up pretty cheap secondhand Pentax/Praktica type lenses that will murder any consumer zoom for what you want to do, especially the portraits, where you really need a fast short tele like a 85-135mm (range of best fixed lengths, not a zoom) f2.8 to get sharpness, short depth of field and pleasing background blur. The traditional landscape choice is wides, and again you’ll find plenty of cheap 24-28mm wides available on eBay.
Prime lenses, even cheap old ones, will thrash all-purpose zooms, even modern ones, on image quality every day of the week. You have to decide what you need: autofocus convenience and an all-in-one package with compromised quality, or the absolute best IQ you can buy on a limited budget, but with the added faff of manual focussing and stop-down metering. Inside the ?400, you’d easily get an adaptor, a fast tele and a wide lens (probably get the lot for less than ?200), and still have change for Canon’s 50mm f1.8 II which is the only *really* good dirt cheap AF lens.
It’s kind of like choosing between a new Mondeo estate or a secondhand MGB/Landrover combo ;) Do you want a bland but convenient modern experience or the dirty hands, visceral old-style purity of vision and experience?
PS, noticing you’re in Limerick, if you fancied a hands-on tryout to see if it would work for you, I’m pretty close to Limerick city and could meet up some morning or weekend. I have an adaptor and 28mm and 135mm manual lenses.
SteveFE wrote:
The adaptors for EOS cameras are cheap enough (?20 maybe from Chinese eBay suppliers), and you can pick up pretty cheap secondhand Pentax/Praktica type lenses
In relation to those Chinese EOS Adapters, just be careful. You might have to do a little DIY on them to get them working optimally.
I have a Contax Zeiss 28mm Distagon and 50mm planar that I use on my 350D. I bought two cheap adapters from Chinese ebay sellers. There is no doubt they were great value for money but both adapters were the incorrect thickness. Canon EOS focal plane to flange distance is 44mm. Because of this short distance (shorter than most) its makes the Canon system great for using old manual lenses, including Nikon manual lenses. Shock horror! :P Pentax K,M42 Contax etc. have a distance of 45.5mm (Nikon 46.5mm and Leica R 47mm) so therefore the thickness of my adapter had to be 1.5mm. Both adapters I bought were +-2mm so in effect it was like adding a .5mm extension tube therefore reducing the range of the lens. This lost me infinity focus. As a result of this I got some metal sandpaper and a borrowed micrometer and gradually reduced the thickness to 1.5.
….Phew…. :shock:One other thing to remember is the relative difficulty of manually focussing with the 350D viewfinder but this isnt a problem if you are using the lens for the likes of Landscape.
I dont want to put you off going down this route. There are some fantastic manual optics out there that can be got very very cheaply and work very well on Canon cameras. Maybe the vast majority of cheap adapters are spot on but I just think you should be aware of the POSSIBLE pit falls that exist. Needless to say the expensive adapters are spot on but they would need to be wouldnt they! :wink:
carl, I’ve also heard a lot about Chinese adaptors not being the right thickness. All I can say is that mine is chromed brass (not aluminium), cost all of ?20, and allows infinity focus on all 5 OM-fit lenses I own (just got another one today).
I’m also waiting delivery on another two adaptors so I can keep them permanently attached on three of the lenses (makes changeovers quicker when out and about), and if they also both work to infinity I think that’d be a fair case for a positive QC rating from the supplier I used.
I’ll let you all know when they arrive.
Steve, I would be very interested to know how you get on. Could you PM me your supplier? :wink:
Adaptors really do open up a whole new world of lenses out there.No need to PM Carl, I’m happy enough with the one I got to post the address in public ;)
http://stores.ebay.ie/CIRRUS-ADAPTER-WHOLESALE
But like I say, I’ll definitely follow up this post when the other two arrive, just to confirm if they also infinity-focus OK. It’s always possible I just got a good one out of several junkers, but I’d say if I get three out of three good ones that’d qualify as a firm recommendation from me. Should have them in a couple of days.
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