I’m going to buy a new camera, and from reviews the Canon 400D looks to be the one. Or the Nikon D60. That decision will be taken in Jessops when I get my hands around one, but I need some lens advice. The default lenses are - esp for the Canon - getting some dire reviews but I have no idea if the reviewer is being very critical from a technical pov or just because it’s not for them. But another lens is a significant chunk of cash. I’ve checked various sites and forums and the reviews get quite technical and beyond what I may want to do, but both the above apparently make settings easier to play hence the choice of 2.
So, does the initial lens actually make a difference for someone like me or should I be looking to buy extra at initial purchase? I’m not after some huge upgrade path, just a good camera that will take better (crisper, more vivid) images than my current one. (And I’m asking because I like to go into stores and tell them what I want without giving them the chance to sell me what they want me to have).
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22 Comments
I’d say stick with the kit lens and when you figure out what type of photos you prefer (wide angle or zoom) then you should look at a new lens.
There’s no doubt that spending money on a decent lens will result in possibly sharper and better looking images, but unless you’re making large prints or you routinely look at your images at 100% zoom you won’t notice the difference.
I agree with Donncha, esp with the Nikon, the kit lens is fine for 95% of the pitures you’ll take starting off… I have the D50, and it’s top notch!
That sounds good :)
The bundle I’m thinking of is this:
Canon EOS 400D (Black) + EFS 18-55mm Lens + Tamron 70-300mm F4/5.6 DI LD Macro (Canon AF)+ Sandisk 2GB Ultra II Compactflash Card
I like macro stuff so the lens seems cheap enough at the time of purchase. Though it is just that - cheap.
I have the 300D and love it. You’ve seen the website I use, there you can see what kind of images are taken with particular lenses/cameras(http://www.dpchallenge.com/lens.php).
I use the 18-55mm lens LOADS. It’s great for just walking about, taking close up pictures (most of the shots on Oliver’s blog are with that lens). Don’t think I should do this, but I walk around Edinburgh with the camera around my neck just clicking away. I’ve had loads of good candid shots with this lens as folk don’t know I’m taking pictures.
I splurged and bought the Canon EF 70-200mm USM lens. (http://www.canon.co.uk/for_home/product_finder/cameras/ef_lenses/zoom_lenses/EF_70200mm_f4L_USM/)
It was a lot of money (looking at that page the price has gone up and I’ve had it for a good few years) but it is an amazing lens. The clarity, speed, ruggedness (and cool clicking sound when you take a shot) is definately worth it. When you go to Jessops, they may have one in stock for you to try, you will not regret it if you are taking shots at a distance.
An excellent little lens at hardly any cost is the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II. I use it as a macro lens, but it definately excels as a lens to work in bad lighting or for use when taking headshots of people. You can drop the depth of field down to 1.8 which results in some really good images.
I see loads of folk buying an 8gb card thinking this is the best thing to do. I then laugh when the card gets damaged and they have lost all the images on it, whereas a few 2gb cards mean if one is damaged, you haven’t lost everthing.
Might also be an idea to look at the battery grip (Canon Code BG-E3). I’ve seen it for £130 (or £79 on cameraworld.co.uk…) and when I’m out for a few hours with the camera it’s a definate plus. Basically it holds two batteries, but also makes the camera easier to hold in my big hands. One cool wee thing I read on a website ages ago is that in the battery grip you can hide a spare memory card. So, when you fill your 2gb card, there’s always one to hand when needed :-)
Now, for the fun part…
Look around UK websites for cheaper than Jessops prices. Print out a three different cheaper prices and take them in to Jessops, then ask them to pricematch. (They will do it, they want your money…) When I did it I was a little nervous, but I saved around £200 without them seeming too bothered… They were glad of the sale, I was glad of spare money to buy more camera stuff.
Have a look at http://www.warehouseexpress.com, bought loads from them too at cheaper than Jessops prices…
Thanks Terry :)
The Tamron looks okay at DPC and nice things are said. It’s a bundle I picked as apart from a bag and a spare battery it has the bits I actually want.
Would I need that small lens for macro / really close up or would the tamron work?
I think for the bundle price I’m looking good for Jessops - the tanron alone saves over 60 quid. So the bundle gives me enough to play with and then next month I get another battery + grip, memcard (I agree about several not one), bag and any other bits I found I need.
Just depends on the little lens I reckon.
Just had a quick look at the reviews of the Tamaron lens and they seem quite positive. Does look a good price, however I bought a Sigma 100-300mm f/4.5-6.7 DL when I first got my camera. I used it in the shop, used it a few times outside, thoughtzooming in was good but didn’t really like the feel of it (one thing people say about the Tamaron and Sigma lens is the ‘feel’ isn’t great) Its hard to explain, but if you get the chance to hold one of the Canon white lenses try one. I know they are more expensive, but for the results you get it’s definately worth it.
If you are going to be doing more macro shots, a proper macro lens would be better. But, sit down when looking for the prices as they aren’t cheap.
For the price of the 50mm 1.8 lens it’s definately worth getting to use as a macro one. I’ve been sitting down with Oliver in the garden and have used it loads on close up things. But, as it’s a fixed lens you can’t zoom in or out so you need to be back about half a metre when taking shots with it.
When you go to the shop, ask them to try the lenses, they should be fine with it. There’s a few Jessops shops in Edinburgh and the guys there really know what they are talking about and are happy to show you how/what each lens does.
The macro prices are indeed scary, and yet it’s where I play most. It’s also where I’ve found my Fuji to be lacking in detail esp when I want shadows, low light. It’s not flowers and similar - though outside stuff is fun - but more setup stuff inside. Food, speakers, inside small spaces, clutter, just stuff. Seeing patterns where others might not.
I’ll see what they say. And I’ve no problem walking away if they won’t do a better deal. I’ve hassled before in shops and it has saved me cash before.
Have you got a good tripod? I bought a Benbo Mini Trekker (http://www.warehouseexpress.com/product/default.aspx?sku=10807) and then realised I needed to buy another wee bit to connect the camera to it :-)
The beauty about this one is that you can move the legs on it in loads of different ways so if you are doing anything inside on a weird surface it’s easy to move accordingly.
I know it’s not cheap, but a definately a good buy.
Another vote for the 50mm Cannon f1.8II. It is the cheapest nastiest most plastic lens you could ask for but it has good optics and is normally stuck to the front of my 400D.
Also, a great photographer with a crap lens will still take better pictures than a crap photographer with a great lens - Ansell Adams did ok without multi coated lenses and image stabilisers.
I think the 450D is/ will be out soon so that might be worth looking into.
One other thing about the 50mm Cannon f1.8II is that it’s very rugged…
I’ve tested this a few times by dropping it onto concrete from about 5 feet and it still works fine.
Terry - tell me this was accidental :)
Ian - I agree about it’s not what you’ve got it’s how you use it. My target will be learning the features and making the most of them - and then look to move on.
The 450D looks a little pricey though so the bundle plus a little haggling will probably be it.
Yeah, total accident. There was a deep river right next to me so luckily it never fell in there :-)
I got the package as above but the mkII wasn’t in stock. It’s paid for and I;ll get it later.
One thing surprised me - no cord to attach the lenscover to the barrel or hole in the cover to make that happen. I assume that real photographers don’t lose these things :) I thought I had a filter to protect the lens too but it doesn’t fit - might get one of those, though it just needs plain glass really.
Other than that I just need to clear some work before playing though in reality it’ll be tomorrow daytime for real stuff.
I hold the camera in my right hand, take the lens cap off and it goes straight into my back left hand pocket. You will get used to it :-)
Filters do come in handy. A UV filter can be useful just to stay on your lens to esentially protect it just incase anything hits the front of the lens. You can pick them up pretty cheaply.
If you are doing any shots of water, a circular polariser filter it really good (also useful for taking pictures of rainbows which I found out standing in a field…) You twist the filter and you can see it changing the look of the shot. Also good for use in daily use too.
+1 on the UV filter -it’s a great protector of the lens.. I’ve had at least one occasion when the filter took a blow that shattered it, but left the lens intact. For the sake of a few quid, it’s a life saver!
Did you get details on the cashback offer?
http://canonlensacc2008.onlinerebates.com/howtoclaim.aspx
Terry - yep. I gave Jacq all the right bits of paper and she is sorting that. It works out at 45 quid so that’ll get another battery :)
And a UV filter will be bought Monday.
Just need to play with the menus and controls now . And decide which software to use. I have Graphic Converter, Photoshop Elements 4 and Pixelmator. GC seems to handle the jpg files best but I have only briefly tried things so far.
I was surprised it didn’t mount too, that I needed the EOS utility. Still, so far so good :)
I don’t connect the camera directly to my macbook, I use a card reader. Can’t think I’ve actually tried to connect it that way
Would have thought that iPhoto would mount though?!?
No - there is no connection I can see, but then I wouldn’t launch iPhoto. It begins with that damned i :)
I have a card reader so I’ll use that so save wear/tear on the usb connection. Bonus is I can just remove it, no ejecting needed.
The teachers at the schools I work in love iPhoto. (only because it’s easy for them to use)
They don’t listen to me when I tell them the images are held on the macs, not their home drive. I always laugh when they loose 4gb of images for the kids photo stories that they really need.
We’ve given all schools 320gb external hard drives to back these up (as well as the home drive) but they don’t listen :-)
I’d like a better image app on the mac but the way this one transfers to folders that are date/time stamped works for me. I like that. Tagging? Possibly - I found Stimulus ages ago if it’s still around.
And I need to setup nightly copies to the MyBook too.
Just get what you can afford… you can pick up lenses as you go. I’ve always liked something in the 28-70mm range with a macro, then a 70-200mm… but that’s non-digital. In the beginning the more important piece of hardware is the flash. See if you can get something with a slave/master option, but definitely get something to replace the internal flash which comes with the SLR’s.
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0508/05082206canon430ex.asp
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