HELP ME! my first lens purchase....canon

button-moon

button-moon

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Tracey
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hi guys....
for the people who have already met me on the TP meet will know just how much of a noob i am :lol:

i think i have settled on a lens.....a canon 70-300mm III IS USM (or something similar LOL)

ive been told the IS is needed to reduce blur....and does the USM give faster auto focusing?

im looking for something like this...that goes to 300, but i dont want to pay a fortune :lol: anyone recommend a lens like this, or this lens, and also where would i get one at a good price......what would everyone say was a cheap price for this lens??
:shrug: so confused!! LOL
 
I had a canon 70-300 IS USM, it was s superb lens for the money (I paid 330 and sold it a year later for 300).
Took it to Kenya on safari, and I even impressed myself with some of the pictures it took!
The IS is really good, it reduces camera shake, especially useful at 300mm.
I did find it a noisy lens, and the AF wasn't hugely fast, but it certainly wasn't a hindrence, and unless you're trying to track birds in flight (which I was) then it really won't be any problem.
If I hadn't got myself a 100-400 I certainly wouldn't be unhappy with keeping the 300 :)
 
The Canon EF 70-300mm F4-5.6 IS USM, which you are referring to is an excellent lens, and can only be bought with IS - there is no non IS version. This lens goes for about £300 - 400 new.

DONT get it confused with the cheaper Canon EF 75-300mm F4-5.6 III USM Lens which you can get with or without IS - its a soft lens and no where near the quality of the 70-300. The 75-300 goes for about £130 new.

As for the 70-300 IS, it one of the best non 'L' telephotos out there, I would recommend one of these if you are set on a 300mm lens.

The 55-250 IS is also a very good telephoto if you are prepared to sacrifice 50mm and USM.
 
Its no where near as sharp as the 70-300 basically. The 70-300 is simply better in every respect, a lot better.

Also the IS on the 75-300 was the first IS Canon made back in (I think) 1993 so this is a very crude IS system on the 75-300.
 
I think they are around £350 from Kerso
 
button-moon said:
£380 with delivery from him.

whats your thoughts on second hand lenses too....anyone had any bad experiences?
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I've bought a few S/H lenses on here and have been VERY pleased with all of them - and saved a LOAD of cash in the process!

And I'd rather buy from other photographers who look after their gear than an unknown on Ebay.

I would say it's well worth keeping an eye on here for bargains and go for someone who has good Itrader reports.

BTW lots of people slam the 75-300mm lens but I have a MkII and up to 200mm it's quite a reasonable lens - from 200-300 it does get softer but I've seen them going on here for less than £100 - which is good for a 70-200mm lens (which is what it actually should be).
 
Firstly, hello, I have been lurking through your threads for a while and thought I had better stop by.

Now my questions are

why do you want the lens mentioned above?

What do you want to shoot?

Just asking so that I/we can better understand what you want to do.

ps I used to live in Bacup, for my sins
 
tiler65 said:
ps I used to live in Bacup, for my sins
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You really must have sinned then :lol::lol:


The 70-300 IS is a cracker of a lens and is worth buying, it is very highly rated and I don't think you'll be disappointed with it.

As has been said above, I would pay the extra and buy this lens, not the 75-300 models. :thumbs:
 
ha ha how dare u lurk and not say hello!!! :lol: :)

as for your questions:
why do you want the lens mentioned above? i borrowed a 300mm at a TP meet...and got lens envy, i only have a kit lens :(

What do you want to shoot? really my interest is portraits, but i havent had the chance to shoot any, dont know a thing about lighting setups!, but i do like to shoot zoo animals etc, and my kit lens just aint guna do it!! :lol:

you used to live in Bacup...congrats on the escape!! where did u escape too?

also, are you coming to the blackpool zoo meet? x

andyred thanks for that!...ive removed all the 75-300 from my 'watched item' list!
 
So what kitchenaid are you thinking about?

My sister receintly upgraded her kenwood chef to a kenwood major with all the tools and a huge mixing bowl and I thought camera lenses were expensive £650 for a food mixer WTF
 
If you wan to shoot ports then 70-300 would not really be any use but I suppose it is all down to cost. As you will know this togging lark aint cheap.

With your camera being a 1.6 crop you should try the nifty fifty for you portrait stuff.

Top price of £75 and it is stonking lens.

Try Kerso who is a member on here, he will probably be the cheapest for a brand new one.
 
tom, yeah everyone says my kit lens is fine for portraits, but until i get to have a go i wont know! LOL as for days out and TP meets id love to have something with abit of extra zoom rather than 50!!

little john, i know they are expensive arent they!! ha ha i want a kitchen aid artisan...roughly £389....so about the same price as the lens i want LOL
i deffo need one though...gone through 9 hand mixers already, they just cant cope with the amount of cakes i make LOL
 
Totally off topic but according to my sister if you make a 12" fruit cake you need more power and a bigger bowl or you end up mixing it in 2 or more, goes then try to mix it all together is tough, she would put it all in to the bowl in 2 halfs then mix half of each mixed bowl then mix half of each again to ensure it was evenly mixed. now witht he big bowl and powerfull motor she can do one in a single go.

If you want a more powerfull kenwood cheff Makro often have them on offer.
 
Hi there

From what it sounds, you've only got the standard kit lens. Correct me if I'm wrong. Are you going to be replacing your kit lens with the 70-300 as your main lens or as an additional lens for when you need the extra length?

Either way, it all depends on your budget really.....but spending more initially on a high quality lens may be a better investment long term. Have you considered buying an 'L' quality lens to replace your kit lens? Something like the 17-55mm f/2.8 or 24-105mm f/4 L are both amazing in quality, and depending on what you shoot, the constant aperture can be very advantageous. There is also the option of 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM which is also very popular if you need the extra reach. However, each of these will probably cost a good £600 bought second hand........so its up to you whether you can justify the price tag.

If you are certain you need the 300mm then like others have mentioned, the 70-300mm IS USM is a good lens for the price.
 
Little John said:
Totally off topic but according to my sister if you make a 12" fruit cake you need more power and a bigger bowl or you end up mixing it in 2 or more, goes then try to mix it all together is tough, she would put it all in to the bowl in 2 halfs then mix half of each mixed bowl then mix half of each again to ensure it was evenly mixed. now witht he big bowl and powerfull motor she can do one in a single go.

If you want a more powerfull kenwood cheff Makro often have them on offer.
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LMAO, i dont tend to make fruit cakes...it costs me too much! i have my eye on the boysenberry kitchenaid artisan...cheapest ive seen so far is £341...but its out of stock at the mo!!

Nikon Dave said:
How about this one http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Sigma-70-300m...es_CameraLensesFilters_JN?hash=item2305dbfc98 and you can shoot macro photos with it as well .
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seems to have the same spec as the canon one....so why the huge difference in price tag?? :thinking::shrug:
lauy said:
Hi there

From what it sounds, you've only got the standard kit lens. Correct me if I'm wrong. Are you going to be replacing your kit lens with the 70-300 as your main lens or as an additional lens for when you need the extra length?

Either way, it all depends on your budget really.....but spending more initially on a high quality lens may be a better investment long term. Have you considered buying an 'L' quality lens to replace your kit lens? Something like the 17-55mm f/2.8 or 24-105mm f/4 L are both amazing in quality, and depending on what you shoot, the constant aperture can be very advantageous. There is also the option of 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM which is also very popular if you need the extra reach. However, each of these will probably cost a good £600 bought second hand........so its up to you whether you can justify the price tag.

If you are certain you need the 300mm then like others have mentioned, the 70-300mm IS USM is a good lens for the price.
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yeah im looking to keep both lenses, one i can just use for the kids, and then one for abit of extra length when out and about. ive heard of the 'L' quality lenses, and apparently the 70-300mm canon is almost as good as one (well nearest you can get for the price tag?) and yup...£600 is near enough what i paid for the camera....i thought i had done the expensive part LMAO
i wanted one of the new ones with the green ring around the lens...but at £800 its not going to happen!! :lol:
 
Buy the sigma one for nature pics and then buy the 50mm 1.8 for portraits and save a bundle ;)
 
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