Help needed with buying ?

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farmerswife

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lynn
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I want to buy a Canon 550d which comes with a 18-55mm IS lens....and as i wish to take photos of wildlife the shop have recommended that i buy a zoom lens a 75-300mm are they recommending me correctly ? I have never brought a slr camera before and i am very new to phography has anyone got any ideas of what to get ? I like the feel of the 550d but do I buy with out the lens just the body and then get lens or do i buy what the shop suggests ? I am confused any ideas gratefully recieved please :)
 
18-55 is is a good lens. 55-250mm is is also a good zoom lens to go for
 
Hi , thank you i really appreciate all advice with it being my first SLR camera i want to try to get it right ...thank you:)
 
75-300mm would be a complete waste of time and money. 18-55 is more or less a waste time also - too slow really for anything indoors, etc.

For wildlife perhaps look at 70-200mm f/4 to get started, and some of the f/2.8 zooms around 17-50mm range. Don't get that junk new at silly prices or it will hold you back for a long time to come.

Since you are just starting you could do with an older but better body for a start - like 30d or 40d and save a little for the lens.
 
If you buy a 550D, get the 18-55IS + 55-250IS. You can take some pretty pix with it.

If you decide to get a 40D, consider a 70-200F4L or older 70-200F2.8.

It might cost you the same. Neither are really good for wildlife, but then my idea of wildlife and your idea of wildlife may be completely different because I actually live in Africa.
 
I am travelling to Kenya in 4 weeks so that is why i wanted to get into the photography and to take some nice photos...how lovely to have that all on your doorstep...wonderful thanks for advice but i would like a 550d its just sorting out which lens to get ...i just love animals. thank you:)
 
To be able to advise you what is your budget for a lens as this will be a good starting point for us all. Also are you more interested in Birds or mamals or both
Regards
Richard
 
farmerswife said:
I am travelling to Kenya in 4 weeks so that is why i wanted to get into the photography and to take some nice photos...how lovely to have that all on your doorstep...wonderful thanks for advice but i would like a 550d its just sorting out which lens to get ...i just love animals. thank you:)
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Do yourself a favour..

get the 550D body, get a used 70-200F4 (without IS is also good) and search for a used 400F5.6L

You will not be disappointed, I promise.

The 550D is a great body, latest processors, and good MP, the two lenses are superb, affordable in the used market rendering superb images, and you can travel with it.

Sometimes in the 'real' wild, you need to get closer and focal length is all you really need. a 70-200 helps if it is a giraffe, but many of the buck is a lot smaller than you think.

The South African rugby emblem is a springbok, in real life it is a tiny little thing, and there are many such animals, hence the 400 is the thing to get too
 
Get the 550D it is the *******s of a camera!
I have the 550D with the 18-55 is and the 55-250 is. I love the 55-250 and tho the 18-55 is is not a bad lens I'm looking to replace it with something better like the Canon 17-55 is usm f2.8 or the 17-85 is usm f4-5.6 or the 24-105 is usm f4L, the 55-250 is excellent and I'm keeping it but in the next few years I will replace it with th 70- 300 is usm as it has a longer range and it is build like a brick although not as tough as the L series but for £350 u will not get an L lens.
 
Unless it's second hand, and don't forget the 1.6 x factor whitch will make the 55-250 a 400mm in 35 mm terms and a 300mm to a 480mm get the (is) it really is awsome.
 
I would:

Get the 550D and 18-55 lens. It's a good camera and you'd be a mug not to get the lens as it's a very good general all-rounder that you will use a lot. It's also a bargain.

For the longer stuff, frankly for wildlife you can't have too long a lens. Long lenses are both expensive and also take a bit of practise to use well. Guessing at your budget, around the £200 mark, the one to get is the 55-250.

That won't really be long enough for a lot of things on safari, so I would hire a Canon 100-400L from www.lensesforhire.co.uk
 
Surprised nobody has mentioned the Sigma 150-500... Great lens, great Value. Incredible reach.

Ok so it's not good indoors with f5 but in African context... Don't think you can fault it personally...
 
lancsoatcake said:
Surprised nobody has mentioned the Sigma 150-500... Great lens, great Value. Incredible reach.

Ok so it's not good indoors with f5 but in African context... Don't think you can fault it personally...
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It costs £900.
 
Thank you all so much for your help ...i am definately going to get the canon 550d and that comes with the 18-55mm lens so with all this info i shall probably go and try to get the 55-200 and look at second hand 100-400l i have a budget of £850 to £900 so should find something now i have some help thank you all so much.:)
 
farmerswife said:
Thank you all so much for your help ...i am definately going to get the canon 550d and that comes with the 18-55mm lens so with all this info i shall probably go and try to get the 55-200 and look at second hand 100-400l i have a budget of £850 to £900 so should find something now i have some help thank you all so much.:)
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:thumbs:

The lens you want is not 55-200 - it's Canon EF-S 55-250mm IS, about £190.

The best reach/quality/value combo is the Canon 70-300mm IS at £400. That might just do the job, if you have the budget. Nice lens, and a step up from the 55-250.

After that, longer lenses really start to get expensive. A used Canon 100-400L will be about £900. You can hire one for 14 days for £120.
 
You mean 55-250 is 4-5.6. You should be able to pick this up from amazon for £150 and as far as the 550D + 18-55 is Jessops do it as a kit for £599 ps: get a sandisc sdhc 8gb class 10 30mb transfer rate as it's the best £20 from amazon, I went through 4 othe makes that didn't live up to the job especially when recording video.
 
I agree about Sandisc. I tride a couple of other makes and had issues with them. The Sandisc has been 100% reliable. So far.
 
Or instead of the two lenses you could get the all new tamron 18-270 and just have the one lens to carry around. It won't have the IQ of the longer canon lenses but it means you won't miss something while lens swapping.
 
Again thank you iam off shopping at the weekend.....let you all know what i end up with....
 
I stick to getting used Canon L glass. If the two lenses together is a problem, get a used 100-400L.
Sigma *-500 are not in the same class as the CanonL lenses, even if they are 10years old. Been there, done that, burnt the t-shirt.

An African safari is not something you go back to in order to repeat photos. Do the best you can.

I believe to take the best equipment I can lay my hands on for special jobs, if it requires a 1Dmk4 and a 600F4LIS lens, so be it, even if I have to beg and borrow
 
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