L Glass Alternative.

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Dale.

Dale.

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Dale.
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Hi all.

I'm looking to upgrade to some nice glass, as well as a new camera. I've decided on the 40D but my budget won't allow L-Glass after the 40D purchase. so I was wondering what lenses might begin to come close to L-Glass, for around £300-£400, with a nice wide range if possible, of say 20-200/250mm? It doesn't have to be Canon glass. It's a minefield out there and I want to get this right, as I don't get this oppurtunity everyday.

Thanks for you help. all comments appreciated.

Dale.:)
 
Generally speaking lenses with a big range of focal lengths are poorer quality, so wouldn't be near L quality.

I'd pic the focal length you use the most get a lens that covers that area.
 
Thanks mate.

I have a Sigma 28-105, though it's not a great lens, it can be a bit soft, so maybe a lens in that range, ish, would be the way to go.

Any suggestions?
 
The only way I've seen to approach L quality at a lower price is to use primes, some of which are very good. Have a think about your requirement and whether you could get by with primes.
 
Craikeybaby said:
Generally speaking lenses with a big range of focal lengths are poorer quality, so wouldn't be near L quality.
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What you mean the Canon 35-300 L :lol:

Yes you are correct though, all the ultra-zooms are poor IQ performers compared to something more measured and definitely all zooms are worse than a good prime!

The only Canon lens I know which is "almost L but not L" is the 70-300 IS. Very, very good.
 
Thanks again for the input.

OK, so I'm not going to get close to L-Glass with my budget. With the above suggestions in mind, what's about the best lens, of say 20 -100 or in between, that I can get for the right sida of £400.

What would you buy?:thinking:
 
Sigma 17-70 for about £220??? It doesn't have a constant 2.8, but the IQ is the tats!! :D
 
Probably your best bet is to go for one of the constant f2.8 17-50 ish from Sigma or Tamron.

Very good results from these...

Or a bit longer, see if you can stretch to the Canon 70-200 f4 L - thats just below/above the 400 quid mark if you shop around and sharp enough to shave with.
 
Would agree with the above, the 70-300 IS is a good lens and should be within budget, you could poss pick up a second hand 70-200 F4 L lens. For the lower end of focal range, the 28-135 IS lens is a good lens to look at :thumbs:
 
Assuming you really need a zoom, the closest to your requirement is something like the Tammy 28-75, which I've previously owned. Nice sharp lens, but the AF is not as good and I personally thought the colours were nothign like as vibrant (hence why I sold it).
If I were my money, I'd go for a s/h 70-200F4L, then save your pennies for something to fill in the rest of the range.
 
What camera body to you already have? the chances are you will see a bigger inprovement in image quality from investing all you budget in top glass and sticking with an older body.
 
Thanks for the response, it's really appreciated.

My current lenses are :- Canon 18-55, kit lens that came with my 350, a Sigma 70-300 DG macro, a sigma 28-105, which is quite soft and not particularly 'crisp' and a Sigma 105 macro.

I have quite an extensive range, all the way from 18-300mm, though the IQ isn't great with these lenses (except the 105 macro :thumbs:), so for me at this point, IQ is more important than range.

Is the Canon 70-200 f4L available for around £400 new, as suggested?
 
a1ex2001 said:
What camera body to you already have? the chances are you will see a bigger inprovement in image quality from investing all you budget in top glass and sticking with an older body.
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350D.
 
Just found the 70-200 at £458, just about brings L-Glass within reach again.

Is this my best bet?
 
Depends how much of a rush your in to get one, they pop up fairly regularly on here and a few other sites and you could save a bit of cash.
 
Prices at the moment are probably about as high as you will ever see them... just depends on how long you are prepared to wait...

Will it make a big difference to your 350D? Yes is my 100% answer! I went from a crappy 75-300 USMII to a 70-300 IS and the difference was night and day...
 
To cover 20-200/250mm at good(ish) quality within a £400 price limit is very hard. The best I can think of is:-
*Tamron 17-50mm F/2.8
+
*Canon EF-S 55-250mm IS

The Tamron gives excellent IQ and some people comment that it exceeds some L glass in this department. It's build quality is ok, but nowhere near L.
The 55-250 offers average IQ, but has a very good IS. For £165 it cannot be beaten.

You will need to shop around to get these lenses new at close to £400. Onestop-Digital.com is a reliable place to start with.
 
PM kerso of here for his upto date price list
Bob
 
Cheers guys.

What's the feeling on the kit lens supplied with the 40D, ie, the 17-85 IS?
 
+1 for all of the above tbh

17-50 tamron
70-300 IS canon or the sigma APO 70-300 is much cheaper
the 28-135 IS is nice but not that wide on a 40D depends what you want. would suit for most thing though
17-55 canon IS is pin sharp but not cheap and is quite heavy, nearest to L you might find I think.

17-85 IS lovely lens when you get it but you might get fedup with the abuse of verticals at 17mm. I ditched mine in favour of the tamron
 
Decisions, decisions, lol. :lol:

I think I've narrowed it down to the 70-300, the Tamron 17-50 or the Canon 17-85. Image quality is the most important consideration for me now, as oppossed to range and I'm looking into the 17-85 right now.
 
FWIW I have a 70-200 but my lens of choice is always.... the 85mm f1.8. You might be able to get a 50mm and an 85mm for your budget.
 
Go for the 70-200L if still available. Its well worth the extra and far better than any on your list. Once bitten by L glass you will be converted for life. Stay away from kit lenses unless they come free they are not worth buying. Plenty of better options around.
 
pearce_jj said:
FWIW I have a 70-200 but my lens of choice is always.... the 85mm f1.8. You might be able to get a 50mm and an 85mm for your budget.
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I recently went on one of the Canon Experience Seminars courses and the Expert doing the course agreed with you 100%. She has used both the 85mm f1.8 prime and 85mm f1.2L lens and in her view the much cheaper 1.8 glass gives superior results. Obviously the build is not as good as the L glass but the performance of the 1.8 is better. I don't know if all would agree but I found it better too and hope to add it to my glass soon.:thumbs:
 
I always go on http://www.pixel-peeper.com before buying a lens, just to see how it fairs in the real world from other people that have submitted their shots categorized by lenses. You can compare the 40d kit lens to say the tamron on sigma, and compare the 70-200L with the 70-300 IS.
 
Dale. said:
Decisions, decisions, lol. :lol:

I think I've narrowed it down to the 70-300, the Tamron 17-50 or the Canon 17-85. Image quality is the most important consideration for me now, as oppossed to range and I'm looking into the 17-85 right now.
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the 17-85 IS is not what I would call quality glass.
it has too many inherent compromises in it.
I prefer the tamron
if that range is what you're looking for the 17-55 IS canon would be better
 
The plot thickens.:lol:

I've managed to source a 40d body and a 70-200L f4 and buying them from different places, it just squeezes under a grand, but is £100 more than I intended.

Is it worth the extra stretch to get L glass on a 40D?

:)
 
I've taken the plunge, after listening to all your advice, which is much appreciated .

I've gone for a B/new, 70-200L IS and a B/new 40D, and it all squeezed in at just under 1k.

I'm a happy man, I'll be even happier when it arrives.

:)
 
Hi Dale

Glad you made up your mind, I too am looking at getting a 70-200 F4 IS (to replace my 70-300 IS)

I am therefore wondering how you managed to source this and a new 40D for under £1k?

Do you have a special source or was you post a typo??

Happy shooting

David
 
Willid1 said:
Hi Dale

Glad you made up your mind, I too am looking at getting a 70-200 F4 IS (to replace my 70-300 IS)

I am therefore wondering how you managed to source this and a new 40D for under £1k?

Do you have a special source or was you post a typo??

Happy shooting

David
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Yeah I'm scouring the interwebs now to find a f4 IS sub £600 (assuming the 40d would be around 400 quid)

EDIT: I just saw he said both brand new... WTF? the lens itself is just under a grand!
 
maybe he acquired them brand new whilst wielding a sawn off, the tried and tested way
 
Maybe it's not the IS version as the 70-200f4L comes out at £548.00 or there abouts. If he's got the IS version I would love to know the source as well:) Come on Dale put us all out of our misery and tell us where the secret source is
 
well you got the tele sorted - cheeky b****r

I'd have a tamron 17-50 f2.8 for the short end got one and its spot on
 
I'm sorry guys, it,s the non IS version :bonk:, I've become a little snowblind with all these lenses and I posted it as IS, which it's not.:lol:

I sourced the camera for under £550 and the lens for under £470, I compromised on the IS in order to get L glass for my budget, even if i did end up stretching by about 90 quid but I think it will be worth it.
 
Dont worry about the IS you wont miss it as you'll never have had it in the first place. Just use your trusty tripod................... or is that next on the list? :thumbs:
 
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