Lens choice for my 450D

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Carlm90

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Hi all, I have a Canon EOS 450D and I have the tripod sorted and I have the flash on the way. I have the standard 18-55mm lens that comes as standard kit and this is fine but I would love to invest in a new lens that I will be able to use for a wide range of photographs. I think I want a lens with a longer focal length? I hope the lens will enable me to do macro photography but also photograph things like portraits, birthdays, pets, sport.

I may be asking for too much? I just don't have the funds to invest in a couple of lenses and it will be a year or two before I pick up another lens. With so many lenses that I have been looking at, I've struggled to pick one that will suit me. I looked at a Tamron lens with a macro feature in Jessops (link here). I see this does not have an image stabilizer and this will make darker shorts more blurred? Should I leave this one alone?

I need some help and the forum hasn't failed to help me so far, thanks for your time :)
 
For my 450d i invested in a Canon 24-105 IS f4 L which covers just about the range i want plus i have the kit lens if i need wider. It's an expensive lens but is better than buying loads of different lenses which is what i used to do.

Mind you i only picked it up yesterday so not had any time with it really. I have taken a few test shots and it does look impressive so far!
 
I owned that lens for a short period and I couldn't get on without IS.
In all honesty you need to consider a dedicated macro lens for this type of photography and as you are probably aware, they don't come cheap.
As you've been looking at a 300mm lens I'm going to asume you want the longer length.
I also got to the point of being fed up with changing lenses on photowalks.
One minute I'd see something that would be fine at 30mm then I would turn a corner and see something I really needed to zoom in on.
It's probably out if your budget but the Tamron 18-270mm VC (VC is Tamrons version of IS) is very good value for money and I am very pleased with it.
Perhaps another option which is cheaper is a Canon 55-250mm IS.
This is a very good value money lens and I owned one before upgrading to the Tamron.
Obviously it wont help you with not changing lenses but it's might be more within your budget.
This all boils down to if you can live without IS.
 
Thank you very much for your help, I'm looking around now and still seeing what benefits each has.

...and yes the Canon 24-105 IS f4 L is way out of my budget! :gag::lol:
 
Cheap as chips mate!! :lol::lol::lol::lol:

The Tamron 17 50 f2.8 is a good lens but one that i liked alot and was pretty damn sharp for the money was a Sigma 17-70 f2.8-f4.5. Good for macro too!!!
 
AndyWest said:
Cheap as chips mate!! :lol::lol::lol::lol:

The Tamron 17 50 f2.8 is a good lens but one that i liked alot and was pretty damn sharp for the money was a Sigma 17-70 f2.8-f4.5. Good for macro too!!!
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Is this the one you were referring to? Just did a quick Google to see if I had the right one! Linky :thumbs:
 
Generally lenses that try to do it all, don't do anything particularly well.

For macro stuff you really need a macro lens, these are usually shortish primes around 100mm, which is also a good length for portraits, usually with a widest aperture of about f2.8, which is wider than most cheap zooms.

A cheap general purpose lens (that all Canon shooters should own at some point) is the 50mm f1.8, sometimes referred to as the nifty fifty, it is great for portraits etc and is a bargain too.
 
How about an EF-S 55-250 IS? This was the first lens I got for my 450d and it was good. If you keep your kit lens it will couple up well with that.

A cracking lens for the price.
 
swag72 said:
How about an EF-S 55-250 IS? This was the first lens I got for my 450d and it was good. If you keep your kit lens it will couple up well with that.

A cracking lens for the price.
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Wake up woman, I've already suggested that lens :)
 
swag72 said:
How about an EF-S 55-250 IS? This was the first lens I got for my 450d and it was good. If you keep your kit lens it will couple up well with that.

A cracking lens for the price.
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Another vote for the 55 - 250! Love the lens, great value for money!
 
A budget would help to narrow down the suggestions and maximum focal length, 300mm 400mm?

As for the lenses that advertise macro on the side of the lens, most aren't true macro lenses. A macro lens give you true 1:1 ratio - the image on the sensor can be up to the same size as the subject (life-size). Display a 1x image on a monitor or in print and a small insect will look like a monster. A lens something like a canon 100mm f2.8 or sigma 150mm f2.8

http://www.beautifulbugs.com/beautifulbugs/howto.htm

Unfortunately there's no one lens fits all for all purposes. That why SLR's have interchangeable lenses. Pick the lens for the shot.
 
I have a budget of around £300, the less the better but I will set it at £300. I don't know whether I need a bigger focal length lens because I'm new to DSLR photography. Should I look at the 55-250? Could someone give me a link to one please?

All these numbers and no idea of what one I should pick. I will say that I would be more inclined towards the macro/portrait side of things. Is having an image stabilizer on it essential? I don't want to create lots of blurs, although I do have my tripod.

Ahhhhhhh! I need some final decisions on lenses that would be great, I am torn between lenses and not knowing what the hell some of them are capable of! :razz::bonk:
 
Carlm90 said:
Is this the one you were referring to? Just did a quick Google to see if I had the right one! Linky :thumbs:
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Yes, that's the one. If you look on my Flickr you will see some images taken with that lens. http://www.flickr.com/photos/andywest1/page3/ Each image has the lens as the title so they are easy to find.

The Canon 55-250mm IS is also a goodun if you want some reach but no good for Macro.
 
Ok, so I can add these two to my list of possibilities:

- Canon EF-S 55-250mm lens IS (Should be good for my needs of birthdays with IS)
- Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC Macro (Macro choice)

Price ain't bad on these either...

Others to add on your advice :)
 
What do you feel is restricting you with your current lens? Do you want something to replace it or work in conjunction with it?
 
Craikeybaby said:
What do you feel is restricting you with your current lens? Do you want something to replace it or work in conjunction with it?
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I think I want something to work in conjuction with it. I feel my lens is fine for now but I want to add a new side of photography to my bag.

Off topic, do you think I should have multiple focus points when shooting fireworks? Or stick with one focal point? Thanks :)
 
Carl

Another vote for the 55-250

Another one to consider to replace the kit lens is the Canon EF-S 17-85mm F4-5.6 IS USM - you can pick these up for around £300 and always trade on your kit lens?
 
Still new here and haven't even got my 450d yet. I've been looking at what I'd like to get to go with the 18-55 kit lens. For around £300 (if you don't mind secondhand) you should be able to pick up a 55-250, a nifty fifty and some extension tubes. I think this would be quite a good all round starter kit.
 
thornmaster said:
Still new here and haven't even got my 450d yet. I've been looking at what I'd like to get to go with the 18-55 kit lens. For around £300 (if you don't mind secondhand) you should be able to pick up a 55-250, a nifty fifty and some extension tubes. I think this would be quite a good all round starter kit.
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@Buck - Thanks for that suggestion, adds another choice :shrug::lol: I have some time before I decide anyway.

@thornmaster - I would need to know prices on these items as I've never picked them up before and don't know what I would consider a good price. I don't mind second hand if it's in good nick and if I can spend £300 and get away with the 55-250, a nifty fifty and some extension tubes, that would be great.

Now my question is what is a nifty fifty and an extension tube? :thumbs: Here comes another accessory that I'll need to learn about! Thanks for your time.
 
Carlm90 said:
@Buck - Thanks for that suggestion, adds another choice :shrug::lol: I have some time before I decide anyway.

@thornmaster - I would need to know prices on these items as I've never picked them up before and don't know what I would consider a good price. I don't mind second hand if it's in good nick and if I can spend £300 and get away with the 55-250, a nifty fifty and some extension tubes, that would be great.

Now my question is what is a nifty fifty and an extension tube? :thumbs: Here comes another accessory that I'll need to learn about! Thanks for your time.
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A nifty fifty is the Canon 50mm f1.8 Prime lens. It's got a fixed focal length of 50mm (near to the end of your kit lens) and is relatively inexpensive considering the wide aperture and sharpness it offers. Linky

Extension tubes fit between the camera and lens and move the lens further away from the sensor, this allows the lens to focus on closer objects for macro photography.
 
Thanks for that, I will have to look out for one of these second hand. Could you advise me on some extension tubes that I should be looking for? I don't want to pick up the wrong ones. I will go into the shop but I thought I will ask the forum first, you guys have answered all my questions so far! That 'nifty fifty' looks good. So, it's:

- 1 x - Canon EF-S 55-250mm lens IS
- 1 x - 'Nifty Fifty' Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Lens
- Extension tubes

...and I think that will be enough for me to play around with for the time being! :)
 
Carlm90 said:
I think I want something to work in conjuction with it. I feel my lens is fine for now but I want to add a new side of photography to my bag.

Off topic, do you think I should have multiple focus points when shooting fireworks? Or stick with one focal point? Thanks :)
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In that case I would certainly say a 55-250mm or 75-300mm and a nifty fifty, the extension tubes can come along later if you want to do macro stuff, but they won't be anywhere ear as good as a dedicated macro lens.

For fireworks (even though it is probably too late) I would use manual focus, as auto focus tends to be a bit flakey in the dark. Generally I only ever use one focal point, I prefer to be in control rather than the camera.
 
Thanks,

I'm going for the nifty fifty and a 55-250mm lens, I'll try to pick both up second hand and the extension tubes in the near future. :)
 
Get a 55-250 and a 50 1.8, for macro reverse the 50 onto the 55-250. Works surprisingly well and you'll have fun with the 50 1.8 :)
 
thanks for all the advice, I am in the same boat and all the above post have been a real help, thanks guys
 
Good advise! I am wondering about a longer lens myself to go with my tokina 12-24 for wide, and my canon 28-135 IS for walk around. But I thought the 55-250 would be a bit on the short side, as I would like to use my long lens for motorsport. How would a canon 70-300 or 75-300 compare? Or are there any good 3rd party alternatives?
 
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