Whats the best medium telephoto?

SJD2011

SJD2011

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Sam
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I am planning to do a course in October, and they recommend a medium telephoto. I have my kit lens and a 50mm prime for my canon 600d.

I want the best lens I can get for my (limited) budget of £250.

What would people recommend?
 
The 55-250 IS gets a lot of plusses on here and other forums. I bought one from here for £110 and it was a cracker. Very sharp, decent AF speed and very good IQ. The AF is a bit noisy, but not bad TBH. I loved the lens for about a week, then the wife absconded it for her 550D to partner her 18-55 IS.
 
Try the Canon EF-S 55-250mm, it's highly reccomended on here.
I was very lucky and managed to pick up a 70-200mm f4L for that :D
 
I have the 55-250, but thanks for the recommendation - its fab lens.

I told the course tutor I had that lens, and he said it would be too big.

I perhaps should of said the course is on portraits, specifically weddings. Sorry, I should of made that clear in my OP.
 
Well the 50mm lens you already own is very close to a medium telephoto when used on a 1.6x crop body like the 600D. On the other end is the 85/1.8 as already suggested, a fabulous lens for the money.

Unfortunately there's not much in between!
 
SJD2011 said:
Thank you both. Is there any advantage to getting the 85mm if I already have the 50mm?
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The 50mm lens in your crop body will (more or less) behave like a 85mm on a full-frame (35mm) body.
The 85mm will (more or less) behave like a 135mm lens.
Both in the portrait range, it'll all depend of your personal taste, I guess.

If you have a 50mm and a 55-250, I'd say you don't need another lens.
The 85mm 1.8 has great IQ and is better with low light and has a much better bokeh, though.
 
The advantage of getting an 85mm is it would give you the equivalent of a 135mm on your 600D. It's very sharp and gives great contrast and IQ and you can get them for around £200 second hand.

I've bought an 85 f1.8, a 50 f1.4 and a 35 f2 recently, and I've had a 100 f2.8 L Macro for a whiile, and use them all on both my 60D and 5D3. Between the 4 lenses and 2 bodies I've got a heck or a range from 35mm to 160mm.
 
SJD2011 said:
I have the 55-250, but thanks for the recommendation - its fab lens.

I told the course tutor I had that lens, and he said it would be too big.

I perhaps should of said the course is on portraits, specifically weddings. Sorry, I should of made that clear in my OP.
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What do you mean by too big? It has a focal range exactly perfect for portraits.
 
The23rdman said:
What do you mean by too big? It has a focal range exactly perfect for portraits.
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I know, I was wondering that myself.

I thought it would cover the range perfectly. According to the course details, there is a max of 6 students, with 2 tutors and 2 or 3 models. Shoot is in studio as well as on location, so I wouldnt of thought it would be a matter of space. Perhaps its to do with aperture as it only goes to (I think) around f5.6?

I have emailed the tutor asking if the 50mm would suffice, but am waiting to hear from him.
 
The23rdman said:
What do you mean by too big? It has a focal range exactly perfect for portraits.
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I would guess that the 250 end was too big (or bigger than a medium telephoto anyway) but they are missing the point that it can be anywhere between 55 and 250!
Seems a very strict stipulation and if it is that strict they should maybe have offered some specifics with example lens...
 
I'd be checking the tutor knows the difference between the joint used to bend the arm and the large muscle they sit on.
 
If you are shooting on location, maybe in a dimly lit church the 55-250mm isn't going to really cut it. The 50mm you could get away with, but if it was me the 85mm f/1.8 I'd like. I had the 85mm f/1.2 on a crop camera and found it perfect for portraits.
 
Agree, while the 55 - 250 is good value for what it is it does need light. But then if a low aperture was required the tutor should have explained that in the requirements.

You may be actually teaching the tutor a few things :)
 
I would have thought too that the 55-250 would be ideal, But i guess maybe if you can stretch your budget or try and pick up a Canon 70-200 f4 L non IS that might be your next choice? Otherwise find out what they mean but medium range telephoto.
 
PitaDaVespa said:
Sam,

Are you sure he is a good tutor? :thinking:
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Well, now I am not so sure.

According to the testimonials on the website, he is, and he is also C&G accreddited, and the 'only approved photography 'workshop' for the armed services.

I know they wont put duff testimonials on a website, but surely he has to be good if he is C & G approved? OR am I being naiive??:shrug:

Basically, I am looking to become a professional wedding photographer in the next 5 yrs, and despite me emailing lots of photographers asking to accompany them as an unpaid assistant, and offering my free services to bridal shops, I dont feel I am getting anywhere.

I know it wont be an easy thing to do, and I am not afraid of hard work, getting myself out there or anything else. However, I just need a bit of guidance, advice and tutoring in order to learn the basics of portraiture and wedding photography. I dont have any skills as such (being self taught) and I have no 'mentor' that I can turn to for advice - I am the sort of person who needs to be shown how to do things, gain confidence before I go off and experiment for myself. I read the books, magazines etc, watch the videos etc but I find it quite hard to get my head around it sometimes - it doesnt help that I feel my photography is not improving in any way, so feel I need more 1 to 1 support??

I am not sure what else I should be doing, so if anyone has any suggestions or advice, I am all ears!
 
If it was me adding to your existing lenses and weddings in mine, I would be looking at the Tamron or Sigma 17-50mm f2.8
 
I know you probably don't want to order from the US, but BH has the best site I have found on the internet for actually finding selection and prices of currently available lenses. I would just go there, sort by price, make allowances for US vs UK pricing, and then look around locally online to actually purchase.

For instance, here is all Canon mount medium telephotos in order from least expensive to most...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/searc...=4288584247+4108103567+4109120007&srtclk=sort

The Samyang, Rokinon, and Bower are all the same lens, and if you can handle all manual (focus and aperture), then you will get some fantastic optics for a low price.

But the 85 f/1.8 from Canon would be a great choice as well for not much more.

And finally... Call the instructor and ask him this question:

What focal length specifically, on a full format camera, would be suggested for this class.

Divide his answer by 1.6 and you will have the rough focal length you should be looking for.



All that being said, on APS-C 50mm is a medium telephoto lens already, so you can just show up with that.
 
Thanks for the input. I am still waiting the tutors reply.

Having done a search for other courses in my area, this seems to be the only one tht fits in with my work, so I will probably do it.

There is the possibilty if hiring a lens I gues, but dont you have to put a large deposit down for insurance? Maybe I misunderstood the terms though......
 
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