Ditto George.
I researched, bought some nice lenses, but my kit bag got so heavy that I rarely bought it everywhere with me. I now travel with a slingshot bag, Eos 1dMII, 24-70 lens. 2 memory cards, no more. The rest of the bag holds candy, gloves, hat, etc. And I'm taking more pictures than ever.
Sure, if I'm going on a specific trip, like to a sports event the big bag comes out and the long lens, or for landscapes / night stuff, the filters and the tripod, but the best thing I did was buy a small bag. makes it easier to bring, and therefore more likely to bring.
IF in doubt on lenses, just be aware that it's easy to sell L lenses or similar. You will not get anything for cheapo lenses. Then again, if a cheapo (less than 100 euro) lens teaches you what lens you really need/want, it's money well spent.
Merv.
nytrashman wrote:
what a great post. when i switched from a P&S to a Canon DSLR (300D) i read the boards and purchased a 70-200 f/4. after reading some more i knew i had to get the 70-200 f/2.8 so i sold the f/4 for the non IS version. according to everyone i "needed" to get the battery grip for my camera. bought that new from B&H. i read some more and everyone agreed i had to get the 10D. sold the 300D & grip and bought a 10D. of course i needed a battery grip to go along with my new camera now didn't i. the Sigma DG 500 super flash was the next thing recomended for me to get. next the 20D came along and of course everyone said i just had to get that and the required battery grip. then one day it hit me, i have all this nice cool camera gear and where is it? it is home sitting in the bag. why, because it was too heavy to take with me every time i went out. i sold the batter grip, sold the 70-200 f/2.8 and bought another f/4 version. sold the Sigma and got the smaller & lighter Canon 430EX. i now have a nice light setup i take with me all the time. i fell into the trap of listening to what other people used. just because it works for them does not mean it will work with your style of shooting. this is the learning curve of owning a DSLR no one talks about. i still continue to read all the boards but now i know what i want and why i want it.
I work at a camera store and that's the best summary of what I tell every tyro (D)-SLR customer every day, except you did it in less than 1000 words!! I have the unfortunate situation of having the nitwits hang around me trying to decide for 3 hrs while wasting my time in the process. Great work Todd, you've made my day.
When I was in 4th grade my grandfather bought me the equivalent of a BAD Walmart steel string guitar. Basically, without a vice you couldn't press the strings down. It didn't get played.
In 6th grade my parents bought me an inexpensive Yamaha nylon string guitar that was recommended to them by my new guitar teacher (yes, I still wanted to play guitar). The guitar was a dream to play, but I soon outgrew it.
In high school I found a used Epiphone that suited me wonderfully. I played this guitar for many years.
In college I found a beautiful Washburn that played like a dream and sounded like a million bucks. (I still had the Epiphone too and played it as well).
In graduate school I sold the Epiphone and bought a Martin HD-35 that seemed like the right thing to do as my abilities were at last "worthy" of the instrument. Unfortunately, it wasn't the guitar for me: I didn't like the tone and sold it to buy a Martin J-40 that still finds itself in my arms now and again.
Last year (if you're keeping track, I'm now 49), I bought a handmade guitar ($$$). It is usually in my arms -- when I'm not cheating with the J-40.
The Washburn, the J-40 and the handmade Long guitar are all still in my life.
Sorry for the long story, but here at last is the punchline. If I had to do it over I would have started with guitar #2, the inexpensive Yamaha that got the job done, was better than me at the time, was easy to "control", and furthered my interest in music (my other hobby).
Excellent post. I know I've asked this question and you've answerd it for me. I thank you for your post. I have had a 35mm film (Canon AE-1) and thats the camera I bought lenses for just to look cool. Now after a few years of actually taking the time to realize what I need and what's wrong with my pictures I can easily find out what lenses I should buy. I agree with everyone that this should be manditory reading for all those who recently bought a DSLR.
When I started I bought three L Glass lenses for 4500$. I still have three very nice lenses that do great work. However, I wish I would have started with the 50 1.4. My lens purchasers would have been different and cheaper.
Great advice!!!!!!
Except for maybe my 18-55 kit lens that was bad (first copy) and the second copy was poor indoors.
Wow, great thread and great post. I will be sure to direct people to your post when I see that dreaded question sucking up bandwith. Usually I just skip the topic.
My first SLR was an FM2n with a 28, 50, and 135mm. For the first couple of years, I didn't even really know there were other lenses. I just learned how to use the ones I had been given.
TJ Asher wrote:
I answered this question in another forum and decided that the answer warrants it's own thread here too as there are a lot of folks new to photography here.
This question gets asked a lot:
I'm just starting getting into blah blah photography. What lens should I buy?
Here's the answer...
If you have to ask this question, buy the cheapest damn lens you can get.
What? I must be kidding, right?
Sorry, no.
Here's why...
This is really a question that only you can answer for yourself.
For somebody that's just getting their feet wet in this photography thing, if you don't know what lens gets you what, in all honesty, the replies you get from a bunch of strangers, each with their own agenda, is not going to help you at all. ...Show more →
I dont agree with that at all. I brought the most expensive lens I could when I started out and I have been getting great results ever since. I would not have known what lens to get without the great advice that people gave to help me out on this forum. Admittedly it wasnt my first lens but it was my second but I am in no way an expert.
Im all for the cheaper alternative but the L lens I got has done me very well and would recommend it to anyone that asked me.
Sometimes there is a strong element of truth in "you get what you pay for"
I too am among the apparent minority who disagree, either in part or whole, or fail to see the original post as anything more than one person's perspective and hardly a universal wisdom or set of guiding precepts for the inexperienced, uninitiated, or unaware.
I would encourage a new or unsure photographer to accept the original post as one opinion of many and not to dismiss or ignore the potential value in asking any question when the others' specific experiences, observations, and opinions, both individually and collectively, may be helpful.
Just excellent! It would be very hard for someone else to express it better.
Lens selection is something that not only obeys to the necessity of using a different perspective but also to the necessity of using exactly what the person needs. As it has very well being said, experience determines that.
Like you, I also recommend to start with a 50mm lens although I admit that for digital it is a little long. A 35mm lens will simulate a 50mm lens with digital so this focal length or a zoom that covers that focal length (like a 24-85 or 18-70) could be a good start.
Many here could be surprised at the few lenses a professional photographer usually carry.
Congratulations on such an excellent thread.
William Rodriguez
Miami, Florida.
Excelent point. Yet, I will challenge if you don't mind.
I am a proud tyro-newbie, and had investigated quite toroughly in this first-buy blah-blah SLR issue (a year of reflexion: may be I don't need this damn camera!!).
Here are my thoughts:
1. What you say is not only true for photo, but for any other kind of specialised activity!
2. However, on the contrary, I see some interest in putting money in a good lens - simply in term of value because it is not going to loose value while you would learn to use it - and this is true in other hobbies as well, provided you are skilled enough to learn fast.
3. there might be a sort of rule: price of the body should not be higher than price of the lens? - or even should be half the price of the lens?. I feel it would be stupid to have a Canon 20D with an average lens?
Now my situation:
I have a crappy gadget-like numeric video/camera thing. This is what I use for everything! it's awfull.
I know I need a zoom: I know I want to do 1st portraits, 2nd outdoor sports and landscapes, and stop image. I feel I am going to invest in Canon. I want only one lens (I am a newbie, let's remember - I just had my father's AE-1 for 10 years with 2 lenses, but this was 5 year ago)
I know I don't want a body better than a Rebel xt.
Lens (blah-blah..) : I hesitate, could you advise?;
EF-S 17-85 f/4-5.6 IS USM,
EF 24-70 f/2.8 L USM,
or EF 24-105 f/4 L IS USM
or a 50mm?
If you are looking to go with Canon and want just one lens, I reccommend the 50mm f/1.8 to start with. You should be able to get it new for about $70 or less.
Once you use the 50mm for a while you will then begin to know what other lenses, if any, you will start to want.
If you want to spend a little more then I would reccommend the 50mm f/1.4 lens to start with.
If you go with a Rebel then you may get one with a kit lens already and they are not all that terrible. Use that until you are not satisfied anymore.
I've been meaning to write a computer program that reads all of your EXIF files, and creates statistics on favorite lens, focal length, and focal length w/in a zoom lens. This data might actually be useful to someone who is looking to purchase a new lens.
Anybody know if someone has already written this program? Would save me loads of time!
Amen. I'll freely admit to being one of the newbies that got caught up in the "mental masturbation" associated with the great lens debate.
After a while I came to all of the same conclusions you shared in your very helpful post (that should be required reading on this forum and all similar ones!). I would get 20 replies with 20 different opinions, all of them conflicting. One man's pleasure in another man's poison... in photography, as in life.
My solution was to go with a couple of good zooms, rather than a prime. This at least gave me some flexibility in terms of being able to see what kind of shots different lenses produce. There are some very strong third-party zooms (Sigma 17-70, 18-50, Tamron 17-50, 28-75) etc. that won't break the bank and offer good quality. Then I went back through my shots and looked at what FLs I used the most. I analyzed my shots in all of the ways you suggest. Then I got a couple of primes for portraiture and low light situations. By that time it was clear what I needed.
Again, fantastic post... I only wish I would have come across it a long time ago.
then again when I asked for advise a very good and clever friend of mine told me to buy the best lens I could, at least then I couldn;t blame it on the gear...but I still blame the gear :-)
You should write some more post like these! excellent!
You know, when I was a newb (pretty easy for me to remember), I did pour over lens specs, brochures, f ratings, usm this and that. Back then I figured all I would need is a 24-85mm and a 75-300mm and I would be right forever.
4,000 clicks on the digital and god knows how many rolls I put thru the film bodies since then, and my perspective of what to look for in a lens has changed quite a lot since then.
I never would have considered buying a prime when I was a newb.
I never thought I would want anything wider than 24mm (equiv)
I never thought I would want anything longer than 300mm (equiv)
I never thought I would want to buy an external flash. (haven't bought it, yet)
I never thought I would take a photo that other people would consider good! :-)
This post isn't 100% on the money. But it's a pretty good all round answer to all those questions about what lens to buy from people who don't know what they want from it.
My 50mm is the last lens I have bought, and the last lens I would have expected to buy. I used to find the 50 boring way back in film days. Now it is my most used lens around town.
