Lenses for Dummy's

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Hey guys,
Just getting started in photography and im after getting a new lens, dont want to go any higher than £300 for a lens at the moment...

Im interested in both Macro and Zoom photography, so id appreciate it i you have any recommendations.

Another thing is what do the numbers on the side mean? The 18-55mm fir example? What does that mean in terms of photography?

EDIT:
Canon Canon EF 90-300mm f / 4.5-5.6 non USM Zoom Lens
Does this mean that the lens has a limited aperture of 4.5 through 5.6? Cant go to say 2.8 with it?

Thanks for the help..
 
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Hey guys,
Just getting started in photography and im after getting a new lens, dont want to go any higher than £300 for a lens at the moment...

Im interested in both Macro and Zoom photography, so id appreciate it i you have any recommendations.

Another thing is what do the numbers on the side mean? The 18-55mm fir example? What does that mean in terms of photography?

First of all, we have to know what type of camera you want the lens for. If you have an Olympus E-510 and I tell you that a Canon 85MM f/1.8 is a good lens, you'll be buying a nice paper weight.

The 18-55mm is the focal length. The lower the number, the wider the view, the larger the number, the more zoom. Nikon makes an 18-200. It's a general purpose lens that zoome from wide to very close. Also, the more "zoom" a lens has, it's generally accepted that the IQ won't be as sharp. There are also prime lenses, like 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, 100mm, etc... These lenses usually have a wider aperture and have a shallow depth of field and can take pictures better in the dark. They're also seen as having superior IQ to most zoome lenses.

There are exceptions in any case, like the Canon 70-200 f/2.8L looking better than the Canon 50mm f/1.8, then again one of those cost over $1000 while the other one is around $80.
 
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Lewwy
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Sorry.. Im using a Canon 400D, as I say.. Love Macro, but want to do things like family weddings, parties etc, and cant see a macro being useful to me for this, so at the moment id rather a Zoom lens.
 
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Depending on how much experience you have i would advice to get a primer (50mm, manual focus). You can call 35mm standard, your average camera is 35 (film) or 38 (digital), about the aperture i would say that 4 to 11 is the "basic" range in cameras that let you control the aperture.
A kit lens, 18-55mm will save everyday situations, the aperture range will be around f/4 to 32. With these you can get good landscapes using 18mm and f/16 and up, for people you would like to use more than 35mm and less than f/11. For portraits it is advised to use at least 50mm and the lowest f/ you can get, that allows you to focus only on the eyes and mouth without distorting the face (especially the nose).
For macro you can use specific lenses and or extension tubes that will allow you to get closer to the subject.

Two good links...

http://photo.net/learn/making-photographs/lens
http://www.dofmaster.com/digital_coc.html#coccalculator
 
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http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Canon-Lenses/

A great site with a ton of good reviews on lenses. I shoot with the 100m f/2.8 Macro lens. It is a fantastic lens. You could also use the EF-S 60mm macro lens if you don't want to spend the extra on the 100mm.

With any lens you really get what you pay for. I shoot all "L" glass (check out the website), but then again I do some professional work. For a good, everyday, walk-around lens, without killing the budget, I might pick up Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Lens. Optically a great lens, especially on a budget.

Check out that website and learn. I often go there for reviews of all the new Canon gear. Then get out there and take some pictures!!

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/
Thats the actual reviews of the lenses.
 
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You have a budget of 300 pounds (almost $600), like macro photography, but also want to do family weddings and parties. I presume this is all for fun, and not to start making money. I also presume you got some type of lens when you bought the 400D, perhaps the 18~55 kit lens.

Leaving aside the macro feature, it seems you are going to need a relatively fast lens (i.e., one that opens up to at least f/2.8) for your primary needs which seem centered on indoor photography, which means low available light. You are also going to need something that zooms since you'll want the ability to capture candids at an instant when they happen.

While I agree with Lifeafter that the 17~55IS is the ideal lens for your needs, it also exceeds your budget by about $400. A less expensive alternative may be the Tamron 17~50 f/2.8 ($431 at Amazon.com), or the Sigma 18~50 f/2.8 ($381). You can then add some fast prime lenses such as the Canon 50mm f/1.8, or the 28mm f/1.8.

You should be aware that even with a lens that opens up to f/2.8, and your ISO turned way up to 1600, you still may not have enough speed to freeze motion in low available light. For example, I once shot candids at a friend's wedding (literally, a Greek wedding), and had to resort to my 50mm f/1.8 lens because none of my zooms were fast and wide enough. The available shutter speed was still too marginal when the traditional dancing began during the post-wedding party, and I also found the 50mm was too long on my 350D. I have since added the 28 f/1.8, 50 f/1.4 and 85 f/1.8 lenses to go with my 5D to more effectively deal with indoor photography situations.

As far as macro photography, a dedicated macro lens may be too costly and limiting for your budget. You can go the cheap route by buying some extension tubes to go with the 50mm f/1.8 (a bargain at less than $80), which will give your lens true macro capability. These Kenkos can be had for $170: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000A1N8F8/?tag=macforums0e4-20

Good luck.
 
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It sound like you are where I was some months ago, with a lot of ambition to learn, but need a little basic knowledge on using SLRs. Check out this info on Canon's site that gives some good comprehensive info and lens recommendations. Click on "Enjoy digital SLR cameras" to get a bunch of great info on getting to know the camera, basic functions, and techniques for shooting great photos in a variety of ways.

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/c...PageAct&key=Learning_Station&fcategoryid=2533


There's also a couple of books I would recommend:

"Understanding Exposure": A great book also discussing the controls of the camera and how to set up photos.

"Learning to See Creatively" helps you learn how to take interesting and expressive photos.

Also, understand that photography with SLR cameras can become an expensive hobby. The cost of purchasing a body is nothing compared to the cost of accumulating a proper set of lenses, even if you get the cheaper brands. A good lens for you for now might be the Canon 70-200 F4L. I believe you can pick one up for ~$500.

Also, an excellent forum to check out for tips and information is http://photography-on-the.net

Good luck!!
 
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Im wondering whether this a good general purpose lens?

No, it would not be a good general purpose lens, because 28mm is not wide enough on a crop camera like the 400D (a crop camera has a smaller sensor that causes images taken by it to have a narrower field of view than the traditional 35mm film cameras). This lens, an older design, was intended for film camera bodies, although it can be used on your 400D, and many amateur photographers use it in that combination.

A comparable lens for a crop camera (from an image quality, zoom length, and feature standpoint) is the Canon EF 17~85IS: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002Y5WXO/?tag=macforums0e4-20
 
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Also, an excellent forum to check out for tips and information is http://photography-on-the.net

It is indeed an excellent site, but be prepared to start spending way too much money on equipment that you didn't even know existed, never mind that you actually thought you needed. :)
 
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Tamron 28075 f/2.8 constant aperture, $379 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/284399-REG/Tamron_AF09C700_28_75mm_f_2_8_XR_Di.html

I've heard that this lens actually has decent optics. It's the Sigma 18-200 OS. It has optics stabilization and is $549 US, probably about 250-300 pounds. And the other plus? It has an IS type feature. The down side is that the aperture jumps to 6.3 on the high end.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/485230-REG/Sigma_888_110_18_200mm_f_3_5_6_3_DC_OS.html

And here is my almost favorite out of my suggestions, the Canon 70-200 f/4L. The optics on this are superb. It's one of the best lenses they make and the only downside imo, is that it's a little long on it's wide end. It's also only a f/4 aperture, but it's so sharp that is requires very little in the way of post processing out of the camera. Very, very good lens. $549 US.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/183198-GREY/Canon_2578A002_70_200mm_f_4_0L_USM_Autofocus.html
 

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