Robert Klerx
Unregistered
I finally decided to buy this equipment, which works really well for me:
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm F2.8 IS USM (a seldomly used one from a photographer for 450€)
- Canon EF-S 55-250mm F4.0-5.6 IS STM (a new one for 183€)
These glasses are really great and will hopefully cover all my needs in the foreseeable future. Besides that, I got me a stable alu tripod (makes things so much easier) and also some extension tube segments that I can use with the tele as a poor-man's macro lens.
€450 for that lens is a lot. Not a great lens (terrible distortion, low contrast and CA at the wide end), uninspiring at the long end, the worst longer standard zoom you could have chosen in my opinion. And then it is one of those models famous for developing a band cable break, resulting in a lens error and a repair bill.
The 55-250mm IS STM is a good choice.
Hi Rob,
like to help you a bit in your choice. Beginners always think they've to cover every mm of focus range, so your choice 17-250 seems to figure that out. Sticking with 2 zooms, the first quite heavy, not very "wide" and quite expensive. With your camera 50d (830g body and battery) + the 17/... (650 g) you've to carry 1480g all the day around. Now you pick up the 55/250 too (we add 375g), means 1855g. But we did not cover lowlight problems - so we add an 1.4, 1.8 or an 2.0 lens. So easily we jump over the 2kg. Hooray! Even in aps-c it's possible to step over the 2kg bareer...
My own canon equipment don't exceed 1370g (420g body and battery, 240g 10-18, 335g 35f2 and 375g 55-250). I abandoned the idea of a midrange zoom - with my fixed focal 35mm f2 (full format lens) I'm fine for my day - I can "zoom with my feet" and while I'm not spending time on thinking which lens to use now I don't miss any shot. Usually I 've the wide or the telezoom in a pocket of my cloths - never all the three at the same time.
And of course I stick to lenses of the camera brand... this is the only guarantee that your lens will work with the body you'll buy in the future. Sure, I can buy a sigma dock to update these lenses, but what else.. do I really have to do their job and pay for this on prime?? No way.
My Opinion ROB, just enjoy what you have now and forget all this lens buying issue, no photographer got the gear that suiys hom most from the first time, besides your own peferences will vary with time.
First I was for superzooms, then I went for primes, then I went back to zooms plus primes, be assured 17-55 is a lens that will give plenty of great photos you will surely enjoy it.
never used 55-200 so can't tell.
Forget the lens shopping thing now take your camera and start shooting, back in the time some of the world's best photographers had no more than a single lens, many used to be happy with a single 50mm prime, you have more than enough to take good pictures
