Buying 1 or 2 lenses.....need advice

A4Effort

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UPDATE!!!! See comment at the bottom.




So am am ready to spend a healthy amount of cash on a lens or two. My budget is $1000 for one or two lenses.
Here is my basic criteria for the lenses:
1. decent low light abilities
2. fast
3. sharp

I am novice photographer and shoot everything from sports (hockey, soccer, basketball, skateboarding, snowboarding, etc..), landscapes, close ups, to, nature/animals. I know there is not one lens that can do this all but at least point me in the right direction. One more thing, I do not need a telephoto lens because the university paper I shoot for has a 70-200 Canon L lens which I can borrow whenever I please.

The only one that I've been considering is the Sigma 10-20mm (not canon due to cost :() This would help me with nature and landscapes.

I also looked at 10-17mm Tokina fisheye because I live in Vermont and there is a huge snowboarding culture that loves the fisheye effect.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. :hug::
 
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In your shoes I'd be looking for a fast, sharp normal zoom. Something like the 17-55/2.8 IS, 24-70/2.8, or 24-105/4 IS.

Probably, unless you are planning on moving to a 1D or full frame camera in the near future, the 17-55 would be a good choice. While a fish or ultra wide would probably be fun, I think you'd be much happier in the long run with a really high quality lens in the normal range.
 
I would second the 24-70. Its just slightly over your budget, but it is a wonderful lens that will last a lifetime.

Derrick
 
Thanks for your input. One thing I do not understand on the 24-70mm is why is the Canon version $1200+ and the Sigma $350+? Is buying the canon version that much more useful for a novice photographer? I do love having sharp pictures but I don't know if I can justify the extra $700-800.
 
i've heard negative things about the tokina fisheye zoom, such as it doesn't deliver near the quality of the canon 16mm i think it is, or the nikon 10.5 . i think that if you want to get a fisheye, pay the extra cash and get the canon one. but beware, fisheye's have quite limited use as i am beginning to find out :(
 
From what I've seen, the fisheye effect is minimized on a crop-sensor body for the 15mm Canon. You really need to use that lens on a 5D to see a pronounced effect which is presumably why you're buying the lens in the first place. For that reason I went with the Tokina 10-17 and I haven't been disappointed. Plus it can still be used on a full-frame camera in the 15-17mm range if you upgrade.
 
One of my friends actually owns a tokina 10-17mm that he uses with a 20D. I saw a bunch of the pictures he took with it and I like it.

What about other lenses though? I can get the tokina for roughly 500 but it will limit what pictures I can take. What about the difference between Canon/Sigma when it comes to the 24-70mm 2.8? Why is the cost difference so huge.

I also understand that when buying a lens that one should not skimp. Also from what I have read Sigma can lack in quality. I am looking to buy a good alround lens for around 1000. So is spending this money on a canon 24-70mm F2.8 really worth it?

Sorry for the rant but I want to make sure its a wise investment.
 
that's true about the 16mm being shy on a crop sensor, i don't know why i forgot about that.

i would assume the price difference is so great because the canon is far better quality. i may be wrong but that would make the most sense to me.

if canons 24-70 is anything like nikons, i'm sure it's worth the $1000. or it would be to me at least
 
So, I did not want to make any haste decisions so I have been taking my time and researhing various lenses. I am leaning towards towards the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 L lens.

But in the back of my head I still have the Sigma 10-20mm lens and a Canon 430ex II flash bundled together. What should I do?

In my possession I have a fifty nifty and the stock lens. What should I get? Is there anythng else you would recommend?
 
I have the Sigma 10-20 and it is a good quality lens. Some of the Sigmas are not that great, but this is one of their good ones. There are several websites out there that have reviews on lenses and it is always a good idea to check these out when trying to decide on a lens.
 
I have a Sigma 10-20 and a Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 ... I love them both. If you have access to a tele, consider these 2.

Ian
 
Yes, I too heard good things about the 10-20mm. That is one thing I have not done yet. Gone the store and actually tried tem out.
 

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