28-300 replacement?

[jdarling]

I've got an (old by standards) Canon 10D and up until I made the mistake of walking away from my tripod today had a Tamron 28-300 f3.5-6.3 lens. Now its broke almost in half thanks to tipping over.

I already have a 50mm f1.8 Canon fixed and love it for almost everything. In fact I hardly ever broke out the Tamron lens. This was due to two reasons: 1) Its slow, as in painfully slow generally sitting at f8 when I get ideal shots from my 1.8, and 2) its focus is horrid being both slow to focus and noisy.

So, now that I have a reason to spend on a new lens I'm wondering what I should get.

I'd like to get up into the 100-500mm range, something that will let me get some wildlife shots without breaking the bank. Don't mind saving up, but don't want to go too insane. Would like it to work with my 10D and still be usable when I upgrade to something newer. I'm actually looking at a used 50D since its the last model I can afford with the alloy body.

My kids are in Soap Box Derby Racing (the big cars, not the little pinewood ones) and Horse Jumping, so I'm also looking to get pictures of them.

I'd give a budget, but as I said I'm willing to save up and spend on something that will not just work, but will not let me down.

Thanks,
- Jeremy

 

[jaomul]

Well there is the Canon 100-400L which has an old and a newer version, both will work well with your 10d and 50d.

There is a lot of good reviews for the new tamron 150-600 mm which I think I will purchase myself.

Off topic, get any upgrade for your 10d other than the 50d. I've had a few Canon cameras, dslrs, and the 50d had imo the least satisfying image quality

 

[jdarling]

Really, I was just starting to look into the camera upgrade and noted that the 50 was the last alloy body. A feature I love on my 10D as I've got bad nerves and tend to drop things if I don't have the death grip on them. I went and held some of the newer enthusiast line and they felt like I'd break them.

Thoughts on the 20-40D's?

I'll have to see if our local camera store has the two you mentioned for trial. Price is just out of today's pocket book, but within my save up to it range

 

[jaomul]

Ya, I'm not sure a magnesium body holds up any better than carbon fibre, that's a different debate. Certainly the 10d-50d range are solid.

You know what they say about opinions. I had a 10d a 20d and a 50d. I preferred the photos from my 10 and 20d cameras. I used my friends 40d and loved it, but then the 50d came out so I bought that, very disappointed after a time. I kinda convinced myself it was good (I bought 50d before 10 and 20d). Even looking at photos from it now, it's image quality even at low iso isn't great.

So yes, a 40d imo is better, even a 20d, though the performance of the 40/50d is better for speed and af.

You mentioned a 20d so mp count doesn't seem critical to you. If that's the case a used 1 d Mark 2 is a cheap yet super fast camera, built like a tank. If you picked up a good condition one it may suit your type of shots

 

[jdarling]

I had a 1Ds mk II at one point in time and loved it, only got rid of it because I downsized and figured I'd keep the less expensive camera to replace. Didn't really think about going back to one, will have to see what the used market has on those.

Largest print I ever do is 8x10 so mp isn't really a huge concern. Only real problem I have with my 10D is the slow write time to the card (even with newer cards due to the internal bus speed) and the fact that the rubber covers are cracked off and hard to find replacements for anymore.

 

[jaomul]

I'd really look at a 60d if you can afford and want to keep the smaller size camera. It can be got for quite a bargain. It's not quite at the same building as your 10d but it is a good mix of features and price. I think they can be got very cheap