digital slr packages

mickraemer · Jun 21, 2005

i am interested to buy a canon digital rebel. i'm not a photographer but i'm interested in learning to take better photos. i like the prices on the last years digital rebels and i've heard good thing about them. my problem now is, do the packages offered on the internet have decent lenses in them? i'm particularly interested in a package which comes with a 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 auto focus lens. at $769 for the camera with this lens and 128mb flash (i know it's not enough, but i can always pick more memory up). another package has 2 lenses, one canon 28-105mm auto focus usm lens and one 75-300mm auto focus usm lens. this one will cost $869 and comes with 256mb flash.

what do you guys think about these package deals and these lenses?

thanks

michael

Big Mike · Jun 21, 2005

Welcome to the forum.

I would suggest that you get the standard kit...the camera and the 18-55 EF-S lens.

That camera has a 1.6x crop factor. That means that with lenses designed for 35mm film cameras, the digital sensor only sees the middle portion of what the lens actually sees. So basically, it's harder to get a nice wide angle view on the digital Rebel. That's why Canon makes EF-S lenses, they are made specifically for the digital SLR cameras and can be much wider for less money.

In typical 35mm film terms...24-28mm is wide, 50mm is normal and longer than that is telephoto. So with the lenses that you mentioned, 28mm is the widest they will go. If you take into account the 1.6x crop factor, you will only get a field of view of a 45mm lens...which is much more normal than wide.

If you get something like the 18-55, you can get a field of view that is equivalent to about 28mm (on 35mm film)...which is wide.

Once you use the camera for a while, you should be able to tell which lens to get next. Maybe you will want a wider lens, for landscapes etc. Maybe you will want a telephoto for wildlife etc. Maybe you will want a lens that has a wide aperture so that you can shoot in lower light or get nice blurred backgrounds for portraits.

I always suggest the 50mm F1.8 it's inexpensive and optically quite sharp compared to any of the other lenses mentioned here.

mickraemer · Jun 21, 2005

thanks a lot for thje quick and detailed detail. i'm new to photography and really apprechiate your input. do you think in general, that the digital rebel is a good starting point for slr photography? should i look into something else? i do like the manual functions you can have with a slr camera and i don't like to spend my money in developing film. i also like the quicker feedback i can get from a digital camera.

thanks,

michael

Big Mike · Jun 21, 2005

I think the digital Rebel is a great starting point for digital SLR cameras. It is well above any of the (non-SLR) digi-cameras...even the ones that cost more and have more mega pixels.

Are you looking at the original Digital Rebel (D300) or the new Rebel XT (D350)? The newer model is a fair bit better than the original. Although, you may be able to get a good deal on the original, which is still a good camera.

mickraemer · Jun 21, 2005

i'm looking at the d300. the prices dropped quite a bit aince the d350 came out. i figure that it will be good enough to start. i will do some more research on the lenses since you told me to get the ef-s lenses. would it make sense to buy a different digital slr which doesn't have that crop factor? just to not be limited in future lense options?

thanks,

michael

Big Mike · Jun 21, 2005

Well, currently the cheapest DSLR from Canon that does not have a crop factor is $8000 US...so that's probably not an option. :lol:

It is true that EF-S lenses will only work on a few cameras. (Rebel, Rebel XT & 20D) But you can use any of the EF lenses that are made for EOS cameras...so you will not be limited in lens choice. The only limitation comes if you buy a different camera (like a film camera)...the EF-S lenses will not work on those cameras.

Smith2688 · Jun 21, 2005

Mike has given excellent advice. I agree with everything he says to the T. Don't worry about being limited by the EF-S lenses. I'd just get them for the wide angle spectrum and use the EF lenses for everything else (just to ensure that you can use them later on). If you ever plan on upgrading to a camera body that doesn't use the EF-S lenses, you can either keep your Rebel and the EF-S lenses as a second body, or sell them as a package.