My first DSLR - what lens to buy?

[UnitedWeFall]

Hey guys,

i'm new here I've spent many years shooting and editing short films, and i'm starting to get into a bit of still photography (especially time lapse photography). I'm about to purchase my first DSLR, probably the Canon 600D. I need some advice on what lens to buy with the camera. It will be used mainly for time lapse photography. Although I do know my way around a camera, I don't know much about lenses so any advice is appreciated.

Thanks for any info

 

[Patrice]

The camera can likely be purchased with a default (kit) lens offered with the camera by the manufacturer. Since you don't say what you intend to photograph and from how far away, start with that.

You say you know your way around a camera, the terms wide angle, normal and telephoto also apply to still photography. Think about what angle of view you prefer to work with and then go shopping for a fixed or zoom lens with the appropriate focal length.

 

[Ballistics]

What's your budget like?

 

[WilfordSy]

Same as what Patrice said, the lenses you want to buy highly depends on what kind of photography you do or at least plan to do.

One Lens that I can highly recommend buying though is the 50mm f1.8 for Canon. It's cheap (around $100) but gives you that shallow depth of field for awesome portraits and much bigger aperture opening for low light photography.

Good luck!

 

[UnitedWeFall]

Thanks for the tips guys. I will be doing a lot of landscape time lapses (night sky, sunsets, etc), so i'm looking for an appropriate lens for that.

I realise that I can buy a kit that comes with lenses, but i'd rather buy the body and then buy an appropriate lens that suits the type of photography I will be doing.

Thanks again

 

[2WheelPhoto]

I wasted money on glass and then got the lenses in my Sig which I should've started out with.

Also I see an 85mm 1.4 in my near future

 

[Vtec44]

I wasted money on glass and then got the lenses in my Sig which I should've started out with.

Also I see an 85mm 1.4 in my near future

How's the quality of the 24-70mm compare to 70-200? I currently have the 70-200 f2.8 VR2 and the older 35-70 f2.8D but thinking about getting the newer 24-70mm f2.8.

Sorry for derailing the thread... back to the original topic.

 

[2WheelPhoto]

I wasted money on glass and then got the lenses in my Sig which I should've started out with.

Also I see an 85mm 1.4 in my near future

How's the quality of the 24-70mm compare to 70-200? I currently have the 70-200 f2.8 VR2 and the older 35-70 f2.8D but thinking about getting the newer 24-70mm f2.8.

I like them both the same, actually I use the 24-70 more. But if I already had the 35-70 2.8 such as yours I doubt I would trade-up-

 

[UnitedWeFall]

When I said I know my way around a camera, I didn't really mean lenses. I've always used video cameras with fixed lenses, so i've never had to worry about it.

So with that in mind... I noticed many of the entry-level Canon DSLRs come with the 18-55mm IS lens. What sort of photography is this good for?

Thanks again

 

[KmH]

One Lens that I can highly recommend buying though is the 50mm f1.8 for Canon. It's cheap (around $100)

Because the 50 mm f/1.8 II is cheap it has cheap internal parts too, like the aperture blades, that give that blurred background a jittery, nervous, not very pleasant quality. Technically that blur quality is known a the Circle of Confusion (CoC) the lens produces. (CoC is also known by the nickname - bokeh).

The other issue with the 50 mm f/1.8 is it's overall, all plastic, low grade build quality. The lens tends to break into 2 lagre pieces if dropped.

 

[BJF]

Smart question before you purchase a DSLR. I was not so smart when I purchase my first one.
Canon 600D is a very good entry level DSLR. Recommend a few references. Hope it can help.

Know Digital SLR - Lens choice

Canon prime lenses

Canon Zoom lenses

 

[Patrice]

Thanks for the tips guys. I will be doing a lot of landscape time lapses (night sky, sunsets, etc), so i'm looking for an appropriate lens for that.

OK, here is a solid suggestion that would work (low light conditions and expansive field of view): a constant f/2.8 wide angle zoom. Nikon 14-25 f/2.8 AFS is a top of the line example. It's certainly not the only choice, but it's one that will work.

Any of the current crop of fast prime (non zoom) lenses will also work fine. A good, but not cheap, example is Nikon 24 mm f/1.4, this lens is not very wide on a crop sensor camera.


As for your question about the utility of kit 18-55 (or 18-70) zoom lenses; these are ok for the most part but usually don't shine at anything.

They have variable maximum apertures which is a pain when exposure is critical.
They are slow (rather small max aperture) which does not help at low light levels.
They can be rather soft at the extremes of their focal range.
They can also be a bit soft when wide open, where you will be a lot of time with these slower lenses.
They are built to a price point which can lead to some rather fragile pieces of kit.
The focal range is for the most part centered on the 'normal' focal length for the accompanying sensor, many photographers find this range a bit boring after a while. Other than 'event' photographers which can be argued have an absolute need for a high quality mid range zoom, a lot tend to get a really good wide zoom, a really good long zoom, and the best normal prime they can find.