Needed lens education...

[LisaCadwell]

So - it's 2:50am and I'm at work with little previous sleep. What do I decide to do? Jump on EBay and look at lenses. And then What do I do??? Yep - bid on a lens. I'm sorry - but did I hear you ask "why did you do that?" Complete stupidity or sleep depreviation. I'm not sure which!

So help me out a bit. I placed a bid on a Canon FD 50 MM 1:1.4 S.S.C Prime lens. My thought was that it was a reasonable asking price for a lens that was a prime. But after I became the highest bidder I realized something. FD. HUH? All my lenses are EF. A quick search on the web and it looks like I just placed a bid on an old retired lens that might not even fit on my Canon EOS XS.

Did I completely mess up to the point that I should beg the Ebay gods for someone more stupid than I to outbid me? Or is this a lens worthy to be added to my collection of lens of my very amateur status?

:blushing:

 

[Overread]

FD lenses do not physically fit onto EF camera bodies. When Canon changed their mount they changed it fully for their whole line, which made the FD incompatible. Furthermore due to the nature of the change the only way to use an FD lens on an EF body is with an adaptor, and the adaptor also needs to have a lens in it in order to correct for the changes in the mounting distances. Canon made very few adaptors and they are not well out of production and sell like gold dust.

3rd party options are generally only cheap and thus not always that good (general statement since most people don't even bother with FD to really find out).


I'd say its time to pray to the ebay Gods for another bidder!

The only saving grace you might have is if you have any interest in macro photography and if you've another lens or zoom with a focal length greater than 100mm

 

[LisaCadwell]

FD lenses do not physically fit onto EF camera bodies. When Canon changed their mount they changed it fully for their whole line, which made the FD incompatible. Furthermore due to the nature of the change the only way to use an FD lens on an EF body is with an adaptor, and the adaptor also needs to have a lens in it in order to correct for the changes in the mounting distances. Canon made very few adaptors and they are not well out of production and sell like gold dust.

3rd party options are generally only cheap and thus not always that good (general statement since most people don't even bother with FD to really find out).


I'd say its time to pray to the ebay Gods for another bidder!

The only saving grace you might have is if you have any interest in macro photography and if you've another lens or zoom with a focal length greater than 100mm

That's what I thought.... Let the praying begin!!!!!! At least the max I'm out is $50 for the stupidity lesson! OUCH! And thank you for the response. I was hoping that I was reading the information wrong.

 

[LisaCadwell]

Yea!!! There is an ebay god that saved the day. I've never been so happy to be out bidded on something before. WHEW! That was close.

 

[Overread]

Close indeed! But glad that someone else jumped in to save you!

That said if you want a good 50mm to look for then the 50mm f1.8 EF M1 is a good option. It's the older version of the current EF 50mm f1.8, however the older version is still very optically sound and also has a metal and much better construction over the current f1.8 (its plastic -- it will break very easily sadly).
Course the metal version, as its better, can end up selling for a fair bit - its a choice though as you can pick up an f1.8 fairly cheaply or save longer and get an f1.4.


Course best way is to have an idea/limit/concept of what you want a lens for - then pick the ones to hunt after to fit those needs

 

[KenC]

...the current f1.8 (its plastic -- it will break very easily sadly)

This really depends on whether you are a person who breaks things. I'm not and I've never broken a camera or a lens in about 35 years of owning SLR's (and other cameras). My 50/1.8 is now 4 1/2 years old, my most frequently used lens, and is in the same condition as when I bought it.

 

[Dao]

Close indeed! But glad that someone else jumped in to save you!

Now, wait until that person open a thread and ask about how to mount the newly purchase lens to his/her camera.

 

[LisaCadwell]

I was thinking about adding the 50 as I was told that in order to make a close up "pop" I would benefit from have a "prime lens". I can do pretty "ok" with what I have - but I want to make the eyes of a portrait crisp. I want to get the close up of the flowers with good bokeh. The lowest I can get now is an F/4.0 which is enough to get the blurred background. Just not as crisp as the photos on here that I see.

I'm not nearly good enough to put serious money into things yet. Of course I have $1000 into the camera/lenses I have - and still am told that it is entry level. The non entry level cameras actually gives me heartburn to look at the costs - and that is for body alone. WOW!!!!

 

[Overread]

Hmm close up and portraits are two slightly different things - out of interest what gear to you have to use currently - plus got any examples of the close ups?

 

[LisaCadwell]

Hmm close up and portraits are two slightly different things - out of interest what gear to you have to use currently - plus got any examples of the close ups?

I have a Canon Rebel EOS XS with the kit lens 18-55 and then the lens 55-250 IS 1:4-5.6. This picture that I took was with the 55-250 lens shot on AP f/5.6, 1/125, ISO 800.

 

[bratkinson]

For what it's worth, Ebay -does- allow bid retractions. As an infrequent seller, I occassionally get a request to permit a bid retraction. I think I've had 2 or 3 retractions in 10 years or so, out of perhaps 1000 items I've sold there. I, myself, did a similar mis-bid on something (I can't remember what, though), and submitted a bid retraction, which was allowed. Fortunately, the ebay people aren't trolls, looking to screw everybody - although their seller fees are rather steep at 9% these days!

 

[KmH]

Canon changed from the FD mount to the EF mount in 1987 for auto focus. Most other camera makers also changed the design of their lens mount in that time frame.

Nikon and Pentax were the only camera makers who did not change the design of their mount and instead took different steps to allow for auto focus.