New Lens Suggestions

jaree2 · Feb 10, 2013

Hi all,

New forum member here. Hoping to find some advice on purchasing a lens or lenses from an upcoming trip to Malawi, Africa. I would consider myself "competent" on a basic level with a camera and have been relatively happy with photos from previous adventures, although I have been pretty limited with my current lenses. I am currently working with a Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XSi, stock EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens, and a Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens. I've been very happy with the macro lens and have been able to work within the confines of the stock lens. I'd really like to purchase a telephoto lens for wildlife photography or a wide angle lens for landscapes, but I'd love some tips as to what the best choices in these categories would be. Price is, as always, a factor in the decision, but when you are paying for plane ticket to Africa I'd like to have the tools to take some good photos. Thanks very much for all your help in advance,

Jack

Overread · Feb 10, 2013

You'll have to give us some idea of how much money you have to spend on it - price is a factor but the range is just far too great for us to guess as to how much will suit your needs. A little guidance can help a lot in refining down what will and won't fit your budget.

T2iGuy · Feb 10, 2013

Check out my for sale thread for a great wide angle L lens. Would be perfect for a trip like that!! It has served me well in Kauai and Paris and Ireland too!!

gw2424 · Feb 10, 2013

I would recommend the 100-400mm but there are plenty of other factors. What is your budget?

jaree2 · Feb 10, 2013

Thanks for all the replies! I apologize, I should have been more specific. As far as price range, I think my upper limit would be about $1000, with my priority being a telephoto lens - I think I would get a lot more use out of a telephoto lens vs. the wide angle on this trip. I'd love to spend less than this, obviously, if there is good value in a cheaper model, but I'd rather not buy something only to wish I had spent the money on a better lens. Hopefully this fills in the gaps a little bit and if there is anything I am missing let me know. Thanks,

Jack

Overread · Feb 10, 2013

You won't get the same quality for less very easily - long lenses tend to keep their value even second hand and sadly longer reach and quality tends to result in a higher and higher price. If you want one really good lens for the trip you can consider renting, there are quite a few companies setup now to do rental for safari and other similar tripos so look into that (Lens Rentals would be one company in the US that I'm aware of).

A rental will only be short term, but it might let you get the lens you want for the trip.

The other option is buying - the 100-400mm is an ideal safari lens, from all that I've heard ranges do shift a lot depending on how good the driver is and on the wildlife itself - some are very used to the cars and thus will often let them come surprisingly close whilst others will keep further away so a zoom lens has a lot of bonuses.

That said you might want to look at Sigma options, they've a 150-500mm and 50-500mm lens range of which one is the cheaper and might well fit your budget (last I checked I think the Canon 100-400mm is a bit too much for your budget).

jaree2 · Feb 10, 2013

Many thanks. Is there a significant difference in quality between Sigma and Canon lenses? We'll be hoofing it or driving on our own for this one, so zoom will be important. I'll definitely look into the rental options as well. Thanks very much for your help,

Jack

Big Mike · Feb 10, 2013

It's hard to straight up compare Canon to Sigma. Canon has some great lenses and some that aren't so great....same with Sigma.
You really have to compare one lens to another specifically.

Usually, companies like Sigma or Tamron, will offer more quality for the money than Canon or Nikon (you pay for the name). But on the other hand, the very best Canon or Nikon lenses are often better than the best from Sigma or Tamron. I usually tell people that you can get 80-90% of the quality for 50-60% of the price....but some people really need (or just want) that last 10% of quality, so they happily pay for it.