Suggestions for low cost Cannon DSLR all around lenses.

[serena_gale]

I just bought a Cannon D-10 DSLR camera. I am trying to find a good, all-around, everyday lens. Preferably with some sort of zoom. I bought a 75-300 lens already but if I want to take a picture of a house I have to stand in the neighbor's yard 2 houses down. If I want to take a picture of something close up, I have to stand at least 5-6 feet away. I would like something that is more useful for everyday shooting. I am going for something used, preferably in the $300 range, and a Canon name lens. I have seen two on Amazon that I am looking at but I can't decide between them or whether I should get something altogether different. Also, I don't know how to tell if the lenses are good for digital cameras or only film. Is there some sort of trick to this? Can you all help me out and make some suggestions?

Here are the two I am currently looking at...

Amazon.com: Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Standard Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo

Amazon.com: Canon EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM Standard Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo

Feedback? Thanks so much!!!

 

[TiCoyote]

I'm not sure how much you want to spend, but the 18-55 EFS is a good, lightweight cheap lens, with a useful zoom range and IS.

 

[gsgary]

I'm not sure how much you want to spend, but the 18-55 EFS is a good, lightweight cheap lens, with a useful zoom range and IS.

Don't fit an EF-S lens on your 10D

 

[memento]

i found 28mm to be too far for my liking. i use a 17-55 all the time but it's not really in your budget.
17/18mm zoom is a very practical 'walk around' lens on a crop sensor camera.

 

[gsgary]

i found 28mm to be too far for my liking. i use a 17-55 all the time but it's not really in your budget.
17/18mm zoom is a very practical 'walk around' lens on a crop sensor camera.

Read post above Do not fit an EF-S lens on a 10D

 

[o hey tyler]

i found 28mm to be too far for my liking. i use a 17-55 all the time but it's not really in your budget.
17/18mm zoom is a very practical 'walk around' lens on a crop sensor camera.

Read post above Do not fit an EF-S lens on a 10D

EF-S 18-55/3.5-5.6 conversion for EOS 10D

 

[Dao]

Another low cost lens worth take a look is the

Cosina 19-35mm f/3.5-4.5

I believe the lens is made by Cosina but is re-branded by different company such as Promaster, Vivitar, Phoenix, Tamron or Tokina.

 

[gsgary]

Another low cost lens worth take a look is the

Cosina 19-35mm f/3.5-4.5

I believe the lens is made by Cosina but is re-branded by different company such as Promaster, Vivitar, Phoenix, Tamron or Tokina.

I have that lens great on 10D and 1Dmk1, here's a shot from the 1Dmk1, don't use it any more though

 

[gsgary]

i found 28mm to be too far for my liking. i use a 17-55 all the time but it's not really in your budget.
17/18mm zoom is a very practical 'walk around' lens on a crop sensor camera.

Read post above Do not fit an EF-S lens on a 10D

EF-S 18-55/3.5-5.6 conversion for EOS 10D

Pointless

 

[o hey tyler]

Read post above Do not fit an EF-S lens on a 10D

EF-S 18-55/3.5-5.6 conversion for EOS 10D

Pointless

It works though.

 

[memento]

Read post above Do not fit an EF-S lens on a 10D

i suggested a 17/18mm zoom.
it's up to the user to find the correct lens that fits their camera.

 

[serena_gale]

Thanks for the lively discussion but does anyone have anyone have any comments on the two lenses I linked to? Is there an easy way to determine what the most important differences are? What should I keep in mind when trying to decide between two similar but different lenses?

 

[Derrel]

Another low cost lens worth take a look is the

Cosina 19-35mm f/3.5-4.5

I believe the lens is made by Cosina but is re-branded by different company such as Promaster, Vivitar, Phoenix, Tamron or Tokina.

Yeah, those were like "the" kit zoom, before Canon developed EF-S cheapie kit lenses. Many of them were sold as Quantaray, through Ritz and Kitz camera, and they were optically, pretty decent. What you want to look for is a lens with a 17,18,or 19mm widest setting. The 19-35 is available used across the USA. If you want a better-quality lens, the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 lens is a good choice. The lenses that start at 28mm and go to 135mm or 200mm are not nearly as handy as other lenses like Sigma's 18-125mm...you NEED those shorter lengths like 18,19,20mm; with Canon's 1.6x FOV multiplier, a 28mm lens has a Field of View similar to that of a 42mm, which kind of sucks as a wide-angle....it's like a pseudo-normal... lenses with 28-135 and 28-200mm lengths are/were designed for FILM camera use. There are a LOT of them still floating around, and many disreputable retailers and web-based shysters are trying to pair them up in kits with cheap bodies. Canon made millions of cheesy 28-135's for pairing with film Rebels, and new, old-stock 28-135s are still filling warehouses across the world.

Any place that wants to sell you a Canon d-slr with a 28-135 or 28-200 is trying to screw you. Seriously. It's a crappy lens to have with a 1.6x d-slr. But, the lenses are available wholesale,cheaply, so fly-by-night clip joints are trying to sucker people with them.

 

[Derrel]

Here is my suggestion for a low-cost, all-around lens for an APS-C Canon camera: the Sigma 18-125mm OS. I own the earlier, non-OS version. This lens is just about perfect for walkabout use. Weight is minimal. Size is compact. Optics are decent for the price. Has the desired focal length range. Price is good.

Amazon.com: Sigma 18-125mm f/3.8-5.6 AF DC OS HSM Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo