super zoom telephoto

sabenemmons · Feb 8, 2005

i am looking for a super telephoto zoom for my canon rebel and am having a hard time finding one that is in my price range. I was wondering if anybody had an idea on where to get one at a decent price without losing quality.
Thanks
Saben

Big Mike · Feb 8, 2005

What is your budget and what focal length are you interested in? What quality are you looking for? The more you spend, the better quality you will get.

Digital Matt · Feb 8, 2005

I don't know what you consider super zoom telephoto. Some common telephoto zooms are 70-300, 70-200, 100-400. Some are cheap, some are expensive, but as Mike said, you get what you pay for.

FlashSpeedo · Feb 8, 2005

I got a cheap $120 Nikon 70-300 (or is it 80-300?). I don't use it much, but it takes okay pictures for my needs, which is shooting birds and animals in daylight from a distance. Higher end long glass lenses cost a fortune, but if you're not a pro sports or pro wildlife photographer and you mainly use it in daylight, you can get a lot of mileage from a cheap wonder zoom. I'm sure Canon has 300mm lenses ranging from $120 to $5000 depending on your needs and budget.

Canon Fan · Feb 9, 2005

Cheap and Super Tele-Photo are not two words that normally collide in the same sentence! However if you can live with the ring blur you might consider looking into mirror lenses. Although they are passe amongst pros it is the cheapest way to get 500mm+ of zoom.

Canon mount mirror 50mm f/8 lenses can be had for about $130 US.

FlashSpeedo · Feb 10, 2005

keep in mind also, DSLR's have a lens multiplying factor -- 1.5x for Nikon and I think 1.6x if you have a 300D. So my cheap 300mm acts like a 450mm on a film SLR. in short, if you want long lenses it behooves you to go digital.

spike000 · Feb 13, 2005

I had a filthy 28-300 Sigma lens which I only used when trying to be inconspicuous (damn sight smaller than a big white 300mm f:2.8! It gave appalling image quality, was very slow and very rarely performs in any way that I would consider acceptable. (useful paperweight or doorstop though)

However, it was light and only cost £120 - about $250 so is a bargain - but as everyone has said before - you really do get what you pay for!

Spike