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Which Lens should I buy.

PostPosted: Mon Feb 16, 2009 12:00 am
by tahlia
Hi, I hope someboby can help me. I am thinking of buying a new lens for my Canon 450d body as I am going to South Africa. I had the 70- 300 lens which I found was too much trouble for me to change the lens all the time. I am looking at the Canon 18- 200. Or the Tamron (I Think it is.) 18 to 250. The canon costs more. Which one should I buy. Is th Tamron good. Thank you Vicki

Re: Which Lens should I buy.

PostPosted: Mon Feb 16, 2009 8:02 pm
by chaosphotography
It all depends on money factor? I suggest going with the 70-200mm L series lens by canon. Now which one do you choose? Well how much do you want to spend? I have the f4 non IS and I love it. Then there's the f4 IS series and then even better the f2.8 IS series but your talking some money. Wish you the best and have fun!

Re: Which Lens should I buy.

PostPosted: Tue Feb 17, 2009 1:33 pm
by tahlia
Hi, Thank you for your reply. Money is a problem. I was only thinking of something cheap as I will probably only use it when I go to South Africa to get closer to the animals. I found one place that had a Canon 450d with a lens 18 to 200 I think and it was only about $1400.00 Aust dollars. (Camera and lens.) I didn't know which Lens would be best a Canon or Tamron. I know nothing about Lens. My last camera had a 18-55 & 70-300 but I like the photo's but I didn't like changing the lens. Would a 18- 200 be suitable for wildlife. Thank you also for your good wishes. Vicki

Re: Which Lens should I buy.

PostPosted: Tue Feb 17, 2009 5:34 pm
by prinothcat
In general, and only in the broadest terms, name brands lenses like Canon will be better values for the price than after market makers like Tamron. There are exceptions to every rule, as Canon and Nikon have made some real dogs, while Tamron and Tokina have some gems. The one brand I hear the fewest good things about are Sigma. There is no reason that the 18-200 won't shoot great wildlife photos. With lenses like that it frequently comes down to making sure you know how to get the best image from the lens, and not to count on everything to be "automatic".
These site is usually reliable for reviews, http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/canon_18-200_3p5-5p6_is_c16/
Is this the Tamron http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/tamron_18-270_3p5-6p3_vc_n15/ ?

Re: Which Lens should I buy.

PostPosted: Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:48 pm
by dang
Check the tests by Pbase member "lightrules" here: http://www.pbase.com/lightrules/image/105509533
There's other pages showing his test results for several of the current long zooms. The Tamron 18-270 looks pretty good for a "walk around" lens.

Re: Which Lens should I buy.

PostPosted: Mon Mar 02, 2009 1:17 pm
by harry1
The Tamron would be your best alternative to what you have now, as a 200mm lens won't let you get very close. I'd say 300mm would be a minimum for wildlife shots, but if the Tamron is all you could afford I'd say that's your best choice.

Dirck harris