If you’re new to the world of digital photography, then there’s a good chance that you are soon going to realize that your camera can do so much more with additional lenses. When you want to buy some new glass, the task can be a little bit daunting. There are so many brands to choose from, and even more zoom ranges. It took me a pretty long time before I learned what the basic lens types were, and the kinds that were available for the camera bodies I shoot with. Thankfully, there is a lot of information on the web that can help you find your next DSLR lens or accessory. Make sure you read plenty of reviews! Not so many that your head is spinning (I’ve been there many time), but at little bit of research will always do you some good.
Some of the best places you can get lens recommendations from online are the top photography forums. Check out the links at the end of this post. Utilize your fellow photo gearheads on Twitter and Facebook, too. Talk to your photography buddies, or any professionals you might know. Ask them their opinions, and learn how they came to the conclusions they made on which lenses best suited their needs.
Try not to EVER rush into a lens purchase. These aren’t pieces of gear you want to impulse-buy at all. While you might end up with a great quality lens, you might be buying more than you need. You’d better do your homework, unless you want to be like a clueless sucker walking into a car dealership, not knowing what the difference is between a Camaro or an Impala even is. Salesman have one goal – to sell. They will convince you that you need the best of the best, unless are smart enough to realize what you yourself personally need. Salesmen could care less about saving you money. Do auto repair shops try to convince you that you need more than you need? Yes, almost always. Do electronics stores try to sell you a warranty on anything you want to buy from them? Of course, they do. Don’t be a sucker. Be an educated consumer, and save yourself some time and money. It’s a pain to have to sell photography gear after you realize you’ve purchased something you don’t really use very much.
When I realized I needed a longer zange telephoto zoom lens, my initial goal was to pick up something basic and cheap. My first 70-300 was garbage, made by Tamron under the name of Quantarray. I picked it up second hand on craigslist for a whopping $55 and was actually impressed with the performance of it for the price, when I first got it. As I went on, I began to realize that the thing had more purple fringing (CA / chromatic aberation) than any lens I had ever owned. It would have suited a hobbyist just fine, or someone that didn’t care as much about good quality images. It was capable of producing quality images, but the amount of mistakes you had to fix in post processing basically made it not even worth shooting with. Now I have an L series 70-200 f4 (non-IS) I bought on ebay, along with a bing.com cashback rebate. There are always rebates and deals online, if you are internet savvy enough you should be able to find them. When you zoom the aperture is fixed – I love it. Instead of the aperture changing from f3.5 to f5.6 throughout the zoom range, the L series Canon lens has a fixed aperture. The ultrasonic auto focus is amazingly fast, and way more accurate than a lit lens. The quality of the images are unmatched compared to my older low end lenses, and the CA is so low that it’s just about non-existant. You definitely get what you pay for, when buying glass. Some kit glass is amazing, just having a few limitations. You just need to learn the limitations and invest your dollars wisely, according to the type of photography you do the most.
Uh, oh… I’m about to drop the “U word”. USED! Compare prices between new and used for everything you’re interested in buying, when it comes to photo gear. Every piece of photographic equipment I have everpurchased was previously used. With the exception of my nifty fifty, which is just about the same price new or used at around $80 USD. I was the second owner on the rest of my gear, about 75% of it was used only briefly. Seeing that photography is the type of hobby that many take up only to soon realize they dumped a bunch of money into something they either stink at, or just can’t afford, then that means there are a lot of regretful buyers out there trying to find a way to unload their expensive gear. My first camera was a second body for a wedding photographer which was lightly used, and in mint condition. My most recent camera body had just 4000 clicks on the shutter when I bought it, and not a scratch or nick on the exterior. Both of those purchases saved me enough to buy another camera lens brand new, if I wanted to.
Once you get familiar with some of the more popular pro lenses, so many out there that will make you drool. There are just way too many good lenses to buy, and never enough money. If I bought what I “wanted” I could easily blow $10,000-$15,000 or more on glass. If I bought what I really needed, well then I probably already have what I “need” for the type of work that I do. What you’ve got to respect about Canon lenses is that genuine Canon glass hardly ever depreciates; L series lenses, especially. My friend just sold his 70-200 f2.8 I about a month ago for what he bought it for, back 6 years ago. Amazingly low depreciation. Glass is always a good investment, and sometimes it helps to borrow or rent before you drop a ton of money. Low end Canon kit lenses like the 18-55 IS and the 55-250 IS, for example, have definitely depreciated in the used market over the past few years. The 50mm f1.8 (the cheapest decent quality prime lens you buy) always seems to stay pretty solid around $80 new or used.
When you stick to buying glass that is made by your camera manufacturer (ie: Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax) you generally don’t have to worry about older lenses not working with the newer Camera bodies that come out. I’ve heard that some older off brand lenses will stop working with updated Canon or Nikon cameras. Who needs the hassle of having to replace gear that they know works, but doesn’t work with their new upgraded body? Not that there aren’t some good quality off brand lenses, but usually when you stick to your manufacturer, it will turn out better in the long run.
Great sites for lens reviews and research:
Canon POTN Forums and Fred Miranda Forums are definitely my favorite places to talk gear and to read reviews online.
(these are also great places to buy or sell used photography equipment)
Canon POTN Forums
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/
Fred Miranda Forums
http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/
Imaging-Resource
http://www.imaging-resource.com
DPreview
http://dpreview.com/
Lens Hero
http://www.lenshero.com
Lenshero is a pretty helpful type of site that helps “suggest” what type of lens you are looking for, according to your needs. It allows you to enter in the lenses you already own, as well. Remember that the site is set up in a way to drive affiliate sales to Amazon.com products, similarly to many other online review sites. That doesn’t mean you can’t make your purchases elsewhere.
