Camera Labs

Hi everyone, we've published a guide to help Canon DSLR owners choose their next lens.

This guide is aimed at first-time or relatively new DSLR owners who know what kind of photo they want to take, but are not sure what kind of lens they need to do it.

We've split the guide into five sections covering portrait, sports, close-up, wide-angle and general-purpose photography. Within each section we've picked out a number of highlights from the Canon lens catalogue which are ideal for that purpose.

We plan to produce guides to Nikon and Sony mounts in the near future, along with extending all guides to include third party options. In the meantime, I hope you'll find this guide useful, and as always if you have any questions, please ask right here in the forum. Please keep this thread for comments about the guide though and ask specific lens questions in new or existing threads - thanks!

See our Canon lens buyers guide.

Gordon

Great concept Gordon! Nice work!

- Bjorn -

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Street and documentary photographer | Google+ | Twitter | Blog | Tumblr

Leica M9-P (my article on Camera Labs) | Leica D-Lux 5 | 50mm Summilux

Would be nice to see the 50mm in the general purpose photography..

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Mark Osborne
My life through an iPhone

Yes, I may add it in there too...

Hi JOTAKING, I split your question out as a seperate thread.

Gordon,

Its an excellent piece of work that I referred to before buying my lenses after I decided on Canon.

Any chance of comparing widely used lenses on Canon and Nikon, say, Canon EF-S 15-85mm IS USM with Nikkor DX 16-85mm VR. This would help serious beginners in deciding between Canon and Nikon in the first place.

I know this is probably asking for a little too much:)

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Canon T1i/500D | EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM | EF 50mm f/1.8 II |

It's a good idea and one I've wanted to do for a while, but it would actually receive minimal links from the blogs and other sites, and we need that to drive traffic to maintain revenue. Annoyingly it's mostly just plain camera reviews which get significant links.

Hi Gordon,
Fantastic article - it will really help with my lens purchases.

I am just about to purchase my first slr and I think I'm opting for the Canon 7d with the EFS 15-85mm IS USM lens.

I really want to photograph landscapes, buildings and in particular night time photos of buildings / lights etc. I was wondering what lens you recommend on a medium budget?

Thanks

yYou've seelcted a great combo there, but if you want a cheaper kit, the 18-135 is still good.

Wow, I love what all I've read throughout your site, and through much research, self-turmoil, studying, reading, comparing, changing my mind (and looking at my checkbook) I've about decided the best way for me to get into SLR or DSLR is with the Canon T3i. My problem is trying to sort out these lenses and stay within my budget. It has baffled me. I'm more confused now than when I started, I think. 80% of my shots are on a Road Racing Course, action shots, attempted blurry backgrounds , fast cars, motorcycles, motor-cross etc. Often I am at a great advantage, and close to the track, but I also sometimes am about 200 yards and with a Panasonic FZ 35 with 18X zoom can't get the clear shots I want. Not sure whether it's because I need an SLR or more zoom. However, I do take people shots and a few indoors, as well as some great close-up nature and animal shots. I'm looking at a limited budget of around $1300. I've seen the Camera for around $630 with the 18-55mm IS II Kit. I really feel like I want a 70-300mm IS, but can't afford the top of the line ones and read critical reviews of the less expensive ones especially past the 200 mark. I'm not sure that would be such a big deal in my case, but it might. I'm just really baffled over what my options are to get the best coverage for what I need. I need to start somewhere and learn from there, but I've amazed people with a Super Zoom and have won photo contests. I'm not even sure I shouldn't just upgrade to the next new and better Super Zoom, but I keep hearing how much better SLR photography is, like buying the better quality phone. Any quick tips and two, legitimately good lenses for that kind of limited budget? I'm kind of thinking maybe do I need to cover the 18-135 IS USM range, then the 100-300?

Many thanks
Tim

I should probably mention that I do shoot a lot of video too. Of course to get the best lenses and camera for the money, I will keep my FZ-35 handy if I have to use it for great Hi-res video, but naturally the greatest thing to me is the video options with the new Canon T3i along with upgrading to an SLR.

What do you mean in saying you don't get the clear shots you want? If you don't get the subject filling or occupying a large part of the frame, your zoom probably doesn't reach far enough but if the subject occupies an acceptable amount of the frame but the detail isn't pin sharp or crystal clear or the image is noisy/grainy, it's probably the camera or its settings that are at the problem.

If you can reach far enough with your FZ-35 but the image quality isn't ideal, a DSLR can help as you have a larger sensor and generally superior optics with most of the lenses you choose. With your budget, you can look at the 70-300mm IS USM from Canon as well as the 70-300mm VC from Tamron for far-reaching lenses - both are highly regarded.

If you can't reach far enough with your FZ-35, there may not be a great deal more you can achieve with a DSLR in your budget - the FZ-35 has an almost identical 35mm focal length equivalent when fully zoomed in as that you have with a crop-sensor Canon using a lens at 300mm. For greater focal lengths on a DSLR, you'll probably need to sell a kidney or look into hiring a suitable lens. However, what you can improve on within yout budget is image quality.

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Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

I had the same questions a few weeks ago. A lot of people on this forum suggested the Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 SP Di VC USD XLD (http://www.amazon.com/Tamron-70-300mm-4 ... 0-300mm+vc).

I'm getting this lens for my 650D when my local retailer finally has it in stock. Maybe it is something for you!

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"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources." Albert Einstein

They recommended it over the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 USM IS ? It appears about the same price, maybe even a little more. I'm pretty sure I want one of the two.

I'm still undecided on lenses, but I'm sure I want to try the EF 50 MM f/1.8. I am trying to determine which lens I will use the most being about 75 ft. to 30 yds away from my moving subjects most of the time, but not all.

Tim

Actually, out of all the good reviews, there were some horrible ones on the Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 SP Di VC USD XLD which scared the heeby jeebies out of me. I'd be afraid to buy it after what several of the people claim they went through. This lens thing has taken a week of my time and I'm stressed over it. I may just upgrade my FZ35 to the FZ100. My current photos are highly acclaimed!