Yesterday i was accepted into a high school called, SYA which is a program that allows junior and seniors to spend a year abroad in a country of their choice using the language of the country everyday. I applied for SYA France, which is in Rennes. When i was applying i was thinking about what i could do in France for an activity and photography popped immediately into my head. During my 14th Christmas i received a Canon Digital Rebel which was an extremely nice camera as a gift. I had started taking photos with my parents Digital Rebel 2 year prior. Now that i am going to France for a full year of school, i would like to get some better gear since the Digital Rebel is showing its age. So i am asking my community on Bit-tech for help! I am selling my desktop and using the money for this, since i cant bring it with me. I will also be working the entire summer making money also. I plan on getting: a Canon 50D or Canon 5D (can't decide which (full frame) to get) a bunch of lenses, (need help choosing) I am thinking of getting a Tamron 18-200mm as it would be a good all-in-one. Then a macro lens (no idea what to get). Maybe a telephoto bigger than the Tamron 18-200mm, but that might be fine. And a wide angle! (same thing no idea what to get!) All-in-one, Macro, Telephoto, Wide-angle a carrying bag! for all these goodies! If someone has a Canon 50D i would be happy to buy it off of them (or 5D but havent decided) As for lenses if anyone has one they could donate that would be amazing! Hopefully i can get this stuff for my year abroad so i can take amazing photos and start my photo career! Comments on anything is welcome because i need help choosing! Thanks soo much in advance! Ace
It all comes down to money (as always). Do you really need all those lenses? What are you likely to be shooting?
well i am kinda asking what i should get or is recommended for everyday use. would the 18-200 be fine for anything kus thats pretty much what ill be shooting; buildings, landscapes, portraits, etc.
The 18-200 won't work with the 5D anyway, but don't skimp on lenses. Spend most of your budget on lenses, rather than the camera.
Super-zooms like that 18-200mm tend not to be great, I'd avoid them if at all possible. I'd go with the 50D because you then get more reach from your lenses, and a wider choice available to you. You're unlikely to want to go wider than an effective 16mm anyway, which you could do on the 50D with an EF-S 10-20mm, or on the 5D with a 16-35mm L. My list would be: 50D Suitable bag Memory cards&batteries etc.. Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 or Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM depending on budget Canon 70-200mm f/4 IS L Canon 1.4x TC Canon EF-S 10-20mm f/3.5-4.5 Fast primes at circa 50mm & 100mm. If thats over budget, ditch the circa 100mm prime, ditch the teleconverter and buy a 40D instead of a 50D.
I'm a Nikon fanboy, but looking at Xen0phobiak's list, that seems about right Personally I'd go: 18-200 (fit on all the time... then you can whip the camera out, turn it on and snap instantly... it's cheaper and does the same thing as having a P+S handy) 10-20 (wideangle for landscapes ad buildings) 50mm f1.4 prime (much better build quality than the f1.8 from what I hear) and some sort of super zoom lens Instead for getting 1x16Gb memory card, get 4x 4Gb, it works out cheaper and if one fails it's not as much of a loss... And as said, a decent bag is a definite must
Don't go nuts buying lots of equipment for the sake of it. Remember that you need to carry all this around with you. Maybe a 18-200 won't give you that great picture quality, but at least it will be easy to use on the run. If you want to go on trips specifically to take pictures, and is able to take your time, then more may be better. also remember to calculate in some backup solution for your pictures. two USB drives could work for that. Just remember that drives DO fail, and it's a VERY good idea to have the pictures stored on two separate drives or on a hard drive and DVDs. Loosing all your precious pictures will suck no matter what equipment you used to take them.
Another vote for the Sigma 17-70mm, it's a great versatile lens and for the money, the quality is excellent.
I had a similar experience in Florence, Italy all of last year (of course I went to a lot of other countries too) and although I had a Canon 400D (almost what you're replacing) I had my canon 10-22mm EF-S on it the majority of the time, especially when taking pictures of buildings (which I did a lot of). The f1.8 50mm fixed is also a great lense and significantly cheaper than the f1.4 but yes the quality feels pretty crappy but it still takes great pictures. During the festival of lanterns in Florence at night I had that lense on and I could take very decent pictures with no flash or anything. Other than that I just had a Canon 28-105 or something for everyday shooting but you could definitely improve on that one but that color was great (and it was cheap). Either way, you're going to love spending that much time devoted to photography, I'm jealous.
Ok well, Xen0phobiak and bigsharn's lists might be a little extreme because i am only 16. This is what i have come up with! Canon 50D = $1000 Tamron 18-200mm = $260 maybe a Canon 50mm EF 50mm f/1.8 II need more advice!!!
First question: Why do you think the Rebel is showing its age? Unless the Rebel is physically defective, a shiny new camera will not help you take better photos. Remember one very important thing: When you go out shooting vacation photos, you don't want to carry your entire kit with you. It gets heavy, and limits your ability to move around with ease. Get a decent camera, and 1 or 2 good lenses. Don't bother with a teleconverter. Everyone says that they want one just in case they need to shoot something 3 miles away, but they end up never needing it, and it's just one more thing to carry around with you. Put that money toward a good lens. If you want to go with an SLR, then I would get the following: A lens to cover wide to mid-range. A lens to cover mid-range to telephoto. A high capacity card (you don't want to get carried away and end up filling up a 1GB card at the first attraction). I use an 8GB card. I get over 600 shots with it - good for day's outing. I keep a couple 1GB cards in my pocket just in case. A comfortable bag. My co-worker carries his P&S and camcorder in a fanny-pack. Another co-worker uses a traditional over-the-shoulder camera bag. I have a backpack to get all my gear to the hotel, but I end up taking just the camera with me when I go shooting. Personally, I've never needed anything longer than a 200mm lens. To be honest, if you're not really into photography, you can save a ton of money and just get a really good P&S like a Canon G10 or A1000 IS, or a Nikon P90 or P6000. A good P&S will satisfy just about all your vacation photo needs. You can take the money you save and spend it on some really good French bread and pastries. Oh, and souvenirs. -monkey
Ah, but my list was compiled wth 2 words in mind... Second hand Everything's cheaper on Ebay (Including the 50D)... you can proably get a 50D mkI for around $700 (and it's just as good) and good 2nd hand lenses aren't hard to come by... you just might be hard pushed for the cards and the bag at 2nd hand. To be honest I'd want a laptop (or even just a netbook) as well to carry around, to store the photos on and upload them etc. (you can probably afford all of the above 2nd hand on $1500 at a push)
I'de probable have kept the camera and gone for a sigma10-20, a sigma 18-50 f2.8 and a canon 70-200 f4 L, and then a lowepro flipside or fastpack, tamrac adventure 9 or kata dr467 to carry them in. and possibly pick up a flash.
@ monkey so u think i should stick with my digital rebel and just get like 2 lenses and a back? im trying not to spend to much like if i were to get the 50d i would try not to spend over $2000 that would be my total max @ bigsharn where r u finding a 50d for 700 bucks send me a link haha cant find any! -Ian
Do you mean a 5D, rather than a 50D? I don't believe the XXD line has a 'mk#' indicator. Perhaps. You mentioned that your Rebel is showing its age; I was wondering what, specifically, you don't like about it. I used a Digital Rebel before it took a nose dive into a campfire. It's a very capable camera, and there really isn't any reason to spend a bunch of money on a bunch of new gear unless you're seriously considering getting into photography. If all you want is a decent camera to record memories of your trip, then I think investing in a new 50D is overkill. A new lens will probably do more for you than a new body. You've already said that you're young, and that you're looking forward to the experience of a year studying in a foreign country. Why spend all your money on more camera gear than you need? You'll be there for a year. If you suddenly develop a passion for photography, there is always the possibility of investing in new components later on. I'm not necessarily trying trying to talk you out of your decision. Rather, I'm just giving you some additional information to think about. If photography is something that truly interests you, then don't feel too bad upgrading your equipment. -monkey
i think he meant just 50D and i totally agree with u, i already do have a passion for photography which will probably stick with me for the rest of my life. it probably would be overkill and i should just get and all in one lens. when i bought my first computer with my own money i went way overkill spending $2000. the camera itself just seems slow like even in action mode. but i think that if i find a deal for a 50d before i go on the trip i will buy it. thanks again monkey ian
Unless you shoot a lot of wildlife or sports I'd stick to the 40D over the 50D--the 50D doesn't offer enough to make for a decent jump over the 40D IMO. As for the 5D, its a great camera...good build, outstanding IQ, very good high ISO performance with an OK AF system (center point is excellent though). Keep in mind if you go FF (5D, 5DII) you will not be able to use any 18-2** super zooms. FWIW this is what I'd go with depending on your budget and shooting needs: 40D Sigma 10-20/Canon 10-22/Tokina 12-24 (optional wide angle) Tamron 17-50 or Sigma 17-70 Canon 85/1.8 or 50/1.4 or 50/1.8 or Sigma 30/1.4 (optional prime) 70-300IS or 55-250IS Kenko Extension tubes FWIW I'd just go with the 40D and a Tamron 17-50/Sigma 17-70 along side a 70-300IS or 55-250IS and perhaps a set of tubes to start...shoot with that for a bit and then fill in where you feel your missing.
