Which lens?

Hi,

Iam going to buy a 20D, which lenses do you think would be the best? My budget

is limited, Iam thinking about 17-85 IS USM, for a wide angle, is there any

option with lower price and almost same performance?

 

For tele I was thinking about old bargain 75-300 IS USM, is there a big

diference between 75-300 IS and new 70-300 IS? THX

A nice cheaper ($120 less) option to the 17-85 is the Sigma 17-70. It does not have IS but has better image quality especially chromatic abberations. The difference between the 75-300 and the 70-300 is huge in my opinion. While not as fast focusing as an "L" lens the 70-300 has superb Image quality and nice build. The 75-300 is more of an entry level consumer grade. You'll really notice the difference in low light. I'd save a few $ on the wide side with the sigma and get the better Tele. My 2cents.

I concur with Bob. The 70-300 is frequently compared to the image quality of the 70-200 f/4 L. While not quite there, it doesn't seem to be to far off.

 

Cheers!

Try Bobatkins.com and read his reviews of Canon lenses.

Biggest difference between the old 75-300 IS and the new 70-300 is the latter's superior IQ at 300mm. The newer one also has newer generation IS worth at least one stop. I had the older one and sold it to get the newer one at a time when the older one got about 85% of its purchase price on eBay -- and that after 3 years of use! If you can get the older one at a substantial discount and 300mm isn't critical, it might be worth buying.

PS: For either 70- or 75-300 you really need a lens hood.

I've been using my 70-300 IS without a hood for many months now, but I have no flare problems with it, even if I also use a UV filter, there is only very little flare added to the image.

 

Such as the full image (uncropped) sample below.<div></div>

For a lot of tests of Canon vs other lenses check out this site.

 

http://www.pbase.com/lightrules/lenstests