help me chose between two lenses

Hey everyone! For my first 35mm camera the ae-1 program. I have the 50mm but now I have the choice to pick up either the Canon 50mm macro with adapter and the Canon 70-210. Both for 70 euros. Wich is the better deal? I know they are used for very different things but I want to get both in the long run. Any advice will be much appreciated.

First bit of advice is don't post the same question in 2 different Photo.net forums. I'm not a big macro user, so I would get the 70-210 first.

EUR 70 for a New FD 70-210mm f4 is too expensive. Depending on where you live you should be able to find a good one for EUR 25 to EUR 50 (incl.shipping) on ebay.

 

EUR 70 for the 50mm f3.5 Macro is not a bargain either but still reasonable.

It's too personal for others to decide.

 

I would go for a short telephoto ~70mm) to 200 or 300mm zoom in the nFD group

Search by product name - Canon Camera Museum

if I were you.

Some were REALLY good

 

Of course they were, but they usually cost as little as the Canon lenses, and most people in the game rate the latter as really, really good.

Canon, not cannon

My recent experience with the nFD 70-210 and the more pro-oriented 2-ring 80-200 f/4 is that they are both dirt cheap right now. You should be able to find clean examples of either for $40 or less on eBay. I bought a very clean nFD 80-200 2-ring a few months ago off eBay and paid a bit more than $20 for it, plus shipping. It's in almost mint condition, glass and mechanicals are perfect. As for price, same is true with the 50/3.5 macro. 50 and 55 macros are cheap as peanuts these days. So in view of this, my recommendation is simple. Buy both. Or buy all three (and pick up the more pro-oriented 80-200 as well). It's worth noting that, back when they sold new, the 80-200 was substantially more expensive than the 70-210.

 

Now, if you want a zoom with a bit more reach -- to 300mm, let's say -- I do not recommend the nFD 100-300/5.6. It's a rather mediocre optic. The Tamron SP 60-300 f/3.8-5.4, however, is excellent. It can sometimes be found on eBay for ridiculously low prices. An even better short tele to 300mm zoom I've found is the Tokina AT-X 100-300mm f/4 SD. SD stands for "Super low Dispersion" glass. I have a copy of this lens, and it is the sharpest short tele to 300mm zoom I own. The SD glass does a good job of improving chromatic aberration performance. A really remarkable lens. It tends to sell for more, but is still an outstanding deal. I just checked eBay and I'm seeing prices for it in the $60-90 range. It's worth it.

I hate ALL zooms. Get the macro.

My 100-400mm is bigger than your 100-300mm :p

But mine cost less

no doubt about that!