I need help deciding what package to buy

I am a photo lover. I love taking pictures of nature but have never had a

professional camera before. I am about to take the plunge and purchase a Canon

EOS 400DXTi Rebel 10.1 Mega Pixal but I have two package options and I don't

know the first thing about lenses. SO here goes I will be using the camera to

take pictures of my new grandson and nature shots. The eventually I will

naturally use it to record his progress through sports. SO can anyone give me

advise on the lens package would be the best for me. I have a friend who is

going to teach me about the camera but He is unavailable for two weeks and I am

going to order this week.

 

Here are the packages:

 

pck 1 MF/AF 100-300mm f/ 5.6-6.7 Ultra Zoom Lens for Canon DSLR and a 28-80mm

f/3.5-5.6 Aspherical Lens for Canon SLR Cameras price for ths package is

 

pck 2 28-105mm f/4-5.6 USM Autofocus Lens and a Zoom Telephoto EF 75-300mm

f/4.0-5.6 III Autofocus Lens

 

I will appreciate any help on this that I can get. Thank you in advance and I

sense that I will be using this forum a lot.

 

David

Do yourself a favour, and get the 400D/XTi with the kitlens that usually belongs to it ... that is the EFS 18-55/3.5-5.6.

 

The tele lens (100-300) in package 1 is very likely a complete waste. The 28-80 was the kitlens of the cheaper filmbodies. For itself it isn't a bad lens (not great either), but not appropriate for the 400D. The 28-105/4-5.6 has the reputation of being one of the worst lens produced by canon, the 75-300 is okish, but also not great.

You might also mention where you're going to buy this gear -- there are some shady folks out there.

I am looking at Fotoconnection and also I am looking at Digicombos.com also at the moment

http://www.photo.net/equipment/building-a-digital-slr-system/ is our standard article on this subject.

David,

Dont waste your time and money by looking for those sellers.

http://www.resellerratings.com/reseller_list.pl?keyword_search=Fotoconnection

Shop from a decent store.

What Rainer T said. Get yourself the "kit lens" (Canon EF 18-55) - it's going to be the most usable lens on your 400D. If you want a "better built" all-rounder lens, get the Canon EF-S 17-85mm IS USM.

What the others said -- those zooms are junk and the seller possibly a scammer.

 

By the way, the 400D is not a professional camera (though it does take great pictures). Ergonomics-, built quality- and handling-wise the 20D and 30D are much more satisfying than this entry-level toy (but even those are only "prosumer", not professional, gear).

 

Whatever camera and lens combination you settle on, also get an additional prime lens. The inexpensive EF 50mm f/1.8 is highly recommended and a real eye opener what fast lenses are capable of. It makes an wonderful portrait lens from people to pets.

Get a 50mm 1.8. No matter what else you choose, be sure to buy this lens. Tack sharp, very fast at 1.8, and dirt cheap.

I'd say that, judging by your expectations and your experience, there is no reason for you

to consider a 30D. The 400XTi is going to be a great camera for your purposes. Ignore the

"toy" comment. I now shoot a 5D - which is no toy - but I used an XT, the predecessor of

the XTi, for two years with great success, even selling photos in electronic and print form.

I had absolutely no complaints about the image quality of this crop sensor camera, and

the 400D/XTi is better. (For example, it has higher MP count than the 30D and the same

AF system, plus a dust reduction system.)

 

The 50mm f/1.8 is almost certainly a very poor choice for someone in

your situation. Back in the day's of film SRS camera - and before quality zooms were

readily available - a lens of about this length was often purchased as a "normal" lens. Even

if you buy into the idea of using prime lenses, if one is trying to replicate the "50mm

normal lens" on a crop sensor camera like the XTi a 30mm lens (or 28mm to about 35mm)

would be equivalent. A 50mm lens is sometimes regarded as a "portrait lens" on a camera

like the XTi - a short telephoto not generally suited to the general needs of most

photographers. If you _need_ a 50mm lens, this one is a great deal - but very few people

in your situation would want such a thing starting out.

 

The kit lens (18-55mm EFS) that often comes with this camera is a fine starter lens for

your purposes, and Canon includes it almost for free. Sure, it isn't a

professional quality lens, but I don't think that is what you are looking for. You'll probably

be quite happy with it.

 

The 18-55mm focal length range is very useful on a crop sensor camera like the XTi. It

covers everything from a decent wide angle to a short telephoto. It is not ultra wide nor

will it get you extremely close, but it covers the middle ground fairly well. The lens can

produce pretty decent results.

 

I recomming shooting that lens alone for awhile and seeing if you think you are missing

anything. If you

are looking for a longer lens, lenses with the focal lengths you mention might work, but

there are other options..

 

Don't rush into lens purchases - wait until you understand a bit more about your

photography

on this camera and your needs. The longer lenses will still be available if you wait, and you

are less likely to make expensive mistakes.

 

I suspect - and hope! - that after you have looked into these dealers at www.reseller-

ratings.com you will understand why I am counseling a "go slow" approach. It is easy to

make big, expensive mistakes in oh, so many ways - wrong gear, wrong seller, etc.

 

Take care, and enjoy your new camera.

 

Dan

Thanks Dan and everyone you are giving me a lot of good information to think about.

Whatever you get, and I agree with those that have recommended the 18-55 kit kens, don't buy from either of the places you mention. Go to B&H (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/) and use their price as a benchmark. Any body selling anything considerably lower than them is probably a scammer.

Never buy any kind of "package" from anybody. They're mostly a camera surrounded by a bunch of overpriced junk. The kit lens mentioned here is a package put together by Canon for sale through their authorized dealers.

 

The 400D isn't a professional camera but it's a damn good little camera and will serve you well, learn with it. But mostly buy it from the right place. For purchasing gear there are two things you need to know. First is a list of reputable dealers. The aforementioned B&H, Adorama, KEH, 17th St. Photo, Cameta etc. The second is : http://www.resellerratings.com/ Good luck.

Dan, you might not like my opinion, but the 400D is no more than a technical gadget, a photographic toy for amateurs. One that admittedly takes great pictures, but I find it misleading when people think that just because it's an <abbr title="digital single-lens reflex cameras">dSLRs</abbr>, it must be a real pro tool (as the original poster thinks). And image quality and pixel count are moot points. The 1D Mk III has also "only" ten "megapixels", but it is way more better in terms of ergonomics, viewfinder, controls, features and reliability. To say nothing about it costing nearly ten times as much as the 400D/XTi (does it take pictures that are 10× as good -- of course not, but that's not the point here).

<p>

And what is this crusade against the lovely 50mm? I recommend it because it is a short telephoto on a crop sensor camera, not because it is a boring normal lens on full-frame bodies. Most people love to shoot portraiture with a shallow depth-of-field, so this lens is an excellent tool exactly for that. The 3-stops-slower kit zoom is pretty poor in this regard at 50mm, while the f/1.8 is a versatile lens for low-light and even amateur sport photography. Sure, if David wants something longer for portraiture or sports, he should get the awesome 85mm f/1.8 or 100mm f/2, but since he just starting out, I just want him to compare the pros and cons of zoom versus prime lenses instead of talking him into unnecessary lens purchases.

400D is a great camera to start with. 18-55 zoom is a great lens to start with. 1.8/50 is a great portrait lens for that camera, even if you have the zoom lens because that is only F/5.6 in the long end. Later you can get a 70-300 or thereabouts zoom for the sports. Buy from a reputable shop.

<p>Buch B wrote:

 

<blockquote>"Dan, you might not like my opinion, but the 400D is no more than a

technical gadget, a photographic toy for amateurs. One that admittedly takes great

pictures, but I find it misleading when people think that just because it's an dSLRs, it must

be a real pro tool (as the original poster thinks). And image quality and pixel count are

moot points. The 1D Mk III has also "only" ten "megapixels", but it is way more better in

terms of ergonomics, viewfinder, controls, features and reliability. To say nothing about it

costing nearly ten times as much as the 400D/XTi (does it take pictures that are 10× as

good -- of course not, but that's not the point here).</blockquote>

 

<p>Image quality is a moot point? Whew...</p>

 

<p>The arguments about what constitutes a "professional camera" are tedious and pretty

pointless I think. The real question is what camera best meets the expectations and needs

(and budget) of a given user. The term "pro" when applied to photographic gears has more

meaning to the marketing department than to photographers in many cases. To get back

to the the OP's question, regardless of how we label it, the 400D

sounds like a great choice <i>for this poster</i> - it certainly seems more appropriate

than a 1DMKIII, no?</p>

 

<p>While the OP did use the term "professional," I suspect that he simply meant "a DSLR

instead of a point and shoot." In any case, I don't get the impression that this buyer is in

the market for what you

might regard as "pro" gear - say a 1DMKIII or a 1DsMKII? - much less the collection of

lenses that

would complement those cameras. Unless the OP really is contemplating an

investment of, say, $8000 or so for camera and L lenses...<p>

 

<p>400D "is no more than a technical gadget, a photographic toy for amateurs?"

Yikes! I'm not even going to respond to that.</p>

 

<blockquote>And what is this crusade against the lovely 50mm? I recommend it because

it is a

short telephoto on a crop sensor camera, not because it is a boring normal lens on full-

frame bodies. Most people love to shoot portraiture with a shallow depth-of-field, so this

lens is an excellent tool exactly for that. The 3-stops-slower kit zoom is pretty poor in

this regard at 50mm, while the f/1.8 is a versatile lens for low-light and even amateur

sport photography. Sure, if David wants something longer for portraiture or sports, he

should get the awesome 85mm f/1.8 or 100mm f/2, but since he just starting out, I just

want him to compare the pros and cons of zoom versus prime lenses instead of talking

him into unnecessary lens purchases.</blockquote>

 

<p>The 50mm f/1.8 seems to be an outstanding value and a fine lens... if you need an

inexpensive

short telephoto on your crop camera. My point is that <i>a "short telephoto" is not what

the typical first time buyer of a consumer DSLRs needs.</i> The OP mentions nature

(which

could mean

anything from wildlife to landscapes - e.g. wide angle or long telephoto... and a tripod)

and "sports" (but

what sports? - e.g. a "short telphoto" to shoot basketball from the edge of the court, or a

long telephoto to shoot football?) and photos of the

grandson. I didn't see anything about studio portraiture, which is where the 50mm (or an

85mm) might be a fine choice on this body. With such general (or diverse, or ill-defined)

interests,

the excellent and economical 50mm f/1.8 would most likely not serve the OP very well.</

p>

 

<p>I have nothing against the 50mm f/1.8. I own a 50mm lens and have found

sometimes find it very useful on both crop and full frame bodies. But it makes my hair

stand

on end when people recommend to new, relatively inexperienced buyers of crop-sensor

DSLR cameras that they make this lens their first purchase. For nearly all of them there are

many,

many better choices for a first lens.</p>

 

<p>I'm done now... :-)</p>

Dan, thanks for the clarification. But check my post, I didn't say that David should get the 50mm as his very first lens, just that he should get it in addition to any kit, zoom or other lens he chooses. And come on, the 50mm is not hardly suited only for studio portraiture...! It's a very versatile lens for many applications, but of course its short telephoto focal length is limiting for certain ones. But it's a great tool for learning photography as the "art of exclusion" (especially composition, framing, selective focus) instead of "trying to get it all in" with a wide or super-wide lens (which almost always guarantees a poor photo).

 

And of course I didn't say that the original poster should get the 1D III. But I think that he should go to a store and compare the 400D/XTi to the next "better" camera and see which camera is more usable in terms of placement of the controls, weight, viewfinder, ergonomics etc. The technical specs are meaningless when you cannot enjoy using a camera or feel like its operation is so cumbersome that it hinders your best efforts. I'm not saying that his original choice is bad, only that maybe there are better options when he wants a "professional" camera that "grows" with his photographic ambitions. Over and out.

What Dan said. That's sensible and very well-balanced advice. Just a few further points to add.

 

Whilst the kit lens is a perfectly sensible way to get started, it would not be at all out of proportion even at the start to look just one step up at the 17~85IS.

 

There are plenty of perfectly respectable off-brand lenses to choose from as well as Canon lenses, but there's also a lot of real junk out there, and anything that seems to offer remarkable specifications for the price should be treated with the greatest suspicion, wherever you consider buying it. In particular, long lenses that are good enough to be worth using don't come cheap, and on a 1.6-factor body for most purposes anything with a long end of 200mm or more needs stabilisation. If you go for the 17~85 initially, the 70~300IS would make an excellent companion lens - not cheap, but reasonably priced - once you are ready to get stuck in to some nature shots.

I use the 400d. Its a good entry level camera to see how you get on with dSLR's. I've had mine 6 months now and will definately upgrade when finances permit. I think although the camera body is important, the lenses are more so. A crap lens on a pro camera will take a crap shot, where as a great lens on an entry level camera (with ability) can take a fantastic shot.

 

I use the canon 50mm f1.4 which is by far my favourite lens. I also have the sigma 10-20mm which is good for its price and the canon 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM (which is damn good but expensive).

 

I'd recommend the 400d and a good lens. Remember the 50mm will be an 80mm with the crop, so if its a true 50mm you want then maybe the sigma 30mm f1.4 is a good bet. Thats my next lens come pay day.

Tamron and Sigma make replacements for the kit lens that are a lot better and open up to 2.8. Look for 17-50, 18-50, or very similar from these companies. These are about half the cost of the Canon 2.8 but have similar image quality. Later on you can add something longer or wider. They wil be about the same as a 28-80 lens on a film camera.

Buy the kit lens. Dont buy at those dealers.

I wouldn't buy any of the packages or the kit lens. Instead, I would buy the body separately, and consider the EF 28mm f/2.8, EF 35mm f/2, and EF 50mm f/1.8 II, or the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM.

My recommendations are:

 

1. To buy at a reputable seller like B&H or Adorama.

 

2. To buy the body alone - without any kit lens - and then add a Canon 17-55/2.8 or - if it is too expensive - a Tamron 17-50/2.8.

 

 

Happy shooting,

Yakim.