EOS 500, Should I upgrade body or lens

[tim_kong]

I have an old EOS500 for about 10 years now. I am considered a

beginner/amatuer even though I had this camera for that long but

never has been serious about photography until recently. I had been

taking quite a bit of pictures lately n also been reading more books

on photography and trying to understand more about appeture, shutter

speed, and so forth. I have also started to read more about the

types of lenses offered in the market, what is considered fast lens

as compared to the one I have, which is the Canon EF 28-105mm f/4-

5.6 usm zoom lens. I use to do mainly point n shoot with my EOS500

but since I shown more interest in photography, I started using more

of the other functions and now I found that the lense is too slow in

certain situation. My question is that can anyone of you tell me

whether I should get a better lense and continue to use my old

camera or get a newer camera like a EOS 30v/33v and stick with my

old lense. Budget is a big question here as I only have budget for

either a new body like the EOS30v/33v or a faster lense of

equivalent cost. Since I have limited experience in photography, and

would like to start taking better pictures, I would welcome your

honest opinions. Thank you.

 

Tim

[les]

Common advice is a new lens...

But in this case I would get EOS 30V and a 50/1.8 lens, which is an absolute bargain and offers very good optical quality.

[grahams]

Good advice - take it.

[cnhoff]

Maybe you can buy a used combo like the Elan 7 which sells for under ?200 on Ebay coupled with the much better f3.5-4.5 28-105 from Canon, which sells for around ?160.

[cnhoff]

Prices are Euro

[phil vaughan - yorkshire u]

If you aren't having problems with your current camera body, keep it and buy a 50mm 1.8 now. Then save to swap your zoom for either the 3.5-4.5 version OR the 28-135IS, these will offer improved image quality, and the IS will buy you some usable speed too. Then, when your current body is starting to limit your photo's, but an EOS 30 S/H which is a great camera and will be a bargain.

[ron c sunshine coast,qld,a]

The lens you have is limiting you,the camera certainly isn't !

[mark u]

I presume your comment that you don't find your lens fast enough is angled more at depth of field control, rather than shutter speed (you can compensate by using faster film anyway - and these days ISO 800 Fuji emulsions are surprisingly good for at least 9x6 enlargements - a vast improvement on what was available just a few short years ago). You don't indicate that you are being limited by the capabilities of the camera body. Therefore, your money should go on glass. While the slightly faster 28-105 or the 28-135 IS are better lenses optically than your f/4-5.6, they don't really offer much increase in aperture. You haven't given much hint as to what you shoot, but if portraits are your forte, I'd look for an 85mm f/1.8 (second hand if need be to get within budget), or a Tamron 28-75 f/2.8 if you prefer a wider range of focal lengths. A 50mm f/1.8 is certainly an excellent (and cheap) lens, worthy of consideration. Your choice will depend on your preferred range of subjects. If you can give a hint then perhaps we can advise you better.

[panos_voudouris]

Sell everything, get a used 30 and depending what you shoot and how much speed you want:

 

Canon 28/2.8 and 50/1.8

 

Tamron 28-75/2.8

 

Canon 50/1.4

[ott_luuk]

If the body works fine, then go for a new lens. Selling the EOS 500 and your current lens is an option, too, but I don`t think you can get very much for it.

[John Crowe]

Go for a lens. It will give you the biggest improvement for your dollar!

[steve_dunn2]

<p>You told us that the lens is limiting you because it's slow. You didn't tell us that the body is limiting you. So, based on what you've told us, it sounds like a lens upgrade is the most pressing issue.</p>

 

<p>If you can afford the 28-105/3.5-4.5 USM, it will improve speed and optics. But it's only half a stop faster, which isn't likely to solve the problem; rarely is half a stop a major improvement. To get a zoom that covers that range and is significantly faster will cost you significantly more than your budget (e.g. a used 28-70/2.8L USM).</p>

 

<p>What focal length(s) do you use a lot, and in particular, at what focal length(s) do you find the lens to be too slow? Perhaps you'd be better off buying a prime. The 50/1.8 that has been suggested is dirt cheap - well within your budget - and dramatically faster than your zoom. Much better optically, too. Or if it's the wide or long end that needs some work, there are good primes in either category which might be within budget - particularly if you can find a used one in decent shape.</p>

[tim_kong]

Thanks for all your helpful comments. I have not gone that far to assess the limitations of my camera body yet, like I said, I only pick up this interest very recently. The only limit I feel so far is my slow lens and the optic quality is very inconsistent. In most cases, I only got half a roll of decent pictures at the most. I shoot a lot of people, especially my kids and being kids, I need to capture them candidly, that's why I feel my lens is too slow to do the job. I am not really into portriature or landscape type of photography yet but I hope to move into that area eventually. Once again, thanks for all your comments and I f you have further advise, I would really appreciate them.

 

Tim

[aquilanebula]

The main things I can think of that you would gain from a newer body would be depth of field preview, better metering, faster frame advance, quieter operation, and more focusing points. These are all available on the inexpensive 300V. The 33V would give you more weight, solidity, and a faster maximum shutter speed among other features.

 

Whilst these are all good to have, a new lens would give you a MUCH bigger benefit. I would definitely buy the 50/1.8 and consider one of the Tamron 24-135, the Tamron 28-75 or the Canon 28-135 IS.

 

I hope that's useful.

[dlongman]

I upgraded my 500N to a 30E about a year ago and am very happy with it (apart from the fact that what I really want is a DSLR!). The main reasons I changed body was because the 500N did not have a depth of field preview and only took 1 frame/second and that was annoying.

 

If you go for the EOS 30 get the battery pack too, that makes the body easier to handle, but also makes it loads bigger so you may need a new camera bag.

 

Dave