mid priced 50-200 tele lenses

[dangoldman]

I was wondering if i could get some help for finding the "best" 50-

200mm lense for under $225us.

 

I was looking at the canon EF 50-200, however i have heard that the

optics leave something to be desired. pluss, like the kit lense (ef

18-55) the manual focus is the ring at the end of the lense. One

review claimed that if you are happy with the kit lense, then this

one is fine (which i am... i guess).

 

The other lense i was looking at was a sigma 70-300 APO DG. this

lense i suppose does have better optics but the i have heard that the

auto focus speed is slow (how slow?). however, it does look like it

has better build quality than the canon.

 

are there any other lenses that i should be looking at and

considering?

 

I'll be using the lense for wild life, (school) sports, and 'general'

pictures.

 

the camera is a digital rebel xt, and the current lense is 18-55.

 

thanks for all help and sorry if this has been asked before.

Dan

[mawz]

In that price range, anything is gonna suck.

 

The Sigma APO is OK. Try the Tamron 70-300 LD if you can get it in your budget.

 

But if you want good performance, you need to look at a budget of about 3x your current

one, which will get you options like the 70-300 f4-5.6 IS USM and 70-200 f4L USM.

[dangoldman]

i'd buy a IS lense in a heart beat, if i had the money. the money i have is basicly 1 dollar bills that i have been collecting....

however, im also a sailor and racing consumes most of the money. (i'd also use the lense for that.)

thanks for the reply.

[John Crowe]

A used Canon EF 70-210mm f3.5-4.5 USM should be a step above all the lenses you will find in your price range including all the xx-300mm lenses (in your price range). You will not likely miss focal lengths between your 55mm zoom and a 70, 80, or 100 to something telephoto zoom. Your next best excellent lens would be a used Canon EF 200mm f2.8 L which can sometimes be had for under $500 USD. Good luck!

[ericreagan]

I'm not going to evaluate a bunch of lenses, but I'll tell you about the Sigma 55-200 f/4-5.6 DC. Although, it's in your price and zoom range and it has decent optics for the price, I would counsel against it. I've got the same camera as you and focus speed and noise is a real issue for me. It would likely affect your use as well since you are planning on using it for sports. I would counsel getting a lens with USM if you're shooting sports - you don't want to miss the shot because your AF is searching. Anyway, it's a decent lightweight lens for the price (around $150), however, I felt that I should put in my two cents because your "sports" use with this lens could cause problems. If I had the choice again, I would have waited and saved up a while longer and sprung for the Canon 70-200 f/4 L or the 70-300 4-5.6 IS - both of which would double your budget. I would encourage you to think about it though. Again, my $.02.

[jojo_ma]

The 70300 APO DG is about as good as it gets under $200. Don't let the price deceive you; it's quite good:

 

http://www.pbase.com/fstopjojo/70300s

[terry_smith2]

Another possibility is the old Canon 70-210/4. This is a first generation lens with push-pull zoom and no USM. Optically it's on par with the newer 70-210/3.5-4.5. They are not too hard to find on auction sites and don't go for very much.

[bill_fouche]

A few days ago on photo.net, Bob Atkins reviewed the Tamron AF 55-200mm Di II. I know nothing about it, but it seems to fit your needs. Link to Bob's article is here:

 

http://www.photo.net/equipment/tamron/55_200_Di/

[yakim_peled1]

<p> <i>The other lense i was looking at was a sigma 70-300 APO DG. this lense i suppose does have better optics </i> </p>

<p> Right.</p>

<p> <i> but the i have heard that the auto focus speed is slow (how slow?)</i> </p>

<p> Very slow.</p>

<p> <i>however, it does look like it has better build quality than the canon. </i> </p>

<p> IMHO all are lousy in that regard.</p>

<p> See <a href="http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/frary/toolbox3.htm">http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/frary/toolbox3.htm</a>, <a href="http://www.photo.net/nature/x-300.html">http://www.photo.net/nature/x-300.html</a> , <a href="http://www.photo.net/canon/70-200">http://www.photo.net/canon/70-200</a>, <a href="http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/eosfaq/telefoto.htm">http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/eosfaq/telefoto.htm</a> and <a href="http://photonotes.org/articles/beginner-faq/lenses.html#telephotos">http://photonotes.org/articles/beginner-faq/lenses.html#telephotos</a>. </p>

 

<p> BTW, have you considered the 100-300 USM? It's optics are O.K. and it has fast AF.

</p>

 

 

 

<p>Happy shooting, <br>

Yakim.</p>

[rob_murray]

1. Canon USM 100-300 USM

2. Canon USM 75-300 USM III

[dangoldman]

anymore, im kind of confused on what i really want to shoot with this lense. perhaps i can get by with my current lense, which has a very fast focus speed (18-55).

i'll see what i can do for money though, perhaps shake my dad by the ankles and see what falls out....

why most good hobbies be expensive.

[mawz]

Well, i you think the 18-55 has fast focus speed, you likely won't be dissapointed by any of

the lenses here. The 18-55 is middling to slow for AF speed

[dangoldman]

adam: i guess maybe im living in hole here.... need to find some more photographers...

i was using a friends camera, an old nikon (eraly 90's i think), and i would have considered his lense slow, and loud (i dont know what kind of lense nor its focal length, it was tele though).

 

i think i may be able to up my price to about 270, anything around there? (after that i need to use my parents :)...

[bbond]

Dan,<br>

I'm no expert on lenses, but I can tell you about 2 that I own that I've been pleased with so far...

 

<p>Canon 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6 USM EF Lens<br>

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=430128/search=Canon+EF+100

 

<p>Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 USM<br>

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=375183/search=Canon+EF+28

 

<p>These two lenses have worked nicely for me. They are very quiet and pretty quick with the focusing. They don't however have IS, but since I haven't used IS I don't miss it (yet).

 

<p>You may also want to consider this one that I don't own or have experience with:

 

<p>Canon EF 28-200 f/3.5 - 5.6 USM Lens<br>

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=430123/search=Canon+EF+200

 

<p>The first two lenses are under $270 each, but the last is slightly above. Also, as a side note, I've had two very good experiences buying from BeachCamera.com if you end up choosing a vendor from PriceGrabber. Hope this helps.

 

<p>Ben

[dangoldman]

so i take it that the non multi coated lenses are not as big of an issue as lense makera tend to make it out to be?

some of the lenses suggested have been for film thus they are not multi coated.

thanks to all for the help.