susan_stoneman Posted January 1, 2004 Share Posted January 1, 2004 This is my first GOOD camera (rebel g2)... I have the opportunity to purchase it with either the Sigma 28-80mm and 70-300mm, or the Tamron 28-80mm and 70-300mm. I basically just want better pictures than with my cruddy old point and shoot, with the ability to do some nice close-up work when I want. I haven't found a difference between these two brands other than the fact that they are just two different brands. ;) Any opinions on which would work best for me? The package costs the same regardless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff_herron1 Posted January 1, 2004 Share Posted January 1, 2004 Susan, Are these new lenses? If so, I would probably opt for the Tamron...but that's been all word of mouth for me...no concrete evidence to give you. Help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Katz Posted January 1, 2004 Share Posted January 1, 2004 Tamron and Sigma make some very good lenses. Unfortunatly, a "package" of lenses sold by most camera stores usually contain some of the cheapest lenses made by these manufactures. IMHO, the Canon 28-105 3.5-4.5 USM (NOT THE CHEAP ONE), plus the Canon 50 F1.8 would serve you better than the "package" deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susan_stoneman Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 let me rephrase.. i'm getting a package deal, i just want to know which is better than the other. :) I'm sure $500 lenses WOULD be better, but this is a fun thing and on a rather limited budget besides. Maybe one day... I'm thinking the Tamron would be quite nice, the macro ratio is 1:8 compared to the 1:2 of the Sigma, and a few other slight things I've just recently discovered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
del_gray Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Susan, one major issue with Sigma lenses is that they often do NOT work at all on Canon bodies that were made after the lens. This is because Sigma "reverse engineers" the lenses without a contract from Canon (so I understand), so whenever Canon comes out with a new body they do something with the connection to make all previous Sigma lenses obsolete. If you can ever imagine yourself upgrading to a new body some day, then I'd get the Tamron. Of course you would probably want to upgrade the lens itself first before a new body. I also would echo the previous poster who recommended looking at adding at least one high quality lens. The Canon 50/1.8 is only $70 brand new and is one of the best optical performers you can buy at any price. If you can work it in any way, it will open a whole new world of low light, snappy, high contrast pictures that inexpensive zooms can't do. Starting out with the zooms AND the 50mm is a really great way to learn photography. Have fun with whatever you get! Del Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moli_luo Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 <i>I'm thinking the Tamron would be quite nice, the macro ratio is 1:8 compared to the 1:2 of the Sigma, and a few other slight things I've just recently discovered.</i> <p>The smaller the ratio, the bigger the object is on film. A 1:1 macro ratio means whatever thing you're photographing shows up on film as its actual size. Thus, the Sigma has better macro capabilites in terms of magnification.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moli_luo Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Oops. I goofed. The *bigger* the ratio, the bigger the object is on film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron c sunshine coast,qld,a Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Those cheap lenses are not alot different from each other.Feel free to decide on other factors like close up magnification,possible future non compatability (if you'd want to keep them for long that is...) or even how one feels compared to the other.Have fun with it all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christopher_bibbs Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 The vocal folks on this board tend to avoid 3rd party lenses. A coin flip may be just as good advice. BTW, the best way to take better pictures is to take more pictures and learn from them. Having other people you trust critically review your work can be a real insight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbq Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I'm not gonna give any specific advice for either brand, they are probably equally good. My instinct (and experience) tells my that either 70-300 lens is actually going to be poor beyond 200mm, especially when doing close-ups, and that you may be better served with skipping the 70-300 zoom entirely and getting Canon's cheap and ultra-light 80-200 f/4.5-5.6. You close-up needs will be better served with the long end of a 28-80 zoom. My experience with a pair of consumer xxx-300 f/5.6 zooms is that they peak between f/11 and f/16 at the long end, meaning that you have very little chance of hand-holding them except with fast film (ISO 400 and faster) in very bright sun. Coming from a point-and-shoot, they're probably very fine, but if you start doing 8x10 enlargements you'll see what I mean. I hope that you'll manage to stretch your budget by $70 at some point to get a Canon 50mm f/1.8. Very few lenses are cheaper or lighter, yet very few lenses are sharper or have more low-light capabilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbq Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I'm not gonna give any specific advice for either brand, they are probably equally good. My instinct (and experience) tells my that either 70-300 lens is actually going to be poor beyond 200mm, especially when doing close-ups, and that you may be better served with skipping the 70-300 zoom entirely and getting Canon's cheap and ultra-light 80-200 f/4.5-5.6. You close-up needs will be better served with the long end of a 28-80 zoom. My experience with a pair of consumer xxx-300 f/5.6 zooms is that they peak between f/11 and f/16 at the long end, meaning that you have very little chance of hand-holding them except with fast film (ISO 400 and faster) in very bright sun. Coming from a point-and-shoot, they're probably very fine, but if you start doing 8x10 enlargements you'll see what I mean. I hope that you'll manage to stretch your budget by $70 at some point to get a Canon 50mm f/1.8. Very few lenses are cheaper of lighter, yet very few lenses are sharper or have more low-light capabilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Katz Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 "I'm sure $500 lenses WOULD be better" I don't recommend $500 lenses for beginners. The Canon 28-105 3.5-4.5 sells for $210 at B&H, with a US Warrenty, after rebate. This is one of the best bargains in photography, and will likely be working fine long after the cheap sigma/tamrons turn into paperweights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pavel_toman Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 You are asking yourself that same question that I was 2 years ago when starting with photography. I decided for tamron 28 - 90 f/3.5 - 5.6 and 70 - 300 f4 - 6.3, 1:4 macro. You will be probably satisfied with these lenses. Handholding 70 - 300 at the longer end ? 1/250 shutter speed and higher at f/8 - f/16 should give you acceptably sharp images...it's gonna take some practise and a lot of 400 ISO film. Keep them clean, play with them and experiment as much as you can. Get a tripod, a compromise between sturdiness / weight, something that you woun't leave at home when going out shooting. Forget about Wal-mart. From a two year perspective ? I ended up selling both lenses and got 24mm f/1.8, 50mm f/1.4, 28 - 135 IS USM, 180mm MACRO. Assuming that you are on a tight buget, these tamron zooms are certainly a good starting point and may even last you a few years. Sigmas in this category are just as good OR as some might say just as bad. I suggest that you take something with "macro" feature. 1:4 is great. 1:2 only with a tripod. There is also an optin to go with a 28 - 300 mm f 3.5 - 6.3 asp zoom from both Sigma and Tamron or that formentioned 28 - 200mm from canon. All around $ 250 -300, canon $ 350. Don't get too frustrated...there are many pro photographers on this site that love zooms too ... they take out all the glass elements, stick in some flowers and there you go... a beautiful vase. Have fun shooting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark u Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I'd suggest you follow Kenneth's excellent advice. You'll get much more pleasing results with that Canon 28-105, and the price is very similar to the price of the lens pairs you were looking at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennis_pereira Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I have the 70-300 Tamron with a Minolta mount and have not been disappointed with the results. It's a great range for portraits and longer sports/nature shots. Much better than your point and shoot and good value for the money. Since I've moved to the Canon 10D I've invested in better lenses but the images I've taken with the Tamron still look fine. The main thing is to extend your photographic experience at the rate that is comfortable for you. You'll learn a lot moving up to an SLR and will benefit most by investing time and money in building your skills and shooting a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yakim_peled1 Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 <P> Can't you get the body without any lens ? You will probably outgrow <a href="http://photonotes.org/articles/beginner-faq/lenses.html#kitlenses">such lenses</a> very quickly.</P> <P> Happy shooting , <br> Yakim. </P> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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