[SJRosa]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

You... you link to KR. We cant have any of that around here *brandishes weaponry*

55-200 VS 70-300.
1: Range. Depending on the kit you got, you likely have an 18-55 as a basic kit lens. Well, the 55-200 extends that range without a gap. The 70-300 goes farther (longer range) but gives you a gap between 55 and 70. To some that's too small to worry about, to others its a deal breaker

2: Range. 200 vs 300mm is a rather hefty difference that you dont notice until you try them both out.

3: Build. The 55-200 is a consumer-grade lens and, as such, has a plastic mount and is entirely plastic. Controls arent the greatest. The 70-300 is a pro-sumer-grade lens and, as such, is much more solid and has a metal lens mount. It's also heavier, so that may be a drawback.

4: Features. The 55-200 comes in 2 flavours, non VR and VR. In either case, though, the focus ring on the lens is practically useless and there is no focus distance scale to speak of. The 70-300 comes in 3 flavours, but the latest (and only recommended one) has VR, a true-blue focus ring and a great distance scale (with an IR dot to boot). Of course, these things may mean nothing to you and can be totally unimportant.

5: Aperture. The 55-200 is a 4-5.6 and the 70-300 is a 4.5-5.6. They're roughly the same, but neither is particularly fast. So you wont be shooting evening sports with them anytime soon.

The big thing is whether you want a light-weight, simplified telephoto or a heavier, featured telephoto.

okay, thanks beginning to understand a bit better. And I would want lightweight. I'm new to this so what exactly is telephoto? Do you have any examples as to what you've explained?