35MM Lens on a Digital

[Canes816]

OK, I have looked around for lenses and at this point I'm trying to increase my lens arsenal by 2 ( I currently have the "kit" 18-55 on my Canon 300d). Ideally I want to get the Canon 50mm F1.8 and a telephoto lens (in the 200-300 range) but I don't have the money to buy both of them new right now (even on ebay). I am planning on waiting but while I wait I wanted to go check out some estate sales (fancy yard sale) in some of the more affluent areas near me and I know that you can sometimes find a 35mm camera with lenses.

Wow, long-winded intro to get to a simple question: If I buy a lens that was made 10 years ago and designed for 35mm camera use, will it be useful on the cropped sensor of my 300d or should I continue saving up for my lenses?

(By the way, I would only be looking for lenses that are the right (EF) mount for my camera).

Thanks in advance!!
Allen

[Saralonde]

As far as I know, Canon lenses made for film cameras in the last 10 years should work on Canon dslrs. They may not autofocus though.

If you are looking for a decent low cost zoom, consider the Sigma 70-300 f4-5.6 APO macro. Very good bang for the buck lens at $173.00 US at Sigma4less.

[googlit]

I use Nikon, so I'm not very knowledgeable about Canon, but I'd recommend getting some of the older lenses. You will likely not have autofocus (unless the lenses are relatively new), but as long as it's a good lens, you've got a great piece of glass for a fraction of the regular cost.

So I'd say go for it.

Just keep in mind that film lenses don't translate perfectly to digital: that is, you might lose a couple f-stops and a 50mm lens might translate to a 75mm... there's a good writeup on 'film' vs. 'digital' lenses here (http://www.imx.nl/photosite/comments/c011.html).

[inkista]

Just make sure the lens's name starts with "EF", not "FD", and it should work with the EOS mount.

[bindibadgi]

You can get adapters for fitting FD lenses onto EOS bodies but they have optics in them and unless you get a good one (could be $$$$$$$$) you might end up with poor quality optics overall.

So yeah, if it says EF you are good to go. If it's FD then probably avoid it.