Which lens should I choose

[jimmyl]

Hi All,
I have the opportunity to purchase two different lens at a very reasonable price, however can only afford to consider one. My options are:

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f4-5.6 IS USM lens

or

Canon EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS USM lens

I currently have a canon 550D body. When I upgrade in the future I will probably get a 7D so the EF-S thing isn't a major concern.

I understand that both lens are pretty good but what would make one stand out more than the other. I am doing portrait, a little landscape and some general photgraphy. Any thoughts in this would great.

Cheers James

[jimmyl]

Also if you think that I should forget purchasing these lens, I would like to here from you as well.

[inkista]

You've already got an 18-200. Why do you want to get another walkaround zoom?

[jimmyl]

Yes it is a good point that you make. The key reason is the 18-200 does not have any form of image stabilizing. I've adapted to this by increasing shutter etc. I find that sometimes I don't quiet get a shot. If I had a lens with an image stabiliser I believe that this may give the couple of stops to play with.

Also I am not sure that I am getting the sharpest of images from the 18-200. I do like using the Tamron but I've noticed that due to the large focal range that the image can be a little soft. I can fix most PP.

The last thing is that these lens are very well priced (au $200.00 to $300.00.) They are second hand, visually they have no marks or damage. I would need to conduct testing before purchasing.

I may consider selling the 18-200mm lens.

[Elmo]

My first question is relating to the 7D are you going to get it because you need it features or are you buying "Bells & Whistles?? The reason I ask is I find one does better with a lower end camera body with good glass than a high end body with lesser glass.

But back to your question, review your images and see what FL's you commonly use. With both of these you loose the longer FL's. One looses wide and the other looses mid range tele's. So which do you need.

As for IS that is a crutch to overcome bad camera technique. I have several IS lenses but it stays turned off most of the time as I want the best quality and shoot from a tripod.

[inkista]

Ok, if you're thinking of selling the 18-200, then I'd say see how much you'd miss the long end. My personal druthers would be for the 17-85, as having an actual wide end is getting more and more important to me as I get more experienced. Also, the 17-85 is an EF-S lens, and designed specifically for crop bodies and has a much newer optical design than the older EF 28-135, which was designed for film. In fact, the 17-85 was designed to be the digital analog to that lens (28-135mm/1.6 => 17.5-83.4mm).

But.

There are two other, newer, lenses you may be interested in, if price is not the main factor. The 17-85 IS USM has been replaced by the EF-S 15-85 IS USM. It's got better distortion and CA control at the wide end, and goes 2mm wider. But is quite a bit more expensive than a used 17-85 goes for. And the 17-85 is about 85-90% of the newer lens for less than half the cost. There's also, if you wanted more focal length range, the EF-S 18-135 IS. It is a consumer lens (no USM), and the image quality isn't as nice as the 17-85, but it does cover the larger range, is going to have better optics than an 18-200 (smaller range usually means fewer compromises), and is stabilized. It may be only a marginal improvement over what you've currently got, though, and is not likely to be found used, as it's only a few years old.

[jimmyl]

Thank you for your feedback, it's given me food for thought.
Elmo, in relation to the 7D. I am a massive planner. The time frame for purchasing a more professional body is several years away at this point. By then there is no doubt that there will be a bigger and better model....lol. My thoughts in the 7D is purely feature based in terms of it's off camera flash capabilities, some other system features, one of which is the ability to adjust the focus point forward or rearward among other things. Just seems to me that for the price of the body, currently it is a lot cheaper than it's partners at that end of the market. At that point I will also look serious at the possabilty of upgrading lenses.

I haven't sat down and really looked at the focal length that I've been shooting lately, but is something that I definitely need to do.

Inkista, your feedback has been priceless. It looks as though I will let this one go and take your advise in thnking about the newer lenses. I would ideally like a better quality lens so will aim for that instead of throwing away good money after bad (parden the pun.)

I am currently committed to improving my photography abilities with the tools that I have. These 2 lens were something that has come across my desk so thought that I would get some feedback. I am developing procedure for myself to better use my equipment. I think it's a little of the military and the manger coming out...lol.

Thank you again for your feedback.

Cheers James