First SLR

[Alejandro]

Hello everyone! Well, I'm waiting for my new Canon 50D camera to come in from Dell. I have always loved taking pictures. What really interests me is animals and the outdoors mostly landscapes though so , other than the 28 mm - 135 mm - f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Canon EF that it comes with what other lens can I or should I get as my second lens? I'm thinking at the most I want to spend about 300-maybe 400$. I mean I do want to have money for other gear I need like a tri-pod. I'm just getting started and graduating from a digital point and shoot. Thanks in advance I know there will be some good info coming in.

[Samanax]

Instead of getting another lens, I'd get the tripod, some filters (neutral density, graduated neutral density and circular polarizer) and maybe a Canon 430EX II Speedlite now and save up for a better lens.

Learn all you can about shooting with your new DSLR first (with the kit lens)...there's lots to learn.

After awhile you'll learn about the limitations of the kit lens and you'll have a better idea of what lenses to get later on.

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[Alejandro]

Well I failed to mention that I also ordered a canon bag and a set of filters by Tiffen (UV, Warming and a circular polorizer) also got an 8G compact flash card. You are right though I think I should get the Tri-pod and the flash for now. I'm sure I will be able to take some photos with that lens until I need more. I was thinking that I might need at least one more though since I am planing to take Photography at UTA.

[Samanax]

The EF 28-135mm lens won't be wide enough on the short end with your 50D and you (or your instructor) may feel you need something wider.

And if you're taking a photography at school you don't want to attend the class(es) without a tripod and flash...you'll need them at some point.

[Alejandro]

Originally Posted by Samanax

The EF 28-135mm lens won't be wide enough on the short end with your 50D and you (or your instructor) may feel you need something wider.

And if you're taking a photography at school you don't want to attend the class(es) without a tripod and flash...you'll need them at some point.

What lens would you recomend for a starter? I would like to stay with the Canon lenses for now unless there is something else.

[Samanax]

Originally Posted by Alejandro

What lens would you recomend for a starter? I would like to stay with the Canon lenses for now unless there is something else.

Depends on how much you want to spend. I have the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM lens and it's wide enough for what I shoot.

If you need a wider lens there is the EF-S 10-22 f/3.5-4.5 USM lens.

Then there is the EF 17-40mm f/4.0L USM lens and the EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM lens.

And Canon just introduced the EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens and the EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM lens.

[Alejandro]

that's a lot of $. I was wondering if there was something in the $400 range.

[Samanax]

There is the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens, but it's usually not a lens people buy. It's a kit lens that usually comes with the Rebel DSLRs (XS, XSi, T1i). The current IS version isn't too bad though.

Then there is the EF-S 17-85mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM lens but it's more than $400. This lens isn't very popular...it's kinda slow and is known for having CA (chromatic aberration) on the long end. I've never used it so don't have first hand knowledge of it's performance, but I was told to give it a pass when I was looking for another lens. I ended up getting the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM instead.

[Alejandro]

Well, I've had my camera for a while now and I love it! I just bought a Canon 70-200mm F/4L IS and it's awesome. Also, on it's way is a 135mm F/2L as well. So much for the budget!!