Lens characteristics

[AlQ]

will a wide angle 24 mm lens give you the same picture/look as a telephoto lens that runs from say, 24 mm - 80mm?....

would an 18 mm wide angle lens give the same look as my kit lens that runs from 18-55mm?

in other words, will lenses of the same focal length reproduce the same picture eventhough one might be a fixed lens and one a telephoto or wide angle?

thanks!

[inkista]

Not necessarily. Different lenses perform differently, and focal lengths may not actually be the ones reported on the lens. So, there can be some variance, but overall the field of view and coverage should be similar. With wide angle lenses, though, there can be variance in terms of barrel distortion, CA, and vignetting. The barrel distortion in particular can affect the field of view.

Typically, prime lenses, because they can be optimized for that specific focal length, will perform better than a zoom because the zoom has to make compromises across a focal length range. That's not to say the zoom can't be optimized for exactly the focal length you're examining. Also, primes tend to be faster (i.e., have wider max. apertures).

For example, Canon makes an EF 24mm f/1.4L USM II. That's two stops wider than my EF 24-105 f/4L IS USM. So, in available light with a moving subject, I'd be willing to bet those two lenses would get very different images, even at the same focal length.

And the type of the lens also has to be taken into account. Take the Canon EF-S 15-85 IS USM. Which, at 15mm is going to give you a drastically different image than the EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye lens, because rectilinears and fisheyes map the light very differently.

[AlQ]

Ok, so prime lenses will tend to perform better at any given focal length?

So as I look at purchasing my next lens (I currently have the Canon kit lens: EF-S 18-55 mm IS and a Canon EF-S 70-250 mm IS zoom), am I wasting my money by getting the Canon EF 28mm wide angle (eventhough that focal length is already covered by the kit lens)?....or should I be looking at another wide angle zoom, say the Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM (not as fast but covers a greater range)?

...or would you have another recommendation for my next lens? (....especially if it's something that will run more than $250-$300).

thanks for the response, and any feedback is appreciated!

[Elmo]

Simplistically all lenses of equal focal length will cover about the same area. So for your question, as you seem to like wide I suggest the 10-22 to give you a better choice of coverage areas. And it is not that bad a lens either, image quality wise.

[inkista]

Originally Posted by AlQ

...or would you have another recommendation for my next lens? (....especially if it's something that will run more than $250-$300).

Assuming that's a typo and you meant "run no more than $250-$300...".

Depends on what you want to use it for. If you want to just go wide-wide-wide, then the 10-22 is probably a better bet.

The Canon EF 28mm f/1.8 USM is great if you want low-light capability. But overall, while its performance is quite good for a wide angle, it's not a jaw-dropping lens, and what with the price increases of the last two years, it's become a harder lens to recommend (easy when it was $350, now that it's closer to $500...)

If you want to go wide-wide-wide on the cheap-cheap-cheap, I've got two very strange possibilities to put forth to you. I do have to caution you though that I am extremely eccentric in these matters, and that you are very likely to think neither one of these lenses is worth it. Seriously. Only crazy people look at lenses like these.

Manual focus lenses can still be useful if you're not in a hurry. For fast action where you can't focus quickly enough, these are probably going to be very tough going.

The Opteka/Samyang/Vivitar fisheye is a relative newcomer that's been getting very good reviews. The lens is made in Korea, and then is badged a variety of ways. I think the brand names at last count came to about 10. But right now the best deal ($289) seems to be on the Opteka 6.5mm version on Amazon. It's a diagonal, and (weirdly) apparently has a stereographic mapping. This assumes you don't mind getting fisheye distortion to go wide.

The second lens you may want to consider if you're using this primarily as a landscape lens, would be to adapt an old Contax/Yashica-mount Zeiss Distagon T* 28mm f/2.8. You can find these in the $200-$300 price range (mine cost me $230), and a chipped adapter ring for about $40-$80 (I get mine from big_is and happypagehk on eBay). The lens is soft wide open, exhbits a little bit of barrel distortion, but stopped down to f/8... I find it godlike.


Canon XT. Hoya R72 infrared filter, tripod, MLU, cable release. red/blue channel swapped.
iso 400, f/8 or f/11-ish, 2 minute exposure


Canon XT. handheld. iso 400, f/4-ish, 1/40s.


Canon XT. f/8-f/11-ish, 1/400s.

Zeiss glass has a very high micro-contrast which is like having sharpening and saturation boosts in camera. It also has a way of rendering in and out of focus transitions that give you a 3-d like effect. It's quite different from Canon glass. Not necessarily better or worse. Just different. While I can shoot available light with it, I'm really starting to learn that for me I want f/2 for available light. So I got a Leica Summicron-R 35mm.

And I stress that both of these lenses aren't nearly as nice to use as a Canon EOS-mount lens. With a manual focus lens and an adapter ring you lose autofocus and the ability to control the aperture from the camera body. That means you can only shoot in M or Av modes. And you have to use stop-down metering (i.e., the lens physically is stopped down as you meter--it isn't wide open and then only closed down to what you set when you take the picture as when you use Canon lenses).

Like I said. Only crazy people.

[AlQ]

Thanks very much for the feedback.

As I've just started getting back into photography, I am looking for a collection of lenses that I can use across the board (a wide angle, the kit lens is fine for now, and the telephoto zoom).

I will probably shoot more action (sports primarily) however I know what good telephoto lenses go for and it will be awhile before I'll be able to afford a fast telephoto lens.

In the meantime, if I can find a good wide angle to complete my beginner's collection, I'll be good for awhile (I do appreciate though, the value of fast lenses and being able to shoot in low light, as well as the feeling that "there's always something better to be bought".) I like the landscape photos I've seen at various sites online and would like to have a decent lens for something like that.

(....and yes, it was a typo; after I get above $300 or so I'd like to make sure I'm getting my money's worth