tamron 18-270?

[pie78]

I have a Rebel XSi. I have two lenses the 18-55 that came with the camera and the 55-250. My daughter is a dancer and she dances in dance competitions. I have been using my zoom and adjusting my shutter speed or aperature to take my shots. My pictures have been pretty good but I would like to improve them if possible. I went to my local camera store today and they recommended the Tamron 18-270 because of the 72 diameter which would allow some additional light to help with my shots. I just wanted to see if anyone out there had other recommendations. I also wanted to know if I will be able to tell a difference between my current zoom lens and the Tamron because I don't really want to pay for this lens if I'm not going to see any improvements. Thanks.

[IABoomer]

The 18-270 lens is f/6.3 at 270mm. Your Canon lens is f/5.6 at 250mm. If anything, the Tamron will be slower and the 20mm difference won't likely matter.

If I was going to suggest something, it would be a Sigma or Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 lens (since I'm guessing your budget doesn't stretch to the realm of the Canon "L" glass). Granted you're losing a little reach with the zoom, but the extra speed should let you either lower the ISO to speed up the shutter to avoid some blur.

If the camera shop rents out lenses, I'd try one or both as a rental before dropping the money on one.

[Henry Wilt]

If low light is the issue, I will add another vote for a 70-200mm but my preference would be for the Sigma for the better focusing system than the Tamron (unless of course cost is not an issue then it would be the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 IS MkII ). Or alternatively look at a prime lens to get you a large aperture without going mad on price but without knowing at what sort of distance you are from her it would be very difficult to guess what focal length to suggest.

I certainly don't think you'll see any improvement in your shots changing to the Tamron 18-270mm, probably the opposite.

[shutterpassion]

I have this lense and I absolutely love it. I'm an amateur photographer but have captured some beautiful shots with it. It came highly recommended by a local photography store that I trust and I have not been disappointed.

[in2fx]

What I have often done is to go into the camera store with my camera and mount the lens that I am looking at on my body and then take a few photos with it as well as your current lens under the same conditions.
You can then go home and compare the different photos and make a choice based on the results

[mattjordan]

If you do buy the Tamron 18-270 the only thing you will gain is convenience. You wont have to change the lens pretty much at all. I personally have the Sigma 18-250 and I love it. BUT the only time it use it is when I am doing personal shooting. I would never use it on a paying jig, the quality just is not there in comparison to my other lens. Most of my clients might not tell the difference but if my name is going on it I want to deliver the best product I can.

[jml79]

Clearly time for a new camera shop... The Tamron is 1/3rd of a stop slower than your current lens and will also suffer greater distortions at both ends of the zoom. Neither of these things will help you. All of this for a mere $500 or so. Something tells me they had this lens in stock and were hoping you had sucker written on your forehead or they honestly have no clue themselves.

Sorry but a minor pet peve of mine.

Your least expensive option that is considerably better than what you have is a Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 or a used 70-200 f/2.8 made by Canon, Sigma or Tamron.