Additional Lenses for A720

[lexstar]

Hi Guys,

Ive just got myself the Canon A720 to replace my A540, and pretty excited to get playing with it!!

I am also looking at getting some additional lenses for it, the wide and tele lenses that are available for it (maybe some filters as well),

Anyway, my question is that looking on ebay there are many lenses for sale that are obviosuly not made by canon, is it ok to go with these?

Or should I be looking to get the original Canon lenses?

any other brand that is reputable or just as good for canon?

Thanks in advance,

[Graystar]

Canon lenses give the best results, especially the wide angle.

These lenses are big (especially the wide angle) and turn your pocket P&S into something you have to lug around in a suitcase. Often you can find lens sets being sold on ebay by people who just didn’t use them after thinking they would.

My advice on this is to not buy until you have a real and reoccurring need for the capabilities of the lens. The awkwardness and very limited zoom range of these lenses means that they do NOT fall into the category of "now that I got it I find I use it all the time!" It won't be like that at all.

That said, my other philosophy is buy whatever you want! :)

If you do get a converter lens, don’t forget to tell the camera which lens you’ve installed. It affects the IS. If you use a non-Canon lens then turn the IS off.

See more at Lensmate

http://www.lensmateonline.com/

[TheMayer78]

I just double checked lensmate before I replied and found they don't have a converter listed for the A720 yet, but give them some time, I'm sure they'll come up with some pieces and parts for it. If you already have the Canon converter then just make sure the rear threads are the right size on whatever lens you buy. Also it's not just about a reputable maker. Hoya and Raynox both make lenses that work better on some cameras than others so before you buy anything you should do a little research to learn which model converters work the best with the Canon A720 specifically.

My advice on this is to not buy until you have a real and reoccurring need for the capabilities of the lens.

Ditto, and I would be VERY wary and VERY cautious about spending my money on something from eBay.

That said, my other philosophy is buy whatever you want!

Ditto again. It IS your money, throw it away in whichever toilet you please!

[raven15]

As a general rule, I found (when looking for lenses for my A710 IS) that it is perfectly safe to shop on eBay for telephoto lenses that magnify 1.8x or less. Anything 2x or higher is asking for trouble. There was a thread a very long time ago that concluded 1.75x was the largest range a cheap add-on lens could go before impacting image quality. I got a Fuji 1.5x lens on eBay for ~$20 which works very well, and I have used it on many occasions. I also got a 2.2x lens by some other company, which frequently screws up my shots (about 1/3). In addition to sticking to less than 1.8x, also look for lenses made by actual camera companies: Kodak, Olympus, Canon, etc. will all work well.

I don't recommend wide angle lenses. When your camera zooms out to the wide angle, it will actually catch the sides of the lens, creating a tunnel effect and completely negating the whole point of the wide angle lens in the first place. You might consider the Canon 0.7x lens or that one 0.66x Raynox lens or whatever, but I would be very hesitant even about those(I have only tried an ~0.7x no-name brand lens, and it worked very poorly, I never used it after my first trial picture).

You can get very nice aluminum adapters and conversion rings on eBay for very cheap, I definitely recommend those.

[raven15]

Also, it should be easy to find adapters on ebay for the A720, it should be the same as the A710 and A700, and maybe others as well.

[lexstar]

thanks for all the replies guys!

Definately very informative and helpful.

Will do a bit more research and reading up

Thanks again

[Graystar]

I just received an ebay purchase I recently made. Got all three lenses (TC-DC58N, WC-DC58N, and 250D) for $102.50. Came with bags, caps, and in mint condition.

Just gotta keep an eye out for it.

[lexstar]

So did you get original Canon lenses?

can you post some pics with/without the lenses,

thanks,

[Graystar]

Sure I can take some pics, but it will be a while. My A710 IS is at the Canon service center to get a hot photosite fixed. Should be back in a week or two.

Yes they're real Canon lenses.