What lens should i choose for my Canon T1i?

[alvincurt]

Ive had alot of comments on the lenses i wanted to know about. So here are the lens i will show and please tell me which of them should i get and tell me why. EF 17-85mm, EF 18-135mm, EF 28-135mm, EF 55-250, EF 75-300mm, EF 100-300mm. i need help choosing. Im mainly looking for lens that take really good image quality. Thanks

[JimInJersey]

The lens or lenses you choose should be dictated by two things - your budget, and your shooting style. If you think you'll be shooting a wide variety of objects, from 'candid' snaps around the house to landscapes or nature/wildlife, you'll need a zoom lens that can handle everything from portraits to Mt. Rushmore. There's no 'best lens' that anyone can recommend to you, since so much depends on what you want to do with the lens.

At the least, you should probably have a good zoom lens in the 20-100 range, a bigger zoom like a 100-300, and a nice prime lens like the 50mm f/1.8 "nifty fifty".

Most consumer-oriented Canon lenses will deliver good quality in the hands of a knowledgeable person. Of course if you have the budget, Canon's "L" series lenses are the best.

[downtrodden]

None of them.

Seriously... You should go to a camera shop and try out each lens on your camera and take some snaps around the store of various objects. Most shops will be happy to allow you to do this- those who are grumpy about it aren't worth your time.

If you have the money you should try renting a lens or two and walking around with them for a week to see how they work for you in real world conditions, shooting the subject matter you like shooting. By the end of the week you should know if you want more zoom or wider angles and this should point you in the right direction! buying a lens for lenses' sake is the easiest way to throw away money in this hobby.

~Cory

[downtrodden]

PS: for example, I played with the 24-70 F2.8L in the store and loved it... after using it in real world conditions I found that 24mm isn't wide enough for me and 70mm was too long for me... so I ended up buying the 17-55 F2.8 IS, and have to go through the hassle of selling the other lens on Ebay.

[michaelb]

If you need f/2.8 and don't mind spending money, the 17-55 f/2.8 is the way to go.

If you don't need f/2.8 in your zoom then the 18-55 IS "kit lens" is actually a very good lens optically.

The Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 is also a very good non-canon lens. The Sigma 17-70 is also a favorite of mine.

Also, get a prime lens to play with. I would start with the Canon 50mm f/1.8. Its cheap (under $100) and allows you to experiment with large aperatures. It feels like a very cheaply built lens, but the IQ is very good.

The 55-250 IS is a great telephoto lens for the money.