Macro lens for a 20D?

[Sea_Slug]

Hi, I am looking to get a macro lens for my 20D and was wondering what to get? I have been looking at Tamron but is it worth going for a Canon lens? Not really sure what to look for! Any help would be appreciated!

[TheObiJuan]

How much $$ do you want to spend? How much macro shooting do you really want to do?
For a real 1:1 macro, it will cost you a good chunk of change. The sigma 150 macro is an excellent lens, if you can afford it.
there are telezooms that say macro, but it is a joke. It should be labeled "relatively close focusing" instead.

[GlennD]

I compared the Canon and Tamron 180 Macro lenses and bought the Tamron. It's a very fine lens and gives razor sharp images with good contrast and no CA. It's a true 1:1 and with a reversed 50mm you are in a "sub-macro" world.

You would be hard pressed to find any lens that produces better images. It's also an excellent 180mm telephoto and shows how good prime lenses can perform.

Glenn

[Sea_Slug]

Is this one any good?
Canon EF 50mm f2.5 MACRO?
The others are a little out of my price range! But I don't want to get a cheaper one if it going to be awfull! I would be using it quite a bit.

[gary_hendricks]

I compared the Canon and Tamron 180 Macro lenses and bought the Tamron. It's a very fine lens and gives razor sharp images with good contrast and no CA. It's a true 1:1 and with a reversed 50mm you are in a "sub-macro" world.

You would be hard pressed to find any lens that produces better images. It's also an excellent 180mm telephoto and shows how good prime lenses can perform.

Glenn

Agree with GlennD, the Tamron is one of the best.

[ReF]

Is this one any good?
Canon EF 50mm f2.5 MACRO?
The others are a little out of my price range! But I don't want to get a cheaper one if it going to be awfull! I would be using it quite a bit.

depends on what you are shooting i guess. the 50mm macro has pretty good ratings but might require you to get too close if you are shooting little critters. for that you would need something that's more tele, but for anything else that doesn't get spooked, the 50mm should work well. sigma has a 50mm for the same price or less than the canon that's 1:1. i recommend looking at the sigma 105mm macro as it's only about $140 more than the canon 50mm macro and also got good ratings. i'm also starting to see now that sigma doesn't really have a quality control problem with prime lenses so ordering online seems safe enough. you can find reviews on fredmiranda.com

[Blue Star]

Canon's 50mm will not give a true 1:1 magnification. True it is less in cost but then to get true 1:1 you will need a special attachment, so this purchase does not justifies itself atleast to me.

Sigma 150 mm is a great macro lens, no doubt about it, its only marginally expensive than Canon EF 100 mm f2.8.

Sigma 105 mm also has good review, is cheap but I have seen people complaining about soft edges.

Canon EF 100 mm f2.8 lens has great reviews everywhere, Its gives real sharp pictures, 1:1 magnification + at 100 mm it is a very good portrait lenses.

So options are:
1. Sigma 150 mm macro: great for macro & telephoto, but very narrow field of view, not recommended for portraits
2. EF 100 mm f2.8: great for macro + prime telephoto + portraits
3. Sgima 105 mm macro, same as above & cheap but soft at edges
4. EF 50 mm, well cheap but wont give true 1:1 magnification + 50 mm is short for taking macro of insects etc.

Looking at all these I opted for EF 100 mm f2.8 & am very happy with it. For situations which will require more reach than 100mm, I can use a 1.4x or 2x TC. In my opinion this gives more felxibility.

Hope this helps. You dont purchase a macro lens everyday so If I am you, I would wait a bit to save for a good lens (which I did for my macro lens) rather than buying something which I will have to replace soon.

[Jeff Keller]

All of my newest product shots were taken with the Sigma EX 50mm macro lens and the 20D. Very happy with it!

[Sea_Slug]

Thanks for all the advice! I think I will save up for a bit and get either the Canon EF 100 mm or the Tamron. Thanks again for the help!