Best lens for under 200$ for 1st gen canon 5D

[george63636]

Hi Everyone im new to this forum. I have a Canon 5d first gen that was recnetly handed down to me. I would love to start using it but i sadly dont have a lense. Im not looking to spend crazy money actully litttle money as possible. What is the best lens for the least amount of money that will do good. used lens are also in my mind. Thanks alot !

[RobertTheFat]

Look, in this order, for the following used Canon lenses:

1)  24-105mm f/4L IS

2)  28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

3)  28-105mm f/3.5-4.5

The first two are good lenses that go for well over $200 new. The third is a mediocre lens, no longer in production, that ought to be available for under $200 used.

Others will probably weigh in with good suggestions as well. But don't expect miracles; lenses that fit Canon full-frame cameras tend not to be cheap. And be suspicious of any used lens that seems too cheap; it may be damaged or a lemon.

[amfoto1]

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@RobertTheFat wrote:

...

2)  28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

...

The first two are good lenses that go for well over $200 new. The third is a mediocre lens, no longer in production, that ought to be available for under $200 used.

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Here's another vote for that lens.

You can pretty easily find an EF 28-135mm IS USM used for $200 or less. Optically and in other performance aspects, it's actually quite good and equal to some other, much more expensive lenses. It has fast, accurate USM autofocus; helpful 2-3 stop Image Stabilization; is quite close focusing; and has a useful range of focal lengths for a general purpose, "walk-around" lens. Yes, it's a moderately wide to normal to moderately telephoto range of focal lengths. It is not as well built or sealed against dust and moisture as a more expensive L-series, but is better built than some more entry-level lenses.

28-135s have been widely sold "in kit" with various camera models over the years, so there are a lot of them around and they often come up on the used market and typically sell for what I'd call bargain prices.

I have two 28-135s that I use as backups and on loaner cameras. One I bought used for $250 some years ago, with lens hood and a high quality UV filter (worth about $100). More recently I bought another for $150 used, with a cheaper third party lens hood. When I need to hike a ways or any other time I just want to lighten my load, I'll often swap out a 28-135 for both my 24-70/2.8L and 70-200/2.8L lenses. That saves several pounds and a lot of space in my bag!

But it sort of depends upon what you want to shoot. For example, an EF 40mm f2.8 STM is ultra compact. I like the EF 28/1.8 USM for it's reasonably small size, too.  The older EF 35/2 is pretty small and sharp, as well. These can be more unobtrusive than a larger zoom lens, such as for candid street photography.

You simply aren't going to find much in the way of wider primes or zooms for that kind of money. Maybe a used 24mm or 28mm prime. Or an older 20-35mm zoom.

Also don't expect to find more powerful telephotos, zooms or primes, in your price range. One tele-zoom you will find affordable, but I'd avoid is the inexpensive EF 75-300 non-IS, non-USM... it's just not a particularly good lens. Instead, keep your eyes open for a deal on one of the 70-300s, preferably with IS and USM!   

***********

Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif., USA
"Walk softly and carry a big lens."
GEAR: 5DII, 7D(x2), 50D(x3), some other cameras, various lenses & accessories
FLICKR & EXPOSUREMANAGER 
 

[ScottyP]

I can't imagine having no lens that is brighter than f/3.5 to f/5.6. As for versatility, my walk around is my 35mm prime and it does virtually all my shots when I am not using the 70-200, and I almost never use my 24-105 f/4.

I don't know where in the focal range the zoom in question stops down from f/3.5 to f/whatever to f/5.6 but I also would not like a variable aperture in a walk-around lens because personally it would be frustrating to have that changing around on me, dropping my shutter speed in Av mode or maybe under exposing me in Tv mode.

Also, speed in low light is not the only benefit of a prime (though it is a huge benefit not to be glossed over). Shallower DOF is another neat tool to have.

[ebiggs1]

"I can't imagine having no lens that is brighter than f/3.5 to f/5.6."

Hmmm, around 10 million Rebel 'kit' owners can.

[ScottyP]

Film cameras used to come with a 50mm fixed focal length lens as the kit lens. You could get the new 50mm f/1.8 STM new for $125. You could also get the 40mm f/2.8 pancake for about $150 new. Either of those would be an acceptable walk around lens within your stated budget. Both are actually good in low light and quite sharp by f/2.8. You would be lacking a little on the side end and on the long end compared to a zoom like a 24-70 but for that little difference you can zoom with your feet in most situations.

[Waddizzle]

"You could get the new 50mm f/1.8 STM new for $125. You could also get the 40mm f/2.8 pancake for about $150 new." Given a choice, go for the pancake. The connection to the camera is metal, not plastic. The 40mm shows up in Digital Studio Professional for lens compensation, but that particular 50mm does not appear in the ist.

[ebiggs1]

Scott has the right answer and what you should get.  "You could get the new 50mm f/1.8 STM new for $125."

The Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM is a great lens and often over loooked since it is an older design and been around for a long time.  It is around $300 new and around $200 for a good used one.  I would avoid the 28-105mm version, IMHO, of course.

[george63636]

Is the canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS a wide angle lens??? Is it worth the price out of all these mentioned . It's definitely in my price range

[ScottyP]

Depends on what you mean. 28mm is wider than 50mm but it is not extremely wide.

Even if you get that lens I'd still drop another $125 and also get the 50mm STM prime lens. In addition to shooting in 1/4 the light (or at 4x the shutter speed if you prefer) it can give you shallow depth of field you can't really match Roth the smaller aperture zoom lens. Plus primes are lighter and smaller than zooms and primes are sharper than zooms, except perhaps for the $2,000+ top end zooms.