What lens should I buy? RF lens recommendations for novice

[BDR_529]

Hello community, my name is Joseph.  I am a complete novice.  I have never owned a camera.  It will be for my personal use and my new hobby, I am not going to be a professional.  I have done some research and I am going to purchase the Canon R6 Mark III when it is released.  But I can not figure out what lens to buy.  I want the best but the best are so large and heavy I am afraid it will stop me from using my new camera.  I would love to hear all suggestions.  I am leaning toward either the RF 24-105 f/4 L IS USM or the RF 24-70 f/2.8 L IS USM.  I know there is a big difference in price, but I am more concerned about size.  So what lens should I buy first?

[Tronhard · Accepted solution]

Jospeh:

If you are waiting until the R6III comes out, which will be at least 4 months to wait (probably closer to six), can I suggest in the meantime not committing to buying everything right now.  I would like to think that my colleagues would not suggest that you spend significant sums on gear without knowledge to be sure that it is what you want.

Please Invest your resources in learning about the practice of photography first.  It sounds like you are prepared to throw a lot of money at something about which you admit you have little knowledge.  Expensive gear will not replace skill - as per the last line in my signature.
For a start, you are indicating conflicting preferences: the lenses that offer the largest aperture are large, expensive and heavy, yet you say you are concerned about weight.  The highest-end gear will not work for you if you are not prepared to carry it

In the meantime, you can rent the gear and try it out to see what will work for you best.  Please consider the guidelines in this article: Considerations for buying camera gear 

So far we have no indication of a budget, we don't really know subjects what you want to photograph and under what conditions, and we don't know what you will produce.  What you will therefore get is more our perspective on photography rather than what you will need and use.  That is not a good way to approach buying camera gear.

You need to learn the way in which cameras measure light (metering), and how the three controls of the camera: Shutter, Aperture and ISO each work to allow the camera to get the right exposure.  How auto modes can be fooled by the lighting conditions and how to overcome those limitations by taking control yourself.  You also need to explore how the right exposure can be achieve by multiple different variations of those three, but how each has a significant impact on the resultant image.  This will take time and you can't shortcut that learning process - so please invest your efforts in learning.  Expensive camera gear will not, in itself, make you a better photographer.

If you want help in finding resources to learn, we can do that too.

[WCETECH · Accepted solution]

If at all possible rent a lens to try out, then if you find it meets your needs you might consider buying it.

[TomRamsey · Accepted solution]

I don't believe there is a best beginner lens for everyone.  A lot depends on what you are shooting, and i understand that you may not really even know yet, and as you get more experienced you may change your focus.  I've shot Pentax for several years and just recentley bought an R6 MarkII.  I bought it to go along with the RF200-800 lens I had ordered, which was my reason for buying into the RF system anyway.  But I knew there was a long wait for the 200-800 lens, so I bought the camera with the kit 24-105 STM lens, so I could learn to use the camera while I waited. It's a great camera, and getting that kit lens was really helpful in getting to know the camera as well as setting it up for my use. There is nothing wrong with getting the best lens you can afford as your first lens, as long as it meets your needs.  But, if you aren't sure of your needs yet, nothing wrong with renting, or getting one of the cheaper lenses to learn with.  There are several directions that you can go with photography, and it is almost a guarantee that you will change your focus a few times, so why box yourself in by blowing your budget right away then finding out that another lens could suit you better.  My case was a little different, I knew what I wanted through many years of experience.  Choose wisely and have fun.

[Tronhard]

I can only applaud your decision to engage in photography as a retirement activity.  It offers many gifts in that context:

1. Intellectual stimulation: as it uses the left and right brain because of its technical and artistic aspects
2. It makes us actively look, something that is becoming rarer these days with cell phone distractions.  That is good for just being aware of the world around us.
3. It is a great stress reliever - when we look for an image and concentrate on taking it, we are 'in the moment' and not plagued by other challenges.  So, good for mental health.
4. You don't generally get photos sitting on a couch.   I shoot with camera gear that can weight several kilos for hours at at time.  So, I do weights to let me have the endurance to control the gear and that is important because we lose muscle mass as we age, and that is a health risk.

So, kudos on choosing photography as your retirement activity.  If I can offer any support just PM (personal message me).  You can do that by clicking on my ID and from my profile page select [Send a Message] on the right of screen.

[MPBACK]

For myself the 24-105L lens both EF and now RF series have done roughly 75% of my work.  Occasionally I will use an ultra-wide or a 70-200f4L.  I know the 24-702.8L is a stellar lens but not really much of a plus in terms of versatility for a landscape photographer.  I use my cameras on IBIS mode or on a tripod and shoot and typically f11-f16 so no real need for a 2.8   All my lenses ate f4 L series.   So, my vote is to use the highly versatile EF 24-105L.

[Tronhard]

A lot depends on what one shoots, under what conditions.  For myself, I have a selection of L zoom lenses all at f/4 - for me, they are a good balance between economics, bulk and weight, and performance.  Like you, I find no need for the extra stop and the IBIS does the job for me - I almost always shoot hand-held. If I am shooting a portrait, I can set the subject up in such as way as to distance them from the background and get the separation I need.

That said, I don't shoot a lot of sports by night, macro, or astro photography so for those applications difference criteria certainly apply - it's horses for courses.  However, as we have no idea what Jonathon actually intends to photograph, we are challenged to map our preferences to his needs.

[TomRamsey · Accepted solution]

I don't believe there is a best beginner lens for everyone.  A lot depends on what you are shooting, and i understand that you may not really even know yet, and as you get more experienced you may change your focus.  I've shot Pentax for several years and just recentley bought an R6 MarkII.  I bought it to go along with the RF200-800 lens I had ordered, which was my reason for buying into the RF system anyway.  But I knew there was a long wait for the 200-800 lens, so I bought the camera with the kit 24-105 STM lens, so I could learn to use the camera while I waited. It's a great camera, and getting that kit lens was really helpful in getting to know the camera as well as setting it up for my use. There is nothing wrong with getting the best lens you can afford as your first lens, as long as it meets your needs.  But, if you aren't sure of your needs yet, nothing wrong with renting, or getting one of the cheaper lenses to learn with.  There are several directions that you can go with photography, and it is almost a guarantee that you will change your focus a few times, so why box yourself in by blowing your budget right away then finding out that another lens could suit you better.  My case was a little different, I knew what I wanted through many years of experience.  Choose wisely and have fun.

[WCETECH · Accepted solution]

What you have posted is 100% true.

I understand this from personal experience and from others I know, when I first got into photography I had an idea of what I wanted to do which faded out when I found out what I really like doing.

Likewise I used to carry a bag with something like six L lens's inside thinking only the best will make me produce excellent shots, after a time I realized I consistently only used two of the six equaling a lot of unnecessary weight and money spent that I could have used elsewhere.

Fast forward to today and what I carry now is two bodies with one lens for each and with that combination I can produce the best photographs I am capable of producing, which from what I have been told and sometimes sold are excellent shots.  

In my less than humble opinion too many people jump into the waters of photography and quickly burn holes through their wallets and purses thinking the best I can buy will allow me to produce the best shots anyone can make, when the reality is the person framing the scene and pressing the shutter, at just the correct time will produce the best shots they possibly can.

Anything else is a good way to burn through way too much money and burn oneself right out of the hobby.