New Photographer from Central FL here...Let's Talk Lenses

[DanielTylerFL]

Good evening everyone!

So, I purchased a EOS Rebel T3i Kit off amazon 3-4 years ago, and it's been sitting in its bag during that time also.  The initital purchase was for my financee at the time (now my wife) and she just shot on Auto mode.  I've had some interest in getting off auto mode and now have started learning about the triangle of photography and started playing around with it.  What is a good lens for closeups?  What would be a good starter lens for most everything?  I would think two lenses would suffice for now untill I grasp the concepts more and get more advanced.  The lenses in the kit included; EF-S 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS roman numeral II, and EF  75-300mm 1:4-5.6 roman numeral III.  I have no idea what each of these numbers/letters mean?  I would like a lens for closeups - portraits - and one that would be great for short distances to long zooms.  I'm not sure what i'm talking about yet, but maybe some of you could point me in the right direction.  Thanks in advance!

I've found the Canon lens 50mm F1.8 and Yongnuo 50mm F1.8.  They seem to both be great lenses for large aperture shots, but is that a good lens for that application?  Both seem to have good reviews on youtube, and some-most seem to lean towards the Yongnuo because of price and quality is so so close.

I haven't found anything for the every day carry lens---any help would be wonderful!

[John_SD]

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@DanielTylerFL wrote:

For sure will be revisiting the manual, I actually just found it tucked away in the camera bag...Great advice, Thank You! 

While on the topic of established pros...which authors you would recommend for information? 

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I recommend "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. You will be hard-pressed to find a better book on the exposure triangle, which is crucial in understanding what you are doing. And I also have learned a great deal from "John Shaw's Guide to Digital Nature Photography." Shaw is a no-nonsense type that appeals to me. Some might find his tone off-putting, but I have learned more about outdoor and nature photography from that book than any other source and I highly recommmend him. 

[wq9nsc]

John_SD wrote:

"I recommend "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson. You will be hard-pressed to find a better book on the exposure triangle, which is crucial in understanding what you are doing. And I also have learned a great deal from "John Shaw's Guide to Digital Nature Photography." Shaw is a no-nonsense type that appeals to me. Some might find his tone off-putting, but I have learned more about outdoor and nature photography from that book than any other source and I highly recommend him. "

And I second John's recommendation, Peterson does an excellent job with the topic.  Additionally, books are often much superior to video when trying to comprehend complex new material.  A picture IS often worth a thousand words in many cases and sometimes that is also true of video but often not.

If you are involved with sports photography, a great book is: "Peter Read Miller on Sports Photography: A Sports Illustrated Photographer's Tips, Tricks, and Tales on Shooting Football, the Olympics, and Portraits of Athletes."  I believe that this book is out of print and it can be expensive to buy but if you have a larger public library near you it is likely available there.  It is one of those rare books that is very informative and simultaneously entertaining.

My bottom line on glass is buy the best that you can afford because you will still be using it many camera bodies later if you make a good first choice.  About half of the glass I own now was purchased in 2005 around the time I bought my 1D Mark 2 and it continues to do a great job with my 1DX, 1DX 2, and 5DS R bodies and will do the same for my in transit 1DX 3.  I will probably acquire a Canon EF 200-400 F4 1.4X in time for Spring HS soccer season and I expect that I will use it in the future with a 1DX Mark IV 🙂

Rodger

[Waddizzle]

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@DanielTylerFL wrote:

For sure will be revisiting the manual, I actually just found it tucked away in the camera bag...Great advice, Thank You! 

While on the topic of established pros...which authors you would recommend for information? 

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If the manual came with the camera, that may or may not be the full User Guide.  Adding a 300+ page book to the camera kit is costly.  Including the full User Guide adds too much cost to a camera kit in the highly competitive, entry level DSLR market.  

Download the document at John's link, and compare it to what you have in print.

[Waddizzle]

I would avoid the Yongnuo 50mm f/1.8 lens.  The only people who like it do not know what good lens actually mans.  I would suggest the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM lens for portraits.  Note the STM letters at the end of the model number.  Stick with Canon STM lenses.  The " f/1.8 " part of the model number is the widest available setting of the aperture.  More on this below.

The Roman numerals you wondered about refer to versions of the lens.  Canon has produced those lenses for years.  Over the years they have introduced some small improvement here or there.  Neither lens is very good.  They are designed to teach you about DSLRs, and not to add a lot of cost to the camera kit.

The EF-S 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS II lens is a variable aperture zoom.  As you vary the focal length from 18mm to 55mm the maximum available aperture changes from f/3.5 to f/5.6.  

Canon USA has produced a couple of series of videss on their YouTube channel.  You may want to take a look at the first two posts in this recent thread that I created.

https://community.usa.canon.com/t5/General-Camera-Discussion/Canon-YouTube-Video-Series/m-p/269237#M... 

The EOS-101 series of videos teaches you about camera basics, and the basics of photography.  The EF-101 series of videos teaches about the various types of lenses, and how to understand the model numbers.

A better way to purchase the EF 50mm f/1.8 STM is part of Canon's Portrait and Travel 2 Lens Kit.

https://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/portrait-and-travel-two-lens-kit 

A very good replacement/upgrade for the 18-55mm lens is the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM "standard" zoom lens.

https://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/ef-s-17-55mm-f-28-is-usm 

A less pricey replacement for the 18-55mm kit lens is the EF-S 18-55mm f/4-5.6 IS STM lens.

https://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/ef-s-18-55mm-f-4-56-is-stm-standard-zoom-lens 

Again, avoid Yongnuo lens altogether.  Check out. The videos at the link. 

[DanielTylerFL]

Thanks so much for the reply, Waddizzle.  I will definitely check out those links and consider the other Canon lenses once I find where I end up shooting the most!  

[ebiggs1]

"The lenses in the kit included; EF-S 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS roman numeral II, and EF  75-300mm 1:4-5.6 roman numeral III. ... I would like a lens for closeups - portraits - and one that would be great for short distances to long zooms.  ... you could point me in the right direction. ...

I've found the Canon lens 50mm F1.8 and Yongnuo 50mm F1.8.  ... some-most seem to lean towards the Yongnuo because of price and quality is so so close."

I will try to answer these in order.

What you have will go a long way to teach you how to use the gear.  It is photography you need to learn first.  Then you decide what lenses most solve your specific requirements.  Right now you don't know!  As discussed above the 50mm FL range is maybe not best but good for portraits.  You already have that FL in your 18-55mm zoom. You don't need another 50mm lens right now.  You never need the Yongnuo!  They are too hit and miss. QC is out to lunch.  The Canon offering is a great lens for it's price. Highly recommend it.

Avoid buying any camera gear from Amazon or any place where they package a kit or bundle of junk. Buy exactly what you want or need. When you decide to upgrade the lenses you have which are all on the low quality side, check out the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art Lens for Canon EF, my favorite right now, or the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Lens. Both very good, fast and constant apertuers.