Newbie with t5 with lens questions

[Ponchonutty]

OK I finally saved up and bought me a nice camera. Two things that I want to use it for is for my sons' Friday night football games and also for interior pictures in real estate. The kit came with the standard general purpose lens. What should I look for to make sure I can take good telephoto pictures with poor lighting? Also for interior real estate pictures can I get away with using a fisheye lens adapter ? Thx!!!!

[ebiggs1]

Except for a very limited number of filters, never put any adapters on the front of your lenses.  None!

The secret to good telephotos is good light.  They go hand in hand.  Hence, you need a fast lens.  This is going to be in the f2.8 or faster range.  No kit lens can do this and is a big reason most folks have trouble getting good sports photos.  Bad news, fast = expensive.

Although you could use a fisheye to do interiors, I wouldn't.  The EF-S 10-22mm would be my choice as a basic starting point.

Consider getting a tripod, too.

Alos if you truly want good photos, you must post process of some kind.

[TCampbell]

The Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens is about $600.

But Canon recently introduced an EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM lens which is about $270 (less than half the price of the 10-22).  The 10-18 lens doesn't collect quite as much light as the 10-22, but if you're shooting realty, the rooms are (hopefully) not moving.  If you are shooting rooms where light isn't adequate to hand-hold the camera, use a tripod -- at which point you can keep the shutter open as long as you need (so lens speed isn't an issue.)

[Ponchonutty]

Ok thanks for the input. Next question then is what lenses would you recommend and where's a good place to purchase decent lenses at a great price?

[ebiggs1]

There are many good places.  My choice is B&H.  But I also use Adorama, Best Buy and I have a local, real, camera store, Overland Photo Supply.

My reason for B&H is, they have everything.  But my local camera store has a more friendly hands on service and help.  Plus is is convienent and close by.  There are other photographers there to talk shop with.   It is a little more expensive but the service is what I am paying for.

Remember with every camera, no matter how much it cost, has a limit.  I mean even the best camera in the world has a point where it won't do the job.  Your new T5 will see its limit, also, even though it is a pretty nice camera.  I can't stress post processing as a major componet in great photos.  99.99% of all the great professional photos you see are PPed.  They know the value.  I recommend this as your first next task.  Get a post editor and start learning it.

For a lens try out the Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM for your interior shots. Click me

Now for the sports, football game, you need two things.  You need fast and you need reach.  This means a fast telephoto.  And a zoom tele is the best choice.  I suspect you have a budget?  This type lens can be very expensive to extremely expensive.

Also remember you are benefitting from a tele crop factor of 1.6x on your Rebel.  This means a 200mm lens is going to give the same results as a 320mm lens.

The best there is, period, is the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM. Click me

There are some other choices that are not as expensive as this one.  Plus both Tamron and Sigma offer nearly the same quality for about half the cost.  I have all three and I can easily recommend any of them as worthy.

You may think this is too expensive and I agree it is but your son and/or daughter is only this age once.  You get one shoot at theses memorable times.  They fly by quickly and are there are no do overs.  You have left the world of iphone!  You can get real pictures.

Another option is renting a lens.  I don't but some do and they are happy with it.

[Ponchonutty]

Thanks everyone.  I really appreciate your help.  Just trying to get things together before football season.  I about fell over when I saw the pricing on good lenses!!!!  I'm a fast learner though and am excited about getting into this area.  Tired of point and shoot cameras with no adjustments.  How does someone go on renting lenses?  Has any of you done that?  What about this lens????  I am not against buying used and more than likely will have to.  It's on Ebay and item #331464284983

[TCampbell]

LensRentals.com and BorrowLenses.com are big rental outfits.

It's great to test gear that you are considering buying. It's also great if you just need gear for a one time thing... but might not use enough to justify owning.

[ebiggs1]

The lens you asked about on ebay, Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III Telephoto Zoom Lens, has the reach but it is way too slow.

Of course  I am relying on what I think your lighting situation is.  A normal high school football field?  You really need a lens that has a f number of f2.8 or less.

Also the quality of that lens is marginal.  It would be better than no lens, though.

But if it is the one that fits your budget, you need to learn how to make it work for you.  A poor lens is better than no lens!  Again, this brings up the subject of a post editor.  PP (post processing) can make bad photos better.  And, can make good photos great ones!

Keep in mind you only get one chance at this.  It is a fleeting moment.

[Ponchonutty]

OK.  Thanks.  I can't spend as much as what these high speed lenses are being listed at.  I guess I will have to rent what I think I need and try it and keep an eye on something used.  Thanks again

[ScottyP]

Biggs underscores the hard truth about nighttime sports; it is not cheap to shoot. It is fast action so you need a brief shutter opening (1/400th of a second or even shorter) to freeze the moving subjects without motion blur. But because it is night there is little available light, which you would normally tackle with a long shutter opening time but you cannot do that because of the fast motion.

You can boost the camera's light sensitivity by raising the ISO, but anything above ISO 800 on a Rebel will show digital noise and loss of detail.

That leaves only one more variable: aperture. Aperture is how wide the lens opens, and therefore how much light can get in during a short exposure (fast shutter) time. Butt hey might as well measure aperture in dollars, as the "bright" lenses, with f/2.8 max aperture are expensive.

One good thing is that Canon lenses hold their value well. You can buy a used one for 70% of the new price, so you can buy new and only anticipate a 30% hickey when you sell, or you can buy used and basically shoot it for almost free for a few years if you can turn around and sell it for what you paid or even a few bucks more.

I agree with Biggs the Canon 70-200 f/2.8L mkIi is a fantastic lens. I love mine. You can also get the Tammy or the Siggy but they don't hold value as well as the Canon and it could be harder to find a buyer for 3rd party lenses so consider buying it used to begin with.

Some folks shy away from used but people who do buy used can shoot some great equipment they couldn't afford otherwise and everyone who has ever bought my old equipment from me on Craigslist has scored a true steal on perfect equipment anyway. Buying from individuals you can get a lower price than buying used from a camera store but be sure to check it out. I like Craigslist because you meet the seller and can see the equipment. eBay always seems expensive and of course you can't see the merchandise or the seller.

Good luck.