All purpose lens

[wmd]

I have a 350D (with 18-55mm kit lens) and will be taking mainly landscape, car shows (outdoors) and oval track racing photo's.

What do people think of the new Tamron 18-200mm XR Di II ?
Is it a good all round, everyday, one lens solution?

If not can it be tied up with another lens, for low light/indoor use?

Is Canon's IS system only really usefull for large zooms, to take the wobble out and low light when using a lens with a high f-stop?

I'm a newbie, so sorry if these are basic or silly questions.:rolleyes:

[Citizensmith]

I have a 350D (with 18-55mm kit lens) and will be taking mainly landscape, car shows (outdoors) and oval track racing photo's.

What do people think of the new Tamron 18-200mm XR Di II ?
Is it a good all round, everyday, one lens solution?

If not can it be tied up with another lens, for low light/indoor use?

Is Canon's IS system only really usefull for large zooms, to take the wobble out and low light when using a lens with a high f-stop?

I'm a newbie, so sorry if these are basic or silly questions.:rolleyes:

The Tamron - Yes it is an all round every day solution. However, lenses with such a broad zoom range are always an exercise in compromise. It will be softer and less contrasty than less extreme zoom lenses. How much of a compromise you are willing to accept is up to you. The lens will produce perfectly good 6x4 prints, but push it to 8x10 and you'll start to see its weaknesses.

The canon 50 f/1.8 is the go to for indoor/lowlight use. Very sharp, very cheap ($70). Well recommended and always a good choice as a starter prime lens.

The IS system is more useful at long focal lengths but still helps some even at wider lengths. It can save a slower lens but is also still useful in a faster lens. Just remember, as much as it helps your ability to handhold it will never do anything to fix subject movement so you can still end up with plenty of blur.

Basic questions, sure. Silly, no, you can guarantee you are not the only person wondering about things like this.

[KevC]

Do not underestimate your kit lens. Sure, it's not of L-quality, but it's actually pretty darn good. A lot of people keep it around for a nice wide angle. It's pretty sharp at 18mm stopped down (approx. f/8 and smaller: bigger number)

The two zooms ranges people usually get (or save up for, they are quite pricey) is the 24-70 and 70-200.

The reason these zoom lengths are popular because they are very convient and are offered in extremely wide aperatures, f/2.8.

Of course, you can get Canon's 24-70L and 70-200L but that most likely is way over your budget. My recommendation is this: If you want the best of quality, decide which you need. 24-70 is an awesome range for Photojournalism work. The 70-200 is probably Canon's best zoom.

If you are taking oval track racing photos, you might want the 70-200 instead of the 24-70 first. Canon's are very expensive, and as you have noticed already (by your asking of Tamron), there are very high quality 3rd party alternatives.

The Sigma 70-200/2.8 is one of them.

Yes, it's a whopping $840 compared to your Tamron's $400. But listen, it's a constant wiiiiiide f/2.8 aperature instead of your variable 3.5 to 6.3 (which Is really narrow at the 200 end). Also, the image quality will defintely blow the Tamron away, simply because Hyperzooms (more than 6x) are inherently lower in quality.

Another option is Canon's 70-200/4L. This one is lighter than the Sigma, but slower. Also cheaper! ($580) It has a constant f/4 aperature, which is *still* faster than the Tamron's 6.3 at the 200 end. As you probably know, Canon's "L" are renowned for their quality. The thing is, I don't know if f/4 will be fast enough for your track racing photo's. Chances are, if they are in broad daylight, this is good enough!

Your 18-55 kit lens is very sharp plasitc :) Keep this as your landscape lens. You should just save up for the 70-200, whether it be the Sigma or the Canon.

If you're interested in the "PJ" style lens, the 24-70 range has a few much cheaper options. The best will definitely be the Canon 24-70/2.8L. Of course, not everyone wants to spend $1150 on a lens, especially when there are excellent third party alternatives such as the Tamron and the Sigma. The Tamron 28-75/2.8 has tonnes of ravings, just search this board! The Sigma 24-70 and the 24-60, both f/2.8, aren't as popular, but they are also of excellent quality. These alternatives are at a fraction of the price... at ~$400.

Most professionals need a fast lens. f/2.8 is the fastest you'll see in a zoom (primes are inherently better in quality and can be built faster.... usually) The recommendations above are for awesome quality lenses. If you do not wish to spend that much, there are "prosumer" level zooms offered that are still good quality, but not as great as these. Some I can think of are the Canon 28-135/3.5-5.6 (~$410), the 75-300/4-4.6 (~$415) and the 100-300/4.5-5.6 (~$280).

I don't know much about track racing photos, so I wouldn't know if 200mm is even long enough. However, the Sigma and Canon zooms are of excellent quality, so adding a teleconverter (1.4) wouldn't degrade it much. But the 100-300 seems like an awesome deal for something you may want. I'm not sure of the quality though...

Check out the used market! You can save yourself a coupla bucks. The Marketplace here is a good place to buy! Beware of fishy sellers on ebay though.

Good luck, oh... and Welcome!

[wmd]

Thanks guys :lol:

A little more reading and a lot more saving, then :(