Advice for buying telephoto lens

[Gogu]

So, another question about the best lens in the available budget ;)

I have this three choices 55-200, 70-200, 100-300 ! It will be used primarily for shooting sports, but portrait or wildlife is not out of the question.
Some opinion about thesel lenses, i haven't seen them much in the polls in the STICKY lens thread, and some sugestions to other lenses with similar characteristics but most importantly similar price would be appreciated!

thanks!

[RichardtheSane]

Which 70-200?

If it is the F4 L then it gets my vote.

It is the only lens you can add the canon 1.4x convertor to and undoubtedly the sharpest of the bunch with quickest autofocus

[gasrocks]

Kinda depends on what else you have, $ you want to spend, etc. But, of the 3 you mentioned - no contest, the 70-200 Canon L's are the best, in general.

[Leorooster]

If the 70-200 4L is within you budget, that's the one. Consider, however, that if you shot indoor sport, you would need a faster lens, which would be a lot more expensive.

[loebas]

What kind of sports and wildlife do you intend to take photos of ?

[cmM]

out of those 3 .... 70-200

[Gogu]

Umm...sorry guys my mistake, the 70-200 is actually the 75-300.I can't afford an L lens yet and i don't deserve one :lol:

So here are my options again (i took the names straight from Canon's site so there won't be any more mistakes) :

1) EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III USM - this would be my choice;

2) EF 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 II USM - they say that it's optimized for digital SLRs :rolleyes:

3) EF 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6 USM - i like this one because it has rear focusing so it's good for filter use and also has a distance scale;

Again, any other sugestions to other lenses similar to these, even non-Canon ones (Sigma, Tamron) but in the same price zone, are most welcome!

[csnudelman]

What camera?

[Michaelmjc]

I would say the 75-300 USM, its a great lens. They are all 4.5-5.6 so they are all the same speed.

[condyk]

100-300 USM or Sigma 70-300 APO Super II.

I think the latter offers the best all around value.

[nitsch]

Got to agree with Condyk, so another vote here for the Sigma 70-300 APO Super II. Really good lens for the money. Make sure you get the APO version though.

[MrChad]

Unless you plan to purchase the IS USM 75-300mm EF I would go with the 100-300mm EF.

Much better AF, ringtype USM is alot faster and the 100-300mm is a tad better piece of glass then the 75-300mm models. Unless you have a need for IS the 100-300mm is the better glass. Else, if the 75-300mm IS USM or 70-200mm f4L are out of your reach I would go for the 100-300mm. A buddy of mine has a copy its a very silent, small little zoom compared to many tele's. I would have had a copy but I need the IS for the long end of the zoom, I can't always hand hold a crisp shot at 300mm on the digital crop factor bodies, or 35mm film sometimes for that matter.

90% of the time in Canon EF lenses price is a good indicator of performance.

However, if your budget best allows the 55-200 or 75-300mm (non-IS) get either one...not having a lens and needing it is worse then any EF lens quality criteria IMO.

[RichardtheSane]

I still have a 100-300 USM and in quality (build and sharpness) it is a very good lens

All three are good lenses, but of the three I would say the 100-300 is just a cut above the other two. AF speed is quick, and it has the usm ring motor which is both quieter and quicker than the other types.

[Gogu]

Thank you for your opinions!The 100-300 is starting to look appealing to my eyes now :D , but i thought the 25mm that the 75-300 has over the 100-300 would be useful considering the stupid crop factor of digital! And aren't they all USM?I don't understand the difference between USM and ringtype USM... :rolleyes:

I'll also consider the Sigma lens.However i've read some opinions about non-canon lenses that tend to have auto-fousing problems!
What does the APO stand for? It has the plus of being a macro lens but the minus that it has no ultrasonic motor!Is this such a big disatvantage? :rolleyes:

[nitsch]

I own two Sigma lenses and have no focusing problems with either of them... in fact ironically the only lens I've ever had a focus problem with was a Canon 24-85mm which front focused badly.

Anyway, according to the Sigma website APO is: "An Apochromat lens, which keeps color aberration to a minimum, using Special Low Dispersion glass is called an APO series lens at Sigma."

I don't think the lack of USM is a real problem here, AFAIK none of the Canon lenses you are looking at have Full Time Manual focusing so the Sigma is not at any real disadvantage apart from maybe being slightly noisier.

Hope this helps! :)

[cfcRebel]

Actually the EF 100-300 USM has fulltime manual focus override. It's using ring type USM. So the front doesn't rotate when focus or zoom.
I ditto Condyk's suggestion, i.e. 100-300mm or Sigma 70-100 APO Super macro II.

[SkipD]

I re-ask the question - what camera body? It makes a difference.....

[nitsch]

Actually the EF 100-300 USM has fulltime manual focus override.

Cheers for setting me straight cfc, I didn't know this. :)

[cmM]

I re-ask the question - what camera body? It makes a difference.....
How so?
a 1Ds will make a lens better than a 10D ? :confused:

[Dante King]

I think everyone know my feelings about the 70-300 DO IS USM. I would vote for that as it is quite versitile. I also got a kenko 1.4 to go with it and the combo is pretty sweet. just my 2 cents. Might be a bit out of your price range however.

[SkipD]

How so?
a 1Ds will make a lens better than a 10D ? :confused:Quite simple if you think about it... A telephoto lens on a 20D/300D/350D is effectively "longer" than on a 1Ds or even a 1D. When someone is considering the application while choosing a lens, it does make a difference what body they intend to use it with.

[xuxu1]

I would say the 75-300 USM, its a great lens. They are all 4.5-5.6 so they are all the same speed.

For heavens sake.... :shock: :shock: :shock: no! Don´t make the same mistake as i did long time ago. Sure the 75-300 (i had the IS version) USM is a nice lens. But if you ever happen to shoot with an L lens, that´s when you notice what you´ve been missing.

I sold my 75-300 IS USM and bought a 100-400 L IS (I need the reach). Man what a difference :D

ED

[cmM]

Quite simple if you think about it... A telephoto lens on a 20D/300D/350D is effectively "longer" than on a 1Ds or even a 1D. When someone is considering the application while choosing a lens, it does make a difference what body they intend to use it with.
The original poster asks for an opinion on which lens to choose out of those 3, so the relative to each other, whatever camera body he uses will make no difference.
I understand what you're talking about though, and I agree, in terms of focal length, the crop factor would make a difference.

[xuxu1]

The original poster asks for an opinion on which lens to choose out of those 3, so the relative to each other, whatever camera body he uses will make no difference.
I understand what you're talking about though, and I agree, in terms of focal length, the crop factor would make a difference.

IMO... the body size also is a important factor. Imagine a 70-200L IS or any other big(ger) lens on a 300D or 350D (XT). Nothing that i would want to use.

ED

[Gogu]

OK people...this is it! I went today to the shop and ordered the 100-300mm, influenced by your opinions (so if i dont like it it is your fault :p ).Anyway i will receive it it about 10 days and i can't wait! :D Thanks for your suggestions and debates again...helped me alot!
And for those of you who kept asking the new lens will be attached to my beloved 300D
;) !

Oh man oh man...my first telephoto zoom! :lol:

[CyberDyneSystems]

I have this three choices 55-200, 70-200, 100-300 ! It will be used primarily for shooting sports, but portrait or wildlife is not out of the question.

... i haven't seen them much in the polls in the STICKY lens thread, a...

Actually,. you see the 70-200mm f/4 show up in the sticky all the time.. it is one of the most highly recomended lenses on this forum. Period..

The others don't show up often.. indeed.

Draw your own conclusions. ;)