Canon 24-105 f4

As a newbie to photography I am interested in the 24-105 f4 lens. By all accounts I would rather buy used or the older version as opposed to newer II model and the 1000-1200 dollar price tag. Anyways, on my way to 30 posts and maybe I might get lucky..BTW, for Christmas I got an Canon 80D kit, that included 55-255 and a 18-55 which I believe my girlfriend bought from Costco...

Looks like you have that focal length covered, what are you hoping to gain from getting another lens? I'm not saying you shouldn't, just curious

You are a lucky guy !
Many photographers can only dream about having a girlfriend who gives camera and lenses presents

As mentioned, what are you not able to do with your existing gear?

Consider spending some money on lighting gear.

http://strobist.blogsp​ot.com/2006/03/lightin​g-101.html?m=1

mmandc the 24-105 is a great lens if you can get a sharp copy, some can be a little soft so alway worth trying it out before buying where possible, but it's a good investment, and good focal range

thanks for all the help, as everyone knows beginning photography is much like beginning guitar so much to learn..
Anyways I'm going to San Francisco and I'm going to take a bunch of pictures and see what happens..

Thanks

The 24-105L does very well in adequate lighting. I have mine in the canon 6D so I take advantage of the high ISO. I can safely shoot this lens in low lighting at 6400ISO and the picture are not grainy. you can buy a used copy for $350-400 easily. At that price point it's a great deal for a very versatile lens.

MrAnderson wrote in post #18238114
The 24-105L does very well in adequate lighting. I have mine in the canon 6D so I take advantage of the high ISO. I can safely shoot this lens in low lighting at 6400ISO and the picture are not grainy. you can buy a used copy for $350-400 easily. At that price point it's a great deal for a very versatile lens.

Personally, I would not buy this lens used. Mainly you do not know how the lens was used, or how much it was use. The Canon EF 24-105mm f4 ver I L, IS USM is one of those lenses that has a known weakness, with the internal ribbon cable. This cable can fail at any time you may be using the lens. I suggest you look into a Canon refurbished copy of this lens. It will be a bit more expensive than the "used" copy, but will give you the security of the Canon 1 year warranty.

That goes for anything used, especially electronics. Buy it, use it, and enjoy it until it breaks.

Given that (1) you have this focal length covered, and (2) you have a crop sensor camera, I wouldn't buy this lens. It is one of my most used lenses on my full frame camera, but it is not a good zoom range for a crop sensor camera--to long on the wide end. I have done a lot with crop sensor cameras and still own one, and this is one lens I virtually never put on it. Since you are new at this, I would stick with what you have for now. These are budget lenses, but they are capable of good images, and they have focal length ranges designed for crop-sensor cameras. Once you find something that you can't do or can't do well with your current lenses, it will be time to think about alternatives that will meet that PARTICULAR need.

I thank all of you for your insight and knowledge, and at this time most if not all of you are correct in saying that I should learn to use what I have, then maybe experiment or buy what I like. Should I buy any additional lighting?
Thanks to all.....

That depends entirely on what you intend to shoot. My general rule of thumb is: don't buy something until you have a specific need. For example, if you end up shooting a lot of candids of kids, a bounce-able flash and a bounce card is a great help. If you are shooting landscapes, that's in most cases throwing money away.