Need help with accessories

I have recently purchased 30d with 18-55 II kit lens as it came as part of the package. I am about to purchase 50mm f/1.4 lens and speedlite 580 ex.

I am trying to figure out if there are some accessories that would be really useful with the setup - uv filters, lens hood, etc.

I'm pretty new at this and will have to learn a lot about the camera and photography in general. I've used point and shoot digital cameras in the past, but never really got technical. I experimented a bit with aperture but my knowledge/understandin​g is very limited.

By the way, any really good books to get going? I would like to learn the camera real well and learn how to utilize all the manual features - light, exposure, and the like.

Thank you.

Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. Great book, very informative and easy to read. Check out some of the Magic Lantern Guides. I dunno if they have one for the 30D yet. Just buy a nice camera bag (with lots of extra room if you think of getting more lenses later), some batteries from Sterlingtek.com and lots of CF cards. Take a bunch of pictures, and learn how to use that 50 1.4. You'll love it once you get the hang of it. You dont' really need the hood on that lens but of course it's always nice to ahve them to help shade it and protect it from bumps and whatnot. Don't let people down play that kits lens. It's actually not all that bad. Oh yeah, read the manual, please. It's a great camera. Be patient with it. Welcome to POTN.

Thanks for the welcome.

Yes, I was looking at that book about exposure.

I bought the kit that included the grip, the bag, and the kit lens. I bought the Sandisk Extreme IV 2GB card. I'm pretty much covered on the immediate accessories, I was thinking more in terms of the new lens and the flash, if any. Not that I'm looking for an excuse to spend money or anything.

I'm in Canada and I will be placing an order through US and US pickup, so to save money and hassle I thought that there might be some must haves.

Is Amazon.com reliable and quick to ship? I thought if I buy these from them, I might get couple of books at the same time, otherwise, I was thinking B&H Photo.

Falcon,

I also am a new member of the forum but have been shooting with Canon Digital SLR about 3 years. I would suggest that you practice and decide what area of photography you are most interested in pursuing as that will determine the lenses that you need.

As to Amazon/B&H there is thread: https://photography-on-the.net …t=233888&highli​ght=Amazon

Good luck and happy phototaking.

Thanks, I went with Amazon. I've ordered few books at the same time. I didn't get any accessories, just the lense and the flash.