convince me..... 18-55mm kit to 17-50mm tamron

dipps wrote in post #7773891
not as familiar with this "off camera flash" type stuff yet. trying to figure out how i'd go about using off camera flash setup's to catch impromptu shots of friends/relatives/kids while meandering around at birthday parties and social gatherings.....?? not saying it's a bad idea, i'm not just practiced at it (haven't ever done it).

There are several ways of going off camera:
- Get a off camera cord and hold the flash away from the camera while flashing (and/or a bracket)
- Get a ST-E2 or 580EX/550EX or Flash that can act as a master and have a buddy (or flash stand) somewhere with a 430 or other flash slave (with a umbrella or somplace to bounce)
- Use your built-in flash or 430 to trigger an optical slave flash that is held by your buddy (or flash stand)
- etc.

The 1st is probably the easiest to do in impromptu settings. Overall, unless you're hired to do a venue its kinda impractical for social gatherings, IMHO.

If you had a Nikon with flash commander builtin, then you just need a slave flash

dipps wrote in post #7773891
yes, already have the 1.8 (see my sig line..... although maybe i didn't type it in there correctly, lol). great lens. but there's times when i wish i could zoom in or out rather than reposition myself 20 feet back.

I'd also second a fast f/2.8 wide lens. But, if you're shooting at f/2.8 (or faster with a prime) make sure you get the group of people parallel to each and shoot perpendicular to them to get them all in focus

dipps wrote in post #7773891
and now we get to the part where you HATE THIS LENS. zoiks. not sure i had heard anyone have such harsh things to say about this lens up until now. hunting? yeah, not fun. i've dealt with that on some other canon lenses in low light. lack of usm? no experience, but don't think it would totally bug me.

If you do a search on Marloon's posts, he's particularly opinionated about his dissatisfaction with his copy of the Tamron 17-50. If you do a search on any of the popular lenses, the Tamron 17-50, Sigma 18-50 Macro/No Macro, Canon 17-55 f/2.8 IS, you'll find a percentage of vocal, unhappy people. Now if *everyone* had the same opinion, you'd have cause to worry, but they're a minority.

The 17-50 is a great lens. It hunts no worse than the Canon 17-55 f/2.8. The AF motor speed is average, not as fast as the 17-55's USM.

yeah, i'm trying to figure out my long term lens procurement gameplan. the "plan" as of this date would include (somewhat prioritized).........

what i have
50mm 1.8 (necessary if i get the 2.8 tammy 17-50mm?)
18-55mm (not necessary w/ tammy 17-50mm)
70-300mm (may replace with 70-200mm 2.8 IS L)

future gameplan
tammy 17-50mm 2.8
70-200mm 2.8 IS L
100mm 2.8 macro
sigma 10-20mm
100-400mm dust pump
or
sigma 150-500mm


i have to laugh at below

I have the 70-200mm 2.8 is. Great lens, and definitely well worth it.

I still use my 1.8 when I'm in a lowlight situation or if I need a closer DOF.

Haha dipps, it's funny but it's true! With my limited funds, the only way for me to 'buy' is to be happy enough that others got it

Looks like you'll have the full gambit in the near future!

If you look at my sig, I have a 50mm prime. You can say it's overlap, but it's like comparing a bicycle with a motorcyle. Sure, both gets you from point A to B, but the two serve two totally different purposes. I'd keep your 50 1.8 for now. The Tammy is a fast lens, but it's physically impossible to contend with the nifty's 1.8 aperture.

I just got the Tamron 17-50 and really really like it. Granted, keep in mind that I don't have much experience with other lenses and I am a beginner with DSLR photography. What I have found as the downfall for me when it comes to forums like these (whether its for photography, computers, TVs, etc) is that reading too much into the forums can get hobbyist/beginners/ama​teurs like me into trouble...what I mean is that the more i read and ask for suggestions, the more money i end up spending when i really don't need to. For example, if an average consumer went out and bought the Tamron 17-50 and didn't read any forums they would probably think that the Tamron 17-50 is spectacular. However, as soon as they start reading forums, people start telling them that some other lens is clearly better and they should just get that one...but, oh, by the way, the other lens cost 2x or 3x more. For me, as an amateur/beginner/hobby​ist, I probably wouldn't care too much for the diference between the Tamron 17-50 and the Canon 17-55 to justify the price.

Anyways, sorry for the long post...moving on...

I thought the build quality was actually pretty solid when I first picked it up. It has good weight and fits my 40D really well.

I've done loads of research before purchasing and the Tamron 17-50 gets great reviews. I say try it out, if you don't like it you can sell it...it has a pretty good resale value.

ehduque7 wrote in post #7774737
What I have found as the downfall for me when it comes to forums like these (whether its for photography, computers, TVs, etc) is that reading too much into the forums can get hobbyist/beginners/ama​teurs like me into trouble...

I've done loads of research before purchasing and the Tamron 17-50 gets great reviews. I say try it out, if you don't like it you can sell it...it has a pretty good resale value.

You speak the truth!

I wish you were closer, I'd let you try mine out to see if it fits what you are looking for.

o, i wouldn't say NEAR future. lol although i have some stereo equipment for sale if you're interested (will help me reach my photog equipment goal much more quickly).... lol

very true, lol. saw the same thing happen to me a bit when i first joined up on my motorcycle forum.... although i nipped the mod bug pretty quickly, and didn't spend a ton of money on bike mods (unlike many there, lol). right now i set aside my trip reimbursements for work for camera gear. at about $160 reimbursement per trip (once, maybe twice a month), i can justify the tammy in 2 or 3 quick trips.

dipps wrote in post #7774975
o, i wouldn't say NEAR future. lol although i have some stereo equipment for sale if you're interested (will help me reach my photog equipment goal much more quickly).... lol

very true, lol. saw the same thing happen to me a bit when i first joined up on my motorcycle forum.... although i nipped the mod bug pretty quickly, and didn't spend a ton of money on bike mods (unlike many there, lol). right now i set aside my trip reimbursements for work for camera gear. at about $160 reimbursement per trip (once, maybe twice a month), i can justify the tammy in 2 or 3 quick trips.

Why do hobbies have to hobbies have to suck us dry?

I had front-focusing problems with the Tamron 17-50 and so have others. I returned my first copy but the second copy was no better. I sent the second copy to Tamron for calibration and it is better but still not as good as my Canon lenses. I still use the lens and like it but have been thinking of getting a used Canon 17-55 IS or maybe even a used Tamron 17-50 again to see if I can find a good copy. If I had a body that supported the lens microadjust feature, I'd probably be really happy with my 17-50.

dipps wrote in post #7770719
should i do it? i have the canon 18-55mm kit lens for my xsi currently.

my $.02
Although I haven't tested the 18-55IS in all indoor situations it seems to do pretty good even with shots that require bumping up the ISO levels. You might want to hold off buying a similar focal lengths until you encounter problems or really need a larger aperture lens

I just made the switch and I high recommend it.

Dave.H wrote in post #7774992
Why do hobbies have to hobbies have to suck us dry?

dunno. bowling cost me near $200 every time i buy a new ball, plus $35 a night. i'm looking at a new softball bat for $250, plus just got a new glove (my "spare").... not to mention batbags, spikes, etc. don't even get me started on my hunting gear. or carpentry gear. or computer gear. or home theater gear/blu-ray collection. or.....

although that f/2.8 IS L lens easily costs more than my dell xps computer system w/ monitor.

If you don't already know that you want a replacement for your 18-55 IS kit lens then don't get one.

Really. You are either not taking very many indoor photos, or are happy with the IQ on the 18-55.

If it ain't broke...

I think ehduque7 speaks wise words, its really easy to let forum posts convince you that this or that bit of gear is going to make a huge difference, when that may not be the case at all. I was convinced by reading forum posts that the Tamron 17-50 would be a massive upgrade from the kit lens (18-55 is), but to be honest it's slightly better in some areas (image & build quality, & bokeh) and slightly worse in others (less range, hunts more in low light, lack of IS gives it slightly worse low light performance), and at more than the price of my 1000d & kit lens i kind of expected a little more.

Maybe I just got a bad one though, as I've just sent it back to be calibrated, as it slightly front focuses. That is unless I try to use my Canon 430ex flash with it, in which case it radically front focuses, which pretty much renders my flash useless! Most of my shots are manual focus landscapes though, so this doesn't completely bias my oppinion of it.

so..... what did you do dipps???