Which lenses?

[Applejack]

I recently bought a Canon Rebel T2i. This is my first DLSR and would like some advise on some lenses to get.
I must say that the lens it came with seems adequate but just that.
I was hoping it's clarity would be better. It's not bad but not what I thought it should be.
Let's put it this way, If I can only buy 2 which would you recommend?

 

[syke]

Welcome to the DSLR world.... it's a blast.

50mm f1.8 and 70-200mm f2.8
I'm a big fan of fast glass.

Bottom line... put your money in lenses, that Canon body should last you a long time.

PS, I'm coming from the Nikon world and I know next to nothing about Canon but I would assume they have similar lenses as Nikon. Don't be afraid of used or older lenses.... My 50mm lens is almost 40 years old. It was cheap and it works perfectly.

 

[smslavin]

I shoot mostly primes. The 50/1.8 is an okay lens but I would spend the extra money and get the 1.4. I have the 1.2 and it is always mounted to one of my cameras. It's my favorite lens. Second fav would be the 35/1.4.

The 70-200/2.8 is a great lens but heavy. You will need to be careful with how you carry your camera with that mounted. The Rebel bodies are mostly plastic and over time, a heavy lens could separate the mounting ring from the body.

A great all around consumer lens is the 28-135. It's a variable aperture but the image quality is outstanding.

 

[ywen]

The lens you need is dependent on the type shots you want to capture.. can't really give you a recommendation without that basic information.

 

[MatthewThompson]

I recently bought a Canon Rebel T2i. This is my first DLSR and would like some advise on some lenses to get.
I must say that the lens it came with seems adequate but just that.
I was hoping it's clarity would be better. It's not bad but not what I thought it should be.
Let's put it this way, If I can only buy 2 which would you recommend?

Kitlenses are 99% trash. If I could only buy two, they would likely be the 24-70L and the 70-200L. They'd cover 90% of what you'll ever be shooting. If you'd like to get into pro glass at a lower budget, definitely look into the EX line of Sigma lenses. They're truly 90% of the L quality for 50% cost of admission.

Without knowing what sort of work you're planning to do, it's hard to nail down 2 lenses that would suit you. I prefer primes, but I know what sort of jobs I'll be required to ask of them.

 

[08whitex]

On a crop camera I would go with a 17-55 over the 24-70L. Second lens would be the 70-200.

What are you planning on using the camera for?

 

[Photog]

Kitlenses are 99% trash. If I could only buy two, they would likely be the 24-70L and the 70-200L. They'd cover 90% of what you'll ever be shooting. If you'd like to get into pro glass at a lower budget, definitely look into the EX line of Sigma lenses. They're truly 90% of the L quality for 50% cost of admission.

Without knowing what sort of work you're planning to do, it's hard to nail down 2 lenses that would suit you. I prefer primes, but I know what sort of jobs I'll be required to ask of them.

X2 :victory:

 

[off-roader]

X2 :victory:

X3 on all points said above. :victory:

Kinda like asking us what should I upgrade on my 4x4 first without telling us what kind of wheeling you want to do.

If you're not sure what kind of pictures you want to take, then I recommend continue using your kit lenses until you get a better idea what kinds of shots you like to take.

That said, I'm not sure if something like the Nikon 18-200 VR lens exist for Canon but it's what I'd recommend to a Nikon shooter who's looking to improve their glass but isn't completely sure what kind of shooting they'll be doing.

 

[desertrover]

Hello,
I also shoot a Canon 1.6 crop camera, which was purchased with the (poor) 28-80. The first lens I bought was a 50mm 1.4, soon followed by the 24-105 L. I highly recommend both. Just remember, any lens acts 1.6x longer on these cameras. A 28 shoots more like a 50, and a 50 is more like an 85. The 24-105 is a great all around lens, but it suffers from a not very wide wide end on the crop cameras. If you plan on sticking with EF-S format cameras, the 17-55 IS F2.8 lens is receiving outstanding reviews. It is said to have sharpness to match the 24-105L IS 4.0 and the ever popular 24-70L 2.8. However, unlike full frame shooters, you don't have to pick faster aperture or IS.. You can have both! The 17-55 would have been my second lens if I didn't plan on buying a full frame camera someday. The place where these cameras are most limited in lens selection is on the ultra wide angle side. The EF-S 10-22 is the only offering from canon. Luckily, it is a very good lens. It was the third "real" lens I added to my kit.
Best of luck with your new camera,
CJ

 

[Rbertalotto]

If I can only buy 2 which would you recommend

:luxhello::luxhello::luxhello::luxhello:

This cracks me up........He has no idea what he is in for!

Us Nikon guys call it "NAS" , Nikon Acquisition Syndrome....It has no known cure...

And I've added two more since this picture was taken.........:wings:

Good Luck!

Oh, and to answer your question.........If I could only have two.....I'd keep my 80-200 F2.8 and my 35-70 F2.8...........Fast glass is the next best thing to............

 

[syke]

Hope that kinda helped, Applejack.
I would like to add one more thing....... get out there and start shooting. Have fun, start saving your money. It can get real expensive! :Wow1:

 

[JohnLemieuxPhotos]

You only need 3 lenses to shoot 99.99% of everything.

A wide zoom (on crop 10-20mm)
A telephoto zoom (70-200mm)
A fast normal prime (on crop a 28mm is normal, 35mm is pretty common. 50 is too long for general use on crop, it's great for portraits but too long for normal stuff)

 

[Lost Canadian]

Keep your kit for now and buy a Lensbaby.......What, why is everyone laughing, I'm serious. They force you to learn things, important things, like how to set an exposure, the importance of focus etc. Actually I'm only somewhat serious, but if you can find a used one cheap, pick it up, they can be really good learning tools.

 

[loren85022]

IMO; f1.4 thru 2.8 is for people who shoot for a living. I own 3 of these and they never go camping/offloading with me. Thats 'cuz they're way too heavy and I don't need " fast glass" to shoot such outings. Instead I love my 18-200mm f5.6 for it's versatility. It's still ain't cheap ($800 used) but at f8-16, it's plenty sharp.

I wouldn't hesitate to be out in the wild with a kit lens. When you know it's disposable, you are more inclined to use it in clever (risky) ways to get more interesting photos.

 

[MatthewThompson]

Keep your kit for now and buy a Lensbaby

I can appreciate the sentiment, but this is pretty poor advice for somebody looking to learn more about photography. Learning exposure, focus and composition is simplified by repeatable results. Buying a book and switching the body and lens to M are much better advice for the first month.

I'm not sure what application a Lensbaby has in the real world, but I'm a bit of a curmudgeon too.