Noob : Help with lens choice for canon 5d

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Peaj

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Paul
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Hi,
I picked up a canon 5d and am still getting used to it, currently the only lens I have is a canon 38-76mm.
I was looking at the canon 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 is usm lens when I noticed a few people talking about the canon 70-200mm F4L lens.
I do suffer with a bit of handshake so am leaning towards the IS style lens.
I just wondered which of these 2 lenses people would choose and what other lenses I should be looking at to get the best out of the camera?

Thanks in advance for your help

Paul
 
If you can afford it then I would personally go for the 70-200 F4L IS. You can't really compare it with the 70-300mm though as it is over double the price.
 
Ive got a 70-300 IS and its a good lens, but ive just upgraded to a 70-200 F4L (non-is) its waiting at home and i wont see it for a week or so.

If you have shaky hands then i agree the IS is probably the way to go, there is a big jump between the two lenses price wise though as mentioned before. The 70-300 has been called a hidden L lens in some reviews, i like it but dont stop it down enough to get the best from it. The IS is quite impressive though.
 
Hi, I'm pretty much like you - not been at the photography long, have a 5d, v. shaky hands!

The question is more what you want to photograph. Many say the 24..105 F4L is a great everyday lens on the 5D. And it is very good, but since most of my photography is of my children out in the park, the garden, whatever - a longer focal length is needed so it wasn't for me. It has excellent IS though.

I've never heard of the lens you have before!

Usual suspects are,

50mm f1.4 as a "general purpose" fixed lens - ideal in the evenings because of it's huge aperture which means no need for a flash indoors (talking of a 430ex would be a sensible investment).

Other primes of interest are the 85mm f1.8 for head-and-shoulders portraits, 135mm F2 also for portraits, and the 200mm f2.8 for something a little longer.

Zoom wise it's the 24..70 F2.8L for wide-to-medium, 70-200 of any description for a bit more length, then the 100..400 L for (eg) motorsport, zoo's etc.

The IS is definitely worth the money, even on the 70-200F4L IS although it is twice the price of the non-IS.

Whatever you do, look up Kerso on here for some keen pricing!

Hope that helps.

EDIT: Although the IS is particularly good on the 70-200 F4L IS, a larger lens like this creates a nicely weighted camera which is much easier to hold steadily anyway.
 
Merovingian said:
Without stating the obvious, the best help you'll get on here are from those owning the lenses they comment on. Good luck.
Click to expand...

And I for one am happy to recommend the 70-200 L IS as being streets ahead of the 70-300. And yes, I've had both. Can you guess from which I upgraded to the other?
 
Thanks for all the advice, going to look at the 70-200 L is then, might have to wait a bit while I save.
Pearce jj thanks for the very concise help, forgot all about a flash so that was really helpful.
 
Tried searching for Kerso, couldn't find any specifics. Am I supposed to pm a request to Kerso? all help appreciated
 
2kerso@gmail.com or kerso1123@msn.com

He comes on here quite a lot but lives in the US, so when sending him a message, please bear in mind that he is 5 hours behind UK time :)

As for the 70-200 f4 IS, this is a good choice as it boasts the latest generation IS system, meaning the IS is good for 4 stops shake reduction (y)
 
Thanks for details, I'm off to work now. so will try tomorrow
 
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