Which 70/300 for Canon

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Steve W

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Hi all,

I'm looking at buying a cheapish 70-300mm for a Canon 450d body as a way to get into wildlife photography. I seem to have a few choices :-

1. Canon 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM
2. Tamron 70-300mm f4-5.6 SP Di VC USD

After reading the reviews it seems the Tamron is the better of the two lenses.

I was just wondering if anyone here has one/both of these lenses, if so what did they think?

Is there anything else I should be considering within this price bracket?

Ta
Steve
 
Steve W said:
1. Canon 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM
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I have one of these.

Optically it seems to me to be ho-hum to adequate, the IS rumbles and groans but seems to work very well, the front rotates as you focus and the USM doesn't allow manual over ride. Optically IMVHO it's merely ok but mechanically it seems like an old design that's a generation or three behind.
 
Both the Tamron you have listed and the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG OS seem to get some great reviews and both are said to be better than the Canon by a lot of reviewers. I borrowed a Tamron 70-300 non vc for a while, and got some great shots from a 550D, until I got a Tamron 28-300 VC and TBH I thought the IQ of the 70-300 was slightly better than the 28-300.
 
woof woof said:
I have one of these.

Optically it seems to me to be ho-hum to adequate, the IS rumbles and groans but seems to work very well, the front rotates as you focus and the USM doesn't allow manual over ride. Optically IMVHO it's merely ok but mechanically it seems like an old design that's a generation or three behind.
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That's what I have read and that does put me off a bit, especially the fact that it does not internally focus.

modchild said:
Both the Tamron you have listed and the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG OS seem to get some great reviews and both are said to be better than the Canon by a lot of reviewers.
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Have not looked at Sigma so far, will check out the Sigma....
 
I looked at the Canon 70-300 L but it's almost 3x the price of the lenses I listed.

Is the L really 3x as good?
 
I've got the Canon 70-300 lens (which is for sale in the classifieds) and have been very pleased with it.

The front element does rotate as it does on a lot of lenses. The IS works well, is a bit noisy compared to some of the brand new IS versions, but never the less works well.

Has a zoom lock button on the side if the lens, so you don't get any creep.
 
Steve W said:
I looked at the Canon 70-300 L but it's almost 3x the price of the lenses I listed.

Is the L really 3x as good?
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Yes it quite possibly is, i upgraded from the is usm to the L and it was well worth the money, its very sharp, fast auto focus, great IS, it seems to do everything better than the standard lens.
 
I hired a 100-400 lens for a zoo visit I made last year and got some amazing photos.

I guess I need to decide, do I buy a cheaper lens or save longer for the 70-300 L, which is probably the dilemma a lot of people have.
 
Steve W said:
I hired a 100-400 lens for a zoo visit I made last year and got some amazing photos.

I guess I need to decide, do I buy a cheaper lens or save longer for the 70-300 L, which is probably the dilemma a lot of people have.
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It depends if you think you'd ever upgrade to the L. If thats the case then maybe save a little longer or buy one of the lenses you first suggested used and hopefully sell it on at very little loss.
 
Steve W said:
I hired a 100-400 lens for a zoo visit I made last year and got some amazing photos.

I guess I need to decide, do I buy a cheaper lens or save longer for the 70-300 L, which is probably the dilemma a lot of people have.
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If you are interested in this focal range it may well be worth thinking long and hard if you want f2.8, f4 or f4.5-6 and if you want a good lens or just an adequate one.

As I'm not really into long lenses I just wanted a relatively cheap lens for occasional use so the Canon is ok for me. To be honest the IS seems really good but IMVHO the lens is let down by the rather outdated USM and rotating front. If starting again I think I may go for a f2.8.
 
Steve W said:
I looked at the Canon 70-300 L but it's almost 3x the price of the lenses I listed.

Is the L really 3x as good?
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Why not get a 2nd hand 55-250 now (about £120) and use that while you save for 70-300L? Then you can resell the 55-250 for little to no loss.
 
hollis_f said:
Why not get a 2nd hand 55-250 now (about £120) and use that while you save for 70-300L? Then you can resell the 55-250 for little to no loss.
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Yes I could do I guess if they are only £120, it maybe worth a go.

woof woof said:
If starting again I think I may go for a f2.8.
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Can you get a f2.8 70-300 ???
 
Steve W said:
Yes I could do I guess if they are only £120, it maybe worth a go.

Can you get a f2.8 70-300 ???
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The 55-250 has a great reputation for its price, well worth a go.

As far as i know your options there would be 70-200 2.8 or a 300mm 2.8 prime they'll get wayyy over your current budget very quickly.
 
I think the 55-250 maybe the way to go for now by the sound of it. Is the mk2 the one to look out for?
 
Could always get the 70-200mm then get a 1.4x TC on it when you need a bit extra length
 
Steve W said:
Can you get a f2.8 70-300 ???
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No but you could look at a sigma 120-300mm f2.8 OS if you can find one new (£1500 new or £1000 used) or pick it up second hand. Another option used is the sigma 100-300mm f4 (£400-450)

And yes the Canon 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 L is a significantly better lens than any of the ones you highlighted.
 
Jackwow said:
Which model Kenko 1.4 or is there only the one?
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Just have to make sure its the one with a blue dot on so it retains af over f5.6.
I believe the green one looses af as its the older model.
 
Any EF mount will work with your 450D, I had a 550D and used a 100-400 L to great effect. The wife has a 650D now and I've used that with my 70-200 f2.8L MkII and Kenko Pro300 DGX 1.4x converter and I get some great shots with that set up and also with the Canon MkIII 2x converter as well. I've also used the same lens and converters on both my 5D3 and 7D to great effect as well. A 70-200 f4L non IS and a Kenko 1.4x converter would give you an f5.6 setup so you'd still keep AF on your 450D and you'd get some cracking photos too.
 
hollis_f said:
The 70-300 with a 1.4x TC will not autofocus properly.
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Do you mean 70-300 L ? If so do you know the minimum body that will allow AF? Reason is I can can try and plan an upgrade path.

So maybe save for the 70-300L, then next step is to upgrade the body, then if I want more reach I buy a 1.4x or 2x TC.
 
woof woof said:
I have one of these.

Optically it seems to me to be ho-hum to adequate, the IS rumbles and groans but seems to work very well, the front rotates as you focus and the USM doesn't allow manual over ride. Optically IMVHO it's merely ok but mechanically it seems like an old design that's a generation or three behind.
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:agree:

Didn't like 70-300 IS much and sold it for the 55-250 which I liked a lot given it's price.
 
alz123 said:
70-300L the kenko 1.4 300 focus spot on on my 5d3 at 300mm and report it as f8
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Are you trying to say that the 70-300 + 1.4x TC will AF at the same light levels as the lens without the TC? Because if it don't then you obviously didn't read all of my post.
 
Steve W said:
Hi all,

I'm looking at buying a cheapish 70-300mm for a Canon 450d body as a way to get into wildlife photography. I seem to have a few choices :-

1. Canon 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM
2. Tamron 70-300mm f4-5.6 SP Di VC USD

After reading the reviews it seems the Tamron is the better of the two lenses.

I was just wondering if anyone here has one/both of these lenses, if so what did they think?

Is there anything else I should be considering within this price bracket?

Ta
Steve
Click to expand...


EF-S 55-250mm IS 11
OP, Do try this lens if you can it shoots well above its station incredibably sharp images for the price and not that far in reach behind the 70-300
 
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