Which lens should I get?

C

Cookaaaaay

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119
Name
Liam
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Hello,

I'm new to photography and I'm getting my first dslr for christmas.
I'm having to buy an Olympus e510 that comes with no lens.

I've seen two lenses, which one would you recommend:

  1. Olympus 14-45mm F3.5-5.6 Four Thirds Lens - £49.00
  2. Vivitar 28-210mm f3.5-5.6 (OM Fit) - £39.00

Thanks. :thumbs:
 
What are you planning on taking photographs of?

If you are mainly thinking of nice landscape photographs, the odd portrait and general walkabout photography, the 14-45mm would be my choice.

If you'd mainly be doing portraits, sports, nature, general walkabout stuff and the odd landscape the 28-210mm would be better due to the longer focal length.

The 14-45mm would be more limited but if landscapes are your thing then it'd be perfect.
 
martyp said:
What are you planning on taking photographs of?

If you are mainly thinking of nice landscape photographs, the odd portrait and general walkabout photography, the 14-45mm would be my choice.

If you'd mainly be doing portraits, sports, nature, general walkabout stuff and the odd landscape the 28-210mm would be better due to the longer focal length.

The 14-45mm would be more limited but if landscapes are your thing then it'd be perfect.
Click to expand...

Oh, ok. Thanks.
I just want a "kit lens". I'm just going to use it for random shots.

I'm going to buy more specific lenses with the money I receive for christmas, eg macro lens.
 
Remember that the Vivitar lens will need an adaptor as its OM fit so you'll have to budget that into your price. Also I'm fairly sure you wont have auto-focus on the Vivitar - its not a 4/3rds lens.

The first lens you mentioned should be 14-42mm (not 14-45mm) and as its a 4/3rds lens you'll be able to auto focus.

Can I just ask a couple of questions......

1. I take it you're going for a 2nd hand Oly - they were 'normally' shipped with at least 1 lens (sometimes 2) has the seller said why there is no lens with it?
2. What sort of budget have you got at the minute for kit/lens etc?
3. What sort of things are you going to be looking to take photo's of? (I know you said random shots, but are we talking landscapes, people, etc etc

I too own an E-510, its not a bad camera at all example of some shots on the E-510 :-





jaycopy2.jpg


4.jpg



All the best

Regards

Neil
 
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Roadkill_6mm said:
Remember that the Vivitar lens will need an adaptor as its OM fit so you'll have to budget that into your price. Also I'm fairly sure you wont have auto-focus on the Vivitar - its not a 4/3rds lens.

The first lens you mentioned should be 14-42mm (not 14-45mm) and as its a 4/3rds lens you'll be able to auto focus.

Can I just ask a couple of questions......

1. I take it you're going for a 2nd hand Oly - they were 'normally' shipped with at least 1 lens (sometimes 2) has the seller said why there is no lens with it?
2. What sort of budget have you got at the minute for kit/lens etc?
3. What sort of things are you going to be looking to take photo's of? (I know you said random shots, but are we talking landscapes, people, etc etc

I too own an E-510, its not a bad camera at all example of some shots on the E-510 :-





jaycopy2.jpg


4.jpg



All the best

Regards

Neil
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply.
Those pics are great. :thumbs:

1) Yes, I'm getting a secondhand e510. I'm getting it from an online shop that offers used equipment, people have recommended the shop on here. They haven't said why there is no lens with it, it just says body only.

2) For the kit lens, I'd say around £60 maximum.

3) I'm especially interested in macro shots, that is predominantly what I will use the camera for. But, I will be taking other sort of shots too. Check my Flickr favourites, those are the images I'm inspired by. http://www.flickr.com/photos/29111486@N06/favorites/

Cheers.:thumbs:
 
There's nothing wrong with second hand kit - thats how my E510 started out!!

To be honest you might struggle to find a 4/3rds kit lens for £60 - from a quick look at ebay the cheapest I have seen is in the £90 bracket for the 14-42mm

The 40-150mm F4-5.6 is a little cheaper, but not by much.

One thing to remember is that the apparent focal length of the lens doubles on a 4/3rds camera so the 40-150mm becomes 80-300mm

The Olympus kit lenses, the 14-42mm and 40-150mm, are some of the best 'kit' lenses out there - you get a bit more bang for your buck.

But one thing to bear in mind is the photo's I posted, although taken with the same body, were taken with the 'semi-pro' 50-200mm and 12-60mm these cost over £500 each..... photography can be an expensive hobby!!

What sort of budget have you got for everything?

Neil
 
Roadkill_6mm said:
There's nothing wrong with second hand kit - thats how my E510 started out!!

To be honest you might struggle to find a 4/3rds kit lens for £60 - from a quick look at ebay the cheapest I have seen is in the £90 bracket for the 14-42mm

The 40-150mm F4-5.6 is a little cheaper, but not by much.

One thing to remember is that the apparent focal length of the lens doubles on a 4/3rds camera so the 40-150mm becomes 80-300mm

The Olympus kit lenses, the 14-42mm and 40-150mm, are some of the best 'kit' lenses out there - you get a bit more bang for your buck.

But one thing to bear in mind is the photo's I posted, although taken with the same body, were taken with the 'semi-pro' 50-200mm and 12-60mm these cost over £500 each..... photography can be an expensive hobby!!

What sort of budget have you got for everything?

Neil
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Thanks.

I might find something if I keep looking.
How about this one? Olympus Zuiko ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens?

The lenses really confuse me, I never know which ones are good and which ones are bad. haha.

Are these lenses any good?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/58mm-0.25x-Fi...226fb21250a0aad4042964fac15b8e#ht_1665wt_1114
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/0-25x-Fisheye...es_CameraLensesFilters_JN&hash=item19c0f635fa
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Tamron-Adapta...Filters_JN&hash=item45f7204b0e#ht_9033wt_1114

I'm not really sure about budget. Lens wise, I'll be paying for them.. but I'm paying for them with christmas money.. so I'm not sure how much I've got to spend yet. :thumbs:
 
To be honest ANY Olympus Digital lens is going to be a good starting point - problem is they're not as cheap as the ones you've linked to.

The first 2 the 'fish-eye' lens - avoid!

The first 2 fit on the front of the 14-42mm lens. Although I havent bought this particular item I can more or less guarentee you will be disappointed with the results.

The 3rd lens, the Tamron - I must admit I know nothing about. What I will say is that at 80-210mm (remember to double the focal length for 4/3rds) you'll have a 160-420mm lens - not exactly a walk around shooting this and that type lens!

To begin with, keep your eye out for the 14-42mm Olympus lens - yes it is a little more expensive than the 3 you've linked to, but it was specifcally made for the 4/3rds system and for the price gives the best quality of any kit lens, bar none!

Of course it doesnt match the semi-pro or pro lenses, but then again it doesnt cost £750++!!

Have you bought the E-510 yet? Reason I ask is keep an eye on the 2nd hand pages on here and on the E-system forum here

More often than not Oly DSLR's come up for sale and its not often they're offered without at least 1 lens!

Regards

Neil

PS as an example on the E-system forum an E-520 with twin kit lenses (14-42 and 40-150mm) went for £275 including Special Delivery the other day
 
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Roadkill_6mm said:
To be honest ANY Olympus Digital lens is going to be a good starting point - problem is they're not as cheap as the ones you've linked to.

The first 2 the 'fish-eye' lens - avoid!

The first 2 fit on the front of the 14-42mm lens. Although I havent bought this particular item I can more or less guarentee you will be disappointed with the results.

The 3rd lens, the Tamron - I must admit I know nothing about. What I will say is that at 80-210mm (remember to double the focal length for 4/3rds) you'll have a 160-420mm lens - not exactly a walk around shooting this and that type lens!

To begin with, keep your eye out for the 14-42mm Olympus lens - yes it is a little more expensive than the 3 you've linked to, but it was specifcally made for the 4/3rds system and for the price gives the best quality of any kit lens, bar none!

Of course it doesnt match the semi-pro or pro lenses, but then again it doesnt cost £750++!!

Have you bought the E-510 yet? Reason I ask is keep an eye on the 2nd hand pages on here and on the E-system forum here

More often than not Oly DSLR's come up for sale and its not often they're offered without at least 1 lens!

Regards

Neil

PS as an example on the E-system forum an E-520 with twin kit lenses (14-42 and 40-150mm) went for £275 including Special Delivery the other day
Click to expand...

Thanks.

why do you think I'd be disappointed with the fish eye images?

I officially hate lenses! :lol:

How about this one:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Olympus-Zuiko...226fb21250a0aad4042964fac15b8e#ht_1728wt_1114

I'll take a look in classifieds, cheers.
 
Cookaaaaay said:
Thanks.

why do you think I'd be disappointed with the fish eye images?

I officially hate lenses! :lol:

How about this one:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Olympus-Zuiko...226fb21250a0aad4042964fac15b8e#ht_1728wt_1114

I'll take a look in classifieds, cheers.
Click to expand...

Yes! Thats exactly the sort of thing I would suggest to begin with!!

As for the fish-eye lenses - first off these fit on the end of the 14-42mm lens so you'd need to have that anyway. Second they will do nothing but give you a baaaad image!

Give me 10 minutes and I'll show you what I mean!!

Regards

Neil
 
Roadkill_6mm said:
Yes! Thats exactly the sort of thing I would suggest to begin with!!

As for the fish-eye lenses - first off these fit on the end of the 14-42mm lens so you'd need to have that anyway. Second they will do nothing but give you a baaaad image!

Give me 10 minutes and I'll show you what I mean!!

Regards

Neil
Click to expand...

Haha, thanks. I'll get my mum to buy it! :D

oh, ok. Thanks. :thumbs::thumbs::thumbs:
 
Ah, ok I cant!!

A few years ago I had (and still have!) a fujifilm finepix 100fs bridge camera. I bought a 2x teleconverter which fits on the end of the lens for about the same sort of money, circa £30.

Granted its not a fisheye, but the principle is the same. The quality of images produced were very very poor. There was horrible distortion, not to mention the focus hunting all the time - basically the old saying of 'you get what you pay for' is true! (apart from the canon 'nifty fifty' which I here alsorts of things about!!)

As a beginner you cant go wrong with the 14-42mm its a good general purpose lens.

Neil
 
Roadkill_6mm said:
Ah, ok I cant!!

A few years ago I had (and still have!) a fujifilm finepix 100fs bridge camera. I bought a 2x teleconverter which fits on the end of the lens for about the same sort of money, circa £30.

Granted its not a fisheye, but the principle is the same. The quality of images produced were very very poor. There was horrible distortion, not to mention the focus hunting all the time - basically the old saying of 'you get what you pay for' is true! (apart from the canon 'nifty fifty' which I here alsorts of things about!!)

As a beginner you cant go wrong with the 14-42mm its a good general purpose lens.

Neil
Click to expand...

haha! oh, ok. Thanks a lot.

I really want a fish eye lens, but I don't want to pay hundreds for one! :bang:
 
Roadkill_6mm said:
There's nothing wrong with second hand kit - thats how my E510 started out!!

To be honest you might struggle to find a 4/3rds kit lens for £60 - from a quick look at ebay the cheapest I have seen is in the £90 bracket for the 14-42mm

The 40-150mm F4-5.6 is a little cheaper, but not by much.

One thing to remember is that the apparent focal length of the lens doubles on a 4/3rds camera so the 40-150mm becomes 80-300mm

The Olympus kit lenses, the 14-42mm and 40-150mm, are some of the best 'kit' lenses out there - you get a bit more bang for your buck.

But one thing to bear in mind is the photo's I posted, although taken with the same body, were taken with the 'semi-pro' 50-200mm and 12-60mm these cost over £500 each..... photography can be an expensive hobby!!

What sort of budget have you got for everything?

Neil
Click to expand...

Good advice you're giving, Neil. :thumbs:

One point, though, Liam may have seen a digital Zuiko 14-45mm. I have one that was supplied as the kit lens to my E-500. It was replaced in the Olympus line-up by the more compact 14-42mm when the E-510 was released. Like the 14-42mm, the 14-45mm is an excellent general purpose kit lens and, being older and long since discontinued, Liam may well have seen one for less than the 14-42mm lenses go for.

Another bargain to look out for is the 17-45mm that was only supplied (in this country) through Dixons. Obviously it lacks versatility at the wide end but can be really useful for anyone starting out on a tight budget.

Liam, tempting as they may be, I'd forget about the fish-eye attachments. Sure, they'll give you a wider angle of view with spectacular distortion and a whacky perspective but the quality is usually just plain awful and the novelty soon wears off. There are more compelling things to spend your money on that will ultimately get much more use and give better value. :)
 
goldenlight said:
Good advice you're giving, Neil. :thumbs:

One point, though, Liam may have seen a digital Zuiko 14-45mm. I have one that was supplied as the kit lens to my E-500. It was replaced in the Olympus line-up by the more compact 14-42mm when the E-510 was released. Like the 14-42mm, the 14-45mm is an excellent general purpose kit lens and, being older and long since discontinued, Liam may well have seen one for less than the 14-42mm lenses go for.

Another bargain to look out for is the 17-45mm that was only supplied (in this country) through Dixons. Obviously it lacks versatility at the wide end but can be really useful for anyone starting out on a tight budget.

Liam, tempting as they may be, I'd forget about the fish-eye attachments. Sure, they'll give you a wider angle of view with spectacular distortion and a whacky perspective but the quality is usually just plain awful and the novelty soon wears off. There are more compelling things to spend your money on that will ultimately get much more use and give better value. :)
Click to expand...

Oh, so I can get the 14-45mm then? Thanks! :thumbs::thumbs:

Aw, I really want a fish eye though. haha. I'd only use it to take cool pics of me to put onto my facebook. Are they still a no no?

Thanks. :thumbs:
 
Cookaaaaay said:
Oh, so I can get the 14-45mm then? Thanks! :thumbs::thumbs:

Aw, I really want a fish eye though. haha. I'd only use it to take cool pics of me to put onto my facebook. Are they still a no no?

Thanks. :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Liam, there's nothing to stop you getting a fish-eye converter if you really want one and you think it's worth the money to play around with it. I'm sure it will be good enough to have a bit of a laugh on Facebook, just don't expect high quality results. Make sure that you get one with the right size filter thread to screw onto the lens you willl be using it with.

Only you can decide if it is worth the money, the same cash could get you extra memory cards or spare batteries.......the choice is yours. :)
 
goldenlight said:
Liam, there's nothing to stop you getting a fish-eye converter if you really want one and you think it's worth the money to play around with it. I'm sure it will be good enough to have a bit of a laugh on Facebook, just don't expect high quality results. Make sure that you get one with the right size filter thread to screw onto the lens you willl be using it with.

Only you can decide if it is worth the money, the same cash could get you extra memory cards or spare batteries.......the choice is yours. :)
Click to expand...

haha, ok. Thanks :)
 
Thanks for all the help.

Just thought I'd let you know... I ordered the 14-45mm earlier on. :thumbs:
 
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