[photonerds] Rebel T1i

S

sheeptaur

Veteran X
So I finally caved in and bought a Rebel T1i body. I don't have a lens, but I'm borrowing a neighbor's 55mm fixed canon. It's pretty nice and I'm getting some pretty cool pictures.

I'm looking for a lens that I can shoot sports - specifically biking / cycling / running - on a telephoto length. I'm looking around 200-300mm with IS.

Any good recs?

cliffs: suck my noots.
 
What's your budget?

70-200mm F2.8 would be nice (allows some more flexibility with the bigger aperture)... with the crop sensor that equals ~110-320mm. Could also go with the F4 if you're shooting in daylight, primarily, which it sounds like you may be.

I've seen photos from a 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 and that's a nice lens for daytime action shots, as well. Who knows... you may want the longer focal length at some point.
 
I'd go with something in the 300mm range.

But I know nothing about Canon cameras and also have only been shooting film recently in a 35 year old Pentax K1000.

I hope this helps.
 
sheex there is a preteen girl with a photoshopped steamy hot tasty load of man cum on her face, in ur sig
 
I want a 70-200 F4 for skiing and such. I'm making do with the 55-250 though since it's half the weight and less than half the cost.
 
While the photographey types are about, the fiancee has been pondering picking up a DSLR (she currently uses her sony hd vid cam when she wants 'proper' stills, or her - still sony - phone). Seems intent on low-light/slow exposure kinda stuff.

I've suggested she's fine to borrow my Powershot A640IS (with CHDK firmware unlocking a whole shitload of options beyond the 'standard' P&S range), but she seems intent on a new gadget.

so.. introductory-level DSLRs. Body + lense(s). Good low-light performance. Canon/Nikon/Pentax/other? Models? lenses?
 
I'm a Canon guy, so I admittedly don't know a whole lot about comparable Nikon cameras, but I, personally, would stick with Canon and Nikon for DSLRs solely for the used lens market. Lots of people selling slightly used lens from both families, and whenever you can knock a couple hundred bucks off the price of higher-end lenses... that's nice. However, not sure how keen she is on continuing photography in the future so that may not matter.

When you say "intent on doing low-light/slow-exposure kinda stuff", do you mean that's the style she's looking to shoot or that she wants to shoot in low-light situations that would normally require a slow exposure?

Canon has lots of solid low-priced DSLRs. A T1i with kit lens would probably suit her just fine if she's just looking for long-exposure shots. When I got my first DSLR, it was a Digital Rebel XT with a 17-85mm F4-5.6 lens. It did everything I needed it to do just starting out, including long-exposure night photography. Again, I don't know the models for comparable Nikon bodies, but they'll do well for you, too.

If she's looking for something that lets in a little more light to be able to avoid longer exposures and higher ISOs, maybe invest in a cheap 50mm F1.8 and she can go up or down in focal length from there to suit her needs.

The newer you go and the bigger the sensor, the better low-light performance the sensor will have, generally. My XT at ISO 1600 was... passable. My 7D at 1600 looks solid... of course, that's a difference of about 5 years in technological advancements :)

Just my two cents :shrug: I'm sure many others can/will recommend different.
 
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Koala Bear said:
When you say "intent on doing low-light/slow-exposure kinda stuff", do you mean that's the style she's looking to shoot or that she wants to shoot in low-light situations that would normally require a slow exposure?
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Night-time shots. She gets a bit nocturnal now-and-then.


Also: "you can say to them, 'she liked the 500D, but hated the menus'." Since I figure menu systems don't vary all that much from model to model, I guess that that means Canon's menu system doesn't really do it for her, and she doesn't like fiddling about with settings (you know.. the sort of shit a normal person might actually want a DSLR for)

So.... how about we just go "what's the most user friendly interface out there?"
 
Dont get any canon rebel older than the t1i if you're looking for low light stuff. the t1i has the better digic 4 or whatever processor that gives way less noticeable noise than what was on all of the older rebels

i would actually recommend the t1i over the t2i right now, if you're going canon, and if you want entry level..and use the extra ~$200 and put it toward a better lens, or a nice tripod. you lose a few megapixels and some other not real noticeable stuff as far as i remember, but i can pretty much guarantee you will get noticeably better results with the money spent toward a nicer lens instead.

IMO if you want decent ranged shots on anything that moves even a little, you're going to get frustrated if you get a cheap telephoto lens, largely because of the lack of enough light and the blurriness that will constantly cause. if you're shooting soccer games from a tripod in the middle of the day you'll be fine, but not toward night time. $500 would be the lowest I'd spend if you want a decent lens, with $1000 getting you something that starts to get nice (canon 300mm f/4L seems to be the common choice at this price range). But then again, you can get a cheap $150 300mm zoom lens like the canon ef 75-300 that will do okay sometimes and will be nice to see if you're going to want to continue with the investment.
 
MC Hamster said:
Night-time shots. She gets a bit nocturnal now-and-then.


Also: "you can say to them, 'she liked the 500D, but hated the menus'." Since I figure menu systems don't vary all that much from model to model, I guess that that means Canon's menu system doesn't really do it for her, and she doesn't like fiddling about with settings (you know.. the sort of shit a normal person might actually want a DSLR for)

So.... how about we just go "what's the most user friendly interface out there?"
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Interesting. My brother-in-law has the T1i and after messing around with the camera, I was able to figure out the interface in a few minutes (this after dealing with the XT and it's archaic - in relative terms - interface for several years). The 7D I now use has even more bells and whistles.

What exactly is she looking to do with or get from the menus if she doesn't like fiddling around with the settings? Honest question... You can do a lot with the buttons on the body of the T1i, I think, to bypass menus... short of formatting the card or changing the time.

I personally think some of the older Canon user interfaces were a little less intimidating than the one on the T1i, but if you're looking for better low light performance, I wouldn't go any older than that.

Again, not familiar with Nikon's cameras - I started on Canon and know the way they lay out stuff, so my adjustment time to figuring out a new Canon camera is pretty low. Has she played around with any Nikon bodies in a store?
 
Got Haggis? said:
any suggestions on a decent 'all purpose' lense for the t1i? i'm not taking professional photos or anything, just photos when i travel and stuff. i currently have the lens that came with it and this lens: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Newegg.com - Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Standard & Medium Lens
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Check these out... Canon General Purpose Lens Recommendations

I was gonna recommend the 28-135 F3.5-F5.6 if you're looking for a little more zoom (I'm assuming it came with the 18-55mm?) or the 15-85 EF-S lens listed. If you want anything "better" you'll probably want to upgrade to an L lens and spend a little more. You also may be able to find a good deal on a similar Sigma or Tamron lens, though there's always the disclaimer that their may be slight incompatibilities between newer bodies and certain third-party lenses.
 
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