Help with picking a zoom lense

[afroyeti]

Hi guys me again, your probably getting bored with my constant questions dont forget you welcomed me and now im NEVER going away. MUWHAHAHAHA

So firstly i'd like to thankyou again for the great advise on my camera and macro lense, but i wanted to get a zoom lense and this is the area where i have no idea what to get i don't want to spend massive amounts of money 300-500 is prob my max, i basically want it to shoot birds etc and again any help you can give would be great.

BTW: i have a canon 350D just to remind you thanks

[Bushcraft]

Originally Posted by afroyeti

Hi guys me again, your probably getting bored with my constant questions dont forget you welcomed me and now im NEVER going away. MUWHAHAHAHA

So firstly i'd like to thankyou again for the great advise on my camera and macro lense, but i wanted to get a zoom lense and this is the area where i have no idea what to get i don't want to spend massive amounts of money 300-500 is prob my max, i basically want it to shoot birds etc and again any help you can give would be great.

BTW: i have a canon 350D just to remind you thanks

I will say it before anyone else does, almost everyone here uses the Sigma 50-500mm also known as the Bigma. Great lens if your on medium budget, about £720. The little Bigma is also good I hear but I will leave that to eeyore as I have not used it.

Best wishes
Kris
PS. I think I already said it but welcome once again. And keep those questions coming

[troutmask]

If you want to shoot birds, why get a Zoom. For the same price as any zoom that goes to 300mm and above you will be able to get a prime that will be far better.

[Bushcraft]

Originally Posted by troutmask

If you want to shoot birds, why get a Zoom. For the same price as any zoom that goes to 300mm and above you will be able to get a prime that will be far better.

I think this applies more to old lenses. Some of the new zoom lenses are of such a good quality that they are equal to a prime lens. I know this is not always the case but the Bigma seems to be an excellent choice.

[troutmask]

You may be right, I have no personal experience of telephoto zooms. But for the same money you could get a Canon 300mm f4 L lens add a 2x convertor later and you have a first rate, almost pro quality system. It will be smaller, lighter and faster than any zoom.
I see a lot of people using zooms and they seem to stick to the telephoto end of the range anyway for wildlife. I am sure most will tell me of all the advantages, but to be perfectly honest I have never felt the need for a telephoto zoom in my life.

[Bushcraft]

Originally Posted by troutmask

You may be right, I have no personal experience of telephoto zooms. But for the same money you could get a Canon 300mm f4 L lens add a 2x convertor later and you have a first rate, almost pro quality system. It will be smaller, lighter and faster than any zoom.
I see a lot of people using zooms and they seem to stick to the telephoto end of the range anyway for wildlife. I am sure most will tell me of all the advantages, but to be perfectly honest I have never felt the need for a telephoto zoom in my life.

Sounds like a great combo. I usually use a 70-200mm (2.8) Nikkor VR with a 1.7 for my work but I will be adding a 600mm Nikkor prime soon but until then I can't comment too much. From what I have read the new zooms are as good as a primes. It seems birders are now using more zooms to frame the subject better. Its down to personal choice I supose but im very happy with my zoom lens.

[nightshade]

buy a prime witha good converter or a sigma 600 mirror,just take your time dont be rushed into anything

[Bushcraft]

Originally Posted by nightshade

buy a prime witha good converter or a sigma 600 mirror,just take your time dont be rushed into anything

I agree don't rush into getting a lens But a mirror lens???? well, I cant agree with everything

[troutmask]

Do they still make mirror lenses? I remember using one many, many years ago. It was rubbish. I think you could get better quality enlarging a digital image taken on more or less any cheap lens over 200mm and you would have a choice of f stops, the auto focus would work etc.
I am a great supporter of using old technology when it still works (nothing beats a half plate camera, unless its a full plate!) however I would draw the line at mirror lenses unless they have improved an awful lot over recent years.

[Bushcraft]

Originally Posted by troutmask

Do they still make mirror lenses? I remember using one many, many years ago. It was rubbish. I think you could get better quality enlarging a digital image taken on more or less any cheap lens over 200mm and you would have a choice of f stops, the auto focus would work etc.
I am a great supporter of using old technology when it still works (nothing beats a half plate camera, unless its a full plate!) however I would draw the line at mirror lenses unless they have improved an awful lot over recent years.

Sadly they do still make them, although I would never use one from what I have heard. One popular brand I believe recently went under but Tamron make them as do Sigma by the sounds of it.