Lens Choice Opinions Needed Again

[Ripley]

So many choices! I've read reviews on that sigma lens and it gets good ones. I think I have a review of the Sigma APO lens in a mag. They also make one with IS too I think.

I'll do some googling when I get home.

Can't wait. Then I'll have a good landscape lens - the sigma 17-70mm, a good portrait lens - the Canon 50mm 1.8 (it's cheap but I'm happy with it but have only taken one or two shots with it so far) and then a good zoom lens. I'll be all set for my next holiday. Now husband has his Olympus E-500 DSLR he inherited from his work for his sole use, we are set. No more fighting over who has the camera. :rolleyes:

[chezzyr]

I think every photographer goes through "this", the more you learn the worse it becomes.

Have you even booked your trip?? :rolleyes:

[Ripley]

No I haven't because we had to buy some new furniture and now with this lens, I really don't know if we can afford to troop off to Scotland this year We'll see. We are fairly spontaneous so if we decide we can afford it, we will arrange to go within a month. Going in October will be cold but we can get a seat on a plane and accom and car hire is nothing to worry about. We had no probs in early Sept when we went last time. I have a month left of LSL.

I think every photographer goes through "this", the more you learn the worse it becomes.

Have you even booked your trip??

I had the same problem when choosing dive gear after I got into that back in 2001. :rolleyes: How I love my split fins! Makes me feel like a seal. Edited February 28, 2008 by Ripley

[chezzyr]

I can't talk though - I agonized over a compact camera for Mum and Dad last week. :rolleyes:

[wagsalot]

I can't talk though - I agonized over a compact camera for Mum and Dad last week.

Which one did you end up picking.

We're looking at getting a compact, but the minute I settle on one, I see another

[chezzyr]

Wagsalot: I ended up coming across a Canon Powershot 710 IS

for only $250 (we used gift vouchers so it cost us nothing lol).

Its a lovely little camera, 7mp, 6x optical zoom, image stabiliser,

close macro, can do movies, has some manual functions,

feels sturdy because its not wafer thin or too tiny.

I think I will miss it just a little bit

[Ripley]

IS is great in compacts. My Panasonic has one which was much needed when I took this shot from the ferris wheel car as it went around and around (don't ask what I was doing at Luna Park - oh ok, it was a work function). Delivers punchy colours too. I am disappointed I didn't get it out on the wild mouse.

Edited February 29, 2008 by Ripley

[Ripley]

OK so I'm all set to get a better lens. I asked my boss if he'd pick one up for me when he goes to New York in a fortnight. He said yes but he's not going to walk "all over bl**dy NY" for it but then said to email the guy going with him as he bought a lens not from B&H, but somewhere in Brooklyn on their last trip, just last year.

So I emailed him and I hardly know the man, but he was lovely and said he would haggle with the dealers there to get the best price for me for cash. What a nice bloke. It's going to hurt withdrawing the money, even though boss said I can fix him up when he gets back, I'd prefer not owing anyone any money.

Still tossing up if I should pay extra and get the Sigma one as it's a 2.8 or go for the Canon as it's an L. Ah, decisions.

ETA: If I get the Canon L 200mm, can I can get a 1.4 teleconverter much later on and not be affected by much of a diminished image quality in photos seeing it's an L series lens? It I need some more zoom, that is. It's not like I'm going on safari, in which case I'd definitely need a 300 or 400mm.

Edited March 22, 2008 by Ripley

[Ripley]

Update: I have this lens! Well it's still in New York but it's as good as mine now.

My boss just emailed me from NY saying B&H didn't have it in stock so the other Exec he is in NY with went trooping around New York on the weekend and found it in another camera store for me, haggled and got a discount too.

What a nice man - I have sent him a personal email as thanks. They are so busy over there but took time out to do that for me.

[chezzyr]

It shouldn't have been too hard, I remember there was a camera store on just about

every corner when I was in NY years ago :rolleyes:

My big thing was going and buying a leather jacket for a colleague from

the Hard Rock Cafe there.

I found NY a bit overwhelming and felt alot safer just killing time

at Grand Central Station

[Ripley]

Never been to New York but it's probably the only city in the US I'd like to go to.

I think the PA of the guy accompanying my boss gave him a list of things to get for her, so he probably just added my lens to the long list. :rolleyes:

[Guest Tess32]

I'm so duh sometimes. I kept using my Canon 100mm thinking "MAN this is making my 70-300 look so shit!" until I realised I had a really dirty filter on my 70-300 and that's why all the images had no contrast :D

[Ripley]

That can't beat my blonde moment.

I took my compact Panasonic to our big work Christmas party last year and couldn't understand why the photos came out crap - the camera has IS and I wasn't THAT drunk. All the photos had a gritty look to them, kind of like fast film grain combined with an old fashioned, soft focus filter over them.

Then I used it again at another work Christmas function during the day and the photos still had that 'dreamy' filter effect.

I got home, looked at the lens and it was covered in a big smear of lip gloss. So I cleaned it and camera is as good as new. I must have shoved it in my bag when the lens wasn't retracted.

So we all have that 1970s style soft focus look in the photos.