Lenses for Canon 60D

I am looking into getting a cannon 60D and this will be my first DSLR purchase. It has been years since I've used them. I am looking to get 2 affordable lenses and will be buying the body alone then the 2 lenses. What lenses would you recommend? Most of my pictures will be of action sports, sunsets, concerts, and everyday shots, but I also want a lens I can try macro shots with. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

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best ringtones

alanwaston said:

I am looking into getting a cannon 60D and this will be my first DSLR purchase. It has been years since I've used them. I am looking to get 2 affordable lenses and will be buying the body alone then the 2 lenses. What lenses would you recommend? Most of my pictures will be of action sports, sunsets, concerts, and everyday shots, but I also want a lens I can try macro shots with. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

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best ringtones

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A normal and a long zoom will easily cover all your needs except for the macro. The only normal zoom that does macro is the Canon 24-70f4L which is a crummy range for a crop camera. My Sigma says it will do macro, but it doesn't, big disappointment. Obviously there is a huge range of quality in the normal and long zooms. As you can see, I went cheap. My main interest was the ultra wide, though. I would get the 18-135 now instead of the Sig.

If I were going to spend real money on those two lenses, I would go with the Canon 17-55f2.8 and the 100-400L2, unless indoor sports was important, then you have to spend the money and deal with the focal limitations of the 70-200f2.8

Budget matters here if you are looking at the 60D. I like the camera very much. I would recommend the Canon 35F2IS as a fast normal lens. It will focus close, but is not a macro lens. Unfortunately, Tokina discontinued their 35F2.8 macro lens, and I don't know if it is available or not. I wouldn't be happy without a fast prime, so I would go with the 35F2 IS, if it is within your budget. You will be happy to have F2 when the light gets very low.

For a normal zoom, I would look at the 18-135 or the 18-55IS STM. I would probably go with the 18-55 IS STM myself, since it is compact, light and reputedly sharp. If you plan to go full frame, that changes everything. However, these two lenses will do a lot for you. The zoom is for general use outside, BS and indoors with flash, and the 35 will give you a great lens for low light portraits indoors.

alanwaston said:

I am looking into getting a cannon 60D and this will be my first DSLR purchase. It has been years since I've used them. I am looking to get 2 affordable lenses and will be buying the body alone then the 2 lenses. What lenses would you recommend? Most of my pictures will be of action sports, sunsets, concerts, and everyday shots, but I also want a lens I can try macro shots with. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

__________________________________________________________

best ringtones

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The 18-135 STM would be a good walkaround lens, as was already suggested. Pair it with a 55-250 or 70-300 IS II, and you're good to go for daytime sports.

In regards to macro, an inexpensive prime and extension tube set or close-up lens maybe a good way to start. The prime could also serve as your indoor concert lens.

BTW, my primary camera is a 60D (and 50D), and I am very happy with its performance - past and present.

alanwaston said:

I am looking into getting a cannon 60D and this will be my first DSLR purchase. It has been years since I've used them. I am looking to get 2 affordable lenses and will be buying the body alone then the 2 lenses. What lenses would you recommend? Most of my pictures will be of action sports, sunsets, concerts, and everyday shots, but I also want a lens I can try macro shots with. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

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I'm going to recommend a THREE lens system, but one that may just be cheaper than two. Here's how.

First, the 60D is an APS-C ("cropped sensor") body, which means that it is compatible with Canon's special line of EF-S lenses. (Full frame bodies are not compatible with these lenses.) Because they are specifically made for Canon cameras with a smaller sensor than full frame, they are smaller, lighter, and cheaper.

The 18-135 is a nice carry-around zoom notable for its very broad focal range. It's not expensive, but it's considerably more than the 18-55 kit zoom, which is smaller and may offer slightly better image quality. Used copies abound for under $100.

Having saved a bit of money with the 18-55 over the 18-135, you can now look to spend more elsewhere. The 10-18 and 55-250 are what you need. The super wide 10-18 was $300 when brand new, and can easily be found for less. The 55-250 also sells regularly at about $300. We bought a refurbish 55-250 direct from Canon for $109.

These three lenses will give you an incredible focal range of superwide 10mm to telephoto 250mm (35mm full-frame equiv. 16-400mm).

Macro is something else entirely. Look ahead at something like the EF-S 60mm macro.

Best of luck

Michael Thomas Mitchell said:

Macro is something else entirely. Look ahead at something like the EF-S 60mm macro.

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Or a set of extension tubes.

I went with the Sigma 17-70 Gen 2 lens and am quite pleased after 6 years

Second lens was/is the Canon 70-200L f4 non is and very pleased.

Macro non issue as the 100mm non is/ was my third lens.

I too have the 60D.

GC

alanwaston said:

I am looking into getting a cannon 60D and this will be my first DSLR purchase. It has been years since I've used them. I am looking to get 2 affordable lenses and will be buying the body alone then the 2 lenses. What lenses would you recommend? Most of my pictures will be of action sports, sunsets, concerts, and everyday shots, but I also want a lens I can try macro shots with. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

__________________________________________________________

best ringtones

Click to expand...

This is quite the range of requirements... I would be tempted to go with the 18-135 STM and the EF-S 60/2.8 macro. Look for used, or refurb copies to save on budget.

Having said that, I think it would be better to drop the macro requirement to start with, and do that via extension tubes, an additional lens later, or simply use the 0.18x-0.25x magnification possible with normal lenses

I would then do:

18-135 STM (or USM) + 35/2.0 (or 35/2.0 IS USM)

But, there are a lot of other good options, including:

17-55/2.8 IS USM

15-85 IS USM

18-55 STM

50/1.8 STM

55-250 STM

Pick 2 or 3 to cover a range of focal lengths and some wider aperture capability for lower light (indoor) or bokeh (background blur) opportunities.