Zoom lens suggestion

Hope I'm in the right place... Looking for a zoom lens for my lad who is learning well with a EOS 4000D + kit 15-55mm lens and also a 50mm 1.8 as he likes band / concert / lowish light shooting.

Would like to set him up with a bit more length both for normal outdoor general shooting but if there was an affordable faster zoom he can use indoors as well then so much the better.

I'm Sony A7 user so not much help to him at all lol but I'd say 70-200 initially but maybe you folk have better suggestions in case there's something longer (300?) that is a good all rounder - but overall I'd say a faster 70-200 would be the preference over a slower longer lens. Either Canon or 3rd party is fine - but again I have no idea on that front for the Canon gear. Would even consider 2nd hand.

Budget-wise - again I'm shooting in the dark here but £200 - £500 would be great, would consider more at a real push - it's early days for him and therefore prefer reasonable quality with better flexibility over pin sharp etc.

Thanks in advance.

I agree with Digi.  They would be a good match for the 4000D.  Low light performance wouldn't be great, but overall either is a good lens.

Digirame wrote:

Often the Canon 55-250mm STM lens is recommended. I like using the Canon 18-135mm USM lens. Both of those would be considered within your budget. There's dozens of other lenses to consider, but both of those are good starters.

Here's some samples from both of those lenses.

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/64474021

Thank you.

The 55-250 looks a good range. Looks to have stabilisation too - I'm assuming that would work ok seeing as the 4000D body doesn't have it?

Cheers

Ontarian wrote:

I agree with Digi. They would be a good match for the 4000D. Low light performance wouldn't be great, but overall either is a good lens.

Thank you.

It certainly would be good to get something fast for indoors / lower light as he does get involved with local live bands but he's already taken on board that gets very expensive quickly. If I'm getting my head round the Canon lens range correctly it looks as though it's only EF lenses (not EF-s) that cover 2.8 in the 70-200mm area ? and therefore may be over spec'd for the body anyway?.....and well in to 4 figures as well.

If he perseveres then a body upgrade and higher spec lens is always something he can work towards..... I went through that pain and so can he lol.

Cheers

My only suggestion is: buy the fastest lens you can buy and for a crop sensor. Here’s what I have:

1. Sigma 18-200 f3.5-f6.3. Not a bad lens but a bit slow for birds and a bit dark for concerts (low light). At f6.3, it would probably work if you accept higher ISO. And the rage is good. My copy is a bit soft I must admit though. My concert days are over so I can’t tell you more!

2. Canon 70-200 L f2.8. Great lens but very expensive. It comes with or without IS. This one rocks!

3. Canon extender 2x, bringing the above lens to 400mm at f5.6. Fast enough for birds and boats and sports and definitely concerts. A little high on the ISO but plenty of software to fix that. This one will slow down a bit the above but it still rocks! You can also get the 1.4x extender.

Here’s what I don’t have (but I wish I had): a fast 400 mm zoom, like the 100-400mm L lens f5.6. This is the ultimate of course.

But I am afraid all the above lens are not in your price range.

There are some third party lens (Tokina I believe) that will be more suited for you.

Or you could get an external flash but i concerts, you may get into some trouble.

benjilafouine wrote:

My only suggestion is: buy the fastest lens you can buy and for a crop sensor. Here’s what I have:

1. Sigma 18-200 f3.5-f6.3. Not a bad lens but a bit slow for birds and a bit dark for concerts (low light). At f6.3, it would probably work if you accept higher ISO. And the rage is good. My copy is a bit soft I must admit though. My concert days are over so I can’t tell you more!

2. Canon 70-200 L f2.8. Great lens but very expensive. It comes with or without IS. This one rocks!

3. Canon extender 2x, bringing the above lens to 400mm at f5.6. Fast enough for birds and boats and sports and definitely concerts. A little high on the ISO but plenty of software to fix that. This one will slow down a bit the above but it still rocks! You can also get the 1.4x extender.

Here’s what I don’t have (but I wish I had): a fast 400 mm zoom, like the 100-400mm L lens f5.6. This is the ultimate of course.

But I am afraid all the above lens are not in your price range.

There are some third party lens (Tokina I believe) that will be more suited for you.

Or you could get an external flash but i concerts, you may get into some trouble.

Thanks so much !

The Sigma could work - I don't think he will be too concerned with noise at his current level, general framing and captured action would be preferred. I've done a lot of concert / low light shooting but had the low light Sony and 2.8 lenses so will have to get him to experiment how the Canon fairs at 6.3

70-200 L f2.8 is very attractive and he can always upgrade the body at a later date, but possibly still too early days to stretch that far budget-wise just now. I'll check out some 3rd party offerings - Tokina, etc....also it looks like Sigma might have a 2.8 if we stretch just towards 4 figures which might be doable for the perfect option.

I doubt flash will be an option, not just from the annoyance factor but I've found the ambient lighting in concerts adds so much to the feel and I see flash getting in the way.

Thanks again.

Stonedhouse wrote:

benjilafouine wrote:

My only suggestion is: buy the fastest lens you can buy and for a crop sensor. Here’s what I have:

1. Sigma 18-200 f3.5-f6.3. Not a bad lens but a bit slow for birds and a bit dark for concerts (low light). At f6.3, it would probably work if you accept higher ISO. And the rage is good. My copy is a bit soft I must admit though. My concert days are over so I can’t tell you more!

2. Canon 70-200 L f2.8. Great lens but very expensive. It comes with or without IS. This one rocks!

3. Canon extender 2x, bringing the above lens to 400mm at f5.6. Fast enough for birds and boats and sports and definitely concerts. A little high on the ISO but plenty of software to fix that. This one will slow down a bit the above but it still rocks! You can also get the 1.4x extender.

Here’s what I don’t have (but I wish I had): a fast 400 mm zoom, like the 100-400mm L lens f5.6. This is the ultimate of course.

But I am afraid all the above lens are not in your price range.

There are some third party lens (Tokina I believe) that will be more suited for you.

Or you could get an external flash but i concerts, you may get into some trouble.

Thanks so much !

The Sigma could work - I don't think he will be too concerned with noise at his current level, general framing and captured action would be preferred. I've done a lot of concert / low light shooting but had the low light Sony and 2.8 lenses so will have to get him to experiment how the Canon fairs at 6.3

70-200 L f2.8 is very attractive and he can always upgrade the body at a later date, but possibly still too early days to stretch that far budget-wise just now. I'll check out some 3rd party offerings - Tokina, etc....also it looks like Sigma might have a 2.8 if we stretch just towards 4 figures which might be doable for the perfect option.

I doubt flash will be an option, not just from the annoyance factor but I've found the ambient lighting in concerts adds so much to the feel and I see flash getting in the way.

Thanks again.

With 300 feet range, an external flash would be noticed from far...

Digirame wrote:

Yes, the Canon 55-250mm lens has stabilization. It takes reasonably sharp photos and is relatively light weight. Look for the STM version. They can be found used on Ebay and elsewhere for a good price.

That would definitely be my recommendation. It's a really good lens at a very low price. In low light, let the ISO go as high as it needs to go, shoot RAW and convert with DxO PhotoLab4 with DeepPrime noise reduction.

seri_art wrote:

Digirame wrote:

Yes, the Canon 55-250mm lens has stabilization. It takes reasonably sharp photos and is relatively light weight. Look for the STM version. They can be found used on Ebay and elsewhere for a good price.

That would definitely be my recommendation. It's a really good lens at a very low price. In low light, let the ISO go as high as it needs to go, shoot RAW and convert with DxO PhotoLab4 with DeepPrime noise reduction.

I tried DxO, good product, but I really fell for Topaz Lab (Windows) and Pixelmator Photo (Apple).

b m wrote:

The Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS II USM is another good option although a bit more expensive than the 55-250 STM but it focuses a bit faster

Thanks - another worthy option by the looks of it. will check it out.

Hi, I'm back.

My lad and I have had a good look and some of the above look just the job, particularly the 55-250 and 70-300.

Could I just ask though about thoughts on CANON EF 70-200MM F/4L USM. Price is doable as the F4 would help his lower light aspect - but would just appreciate thoughts on the lens in general and also using an EF lens on an EF-S mount. I've googled that and think I get it but just keen to know for sure it would work ok, even though its an APS-C camera.

It's his birthday next week so will push the button on something shortly.

Thanks again.

Iron Mike wrote:

The canon 70-200 f/4 L IS was the first L lens I purchased, way back in the day when I was still using a rebel camera. The build quality and image quality were great, the lens is nicely compact and not too heavy, and has been workhorse for me in the ~10 years I have owned it. I still use it regularly for everything from portraiture with strobes, to landscape (specially when backpacking/ backcountry camping).

The non-IS that you are considering is every bit as good as the one I have, except for the lack of stabilization. If you think you can get away without the IS (keep a high enough shutter speed at 200mm), you won't be disappointed in the quality of the lens.

Mike

Thanks Mike,

For some reason I was initially struggling to find a stabilised version but now I have it looks to be double the price of the non IS (£639 vs £1,300) - unless I'm missing something. Shame as I think he will need the stabilisation especially as the camera body doesn't, and he's fairly new to this and also hoping to shot in more challenging light. If the IS had only been a couple of hundred more then we might have pushed for that but thats a bit out of reach.

There is forum dedicated to Canon lenses that you could also check out and ask questions.

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/64805652

There is also a forum on third party lenses.

Stonedhouse wrote:

Hi, I'm back.

My lad and I have had a good look and some of the above look just the job, particularly the 55-250 and 70-300.

Could I just ask though about thoughts on CANON EF 70-200MM F/4L USM. Price is doable as the F4 would help his lower light aspect - but would just appreciate thoughts on the lens in general and also using an EF lens on an EF-S mount. I've googled that and think I get it but just keen to know for sure it would work ok, even though its an APS-C camera.

It's his birthday next week so will push the button on something shortly.

Thanks again.

As Mike responded. It is a great lens. However, should you want to extend it to 400 mm using the Canon extender, I believe it is not compatible. For that you need the f2.8 model. Mine doesn’t have image stabilization but I always shoot at higher speeds.