Question about Lens

[italiandomino]

Ok so I am going to be buying myself a new Canon Rebel T2i in the near future, I am looking at a few options of lens.

i will get the standard 18-55mm lens it comes with

what i am confused about .. is the telephoto zoom lens

there are alot of different 70-200mm lens that are different prices, and i have no idea what the differences are.

Canon - EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens
Canon - EF 70-200mm f/2.8 USM Telephoto Zoom Lens
Canon - 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens
Canon - 70-200mm f/4L USM Telephoto Zoom Lens

i believe the T2i supports EF lens .. but really what is the difference ?
I dont understand the f/4L or the f/2.8 means ?

Any help i would appreciate it

[italiandomino]

Lets not turn this into a Canon vs Nikon thread either lol

[KARM]

f/2.8 is one stop faster than f/4. That means at f/2.8 it will let in twice as much light as f/4. So if you are shooting indoors at 1/30th of a second at f/4 you could instead be shooting 1/60th of a second at f/2.8. That could mean the difference between a shaky picture and a sharp one. At f/2.8 you are also looking at shallower depth of field. Tht's when the background gets blurred while the main subject is still in focus.

The f/4 version is a good lens, especially outdoors. I'd recommend the f/2.8 version if you plan on doing a lot of indoor photography (weddings, indoor sports). The f/2.8 version is also heavier, if that's a concern.

Before dropping a few grand on gear I'd also recommend spending $40 or so on a book like "Understanding Exposure". I know Coles has it.

[italiandomino]

ok thank you .. I plan on taking a course on photography as well, but i will check out that book. thanks Karm.

[icecapp]

ID there is no conflict between Nikon and Cannon, the problem is what feels comfortable in your hands..

they are and both make great gear. I just happen I perfered the nikon in my hands at the time of purchase, used a cannon at school, and also learned I liked it, would I trade in on my nikon NO, the qaulity of pic is there for me.. JMO..

as for lenses, Karm did a great job explaining.. as for you 18-55 yes its a zoom lens, that is a kit lens cause it will do pretty much anything gives you some zoom, gives you some macro, focal lengths, depth of feilds etc.. standard.. but minimal

I myself got the standard 18-55 with my nikon, then i went out purchased the 55-200,
and I just went and purchased a standard 50mm, with a f1/8 beautiful lens for indoor photography....

[Nebey]

Just to throw a wrench into Karm's explanation... The Canon (along with pretty much any reasonably priced DSLR) is a APSC format image sensor... so any rating on the lens, will end up being 1.6x greater than the number indicates. So a 70-200mm lens will act more like a 112-320mm lens.

I have used this one "Canon - 70-200mm f/4L USM Telephoto Zoom Lens " its nice, but adding the IS (image stabilization) allows you to hand-hold shoot a stop or 2 lower (you can shoot in lower light than without the IS).
Personally I have been looking at the 70-200mm f2.8L IS... but its a fair bit of money. The "L" series lenses have nicer glass (generally), and you can use them should you decide to upgrade to a Canon 5d or greater down the road.
I currently use a 18-55 f2.8 lens on my Canon 50d... the combination makes for a heavy camera, that after awhile tends to wear on you. I am a pretty big guy, and at the end of a day, that camera tends to drag you down. I love the speed of the f2.8... but it is a VERY heavy lens.

[will]

i have canon 75-300mm lens great lens

[mercifulpenguin]

As for the Canon vs Nikon debate, if you plan on using your new camera for stills AND video, Canon's line of DLRs are far superior to Nikon's.

The EF lenses are canon lenses that work specifically for the Canon 7D and Rebel T2i. This is because the sensor on these cameras is smaller than other camera's 35mm equivalent sensor. So if you use a non EF lens, the lens is basically 'projecting' an image onto the sensor that is larger than the sensor. This is the 1.6 crop factor. So a non-EF lens ends up being 'longer'. This is fine but makes for getting a wider angle harder unless you use the EF series. HOWEVER (lol), I would not recommend investing in EF lenses because if you ever want to upgrade your camera body down the road, say to a 5D mkii or whatever they come out with in 5 years, your EF lenses will not function well with any other DSLR body.

I have the 7D and I love the way it feels, and love the interface and control. The T2i is essentially the same, (smaller body, a bit less external control but still accessible through the menu) but also much much cheaper. I'd love to get a 70-200 2.8 (not the EF one tho), i've used it and it's amazing, but runs around $2000.

hope that helps

[Shaggy]

My T2i was delivered from Futureshop this morning. So far, it looks like a worthwhile upgrade from my Rebel XT. Low light shooting with the image stabilization on the kit lens is very nice. Now if I could only afford some better lenses.....