Advice on what Canon lens to get?

[bondboy]

Just got a XTi body for my dad, and now looking for a lens. He specifically said he didn't want to carry too much gear around, so an all-in-one walk around lens is the main criteria. This will mainly be used for family gatherings or travel photography.

The other criteria is that I don't want to break the bank here, so I want to keep it <$500.

IS/OS/VC/VR is also a consideration (but not a requirement) since my dad's in his 70's and his heads aren't as steady as they were.

I'm a Nikon person, so I don't have much hands on experience with Canon's lineup. So after searching around a bit, here's what I came up with:

Canon 28-135mm IS - $409
It has Canon's reliability, IS, and lowest price out of the 3 options I have here. But I'm concern 28mm may not be wide enough for digital

Sigma 18-200mm OS - $450
Wide enough, long enough, OS and priced not too much more than the Canon. Sigma reliability and quality control? I don't know...

Tamron 18-250mm - $475
According to reviews, better image quality than Sigma, a little extra range, but no VC and bit more expensive.

Anyone have any personal experiences from the lens above?
Which would be a good choice here?
Got any other suggestions?

Thanks.

 

[andylawcc]

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=1972253&enterthread=y


also, do you really need the extra range (>135mm)?

 

[lambchops511]

although I don't have a DSLR yet....

I've been doing a lot of research . I would get the 18-55 IS (according to many reviews the IS version of the lens has much superior optics)

on the 1.6x XTi, that would give a 28-88mm.....good for wide angle and portrait, do you really need telephoto?


I guess there's also the 17-85 option, but that is quite a bit more expensive and the optics are questionable for its price...some say the 18-55 IS may even have better optics than the 17-85

 

[bondboy]

Thanks. Already looked at that thread. No mentions of all-in-one type lenses, which is what I'm looking for here.

Edit: I guess long telephoto is not REALLY necessary, but I'm hoping to get at least 105mm or 135mm

 

[jpeyton]

28mm isn't wide enough on a crop camera, so axe that option.

I would add:

Canon 18-55mm EF-S IS

Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8

That zoom range is the most often used for travel photography on a crop body; 50-55mm is good for portraits and 17-18mm is wide enough to shoot some landscapes.

I don't think there is a satisfactory all-in-one zoom for Canon (that would be on par with the Nikon 18-200mm); the Sigma is reliable, but you might have to test a few copies to find a sharp one.

 

[andylawcc]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
the Sigma is reliable, but you might have to test a few copies to find a sharp one.

does all lenses from Sigma suffer such problem? or is it just limited to a few models for Canon (as described in yllus' thread)

 

[lambchops511]

and the 18-55 IS is cheap as well . less than $200 USD

 

[soydios]

the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM is ~$500. the next step up from that is the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM at ~$1000, and the next step below is the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS at ~$175

 

[randomlinh]

Originally posted by: soydios
the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4.0-5.6 IS USM is ~$500. the next step up from that is the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM at ~$1000, and the next step below is the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS at ~$175

I'd argue the step above the 17-85 is the 17-55 IS, since most ppl find 24/28 not wide enough on a crop body (I personally don't, I love my sigma 30 )