What gear do I need for SLR photography?

C

Chilly Penguin

New member
Lenses:
I like to take pictures of birds, wildlife, and scenery and I wanted a lens for like all of those things in the medium price range. (lower than 1000?)
Camera Strap:
Do I need to get one? Or I think the 50D includes one
Do I also need a screen protector as well?

what fisheye lens would be great for the Canon EOS 50D?

thanks!
 
You need:
camera (comes with strap unless you get it used and they don't give you one)

pictures of birds/animals/wildlife = telephoto lens. try one around 200mm or 300mm is even better to get up close.

if you want scenery you'd want a wide angle lens. an 18-55mm is pretty standard and great for landscapes.

you can also buy great filters. they protect your lenses and counteract things such as wrong light entering the lens, color, etc.

not all cameras come with a screen protector; i don't think it's very necessary.

every time i buy a new camera I always buy an extra battery! that way if one dies you have a backup and don't have to wait for it to charge.
 
For photos of birds, wildlife, and scenery I recommend you buy two lenses. Those 18-200mm lenses and such are just junk. You should buy a good quality zoom lens and a good wide angle.

I don't know your price range, are you talking $ or £?.. One of the best lenses to start off on if you are talking $ (I think you are) would be the 70-200mm f/4 L IS.

http://the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-70-200mm-f-4.0-L-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx

If it pushes your budget then drop down to the Non-IS version..

http://the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-70-200mm-f-4.0-L-USM-Lens-Review.aspx

Both are very high quality, superb lenses. They make great general wildlife lenses (they are the equivalent of 112-320mm on the crop sensor) and also make fine portrait lenses.

The money you have left over should be spent on a wide angle lens. You will not have much change left over to be honest so I recommend the 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens..

http://the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-18-55mm-f-3.5-5.6-IS-Lens-Review.aspx

This is a surprisingly good lens and produces good results. It will also double up as a good walkabout lens until you save some money up and maybe buy the wonderful 17-55mm f/2.8.

http://the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-17-55mm-f-2.8-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx

or the 10-22mm

http://the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-10-22mm-f-3.5-4.5-USM-Lens-Review.aspx

As far as straps go, the 50D will come with one in the box, but I highly recommend the OpTech Pro strap (about £15)..

http://chili-pix.ch/shop/images/_MG_4940.jpg

VERY comfortable strap and great if you have a heavy lens and battery grip attached.

Forget about screen protectors, not necessary.

Fish-eye lens?, couldn't tell you, overpriced and unnecessary if you ask me.

I advise to buy a battery grip for the 50D, it helps balance the camera with a longer lens, gives you an extra shutter in portrait mode, better battery life, and you can pretend you are holding a 1Ds. I have mine attached to my 40D 100% of the time.

.
 
Back
Top