kit lens replacement

[Bootsy]

I've been offered a sigma 28-300 DG macro £130 as replacement for my 18-55 canon kit lens.now i know their not the same.but I'm think more of quality up grade from the kit lens/walk about lens.and at that price its pretty cheap.it'll be used on a 400D for the time being but I'm still looking to upgrade to 50D or 7D.will this lens be any good a higher mega pixel camera.or should i just save my money and walk away from a cheap lens.

[Jim B.]

I had one.It might be an okay lens on the 400D,but on 50D or 7D you're going to want better glass.I shot it on a 50D and wasn't happy with it.It was decent up to 200mm after that pretty soft.My copy had zoom creep also.

[Shadowman]

You should always check the manuals of the camera you plan to use the lens with. Not all third party lenses are compatible with all camera models.

[rpcrowe]

You should always check the manuals of the camera you plan to use the lens with. Not all third party lenses are compatible with all camera models.

This incompatibility is the case with some "older" Sigma lenses and some "newer" Canon cameras. Sigma retro or reverse-engineers their products. In other words, when a new copy of a Canon camera comes on the market Sigma will purchase a copy and rework their lenses (if needed) so that the lenses will be compatible with the new model Canon cameras. This can leave an owner of a Sigma lens out in the cold if the owner upgrades his or her Canon camera to a new model. There is a possibility that the lens will not work with the new Canon since it was designed for an older Canon model.

I have an older Sigma 28mm f/1.8 lens which is a very nice low light glass EXCEPT that it cannot work with any Canon camera newer than the 10D. Sigma will rechip some older lenses free of charge to make them compatible with new model Canons. However, if they have replaced the lens in their inventory, they cannot or will not rechip it. This is the case with my Sigma 28mm f/1.8 which is a shame because it is a fine low light glass but, will only work with my 10D which has the worst high ISO capability of my three non IR cameras.

I understand that Sigma has a new system of converting their lenses over to new model cameras and I believe that it may be done without physically sending the lens to Sigma. However, I am not sure of that and I had such a bad Sigma taste in my mouth from the 28mm that I have never bought another Sigma.

BTW: I had an old Tokina 400mm f/5.6 lens which worked on all of my cameras and my 90mm f/2.8 Tamron which is an older version of that lens also works fine with all of my cameras.

[Geoff F]

I had that type of lens on a secondhand camera and my advice is don't touch it.

These ultra cheap lenses are made down to a price and while it is optically tolerable (I'm not saying good) it is a rather flimsy all plastic construction; as you would expect for that price. I broke mine twice before finally giving it a 'float test'!

If it is a Canon fit mount that lens will attach to any of the current or recent versions (say 10D upwards).

For a reasonably priced upgrade from your current lens, I would recommend the Canon 28-135 IS which, although quite a bit more expensive, is a good price to quality compromise. You could consider the Canon 24-105 if money is no object. But in that case there are quite a few lenses to suggest and Sigma also have some good candidates here.

But I think you need to consider what lens sizes you really need. Do you want anything below 28 mm and do you need 300 mm. If you want to go bigger, the Canon 70-300 IS (not the 75-300 non IS) is good value, but we are increasing a little in price from your starting point. If 200 mm would be sufficient there are several possible lenses but I'm afraid we are talking in terms of more than twice your original suggested lens for the cheapest of them.

The Canon 55-250 gets good reports for a cheap lens, but I haven't tried it myself.

But I think it will really come down to you deciding exactly what you need in the way of new sizes before we can give any firm 'best buy' advice.

[Bootsy]

i only looked at this lens.as it was being being sold by someone i know of on another forum.who lives close to me.anyway I've now had my hands on this Lens.after trying this lens on my 400D i don't think I'll bother as it very soft most of the range.i can see the attraction of super zoom as a travel Len but not this one.
this is the only test image I've kept as most were rubbish and this soft.and this one a captured moment of my little lad
a little crop,convert b&w and a little sharping in photoshop but i gave up on it as i didn't think the image quality was worth it.so i wont bother with this lens

[Shadowman]

I've checked out a few of the lenses from Sigma and Tamron and you can purchase them already equipped to fit your camera. the problem with most of these lenses is they do not support the Vibration reduction or autofocus capabilities of newer cameras.

This incompatibility is the case with some "older" Sigma lenses and some "newer" Canon cameras. Sigma retro or reverse-engineers their products. In other words, when a new copy of a Canon camera comes on the market Sigma will purchase a copy and rework their lenses (if needed) so that the lenses will be compatible with the new model Canon cameras. This can leave an owner of a Sigma lens out in the cold if the owner upgrades his or her Canon camera to a new model. There is a possibility that the lens will not work with the new Canon since it was designed for an older Canon model.

I have an older Sigma 28mm f/1.8 lens which is a very nice low light glass EXCEPT that it cannot work with any Canon camera newer than the 10D. Sigma will rechip some older lenses free of charge to make them compatible with new model Canons. However, if they have replaced the lens in their inventory, they cannot or will not rechip it. This is the case with my Sigma 28mm f/1.8 which is a shame because it is a fine low light glass but, will only work with my 10D which has the worst high ISO capability of my three non IR cameras.

I understand that Sigma has a new system of converting their lenses over to new model cameras and I believe that it may be done without physically sending the lens to Sigma. However, I am not sure of that and I had such a bad Sigma taste in my mouth from the 28mm that I have never bought another Sigma.

BTW: I had an old Tokina 400mm f/5.6 lens which worked on all of my cameras and my 90mm f/2.8 Tamron which is an older version of that lens also works fine with all of my cameras.

[belong]

try the new product of sigma, 17-70mm os hsm macro.
it already has image stabilization and capable of macro (it can go as close as 4.7" from sensor).
visit my flickr account for sample images.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gravs/
i paired it with canon 50d.

[Jo365]

I have been really happy with 2 sigma lenses 30mm and more recently a 50-150mm.
I replaced my kit lens with a Tamron 18-250mm and I hated it. I am not a techie, nor a pixel peeper. But it was useless for hand held work (99% of what I was doing at the time). The lens extends out a long way to achieve the maximum focal length and necessitates a tripod and zero wind for sharp photos. It was OK for learning technique, but I did not get many keepers.

My next lens was the f/1.8 50mm and I loved it. The fast aperture opened up so many more opportunities for me than the extra focal length of the Tamron.

Jo

[Shadowman]

Jo,

I have been debating buying a 150-500mm sigma lens and worried about losing the vibration reduction I currenlty have with my Nikon, however I read that this lens can be used for some photographs handheld as long as you can use a fast shutter speed. So if you still have your 18-250mm Tamron try it at 1/250" or faster at the longest focal length.

I have been really happy with 2 sigma lenses 30mm and more recently a 50-150mm.
I replaced my kit lens with a Tamron 18-250mm and I hated it. I am not a techie, nor a pixel peeper. But it was useless for hand held work (99% of what I was doing at the time). The lens extends out a long way to achieve the maximum focal length and necessitates a tripod and zero wind for sharp photos. It was OK for learning technique, but I did not get many keepers.

My next lens was the f/1.8 50mm and I loved it. The fast aperture opened up so many more opportunities for me than the extra focal length of the Tamron.

Jo