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TheEmrys
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Lensanity!

Sat Sep 08, 2012 2:54 pm

So, I had been trolling craigslist and pawn shops looking for a solid lens for my Sony A560. I've had a few lenses to start off with, mostly very old Minolta lenses of various quality. However, today I found something rather sweet - the Minolta 70-210 f/4 Beercan! And to top it all off, its in either New or Like New condition. Whoever had it before never even had the filter on it. No scratches, fungus, or anything. Took a couple of pictures and it really is as sweet of a lens as people talk about. Anyway, just had to share as my wife would rather not hear about it.

Since I picked it up for $120, I'm pretty proud of myself.

Anyone else have fun finds?
Sony a7II 55/1.8 Minolta 100/2, 17-35D, Tamron 28-75/2.8
 
Hoser
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 8:12 pm

Best find I had was a 85mm prime lens at a pawn shop. No price on it, so I offered the guy $20. He did some searching on his computer for a price but found nothing so he said $40 & it's yours. Cost me $120 to get it cleaned as there was a fingerprint on the inside of the lens. Long story short......after some searching on eBay I got myself a $900+ lens for about $160. :D :D :D

I still scour pawn shops for deals on lenses. I need to find myself a new zoom lens. :wink:
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Voldenuit
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 8:45 pm

My best find was a Panasonic 45-175/4-5.6 X lens for a friend about a month ago. It was $199, $200 off list price. I've borrowed it a couple of times to use on my GF1, and it's a fantastic lens. My normal shooting setup is a 7-14/4, 20/1.7 and 45/2.8, all very well regarded lenses, and the the 45-175 definitely held its own against them, even if my shots with the 20 were noticeably sharper.
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Airmantharp
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 8:54 pm

I'm going to need to do some digging- but Canon lenses do seem to hold their value quite well, which doesn't quite work well on the side of those starting out. Slower kit-type lenses like my 15-85mm aren't as nearly as good in low light, sharp as they might be.
 
JustAnEngineer
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:08 pm

The 15-85mm EF-S lens is better than the standard 18-55 mm kit lens. If you're looking for a large aperture lens on the cheap, why look further than the EF 50mm f/1.8?
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Voldenuit
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:16 pm

Airmantharp wrote:
I'm going to need to do some digging- but Canon lenses do seem to hold their value quite well, which doesn't quite work well on the side of those starting out. Slower kit-type lenses like my 15-85mm aren't as nearly as good in low light, sharp as they might be.


It's worth branching out into the third party lens makers. The Sigma 17-50/2.8 is around $600, and is nearly $500 less than Canon's own 18-55/2.8. If you want a focal length range closer to your existing 15-85, Sigma's 17-70/2.8-4 is only $420.

If you really want low light, though, fast primes are the way to go. Depending on what you want to shoot, Canon's 50/1.4 USM ($359), 85/1.8 ($369) are great lenses. EF-S is sorely lacking fast wides, though.

I tend to hold out for specials and rebate deals myself. It's not a very reliable way of shopping for gear, but you can definitely find some great deals this way (in addition to finding my friend the 45-175 for $199, I also found a couple friends a rebate deal on the E-M5 where you could get $150 off every lens with purchase of camera up to 3 lenses - those saving definitely add up).
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Airmantharp
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:17 pm

I did- and I love that little lens!

I was more referring to the 17-55mm f/2.8 which I debated between; it seemed to me at the time (and still does) that the 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 + 50mm f/1.8 combo was a better investment considering flexibility. I quickly picked up a refurbished and heavily discounted 70-300mm f/4-5.6, and I've since added the amazing 24mm f/2.8 IS.

Right now the 15-85mm is the only EF-S lens I have and will stay with my 60D, but the rest of the kit is EF and will go with whatever I replace it with, most likely a used/refurbished 5Dm3, whenever those start dropping in price.

Still, taking what I've got to car meets day and night and around Singapore on vacation; now I just need to put some more elbow grease into Lightroom and get a blog running.
 
Airmantharp
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:23 pm

Voldenuit wrote:
Airmantharp wrote:
I'm going to need to do some digging- but Canon lenses do seem to hold their value quite well, which doesn't quite work well on the side of those starting out. Slower kit-type lenses like my 15-85mm aren't as nearly as good in low light, sharp as they might be.


It's worth branching out into the third party lens makers. The Sigma 17-50/2.8 is around $600, and is nearly $500 less than Canon's own 18-55/2.8. If you want a focal length range closer to your existing 15-85, Sigma's 17-70/2.8-4 is only $420.

If you really want low light, though, fast primes are the way to go. Depending on what you want to shoot, Canon's 50/1.4 USM ($359), 85/1.8 ($369) are great lenses. EF-S is sorely lacking fast wides, though.

I tend to hold out for specials and rebate deals myself. It's not a very reliable way of shopping for gear, but you can definitely find some great deals this way (in addition to finding my friend the 45-175 for $199, I also found a couple friends a rebate deal on the E-M5 where you could get $150 off every lens with purchase of camera up to 3 lenses - those saving definitely add up).


Right now I'm looking forward to faster primes along with the 100mm f/2.8 IS Macro USM- but those are on the back-burner. The 24mm f/2.8 IS works fairly well in lower light as a walk-around lens where the 15-85mm would be too slow, and the 50mm the same with the 60D's improved autofocus over the T1i it replaced, that couldn't shoot with it in low light worth a darn.

I'm actually getting better with using a monopod as a replacement for faster lenses, but I won't be stopping low-light action anytime soon :).
 
Voldenuit
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Re: Lensanity!

Wed Oct 17, 2012 11:14 pm

Airmantharp wrote:
Right now I'm looking forward to faster primes along with the 100mm f/2.8 IS Macro USM- but those are on the back-burner. The 24mm f/2.8 IS works fairly well in lower light as a walk-around lens where the 15-85mm would be too slow, and the 50mm the same with the 60D's improved autofocus over the T1i it replaced, that couldn't shoot with it in low light worth a darn.


I'm a fan of the Tamron 60/2 macro. One stop faster than the 100/2.8, and right now there is a $100 rebate on bhphoto bringing it down to $424 - less than half the price of the Canon 100/2.8 IS, and about the same price as the regular 100/2.8. Unlike the 100/2.8 though, it's a dedicated EF-S lens, so not something you'll be bringing along with you if you go FF. But on APS-C, it's a great portrait and macro lens.
Wind, Sand and Stars.
 
ludi
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Re: Lensanity!

Thu Oct 18, 2012 2:28 am

Voldenuit wrote:
I'm a fan of the Tamron 60/2 macro. One stop faster than the 100/2.8, and right now there is a $100 rebate on bhphoto bringing it down to $424 - less than half the price of the Canon 100/2.8 IS, and about the same price as the regular 100/2.8. Unlike the 100/2.8 though, it's a dedicated EF-S lens, so not something you'll be bringing along with you if you go FF. But on APS-C, it's a great portrait and macro lens.

Out of curiosity, have you shot the Tamron against the Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 macro, and if so, what were your impressions? The Canon is available in the $400-410 range and includes USM focus. I've gotten some pretty incredible results with it.
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Voldenuit
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Re: Lensanity!

Thu Oct 18, 2012 9:38 am

ludi wrote:
Out of curiosity, have you shot the Tamron against the Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 macro, and if so, what were your impressions? The Canon is available in the $400-410 range and includes USM focus. I've gotten some pretty incredible results with it.


I tested the Tamron 60/2 macro on a 40D a couple years back. I didn't have a Canon 60/2.8 macro to compare it to, but I did have a 100/2.8L IS that belonged to a friend. Both lenses were tack-sharp. The Tamron had noticeable LoCA at macro distances wide open, but when stopped down to 2.8 or smaller, was at the same level as the 100/2.8L. Bokeh was a little smoother on the L lens, but still very creamy on the Tamron. I didn't compare focus speeds, but the Canon has USM and the Tamron doesn't, so I'd imagine it would be slower.

If I had to choose between the 60/2 and the 60/2.8, I'd have no reservations about getting the Tamron, because that extra stop makes it a more useful portrait lens (if you're after a pure macro, the added speed is not as useful, since macro shots at f/2 have sliver-thin DOF). If I were thinking of moving to FF anytime, soon, I'd get the 100/2.8 (non-L), but bear in mind 160mm equivalent focal length (when shooting on APS-C) isn't as practical for casual portraits.
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Voldenuit
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Re: Lensanity!

Fri Oct 19, 2012 3:02 pm

m43 deal. bhphotovideo currently has the Olympus M.Zuiko 40-150/4-5.6 R lens $100 off for $199 until Oct 27th. For some reason I can see it when I visit their website from work, but it doesn't show up when I visit from home (shows $299 from my home connection).

Pretty good zoom lens with excellent center sharpness, although the Panasonic 45-175 is more consistent across the field. Also, the Panny has a metal lens mount vs plastic on the Oly.

Bargain hunters can find the earlier, non-R version of the 40-150 for cheaper. The only differences are cosmetic, and updated firmware on the R for movie recording, which can also be flashed to the older lens.
Wind, Sand and Stars.
 
Airmantharp
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Re: Lensanity!

Fri Oct 19, 2012 10:38 pm

M43 has captured a little of my attention- near DSLR quality in a small, mirrorless body and near infinite lens adaptability- but the cost didn't really justify the means when compared to a decent DSLR.
 
Voldenuit
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Re: Lensanity!

Fri Oct 19, 2012 11:20 pm

Airmantharp wrote:
M43 has captured a little of my attention- near DSLR quality in a small, mirrorless body and near infinite lens adaptability- but the cost didn't really justify the means when compared to a decent DSLR.


A GX1 is $469 with kit lens and an E-PL5 is $699 while providing E-M5 levels of quality.

That's some pretty good value there.
Wind, Sand and Stars.
 
TheEmrys
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Re: Lensanity!

Sat Oct 20, 2012 9:30 am

I tried to work out a deal with a guy in Washington for a Big Beercan (75-300/4.5-5.6) lens. I really want this lens and he wants $125 for it. I've already got the revision of this lens, but the Big Beercan is such a sharp lens. This is getting bad.
Sony a7II 55/1.8 Minolta 100/2, 17-35D, Tamron 28-75/2.8

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