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The Best Walkabout Lens for Canon EOS DSLR
A question that I often see being asked in photography forums is
What’s a good walkabout lens for my xxxD?
Rather than it being a reference to lenses with legs, a walkabout lens is one with which you might take out on a day of walking whether it be to a park, to the shops or to your friends barbeque. The requirement being that because you don’t know what type of subject you’re going to come across you take a lens that can cover most general situations rather than lugging about a heavy bag filled with lenses. Prime lenses don’t fall into this category very well unless you’re deliberately wanting to restrict yourself to a single focal length. As such, zoom lenses – particularly those around the ‘standard’ lengths – are favoured for this role. In particular, zoom lenses that start at a wider (<= 35mm) focal length and reach up to short telephoto (=> 50mm). These ranges often provide a good balance between focal length range, image quality, cost and weight. Continue reading
Posted in Blog, Canon, Equipment, Travel
Also tagged general use, lens, walkabout, walkaround, zoom
3 Comments
New Canon Speedlite 430EX II and EOS 1000D
430EX II
Typical. Weeks after I buy myself a Canon Speedlite 430EX, Canon announce its replacement; the 430EX II. Still, from an initial read of the announcement, it doesn’t look like I’ve missed out on much. New features are said to be:
- 20% reduction in recycle times meaning it’s ready to fire quicker than the model it replaces.
- The high-pitched whine normally associated with a charging flash has been eliminated and it’s now silent to minimise distraction. Can’t say I ever found it distracting.
- The mounting foot is now metal constructed for a more robust connection with a camera body.
- A new quick release and locking mechanism has also been incorporated.
- In Manual mode, the Speedlite 430EX II allows the light output to be altered in 1/3 stop increments for increased precision of operation, bringing it into line with the 580EX.
- All on-flash settings can be controlled using the camera menu system.
I haven’t seen any prices yet, though.
EOS 1000D
Canon also announced a new entry level DSLR in the form of the EOS 1000D, this week. Supposedly pegged lower than the 450D, the 1000D is available at £499 (body only) and the 450D at £459 (body only). I can’t quite figure Canon’s logic on the price point since the 450D is better specified, cheaper and itself was only announced 5 months ago.
Many people are suggesting that the 1000D is aimed at those looking to replace their point and shoot cameras, but even Canon’s own fantastic G9 is a whole £200 cheaper than just the body so it’s not such an easy decision to fall into.
EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS
Back when I was first thinking about buying my 40D, I thought about the first lens I wanted to go with it. I considered the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM, but decided against it due to the relatively high cost. Then, after a couple of months with the EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM I settled upon, I decided I wanted, no, needed the 17-55mm!
The pull of the f/2.8 was just too strong and so last week I took delivery of the lens (and am now looking to re-home my 17-85mm) and it was just how I expected it to be; the fast aperture and IS resulted in an excellent low light performance and the autofocus is blazingly fast.
A couple of aspects which I’d read about, but weren’t expecting were:
Continue reading
Canon Speedlite 430EX with Sto-Fen Omni-Bounce
This week, I’ve taken delivery of a new Canon Speedlite 430EX flash gun and a Sto-Fen Omni-Bounce flash diffuser. The purpose of the Omni-Bounce is to provide a bare bulb effect. This means that light will be scattered in almost every direction with some reaching your subject after having been reflected off another surface. This ought to provide similar results as bouncing a bare flash, but throwing light directly onto your subject can help to distinguish it from the background as well as provide a catch-light.
Today, I set about testing different flash photo set-ups with my helpful test monkey.
Why Jessops Lost a Sale
Mostly, I’m an online shopper, especially when it comes to electronic goods as Internet prices are usually the most competitive although I’m not averse to shopping on the high street as long as the price is right. It’s always nicer to have that instant gratification of taking a new purchase home rather than waiting for the courier to arrive.
Anyway, the time had come to buy a new Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 macro lens (I’d tested a friend’s previously and loved the results) so I checked online and found that the best price was £349 from Warehouse Express (not including the £40 Canon cashback offer). Jacobs were £0.99 more expensive and Jessops were way off the mark at £379.99.
Of the three, Jessops and Jacobs both had stores in the city centre. So, off I went. Naturally, my first stop was Jacobs, but they didn’t have the lens in stock. I was a bit surprised, since the lens appears to be quite a popular choice. Anyway, I remembered that Jessops would match the price of competitors selling the same products at a lower price so I made my way over to the store.
Posted in Blog, Equipment
Also tagged 100mm, Internet shopping, Jacobs, Jessops, macro, Warehouse Epxress
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