Good Camera for a Budget? Oxymoron I Know...

[Joe Knows Reefs]

Ok, a couple of more questions...

In my search for a true macro lens I'm looking at two possibilities but want to make sure they are what I need and that they will work.

First is a Canon 100mm USM EF macro. I don't know what the USM or EF mean...do I need the Canon macro containing these?

The other is a Tamron 90mm SP I believe. Does this sound correct. It looks like the Canon is a bit more expensive but sounds like much better quality. Thoughts?

Thanks again!

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[swannyson7]

USM stands for Canon's ultrasonic motor which will give you a quieter & faster autofocus than non-USM lenses. The noise isn't really an issue for tank shots, but is for things like insect macro photography. The quicker autofocus will help for shots of fish, but isn't important for coral pics. EF is a type of lens mount by Canon that replaced the old FD mounts. For the Tamron, you should make sure that the lens is a Di lens so that you know it's made for a digital camera versus the SP, which I believe is designed for Canon film cameras. While both lenses will work, you'll have a focal length multiplier with the non-Di lens and it may effect functionaility of things like the AF (Not positive on this, so you should look into this further). I've never used the Canon 100mm, but it gets great reviews and both seem to be great lenses. I do have a Canon 60mm macro and a Tamron 90mm and they've both served me well.

 

[swannyson7]

Just looked into the SP thing a bit more, and this seems to be nomenclature used on both the Di and film versions of the lens, so disregard the part about that referring to film SLR lenses. Just look for the Di and make sure it's a Canon mount. The Tamron 90mm comes with mounts for several camera brands.

 

[Joe Knows Reefs]

Just looked into the SP thing a bit more, and this seems to be nomenclature used on both the Di and film versions of the lens, so disregard the part about that referring to film SLR lenses. Just look for the Di and make sure it's a Canon mount. The Tamron 90mm comes with mounts for several camera brands.

Thanks for the help! I should be able to find a lens now

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[Joe Knows Reefs]

First off, Happy 4th! Secondly, thank you to everyone that has posted....you've been a great help.

I have another question though
I've been seeing other lenses, such as a Sigma 70-300mm, marked as telephoto/macro. The details for that lens in particular state that it can be used for macro with a maximum ratio of 1:2 at the 200-300mm mark. Would a lens like this be useful or should I stick to my original search for a "real deal" macro like the Canon 100mm or Tamron 90mm ?

Thank you once again!

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[Murfman]

Tripn, the lower brand names are OK lenses, just not the quality of Canon or Nikon. You really get what you pay for when it comes to lens quality. That said, you can buy the macro extension tubes for auto focus lenses (Amazon.com: Kenko DG Auto Extension Tube Set for the Canon EOS AF Mount.: Camera & Photo) and get decent images. I have a lower brand macro on my Xti Rebel and don't get near close enough as I would with a true 1:1 macro (Canon makes one that is f2.8 but sells for $600 used, unless you are lucky). Word of advise and JMHO, the best pix I have taken in my tank were through an Avast Porthole. Didn't have to do anything as far as color adjustment using that and top down.

 

[returnofsid]

You'll be much happier with a true Macro 1:1 lens, that's a Prime Lens. The Canon and Tamron 75-300 are "okay," at best.

I own the older version of the Canon 100mm Macro and LOVE IT! 99% of my tank photos are shot with it, as well as a lot of portraiture photography. You don't need the newer version (L/IS), so save yourself a few hundred bucks and find the older version.

 

[Joe Knows Reefs]

Thanks again for the wonderful tips and info. I've spent the past few days reading through the stickies with different tips and tricks. Sounds like photography just like reefing....you can't expect to save money

I'm off to eBay now. Craigslist isn't very promising around here

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[Joe Knows Reefs]

Ok, so my Canon XTi with kit lens got here yesterday and I just got done playing with it :wink:

Still on the hunt for a macro, but tell me what you think about my first round of photos...oh, and I followed the directions in the "post processing" sticky...

More to follow...

 

[Joe Knows Reefs]

And here are some more

 

[cparka23]

Looks like you're a natural. A little larger photos would be nice, though. At 448x320 pixels, it's hard to see things like sharpness, focus, etc. Regardless, a tip of the hat to you for doing your homework and producing these results.

On a reefing note, it looks like you keep some nice corals!

If you're still on the hunt for a macro, Canon occasionally has refurbished lenses come up for sale.. I see notifications about their pending sales every 3 or 4 months or so. Don't hold your breath for the 100mm macro lens to become available right when you want it, but I've seen them come up from time to time. It's something you might look into in the future if you can't find it at a good price.

 

[Joe Knows Reefs]

Looks like you're a natural. A little larger photos would be nice, though. At 448x320 pixels, it's hard to see things like sharpness, focus, etc. Regardless, a tip of the hat to you for doing your homework and producing these results.

On a reefing note, it looks like you keep some nice corals!

If you're still on the hunt for a macro, Canon occasionally has refurbished lenses come up for sale.. I see notifications about their pending sales every 3 or 4 months or so. Don't hold your breath for the 100mm macro lens to become available right when you want it, but I've seen them come up from time to time. It's something you might look into in the future if you can't find it at a good price.

Thanks! Actually they were much, much larger and then I got them down too far. It really didn't take much...I've been reading about how to take reef photos for the past several weeks and just followed some simple suggestions. Thanks for the compliments on the corals too Now if I could find a tip for settings on a FTS

 

[revhtree]

Your pics look great already! NICE!

 

[Joe Knows Reefs]

Your pics look great already! NICE!

Thanks Rev! It's all those great pointers stickied at the top of the forum

 

[RogerWilco357]

I would get the 30D canon and the 100mm canon macro lens or the tamron 90mm if shooting macros and corals..you can also get the 28-135mm canon lens for walk around and just about any type of shooting I love that lens ..but you figure the body 300 and the lens 300 . Also gets you ready to upgrade learning with that body is awesome I went from the digital rebel when it first came out to the 30D to the 5D , 7D then the 5DmkII..
The glass is what makes the shots in my opinion and the most expensive to buy sometimes but man they hold there value and in some instances go up..I have bought some L glass finally and it wasn't cheap but started with the above mentions glass and was happy with the learning curve and quality of the shots...good luck
Roger