Okay.. I was here a few days ago asking about what camera to get ( I have no clue about cameras) and went with the Elan IIe Well, I got one from a seller on ebay WITHOUT a lense. So now I am in search of a lense to start me out. I think I have found one but Didnt know if it would work with my camera or be a good one to start out with. Its a Canon EF 35-80mm Auto Focus Zoom SO, once again, any and all info would be appreciated = )

-- Ashley Czarnik (PuppyLuv8100@aol.com), May 24, 2002

Answers

Any lens marked "Canon EF" will work with your Elan IIE. Most 35-80 Canon lenses are not, however, famous for high optical quality.

However, a commonly held opinion expressed by experienced photographers is that a good sharp 50mm (non zoom) lens is a great way to start.

http://www.photo.net/equipment/35mm/building-an-slr-system< /A>

-- NK Guy (tela@tela.bc.ca), May 24, 2002.

The 35-70, 35-80, 28-80 and 28-90 are Canon's low quality zooms, with the exception of the L series 28-80 f/2.8. As far as mid-range Canon zooms go, the 24-85 USM, 28-105 USM, and 28-135 USM IS, are all of the better quality lenses. The best Canon mid-range zoom is the 28- 70 f/2.8L. Although the older 28-70 f/4-5.6 was quite good as well. Hard to find though.

-- Jim Strutz (j.strutz@gci.net), May 24, 2002.

NK and Jim have given good advice. And you have done the right thing by buying the camera without a lens. The reason for doing so is to avoid being stuck with the exact type of lower quality lens that you are now considering buying in the EF 35-80! As mentioned earlier, the 35-80, 28-80, 28-90 lenses that usually come with the camera body are of lesser quality and they are the first bit of equipment that a serious photographer will get rid of. So it would be unwise to now buy a 35-80 when you have the opportunity to buy much better lenses. The EF 24-85 USM, EF 28-105 USM, or 28-135 IS USM are all excellent lenses. They are certainly more expensive than the 35-80 lens, but they are also of better quality. You get what you pay for. They are good investments, providing a level of optical quality that you will be happy to hold onto for years to come.

If you are really on a tight budget and can't afford the better zoons, go with the EF 50/1.8 as NK Guy recommended. It is a sharp and inexpensive lens. I think a sharp, wide-aperture 50mm prime is always worth having, regardless of what other lenses you have or plan on having. They are light, compact, have excellent optics, are great for low light photography, and their wide maximum aperture provides for beautifully shallow depth of field. It would be a much better investment than a crummy 35-80 lens.

-- Peter Phan (pphan01@hotmail.com), May 24, 2002.

Ashley, I have Elan 2 with 50mm 1.8 and EF 28-105 USM( which I bought first). They are both great! Zoom is good for framing, but I love the low light shooting of the 1.8mm lens. Good luck

-- Latham P (latport@hotmail.com), May 25, 2002.

Hi There,

I have a Canon EOS 50 (Europe) and with a couple of lens I cover all my needs: Canon AF28-105 USM 3.5-4.5 and Sigma 70-300 DL Macro 4-5.6.

Now, I do not recommend too much the Sigma lens because if you get used to USM focusing all the rest is too slow...That's way I'm about to seel it to buy a Canon AF75-300 USM. Slightly more expensive but, especially when you shot at 200mm and more you do want fast focusing.

I found my self in many many different scenarios in different countires and situations, without feeling the need of an additional lens. Maybe you may want to buy later on a x 0.60 adapter to play a little bit with distorted images and fisheye images.

Said that, go for two zoom lens and you are safe.

Cheers, Gabriele

-- Gabriele Galli (gab@saatel.it), May 28, 2002.

As a novice, I suggest you stick to primes. They will give you better optical quality than most zooms. They will also teach you about perspective. 28/2.8, 50/1.8, 85/1.8 and 135/2.8 are all great optics in relatively low prices.

-- Yakim Peled (yakim.peled@orange.co.il), May 29, 2002.

Ashley,

If you truly are a beginner, I don't think that one of Canon's "low quality" zooms is such a bad choice for you. A Canon 35-80mm or 28- 80mm consumer zoom, kept clean and used with a lens hood attached (to avoid flare) can be an excellent tool for you to start out with.

The 24-85 USM, 28-105 USM, and 28-135 USM IS lenses are without a doubt excellent lenses, but - they are HEAVY, and they are EXPENSIVE. At least I would venture to guess that as a beginner you will think they are expensive. I am positive the the others who have given you advice will disagree with me (and tell me so), but please don't think that you have to spend $300.00+ on a lens to get started with your shooting. A lot of the folks who recommend mid to high end lenses to beginners don't take into consideration that prints that are not enlarged to more than 8x10 and slides that are not projected onto something as large as the side of a building don't necessarily benefit from such lenses.

It is a good idea to get yourself a 50mm f/1.8 lens, as they are sharp, light fast and inexpensive. However, if you want a zoom, get a zoom. Don't let anyone shame you out of buying one.

-- Todd Evans (toddevans@earthlink.net), May 30, 2002.