New Camera + lens

[Dave]

I have decided that an upgrade to a DSLR plud lens would suit me however the big question is what lens? Purchasing lenses for aviation spotting is a hard task. Obvious the majority of my budget should be spent on the lens and the rest on a decent camera body.

I have been leaning towards the Canon 350D or pushing my budget to afford the 400D however the lens is the area of stumbling.

Thinking back to Portrush, I enjoyed using my current x18 zoom point and shoot camera with a Kenko 1.7x tele convertor, however due to the combination producing a fair bit of zoom (albeit, poor quality zoom), I did miss a fair few close shots as the helicopters were flying right past my nose. Now thinking into the future, my camera will mostly be used for aviation spotting so decent zoom is required.

What kind of lens would you guys go for?

18-200mm or 70-300mm?

I had been leaning towards a 70-300mm lens however the 18-200mm lens combined with a 2x tele conversion might produce some decent zoom.

My current point and shoot reached the 35mm equivalent of 800mm range, so I would enjoy something similar on the new camera, regardless to the quality drop.

Have you guys any experience with tele convertors etc etc?

[casper]

I've no experience with a teleconverter. I use the 400D and a 75-300mm lens, which is equivalent to 120-480mm in 35mm speak
There's a good deal on at Jessops at the minute for the 450D and two lenses
http://www.jessops.com/Products/ProductDetail.aspx?SkuId=74764

When it comes to spotting the daddy of them all seems to be the Canon 100-400mm L but this is around ?1000 so is a wee bit expensive.
An alternative could be the Sigma 150-500mm
http://www.jessops.com/Products/ProductDetail.aspx?SkuId=74267

[Dave]

Thanks for pointing those out Casper.

Unfortunately there are no good all arounder lenses with a decent quality at both ends of the zoom ranges, i.e. 28mm to 300mm. This is one of the hardest decisions in my life! Perhaps sticking with point and shoot would be best. I do like the sound of almost instant photographs though with the SLR's 

[casper]

To be honest I've always used SLR cameras so I can't comment on the P&Ss but if you keep putting the change off you'll never make the move As you said there's no great all rounder you'll just have to make a decision based on your budget - that's what I had to do.

[Dave]

Too true Casper. it's such a huge step though and such a huge drain on income. Might as well spend a good ?600 to ?700 now. I'm now looking at the Sigma 80-400mm although its a whopping 1.75 Kg. Decisions decisons. It's hard trying to buy one lens for most purposes. It's the idea of chaning lenses that I dislike. With the amount of changing I'd do, they'd be quite dusty and possible sustain some damage.

[vortex003]

Personally i'd want to get more use out of an expensive set up than i do with my current camera to justify the purchase.
Living near Mildenhall or Brize might sway me 

[Dave]

Theres just no real aviation action within Northern Ireland, with the exception of Portrush and the Enniskillen and Newtownards Airshows. On the positive side, theres always the Ikea carpark at Belfast City Airport

Having spent the past 2 days looking at various lenses and going backwards and forwards between what I think I need and what I want, I am now leaning towards a canon EF-S 55-250mm IS lens at ?180, new from ebay. It seems to be a decent all rounder suitable for airshows and airport photos.

As mentioned I enjoy messing around with zoom so I can always buy a cheap tele convertor to screw in infront of the lens.

[vortex003]

You're quite right - not much apart from the airshows.There are some busy days down here but more often than not it's stuff that i have seen before.

Those converters seem to give good results - do you know if they are compatible with all camera types,or just the SLRs?

[casper]

I am now leaning towards a canon EF-S 55-250mm IS lens at ?180

I've read some reviews on this and the majority are favourable - it does have a cheap plastic feel to it, but the IS gives up to four stops compensation and the image quality is suppose to be very good for the price.

I can always buy a cheap tele convertor to screw in infront of the lens.

With the Canon series the converter goes between the body and the lens

[Dave]

Those converters seem to give good results - do you know if they are compatible with all camera types,or just the SLRs?

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/items/_W0QQ_dmptZUKQ5fCamerasPhotoQ5fCameraAccessoriesQ5fCameraLensesFiltersQ5fJN?_nkw=S9600+tele&_fromfsb=0&_trksid=m270.l1313

They're mostly compatible with the digital camera like yours however you require a small barrel to screw on between your camera and the tele conversion lens in order to allow the zoom to extend properly. The picture vignetts (?) at the low end of the zoom range.. They're handy enough to get the extra zoom.

Casper, indeed the majority of extenders go between the lens and the camera body however there are (I believe) afew cheap ones that go infront of the lens. Not ideal for the high zoom, but I only really need the high zoom for random fun, not high quality.

By the way, I am now leaning towards a Canon 70-300mm IS USm, Canon 70-200 Luxory glass, or an 18-200mm Nikon VR which may be useable with an extender to give something like 25-280mm. Thankfully the Nikon has a 1.5 crop rate thus it would give a 35mm equivalent of 38-420mm focus range. Thanks for the heads up on the 55-250mm reviews Casper. Srry to keep on going about the lens, it's quite a huge investment for me so I need to be sure it's going to be the right camera/lens combo.

[casper]

Thankfully the Nikon has a 1.5 crop rate

The Canon's have a 1.6 (depending on the camera)
http://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/1-6x.htm

[Angry Turnip]

Tele converters are not great and cheap ones are a complete waste of money.

I have used (borrowed)the Canon 100-400 lens and it is excellent but very expensive.

I have a Sigma 170-500mm and it produces superb results-only slight downside is it is a bit heavy.It doesn`t bother me because I find its weight is helpful to reduce camera shake in windy conditions.

My suggestion is to pay as much as you can afford too-with DSLR`s you really do get what you pay for.
If you just want to take snaps a P.A.S is fine but too get really good shots you really need to go for a DSLR

A good site I have used in the past is www.warehouseexpress.co.uk

Jessops and Camulet tend to be pricey and try to flog you extended warrenties which are very expensive and almost always useless.

Ebay is s good source for camera gear but beware of the Hong Kong sellers-you WILL get hit for IMPORT TAX no matter what they tell you.

Look for UK sellers with good feedback-golden rule of buying anything ........

IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE,THEN IT PROBABLY IS

[Dave]

1.6 crop rate = better zoom

Hey Angry, thanks for the reply. I would rarely use the teleconvertor, just the odd time when I just want distance over quality as it can be quite fun. Thanks for the website link. I had notice that alot of ebay members buying from eba got hit with import tax so in the end I opted to purchase my Canon 70-300 IS USM lens from a british member for £339.99 which isn't too bad for brand new.

I have yet to still buy a camera (what an odd thing to purchase the lens before the camera ) and the decision is between the Canon 400D and Canon 1000D. The 450D might be slightly out of my price range however I am still searching around for some deals. I will let you all know what I end up with.

Thanks for all your help guys, much appreciated.

Dave

[casper]

Why not check out the Canon shop on ebay

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Canon-Outlet

The cameras are refurbished but I think they come with a 3 month warrenty.

[Dave]

Just incase anybody had been reading this thread, I just purchased a Canon 400D + standard lens off a trusted seller for £315 including P&P. Not a bad buy however I'm abit disappointed that I have to buy new memory cards for the camera as my SD cards bought recently are incompatible.

By the way, Ikea's upper carpark levels are closed monday to friday, and only open at weekends. Access via the stairways is just possible.

[Angry Turnip]

It was just a matter of time before Ikea took some action regarding the upper carpark levels being used by photographers/spotters.

Unfortunatly on the few occasions I have used it-some spotters had parked their cars in a semi-abandoned manner and also dumped rubbish all over one particular corner

I think their actions are justified because after all the carpark is for customers and so many people were taking up space watching the planes.

So it`s a case of the minority ruining it for everybody else.

[Dave]

Unfortunately so, however often people go to the top deck to watch their friends or relatives landing or taking off. Lack of customers also helped in the decision, or so I'm told. At least access is still granted via the stair way although with winter approaching, only the bravest souls (cough cough me cough) will go up to the top deck and plane spot in the cold.

How about Belfast International Angry Trump? Have you ever went spotting there?

[casper]

I just purchased a Canon 400D + standard lens off

You won't be disappointed Shoot in RAW and use the supplied software to tweak and convert the photos.
 
Only ever used the Ikea car park once and that was on a Wednesday afternoon in August so the closure must have been recently.

[Dave]

I have photoshop CS2 so that helps with the photo editting

I just looked on ebay today and theyre sellling brand new Canon 70-300mm IS USM lenses for £40 cheaper than I bought mine and with a 1 year warrenty. UMPH! Two days too late.

The camera is due to arrive tomorrow and the lens is due to arrive sometime later this week. I can't wait to give them ago.