Buy Your First Canon Digital SLR Lens – Which Lens Is Right For You

Buying a Canon EOS digital SLR camera involves more than one decision. Yes, getting the right camera is an important determination, but you are not done yet. Now you must choose the right Canon Digital SLR lens.

It was probably a research and decision process just to decide on the right Canon EOS camera, right? As you study the problem, you realize that there is a vast potpourri of lenses, literally hundreds of them. And you are not limited to just Canon lenses, there are others who create lenses for Canon EOS cameras as well.

Therefore which one do you pick?

The possibility exists that you could merely pick up the package deal that has what is know as a kit lens. And, yes, there are even package deals that have two or more kit lenses. Then there would be no decision.

But getting the lenses for your digital SLR is half of the fun of owning a camera like this.

Some first time digital SLR owners fret over this decision for days, weeks, and months. If you go online to some of the camera forums, you will see how totally involved some photographers are in lens selection. Sometimes it is a bit extreme.

But the truth is, you want to make sure you get a lens that will serve your photography needs with the best quality photos possible.

Now, before moving on, let’s revisit this question, “Why not merely get the kit lens?” It was alluded to above, and the answer is a simple one. You could purchase the kit lens and be quite satisfied with it. Plenty of do that. But it just is not best lens created for a Canon EOS digital SLR camera. Its aim is to get a lens on that camera so you can get started taking pictures right out of the box. Perhaps you are thinking about what lots of folks do. Buy the camera body only, without the kit lens. Then you have the freedom to get a lens of your own choice separate from the kit lens.

Here are several questions that will assist you narrow the field.

1. What’s in your wallet?

Once you answer this one, you may not have to answer any of the ones that follow. If funds are limited to just a camera with the kit lens, you’re done. If that is not the case, and you are in a position to spend some of your budget on a lens or two, you are ready to move ahead with the questions.

2. What is your favored photographic genre?

You probably have a penchant as to the types of images you choose to capture. This usually happens before one purchases a digital SLR camera. Normally, a zoom lens with a focal range of 18-70mm, give or take a few millimeters, will work if you take lots of snapshots of family. But if nature, sports, or portraits are your favorite types of images, the ranges you consider are going to be much different.

3. Will you be purchasing more than one lens for this new Canon Digital SLR camera?

Having a whole array of lens choices in your camera bag is actually one of the main reasons many folks move from a point and shoot camera to a digital SLR camera in the first place. With an additional lens or two in mind, start off with a zoom lens with a range of about 17-75mm. Then add to that range with a 70-200mm, or even a 70-300mm lens. There are several Canon lenses in these focal lengths to choose from.

4. Which Canon EOS camera did you buy (or will you be buying)?

This is an important question that may eliminate a few lenses from your consideration. If you buy one of the entry to mid level digital SLRs, you can buy almost any Canon EF lens or third party lenses made for Canon. If, on the other hand, you buy a more professional “full frame” camera, you can not get any of the lenses that are designated at EF-S lenses, as they are for only the crop frame models such as the Rebel series.

Moving up to a digital SLR camera opens a new and exciting chapter in your life. But it is not a step that you want to take blindly. You really need to do your homework before making this buying decision.

The worst case scenario is that you are on a limited budget, and you make the wrong choice for your first Canon camera lens.

The good news is that before you make a mistake, there are websites and resources to help you with your decision. Finding the right Canon digital SLR lens is just a matter of taking advantage of those resources.

Go to www.canoneoslenses.org to continue your quest for the best lens for your Canon EOS camera.

About the Author

I love photography and all things related to it. Cameras, camera gear, and image editing software fascinate me, so I am either buying the newest piece of equipment (or software) or researching my next purchase.

Most recently, I have been doing research about Canon camera lenses. You can find the results at www.canoneoslenses.org.

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