Adding More Lenses to your Bag | is it worth it?
I have survived with my kit lens through many a fantastic photo opportunity. We have been through a lot together and produced some incredible images, so in no way am I saying skip your kit lens or throw it aside…because my kit lens is great. The real question is, can I carry on with just one lens? Or is it going to make a big difference to my photography to add another lens to my bag?
I work with an 18-55mm IS Canon kit lens.
The question that was bugging me was – is it worth it to spend a few of my hard earned rands to purchase another lens? And WHICH lens? And do I really need image stabilization when my budget may or may not fit the additional costs of having the luxury of image stabilization. Will it make a difference to my photography?
The question regarding “which lens” I actually can’t answer for you. It depends on the style of photography you prefer and where and how you shoot.
Mostly portraits? Architecture? Interiors? Wildlife? City scenes? Each of these styles would be best suited to a certain lens.
For my style, Telephoto seemed to fit. A telephoto lens allows you to zoom into a subject while standing far away and remaining undetected. This is great for wildlife (safe distance from the pride of lions!) and really great for shooting interesting people scenes where you don’t want the people to be aware of the photographer. It is also great for hard to reach places as well as close-ups without having to stand right on top of your subject. My cat hates it when I get ‘all-up-in-her-face’ with my camera (nevermind the flash!) and I was never able to get any decent shots of her, but with the telephoto lens I can sit a few meters away and she fills the viewfinder and is completely unaware of me so there is no squinty-eyed annoyed look.
…so here I am – standing at Lagoon beach with a borrowed 75-300mm Canon telephoto lens clicked into my camera and I am about to have all my questions answers.
The lens does not have image stabilization.
It does have a switch that lets me flip between manual focus and auto focus which is very handy for focusing very close to your subject.
The lens has a closest focus distance of 1.5meters (this means that the subject cannot be less than 1.5meters from the camera otherwise the lens can’t focus.)
*IF the lens said 75-300m Macro - then that minimam focal distance would be a great deal less.
For a few hours I was lost in a world behind my camera and I was loving every moment with the 75-300mm!
What I discovered was that with a tripod you don’t need IS and without a tripod I managed to get away with a lot. A professional shoot, for example a wedding, would definitely require IS (or continuous tripod use which you can’t do at a wedding because things happen too fast) but for my day at the beach I was really happy with the lens without IS. After all the stories I had heard regarding lenses lacking IS I was pleasantly suprised!
The quality was great and the change in view point was stunning!!
I could zoom right into the heart of the matter. The seagulls filled my viewfinder and didn’t even realize I was photographing them (seeing as I was about ten meters or more away)
My conclusion:
Go for it! Invest in another lens. Having more than one lens has opened up my options in terms of what I can and cannot photograph and when I hit the streets in search of new subjects I have a whole new dimension added to my options.
Image Stabilization? If you can afford the additional cost, definitely go for it. If it doesn’t fit your budget – don’t stress – it is definitely still worth it to purchase the lens you want even without IS. You can always upgrade in a year or two when you have outgrown the lens and your skill has increased.
Having a second lens makes me feel like I have a whole new camera in my bag! It’s fascinating and encouraging.
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A note:
A brand called SIGMA makes lenses for Nikon, Canon, Sony etc and their prices are slightly lower than the specific brand. This gives you a bit of leeway and the lenses are quality. As a good friend once said “Sigma have to try harder, so they might even be better!” - while that may or may not be the case, you can rest assured that whether you choose the generic or original name you are getting quality.
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Click here to see higher quality images shot with this lens.
Click here to purchase the Canon 75-300mm telephoto lens.
Thank-you for the most interresting article on the additional lens. This is something that has been giving me a lot of frustrations as I was getting more and more confused on what to do, and each photography shop gave me different advice !! This has given me a good insight and I now know that I will be buying a lens soon .
Hi Chris! This was a question that was going around in my head for a long time too. Once I did start buying additional lenses though - I never looked back! You won’t regret it. And at the same time, for a hobby photographer or enthusiast, you are not doing yourself any injustice by not breaking the bank. The affordable lenses, without stabilization, are just as much fun as the professional lenses!
when i bought my camera i bought a bundle with a 55-250mm lens! it is sooooooooo awesome! and such fun to be able to take DECENT shots of things far away…!
i took it to a friends’ kid’s birthday party and i got such cool portraits of the kkids without having to get close to the little buggers! lol
Long Lenses are definitely a great way to capture kids and pets without them knowing and immediately pulling a funny face!
Great to-the-point article and one that ratifies my just having added a 55-250mm Canon lens to my basket.