Looking for advice on what to get my wife with the Canon Rebel XTi

[deaden]

My wife has become more and more interested in photography as a hobby. I like to encourage her creative side as that usually makes her really shine.

So I've settled on the Canon Rebel XTi 10 megapixel version. My question relates to what lenses to get with it. She will want to take good indoor family photos as well as being able to zoom in on someone a good distance away. For example, someone at their graduation from the back of the auditorium. I'm not sure how much image stabilization is needed for her. I know blurry pictures would annoy her.

I'll be getting her the how to use it dvd also. So any and all advice would be appreciated. I really want to spoil my wife this Christmas as she is always one upping me.

For example... She can't wear her wedding ring to bed as she is rough on the prongs holding the diamond. So I get her a simple band with an inscription on the inside to wear at night since it really bothered her taking it off. She gets me a new flat panel monitor, office furniture, and wireless keyboard and mouse set. She does not play fair!

 

[rml]

Canon Telephoto EF 100-300 f/4.5-5.6 is a good lens for good distance.

Buy a camera bag as well. SlingShot style is very useful.

I love my PAQ SlingShot Camera bag

http://www.paqmfg.com/e-card/riga/06-riga-final.html

 

[Shimmishim]

I think it's going to be tough to find a lens that'll work well for indoor portraits vs. indoor zoom lens.

If you want to spoil her good, then you might want to get two lenses for her.

1. Canon 17-55 f/2.8
2. Canon 70-200 IS USM f/2.8

A good in between those two is the Canon 24-70 f/2.8 or Canon 28-105 f/4

All lenses I just mentioned will fall between the $900 to $1600 range.

 

[deaden]

Thanks for the recommendations so far. Read the FAQ and my brain hurts

Still learning all the acronyms. I'm also having a tough time understanding aperture and the math involved for figuring what range the lens is good for. I wish they would categorize the lenses by use for us challenged individuals. Distance to subject ratings, etc...

OK. Please help me categorize these lenses:

http://www.tristatecamera.com/...t.php?sku=CANEFS1855IS

http://www.tristatecamera.com/....php?sku=CANEF55200UII

http://www.tristatecamera.com/....php?sku=CANEF28105UII

Thanks again for the patience and understanding. I'm thinking of getting her 18-55mm lens as her starter lens to get her trained on the camera. That would be good for photos at Christmas and maybe a wedding? She also mentioned wanting to take close up photos of stuff in nature as art. So that would be a macro lens right?

 

[randomlinh]

the new canon 18-55 IS is turning out to be a damn good lens for the money. It has it limits, but you have to learn to work around them. Not all of us can jump at spending the dough for everything.

First things first though, don't try to do everything at once. wanting to do indoor and graduations.. those are two very different lenses when you're in the SLR world. can't just use one super lens. Even teh 70-200mm I found too short for the graduations I attended.

I'd say start her out on the new 18-55IS lens. It's only $200 and will get her acquainted with the camera, and still be fairly versatile. And you're right, if she want's to do some some close ups, need a macro lens.

In the future, as she grows into it all... hit up the used market. You can usually get a good deal, esp on canon gear since it's so common.

 

[deaden]

I think that is what I will get her for now. Adding a Sandisk 4GB Extreme III card to take full advantage of the camera.

Thanks again! Further advice is still appreciated!

 

[Shimmishim]

Well I didn't know how badly you wanted to spoil her!

I just figured you might have wanted to go all out!

As a compromise, I think the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 is a great lens to start with. It's nice and wide on the lower end but definitely limited on the zoom.

It is a good walk around lens and I have enjoyed mine thoroughly.

The smaller the f/# the larger the aperture = more light into the lens.

For indoor shooting you want a lens with a larger aperture to capture all the available light.

That is why primes (no zoom just one focal length) are so great for indoor shooting... one of the best being the 85mm f/1.2L

Anyway. as others have stated maybe a cheaper lens might be the way to go for now until she really gets into it and then you can spoil her super rotten with a $1000 lens!

 

[Kelvrick]

Whats the budget for the lenses?

I'm thinking conservative and am thinking of the Canon 17-40l f/4 (500-600) or the Tamron or Sigma 17-50 2.8 (both 300-400) and pairing it with a (from cheapest to most expensive) Canon 70-200 F/4 (500-600), Canon 70-300 F/4-5.6 IS (500-600), or Sigma 70-200 f2.8 (700-800).

Check www.fredmiranda.com for more info

 

[Shimmishim]

or

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/index.php

which is pretty much dedicated to canon cameras

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: Shimmishim

As a compromise, I think the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 is a great lens to start with. It's nice and wide on the lower end but definitely limited on the zoom.

for indoor family photos i'd get the sigma 24 f/1.8 for $340, the sigma 20 f/1.8 for $410. both are a stop and a third faster than the tamron and two stops faster than the canon 18-55 IS (which is probably the standard lens i would get, along with the new 55-200 IS if &*%$#ing canon ever brings it to the US). in a well-lit room the f/1.8 lenses don't need flashes or exceedingly long shutter speeds. the standard 18-55 will.



'stops' refer to relative light gathering ability. each 'stop' down is 1/2 as much light, each stop up is 2x as much light. for lenses, stops operate on the square root of 2 (because that's the relationship of diameter to area). a lens that can operate at 2 is can allow 1 stop more light than a lens than can operate at 2.8. a lens that can operate at 1.4 allows in 2 stops more light than a lens that can operate at 2.8. that means it'll work in 1/4 the light. lenses usually operate over a range of stops, say from f/1.4 (for very dim light or very fast shutter speeds) to f/22 (for exceedingly bright light or very long shutter speeds).


a good inexpensive macro lens is the sigma 50 f/2.8 macro for $270. it'd also be a decent torso portrait lens. (portraits you generally stand further away than you might so that facial features are flattened)

 

[rudder]

Originally posted by: deaden
Thanks for the recommendations so far. Read the FAQ and my brain hurts

Still learning all the acronyms. I'm also having a tough time understanding aperture and the math involved for figuring what range the lens is good for. I wish they would categorize the lenses by use for us challenged individuals. Distance to subject ratings, etc...

OK. Please help me categorize these lenses:

http://www.tristatecamera.com/...t.php?sku=CANEFS1855IS

http://www.tristatecamera.com/....php?sku=CANEF55200UII

http://www.tristatecamera.com/....php?sku=CANEF28105UII

Thanks again for the patience and understanding. I'm thinking of getting her 18-55mm lens as her starter lens to get her trained on the camera. That would be good for photos at Christmas and maybe a wedding? She also mentioned wanting to take close up photos of stuff in nature as art. So that would be a macro lens right?

What is your budget?

Of those three lenses.. go for the 18-55 IS. The others will dissapoint.

For creativity there is also the 50mm f/1.8 for around $70-80. Sigma also makes and f/2.8 macro lens for around $220.. although sometimes its easier to do macro with say a 100mm lens.. but it depends on the subject matter.

Edit: For indoor auditorium shots you can go with the 70-200 f/2.8 lens (non-is for about $1000) or you can look into 200mm prime lenses that are a little faster.

 

[rml]

How about this book?

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Di...ld-Guide/dp/0470110074