Canon EOS Rebel T1i + Lens
 

I have the standard 18-55 Lens that came with my Canon.

I wanted to get a wide lens and a few other lens, including filters, to take more photos with. Im primarily using my camera for family outings and family trips. Any suggestions on what to look for?

Also, how do I find what lens will fit my camera? I noticed there is a significant price for lens by different manufactureres, so Im open to save a bit of money, provided the quality of the lens is still good for my use.

I may look to upgrade the body of the camera later, but that is several years from now as I want to try some new lens and learn more on how to properly take a photo and now the features of my camera, not to mention the technical lingo that is being spoken within these forums.

Id appreciate any help from the pro's here as Im quite the newbie.

As for lenses that fit, you're looking for anything that has a Canon EF or EF-S mount.

As for lens suggestions- what's the particular aspect that you're looking for in a lens that the 18-55 isn't helping you achieve? You mention a wide lens, but they're normally for special use as they can be unflattering for normal portraits. A bit more insight to what you want to do, and what your current kit isn't allowing you to do will help us help you.

Don't worry too much about upgrading a body just yet- lenses are a better investment, and the T1i is no slouch at all.

Im looking to get one lens where I can basically shoot my little daughter from a distance so she doesnt see the camera around here and capture her in a candid moment. Whenever a camera/camcorder approaches her now she isnt as candid as she used to be and gets curious by the device.

The wide lens, I wanted to capture more images for special events, such as weddings and birthday parties. I spoke to a photographer last weekend and he loved the wide lens he was using and mentioned its his favorite. I saw some of the images he took and they were amazing so I thought I would look here and get some tips/recommendations on a wide lens.

If by Wide lenses - you meant Ultra Wide Angle lens (on a crop body, it'd be something along the lines of a 8mm - 12mm), like m3thods said, they're not usually usually used for portraits - usually used for Landscape photography, or for specialized photos where you use the distortion to create a very unique photo.

If that's what you're looking for, then an UWA is a very fun lens.

However, if you're looking for a lens to "capture the moment" on family outings/trips - UWA lenses usually have too much distortion, imo.

I currently have a 17-85 USM IS and I love how versatile, and how inexpensive it is.

IMO the 18-55 is already wide enough
Ultra wides can get a little pricey (>$500 used)


I'm assuming that you want a longer zoom lens to cover a broader range.

There are two ways to do it, one is just to upgrade your 18-55 to something with a longer range ie. 18-135 that will be a good range for just about everything you'll encounter on a daily basis.

Another way you can achieve the range but lose out on practicality is to get a separate zoom lens which means you'll have to change the lenses more often, but usually means better image quality and also broader range but might save you a bit of money. A popular complement to the 18-55 is the 55-250, a pretty sharp lens you can get for around $250 on craigslist. A new version 2 recently announced but I'm not sure what the advantages are.

I have the 70-300 F4-5.6 and it is noticeably sharper but also a lot bulkier. They go for around $500 so it's up to you really

To your first point- I totally feel you on that aspect of shooting children. You definitely need a long lens if you want to take advantage of their candid nature. Based on your preference of switching lenses, I'd probably get a telephoto (a 55-250 on a budget, a 70-200L if you have the money). That way you cover your wide-tele range with those lenses. If you don't want to switch out lenses, an 18-200 is probably best.

As for your second point- wide lenses are very fun to use like gars mentioned. But keep in mind that it's what the photographer does with the tools that makes the photo, not the lens. IMO for my shooting preferences 18mm is wide enough on a crop. Ultra-wides are expensive, and depending on your shooting style it may be underused.


What I would do if you could only choose one lens purchase: look at all the photos you've taken so far, and see at what focal length they're at. Let that decide what lens to buy.