This is the first of a series of posts I’m going to do on the best bang for the buck camera/photo gear. (according to what I’ve used and researched) This will be mostly Canon based stuff, but some accessories like stands, tripods, fliters, etc. can be interchangeable.
Lets start out with Lenses!
Best Bang for the Buck (Canon) Lenses
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II ($100)
Buy one now! If you can afford about $250 extra buy a 50mm f/1.4. These lenses will make you look like a pro when shooting portraits and can let you hand hold with out flash in very low lighting conditions. (Same with Nikon, buy a fast 50mm lens! the f/1.8s run about the same price)
Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS ($155 new or probably ~$100 fairly new/unused from ebay)
Don’t confuse this with the old 18-55 with out IS, that one is horrible! This model is very sharp (except at the far edges)
Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS ($245)
I haven’t used this one personally, but I hear it is very good, especially for the money, so here it is on this list.
Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 ($250)
Another very fast affordable prime lens. I haven’t used this one either, but lots of people like it and vouch for the very sharp pictures they get from it. (like all budget items it will have some down sides, such as more Chromatic Aborations, but those are pretty easily fixed in post)
I’ll also list lens hoods and filters here too sense they go with lenses.
Best Bang for the Buck Lens Hoods and Filters
Lens Hoods
Buy the generic ones from ebay, don’t pay $30 for a Name brand piece of plastic. You might look at the brand name ones to make sure the knockoff at least looks the same though.
Lens Filters
Sorry, this is one of the no skimping areas. You’ll probably be paying $30-$100+ for a single filter depending on what it does. (UV or Circular Polarizer or Neutral Density (ND) most likely) You don’t want to stick a cheap piece of glass, or even worse, plastic in front of your nice lens. I go with Hoya Super HMC level of filters personally. They are good quality but not the super expensive ones. The “HD” models are supposed to be super hard and seemingly close to indestructible.
Side note on filters: There is some debate whether or not you should put a UV filter on your lens to protect it or not. I’m in the latter camp. Use a lens hood and of course, be careful and you should be good. Besides the above lenses aren’t that expensive that you couldn’t replace them pretty easily, but even on “L glass” the front glass it the cheapest to get repaired.
Next time: Flashes and Flash related accessories!