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Photo Forum / Digital Photography / DSLR Cameras / October 2006Lense recommendation for Canon D30
I acquired an older D30 Canon body a while back, and I bought some used Canon EF zoom lenses, which I have come to understand are very cheap stuff that's sold with the new camera bundles. The focus quality of pics is worse than you'd expect with a disposable film camera. The problem doesn't go away using a tripod. I don't do sophicated photos with it, just snapshots, ebay photos, etc. My old Olympus p&s did fine (far better picture quality), but it died, and I like the way an slr handles. Is it likely that the lenses are the only problem, or can the camera itself cause focus problems? I don't have access to any other lenses for testing, or another body to see how bad my lenses really are. Is there a relatively inexpensive brand of lense that I could buy new, that would be adequate for lowtech photos? I can't justify a $700 lense for my type of usage. Any ideas would be apreciated. Thanks, Bill > I acquired an older D30 Canon body a while back, and I bought some used > Canon EF zoom lenses, which I have come to understand are very cheap stuff [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > would be adequate for lowtech photos? > I can't justify a $700 lense for my type of usage. 50mm fixed length lens for under $100 should do great if you can work with the distances. Wider angle 'primes' tend to allow closer focusing for small objects.  SignaturePaul Furman http://www.edgehill.net/1 Bay Natives http://www.baynatives.com >I acquired an older D30 Canon body a while back, and I bought some used >Canon EF zoom lenses, which I have come to understand are very cheap stuff [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Any ideas would be apreciated. > Thanks, Bill Before you start spending your money try this. http://photo.net/learn/focustest/ kr Aad >I acquired an older D30 Canon body a while back, and I bought some used >Canon EF zoom lenses, which I have come to understand are very cheap stuff [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Any ideas would be apreciated. > Thanks, Bill Bill, if you are getting results worse than with a disposable film camera (and with more than one lens) there might be a problem with your D30. > I acquired an older D30 Canon body a while back, and I bought some > used Canon EF zoom lenses, which I have come to understand are very [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Any ideas would be apreciated. > Thanks, Bill I used to shoot with a D30 until it did this: http://www.pbase.com/markuson/image/47959941/original :) **Are you sure you're not just seeing the effects of larger apertures and depth of field issues? Many folks who are unaccustomed to SLR or DSLRs complain about focus issues when in fact they are merely surprised with the limited depth of focus compared with their old point&shoot cameras that often tend to render nearly the entire frame in focus. For an all-around lens, the modest Canon 28-105 USM should render pictures that are quite nice. http://tinyurl.com/c7lb7 If they look overly blurry using even this reasonably-priced zoom, then either you're doing something wrong, or there's something wrong with your camera. Here are a couple images from my old (dead) D30: http://www.pbase.com/markuson/image/47306216/original http://www.pbase.com/markuson/image/37442909/original Mark SignatureImages (Plus Snaps & Grabs) by Mark² at: www.pbase.com/markuson Does the Canon USM lense have "USM" printed on it anywhere? Mine has the word "Ultrasonic" in gold lettering just above the zoom ring area, but neither of these strings around the lens itself, where it says "Canon Zoom Lens EF 28-80" etc. Bill >> I acquired an older D30 Canon body a while back, and I bought some >> used Canon EF zoom lenses, which I have come to understand are very [quoted text clipped - 40 lines] > > Mark > Does the Canon USM lense have "USM" printed on it anywhere? > Mine has the word "Ultrasonic" in gold lettering just above the zoom > ring area, but neither of these strings > around the lens itself, where it says "Canon Zoom Lens EF 28-80" etc. I know of no Canon 28-80 lens that is USM. The only 28-80 I'm aware of were the very cheap ones that used to come in kits with a body such as the film Rebel bodies... That's > Bill > [quoted text clipped - 45 lines] >> Images (Plus Snaps & Grabs) by Mark² at: >> www.pbase.com/markuson SignatureImages (Plus Snaps & Grabs) by Mark² at: www.pbase.com/markuson >> Does the Canon USM lense have "USM" printed on it anywhere? >> Mine has the word "Ultrasonic" in gold lettering just above the >> zoom >> ring area, but neither of these strings >> around the lens itself, where it says "Canon Zoom Lens EF 28-80" >> etc. Yes, that's the USM or Ultra-Sonic-Motor that drives the autofocus. It uses ultrasonic vibrations that are above human hearing so the only thing you hear during focus is the lense group moving inside the lense housing. There are two types of USM autofocus. USM - the direct coupled motor that drives a gear inside the lense. While the motor is silent, the gear drive is not, and the focus speed is normal. This type usually uses a front focus design that allows the front element to rotate during focus. These consumer lenses are marked with an "Ultrasonic" label. Ring-USM - the best type which uses a ring drive design that is silent and fast, and all focus movements are internal so the front element does not rotate and lense length remains unchanged. These consumer lenses are marked with a gold ring and "Ultrasonic" label. The high end L lenses are marked with a solid red ring and "Ultrasonic" label. > I know of no Canon 28-80 lens that is USM. > The only 28-80 I'm aware of were the very cheap ones that used to > come in kits with a body such as the film Rebel bodies... Incorrect. Canon has made several revisions of the 28-80mm lense, and a couple others that were USM, both consumer and pro L grade lenses with the EF mount. The first consumer model was the 28-80 f/3.5-5.6 USM made in 1991. The popular 28-105 USM was fashioned a year later but with a longer focal length range. The first 28-80 USM was the pro L version made in 1989. There were several versions of the basic consumer 28-80 USM that used the DC motor rather than the better ring-USM design, of which there was only one version. |
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