Help Choosing Lens for T2i - 18-55mm and 17-85 IS USM looked similar

I am a beginner to digital photography but enjoying my new DSLR Canon T2i. I also enjoy the digital processing aspects with Lightroom 2 and CS4. My camera came with the 18-55mm IS lens and I was thinking that I should probably replace it. I enjoy mostly outdoors photography of scenery, plants, flowers, foliage, etc. So I borrowed a friends EFS 17-85 mm IS USM lens and spent the day shotting outdoors with it and my 18-55mm IS kit lens. I kept the camera at ISO 100 and swapped lenses back and forth in full auto and in aperture priority mode. I kept AF and IS on all the time and I had the camera at its highest resulution JPEG and in RAW.The problem is after all of that I really couldn't see any difference between these lenses on my 17" laptop display in Lightroom 2. I was actually thinking of getting the 15-85 IS USM but now I am not so sure I need it. Am I missing something here? Am I evaluating the lenses incorrectly or are they both OK at this type of outdoor work? I should mention that I am planning on getting the 100 Macro lens for sure.


Thanks for the help.


Marty

As far as I know the 18-55 and 17-85 both have similar image quality. I've just gone tothe 17-55 2.8 from the 18-55 on my Xsi and the difference is amazing. The 15-85 is supposed to be about as good as the 17-55 so I'd say give it a go, I think you'll definately see an improvement.

Learn more about aperture before making your decision. If you can't see a difference why upgrade at all? Why not get a lens that complements the kit lenses focal range?

Hey Marty

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Originally Posted by Marty

Am I missing something here? Am I evaluating the lenses incorrectly or are they both OK at this type of outdoor work?

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Yea, you've got to see something better first before seeing the flaws of other lenses [;)] For most users, both lenses you tried are as good as they need. For pixel-peepers and aperture-lovers like me it is another story [:D] My advice, don't trade your kit-lens for the 17-85, it isn't worth it. The only benefit I see is the focal-length difference, but that's all. And I could name a few negatives sides as well if I wanted [A]

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Originally Posted by Marty

I should mention that I am planning on getting the 100 Macro lens for sure.

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Do that! That's a really great lens and it might give your more insight on what differences there are in lenses and what you could and want to expect from them. You'll really enjoy this lens.


My advice: don't buy anything untill you know the basics. If you can understand the basics like exposure, aperture, shutterspeed, contrast and you know how to use the manual and AV/TV modes you can see what you're missing in your set. Untill that time it isn't advisable to trade your kit-lens (which is a great lens looking at the price and what you can do with it) for something that you've read that would be "better".


I know my advices are now somewhat opposites, but with the 100mm macro you really can't go wrong, I loved it when I bought it and since that day I didn't stop loving it for a moment! [:D]


Good luck shooting Marty and hopefully we'll see some great pictures soon!


Jan

Hi Marty, and welcome to the TDP forums!

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Originally Posted by Marty

My camera came with the 18-55mm IS lens ... I borrowed a friends EFS 17-85 mm IS USM lens ... The problem is after all of that I really couldn't see any difference between these lenses ... Am I missing something here?

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You're not 'missing something' per se. They are 'OK' for outdoor work. But then, 'OK' ≠ excellent. Do go back and look at your EXIF data, which shows the aperture used for the pictures. If you're at f/8-11, the kit lens is actually reasonably sharp. Also, as Jan said, the 18-55mm kit lens and the 17-85mm lens have similar optical quality (the 17-85mm has better mechanical quality plus a longer focal range, which is why it's more expensive).


The EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 is a step up from both those lenses in terms of optical quality, as is the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8. The 15-85mm and 17-55mm deliver similar optical quality to each other - the trade off is focal length range and aperture.


Since you're planning to get the 100mm f/2.8 Macro lens for sure, I'd say get that first. In that lens, you'll have excellent optical quality and a relatively fast f/2.8 aperture. That, plus more experience with the lens you do have, will help you narrow down your next choice(s).