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Bought A new Canon Rebel XS and wanted to pick up a few accesories. I am going to get a spare battery and memory card but what are a few affordable lenses and filters that I should get and is there a quick reference page that I can print off to help me with advanced shooting without having to reread the whole book everytime.
Before anyone can really suggest any lenses we need to know what your budget is and what you plan on shooting for subjects? Those two things will make a difference in what the suggestions are. Glass is the most important part of the setup so if you want real quality you will need to spend some money. Don't forget you can also buy good glass used and save a bunch of money, we just need to know what you plan on shooting first.
As far as a guide goes, there should be a pocket guide in the box, if not the link below is a pdf file of the pocket guide form canon.
http://pdisp01.c-wss.com/gdl/W...ng=EN
400-500 dollars is my limit and just normal photo stuff. My daughter, fishing pics, and eBay selling photos. Looking for a good all around lense.
What lens to do have now?
EFS 18-55
My opinion in the price range you are looking for i would stick with the one you have and maybe add a telephoto zoom lens and maybe a prime for low light. The standard zoom range in your price range are not really superior to the lens that you have.
The EF 28-135 isn't really any better, it just offers a little more range on the long end but less on the wide end. I had one of these that came with my 40d, i didnt like it one bit and i sold it.
The EF-S 8-135 is a little better picture quality wise but not $500 worth of better. I have one of these currently, it came with my 7d and its not bad but again not 500 worth of better. My sister uses this on her rebel since i never use it.
The EF-S 17-85 is not really a great lens at all, i bought one of these years ago and it was a $500 mistake. It has a lot of issues with purple fringing and its not real sharp. i didnt know any better when i got it.
Everything else in that range is a ton more money. The EF-S 17-55 F2.8 is a fantastic lens and a true upgrade offer the one you have but its ~1200 bucks so it sounds out of your price range right now.
My suggestion would be to take a look at the EF-S 55-250mm at ~$300. For the money its a great lens, it is pretty sharp and it has IS built in which you wont find much in that price range. It will give you a lot more range for kids sports and anything that may be far away from you. The only drawback to it like all EF-S lenses is it will only fit a crop sensor unit like a rebel,40d, 50d, 7D. If you ever got a 5D or above you would not be able to use it.
The other suggestion i have would be to also add the EF 50MM f1.8 ~ around $100. This lens has a wide max aperture for taking pics in low light that your current lens wont be able to do without a flash. It is also a super sharp lens and for the money it really cant be beat. It has no zoom so its not the best every day lens but it has its place in any camera bag. I have since upgraded mine to a L series f1.2 but my sister still uses this lens all the time.
Here is an example taken with this lens, it was taken with my old Rebel XSI, no flash and only one light in the room.
http://jbfoto.smugmug.com/Other/My-P...59_WUnVy-L.jpg
Modified by jb882 at 9:49 AM 4/18/2011
As mentioned above, a longer zoom would be nice- check thedigitalpicture.com for reviews.
The 50 f1.8 is also a great suggestion! A cheap, fast prime is a great addition to the lens bag!