sir, i am very much interested in Nature Photography, especially Bird & Wildlife Photography.Plase advice me on the Body & accesories I have chosen.

1. Canon EOS 3 Kit with 2. Canon 70-200L f/4 USM with UV & Circular polariser.

3. Sigma 50mm f/2.8 EX (1:1) Macro with UV & Circular polariser.

4. Canon Remote Kit Ext. Cord ET-1000N3.

5. Tamrac Back Pack Model 5273.

I am adding a 500mm Lens in the Future.

Please suggest me some good places whom i can trust & the where the prices are reasonable.

I would rather prefer to buy a EOS 3 Kit with a Canon 24-85 f/3.5-4.5 which i guess would be much lesser while buying only the body. The Kit would supplement the items 2,3,4,5 I have chosen.

Thanking You, sincerely, Ishwar.

-- Ishwar Maanay (iswar@rediffmail.com), May 25, 2002

Answers

You might also want to take a look at the 28-135mm IS. It costs more than the 24-85mm but I think its more versatile becase of the IS. A good place to buy your equiptment is www.bhphotovideo.com they have very reasonable prices and they are very reliable.

good luck, art

-- arthur (aqy9558@nyu.edu), May 25, 2002.

all is very nice...i would agree on the lens...if you can afford it ..step up to the 28-70L..if not go with the 28-135IS....the tamrac bag is a tad small for all those items....i went with the 5275/expedition 5 bag...i can fit all my lenses...basically the same as yours plus the strobe, my wife's leica minilux and a bunch of film and filters...better more room than squeezing everything into a marginally sized bag....and, don't forget an external flash..the internals are almost useless for decent photography... good luck..

-- chuck lipton (chuxter31@adelphia.net), May 26, 2002.

I disagree with the previous two posters. Stick with the 24-85.

It is a FAR more useful lens in conjunction with the 70-200 F4L than the 28-135IS. The 70-200F4L is considerably better optically than any of the standard zooms (even the 28-70 F2.8L), and thus the range beyond 70mm is pretty well wasted on the 28-135. Yes, it has IS, but it is optically a stop slower in that part of the range, since it has dropped to F5.6.

We have all three canon standard consumer zooms in my family (my father has the 28-105, my mother the 28-135IS and I have the 24-85), and the 24-85 is the best match with the 70-200 F4L (which I also have), since the filter sizes match (may or may not be important to you), and the ranges fit well together. Do not underestimate the extra 4mm on the wide end, because they make a big difference, and I would certainly not do without them. The basic kit you're suggesting (EOS 3, 24-85, 70-200 F4L) is exactly what I have, and I'm very happy with it. I also have the 300 F4L IS and 1.4X TC, which gives a very flexible and high-quality package. The only things I intend to add in the near future are the 2x mkII, PB-E2 and 20mm F2.8.

-- Isaac Sibson (isibson@hotmail.com), May 26, 2002.

Isaac is absolutely right with his opinion about the 24-85 compared to the 28-135IS. I own a 28-135IS and really hate that lens - there is a problem with the autofocus on this lens - it hunts back and forward and cannot focus immediately even on bodies like EOS 1d, EOS 1v or 1n. The IS feature is very nice but this lens is not easy to manually focus because of it very useless focusing ring. Go for the 24-85 (yes, the 4mm extra is very nice!!) and its much cheaper and lighter than the 28-135IS. Or, if you can afford it, get a 28- 70/2.8L.

-- MartinH (mh-photo@chello.at), May 28, 2002.