5 tips on buying a camera lens (contd..)

Tip 331 (Low budget lens): Typically lens from third party providers are cheaper than those from the camera manufacturers such as Nikon, Canon, etc. These third party manufacturers are names such as Tamaron, Sigma; they are good to start with, but make sure that you have studied them before you go in for the purchase.

Tip 332 (Lens from the manufacturers): These lens tend to be more expensive than a third party lens for the same type of specification. Once you enter this area, a lens could keep on going higher in price depending on the specification; for example a zoom lens with a constant aperture (constant maximum aperture) value would be more expensive than that with a variable aperture (at some points in the zoom range, the aperture could go down, limiting the amount of light you can capture)

Tip 333 (Evaluate a lens before buying another): So you have money to spend, and another lens is also looking very attractive; however, make sure that your current lens is unable to meet your complete requirement before you go ahead and purchase another.

Tip 334 (Look at the weight of the lens and carrying needs): It is a matter of regret that some of the lens with superior capabilities (such as the constant aperture zoom lens) are much more heavy. The lens may look great, but it is you who will have to carry it everywhere, so take that into account as well.

Tip 335 (Large aperture needs): So, you look at a lens with a large aperture (a f number of f/2.8 or even f/1.4), and it looks like a great lens to you. However, a lens with such an aperture is ideally meant for conditions where the light is not so great, or where you want a very shallow depth of field (where only the desired object is in focus, and everything else is blurred / out of focus). If you don't have such needs, then do not go for such a lens. These lenses are much more expensive, are heavier, and need more care (because of the large lens area).

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