Welcome from another D.M. IA person and an SX50 user. This is a great site to get all your questions answered. I have learned a lot. Lots of friendly people willing to share their knowledge. UHH becomes addictive because you don't want to miss out on anything. :D
Thanks for answering. I have already ordered the 60mm. I watched the Canon site for refurbished micro lens but did not see any. Must have just missed it. I did get my Canon body at their refurbished site over Christmas. Maybe I'll have a chance later to trade the 60 in or sell it, and get the 100. I am sure it would be better for the working area it provides.
I can see how you would be undecided. Both are fabulous. I can see how someone would pick number one because of the eyes, but I guess I would pick number two because you can easier see the stance of the bird and what his beak looks like. But then I am a realist and that is what I like. One way or the other both are outstanding!
I have had the Canon EF-s 60mm lens for several years and have used it on several bodies...it is an excellent true macro lens and does great duty as a general purpose prime lens as well.
Thanks BRANman, this helps me to make the decision. I am going to order it this morning. I have had a much harder (and more confusing) time deciding on a lens to order than I did a camera body. Personal experience helps more than reading all the stats on this stuff.
I agree it is how you best learn. Myself, I bought the books but then didn't have the patience to do the reading. UHH is a great source. Usually if you have a question, other people do too and you get an answer before you even can ask the question. And if you do ask, so many are helpful. Also, YouTube has helped me more than I though it would. Someone gave me Lynda.com at Christmas and there are a lot of subjects to pick from. There are bound to be subjects you would like to know more about. You can pick and choose.
[quote=sbesaw]Walk around generally means zoom ie 18-270 or the like. I am unaware of any "true" macro that is a zoom. True macro usually means 1:1
I guess I should have said a "prime" lens that is a macro 1:1. I have a 35mm macro for my Olympus but it has always been a good prime lens for general purposes. So I was wanting something like that for the T4i. The 100mm does sound good for the working distance.
I am wanting a true macro that can double as a walk around lens for my Canon T4i. At this time I can't spend more than $500. Would the EF-S 60mm 2.8 work? Also, although I use Amazon a lot, I have never bought used. What do you think about used when it comes to a lens? (the only lens I now have for the T4i is the 18-135mm that came with the camera).
The last manual I printed out was ridiculous and I never wanted to depend on that again. The print was too small and overall, too awkward. So, when I bought my SX50, I ordered a manual from Manuals Ink (through Amazon) and got a nice spiral bound manual for $18.00. Well worth it to me. I recently bought a 2nd camera and will do that again (with the 10% discount I get for the next manual). Getting a preprinted one with the merchandise would be better, but guess companies have moved on from that.
I missed your post the other day and just now thought to search for the pictures. Thanks for posting. Neat pictures. I definitely have this down on my list of places to go. What time of year were you there. Maybe spring or summer? Do they have an information center there? I looked "sand" prairie up. I didn't realize there were different kinds of prairie as far as the soil. Another place I heard of but haven't been on the east side of Iowa, is Lake Iowa Park near Ladora. They have a bird blind there. I met up with some fellow photographers at Prairie City and they told me about that.