aloha99
newbie
Reged: 05/07/2008
Posts: 18
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I am looking to replace my 18-55 kit lens for something similar but better for my 450D as it is not the greatest. I have been looking at the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM but have read some not so good reviews relating to barreling at the wide end. Any advise about this lend or other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 
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beejaybee
Marvin
Reged: 18/07/2007
Posts: 6279
Loc: Really Here In Name Only
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The EF-S 17-85 does indeed have fairly severe distortion at the wide end but unless your scenes are architectural you may not notice in practice. In any event the Canon DPP utility supplied with your camera (?) can remove distortion.
You might also want to look at the Sigma 17-70.
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Benchista
Which Tyler
Reged: 11/08/2000
Posts: 42180
Loc: Everywhere and nowhere, baby
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If it's the 18-55 IS you've got, I'm not convinced the 17-85 will give you a massive improvement in quality. Better build and more versatile, for sure.
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Nick
www.nbrphoto.com
Light and Shade II - the new blog
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aloha99
newbie
Reged: 05/07/2008
Posts: 18
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The 18-55 I have is the IS one but it really doesnt give great quality shots, I am looking for a replacement lense that will give me that extra quality as the 18-55 IS kit lense just seems to fall short by a long way. Many thanks for your advice
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Benchista
Which Tyler
Reged: 11/08/2000
Posts: 42180
Loc: Everywhere and nowhere, baby
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Have you compared it with other lenses? Are you shooting RAW or JPEG, and it JPEG, with what settings?
My wife uses a 450D and 18-55 IS, and at first I thought it was poor - but JPEGS need more sharpening than the default setting, and then suddenly it's really not bad. If that's all your issue is, it can be fixed for free.
For other lens options, Sigma's 17-70 is worth a look, the 18-50 f2.8 is really good, and the Tamron equivalent is also highly rated.
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Nick
www.nbrphoto.com
Light and Shade II - the new blog
Edited by Benchista (15/05/2009 18:14)
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alanS
The Flameproof Dr Dust
Reged: 30/09/2005
Posts: 4737
Loc: Up North, England.
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The Canon 17-85mm IS USM has a decent spec if a rather slow lens but I found the distortion at the wide end excessive. It might not be noticeable in some shots but straight lines may suffer and that could include horizons. It was all just too much for me and I replaced mine with a Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 which lacks IS and USM and 35mm of reach but I'd still say that it's a better lens.
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Alan's defence lawyer claimed that "Booze played no part in his typo's."
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Spiritflier
newbie
Reged: 16/05/2009
Posts: 10
Loc: N. Wales
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For the money, the Canon 18-55 IS is a good little lens in my opinion... My daughter uses one on her 400D without any major headaches.
It's already been mentioned by Benchista but the Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 is worth finding. There are two versions out there... One without a 'macro' capability and one with. I have the non-macro version and the images it produces are sharp enough to cut yourself on. If you want some idea what it's capable of, have a mooch through my Flickr images. Just enter '18-50' in the search box.
The other alternative is the Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 but I'd recommend taking your camera into a shop and trying different versions 'cos the quality control seems a bit suspect on that lens. If you get a good one, you'll love it but it can be a bit soft wide open.
Hope that helps a bit.
Si
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My Flickr
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aloha99
newbie
Reged: 05/07/2008
Posts: 18
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Many thanks to everyone who took the time to reply it has been a great help
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