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Which inexpensive telephoto lens?


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As I get more into deep sky imaging with my Canon 1100D DSLR, I'm slowly coming to the realisation that I could do with a relatively fast fixed focal length lens in the 135mm to 200mm range.   From the little research I have done so far it seems that the Canon EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM seems to be the weapon of choice.

Unfortunately, at around £500, this is way beyond my budget.  Any other suggestions?

Thanks

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There are a few good 35mm type camera lenses available the M42 and Olymus OM both fit Canon DSLR with adaptors and can achieve infinity focus i use the Olympus Zuiko 135mm 3.5 Lens - Olympus OM Mount and find it works well wide open.

+1 for the SMC Takumar.

Alan

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You can pick up a 70-200 f4L pretty cheap second hand. Crazy sharp lenses those... ;-)

Can be variable quality for astro though I had one for a while and have see others who have had off centre gradients and "collimation" issues  etc with them...

The sort of things that you don't really notice for general 'togging' but show up like a sore thumb starfields...

Peter...

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One of the big plus points of the old lenses is that the focuser is usually silky smooth and has more range that puts it in a completely different league to most modern lenses and they have an infinity stop which is usually close enough to get you started with liveview.

Alan

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I use DSLR controller (Android) or APT (Windows PC) for focus control on my Nifty-Fifty, so an AF lens would be a plus rather than an minus.  However, having manual focus isn't a show stopper.

The SMC takumar (Pentax) 200mm F4 seems to sell for as little as £40 on Ebay.  How do they compare to the Canon EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM for image quality?

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SMC takumar is the best choice that is cheaper than the Canon EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM.

There are several versions of it so make sure you buy the SMC version, not the super takumar. Also there is 2 versions with K bayonett that are never, the regular version is as good or better as M42 takumar (but rare), but stay away from the Pentax-M version.

I think you need to stop it down to around f/5.6 to be the sharpest, the EF200 is probably best at f/4.

There is also a SMC takumar 135mm f/3.5 that is pretty good, but not as good as the 200mm.

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you can buy adapters that make any lens fit your dslr,but best to decide which manufacturer to stick with ...or you have to buy lots of adapters

browse amazon for the lens make to cannon fit

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There seem to several SMC takumar (Pentax) 200mm F4 lenses in 6 x 7 format on ebay.- seem to go form much less than the 35mm camera versions.

Can these be used with a Canon DSLR?

Not sure if you can achieve infinity focus with those unless you have an adapter with a lens but that ruins the image.

I have not tried them all but the M42 and Olympus OM fittings work.

Alan

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£50 from my local second hand camera store. 

picked up a 90-300mm EF (f4.5-5.6), for lunar wise its great , on my canon 350d its more like having a 118mm - 460mm on a full frame camera.

good lunar shots, and also ok for daytime, ( autofocus can be a pain slow n slightly noisey)

i also own a  manual apeture/focus Sankyô Kôki Komura 135mm f/2.8,

i need to find a adapter ring to fit the M42 thread but also reach infinity

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If you can pick up something like a Sigma 150mm macro lens, it works really nicely... and focuses well with dSLR controller on droid.

http://www.mpbphotographic.co.uk/used-equipment/used-lenses/used-canon-fit-lenses/sigma-150mm-f-2.8-apo-ex-dg-hsm-macro,-canon-fit-2

And... 'Here's one I prepared earlier' :D

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/209994-just-35-minutes-belt-and-sword/

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Well the lens has now arrived.  It looks a really nice lens.

It easily comes to focus with by shimmed, modified Canon 1100D with IDAS filter. The 1000D only just comes to focus if I tighten up the M42 to Canon adaptor really tightly.

A quick 5 second undriven exposure seems to show sharp stars with the Canon 1000D. I'll try to knock off a quick tracked shot over the next week.

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Looking forward to the results. I should try to give my old Contax lenses an an outing some time soon. I have the adapters, and with filters in place they seem to come to focus, but the nights have not been good, and those rare nights of good weather I often prefer the more hassle-free pastime of observing.

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There seem to several SMC takumar (Pentax) 200mm F4 lenses in 6 x 7 format on ebay.- seem to go form much less than the 35mm camera versions.

Can these be used with a Canon DSLR?

They can be used, but have heavy green CA so they are best used for mono imaging.

Do you have any pictures of your new lens? How much did you pay for it?

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  • 4 months later...

They can be used, but have heavy green CA so they are best used for mono imaging.

Do you have any pictures of your new lens? How much did you pay for it?

It cost me £135 on a dealer on EBay.  That's a lttle over the odds (they usually go for £110 to £125),   The dealer had very good feedback score with comments about honest assessment of condition.  His listing said it was the best example of this lens he'd seen for a while, so I went for it.  No regrets

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