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Message from discussion Question about SLR and zoom lenses
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the Omrud  
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 More options Jul 6, 5:28 am
Newsgroups: alt.photography
From: the Omrud <usenet.om...@gEXPUNGEmail.com>
Date: Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:28:24 GMT
Local: Mon, Jul 6 2009 5:28 am
Subject: Re: Question about SLR and zoom lenses
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Mentalguy2k8 wrote:
> Hi,

> I'm looking to buy a mid-range SLR digital camera, are there any
> pitfalls I should be aware of?

Many, I'm afraid.  It's not easy to know where to start.

> Also, I'm looking at zoom lenses to go with it, how do I work out what
> magnification they are, eg 5x, 10x etc? For instance, this lens:
> http://shop.panasonic.co.uk/invt/hfs045200e

> says "90 to 400 mm (35 mm equivalent)" and "Maximum magnification:
> Approx. 0.19x / 0.38x (35mm film camera equivalent)".

SLR users don't tend to talk about 5x, etc, especially those of us who
have been taking photos since the 1950s.  What's interesting are the two
numbers of the zoom, e.g. 35 to 135, 90 to 400, etc.

50/55mm  is 1:1 real-life size.  So your lens above is a zoom, from
medium long to very long, a little more than 4x zoom range.  To confuse
matters, many mid-range digital SLR cameras have sensors smaller than an
original 35mm film frame, so the magnification of any lens is different
from when you use it on a "full frame sensor" camera.  If you need to
know why, you should read up on focal length, e.g.:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Focal_length.

Why did you choose this lens?  Would you never want to use a wide-angle
lens, as if you only have one like this, you wouldn't be able to.

> Can anyone tell me what this equates to? I'd preferably prefer to buy
> a camera package with a separate zoom lens, any recommendations for
> decent UK-based sites or shops? I'm currently looking at the Pixmania site.

Pixmania will deliver at a good price, but I have heard that they are
not as friendly as some if anything happens to go wrong.  I tend to use
Amazon if they have what I want.  Here's your lens:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-H-fs045200e-Lumix-45-200mm-F4-5-6/d...

Jessops is well established, but the shops have gone right downhill
since the 80s, unless you happen to live near one of their large stores
such as the one in Manchester.

--
David


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