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Hi Guys
I have just purchased a canon 20d dslr (hopefully arriving this week).
I have been looking at the lens prices on fleabay for a 300mm zoom/telephoto lens and find at the moment they are out of my price range.
I have noticed though that some lens for other makes of camera are within my price range and that adaptors are available to make them fit on to my camera.
I know I would have to use it in manual mode for focusing.
My question is. is it practical to do this if so what makes of lens should I look out for and which should I avoid.
Would this cause any problems using the camera.
I have also noticed even though the camera is supposed to be able to use all EF and EFS lens some sellers say not suitable for digitial cameras on their listings for EF lenses.
Why is this?
Hope someone can advise me.
Cheers Jim
The 20D can use both EF & EF-S lenses.
As for other makes of lens you need to be careful that it will have all the Canon functions, some dont. My advice - stick to Canon Lenses
what is you price range ? i would stick with a canon lens & i would try & buy an L lens because when you come to upgrade you will get your money back ! the 20d is a great camera i had one for years . 
I had a sigma lens,it was an EF fitment but it just kept giving me ERR99. It was a DL lens that i had the problem with i think the DG lenses are ok but do not quote me on that. I managed to get a Canon 75-300 lens on ebay for £70.
Don't believe all the sellers that say Sigma can re-chip the lens,i phoned Sigma for the DL lens and they said that they no longer have the part. Keep looking on e-bay for a canon,sometimes they're flooded with them and you can be spoilt for choice.
P.S
there are 5 canon 75-300 lenses on ebay at the moment within your budget all finishing in 2 days,so one may get overlooked
You may also find cheap second hand 80-200mm Canon lenses like this one:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CANON-LENS-80-200-mm-1-5-/170840931294?pt=UK_Lenses_Fi...
This gives an equivalent of 128-320mm on your 20D. I'd recommend getting a lens for full frame cameras in case you get one in the future.
Btw, enjoy the 20D. I had one for three years and it was a revelation compared to my compact camera
Quote: Thanks for the info
The EF lens I have looked that say not suitable for eos digitals have been sigmas.
Sigma do not have access to Canon's sotfware for AF and metering so Sigma have to reverse-engineer the technology. This means that a Sigma lens for one Canon model may not work on another model - it is usually where the lens will not work on newer models than the lens was designed for.
I would take the opposite view to coffeyboy - if a EF-S lens suits your needs, then buy it. Don't worry about 'if I get a full frame in the future' because that is likely a long way off (looking at your budget) and I have lost track of how many people on different forums start with this idea and it is still affecting their buying plans 5 or more years later. Buy the lens you need now and if it is an EF lens then all well and good.
Quote: This gives an equivalent of 128-320mm on your 20D.
As you are a beginner I am guessing that this is totally irrelevant to your buying decision for two reasons. Firstly, the 'crop factor' does not affect magnification. Secondly the 'crop factor' element was introduced for people who were transitioning between 35mm film and digital (when all digital were APS-C) and they wanted to understand how the new technology affected their choice of lens for a particular shot. If you have never used a 35mm camera, then the crop factor is meaningless.
Quote: Thanks for the info
The EF lens I have looked that say not suitable for eos digitals have been sigmas.
Sigma do not have access to Canon's sotfware for AF and metering so Sigma have to reverse-engineer the technology. This means that a Sigma lens for one Canon model may not work on another model - it is usually where the lens will not work on newer models than the lens was designed for.
I would take the opposite view to coffeyboy - if a EF-S lens suits your needs, then buy it. Don't worry about 'if I get a full frame in the future' because that is likely a long way off (looking at your budget) and I have lost track of how many people on different forums start with this idea and it is still affecting their buying plans 5 or more years later. Buy the lens you need now and if it is an EF lens then all well and good.
This gives an equivalent of 128-320mm on your 20D.
As you are a beginner I am guessing that this is totally irrelevant to your buying decision for two reasons. Firstly, the 'crop factor' does not affect magnification. Secondly the 'crop factor' element was introduced for people who were transitioning between 35mm film and digital (when all digital were APS-C) and they wanted to understand how the new technology affected their choice of lens for a particular shot. If you have never used a 35mm camera, then the crop factor is meaningless.
Thanks for the info
I am watching about 20 lenses on fleabay at the moment hopefully one of them might slip through unnoticed
I have decided just to look at canon lenses at the moment I am watching 80-200 mm 55-250 mm & 75-300 mm lenses.
I figure I should get a decent mid-long range photos with one of these.
Cheers Jim
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