UKH

Ok, so I bought my daughter her first "proper" camera for Christmas. It was a Cannon EO5 which wasn't what anyone recommended but it seemed good value and a good starter.

It came with a 15-45mm zoom lens. For her birthday I'd like to get her another lens. She is interested in wilderness photos and graffiti (photos of) so no consistency. I know this isn't much to go on but what would the experts suggest as a good second, all round, lens?

105mm macro. Sharp, some telephoto, not a bad portrait lens would be a possible choice. 

So, as I used to ask my engineers (before I retired)... "What problem are you trying to solve?"

Where is the current lens deficient? Too heavy or big? Focal length too short? Too long? Is it too slow (small max aperture)? Answer these questions and you will be a good way figuring out what her next lens might be. It's certainly not obvious from the "wilderness photos and graffiti" objective.

Probably all good questions but I don't know the answers. My guess would be that she needs something with a greater zoom or a wider angle?

I was about to suggest a prime about 100 mm but I see that SouthernSteve has beaten me to it.  The extra zoom would be better for wildlife and it'd be good for learning to "zoom with your feet."

I wouldn't try to go wider than the 15 mm.

As ever in photography budget probably matters and for that reason consider second hand.

something like the canon 75-300mm zoom would make a good pairing and open up more in the way of wildlife photography, and is fairly common as a second "kit" lens so can often be picked up second hand for very reasonable prices (I gave one away a few years ago to a friend that was starting out) as people upgrade: https://www.lcegroup.co.uk/Secondhand-Search/?Order=Price&View=Grid&...

For a much more special lens, around £300 the 70-200 L lens here looks to be good value: https://www.lcegroup.co.uk/Secondhand-Search/?Order=Price&View=Grid&...

If she wants to try macro, have a look at buying some macro extension tubes for her existing lens - they are cheap, but pretty effective and a good way to start out (I use them still with my proper Macro Lens to alter it's magnification) e.g. https://www.amazon.co.uk/SHOOT-Focus-Macro-Extension-Cameras/dp/B072MFB3Z6/...

As ever, thanks for the replies. I'll take a look at some of the suggestions, see what is available and make a decision.

Agree with balmybaldwin. Second hand is the way to go. I have nothing but praise for MPB Photography as a supplier of second hand equipment. Everything from top quality pro to basic kit. Have a look.

A prime lens may / should also show better quality and be ‘faster’.  Something like a 100mm macro could be a good call.  Children often like close up shots but it also gives other options and quality.  

It might also help to get an age range of your daughter and budget. 

My "go to" lens is a 24-105L but it is damned expensive and damned heavy and I wouldn't let a 17 year old near it unless they were a photography student never mind a 12 year old. 

50mm 1.8 is you standard "first prime" lens and used to be about 100 quid but it doesn't give you anything more in zoom range than she has right now so unless the 15-45 is struggling with low light, motion blur or low quality it won't really deliver  much. However if she's struggling to take steady picture of graffiti in dark alleyways then it might be worth a go - although the 15-45 that I can see at a quick google search has image stabilisation so might be OK in low light for static subjects like walls. 

The budget zoom option would be the 75-300 as someone else mentioned - used to be bundled with cameras in a kit so often found 2nd hand once they have been superseded.

Another option - and possibly the best - would be some tuition on how to use an SLR but not sure how practical that is during lock-down.

Heads up - Based  on the "15-45mm" first lens, I think the OP has an EOS-M, so many of the suggestions won't make sense (without complivations). 

If it’s actually an M series camera (I bought an M6 Mark II this year which came with a 15-45 kit lens with an annoying switch on it) then I’d recommend the 18-150 as the most useful everyday lens.

Some sort of 70-200mm or 70-300mm is a good bet 

... but not on an M series body!

But keep in mind it's probably a crop sensor - the APS-C Canon sensor has a crop factor of 1.6. So 15 mm is effectively 24 mm... 

They sell a decent adapter to use EF/EFS on M series bodies - not cheap though if I recall!

Is "wilderness" necessarily "wildlife"?

As others have said, it's a little hard to answer this without knowing what the perceived limitations of the current lens actually are. Too slow (small aperture) and not letting enough light in? Bulky (seems unlikely on M series)? Too short a focal length? Not wide angle enough (again seems unlikely)?

I don't think many people on here (myself included) have much experience of the Canon M series nor much awareness of lens availability.

Completely anecdotally and probably irrelevant, confusing and unhelpful, I have a crop sensor Canon dSLR (old 600D) with the following lenses:
Canon 24mm f/2.8
Yongnuo 35mm f/2.0
Canon 18-135mm f/3.5-whatever
Canon 50mm f/1.8
Sigma 55-200 cheap slow thing
Canon 100mm f/2.0


If I had to cut my lens ownership, I would get rid of the zoom lenses. But your daughter is not me! I like the zoom restriction of a prime lens plus the speed. I don't use the 35mm or the 50mm much, and could probably get along with just the 24mm and the 100mm! And if I had to choose between THOSE TWO, I'd keep the 24mm but that would be a hard choice. 

I do have a smaller mirrorless (Sony NEX F3) and have never considered adding a lens to its 16-50 kit lens. 

 

Good point 

Indeed, but that's what I call 'complications'.

Haha absolutely. The only reason I have one is because it came with my M series!

Thanks Guys, I am taking all of this on board. I suspect it is an M series but I'll check later. I agree that wildlife and wilderness are not the same thing but I do feel some sort of zoom is what she is looking for. She is 16 and has had one photography class but probably needs more.

And finally (to answer the OP's question), if it was me, I'd get the 22mm f2 pancake lens. Relatively cheap, fast, small. Ideal for landscapes, street photography and very portable.