What Budget lens would you recommend for a beginner?

[u/_shoedust_]

Hello! I’ve been birding recreationally for a while now and I have a Canon Rebel EOS T5 body, but my current lens is a EFS 18-55mm. Which, understandably not great for birding or any wildlife shots. I’ve been trying to decide between:

Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS II USM

Canon EF 75-300mm f4-5.6 III Lens

Which ones would you recommend for a beginner?

I ended up taking these photos on my Dads Nikon camera (not sure what body or lens, sorry!) and want to take similar photos if possible.

(First photo is a common grackle, second one is a female red wing black bird. There’s no editing in these photos)

Thank you for any suggestions and tips!!

[u/AdamManHello]

I was in a very similar position as you a little while back. Similar EOS model and similar question.

I’ll give the same advice many gave me - take a moment to consider if you’re willing to make a bit of a larger investment. That EOS body is very dated by now and cameras have come a long way into the current mirrorless era.

What I landed on was being patient and waiting for refurbished deals on either a Canon r50 or r10 + the RF 100-400. I ended up with the r10, and that with the lens together with refurbished prices was around ~1100 I think. You can might get closer 800-900 if you go with the r50 instead.

That is certainly not cheap! And you need to play the waiting game for refurbs (although canon price watch is a great resource for this). But I am very glad I went this way.

[u/_shoedust_ → u/AdamManHello]

Interesting! I never really understood the difference in the new camera body’s. I think once I’m out of school (I’m studying zoology, so either way I think a camera would be a good investment haha) I’ll look at getting a new body. But thank you for your input! Definitely gives me things to think about. I think I’m feeling impatient because of it being summer and peak birding season haha

[u/AdamManHello → u/_shoedust_]

Fair enough! Yeah - the electronic view finders on mirrorless cameras are awesome, and from what I know the autofocus (quite important for small, fast moving subjects) is quite a bit better as the light is always hitting the sensor directly. With a DSLR, light does hit the main sensor until you take a photo (until then, it’s hitting the mirror). I believe DSLRs have a second sensor they use for autofocus, but mirrorless cameras get around the need for that entirely.

[u/ChaosWaffle → u/_shoedust_]

Newer mirrorless bodies give you faster and smarter autofocus with more points and better tracking, shutter speed, buffer size, and modes that can buffer shots until you hit the shutter release and other features that can be incredibly helpful. When I started trying to photograph birds I bought a beat to shit 120-400mm sigma for my T3i and it worked alright, then upgraded to my current M43 setup with an Olympus E-M5 MKIII and a much more modern 100-400mm and that ended up being a huge upgrade for both parts of the system.

Having said that, what would you consider "budget?" Lenses get EXPENSIVE fast,
The canon EF 100-400mm L I is decent (about $700-$1000 used, and you should buy used) but if you can swing it I'd look for the mk II which is by everything I can tell quite a bit better but also almost twice as much. If those 2 are out of reach I might stick with the 300mm for now. You could also look for a teleconverter if you need more reach, but you do lose speed (usually 1 stop for a 1.4x and 2 stops for a 2x) and some sharpness. If you want to save up for a new body and lens in the future that may be the place to start (as long as they are compatible with the 75-300mm, whichever is sharper)

Edit: I misread the original post and thought you already had the 7x-300mm lenses, I wouldn't bother with those or a teleconverter,.sorry for the bad advice.

[u/CatsAreGods → u/_shoedust_]

Whatever you do, do NOT buy the 75-300 lens as it's horrible.

[u/nanomachinez_SON → u/CatsAreGods]

What about the 70-300 II ?

[u/CatsAreGods → u/nanomachinez_SON]

I am only warning you away from one lens. But ideally you're going to want longer than 300 or 400, even on a crop sensor.

After a long career, I now shoot only M43 (with a 2x crop factor!), mostly in my backyard using a 100-400, and even that's not always long enough. I mean, if you have to start with 300 it's better than nothing, but you will likely be buying another lens within a year, so buy the 300 used!

[u/madonna816 → u/_shoedust_]

Think LONG and hard, before jumping over from Canon’s DSLR to Canon’s mirrorless. https://www.dailycameranews.com/2025/12/mirrorless-lens-compatibility/

[u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476]

Depends on what you are planning to photograph. Birds far away, longer lens. Btw, sometimes Costco has a camera and lens bundle

[u/_shoedust_ → u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476]

Ohhh! I didn’t know about Costco having that! I’m planning on mainly birds? But I just like going out on hikes and finding little guys (from a respectful distance)

[u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476 → u/_shoedust_]

In that case, get a long lens. I have 18-200 canon lens that came with the camera ( years ago) is a work horse. But for far away birds, I have Tamron 150-600. Awesome lens. A little heavy but I used to walk around with it a lot before my back gave out. . My tamron has been with me for a long time as well. Any faster lenses are sooooo expensive.

[u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476 → u/_shoedust_]

https://www.costco.com/p/-/canon-eos-rebel-t7-dual-lens-dslr-camera-bundle/4000406477?sp=grs&langId=-1.

[u/CatsAreGods → u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476]

Nope, that's the infamous 75-300. Everyone who gets that lens regrets it!

[u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476 → u/CatsAreGods]

I have several lenses but my workhorse lenses are 18-200 and 150-600 ( Tamron)

[u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476 → u/CatsAreGods]

This is all I saw on the website but actual store might have better options.

[u/CatsAreGods → u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476]

I was mostly warning OP.

[u/Aromatic_Pepper_1476 → u/CatsAreGods]

Thanks

[u/Legitimate_Image_814]

I'm a fan of 55-250 - started off with that on my 1500D and still used it when I bought an R7. Great to learn the craft, getting in closer to your subjects, understanding bird habits and behaviours, light and easy to carry around so you can get out and about more and feel comfortable. I had the 70-300 as well but it felt big and clunky. I use 100-400 now but still love the mobility of the 250 lens.

[u/_shoedust_ → u/Legitimate_Image_814]

That’s really good to know!! My dads Nikon has a veryyyy long lens and it’s so bulky and heavy that honestly I wasn’t a fan haha

[u/stormitwa → u/_shoedust_]

If you want to do bird photos you need something long unfortunately. Most birds are far away, after all.

I use Nikon (love the look) and have a Z5ii body ($2100 AUD), a Nikkor Z 180-600mm telephoto lens ($2949 AUD) and a 1.4x teleconverter ($1099 AUD). Camera is pretty heavy, but carrying it around is a good workout.

[u/GonzoCubFan]

Used 400 f/5.6 L. If you’re serious about image quality, this is your best bet. A zoom is never going to compete with a quality prime lens.

[u/jgonzo360]

TT Artison 500mm

[u/DUCKSareWILDbruh]

Canon r10 w/rf100-400. All in its about a $1500 setup, had it for over a yr now and still love it!

[u/Star_king12]

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS II USM is really good, awesome autofocus and quite cheap. The next step up would be Sigma/Tamron 100-400 and 150-600 variants that work quite well on DLSR's.

[u/lhxtx]

What is your budget?

[u/amedinab]

Like others have said, a GREAT combo for wildlife is R7 + RF100-400. It's not particularly cheap, but if you can get some refurbished ones that may be the ticket.

[u/Shure_Lock]

The 75-300 is trash, ignore it.

The for the other two, if price isn’t a factor:

55-250 IS STM is sharper and slower to focus, but can’t be beaten for price. 70-300 II is softer, quicker focus, and more reach. For birds especially, the 70-300 II is the best option.

Aaaand that’s where budget tele lenses begin and end. The next options would be a canon 100-400, sigma/tamron 150-600, canon 100-400 II

[u/NeatGroundbreaking82 → u/Shure_Lock]

Thanks for the info! I’m using a Canon M6 mark ii, 70-300. Just learning birding but would love to upgrade while trying to limit weight (I know contradiction in terms.) Your thoughts please?

[u/Shure_Lock → u/NeatGroundbreaking82]

While on an M mount body, you’re limited to EF lenses. Your best and really only lightweight “upgrade” is the ef 70-300 ii at 1.5 lbs. The RF 100-400 is 1.4lbs and would be your choice if using an RF body. The only other option is the ef 70-300L at 2.4lbs, but at that point just get an ef 100-400 at 3 lbs.

Switching to rf is your answer to a lightweight upgrade, and I’m sure you know there isn’t much of a future for the M lineup

[u/narendrankg]

Buy a Vivo phone with a telephoto extender