2/6/11

BorrowLenses Review

I have found my favorite spot for renting lenses for my Canon. BorrowLenses.com is THE business. I have been a FB friend and have been watching them for a while as I have always wanted to get a super telephoto and/or something to take great pictures at Prince Jordan’s & The Indiana Tech Warriors Lacrosse games. Since it wasn’t something that I was going to do on a daily (or even weekly) basis, purchasing a lens was just out of the question.

 

Enter BorrowLenses.com. Last Sunday, I searched the website for a telephoto lens and selected the Tamron 200-500mm f/5-6.3 SP AF Di LD IF for Canon. For $100 (for a week rental) which included roundtrip FedEx shipping I received the lens, tripod mount, & hood. Ordered Sunday – arrived on Thursday (as requested) perfectly packed.

 

I am in love.

 

Friday night was a horrible night for shooting – at least for me. It was drizzling & cold and we had to take up shelter in a parking garage on the 2nd level so we could watch the game while being somewhat dry. Uggaahhh. The lighting was horrible. While the stadium lights were on and I adjusted my camera for tungsten light. I wasn’t under the lights…I was a gazillion ‘miles’ away in a dark parking garage. I keep fooling with the camera settings and then found the one florescent light in the garage to stand under; however, I just DON’T know enough about adjusting for light and movement to get really good pictures. Not the lens’ fault – user incompetence. Nevertheless, I am motivated to take a class to learn how to work with my camera to get good pics with an awesome lens in this kind of situation.

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Saturday was a much better day. The sun came out every now and then. I forgot the lens hood at the hotel and after reviewing some of the pictures, I was evident that I really could have used it. Some of the pictures had a glare or haze to them from the sun. Tip…Use all the tools given to you. They have a purpose. Still – I got some GREAT shots. I love how in some of the pics you can see the water droplets splashing up from the field. Cool beans.

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Saturday…Not a cloud in the sky. Bright! I used the lens hood this time and once again…I AM IN LOVE!. This lens was just fantastic for getting really close up shots of the action as a spectator – especially when you can’t stand on the field like the “professional” photographers can.

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I am so pleased with my rental. I even entered a contest for a $100 gift certificate. I so want to rent another lens for Indiana Tech Warriors Parents Weekend in March – well, even if I don’t win – I’m gonna rent another lens – prolly the same one.

 

A couple of tips for a novice like me when renting a telephoto…You will need a mono-pod. Once I got the lens on my housing, that mug was heavy – too heavy to hold up for entire game and it made it so easy to turn and follow the action. You also might want to have a lens cover for such a long lens. The lens I rented did not fit in my camera bag – AT ALL – but the Queen Mum had a zippered cover for a long lens with a strap that made transport a cinch.

 

While I am not aspiring to become a professional photographer or anything, I am desiring of fantastic photos for my effort. I plan on taking a class – particularly on low lighting and sports/action to be better prepared. If you ever want to take your game up and/or experiment with different lenses (or even a camera) before you buy (or just for grins & giggle in my case cause I’m not EVER purchasing a $1700+ lens) then BorrowLenses.com is the place for you. Check them out.