So Ive been shooting with the XTi and kit lens this week just for fun. Its been awhile since I really forced myself to use this lens for anything but the wide end. I figured now would be a good time to go over the lens and give some tips on how to use the full capabilities of this lens.

For Starters, The Lens covers a 18-55mm focal length in relation to a Full frame or 35mm camera. Since this is an EF-S lens, it is only compatible with the Canon 1.6 crop bodies which include the Rebel XT, XTi and 20D-40D's. Thus making the FL range 29mm-88mm.

Aperture wise it covers f3.5-5.6 within the zoom range. This means that as the FL zooms out, the maximum aperture available will change with it. This is very important to be aware of, especially in low light conditions.

Here is a quick estimate of where the aperture will change:

18 - 23mm = f3.5
24 - 29mm = f4.0
30 - 35mm = f4.5
36 - 50mm = f5.0
51 - 55mm = f5.6

This lens is the lens that comes with your camera. That being said dont expect perfection. However, that does not mean this lens is incapable of taking some great images. There is an old saying of its the photographer not the camera, well its 100% right. You can get great images using this lens, its just knowing how to use it.

First thing.

Aperture, No matter if your shooting indoors or outdoors, bright sunny day or low light conditions. Knowing what your aperture does and how it effects your photograph is key. The Aperture controls the amount of light that hits the sensor through the lens. The smaller the number (f3.5 in this case) The wider the aperture will be. Vice versa would be the larger the number, say f22, the smaller the aperture will be, thus allowing minimal light. Aperture also controls DOF or Depth of Field. DOF refers to the amount of blurryness or out of focus appearance in the image. The wider the aperture, the more DOF there will be.

Why is aperture control so important with the kit lens? Well, Since this lens adjusts from f3.5-f5.6 throughout the focal length, you are effectively doubling or reducing the amount of light available by simply zooming in or out. This may not be a factor outdoors and lots of light, however come indoors and youll begin to struggle.

A tip for shooting indoors. Keep the zoom between 18 - 29mm. This will give you a max aperture of f3.5-f4. Allowing as much light in as possible. Its not terribly fast, but will make a huge difference if you were not previously aware.

DOF. To control DOF, say indoors again, because you are shooting wide open or with a wider aperture, it will be more prone to create the bokeh or out of focus appearance in the photograph. If you dont want that effect, step back. The farther the lens is away from the subject, effects the DOF as well. So by stepping backward you will have more in focus than out.

Focus, This is not the fastest AF by any means however it can still focus relatively quickly. A nice tip to compensate is to lock your focus on your subject before taking the photo. There are several ways to do this, consult your camera manual if you are not sure how.

Ill add more later. For now some Samples.

Nice writeup... We need people to post sample shots in here as well.

A tip for shooting indoors. Keep the zoom between 18 - 29mm. This will give you a max aperture of f3.5-f4. Allowing as much light in as possible.

2 points here. The first is with my P&S I always do the same thing in low light. It's faster aperture is also wide open so I'll use Av, set it to the max and keep it zoomed out. Then adjust the ISO up to get the shutter speed you need.

Also, for reference, I own another lens that's "similar", the 17-40mm f/4. It has a constant f/4 maximum aperture. The kit is actually faster at 18 - 23mm and the same at 24 - 29mm... Something to consider.

Finished my week using nothing but the XTi and Kit lens. Here are the other 5 images.

oh, hai mr google spider!

and yeah, this lens is the only lens that's ever been on Nikki's XSi. We LOVE the IS and size/weight. It's a hell of a kit lens honestly. I'm thinking of getting her the 50-250 now as well if it's as good a pair as I've heard. I wish they had a kit lens like wide though. The only thing this lens doesn't do is super low light w/o flash honestly. But ANY body this fits on has an onboard flash anyway...

Originally Posted by jacobsen1

oh, hai mr google spider!

and yeah, this lens is the only lens that's ever been on Nikki's XSi. We LOVE the IS and size/weight. It's a hell of a kit lens honestly. I'm thinking of getting her the 50-250 now as well if it's as good a pair as I've heard. I wish they had a kit lens like wide though. The only thing this lens doesn't do is super low light w/o flash honestly. But ANY body this fits on has an onboard flash anyway...

the XSI comes with the IS lens. the optics in it are supposed to be way better. i have one but never had the non-IS version so i can't compare.

anyway, i think it simply comes down to learning the strengths of your gear, whatever it may be, and using it to your advantage. this tutorial is a great example of that.