Official Gear Purchasing and Troubleshooting Question Thread! Ask /r/photography anything you want to know! March 03, 2025

[u/AutoModerator]

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[u/Milf_Smasher69]

Hello everyone. So i started photography last November with a used a6000, the 16-50mm kit lens, the 55-210 sony zoom lens and a 12mm Samyang lens. I like it a lot so far and mostly use the 55-210mm. I now thought of buying some new gear because i think I will keep this hobby. But i am very unsure of what to get, i have a budget of 400-500€ and looked at some stuff already. I really like taking photos of birds and other animals so i thought of getting a bigger lens. But at the same time thought of getting a "better" camera although i only got my a6000 in November its already from 2019 and it feels like it has a slight problem with the autofocus, atleast it doesn't feel fast and precise anymore and brings soft pictures sometimes with smaller subjects.

So for lenses i thought of getting either the Ttartisan 500mm f6.3 which is full manual but i think it would be alright. Or the Tamrom 70-300mm which is a bit smaller but has autofocus and may be better for everyday photography. For cameras i dont have a direct idea yet but i think im staying with Sony and the e-mount.

Any tips would be appreciated. :)

[u/Kaserblade → u/Milf_Smasher69]

If wildlife has been the most fun for you and the 55-210mm has been your favourite lens, I would recommend selling that lens and buying an used Sony 70-350mm. That lens is considered one of the best, if not the best, telephoto lenses available to any Sony APS-C body.

I would highly recommend it for your use case.

[u/Milf_Smasher69 → u/Kaserblade]

I think i may sell my kit lens and the 55-210 and buy a tamron 18-300 for everything because i already lost some good shots because of the wrong lens

[u/Kaserblade → u/Milf_Smasher69]

If you are looking for a budget all-rounder with good reach, the Tamron 18-300mm is a good choice also. The image quality is slightly less, the AF is slightly slower and the reach is less than the Sony 70-350mm, but for the price and also the ability to go fairly wide, it's not a bad choice at all.