Choosing my next lens

Now that I've had some time to get to know my Canon Digital Rebel XTi, I'm starting to discover what it is I actually want to do with this camera, and see some of the limitations in the equipment I own. The flexibility of changing lenses is what finally solidified my decision to go with a dSLR camera, and as such, I'm starting to get a feel for what lenses I want (now that I'm getting a sense of what I want to do with this thing!)

SLRGear has an article called, "Your Second Lens." I'm much enjoying it, as I'm at the point where I'm thinking about my next lens purchase. As I expected from reading various reviews, the kit lens(18-55mm) that comes with the Rebel is so-so. The zoom range is nice (I think the saying would be, it's a nice walk-about lens), but at f/3.5-5.6 aperture, my biggest complaint is that it pretty much sucks for hand-holding indoors in available light. One thing I am loving about this camera versus my old point-n-shoots is taking photos in available light without a flash. I love the ambiance and the mood. But the kit lens makes it tough, as the long shutter speeds result in a lot of blur, sans-tripod.

The frustration I've encountered while photographing indoors makes me think that maybe a faster lens with a wider aperture is in order.

I'm not made of money, so I'm going to have to make some sacrifices - most notably in the fact that I'll be looking at third party lenses as well as lenses made specifically for dSLR's (meaning, not full frame compatible lenses).

Canon makes a reasonably priced fast zoom lens that is full frame compatible - the EF 17-40mm f/4L (their higher end glass, I believe, as denoted by the L) - but it's not as "fast" as some of the other options out there in the same price range, and if my desire is to shoot in lower lighting situations without a flash, then I should be looking for the fastest bang for my buck, right?

That brings me to the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 Di II LD Aspherical IF SP AF. Around the same price point ($450) - fast, and gets a 9.07 rating from SLRGear. To quote their review:

As you might expect, it figuratively mops the floor with Canon and Nikon's "kit" lenses.

I think this lens might be my next walk-about lens.

While a long telephoto zoom of 500mm is darned attractive for my love of shooting animals, the 70-300mm I bought is serving me well and is going to have to do, as those longer zooms are upwards of $1,400! One can dream, though...

Unfortunately for me, I'm also into shooting flowers, so a macro lens is in order. After reading the various reviews, I think the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM is the winner. It's within $100 or so of the Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 SP AF (the runner-up, in my mind) and has USM to boot. It's also full-frame compatible, should I ever be in a situation to upgrade my camera body.

All in all, I still haven't decided which lens I'll buy next, but at least I have chosen one in each category! :)