Are these 40mm/50mm lenses actually better than the telephoto lens mentioned upthread or just better value? Also specifically for photos what is the best second lens for beginners?
The 40/50 mm are called prime lenses (ie, no zoom). They are sharper and have a much lower aperture ie f1.8 or f.2.8 vs f4 on the zoom lens.
In general, the more the lens does, the lower the quality.
The lower the f number the wider the aperture opens which means more light, so better in low light situations, and also smaller "depth of field" ie blurrier backgrounds.
You will get a much sharper and nicer shot with a prime lens, but you wont have any zoom.
If you need to get a little closer to the action, go with the zoom lens, but if you want amazing portraits, go with the 50mm. I would personally go for the 2nd!
+1
You would need to spend some serious money to get a quality zoom. The low-priced ones are garbage.
Yes, the results of hi end glass are so much better that the consumer zoom lenses, but they are not garbage! If you are a pro photographer and can afford to spend 2k+ on awesome zoom lenses, then go for it, but for hobbyists, or for photographers starting off, the consumer zoom lenses are more than good enough and are not garbage. Note: the above linked zoom lens does have 4.5/5 star rating.
