Lens recommendation

theleg

theleg

theleg

Soldato
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
13,426
Location
UK
Hi chaps...Im off on me hols and im after a new lens.

Ill be in the south of france and so ill be wanting something that can do a few things decently well..Landscape shots of mountains/coastlines etc..but there will also be some urban shots in small, cramped villages/towns...along with some group portrait pics..

Is there any lens that can do all that stuff well? :eek:

Canon 400d btw..

Thanks all.
 
Budget?

For the portrait/general snapped

Canon 50mm 1.8 for £50, can't go wrong.

For landscapes then I'd look at a Canon 10-20.
 
Budget isnt too much of a concern as long as its not insane :o Im also still very much a beginner and a great lens might not be justifiable :o

and sorry, two lenses isnt really an option...sadly space is hugely restricted and thats why ive gotta look for a jack of all trades kinda lens...a walkabout lens..

ive been looking at the canon 10-22 and it seems very nice.
 
Balddog said:
Im also kinda liking the look of the 17-40mm
Click to expand...


Well a 10-20 Won't be much good at portraits as far as I'm aware.

You must be able to spare the space!!! Just look at the size of it!

50mm.jpg


50mm1.jpg


EDIT: I'll start looking for a lens now I promise, but to pimp the 50mm 1.8 some more heres a large version of a pic I took the other night, that was in low light and hard to shoot conditions! http://www.je-design.co.uk/IMG_2555.jpg


I even put a little rubber ducky in there for size comparison :p

The 17-40L is a FANTASTIC lens, but you say a beginner, so I don't think you will benefit from a L glass lens enough to justify the cost.

Both of those pictures were just shot with the 17-40L btw.

EDIT: I do apologise I'm not being that much help, I'll take a look to try and find a better "jack of all trades" so to speak.
 
Last edited:
No idea how much they are but maybe a Sigma EX 24-70 F2.8?

Though maybe something wider and longer, if space is really at a premium like an 18-200 ?
 
I actually do have the 50mm...

I dunno...I think the main problem is me not knowing what I want to shoot..being a beginner and all..

Portraits and candids are my interest..but when i see great landscape shots, im like WHOA..

Maybe I could stuff the 50mm somewhere and take it too..

How do you like your 17-40?
 
Balddog said:
How do you like your 17-40?
Click to expand...

Best lens I've got for walking around and snapping, and lots of other purposes as well.


Internal ultrasonic focusing, it's quiet, very fast, image quality is superb, I took some pictures of my sister horse riding the other day and it performed great, even during the sunset!

I haven't done "that" much work with it as i've been very busy but so far I haven't regretted buying it :)

EDIT: Your main problem is your lack of space, therefore wanting a lens to "do it all" and as far as I'm aware (I could be wrong) there isn't a lens which is good at everything, hence the large collection of lens' available :)

In your position I would probably go for a Canon 28-135 IS

This wil be good at taking your portrait's, candid's, it goes down to 28mm so it'll be "ok" for landscapes, but for those you really do want a 10-20mm, which aren't really much bigger than the 50mm 1.8 so keep the 50mm at home and take the 10-20 and 28-135 IS.

The 28-135 IS can be had for £270.

Hope that helps.

P.S To anyone else, If I'm talking crap (I'm 90% sure I'm not then feel free to correct :p)
 
Last edited:
Balddog said:
Have you got any example pics?
Click to expand...


For the 17-40L?

I've got one which is completely unprocessed so it could be made better.

Lemme host it, will edit in a few moments.

EDIT: I'm really really not one that can show off it's true capability's, I haven't had much time to work with the lens, and this picture is completely unprocessed.

kate.jpg


trails.jpg


Took the second one the other night, that's had some PP work.
 
Last edited:
Sounds to me like you lens should hit the spec of between 18mm / 70mm

There is such a broad amount of lenses available for this job (to many to mention without more requirements)

Price?
Special features like Image Stability

This helps narrow down
1. Brand
2. Lens its self
 
Last edited:
Phate said:
for landscapes, but for those you really do want a 10-20mm, which aren't really much bigger than the 50mm 1.8 so keep the 50mm at home and take the 10-20 and 28-135 IS.

P.S To anyone else, If I'm talking crap (I'm 90% sure I'm not then feel free to correct :p)
Click to expand...

10-20 can be a bit 'extreme' for a lot of landscapes unless you solely use it at the 20mm end as it distorts like a bitch at 10mm, I find 18mm adequate for most landscapes and rarely use my 10-20 for such shots, with that tending to see more 'arty' shots where the distortion is 'used' rather than a problem.

If space really is a premium something like an 18-200 would be a wonderful tool to have. Though I still feel a 24-70, 18-70 or something is probably perfectly adequate, it's always nice to have that bit more reach.
 
divine_madness said:
10-20 can be a bit 'extreme' for a lot of landscapes unless you solely use it at the 20mm end as it distorts like a bitch at 10mm, I find 18mm adequate for most landscapes and rarely use my 10-20 for such shots, with that tending to see more 'arty' shots where the distortion is 'used' rather than a problem.

If space really is a premium something like an 18-200 would be a wonderful tool to have. Though I still feel a 24-70, 18-70 or something is probably perfectly adequate, it's always nice to have that bit more reach.
Click to expand...


Cool, I was aware that it can distort, but I have no idea how much, having never used the lens itself :)

I can think of some great places where 5mm would be just awesome! :D

EDIT: I hate this thread, It's got me looking at a certain eBay shop AGAIN and now I want more stuff :p
 
divine_madness said:
10-20 can be a bit 'extreme' for a lot of landscapes unless you solely use it at the 20mm end as it distorts like a bitch at 10mm, I find 18mm adequate for most landscapes and rarely use my 10-20 for such shots, with that tending to see more 'arty' shots where the distortion is 'used' rather than a problem.

If space really is a premium something like an 18-200 would be a wonderful tool to have. Though I still feel a 24-70, 18-70 or something is probably perfectly adequate, it's always nice to have that bit more reach.
Click to expand...
I think its important to pay attention to what Divine is saying here. While a 10 - 22 sounds great for wide stuff! The lens distortion at 10mm is something you don't want every image you take suffering from.
 
Fstop11 said:
I think its important to pay attention to what Divine is saying here. While a 10 - 22 sounds great for wide stuff! The lens distortion at 10mm is something you don't want every image you take suffering from.
Click to expand...


Do you or anyone here have any examples of this? I'd be interested to see what it does :)
 
Phate said:
Do you or anyone here have any examples of this? I'd be interested to see what it does :)
Click to expand...


DSC_3683_HDR_2_S.jpg


Not the best example, but notice how the clouds in the corner and the rocks at the bottom are somewhat 'stretched'.

It can be more apparent, let me have a poke about for some other uploaded stuff...


edit - you can see it here...

DSC_3249-01-S.jpg


DSC_3247-01-S.jpg


Those were shots of my room in Uni halls :)
 
Last edited:
I see what you are getting at, but you are also right in saying this can also be used in an "Artsy" kind of way.

EDIT: Just seen the second pic, see what you mean with the window :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom