Camera Lens?

Question

I just bought a Canon Rebel EOS Digital XTi camera (newbie to photography) which came with a Tamron AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di LD Macro 1:2 and a Tamron AF 28-80mm F/3.5-5.6 Aspherical lens. I am taking a trip to Scotland and want to a have a universal lens and I don't know if the one I have will work well enough (the AF28-80mm). I don't know what I should get and I don't want to spend a lot either. Any ideas? I plan on taking a lot of landscape photos, castles etc.

Answer 1

I'm sorry to post this in public, Terisu, but I want to correct a misconception contained in your answer.

Even if a lens is labeled "DX" or "Di" or otherwise called a "digital" lens for an SLR, the focal length is simply the focal length. If you put a 28-80 "digital" lens on a Canon XTi, the 1.6 lens factor still applies and the lens behaves as if it was a 45-128 mm lens, were it compared to a 35 mm equivalence.

When you refer to choosing a focal length based on whether a lens was designed for a digital camera vs. a film camera, the focal lengths would be exactly the same. What _IS_ different, however, is that the digital lens will not cover the entire frame if you use it on a film camera or a digital camera with a full size sensor, for that matter. A digital 18 mm lens placed on a Canon XTi will behave as if it was a 29 mm lens. A film 18 mm lens placed on a Canon XTi will behave as if it was a 29 mm lens.

Outside of that technical point, though, I agree with your recommendation totally. PCK has time to get out there in her own town and take dozens of pictures of things near and far just to get the idea if she will be satisfied with her lenses for the trip.

I would probably take only my 18-200 lens on a trip where I did not want to worry about swapping lenses all the time. It's not the world's most perfect lens, but it is much better than "just okay." Canon does not make a lens that compares to this, but PCK, you might consider the Sigma lens, since you are okay with 3rd party lenses. At B&H Photo, they have the lens and one user review said, "This is a great overall lens. If I could only take one lens on a trip, this would be it."

This is the Sigma Zoom Super Wide Angle 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Aspherical (IF) Lens for Canon Digital EOS and www.bhphoto.com has it in stock for $379 plus shipping.

Answer 2

The 28-80 will probably do it for you, but just to make sure, try it out before you go. Take pictures of everything. Soon you will know if your lens will suit your needs, or if you need to go with a lens with more range. Is that lens a digital also? If not, then you might need something that can go wider, because lenses made for film cameras become more telephoto on digital cameras, by a factor of 1.6x. So your 28-80 would actually be closer to a 50mm to 128. That's good on the telephoto side, but for castles and landscapes, you'll want to go wider. A lens that starts around 18mm, if it's made for a film camera, or 28mm if it's a digital lens, would be better.

Dr. Sam, you're right as usual. The focal length is the same either way, but if you put a non-digital lens on a digital camera, then your zoom range will be the equivalent of a 1.6 magnification, due to the chip in the digital being smaller than 35mm film.

Answer 3

The 28-80 is a reasonably good general purpose lens. It won't give you super wide angle or extreme close-ups, but it's a reasonable zoom range.
You might want to consider getting an 18-200 lens, which gives you a bit more wide angle, if you feel you need it, and a lot of zoom (although less than the 300 mm) without needing to change lenses. The Sigma and Tamron versions sell for about $400, and are okay lenses.

Answer 4

From a practical perspective, it's always difficult to know ahead of time what zoom ranges will work best in vacation photos.

Good news: Your camera can cover a wide range by using removable lenses.

Bad news: To get a wide range, you have to cart around a collection of lenses.

If you have to pick just one of yours, go with the 28-80mm. This will not fit every situation (no one lens will), but it is closer to what you need for landscape and building shots. If you do some test shots at home and find that you want more wide angle, look for a new lens with a zoom range starting less than 28 mm.

When I travel, I always seem to find the best shots of large buildings when taken from a distance with telephoto. So I have given up on d-SLR cameras and lenses, and switched to an Ultra Zoom Sony DSC-H1 that gives me 35-428mm equivalent range in a smaller, light weight package. You can even buy small add-on lenses (about $100 each), for increased wide angle or telephoto.

This type of camera from Sony or Canon is available for under $300, and could be an alternative to buying another lens for the SLR.

Good Luck and Have Fun!

Answer 5

I take it you already have the camera and lenses. The lenses you have are fine for standard 35mm photography (that's what they were designed for). And the 70-300 will allow you to make almost frame filling shots of wildlife (at 300).

Of these two lenses, the 28-80 will give you the most flexibility. However, it is basically a 'normal' to moderate telephoto lens. It doesn't have a wide angle capability. This means that if you are in close quarters, you may not be able to get the whole castle in the picture.

Ideally you would have a lens in the 17-90 or 100 range.

Answer 6

Y tamron lens? use the canon original lens. its much better in quality.
If you dont use zoom much 28-80mm it should be enough and convenient to travel without the heavy accessories.
If you more to zoom get a 18-200mm lens will do just fine.
have a nice trip.

Answer 7

It makes a centred beam, final I heard beams of sunshine weren't sq.. that's interior the physics. think of roughly swirling your coffee. In a around cup it is going all around easily. In a sq. cup (attempt it your self suitable now in a Tupperware) it gets caught interior the corners and this section's going up and down and that's swirling sideways and nevertheless that may no longer shifting interior the nook. that's purely a multitude. analyze that to around the place it only information in like squaddies in a line. candy. in case you pick, take a photo and not employing a lens on. i've got not performed this myself yet i could assume some thing like a watercolor portray which you spilled some thing on.