Canon XTi Rebel?

Question

I have an XTI with 2 lenses a 75-300 EF lens and a 18-55 EF-s lens. I want to go to the botanic garden and take some photos like there will be a waterfall and peacocks and all sorts of plants and animals. I will take zoomed shots and others not so like I want to take just one lens which one would be better?

Answer 1

That's a tough question, because we don't really know if you want to capture the whole scene of zoom in like crazy on the peacocks. Personally, I think I'd take the 18-55.

Here is a mini-tutorial I made myself to compare focal lengths. This is NOT a lens test or a camera test! It is merely intended to show the difference between various focal lengths. The camera was a Nikon D200 and the lens was the Nikon 18-200 VR lens. There is further explanation on the image itself. It would help if you click on "All Sizes" above the image.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7189769@N04/476181737/

I was actually keeping the dock on the far shore centered for this series, but you might want to pay attention to the trees on the left of the frame in the first 4 pictures. (18, 24, 35 and 50; look at the true focal length and not the equivalent.) They are about 250-300 feet from my vantage point.

You might also look at this shot of a Great Blue Heron, though. He flew into the field of view as I was doing the other series. He is about 80-100 feet from me and this was shot with a 200 mm lens.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/samfeinstein/487852172/

I don't have that many pictures on the site and they are almost all identified as to the focal length used, so browse adn see if you think you might need your longer lens. Yes, you will be able to get tight shots of the animals, but unless this garden is huge, you might find yourself unable to get far enough away to get a good picture. Hey, how much does an extra lens weigh anyhow?

Answer 2

My first instinct is the grab the 18-55.

Sounds like there will be a lot more of need for a wider angle shot, such as for the waterfalls than anything else. But wen you need zoom, the 55 might not be as strong as you'd like for zooming up, but you can crop it a little to compensate if necessary. The 18-55 has a much shorter "subject to lens distance". It can get closer for picture, for closeups. And the 55 (actually 80) is a great length for portrait 'candid' shots which should be in the 800-100 range. Candid shots are always the best!

My main worry for the 75-300 is you will have to locate so far away from your subjects to fit in, that there my be problems with other plants or people in the shot causing distractions. However the 300 will be great for flittish birds at a distance.

After thinking about it, I'm still leaning to the 18-55.

Make sure you read everything Dr. Sam says. And his website is very educational to learn more.

Answer 3

Why do you have two lenses if you're going to leave one at home?

Get a freakin' camera bag -- 20 bucks at Wal-Mart!