Lens help please!

[taffy12]

As I posted previously, I'm looking to buy a Canon t2i soon and am trying to figure out the whole lens thing. Though I took a photography class a few years ago and could probably relearn the basics pretty quickly, I definitely consider myself a newbie and have no idea which len(s) to buy! I'm having the toughest time figuring them all out! I would definitely need the lower end (read: cheaper) ones for right now. Could anyone help me break down what lens is good for what? And on the subject, if you were to select a lens to shoot each of the things below, which would you use?

 

* indoor photography without a flash (I recall from my photography class that flashes are tricky with a DSLR - my professor never even let us mess with them, saving that function for the next level class that I never got to take!)

 

* nighttime photography (such as on deck or of city lights)

 

* landscape photography

 

* macro photography

 

* good shots of cruise ships or islands on the horizon (or passing at a distance)

[shootr]

As I posted previously, I'm looking to buy a Canon t2i soon and am trying to figure out the whole lens thing. Though I took a photography class a few years ago and could probably relearn the basics pretty quickly, I definitely consider myself a newbie and have no idea which len(s) to buy! I'm having the toughest time figuring them all out! I would definitely need the lower end (read: cheaper) ones for right now. Could anyone help me break down what lens is good for what? And on the subject, if you were to select a lens to shoot each of the things below, which would you use?

 

* indoor photography without a flash (I recall from my photography class that flashes are tricky with a DSLR - my professor never even let us mess with them, saving that function for the next level class that I never got to take!) 50mm f1.8 = cheap and very wide open aperture. I bought an off-brand flash with bounce and zoom capabilities for 50.00, it makes indoor shots requiring a flash dramatically better - practice/experiment a little and you'll be happy.

 

* nighttime photography (such as on deck or of city lights) More a tripod needed than a specific lens, but low light needs low F# I bring a Gorilla pod (google that term) to steady the camera and use the timer or a remote trigger for longer exposures

 

* landscape photography I'm in the same boat as you, have the same kit lens, added a 55-200 zoom and have done well with it. Just got a 28-300 superzoom off eBay for 120.00, that will be my cruise lens as I'm not taking a whole lot of equipment.

 

* macro photography I haven't tried much yet.

 

* good shots of cruise ships or islands on the horizon (or passing at a distance) Hope to get my first taste of this in a month!

 

Only other thing I can add is the cheaper lens', which is all I can do right now, have weak and strong spots. Practice and take notes as to what combination of aperture and zoom levels get you the best images and stick as close to them as possible. Example - I'm finding on the 28-300 that the I can hold the aperture wide open at 300 and be satisfied, but at 28-100 the image is soft as hell. If I close it down to f8-f11, they sharpen up considerably.

 

Learn to get off the auto settings of the camera as quick as possible and use the aperture priority or manual mode as much as you can.

 

Just my .02

[awboater]

One thing that you always have to keep in mind when buying lenses is that a great camera with a mediocre lens results in a mediocre photo.

 

This is not to say that you cannot buy an inexpensive lens, but you have to be careful when doing so. It is far better to save up enough money until you can buy a good lens than buy a mediocre lens if that is all you can afford.

 

And the same logic goes by buying one good lens than two or three mediocre lenses at one time. Buy one good lens, then wait until you save up enough money, then buy a second lens, and so on. That is what I did as not many of us that call photography a hobby can afford to buy the good stuff all at one time.

 

I'll leave it to you to figure out what lenses are good and what ones are mediocre. But beyond that, here are my suggestions as what lenses work well for cruises:

 

SuperWide lenses:

 

One lens I have found particularly useful is a Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 superwide, which I own. Regardless of what kit lens you have, or even if you buy a superzoom, it will not cover this focal length.

 

Many posters here have gone to these superwides, regardless of brand, and I am sure most will agree that for cruises, they go a great job. They work well for a landscape lens, but more importantly, they also do a good job at insides of the ships, buildings, and so on. And at least with the Tokina version, at f/2.8, they are fast enough to get some interior shots as well.

 

Superzooms:

 

Another popular lens that many cruisers tend to favor, and I have one as well, is a super zoom. This becomes an all-in-one, walk-around lens. My superzoom is a Nikon 18-200mm, and works well for all but the longest telephoto shots.

 

One caveat though about the superzooms, even though they are rather expensive, is that they can have some optical issues. My lens has some softness in the corners when used wide open (as compared to my other lenses), but when stopped down to f/8, the lens becomes satisfactorily sharp.

 

For that reason, I consider this more of a daylight lens, which is fine for cruise ship use, and I am willing to trade lightweight compactness over bulk for travel (as it means one less lens to carry). But due to the lens optics issue, I purposely limited my superzoom to 11x. Some superzooms are 15x or more, and I just thought that was is getting into the marginal optics a bit too much for my tastes.

 

Night Photography:

 

Night-time photography is going to be hard to do even with a fast lens as the ship is always moving. Still, you can get some interesting shots in that regard. I used to carry a 50mm f/1.8, but hardly saw the need to use it, so I have not carried it lately. At any rate, every DSLR owner should have a 50mm f/1.8 as they are inexpensive, small and compact, and generally high quality. No reason not to own one.

 

Macro Lenses:

 

A couple of years ago I started to get into macro photography. This is a great and exciting aspect of photography, and opens up a new venue for your photo skills. I have a Tokina 100mm f/2.8 macro that I have been using, but I have not taken it on cruises as it is a bit too heavy, and when I add my macro light - just too much to carry.

 

Then a few months ago, I bought my son the new Nikon 40mm f/2.8 micro (Nikon calls their Macro lenses Micro). It was inexpensive, and normally, I would not consider such a lens a good macro choice due to it's short focal length. But he wanted it so I got it for him as a birthday present.

 

Man - that is a great lens, and especially for $270, opens up macro on a budget. I am not sure if Canon has anything similar, but I do know that Tokina has a 35mm macro (and should have one in a Canon mount).

 

When comparing the Nikon 40mm to the Tokina 100mm, the few things are that you need to be a lot closer to use the 40mm lens, which means it is not that good for bugs or things that get scared off (or will sting-bite you).

 

On the other hand, the depth-of-field is not as limited on the 40mm macro (it is wafer-thin on the 100mm lens), so there is a place for both lenses if you are really serious about macro). So I bought one of the Nikon 40mm micro lenses to take on cruises, and my Tokina 100mm will stay home.

 

I don't intend to take my macro flash with me on cruises as that is just more stuff I don't need to take, so I will get by without it.

 

Specialty/Fun Lenses:

 

 

The other lens I take is a 10.5mm f/2.8 fisheye. I use it enough to warrant taking it, and since it is about the size of a 50mm f/1.8, it is not a lot weight or bulk.

 

What I take:

 

So the 4 lenses I take on cruises are:

 

Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 superwide.

Nikon 18-200mm f3.5~5.6 super zoom

Nikon 40mm f/2.8 micro

Nikon 10.5mm f/2.8 fisheye

 

I have other lenses that are too heavy to take on cruises, but this is my current selection of cruise lenses.

 

I don't take a longer telephoto than 200mm as one issue you will fight with in the Caribbean is haze - especially over long distances over water. While you can correct much of it in post processing, it is just a pain to do when you have a lot of photos to fix.

 

If and when we go on an Alaskan cruise, I will consider taking my Tokina 80-400mm f/4.5~5.6 as there is not as much of a haze issue in that climate. But for now, it stays home as it is too bulky and heavy to take, and I really don't miss the longer focal length need.

 

Other Cruise related stuff:

 

A tripod I have, and one you might like to consider is a Benro Travel-Flat. Kind of a goofy looking thing, but it packs flat, so it is easy to carry. And more importantly, it is just as stable as a standard tripod. Also the Travel Flat breaks down pretty short - under 20", so it is easy to pack internally in some photo backpacks.

 

If you are looking for a monopod, an inexpensive and heavy duty one is the Sirui P306. This is a 6 section monopod that collapses down to around 15", but expands to about 60", so it is a great item to pack. Even though it has 6 sections, it is rather sturdy.

[Cruising Domer]

If you go buy the Canon camera you first mentioned and want to make an investment in a good lens, the Canon 17-55 EFS lens is outstanding (but not cheap). While it might not be as wide as several of the other lenses mentioned, it covers a very useful focal length for a crop camera. It also has a f/2.8 aperature AND image stabilization so it should help with those low-light shots if you don't want to use a flash -- indoor shots, night shots, etc.

 

I used this lens quite a bit when I also had a Canon 40D. One word of caution is that this lens is created specifically for Canon's crop cameras (EF-S mounts). When I moved to a full frame camera, I sold that lens for a Canon 24-105 which is now my main travel lens.

 

Good luck with your decision!

[woan]

I kind of agree with the others and I did cart around 50lbs of gear on my recent Antarctica cruise, but I might suggest that for most people a travel lens like the Sigma 18-250 (faster focus) or the Tamron 18-270 (lighter still and bigger range) is the best bet.

 

90% of my Antarctica trip I shot with the Sigma 18-250 with my Canon 7D:

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rwoan/collections/72157628496840155/

[Cosmo30068]

Woan -

Thank you for those amazing pictures. We will be on Celebrity's Infinity next February to the Falklands & Antarctica out of Buenos Aires & I just bought a 10-22 lens to go along with my 18-200. I am borrowing my sister's 100-300, so I think I should be in pretty good shape. What do you think?

You had perfect weather - it appears. How was the Drake?

[woan]

I think you are good though I would probably add a 1.4 Kenko TC.

 

The Drake was one of the three worst sailings in the life of our Captain. 37' waves. I perfected my one hand on the plate at all times eating technique while watching dishes go crashing around me.

 

You had perfect weather - it appears. How was the Drake?