Help!! Lens ?

[saycheez]

Just bought a new 20D. I was always a point and shoot photographer and recently became interested in digital camera. I took a basic 3 day class on photography and read a few books so I understand most of the terms. Anyways, here is one of many questions I have. I bought the camera for my summer trip. We are spending 28 days traveling from Michigan to California and stopping at Grand Canyon, Bolsa Chicha Beach California, Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore. I know I need some type of wide angle lens but don't know what to buy. I can't afford a L series. I'm new but know the difference. Thanks for any suggestions

[mbze430]

Your "true wide" is the 10-22, whic is 16-35 equivelent. It's a pretty expensive lens about $600-$700.

[tim]

Have a look in this thread (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=56752) for some tips, then come back and ask more questions :) Tell us your budget too, and your photographic preferences. Landscapes obviously, but what else do you like to take photos of?

[Dchemist]

I have a 17-40 L which is a relatively modest investment (about $680 at B&H Photo) and takes great images on my 20D.

[fstop]

The 10-22 mentioned above is a fine lens, and pricey. Plus it only works with the 20D and Rebel(s) digitals with the APS-size sensor. You might be better off with a standard 35mm wide angle or wide-to-moderate zoom. Tamron, Sigma, Tokina . . . all of these brands are worth your consideration. Try to get a lens that will get you down to the equivalent of 28mm or 35mm (something in the 20mm range should be okay), with an upper end in the range of 70-80mm. Just my two cents. Others may have better ideas.

[saycheez]

[/QUOTE]Tell us your budget too, and your photographic preferences. Landscapes obviously, but what else do you like to take photos of?

I have 3 kids 7,9, and 10 take lots of pictures of school and sports the average family stuff. I would love to stay under $500 if possible but I don't want to compromise and not get good shots during my trip.

[RodneyCyr]

I use a Sigma 12-24mm, which actually covers a full 35mm frame. It seems to give very good results on my Digital Rebel. Nonetheless, if I were doing it again, I would probably buy the Canon 10-22 unless I thought I might be buying a full-frame-size Canon DSLR in the future.

[wolf]

Have a look at the Tamron 17-35 f/2.8-4. It has gotten excellent reviews that put it into the same class as the Canon 17-40 and is $200 cheaper.

[thomasrhee]

I'd suggest going with either the Canon 10-22/3.5-4.5 or the 17-40/4L depending on how wide you need/prefer to go. They're $800 and $680 (B&H Photo price) respectively.

If that's too much money, use the Canon 18-55/3.5-5.6. Not sure if you bought the kit version of the 20D. If not, the lens can be bought on eBay for around $60-80 and most of them will be in mint to brand new condition. It's not a great lens but it's certainly not as bad as most people make it out to be. For the money, I actually think it's pretty good especially once you stop down the lens to at least f5.6. The image quality will still be better than any P&S digital that you may have used.

Use the lens as a beater to get aquainted with your 20D. It also makes for a nice lightweight walk around lens when you want to travel extra light.

As a side-note... yesterday, I compared the weight of my wife's XT + 18-55 vs. my 20D + 17-40 and was shocked at how much lighter her setup was.

tyr

[Jon]

Your 18-55 EF-S will probably be fine. It covers about a 60 degree angle of view, so your field of view will be a little wider than the distance to the subject (if you've used 35 mm P&S, it's about like a 28 mm lens there, so it's a good general wide angle). Anything much wider, you'll need to really work at, or you'll be disappointed. Those wide, sweeping vistas just disappear into a pretty small line when you get a really wide angle lens, like the 10-22 at 10 mm, on the camera unless you've really got the hang of it. If you want those wide vistas from your trip, you might consider using PhotoStitch or PhotoShop Elements to paste several pictures into a panorama. This thread (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=49468) in particular is very helpful about making panoramas.