Rome Italy New 60D

Thank you all for your most valuable input! I decided on the Canon 15-85 IS-USM. I've been playing with it for a few days now and I think it will be the only lens I take. I added the BG-E9 Grip and what a difference in the balance of the lens it made. I hope that one day I will be sharp enough to give advice to newbies.
Thanks again and ARRIVEDERCI !

Nick

Take your 18-55 as a spare in case of a problem. I broke a lens when in Rome, and the only extra lens I had was the Sigma 50 macro. On the next trip I take to Europe, I plan to take at least 1 general purpose zoom (like the 18-55IS or a similar lens) and the Tokina 12-24f4.
A coworker took some shots in Ireland and then discovered the lens became decentered on the trip. He didn't have a spare. Once you are in Rome, you will want to have a backup in case of a problem with your primary lens.

Wide is more important than long in Rome, and IS will be helpful.

Bring a camcorder. DSLR's aren't made for shooting home video type recordings.

Great advice ARTYH! I will take a spare lens, just in case.
Nick

Thanks STIRFRYALAOT, I noticed the lack of autofocus really limits the video option on the 60D. At least for me and what little experimenting Iv'e done, it is disappointing in the video mode.
Nick

To determine the correct shutter speed you need to double the FPS you plan on shooting with. Its best to shoot around 30FPS so a shutter speed around 50-120 is recommended. This means that on a bright day you will really have to stop down to avoid your video being over exposed. Otherwise you will want to get a ND filter if you want a shallow DOF. Using just the viewfinder to shoot narrow DOF is a major pain in the ass and you won't enjoy your trip. Shooting at a slower shutter speed will result in a blurry image while too fast of a shutter speed will make moving subjects look very choppy. The 50-120 range will drag the shutter just enough to give movement a fluid look to it.

Also if you do decide to use your 60d as a video device you pretty much have to build a lens collection around fixed apertures. If not you will be constantly wrestling with reexposing your shot and none of your clips will be the same exposures when you bring it all into post to edit it.