Weekend London: 24-105 or 17-40

My girlfriend got me a long weekend trip to London for my birthday, and we' re going next week from Friday to Monday.

I was at first sure I'd just bring a tiny camerabag (Domke F-5Xz) with one body, one lens and at best a tabletop tripod (I have a manfrotto that does OK if I can put it on top of something). The obvious choice was to go for the 5D + 24-105.

Now I was just looking at what pics I like from flickr, I see that nearly every shot is 20mm or wider... So now I' m considering bringing the 17-40 instead.

Out of my gear - What would you go for? I could potentially take both, but I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving one in the hotel and not sure I wanna be carrying two lenses around for 4 days.

If I apply lens correction, the 24-105 becomes like 25 or 26mm, but the 24-105 has such a nice range and IS might help with some indoor stuff / handheld HDR.

Do you think it's worth to go for the UWA option and lose out on the 40-100mm end?

Hi,

First off and probably most importantly - bring an umbrella

Personally, I would take the 17-40 if you plan on taking lots of 'landmark' pics. Some great shots to be had along the Thames around Embankment - if you're into that sort of thing.

when i went to london i only had a 30D + 24-105L and i was ok so having a 5d youd prolly do better. that being said wheneve i travel i almost always just bring 1 lens (10-22 or 16-35 for you FF fellas).

Im interested in this thread as well since im moving up to a 5d3 soon and im not sure if i need to purchase a 17-40 to replace my 10-22. I have never had the 18-24 range in crop before (24-35 FF) so im not sure what im missing.

Personally i find 24mm on ff wide enough for most situation. If you absolutely bringing only one lens, my choice is 24-105.

Don't forget the IS will help as well...it's just more versatile imo.

The 5D + 24-105 combo, without a doubt.

kin2son wrote in post #14409233
Personally i find 24mm on ff wide enough for most situation.

I'll vote for the 24-105 as well... London is compact, but not so demanding that 24mm isn't well sufficient for the job. Don't forget if you're indoors and find you need wider you can also overlap your shots and create a panorama. I definitely wouldn't carry both lenses just for the additional 7mm.

Thanks for the fast replies - I figured that 24 would be good enough, and I could always attempt some stitches
I think that inside the IS might help just that bit to make the shot work, and also one major point: the 24-105's hood fits in my bag, where the 17-40's hood does not...

For now I'll go for the 24-105 alone, and maybe toss a 50 1.8 somewhere in my luggage.

Umbrella is a good tip indeed... But coming from the Netherlands, I'm already used to dealing with lousy weather.

bring some comfortable shoes as well

I'd take the 17-40 as well

If it's just one, 24-105. However, the 17-40 is pretty small and light so maybe take both. Leave the hood for the 17-40 home all the same.

I'd take both. there are just too many landmarks that wouldn't be done justice at 24mm. I really don't think carrying one extra lens would be all that much bother.

24-105 and 10-22 on separate bodies