Lens advice for nightscape's

Hello, i just purchased a Rebel XTi and since i'm a bit spot on budget and still a novice, decided on either a Tamron 17-50 or Sigma 17-70 for general/day time shooting. However i'm VERY interested in nightscapes yet not so much astrophotog (budget). I'm wondering if there are any lenses and f-settings recomended for decent/sharp night time shots of stars or cityscapes.

sub $450 range?

Since you'll be working on a tripod and shooting landscape your going to be stopped down, say f/8 to f/11, the kit lens will do a good enough job under these cirumstances IMO.

thank you, unfortunately i am kicking myself right now for not ordering the full kit. It would have given me something to learn on and develop my knowledge.

Would the lenses referenced above be sufficient for starter? in which case would truly be my 'all around lens' (for now)

Since you havn't got a kit lens, either of the above will be perfect. It's just a matter of what you want to shoot apart from nightscapes.

17-70 has a little more reach and a closer focusing distance for macro.
17-50 has constant f/2.8 aperture, better for lower light and portrait style shots.

The Tamron 17-50 or Sigma 17-70 are both good lenses. I've used the Tamron and own the Sigma. The Tamron's sharper but the Sigma is a bit more versatile and still quite sharp. If the Sigma had been available at the time I bought my XT, I would have gotten it instead of the kit lens.

For Nightscapes, you don't need a particularly fast lens, just a sturdy tripod and maybe a remote shutter release (could use timer instead).

I've heard a lot of good things about the sigma 17-70. I ended up going with a 10-22 ef-s as I find myself more interested in the wider end of things.

Holy hell Jared!

how have you been?

Great man! Glad to surprise you in here (I was surprized to see you too!) ...! Hope everything is good- I'll shoot you a pm.