FF Lens for Antelope Canyon and Monument Valley

Planning a trip to Northern Arizona this winter. Two main locations are Antelope Canyon and Monument Valley. Would 24-105L be wide enough inside the Antelope Slot Canyon?

My other option is to rent a 17-40L for 10 days.

I don't want to change lens too frequently inside the Canyon because of dust concern. So I want to take a tripod + 1-2 lens + camera + remote shutter into the Canyon. If possible, I would rather stick with just 1 lens inside the canyon. For Monument valley, I can probably do stitching if 24-105L is not wide enough but the time inside the Antelope Canyon is rather limited.

I did some research already. For crop, most people suggested Canon 10-22 which is basically 17-40 on FF. What's up/down side of going with just 17-40L on FF? Any other option?

Since you'll be on a tripod, I'd personally suggest the 17-40. The 14mm f/2.8 is a prime option and the 16-35mm is the other zoom option (Canon OEM)

Antelope Canyon has some verrrrrrrry narrow areas.

Some Lower Antelope in the middle of my Landscape Gallery that were shot with a 24-105 and I wish I'd had my 17-40 back then.

I found wearing a "butt bag" slung around to the front was a very handy way to carry a bottle of water, Rocket Blower and Lenspen. You could carry a second lens as well if you really want to. You will get dirty!

I've shot at both places, and the risk of sand/dust is more of an issue at Monument than it is at Antelope. In AC, you're pretty much sheltered from wind and such (depending on time of year and weather conditions). At worst, you may have some shooters kicking up a little bit but IMO its not as bad as some make it out to be. OTOH, MV has some serious wind and dirt/sand is almost always blowing. If you need to change lenses here, make sure that your bag is large enough so that you'll be able to get your hands inside while lens swapping.

At upper AC, I primarily stuck to my 17-40L on my former 5D. Looking back, most of my shots were in the 27-40mm range, with a handful at 21mm or so. You should probably be okay with the 24-105L (plus, the added length on the long end will let you zero in on some of the formations).

MV is another story. The lens is dependent on where you plan on shooting. Shooting the mittens from near the visitor center, you could get by again with the 24-105L (I primarily used my 24-70L on the 5D2). The 17-40L is also handy for more creative shots (such as incorporating the Ansel Adams rocks in the frame as a foreground element to the mittens). If you hire a guide to take you out to the back side Totem Pole and Y'ei Bi Chei for sunrise, you'll need a longer telephoto such as the 70-200. For the sand dunes on the front side, the 17-40L would be recommended. At the top of Hunt's Mesa, the 24-105L will work (I stuck with the 24-70L). As you can see, a lot depends on what/where you'll be in MV.

24mm is plenty wide for Monument Valley. And you'd probably be shooting between 50-85mm at Antelope Canyon. At least, that's what happened with me.

24-105L will give you about 90 percent of your shots. Have fun.

pratman64 wrote in post #11261746
24mm is plenty wide for Monument Valley. And you'd probably be shooting between 50-85mm at Antelope Canyon. At least, that's what happened with me.

24-105L will give you about 90 percent of your shots. Have fun.

I am surprised that you are at 50-85mm at Antelope Canyon. I thought there is not much room to back up inside the slot canyon.

Looks like I will likely need to bring both lenses and change as needed. Maybe bring a large plastic bag to change lens in to avoid problem.

Maybe put on 17-40 to begin with. I think it's easier to step closer to take a shot than having no room back up. Likely to get better IQ at 24mm on 17-40L than 24mm on 24-105L.

Two follow up questions for Antelope Canyon:
1) Would a L bracket come in handy?
2) What tour time should I reserve for in the winter? Around noon or earlier?

For MV,
1) Is one overnight sufficent to shoot? Arrive before 11am and leave at 4pm next day.

Thanks for the Gallery. Was it difficult to move around inside the Canyon? I was planning to carry a backpack instead and carry my tripod.

It's going to pretty cold. I figure I will keep the misc stuff in the jacket pocket. Not really worry about lens getting dirty. More concern with getting dust into the camera.

FlyingPhotog wrote in post #11261535
Since you'll be on a tripod, I'd personally suggest the 17-40. The 14mm f/2.8 is a prime option and the 16-35mm is the other zoom option (Canon OEM)

Antelope Canyon has some verrrrrrrry narrow areas.

Some Lower Antelope in the middle of my Landscape Gallery that were shot with a 24-105 and I wish I'd had my 17-40 back then.

I found wearing a "butt bag" slung around to the front was a very handy way to carry a bottle of water, Rocket Blower and Lenspen. You could carry a second lens as well if you really want to. You will get dirty!

I agree with Argyle about the dust issues. We did Lower Antelope Mid October and I had intended to keep a simple shower cap with me to cover the camera and lens (12-24 Tokina, which I thought worked out well). Well, in the excitement I left the plastic shower cap behind and was worried about the dust. Turns out there was very little.

No wind, only a few people there (we were given the photo passes since we had tripods and once our group went ahead only 2 small groups passed us). We probably could have changed lenses if we felt the need, but again I thought we were fine.

Never toured Upper, but Lower DOES get tight, so be careful with the backpack / tripod / camera.

MV was a different story. We did the Jeep tour to get off the main road and see more of the arches. Our guide (Larsen?) was awesome and having led photogs around he was able to point out some interesting perspectives. He loved to drive fast tho, and the dust was everywhere!

Regarding time at MV, I would have loved a second night, but maybe if I were better prepared (knowing exactly where the sun was rising for example) the one night would have been good.

Our trip was full of "one night stands" where you only had one opportunity for a sunrise or sunset in each area. Made the trip kinda exciting, yet stressful at times!

Have fun! (and please feel free to view my Flickr shots, the exif data is all there)

liupublic wrote in post #11262305
Thanks for the Gallery. Was it difficult to move around inside the Canyon? I was planning to carry a backpack instead and carry my tripod.

It's going to pretty cold. I figure I will keep the misc stuff in the jacket pocket. Not really worry about lens getting dirty. More concern with getting dust into the camera.

In some spots at Lower, it can be very difficult to maneuver. Unfortunately, due to rain about a week earlier, only about 1/2 the slot was open to the public (watch your weather carefully by the way...flash floods are no joke!) but even the upper part of Lower Antelope had some "ankle bending" spots and the need to climb over some stuff. The stairs (ladders really) are also pretty steep and slippery so watch your center of balance when using them.

Update on the trip. Got back from Antellope Canyon last Friday. Still PP all the photos.

My comments:
24-105L on 5D2 was definitely wide enough inside Antellope Canyon. It was great to be able to use one lens the entire time. Shot everything on tripod btw f/8 and f/11. It's very easy to blow out picture here. Always need to pay attention to the bright intense light spots. In the winter time, it's not possible to get light beam directy into canyon because of the winter sun's angle. I was a bit disappoint. Need to come back in last spring to early fall time frame for that. Very little dust inside the Canyon as there was little wind inside. Lots of dust everywhere in the area. I did not want to change lens outdoor at Horseshoe Bend and Lake Powell.

Horseshoe Bend was difficult to shoot for me, because the best shot is only possible when standing right at the edge of the cliff and I am very afraid of the height. 17-40 on FF would have been nice here. Ended up using tripod for panaramic shot instead. I arrived at horseshoe bend near 4pm and waited until sunset. Sunrise would have been better because light would be behind the camera instead of in front of it.

The crowd was huge btw xmas and New Year. Lots of tourists from European/Asian countries. Still, lots of restaurants and facilities are closed. Looks like the busy season starts around March/April time frame. Temp never rose above 35F the entire time I was there.

Could not make it out to Monument Valley due to a huge snow storm hitting Northern Arizona. Drove south to Sedona area instead. Pretty interesting to get some snow covered shots of red rocks. Most of the Sedona hiking trails clear up very quickly as soon as the sun comes out. So it was quite nice to walk around. Just a bit cold.