Best lens for range of different environments

sbshields · Oct 3, 2012

Hi all,

This is my first time posting on a camera forum so bear with me.

I have a Canon 600D camera body. I am looking for a decent lens on a budget, in a few months time I will be traveling through Asia for a month or so (from Singapore to Japan). I want to take 2 lenses with me. The first I've decided on is a Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 STM Pancake lens (mainly for video stuff), the second I am not sure of, I have looked at heaps of lenses in the past few weeks from Canon branded lenses (from the 24 - 105mm to 18 - 200mm) and even the Sigma 18 - 250mm lens.

My issue is and I could be completely wrong on this is, I am worried about the more the lens can zoom out the worse the quality of the photo is (sure with some post production work I could fix the photo) but I've only ever seen people say this on the Sigma 18 - 250mm and not the Canon. Do all lenses that have large zoom have this issue? Should I be looking at the 24 - 105mm lens as a travel lens? Or should I go the Canon 18 - 200mm?

Also to take into consideration the fact the I might want use the lens in low light situations for example a live music concert (taking photos not video). What do you recommend?

subscuck · Oct 3, 2012

All super zooms have built in compromises. It's just as true with the Canon 18-200 as it is with the Nikon, Sigma, etc. They all suffer from CA, as well as being sharper at one end than the other, and the sweet spot is generally some where in the middle. The optics are decent, not great. As far as low light, even with IS, none of them would be suitable for low light. You'd be better served with a couple of constant aperture zooms, but that = $$$. Something like a 24-70L 2.8 and 70-200L 2.8 would cover the range you're looking at, but again, you're looking at serious money, unless you rent, which wouldn't be a bad way to go. That said, low light with either of these will still require boosting ISO, and with a Rebel you might find the noise unacceptable. There's only so much noise reduction software can do. The short answer is, there really isn't a "budget lens" that will fill your requirements.

gsgary · Oct 3, 2012

A long rain coat should work a treat

Derrel · Oct 3, 2012

gsgary said:
A long rain coat should work a treat

aqualung.jpg

PlanetStarbucks · Oct 3, 2012

Welcome to Photozone!

^^^That is the site to help you decide which lens is worthy of spending money on. You'll notice that most of the superzooms are really low rated. What you should go for is really focused on what type of photography you end up doing. From my experience, a wide, high quality zoom lens is the way to go...but that's indicative of the type of shooting I do (outdoors, cities, night stuff). I think a lot of people think they need massive zoom, but they seem to be necessary only in a handful of situations. That said, they're worth having because there's nothing else that you can use for those situations, so....

sbshields · Oct 3, 2012

Thanks all.

PlanetStarbucks that link is really helpful, I was looking at dpreview but it's kind of confusing with it's results of certain lenses.

I guess I just need to work out what my main situation is going to be and go from there. From all the reviews and that I've seen (minus what I spoke about before) the Sigma 18 - 250 seems to fit my needs really well considering the weight factor. Since the trip is so soon and the fact I could always sell the lens when I get home I think I might go for this particular lens.