What to get next

[stephantierney1982]

Hello,

I am looking for the next piece of equipment to purchase. I have two bodies a Rebel XT and a Rebel T2i they both came with the 18-55mm lens, although one is the IS. I bought a 70-300mm non-IS back when I got the Rebel XT. I have not found much that I feel I can't shoot, but am looking for something more. Maybe a hiking lens, or a good walkabout. I like taking pictures of everything, but mainly I photograph plants, animals, and my four children. I am trying to put together a portfolio currently, I have not decided whether I want to do this as a source of income (primary or secondary) after I get out of the military. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time and effort.

 

[photo_joe]

I would suggest a good sturdy tripod or saving up for some better glass.

 

[thisisbleep]

You have not said what your budget is or if you plan on later upgrading to full frame (the EF-S lenses do not work on the full frame). At the moment you cover almost all of the focal length range with the two lenses. One thing that you are missing is a/some prime lenses which have a much larger f-stop (1.4 or 1.8), to allow good night time photography and a shallow depth of field, good for when you want the background to be completely out of focus. Another thing is a wide-angled or ultra wide-angled lens, which is used for various things such as landscapes and to exaggerate the size of the subject in the centre of the photo.

Options:
1. You mention buy a walk-about lens, which sacrifices some image quality but has the advantage of a large focal range where you only need one lens.
My friend owns: Tamron 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD

He likes the lens, but it does suffer from barrel distortion because of the very large focal length range. It includes Tokina's version of IS and USM, image stabilisation and an ultra-silent focusing motor. Cost wise, it is probably around 500 USD in the USA.

2. Upgrade what you have for better quality, but this is very expensive. You get a fixed f-stop throughout the focal length range, which makes it easier when shooting using manual.

3. Buy a prime lens. The EF 50mm f/1.8 II is cheap and popular, but with your cropped sensor it will give an effective focal length of 1.5x50= 75mm.

4. Buy a wide-angle/ultra wide-angle lens. There are not many cheap options, only 1 from Canon but Sigma and others supply them.