What lenses would you rent/take?

[Finiamh]

I have a Canon 7D and I already have the 24-70 2.8L. I want to shoot landscapes, architecture and maybe some fireworks at Disney. I pan on renting some lesnes to try out for some great pics and future possible purchase.

Here is my list, what would you do?

Canon 14mm f/2.8L

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS

Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS

Canon 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS ( I plan on doing Kennedy and the shuttle is on the pad, need the reach) Otherwise the 70-200 f/2.8L II

Thoughts?

 

[WillowBelle]

I always rented a fisheye lens (until DH broke down and bought me one). My taste is the wider the better. The advantage to that is you can also get closer to your subject which allows you to cut out milling people who always wander into the frame .

 

[alan]

Well, if you already have the 24-70, then you aren't going to get a huge amount of "extra" out of the 24-105mm. Don't get me wrong; the 24-105mm is a great lens (I have it and I love it). But ayou can already do an awful lot of what it can do.

My next lens would be a rectilinear ultra wide angle. The Sigma 10-20mm, or the Canon equivalent. They'll allow you to get some great and quite unusual perspectives.

That's the mid range and wide angle covered; I don't feel qualified to talk about the two long lenses you've mentioned. I do know that the 70-200mm f/2.8 IS is a very heavy lens indeed... are you comfortable carrying so much weight around for so long in such hot, humid conditions?

Finally, I urge you to think carefully about using a general purpose ultrazoom (e.g. the 18-200mm). I found that I could get some remarkably good results out of the Sigma OS 18-200mm, especially if I kept it at around f/8. And I wasn't spending my day messing around changing lenses.

Hope this helps,

regards,
/alan

 

[AndrewWG]

I agree with Alan on this one. I would stay away from both the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS and the Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS. You won't want to change lenses that much that either one of those will be of much use to you. The 70-200 is indeed a heavy lens but I can also say that it is a GREAT lens. I don't own the version II of the lens (I have the measly version I) but I love it and wouldn't go without it. The 70-300 I have no knowledge of whatsoever. I would also agree that you should probably look into the 10-20mm zoom range (either Sigma which I have or the Canon one). That wide angle will be awesome for some specialty shots and going up to 20mm, it is quite a nice addition to your arsenal.

Overall, with the exception of the shuttle pics, I would guess that you would most likely never take off the 24-70 unless you are taking some sort of specialty shot. The 24-70 will work great for fireworks, etc..

 

[rtphokie]

Its not what you asked but I'll share what not to rent. I rented a Canon 400mm f/2.8L (something I'll never be abe to own) along with a 1.4 teleconverter last summer with plans to use it shoot a Space Shuttle launch. The central Florida weather had other plans however (tied the record for the mission with the most scrubs).

Tried that telconverter on the 400mm, on my 200mm and 300mm lenses, hated the results on all. I'd be warned so my expectations were not great but was surprised at how bad that teleconverter made a good lens look without getting you that much closer to the subject.

It's only a couple of extra bucks to a rental but I'd recommend against trying out a teleconverter. Just not worth it IMHO.

 

[AndrewWG]

Its not what you asked but I'll share what not to rent. I rented a Canon 400mm f/2.8L (something I'll never be abe to own) along with a 1.4 teleconverter last summer with plans to use it shoot a Space Shuttle launch. The central Florida weather had other plans however (tied the record for the mission with the most scrubs).

Tried that telconverter on the 400mm, on my 200mm and 300mm lenses, hated the results on all. I'd be warned so my expectations were not great but was surprised at how bad that teleconverter made a good lens look without getting you that much closer to the subject.

It's only a couple of extra bucks to a rental but I'd recommend against trying out a teleconverter. Just not worth it IMHO.

That is strange that the 1.4 was that bad for you. I own one and use it on occasion on my 70-200 and I don't really see any problems with it. I personally think it is a pain in the rear to put on and take off when it is needed but never really had any quality issues with it. In fact, I dislike putting it on so much that I no longer carry it in my every day camera bag. I have heard that the 2x converter is not so good though. They have since come out with a newer version of the 2x and I am not sure if that is still the case.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

Since you mention trying to get fireworks shots....have you tried looking at the 50mm 1.4? I'm thinking of getting it for my trip down there in December. That and maybe the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM. I'm going to be staying at Kidani Village and want to get some nice animal shots.