Walk around lens for Disney

firststring74

My hubby and I are going to Disney for our anniversary this year. They are having the garden show while we are there (another passion of mine). I want to take pics, but don't want to haul the whole kit and caboodle of lens around. I want to pretty much only take one lens with me as we go around the parks. Any suggestions? This is what I currently have:

kit lens (I don't like the pics this produces)
70-200 f/2.8L IS (I love this lens but it is heavy and a bit pricey to be hauling around Disney IMO)
70-300 f/4-5.6 lens

I think I want something similar to the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8. But I am open to any suggestions regarding a good walk around lens. Or, with the lens I currently have should I look at a midrange zoom (like the tammy) and then buy a wide angle? If so, what w.a. shoudl I be looking for? I know this topic has been discussed before so pardon for the repeat. I did do a search and went back through all ten pages of the camera section to see if I could find any more opinions. Please help! Thanks,

Christina

TaDa

firststring74 wrote:

My hubby and I are going to Disney for our anniversary this year. They are having the garden show while we are there (another passion of mine). I want to take pics, but don't want to haul the whole kit and caboodle of lens around. I want to pretty much only take one lens with me as we go around the parks. Any suggestions? This is what I currently have:

kit lens (I don't like the pics this produces)
70-200 f/2.8L IS (I love this lens but it is heavy and a bit pricey to be hauling around Disney IMO)
70-300 f/4-5.6 lens

I think I want something similar to the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8. But I am open to any suggestions regarding a good walk around lens. Or, with the lens I currently have should I look at a midrange zoom (like the tammy) and then buy a wide angle? If so, what w.a. shoudl I be looking for? I know this topic has been discussed before so pardon for the repeat. I did do a search and went back through all ten pages of the camera section to see if I could find any more opinions. Please help! Thanks,

Christina

Well, this answer is going to be pricey, but since you don't like the pics that your kit lens gives you, the best walkaround lens for a crop is the 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM. It goes for $1k new and around $850 used. Absolutely amazing piece of glass. I never thought that the IS in a 17-55 range would be all that useful, but it is.

If you don't have the money for that, either the Tamron 17-50 or the Tamron 28-75 are fantastic lenses. Depends if you're going to shoot longer or wider.

Another reasonably priced lens that seems to get pretty good reviews is the Canon 17-85mm IS USM. You can find those used for right around $400. Not the same optics as the 17-55, but will still give you great shots in good light, with the added bonus of IS.

ziggy53

Christina,

The Tamron SP AF 17-50mm, f/2.8 XR DI-II LD Aspherical (IF) is a very nice general purpose standard/normal zoom for any crop 1.5x/1.6x camera. I think it would serve you well at Disney and event photography in general. By far the range served by this lens is my most often needed and used.

I would also take a 50mm, f1.8/f1.4 lens for really low light stuff.

My ideal travel kit for Canon crop 1.6x cameras would be:

One of the "super-wide" zooms (10-20mm-ish)
Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM

Tommyboy

Ziggy recommends a really nice kit. I would agree.

I would also look good and hard at the 17-55 Canon. I have heard lots of good stuff about the Tamron.

I own a 17-85 Canon. Despite its slow aperture, I shoot this lens 95% of the time (and I have 5 other lenses). I think the 17-85 would the ideal walk around lens for Disney.

Here's a gallery I shot a few months ago at Disneyland and California Adventure with this lens—give you an idea of what to expect. There are a handful taken with my 10-22 and a few more with a 50mm 1.4, but the majority are 17-85.

You can pick up a used one in good condition for $350ish. Just sayin'.

Photoskipper

I agreed with Ziggy.

Not sure whether you are using the full frame size or 1.6X crop sensor. I used to use the Sigma 18 - 200 on the 300D body (become 29 to 320) and the 24 -105 F4 IS for 5D.
The 70 -200 is too heavy to "walk about" and it difficult to bring along when you want to for the rides.

SavedByZero

Too bad you don't have a Sony Alpha body. Sony put out a 16-105mm f3.5-5.6 lens that would be the one to have. Awesome focal range with a decent speed on the long end too.

pathfinder

When I went through Disney World a while back, I had the same decision to make. I chose to shoot with a 20D and a 24-105 f4 IS L. Weight, wide view, long view, quality, all went into my choices. I had a Tamron 28-75 and a 70-200 F2.8 IS L among other lenses with me as well - but I left them in the room when I was going to be out from 9 am to 9 pm all day long. I did not want to mess with a bag of gear while riding a roller coaster.

Some of the images can be seen here


Longer or wider lenses would have been nice at times, but extra weight is not something I wanted to carry all day long with the hiking at Disney World in Florida. A 70-200 is way too long for many shots there. A 17-55 IS is a great lens, but maybe a little short at times for my taste. The extra f stop might be helpful, but most of the shooting is done out of doors, so the 24-105 F4 IS L was a good compromise - wide enough, long enough, fast enough, and pretty good image quality.

Like these

[imgl]http://Pathfinder.smugmug.com/photos/48698731_QkKE6-L.jpg[/imgl][imgr]http://Pathfinder.smugmug.com/photos/48822054_SXNi5-L.jpg[/imgr]

Harryb

When I did some shots at Disney World I took my 70-200 2.8 and my 28-70 2.8. 95% of my shots were with the 28-70.

BradfordBenn

Something you might also want to consider is deciding what part of the day is photography time and what part is ride the ride time. I go to Disney a lot for work, I know seems odd but true, and one of the thing that always intrigues me is the people weighted down with lots of camera/video stuff and they are so busy taking pictures of the family in front of Space Mountain, Spaceship Earth... etc. that they do not have time to have fun.

I do not remember but I think that there are storage lockers around so that ou might be able to drop off the heavy weight stuff and stroll around with a P&S camera then go back and get the powerful stuff for the shooting time.

Also if you are staying on property you might be able to get in early before the park opens to the general public. That might be a nice time to get some shots without lots of people walking through the shot.

HTH, just my opinion and your mileage may vary.

firststring74

Thanks guys for all your input. It is nice to have all your opinions at a time like this. My plan is to put the new lens on the 20D during the day and pull the L lens out at night on a tripod for shooting fireworks etc. I am leaning toward the 17-55mm range right now. Ziggy, do you prefer the canon lens, or are the Tammy's ok?

ziggy53

firststring74 wrote:

Thanks guys for all your input. It is nice to have all your opinions at a time like this. My plan is to put the new lens on the 20D during the day and pull the L lens out at night on a tripod for shooting fireworks etc. I am leaning toward the 17-55mm range right now. Ziggy, do you prefer the canon lens, or are the Tammy's ok?

The Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM is a very special, and relatively expensive, general purpose lens. If I had only one lens with me for a Canon crop 1.6x camera, it would be that lens.

The Tamron is very nicely done, but definitely behind the Canon.

joshhuntnm

I have the canon 28 - 200. I love it. it is not 2.8, but for outdoors in daylight, it works great. I think it is a little past $300

claudermilk

Odd coincidence that this thread shows up today. Just went to the original pakr yesterday with my standard kit (ok, so much of my family are addicts & hold annual passes...). I take my 20D with 24-70 on it. I keep my Lowepro OffTrail2 bag mainly for the Disney trips as it works quite well--enough room for the gripped 20D & the 24-70 with a little extra space in the two included lens cases. Next time I'll probably take the 12-24 too as I found a couple of shots I'd missed before that called for it. The bag is small enough it's easily stowed for going on rides.

joshhuntnm

I love sitting right in front of my kids on a roller coaster, pointing the camera backwards and firing a way.

rpcrowe

Agree with Ziggy but...
I agree with Ziggy in that the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS and 70-200mm f/4L IS plus an UW and 50mm f/1.4 lenses are a great choice for just about any travel.

However, the OP asked for a one lens/camera outfit and I think that the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens is a super choice for a one lens kit.

I carried this lens on my 30D for a trip to Branson, MO and was very happy with the results. Since this was the first vacation my wife had ever shared with her sister and brother-in-law; she asked me to limit my photography and photo equipment.

I selected the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens on a 30D with a 420ex flash and was very pleased with the flexibility of that choice.

I was so pleased, that I have now opted to use the 17-55mm along with my 70-200mm f/4L IS lenses on two bodies as my standard travel kit.

I will occasionally add a wider or longer lens if I know I will need one (I am carrying a 300mm f/4L IS lens and a 1.4x TC on my upcoming trip to Alaska) but, these two are my go-to lenses for general travel and for normal shooting opportunities. I don't usually need much wider focal length and I don't really miss the gap between 55 and 70mm. I have even dispensed with carrying my 50mm f/1.8 Mark I lens since the 17-55mm f/2.8 with IS is a pretty fine available light lens. If I had the 50mm f/1.4, I might opt to bring that also. But, since I don't, I can make do quite adequatey with the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens at the higher ISO values that the 30D is capable of obtaining.

20DNoob

Other options would be a 17-40L or just rent(getting the insurance option=no worries) what you need saving you a good amount of loot.

Have fun.

3n-out

24-70 2.8L is an swesome walk around lens. I would bet that would be all you need for disney.

claudermilk

3n-out wrote:

24-70 2.8L is an swesome walk around lens. I would bet that would be all you need for disney.

I was beginning to think I was alone in considering the 24-70 as a good walkaround.

joeinmiami

I just came back from a weekend at Disney, I took my D80 and the 18-200mm VR lens. This setup is about 2 pounds but I was able to take some very good photos of the flowers and the park.
The range of the 18-200 makes it very useful for a walk around lens and since it has VR you do not need a tripod.

Joe

DrDavid

I just got the 24-70mm 2.8L, and I love it. It's the same price as the 17-55mm IS USM, but, here is my logic for going to the L (and losing some of the wide-angle).

Call me crazy, but I'm worried about the EF-S mount vs. EF. I don't want to be limited to the Rebel/20/30/40D line of cameras. The L will fit *every* canon on the market. The 17-55mm won't. Also, the 17-55mm has dust issues; it's a $1000 lens that's made of plastic

The L lens is built like a tank--and I think will retain its value better.

Ok, so, maybe I'm a nut, but, losing a few mm (ok, 10 or so) on the wide end, but, gaining it on the telephoto end (which I prefer to shoot at anyways), AND a much more solid lens to boot (for the same price), tipped the scales in favor of the L lens.

Now, it doesn't have the IS (which would be nice), but at f/2.8 it's not bad. You *could* get the 24-105 f/4, but with a three stop IS, it gives you the same speed as a 2.8 (effectively), but a longer reach. Downside: bokeh isn't as pretty.

Anyways, here's my bottom line. Get the 24-70mm f/2.8L for the same price as the 17-55mm IS USM plastic dust-pump

David

firststring74

Thanks guys! We just got back, and I took my two cheap lens. I could not decide before hand so Id idn't buy anything but now having gone I am leaning toward the 28-70 2.8. I'll then add a wide angle lens later on to the kit. Neither lens I took was fast enough for some of the birds in the aviary that I was trying to capture and I was disappointed. Also the 70-300 wasn't wide enough at times. But the good news is that we are going back this year for the wine and food festival so I will have a chance to try the new lens and compare pics!

Thanks again!

Christina

claudermilk

That was probably the best route in the end. You've now learned something & have a good idea of what you need for next time around.

BradfordBenn

So can we see some of the results?