zoe_gemelli

OK, this post has temporarily turned me off nature photography if it means carrying weapons! LOL! It's likely that some of you would consider the wilds of New York City (my playground) worthy of weapons too. As lifelong urbanite, I'm more comfortable in the city, I guess.

Anyway, regarding the original question, it depends on the situation. Some days I want company, other times I want to be alone. And, on top of that, it depends on the company too. If I go with others in my league who are willing to split up at times, cool. But, if it's a follow the leader situation, I'm not always in the mood for that. I kind of think it's like going shopping: Sometimes you need to do it alone, other times you want your best friend(s) there to help you out.

On that note, I think I need to go take some pictures now. ;-}

Hi all! Thanks so much for the advice!

Kari, I like the idea of a f/2.8 super wide angle lens. I'll give some more thought to the Tokina, and try it out

if possible when I'm at a shop in the near future. Thanks for the recommendation!

Sarah, I kid you not, but just this morning when I was thinking about posting I read another post by you and

ended up on your informative Web site! (You have many lenses in your arsenal I'd love to shoot with, including

the well loved Nikkor 105mm.) Thanks for the advice. I do think that I'd like to hang on to the 28-135mm, even

though it's not the one I grab when I want a walk around lens. I prefer a wider option, which is sad because it

takes great pictures. But it's the longest lens in my kit right now too. The 18-55mm isn't wide enough with the

1.6x crop, but I took some really nice shots of Manhattan last night with it. I just wish it where sharper. Could

be something I'm doing wrong though. It was low light, so I stopped down, but I think I lost crispness on the far

end because of it. I maybe should have just let the tripod I lugged over there do more work at longer shutter

speeds. Next weekend I'll try that!

Where did you get the Zenitar?

JDM, thanks for the advice. I can honestly say that it will likely be another few years before I think about

upgrading to full frame. I'm hoping to go to grad school in a couple of years and won't likely have the money for

a new body for a while. So, any lens will likely be loved on the 40D for a long time. I really like everything

I've read on the Sigma, but I keep reading that the Canon is just that tad more...perfect, I guess. I don't know.

People who love the Sigma, love the Sigma for the most part. But some traded it in for the Canon. No one seems to

have done the reverse. I've only played with the Canon and enjoyed the experience so far. I've found a rather

sweet deal (from a legit seller) on the Sigma 10-20mm and keep thinking I should just take the risk and enjoy it

until I need to sell it to buy something else. I know, reselling is not for the faint of heart, but they do seem

to keep their value. But the $275 I'd save on the Sigma *could* be used for a flash or something else I need down

the line.

Thanks again! Very excellent answers all!

Zoë

Hi all, I’ve been lurking for several years, but more so in the past six months since buying a Canon 40D as my

first DSLR camera.

First a little history: The advice I got when I was deciding to go Canon (had Canon P&S digital and film for the

past 15+ years, but started SLR photography with a Nikon FM) and read everywhere was that the lenses are the true

investment since you carry them with you body-to-body. Somehow I ended up lopsided with an amazing body and not

the totally wicked lenses I wanted. However, I opted for the kit with the lovely 28-135mm lens with the 40D. I

read good things about that lens, so when the math made it only $175 extra, I went for it. I also grabbed a 50mm

f/1.8 since I read it was a bargain worthy of the $90. It also takes wonder shots. I also grabbed the 18-55mm

because it gave me the widest lens for the lowest price. It’s a pretty good lens for $150 (I bought the IS

version). But not as sharp on the wide-end as I’d like.

A few months in I started to look at the galleries here and on other photo sites on a daily basis trying to

figure out which lens were being used in the shots I loved the most. By far I seem to love wide-angle shots, and

most of my faves are being taken by super-wides like Canon’s 10-22mm and the Sigma 10-20mm or great telephotos

like Canon 17-55mm or Canon 17-40mm L.

Now for the advice questions: Should I wait until I can afford the Canon or buy the Sigma now? Should I sell the

28-135mm for a better tele that goes wider and not get the super-wide now? That extra $$$ just isn’t in the cards

right now, but could be in a few months/next year. Ideally I’d like to get the 10-22mm and the 17-55mm, keep the

28-135mm for the days I want/need to shot with a tele. The list of other lenses I want to try is long, but I have

time for that down the line. For right now, I just don’t know what to invest the $500 that’s burning a hole in my

pocket. ;-} Or should I just wait until that $500 grows into $1000 while I learn more about my present system?

Many, many thanks! This forum has been wonderfully educational. Keep posting and shooting!

Zoë