Traveling to China. Need kit advice.

I'm going to be heading to China next summer where I'll spend at least a week in Shanghai for the World Expo and at least another traveling the country side (Great Wall, etc...). I have a 7D coming in the next few weeks, but I'm looking for some recommendations as far as lenses go. I have a 50mm 1.4, but what else would you bring? I'll be doing a lot of hiking, so weight is an issue, but I'm also concerned with quality (of lenses, and images). I intend to shoot just about everything; people, nightlife, buildings, landscapes. Should I just get a 24-105? 24-70 and a 70-200? A wide angle? Any and all recommendations would be appreciated. Especially from those who have lugged their gear around a lot.


Thanks,
Jeff

Hi Jeff...


Wow! It's a coin toss between the 24-105 and the 24-70. The 70-200, though a nice lens, would be too much for your 'schedule' unless you don't mind carrying around almost 10lbs of camera equipment.


My recommendation would lead you to the 24-105 as good friend of mine traveled to China with said lens which saw me sell my 28-135 to purchase the 24-105. It's the perfect weight and size and IQ is awesome though the 24-70 would be more appreciative in the evening due to it's 2.8 aperture and it's amazing IQ as well.


Hope this helps...


[*-)]

Thanks.


My initial thought was to go with the 24-105 since I have a 50mm 1.4 for shooting at night. Since this is a once in a lifetime trip (well, so far), I don't want to miss anything (or I want to miss as little as possible). Should a wider angle lens be on my purchase list? Or do you think the 24mm is wide enough?

10-22mm, 24-70mm, 70-200mm. It's aperfect combo. You want to have a complete zoom range so you don't miss any shots. Don't let weight let you compromise on your photo's, ex. leaving your 70-200mm home and kicking yourself for not getting it with you.


John.

Here's what I would recommend:


10-22


24-70 f2.8L or 24-105 f4L


70-200 series or a 70-300 IS





There you go. You got yourself covered. Being a traveler myself, I had the same combo as above (10-22 + 24-70 + 70-300 IS). Why did I go for the 24-70 than 24-105? Because of the 2.8. Sure it'll be a big and weight very heavy but that's the most used lens at about 75% of the trip. Plus a great performer in low light. 70-300 IS is there more for the reach than the IQ. I use this for about 5% of my trip. Why? You're always on the move. Unless you're going to a concert, zoo or other areas that need telephoto, you won't be using this a lot. 10-22, the only UWA on your crop body. I use mine for about 20% of my trip especially in tight areas.

John and Ralph, thanks for the insight.

Depending on your budget constraints, I would go with the Canon 10-22 for a wide-angle lens. However, the wide-angle would be more likely restricted to landscape and architecture type photos.


My wife and I traveled to the Seychelles for the first time in 10 years, and I brought along the following:


Canon 28-135 - used 20%


Canon 50 1.8 II - used 20%


Sigma 10-20 4-5.6 EX - used 60%


Tripod - used 10%


LOL....not sure if this helps...

I agree with John and Ralph also - those three lenses make for a great combo.


If you want to save weight look at the 70-200mm f/4L IS. It's much smaller than the 70-200mm f/2.8L and (in my opinion) produces sharper results and the IS is magnificent for slower exposures.


The 24-70mm f/2.8L would cover reasonably low light and you already have the 50mm f/1.4 so you're covered anyway.


The 10-22mm is a fantastic lens as well - mine gets a lot of use. If that's pushing the budget maybe investigate the Sigma equivalent. I have a friend who uses it and is very happy.


If you could only get one of the lenses mentioned I'd go with the 70-200 f/4L IS.


Hope this helps.


Cheers, Ben.

I don't think I would ever leave home without a lens in the 24-70 range, but from what I understand, much of the architecture inChina is HUGE, so I don't get the idea I would even leave without something ultra-wide.


So, basically, I agree with the three lens combo.


Have fun, and post pics when you get back.


Cheers,


Dave.

don't bring a white lens. Way too conspicuous, you'll attract too much unfriendly attention [6]


I suggest you borrow two lenses from lensrentals.com:


EF-S 10-22mm


EF 24-70mm


my 2¢


brendan

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Originally Posted by bburns223

don't bring a white lens. Way too conspicuous, you'll attract too much unfriendly attention [img]/emoticons/emotion-14.gif[/img]

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Originally Posted by elmo_2006

The 70-200, though a nice lens, would be too much for your 'schedule' unless you don't mind carrying around almost 10lbs of camera equipment.

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I couldn't agree more.


I think you should ask yourself if you will be able to change lenses back and forth. If not, consider one of the superzooms for the trip, they range from 18 to 200-270mm. They are not optically as good, but they do a decent job, they are very versatile, you will not have to keep changing lenses, and you will not carry around those 10 lbs...


If you are willing to change lenses, these are my 2 pennies worth ofthoughts:


1) The EF 24-70 2.8L is HEAVY! I have it and don't really use that much due to its weight.


2) The EF 24-105 4.0L is very good for traveling, but on a full frame body. You are likelyto wantwider angleon your APS-C body.


3) EF-S lenses are lighter thanEF lenses. Consider EF-S 10-22 and EF-S17-55 or just the new EF-S 15-85. The latter will give yougreater zoom range than EF 24-105 ona full frame.


You still have some time before your trip. Like others said, rent the lenses you're interested in and see for yourself. Good luck

I'm a little hesitant on the white lenses too, but I'll be there during the World Expo so the place will be crawling with photographers. That being said, it is a theft magnate and a lot of weight to be carrying around. As of right now, I'm thinking about an UWA and a good walk around zoom. I'm not too crazy about the super zooms. Aside from the hit to image quality (I like to make large prints from time to time), I'm more concerned with the lack of weather sealing. If the weather is crappy out, I could just forgo the UWA for a while and use an L lens. I'm still torn between the 24-70 and the 24-105. I wish Canon would just announce a 24-70 with IS, it would make my decision a lot easier.


As far as the UWA, I'm pretty lost on that one. I hear a lot of gripes about Sigma's quality control and I don't want to deal with the hassle of trying to find a good copy. The Tokina has a wide aperture, but lesser IQ. The Canon looks great, but has a crappy aperture on the tele end of things. Ugh.....

What is your budget? You said "24-70 and a 70-200", so I'd guess you're talking at least $2600 or so.

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Originally Posted by the_d

I intend to shoot just about everything; people, nightlife, buildings, landscapes.

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Here is what I would suggest for $2300:

• Canon 10-22: ultra wide gives you great flexibility for architecture and landscapes
  
• Canon 15-85: For ample light and deep DOF, this will give you a huge range of flexibility.
  
• Sigma 30mm f/1.4: for low light, thin DOF shots. Along with your 50mm f/1.4 should cover night life well.
  
• Canon 100mm f/2: Excellent portrait lens for nightlife.

These lenses all have unique capabilities and very high image quality. Plus, they are all very light (by themselves), especially compared to the 24-70 f/2.8 and 70-200 f/2.8.


If I had to recommend just one lens for the whole trip, it would be the Canon 17-55 f/2.8 IS.

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Originally Posted by the_d

Any and all recommendations would be appreciated. Especially from those who have lugged their gear around a lot.

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Everyone has their own idea of what weights and sizes are acceptable for lugging around a lot. Most of the general public considers it a nuisance to carry a normal-sized 10X digicam around all day, even though they weigh less than a single pound and can fit inside a coat pocket. They would rather have an ultra-slim digicam that fits in a shirt pocket.


Then there are DSLR photographers who consider a rebel+18-55 kit lens to be about the largest size that they would take on all-day hikes/excursions. For them, the 50D+17-55 f/2.8 would be too heavy.


Next are the stronger photographers, who are willing to carry more than one lens and even 7 full pounds of weight and quite a bit of displaced volume in spare lenses. Looks like you're in this category. You'll be able to get fantastic image quality.


It all depends on what you're used to. In the military, they train for 10+ miles a day with 45+ pounds of gear. If you hike for recreation, you might be used to going all day with 30+ pounds, so carrying a 10 pounds of camera gear would be easy for you (unless it's on top of your normal hiking gear, of course). Everyone has their one preferences.