EF lenses for landscape photos on T3i

[erikforce1]

Hello,

I'm new here so please bare with me. I have a Canon T3i with a 75-300mm USM lens and I was wondering if that lens would work well for long exposure landscape photos? I see a lot of landscape videos on youtube, mostly DigitalRevTV, but they usually work with the high end lenses. So I was wondering if there's any good EF lenses you guys can recommend for long exposure/landscaping that are EF. I want to keep it EF in case I want to upgrade to a full frame camera in the future. Any help will be appreciated!!!

Thanks!

[ScottyP]

Generally people shoot landscape with a wide angle lens, or at least a standard zoom length rather than a telephoto. Not always of course, as there are some cases where you would use a telephoto. I think you will find the 75-300 very limiting in both width and in image quality generally. Remember the crop body gives you 1.6 x telephoto boost, but it also robs you of width at the same 1.6 x focal length multiplier. 10 mm is wide angle on a crop (look at EE-s wide angle lenses) but 10 mm on a crop equals 16mm on full frame.

I suggest you look at a EF 17-40 for landscape. It is not very wide angle on a Rebel but no EF lenses other than fish eyes are super wide on a crop. It is wide on a full frame camera. It is not expensive as Canon lenses go, and it gives decent image quality, especially in the center.

What is your budget?

[erikforce1]

Thanks for the advice. I would say my budget is about up to $500 for a lens for now.

[ebiggs1 · Accepted solution]

You can use any lens for virtually any purpose, it is just there are better lenses for specific purposes.

You can certainly take landscapes with your 75-300mm and for the most case they will do.

But to get truly magnificent photos, it requires good equipment and knowledge.

So much bad and misinformation circling the net, how is a person to know what to do?

How many times I have heard, you can't take landscapes with a 7D or any “crop” camera. They are just not wide enough. Or are they, hmm?

Both of these shots were taken with a Canon 7D and the Canon 8-15mm f/4l fisheye. That's right "fisheye"!

The suggestion of the 17-40mm Canon is very good and I highly recommend it. But the bottom line is learn your equipment. Shoot lots, nothing replaces experience. Ask questions from knowledgeable photographers. Most of all 'look'.

[erikforce1]

Thanks for the advice eveyone!

[ScottyP]

Hi,

I didn't mean to say you can't shoot landscape on a crop; I tried to say that the wide angle lenses on crops (EF-s lenses) are like 10mm rectilinear, while 16 or 17 are the rectilinear wide angle lenses that fit FF, due to the 1.6x factor.  The OP was trying to buy a landscape lens for his crop that he could keep if he went FF. 

I liked your example of 2 fisheye shots and how different they can be, with the 2nd one framed so as to not show obvious fisheye distortion.  I personally would not want a fisheye as my only wide angle lens, because you do have to be careful how you compose it if you don't want to get that "door peephole" look.

[ebiggs1]

"But the bottom line is learn your equipment.

[cuda719]

I have a 7D and use the 8-15 fisheye as my wide angle all the time. Bottom line you need to learn your equipment and practice, practice, practice. It's easy to defish the lens when I want to

[Skirball]

I don't see what the 17-40 is going to get you for landscape, I'm assuming you have a 18-55 that came with your camera (if not they cost next to nothing).  You usually don't need, or even want, fast lenses for landscape.  Not that it's fast, but slightly more so than the general purpose lenses.  If you're going to stop down to f/8 I don't think the 17-40 is justified for the cost.

I know you said EF, but I would really recommend the 10-22 if you want wide.  The price has recently dropped, which is nice for buying, but it has traditionally held quite solid.  It was an easy lens to sell used and get a lot of your cash back.  I don't know if that'll change now that it's down to a more reasonable price or not.   I still pull out my rebel on occasion just because of this lens.