Looking to Purchase a third lens or accessories - ideas?

[matphotographs]

Hi! I am new to the community, but I am looking for advice!

I currently own a 6D Mark II with a 24-70mm f4 and a 70-200mm f4, and I am looking to purchase another lens.  I mostly do landscape, headshots, and astrophotography.  From a lens standpoint, my current lenses satisfy landscape and headshot needs for the most part, but I was hoping to get recommendations for astrophotography lenses that could also compliment landscape and headshot work!

I'd love any feedback/recommendations!

Thanks!

[Waddizzle]

"I currently own a 6D Mark II with a 24-70mm f4 and a 70-200mm f4, and I am looking to purchase another lens.  I mostly do landscape, headshots, and astrophotography."

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You already own a couple of lenses that  are capable of delivering very good shots in all of those categories.  You have an excellent "starter kit" of full frame lenses.  One lens is not going to be able to do those three tasks any better than either of the two lenses you already have.  

I think a lens investment that expands your range of focal lengths, preferably with wider apertures, would be a good path, but not a mandatory one. I think a wide angle f/2.8 zoom or prime would serve both landscape and astrophotography.  Just make sure that any lens you purchase next is f/2.8, or faster.

If money is burning a hole in your pocket, invest in accessories.  Buy a very good professional grade tripod, if you do not already own one.  It will serve you well for all three of those tasks, most especially landscape and astrophotography.  If you want to do headshots, then consider a professional grade Canon Speedlite for shooting on the run.

Do you have a camera bag with a rain cover?  Spare batteries or spare memory cards?  Mass storage for your growing collection of photos?  Post processing software?

[jesbroken]

Thank you. Waddizzle for your post. I have several tripods, 3 batteries(with a two battery charger and one battery charger). While I do have a rain proof camera bag, 99% of all my photography will occur indoors. I mostly photograph coins and coin related items. The only real new purchase I would like to make is a Three Axis Positioning Stage Manual Xyz Translation Stage for my stand to place coins on for various lighting, but they are just too expensive. I just use multiple wedges currently. I utilize the WD Cloud and  Plex with several Tig storage units. I learned many years ago the issue with mass storage and losses that occurred that were irreplaceable. So I have several storage units. Because I only photographed coins and like items, I never graduated to dslr cameras as the several powershots I have owned did what I wanted of them, but when this camera was damaged, I elected to go to dslr to see if it was for me. I will at some time start tethering to my monitor, but first I would like to be able to be familiar with this camera. BTW, money is NOT burning a hole in my pocket, as I usually sell something else to facillitate new purchases. lol

Thanks again,

Jim

[matphotographs]

Thank you for the reply!

I have a few spare batteries and memory cards, a large external hard drive and the Adobe suite for post processing, but I have also been looking into accessories such as a nicer bag (possibly a lowepro or peak design bag) or filters and a flash. Any recommendations for a set of filters, flashes, or thoughts on a good bag? I've been doing a ton of research and am having a hard time deciding especially on a bag.

Thank you!

[Waddizzle]

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@matphotographs wrote:
Thank you for the reply!

Any recommendations for a set of filters, flashes, or thoughts on a good bag?

Thank you!

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Have you ever had GAS, gear acquisition syndrome, before?  Camera bodies and lenses are the most common guilty pleasures.  Camera bags has to rank up there, too.  The best Canon flash is the 600EX II-RT.  But, before you invest in an on-camera flash, decide if off-camera flash/strobes might work better for what you want to do.  

Lens filters are pretty simple.  Post processing has evolved to the point where you do not really need to filter the lens, anymore.  I only use B+W Nano Clear filters on my lenses.  Canon makes protective lenses, too.

When it comes to camera bags, I can only recommend brands.  What type of camera bag is best is like selecting the best lens to use for a given shooting scenario.  What do you need, and what end results are you looking for?  This is where gear acquisition syndrome kicks in again.  I like Lowepro bags, myself.

I have backpacks, camera holsters, and mesenger and shoulder bags.  I have 4 bodies that I like to use more than others. Which bag I carry depends upon which lenses, and how many, that I want to carry.  This is where the shoulder and messenger bags come in to the picture when I want to carry two bodies.  If I want one body, then Icarry the holster.

One type of bag this is probably a must have is "kit bag" that can hold 2-3 bodies and several lenses, plus still have room for accessories.  This bag holds my gear at home.  Sometimes I bring it out when I do not know what I want to use, but it is not a carry around bag.  I use smaller backpacks and shoulder bags for carrying gear around.

My everyday camera bag, which means I carry a camera everywhere I go, is a Lowepro Magnum 200.  I also have a Magnum 400 and a Magnum 600.  When I want to travel lighter, I carry a Lowepro Top Loader holster to a family outing.  

When I want to do a serious shoot, I bring two bags, a kit bag and a carry bag, which is often a backpack not a shoulder bag.

This is what works for me.  Just like there is no one lens for every shooting scenario, neither is there a camera bag that meets the same description.  You are going to have to experiment.  I suggest that you make your first "experiment" a large kit bag to hold all of your gear, both in and out of the house.

[ebiggs1]

" Any recommendations for a set of filters, flashes, or thoughts on a good bag?"

If I were you after reading all you said here is what I would look at.

Canon Deluxe Backpack 200 EG

Manfrotto MK055X PRO3 Aluminum Tripod

Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 IF ED UMC Lens For Canon and/or

Tokina opera 16-28mm f/2.8 FF Lens for Canon

"Any recommendations for a set of filters, flashes, or thoughts on a good bag?

Already recommended a bag, so on to the flash and filters.  Besides protecto filers don't buy any of them.  You have the Adobe suite, learn how to use it instead. Save some money for stuff you really need.  Same thing goes for a flash. Most flash photography any more is just fill light.  Although you might make some good use doing portraits, a flash would be way down on my list.

I have six or seven high dollar flashes that do a good job sitting on the shelf. And, I do hundreds of yearbook photos!

[Mitsubishiman]

I will only comment on "Bag" 

I have a small Canon backpack, holds one camera and 2 additional lenses, I reached the point where my gear could not possibly fit in the backpack due to not really knowing what I will need at the time because of the fact I rarely am an "intentional photographer" 

Photography is not a business venture to me, it is a passion, for which I do not have as much time as I wish. 

I took the advice of a guy I met briefly at a waterfall, he showed me a solution that fit my style, a "Pelican Case"

They come in various sizes, padded sides, a few colors, extension handle and wheels. 

I chose one the size of a medium suitcase, it holds 6 lenses, and all of my additional accessories, I will not get into a debate of my choice of accessories they are just mine, I need what I need. 

I have an SUV and it slides into the back and I have everything with me, the Pelican Case is as close to indestructible as it gets, water tight seal and customizable dividers, multiple latches.

I have zero regrets and 300 bucks goes a long way on choices of a case, the best feature of all along with convenience is protection, reasonably sure it could actually withstand a serious drop without damage to the gear.

And now I have the option of switching gear from the case to the backpack. 

[ChrisPBacon]

I'm happy to see that there's at least one other astrophotographer in the community, so please allow me to wish you welcome.

Of all the different types of photography you're doing, you have two excellent lenses in the EF 24-70 and EF 70-200 [I use my 6D Mk II for most photography excluding wildlife (especially birds) for which I use my 7D Mk II]: so I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that whatever you'd add for astrophotography will probably serve you well in other venues.

Most of those I've spoken with (not only in the astronomy community but at Canon as well) recommend going with a prime, ultra-wide lens like a 14mm or 15mm lens.  You want as fast a glass as is possible (the widest aperture with the best quality of glass) according to conventional wisdom.  As someone much wiser pointed out to me, that's not always the best advice, and if I can, I'll provide you with some food for thought.

I'd say that your choice of lens should be dictated by the type of astrophotography you're doing (i.e., solar; lunar; asterisms; deep-space objects; eclipses; planetary; meteor showers; star trails, etc).

Are you using a equatorial tracking mount on your tripod?

What's your budget?

These three factors of (1) type of astrophotography; (2) mount/tripod; and (3) budget will most influence your choices: no one single lens is going to do it all.

I've recently tried a number of Canon ultra-wide lenses with varying results: my photography partner and our mentor rented several copies of the EF 14mm f/2.8L II USM and EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye and found that the quality varied using several of each lens in sharpness, clarity, color distortion, barrel distortion, etc. For being a f/2.8 lens, I'm a bit shocked that the sharper images aren't at f/2.8 but are at f/5.6 to f/8.  Why spend this much money if this is the performance I'm finding?

Frankly, I've been considering these very issues and have collected a number of ultra-wide and fisheye lenses made by Canon, Rokinon, Sigma, et al, and am considering the purchase of a Zeiss Otus 28mm f/1.4 ZEor Milvius 15mm f/2.8 ZE lenses.

Some people have recommended the Sigma 14mm f/1.8 DG HSM Art Lens for Canon EF, which I'm going to try Friday morning during the peak of the Quadrantids meteor shower.  In fact, I'm going to try to take photos using each lens at f/2,8 through f/11 just to see what results I get.

Some people I know are using telephoto-zoom lenses like the EF 11-24mm f/4 USM and EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM, which are getting rave reviews for use in a variety of different types of photography.  I've believed that a prime lens is always better than telephoto-zoom lens but after seeing the distortion in the EF 14 f/2.8L II USM and EF 15mm f/2.8 fisheye, I'm not certain that my former belief is factual.

The following chart from PetaPixel was a bit of an eye-opener for me.  Judge for yourself, but this gives me pause: I'm going to  include my EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM lens a try along with the ultra-wide angle prime lenses I'll use to record the meteor shower Friday morning.

[ChrisPBacon]

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@matphotographs wrote:

I currently own a 6D Mark II with a 24-70mm f4 and a 70-200mm f4, and I am looking to purchase another lens.  I mostly do landscape, headshots, and astrophotography.  From a lens standpoint, my current lenses satisfy landscape and headshot needs for the most part, but I was hoping to get recommendations for astrophotography lenses that could also compliment landscape and headshot work!

I'd love any feedback/recommendations!

Thanks!

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You don't mention whether you're taking your camera gear on commercial flights, checking it in as baggage or taking it as a "hand carry," but if you do fly with your cameras, it's critical that you have excellent bags that will withstand frequent travel:  I fly professionally and I only get about 6-7 months out of a bag. Buying a bag that is tamper- and baggage-handler-proof is essential for protecting your gear.

If you're not doing much airline travel with your cameras, invest in an excellent bag you can carry not just camera body and lenses, but extenders, cleaning gear, spare batteries, cables, memory cards, iPad, etc in; make whatever you store all your gear in at home a distant priority. 

Having a heavy-duty tripod is going to be a high-priority for you, especially doing astrophotography.  Nothing sucks more than hiking to your favorite dark-sky spot only to learn that in a light wind, your tripod was shaking your camera during 20-30 second exposures.  I have the Manfrotto MT055CXPRO4 carbon-fiber tripod with a MOVO gimballed head, which is very useful for astrophotography.

[RexGig]

Most of my bags, from belt pouch to “holster” to backpack, are Think Tank. Their website’s on-line what-fits-what tool is quite useful.

I will echo Mitsubishiman’s praise of Pelican cases. It is hard armor for your equipment. The biggest that be used as a carry-on piece of USA domestic airline luggage is the 1510. I used a 1510 to protect my equipment during the final 7+ years of my police career, when I was tasked with evidentiary/forensic/crime scene photography. I also bought a 1600-series case, for the next time we get a hurricane, and I want to protect more gear.

It is good to see you already received a good reply, regarding night sky photography. I have just started looking into night sky shooting, so cannot yet offer much advice. I have learned quite a bit by reading the Clark Vision dot com site.