As above, about to pull the trigger on a DSLR, You can get it packaged with a 24-105mm lense, but was wondering whether to get body only and get an 18-135mm??

So Whats the best do it all/travel lense, if you can only have 1?

Knowing what the body is will help.

I didn’t want to say really, as it would start a Canon/Nikon debate and people may put me off my choice but if it helps… Canon 6D (Full frame)

Canon I’m guessing? If that is the 24-105L I’d go for that.

Edit- For a 6D definitely the 24-105L.

You won’t get an 18-135 full frame lens.

24-105 is useful in good light. A 24-70 f2.8 may be more flexible.

if your going full frame and need to ask this question, should you really be going full frame?

24-105L is a blinding lens on a crop body as well.

The 18-135mm is an EF-S lens anyway so it won’t fit on a full-frame body and it’s nowhere near the 24-105 optically.

Swavis and 5th Elefant, can you elaborate? Still new to the full frame stuff.

Edit- For a 6D definitely the 24-105L.

Why?

You won’t get an 18-135 full frame lens.

Didn’t realise that, asssume the 24-105 is the FF equivalent of the 18-135?

I have an EF 28-135 that I find ok as a walkabout lens, I use it on a crop 60D body and sometimes isn’t quite wide enough, I’ve a Tamron 17-50 2.8 as well though so not too much of an issue.
With full frame I think 24mm would be perfect.

Edit – as above, the EF-S won’t fit a full frame body and the 24-105 is optically far superior.

The 24-105mm is ideal for the 6D, IS comes in handy too

Didn’t realise that, asssume the 24-105 is the FF equivalent of the 18-135?

An 18-135 on a canon crop body is the full frame equivalent of 29-216, so nothing like 24-105.

Elaborating on my earlier post…

Focal length is only one aspect of “doing it all”. A long zoom range means small apertures so you need more light than a lens with large apertures.

So some prefer a slow 24-105, other prefer a fast 24-70 depending on what they mean by “do it all”. For example: you want to shoot some landscapes in the day and in a dim bar at night – the fast lens is preferable.

On a Nikon, it used to be (and probably still is) a Nikor 50mm f1.8.

Awesome lens. Maybe Canon do something similar.

Having been jealous of many a shot taken with the 24-105L, I would just get that.
You can save money, but not get equal performance in a walkabout zoom (it’s quite heavy mind).

On a Nikon, it used to be (and probably still is) a Nikor 50mm f1.8.

Awesome lens. Maybe Canon do something similar.

Canon do something pretty much exactly the same, yes. Great bit of kit for sub-£100.

No such thing as a ‘do it all’ lens. You can get lenses with a wider range of focal lengths, but as above they just compromise in other areas.

I use a 24-105 f4 on Canon FF, for what I use it for it’s the best allrounder. It’s a great lens, it hasn’t got the best rep. for reliability, but it’s cheap (relative to Canon’s recent price hikes).

If I only took one lens with me, it would be a 50mm prime.

24-105L is a superb lens in terms of quality and it’s a useful kit lens length (it’s the 5D kit lens with good reason). If you like doing big landscapes you might find it a bit limiting on a cropped sensor.

By all accounts the 18-135mm is worlds away from the 24-105 in quality, so you need to be really honest with yourself about how much you need the wider end.

As stated above, 18-135mm won’t work on a 6D….and it’s pretty nasty by all accounts. The Tamron 24-70 F2.8 might be be an option if f2.8 is important to you.

Despite having a drawer full of various zooms and prime lenses, these days my walkabout on my ff cameras is a 35mm f2 lens. Just can’t be bothered with the weight / size of a zoom.

I don’t have that problem with my Olympus 🙂

I have the 24-105 one and a mate is looking to buy one, I described it to him as brilliantly versatile. So aye, get one of those.

travel? 20mm prime? on a m4/3?

at least then you’ll take it out with you!

http://craigmod.com/journal/gf1-fieldtest/

that type of thing

save some cash too 2nd hand

I’d rather have the Oly 17mm prime tbh.

Yeah, Oly too is great. That was just an example but I think the GF1 and Oly EP whatever are generally thought of as the better ones.

I use a 24-105L 90% of the time.

Anyone recommend any good online dealers, that Canon honor warranties with?

Was looking at SLR hut.

These are all UK official stock (or at least the site owner tries to filter out any grey imports):
http://camerapricebuster.co.uk/prod.php?n=CanonEOS6D+24-105mmLens&p=3289

(Versus about £1800 for imports from reputable online shops)

You want to travel with that huge lump? 😯

I’d LOVE to travel with that huge (not that big you girl) lump (weighs a kilo and a bit, I weigh 100+ – I can cope with a 1% increase). Nothing worse than a fiddly little camera with no weight behind it.

It’s a great lens, it hasn’t got the best rep. for reliability,

Agreed. I’ve just had to replace the one that came with my 5DII, which I’ve only had for four years. Not happy about that, but not much to be done either.

I had a mooch about both the new fast Tamron (24-80??) and the Canon 24-70, but just decided for direct replacement in the end. IMO the Tamron, despite its pricing seemed remarkably cheap in construction and feel, even if it was sharp. The 24-70 is a lot more expensive (Mk II), and I’ve found the IS on the 24-105 easily gets me three extra stops with care, as opposed to just the one extra stop between 2.8 and 4

You can always emulate a wider lens taking a set of portrait shots and stitching them. Hence a 50mm prime is fine for landscapes of any aperture. You’ll also get a higher res and lower distortion image that way. Likewise you can crop to emulate zoom, but obviously at the expense of resolution.

Anyone recommend any good online dealers, that Canon honor warranties with?

Warehouse Express

Was looking at SLR hut.

No personal experience, but search back through the forum; IIRC, they’ve been broadly panned here in the past.

I think also their prices don’t include VAT, so aren’t as cheap as they appear (though I could be misremembering here).

Onestop Digital are well regarded.

Probably been said already, but in my limited experience (28 years photography, 7 of those with digital), as a do-it-all lens you’ll be disappointed if the lens doesn’t AT LEAST go as wide at an equivalent of 28mm wide-angle full-frame. Anything less isn’t really ‘wide angle’.

35mm in film (i.e. full-frame) days was considered ‘normal’ as opposed to the 50mm by many.

Lens speed is a huge issue (despite what Ken Rockwell spouts), get the fastest (i.e. largest aperture) you can afford.

At the long end, again, get what you can afford. 75mm equivalent, 85mm equivalent, 105mm equivalent…it’s all good.

In my opinion, and depending on your aspirations, avoid the wide-angle to super zoom consumer monstrosities. Too many optical compromises.

There are many lens reviews sites out there, I have narrowed them down to just the one that’s actually any good, it’s Polish:

Lens Tips

Thumbs up for Warehouse Express.

I use my 35mm f1.8 almost exclusively. Very versatile, weighs very little and not bulky. I love it. (Nikon, by the way.)

I like a Tamron 18-50 2.8 for everyday walking around stuff. It’s pretty fast for a small zoom

Buy the biggest dick-swinging lens you can and make the camera club goons green with envy, take pics of cats/sunsets secure in the knowledge that you are top dog.

Buy the biggest dick-swinging lens you can and make the camera club goons green with envy, take pics of cats/sunsets secure in the knowledge that you are top dog.

Still taking pictures of building sites and rubbish, or moved to an engaging subject yet?

I’ll tell you what, if I ever meet anyone who needs a picture taking of a green pop bottle, I’ll be sure to recommend you.

I’ll make sure the OP apologises to you for having the temerity to consider anything beyond their cameraphone. It’s easy to forget that only self important pros are allowed to use an SLR.