22.08.10
Budget Travel Lenses
Rather like packing your suitcase to go on holiday, a suitable lens kit for going away - whether for a long weekend or a gap year abroad – has to be clearly thought out to ensure you have a lens for every eventuality. To help you choose what to include in your holiday kit bag, Tor McIntosh has selected a telephoto zoom, a wide-angle zoom and a 50mm prime lens from three price brackets - budget, mid-range and professional - lenses that would make excellent travel companions.
Telephoto zoom
Telephoto and other long-focal-length lenses are best known for making distant objects appear magnified. This makes them particularly useful for capturing wildlife. These lenses also make it easier to blur backgrounds, even when the depth of field is the same, to help make a subject really stand out.
SAVE
Sigma 70-300mm f4-5.6 DG MACRO
The 70-300mm lens is an extremely popular telephoto lens; its focal length offers plenty of diversity and it’s not too chunky to carry around. For those on a tight budget, Sigma’s 70-300mm f4-5.6 DG MACRO lens, which has been optimised for use with DSLR cameras and incorporates a macro feature with a maximum magnification of 1:2 at the focal length of 300mm, is excellent value for money.
The lightweight lens uses Special Low Dispersion glass that provides superb correction of chromatic aberration, meaning high image quality is assured throughout the entire zoom range. Mounts are available for Sigma, Canon, Nikon, Sony and Pentax cameras.
Approx £170
SPEND
Tokina AT-X 840 AF D AF 80-400mm f4.5-5.6
If you’re looking for plenty of zoom for your pounds, then Tokina’s AT-X 840 AF D AF 80-400mm f4.5-5.6 telephoto is the answer. This compact and lightweight telephoto lens is the perfect travel lens for those who need a longer focal length than the popular 70-300mm, but still wish to pack lightly. The inclusion of a handy zoom lock switch means the lens can be locked at 80mm to ensure there’s no zoom creep during your travels. The AT-X 840 AF D comes with an excellent lens hood that incorporates a design feature that allows circular polariser or special effects filters to be easily rotated while the lens hood is still attached. Mounts are available for Canon and Nikon cameras. Approx £570
SPLURGE
Sony 70-200mm f2.8 G
If money or weight restrictions aren’t a concern, then Sony’s impeccably built, high performance 70-200mm f2.8 G-series telephoto lens is an excellent choice. With a fast f2.8 constant maximum aperture, it’s an ideal lens for low-lighting conditions. The built-in supersonic wave motor autofocus mechanism provides silent, accurate and high-speed focusing for precision shooting; the lens also features three autofocus hold buttons, which allows you to easily lock focus. Although specifically designed for full-frame DSLRs, it’s also compatible with APS-C bodies where the field of view is equivalent to 105-300mm. Suitable to use with Alpha mount Sony/Minolta cameras. Approx £1,500
Wide angle
Wide-angle lenses tend to magnify distance between objects while allowing greater depth of field. This makes them great for landscape or reportage photographers wanting to capture as much content and detail as possible from the scene before them.
SAVE
Tamron Af 28-75mm f2.8 XR Di LD
This middle weight, wide-angle zoom lens is versatile for both landscape and portrait photography. Marketed by Tamron as a standard zoom, it utilises the same size reduction technology developed for the popular Tamron 28-200mm and 28-300mm Super Zooms. It also offers a constant aperture of f2.8 throughout the zoom range, making it suitable to use in low-light environments. This lens represents the first in a new category — a zoom lens that can be used comfortably as a high-quality fast standard lens for both silver-halide and digital photography. Mounts are available for Canon, Nikon, Sony/Minolta and Pentax. Approx £359
SPEND
Nikon 16-85mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX-NIKKOR
In the mid-range market a firm favourite is Nikon’s 16-85mm f3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX lens — a compact, lightweight, high-power wide-angle zoom lens that’s ideal for a range of shooting situations. Fast, quiet autofocus is guaranteed with Nikon’s exclusive built-in Silent Wave Motor, and the Vibration Reduction II function enables crisp results when shooting at shutter speeds up to four stops slower than usually possible. With two extra-low dispersion glass elements and three aspherical lens elements, the lens delivers high-resolution, high-contrast images while minimising chromatic aberration. Ideally suited for use on Nikon DX-format and FX-format cameras. Approx £550
SPLURGE
Canon EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM
For professional results on your travels Canon’s EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM wide-angle zoom lens is a highly recommended choice, especially for crisp landscape shots. With a constant f2.8 aperture throughout the zoom range, Canon’s three-stop image stabiliser — allowing you to use a shutter speed of just 1/15th of a second in low-light conditions — and a high-speed, silent ultrasonic motor autofocus mechanism, the EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM delivers exceptional performance, precision focusing and framing flexibility. Specialist lens coating and ultra-low dispersion glass help deliver brilliant clarity, sharpness, contrast and colour accuracy. Suitable for use with Canon EF-S mount cameras. Approx £1,200
What are the differences between consumer and professional lenses?
There are a number of reasons why you should use professional lenses. Firstly, they tend to be faster. This means they have a wider aperture, making them better for low-light situations. Pro zoom lenses will also retain this aperture throughout the zoom range. Pro lenses are also more likely to be be built better - more rugged, with better lens coatings and special glass.
More expensive lenses often have more blades or rounded blades, which produce more pleasing bokeh. If the lens is used wide open then no blades are involved and the lens will produce a nice image with shallow depth of field and pleasing bokeh.
Focusing is internal, which means the lens will not spin in your hand while you are trying to hold it steady, and the motors are faster and quieter. Unfortunately, all these benefits are harder to design and require more parts and a higher standard of manufacturing -the reasons for the high price tags. They also add weight to the lens. So should you be buying pro lenses? If your camera never leaves your side, yes. If you only take the occasional image, consumer lenses are just fine, and remember lenses from the same manufacturer isn’t a guarantee the quality will be the same. So work out how you are going to use your lens and do your research before parting with your hard-earned cash.
Prime 50mm
Prime lenses have fixed focal lengths. While it may seem they are less versatile than zooms, they are often of superior optical quality, faster, lighter in weight, smaller in size and generally cheaper to buy. A 50mm lens is ideal for portrait work, offering sharp images.
SAVE
Nikon AF NIKKOR 50mm f1.8 D
If you’re looking for a lightweight, affordable and compact prime lens, then look no further than Nikon’s AF NIKKOR 50mm f1.8 D lens. Weighing in at just 155g, this lens is exceptionally lightweight and offers the budget-conscious photographer a wide f1.8 aperture for excellent low-light performance and stops down to f22 for extended depth of field. With its fast autofocus function and supreme sharpness, this is the ultimate budget prime lens for travel, portrait or landscape photography. Suitable to use with all Nikon cameras, although only manual focus available on the D40, D40x or D60. Approx £100
SPEND
ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 50mm f1:2.0 Macro
An essential addition to any Four Thirds user’s kit bag is the solidly built and weatherproofed ZUIKO DIGITAL 50mm 1:2.0 Macro lens. Designed as a special macro photography lens for use with the Olympus Macro Flash System, it’s equally good in normal use as a compact and reasonably lightweight portrait, macro and general-purpose prime lens. The optical design includes a floating focus system for optimum correction across the entire distance range; this enables a minimum focus distance of 0.2m and provides a 1:2 (half life size) maximum magnification, which translates to a 1:1 macro lens on a 35mm full-frame format. Suitable to use with Four Thirds mount Olympus and Panasonic cameras. Approx £450
SPLURGE
Canon EF 50mm f1.2L USM
It may seem crazy that such a small lens costs so much, but Canon’s EF 50mm f1.2L USM lens has a wealth of features to match its hefty price tag. This super fast, professional L-series lens with a staggering f1.2 maximum aperture is ideal for controlling depth of field and shooting indoors flash free; a circular aperture helps create attractive, even background blur (bokeh).
Add to this a ultra sonic motor for rapid and near-silent autofocus, dust and moisture-resistant construction and Canon’s Super Spectra lens coating to suppress flare and ghosting, and this prime lens lives up to the saying that ‘the best things come in small packages.’ Suitable to use with Canon EF mount cameras. Approx £1,300
1.4x Teleconverters
An excellent way to increase magnification without having to carry around the extra weight of another bulky lens is to purchase a teleconverter lens. These secondary lenses are mounted between select lenses and the camera body to increase focal length by 1.4x (or 1.7x, 2.0x, 3.0x, depending on your needs). There are a number of teleconverters on the market, but do refer to the lens manufacturer before purchasing to ensure compatibility with your lens kit. Here are some 1.4x teleconverters to consider:
Sigma 1.4x EX DG teleconverter Canon Extender EF 1.4x II ZUIKO DIGITAL 1.4x Teleconverter EC-14 Nikon TC-14E II teleconverter Sony SAL-14TC 1.4x teleconverter
This feature is from the June 2010 issue.
- Average Article Rating 0 Stars
-
Your Rating
Login Required!
Sorry - You must be a registered user & logged in to rate this.
Login | Register
Back to Categories