My new baby - Canon DSLR

[Bonez]

Hey guys,

Hopefully this is not too off topic for the Pictures forum, but I know there's a few of you out there who are right into cameras/lenses/filters/tripods etc so I thought I'd ask.

Anyway, I recently ordered a bundle of stuff and have so far received the Camera (waiting on the rest).

What are your thoughts on the below?

Canon EOS 1100D with 18-55mm lens (I know this isn't the greatest camera in the world, but you gotta start somewhere)
Slik F630 Tripod
Bower 5 piece filter kit 55mm (UV, CPL, ND and 2 caps)

Is there anything else that you can think of that would greatly improve the experience? I want to mostly take photos of the city skyline both at day and night, beaches, parks, a few close ups of nieces/nephews and the odd aircraft shoot if I get bored on a Sunday and head out to the airport

I understand the 18-55mm lens might not be ideal for the city and beach shots, but I don't really know much about lenses. Can anyone recommend a good lens or addons for these purposes, on a reasonably low budget? (I blew too much on the camera already!)

Thanks

[Helitac668]

G'day

Hopefully i may be able to help out. Its good to see your heading into the canon range. My personal favourite brand is canon, but compared to nikon...its like comparing ford with holden.

The kit lens (18-55mm) is okay for everyday use, but for telephoto work its not so great. Its not a lens you would use for aviation unless your in a aircraft taking scenery shoots. Into the future if i was you id look at the canon 55-250mm. Okay for telephoto work and you can use it for aviation photography (but not the best). You can normally get the 18-55mm + 55-250mm together at a cheaper price when brought in the twin lens kit.

For landscape, cityscape and seascape work id say have a look at the sigma 10-20mm. It gives a nice wide angle. Otherwise 18-55mm can do the job perfectly...but in the city you may find it hard to get everything in the shot.

For portraiture work look at a sigma 50mm f/1.4. Its great cause you can drop the aperture down to f stop 1.4. This means if you focus on a subject then background will be blurry. Ofcourse you can put the number up to reduce the blurriness in the image. If the sigma is too much, look at the canon 50mm f/1.8. Its a cheap lens and feels plasticly but its okay. Its best to use the camera in manual mode or aperture mode to get the most out of your DOF and these lenses.

Hope this helps

Regards
Jack Moth-O'Neill

[Bonez]

Thanks heaps for the tips. It's a big learning curve and I'm playing with all the different modes at the moment. It has a mode where it automatically takes a nice portrait of someone and blurs the background, very nice effect. That works pretty good on my current lens.

I like the info you gave on the other lenses, it sounds good. I think I will just use this lens now until I've mastered the camera and taken some really nice shots, then I can investigate other lens types.

My filters and tripod are arriving today, so I'm getting excited

Cheers

[Helitac668]

No problem photography is soo exciting when you get new stuff. I must say only use my 18-55mm on my Canon 600D, but with the fire season coming, ill switch the lens over to the 55-250mm. This will allow me to get close-ups of the Helitacs from a distance. I use a 35mm film camera (OM10) and a 50mm f/1.8 (not canon...its a OM lens) for all my other images.

One last thing...if your UV filter is screw-on...I would recommend having the screw on UV filter on your lens all the time. When you get another lens, buy a another UV filter for that lens and keep it on that lens all the time. So basically get a new UV filter every time you buy a new lens. The reasoning for this is a UV filter can save a lens. When you drop a lens with a UV filter on...the chances of scratching the lens, damaging the glass or even the outside of the lens is reduced. It saved my Canon 18-55mm. Once i was walking down to the bottom of Lesmurdie falls, the rocks were wet and i slipped. The camera lens hit a nearby rock and the only damage was to the UV filter.


Have fun with your toy stuff! .........and do lots of experimenting

[Helitak_670]

I never use filters, and you should not use filters on a lens that the end moves when you focus as most of your images will come out blurry. That is through my experience and others.

[Bonez]

No problem photography is soo exciting when you get new stuff.

It's fun when you order the right stuff I assumed that with a 17-55mm lens I would need 55mm filters, turns out I am wrong and need 58mm filters. Need to send them back to exchange

One last thing...if your UV filter is screw-on...I would recommend having the screw on UV filter on your lens all the time.

I plan to do this, I've seen many people saying that it's a very good security measure... Helps to stop your expensive lens getting dirty or potentially scratched/smashed. Filters are far cheaper than lenses as we know!

[auntys_eyes]

...and you should not use filters on a lens that the end moves when you focus as most of your images will come out blurry. That is through my experience and others.

As a professional photographer and cinematographer for 30 years i have never heard of this happening. Maybe more to do with incorrect filter choice?

[auntys_eyes]

It's fun when you order the right stuff I assumed that with a 17-55mm lens I would need 55mm filters, turns out I am wrong and need 58mm filters. Need to send them back to exchange

17-55mm describes the focal length of the lens, not the front thread diameter. Screw on filter sizes are determined by the thread size (usually stamped/printed on the lens).

One last thing...if your UV filter is screw-on...I would recommend having the screw on UV filter on your lens all the time.

I plan to do this, I've seen many people saying that it's a very good security measure... Helps to stop your expensive lens getting dirty or potentially scratched/smashed. Filters are far cheaper than lenses as we know!

Pretty much standard practice for our television lenses.