New setup- New to the Forum

[byron87]

Hi there, I am new to forums so go easy on me.

I started photography as a hobby a few years ago and have been learning new things ever since.
My first setup was a Canon 600D with the standard lenses...i also got a canon 50mm, and just before christmas i purchased the Sigma 8-16mm, which i am very impressed with.

Last week i ordered in my new setup- Canon 5D mk iii, with the canon 24-70mm. I am still awaiting its arrival, and cant wait to start learning how to use it!

I have been doing a bit of research into which other lenses i should purchase...I mainly shoot Landscape, and getting the hang of Astrophotography.

Any help or ideas in which lenses i should purchase would be greatly appreciated.

cheers! 

[Menace]

You already have the Sigma that covers the wide end, 50 (f?) will cover low light and 24-70 as a walk around so I'd suggest you don't really need any more lenses right now - just concentrate on shooting and improving your skill level.

(If you did portraits, one of the 70-200 would be handy).

You can always invest in a good sturdy tripod and ball head combo for your landscape and astrophotography and some kind of remote shutter for those extra long exposures.

Do share your pics with us.

Have fun

[Niterider]

For landscape, I like to use ultra wide angle lenses. I have the samyang 14mm F/2.8. Some (including me) love this lens and others have had bad copies or just didnt like it. Also, if I remember correctly, the sigma 8-16 is not designed for full frame sensors, so using it on the 5d mark iii will vignette or possibly damage the mirror.

Almost all of my lenses are primes, most of which fall into the 24-70 range, so unless you are looking into primes, I wont be of much help.

In terms of astrophotography, I am not sure what you are trying to achieve, but those pictures you see on the internet are not easy to take. Most are taken with cameras with an infrared modified sensor mounted on a star tracker to eliminate star trails. If you get really into astrophotography, I have read about people using refractor telescopes with built in star trackers to achieve good photos at 2000-3000mm focal length.

If you do use something like an astrotrac, I have heard that results vary with lenses over 400mm. Something to keep in mind when looking for lenses in the future.

[RAWShooter126]

That's a huge jump from a 600D to a Mk III. If you are into shooting landcapes with a 5D I would recommend the 17-40mm f4 L. It's a fairly old model but much sharper than a lot of the other wide angles like the 16-35. Shooting wide is just about everything when it comes to landscapes, so if you want gear advice, really recommend the 17-40. Had the priviledge of trying it, you wouldn't be dissapointed.
Also, what type of astrophotography are you trying to do?
The kind where you look at individual stars/systems, star trail or star time lapse (which is of huge interest to me)?
Edit: It may be of interest to get a 16-35 anyway because of the 2.8 aperture, which will be a huge help in available light situations.