New DSLR - Lens must haves?

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greenjello85
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Joined: July 31st, 2014, 1:31 pm

New DSLR - Lens must haves?

Post by greenjello85 » November 24th, 2017, 7:08 pm

I ordered my first real camera! It's a canon 80d DSLR. It came with a EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM lens & an EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM lens. I know virtually nothing about photography and have used my cell phone the last 5 years. Before that I used low-end point and shoot cameras.

Are there any other focal lengths that are consider must haves for mostly landscapes with the occasional wildlife photos? The number of different ones available is overwhelming and I don't know what I'll actually use.

Is processing software necessary? Recommendations? I'm not likely to ever get any sellable photos but I'd like to be able to make prints for myself on occasion.

Thanks for the help!
Dan

justpeachy
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Re: New DSLR - Lens must haves?

Post by justpeachy » November 24th, 2017, 8:12 pm

I'm a Nikon gal, not Canon, but I can tell you that the 18–135 is a good versatile lens and will work great for landscapes. The 55-250 will be great for wildlife. I do recommend a wide angle zoom lens. When you go someplace like the Rocky Mountains or the Wallowa Mountains, you should get a wide-angle lens so you can fit the scene into your shots. Looks like Canon has a EF-S 10–18 mm STM lens.

Depending on the type of photigraphy you want to do, you may want to invest in a good tripod. It comes in handy for low-light situations, or if you want to do a slow shutter speed with a creek or waterfall. You should definitely get a circular polarizing filter all of your lenses.

You will want some editing software, even if it's just to do basic things like boost the color, or sharpen the image. Adobe Photoshop Elements is a great bargain. It does a lot of stuff, but it doesn't cost an arm and a leg, and it doesn't have the steep learning curve that the full version of Photoshop has.

Good luck, and I look forward to seeing your shots posted here on the forums. :)

greenjello85
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Re: New DSLR - Lens must haves?

Post by greenjello85 » November 25th, 2017, 4:48 pm

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll pick up a 10-18 and a polarizing filter on cyber Monday and hit the trails!

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rainrunner
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Re: New DSLR - Lens must haves?

Post by rainrunner » December 5th, 2017, 9:33 am

If you want to try wide angle landscape or night pictures this lens is pretty popular. Due to quality control, you might have to exchange it for a another one, but once you get a good copy, it is a great lens.

Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 IF ED UMC Lens For Canon EF.

For $299 (manual focus) & $399 (auto focus) it is a great deal.
The mountains are calling and I must go.
John Muir

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oldandslow
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Re: New DSLR - Lens must haves?

Post by oldandslow » December 15th, 2017, 4:12 pm

I just came across this thread. I hope that I am not too late.
The Canon 80d is definitely a "real camera." It has an excellent sensor and lots of features. To get take advantage of the features of your new camera, I recommend that you download the Canon online manual. It is much more comprehensive than the printed manual that came with your camera.
I agree that Photoshop Elements would be good for you to get. While Elements is not nearly as complex as Photoshop, it is not simple to use. I believe that it would be worthwhile to buy a book on how best to use the software. I have been using the " Missing Manual' series and have found them to be very helpful.
If you are inclined to take photos in RAW, Cannon offers Digital Photo Professional for processing RAW images. It is free. You can download an online DPP manual and Canon offers some excellent tutorials on using the software. If you are hesitant about using RAW, you can set your camera to take RAW and JPEG images simultaneously and see which you prefer or you can continue to use both.
Have fun with your new camera.

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NacMacFeegle
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Re: New DSLR - Lens must haves?

Post by NacMacFeegle » February 15th, 2018, 11:47 pm

oldandslow wrote:I just came across this thread. I hope that I am not too late.
Ditto - except I'm way later! Just wanted to throw my 2 cents in.

I'd definitely second the Rokinon 14mm - that lens is awesome, and is probably your best bet if you want to take wide angle photos of the night sky without spending a fortune.

Another suggestion I'd throw out there is the Canon 50mm 1.8 STM. I use this all the time whenever I want to blow out the background and isolate a subject. I also use it when I want to make a really detailed panorama without having to deal with any distortion.

For software I always recommend Lightroom. Though I do use photoshop occasionally, Lightroom is where most of my photo editing occurs.

I also highly recommend Microsoft ICE, which is free panorama creation software. It works great - better than Photoshop's automated stitching!

If you want to edit video, the free version of DaVinci Resolve is the best thing I've found.
Read my hiking stories and more at: http://illuminationsfromtheattic.blogspot.com/

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