Hi, I just got the Canon digital rebel XT. Planning in advance for our next trip in Feb, what lens do you recommend. Currently I have only the kit lens (18-55mm 3.5-5.6) but asked my husband for the 50mm f/1.4 for my birthday. Will the 50mm be good for general park/family pictures or should I look at something else as well? I would like a good all purpose, but not too heavy lens, so I don't have to worry about bringing extras everyday.

Thanks in advance!

Amy

the 18-55 will serve as a good general purpose. a fixed length lens will most likely give you sharper photos, but of course you won't have the zoom range that the 18-55 gives you.

i'd probably opt for a telephoto [zoom] lens instead. cover your bases before you start worrying about fixed length. but that's just me.

Thanks, my SIL has a 28-105 4/5.6. She's not a fan of this lens, but did say I could have it, so I'll give that a try.

The 28-105 lens will be good, but the 18-55 lens isn't bad. Unless you really need some telephoto options, I'd probably keep the 18-55 and take the 50/1.4 for any low light shots needed. I love my XT and the 18-55 lens is fine for most Disney shots. I also have a 70-300 with image stabilizer, but I only used it for some close ups of the decorated castle spires at WDW and night tripod shots of pavilions across the lagoon at Epcot.

The problem with XT (and almost all digital SLRs) is that you have to multiply the size of the lens by 1.6 because the light sensor in the camera is smaller than 35mm film. That means your 18-55 (which is designed for the digital sensor, I think) is actually 18, whereas the 28 end of 28-106 is more like a 50. You won't get much wide angle, in other words.

Conversely, the 50 is more like a 75mm lens. This means you get closer than you might want. I balance it out by using the 18-55 and the 50/1.4. It's a small enough lens to carry and quick enough to switch.

Here's a great site for Canon lens reviews:
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/

And another site explaining the basics of lenses
http://photonotes.org/articles/beginner-faq/lenses.html

Happy shooting!
Dirk

I meant to add, check these smugmug galleries for how my lenses work at Disney:

http://carolinayankee.smugmug.com/Walt%20Disney%20World%20Vacations/151889

and

http://carolinayankee.smugmug.com/Walt%20Disney%20World%20Vacations/151888

Dirk

Thank you for the advice! I ended up getting an amazing deal on a Tamron 24-135mm lens. I have a while to test it out before we'll be going to Disney. I will miss out on some of the wide angle shots, but we'll see how it goes.

How do you like your Tamron? I'm now thinking about replacing the Kit, and I'm not sure what direction to go in. I've been looking at the Sigma 17-70, but the Tamron would be a great walk-around.

Dirk