Fast+wide dilemma

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gridlock

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In February I'll be going to Norway in search of the Northern Lights. The question is what lens to use on my 60D for low-light landscapes. I've kind of got the 'L' bug, and the EF 24mm 1.4L seems the ideal choice, but I can't justify that kind of money on a lens I probably wouldn't use much afterwards.

So what to do?
  • Rent a 24/1.4L? That's still going to cost the best part of £300 for 3 weeks.
  • Buy a used 24/1.4L and sell it afterwards?
  • Stick with my Sigma 17-70? At f2.8 it isn't that slow, but only middling image quality.
  • Or buy something else?

Any suggestions for something cheaper and more flexible than the 24/1.4L but still a step up from the Sigma?
 
Bearing in mind your 60d is a crop sensor, I think your best bet is a Canon 10-22 and a cheap tripod. If your taking night shots (of the aurora) even an f/1.2 is not going to be fast enough to hand hold, also noise will be a big issue, so low iso will be required.

The 10-22 is a great lens, I had one for a few years on a 40d and got some great low light shots. L quality optics if not build.
 
Another vote for the 10-22, sure it's a slow f/3.5 but as said you need a tripod anyway. I would expect to expose for 20 seconds or more there.. The 10-22 is also great as a walk-around lens in majestic surroundings.

Since you're not looking for depth of field control, remember that the wider a lens is the less motion is going to be visible so you can get away with a smaller aperture and longer exposure.. And there's a huge difference between 24mm and 10mm.

I would also take my Samyang 8mm/3.5 if I was going :)

This is an EIGHTY (80) second exposure of the sky with the Samyang. Yes you can see trails on the stars.. but I don't think you could spot them at 10 seconds or faster. Wiiide works even with slooow :)

i-DntWdVr-X2.jpg
 
Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 without a doubt for your 60D. It is the only lens that really delivers wide open. That will be over £300 but yours to keep.

You will need to worry about 24L when you get FF.
 
gridlock said:
So what to do?
  • Rent a 24/1.4L? That's still going to cost the best part of £300 for 3 weeks.
Click to expand...
Er... no it isn't. The 24/1.4 L Mk II would be less than £200 including insurance, delivery and VAT. The 24/1.4 L Mk I would be less than £150.

But I agree with the others that it's probably not the ideal lens on a crop sensor. I personally would take a Canon 10-22. Yes, the Tokina 11-16 is f/2.8, but that's only half a stop advantage at the wide end, and the Tokina's zoom range is too restrictive for my taste.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I was thinking of shortish exposures to capture more detail from the aurora (which i understand can 'dance' quite quickly) rather than getting a green blur.

I realise this is all very optimistic, but you've got to try!
 
I fancy going on a cruise to shoot the lights and have Googled a few "how to..." sites and they seem to be saying something like....

Wide angle, wide aperture (some say 1.4/1.8-2.8 with f4 being too slow,) and ISO 400-800.

If and when I take the plunge and book it I think I'll be taking my 20mm f1.8 and 12-24mm although the latter is quite slow but will at least come in for day / evening shots.
 
gridlock said:
Thanks for the suggestions. I was thinking of shortish exposures to capture more detail from the aurora (which i understand can 'dance' quite quickly) rather than getting a green blur.
Click to expand...

I'm seriously thinking of popping up to Iceland for a few days to see if I can shoot the aurora again. If I do then I'll probably use the 11-16 rather than the 10-22 for the aurora for two reasons - the extra half stop and because I can use a light-pollution filter with it.

You're not going to be able to freeze the motion of the aurora. Even at f2.8 and ISO800 you're going to be looking at exposures of 5-10 seconds.
 
Hi, I'm having facing a similar decision as the OP. Going to Iceland in March to hopefully see the Northern Lights. Don't want to buy a new lens just for this trip so will be hiring one, but still not sure what to go for, changing my mind every day at the minute. Will be using a 600d.Three options on my shortlist which are:

  • Canon 10-22mm
    Canon 24mm f/1.4 L
    Canon 14mm f/1.8

Any advice would be great. Cheers
 
Myke said:
Hi, I'm having facing a similar decision as the OP. Going to Iceland in March to hopefully see the Northern Lights. Don't want to buy a new lens just for this trip so will be hiring one, but still not sure what to go for, changing my mind every day at the minute. Will be using a 600d.Three options on my shortlist which are:

  • Canon 10-22mm
    Canon 24mm f/1.4 L
    Canon 14mm f/1.8

Any advice would be great. Cheers
Click to expand...

There is no 14mm f/1.8. there is f/2.8 and it costs crazy money. The 24mm will be wasted on the crop sensor.

So really Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 comes out on top
 
Another vote for the 11-16mm. Sharp wide open and just gets better! Best of all is it'll also work on Full frame, but only at 15-16mm which is still stupid wide! (11mm on a 1.6x crop is equal to just over 17mm on FF)

But whatever you decide, a tripod is recommended. 24mm just isn't that wide on a crop.
 
Looking at the websites on photographing the lights many seem to recommend wide aperture lenses in the 20-28mm f1.4/f1.8 range. As a tripod will probably be a necessity I assume the wide aperture is needed to allow a reasonable time for the exposure while keeping the required ISO down.
 
hollis_f said:
Good luck trying to hire an 11-16.
Click to expand...

Who said anything about renting? ;) I'm not sure what S/H prices are like at the moment, but he can probably pick one up for a similar price to what he expects to rent a 24L for.

I heard Tokina will be releasing a Mk2 of it this year, not sure how true that is.
 
daugirdas said:
There is no 14mm f/1.8. there is f/2.8 and it costs crazy money. The 24mm will be wasted on the crop sensor.

So really Tokina 11-16 f/2.8 comes out on top
Click to expand...

Typo well spotted. I knew the 14mm is f/2.8. Lots of praise for the Tokina so I'm definitely going to investigate further. Thanks
 
2Thumbs said:
Another vote for the 11-16mm. Sharp wide open and just gets better! Best of all is it'll also work on Full frame, but only at 15-16mm which is still stupid wide! (11mm on a 1.6x crop is equal to just over 17mm on FF)

But whatever you decide, a tripod is recommended. 24mm just isn't that wide on a crop.
Click to expand...

Since you've mentioned, I might just go and get one - it is not like there is another good affordable 15mm FF non-fisheye lens that also takes filters!
 
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