Lens advice

markp66

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Mark
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im travelling to New York for a few days and would like advice on which lens or lenses I should take. Obviously I would like to travel as light as possible but also want the right lens with me. I currently have: canon 10-18mm, canon 18-55mm and tamron 16-300mm. Thanks
 
You can't possibly have the right lens for everything, but to minimise the chances of being annoyed by having left a much more appropriate lens back home you need to decide what kind of photographs you think will be most important. If dim interiors, such as churches, railway stations, cafes, etc., then you'll want your widest aperture lens. For streetscapes and tall buildings you'll want your widest angle of view lens. For quick opportunistic shooting of unexpectedly interesting things of all kinds you'll want the zoom with the widest range of focal lengths.
 
I would leave the 18-55 behind and take the other two. I think you'll want that extra FOV from the 10-18 to take in the scale and activity in streets and interiors; the 16-300 to pick out details or people engaged in activity, and to capture compressed cityscapes and architectural details from upper floors. I'd also default to mounting this lens ready for grab shots. There isn't much to choose between these three for aperture, so I don't see any compelling advantage to the 18-55. The 10-18 and 16-300 both have a 67mm filter thread, the kit 18-55 lenses are all 58mm I think, and I like to keep a polariser with me when possible. I have that Tamron, bought as a versatile all-in-one option for when I don't want to take the full kit, and it's proved to be as handy as I hoped. If I could only take one of your lenses, it would be the 16-300. I'm sure I'd wish for the ultrawide at some point though, whereas I wouldn't miss the kit lens. The only thing missing from your gear choice is a fast aperture option, but you can't have everything and I think focal length range is a higher priority in this situation. I'd just lean on thoughtful technique and high ISO if necessary.
 
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