Lens Selection

[SigChi Reefer]

Hey y'all,
I recently purchased a Canon Eos Rebel T7i for my other hobby astrophotography. Since I now have a good DSLR body I figured I might as well get the proper lenses to capture amazing photos of my tank. So what Canon lenses are y'all using to capture what in your tank? TIA

 

[Ron Reefman]

A normal lens will work, the ability to use macro focus helps, a faster lens is better than a slower one, and the right filter makes all the difference in the world. But I'm not a Canon user (well, my photo printer is a Canon).

I just got an older Nikon to use for taking photos of the night sky (the Milky Way and Aurora Borealis). So I need a fast wide angle lens and I hate to spend the money for the limited number of photos I'll take with it.

BTW, I use a Nikon P900 as my 'go to' camera. 24mm to 2000mm zoom. It's a great camera for sports (race cars for me), nature photography and really any daytime photography. But the lens is slower and it get tough to use as the sun goes down.

Good luck with your aquarium photography adventure. And I'd love to see those astronomy photos!

 

[jent]

The Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro is a fantastic lens at a reasonable price.

 

[adittam]

You’re setting yourself up for frustration trying to do Astro on a camera with a crop sensor like the T7i. It not impossible, but the results will not be nearly as good as on a full-frame sensor camera such as a 6D or the newer RP.

As far as the macro lens goes, any Canon brand lens that has “macro” in its actual name will be much better than the kit lens that come with your camera. This is because lenses that were designed to be macro lenses have much closer minimum focus distances and greater magnification of the subject than non-macro lenses. If you can afford it, I agree with the reply above that suggested the EF 100mm f/2.8 macro.

Let me know if you have any other questions; I know a lot more about photography than reefing!