Dilemma: UWA or WA?

[machiavellian]

Should I get a UWA or just a WA is suffice?

I'm currently stuck between the Sigma 10-20 and the Tamron 17-50.
I know it's a big difference between the two in terms of the FOV.

I have a question for those who are using UWA lenses...

Do you always shoot at 10mm? Or do you actually zoom in a bit to get a better framing?
Is 10mm an overkill, or does a 17mm suffice?

:dunno:

 

[coolthought]

it depends. Sometimes it is going fully wide at 10 and sometimes 12, 14, and even 18 depending on the scene and composition. Depending on what I want and the scene, even a telephoto may work quite well.

Before I got the 10-20, sometimes I do wish having a 10 at my disposal so that everything will fit nicely inside with space to breath.

 

[sinned79]

wat u like to shoot?

landscapes? portraits?

17-50 is good good for both.

but if u only shoot nothing but portraits only, 10-20 may give you distortion problems on your human subjects.

 

[mimik07]

I assume you are getting a UWA or WA for mostly landscapes?

Agree with CT. Depends on your desired composition for difference scenes. Before I got my 17-40, I was using 24-105 for most of my landscapes and wished that I could go wider.

Do you find yourself constantly wanting to go ultra wide?

 

[esoeij]

This article by Kenrockwell.com might help. Although the best way to find out is to try out a UWA lens for yourself to see if it suits your style and the things you shoot.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/how-to-use-ultra-wide-lenses.htm

 

[machiavellian]

I like to shoot landscapes. So I'm guessing 17mm isn't wide enough for general landscape photography?
Yeah I always wanna do wide shots. How about say 15mm or 16mm? Does the FOV differ a lot from 17mm?

of course I'm using an APS-C sensor camera.

 

[esoeij]

I like to shoot landscapes. So I'm guessing 17mm isn't wide enough for general landscape photography?
Yeah I always wanna do wide shots. How about say 15mm or 16mm? Does the FOV differ a lot from 17mm?

of course I'm using an APS-C sensor camera.

I acquired my first UWA lens recently so I am quite new to UWA photography. But judging by some of the comments in CS by more experienced shooters, I would suggest that there is no 'right' focal length to shoot landscapes. It really depends on your preference and style. So the answer to your first question is "it depends".

Since you say you've always wanted to do wide shots, then you should really consider experimenting with an UWA lens. After I used one I wished I had it sooner! Does 15mm or 16mm differ a lot from 17mm? Well, on a crop body, the difference is more pronounced. But whether it differs a lot is a subjective opinion, though it's probably safe to say an UWA at 10mm is quite different from 17mm.

 

[Octarine]

I like to shoot landscapes. So I'm guessing 17mm isn't wide enough for general landscape photography?
Yeah I always wanna do wide shots. How about say 15mm or 16mm? Does the FOV differ a lot from 17mm?

Have you had a look into this thread Mastering the UWA lens?
Not sure why 17mm is not wide enough, sometimes it is too wide for me. But again, it depends - also keep in mind that 'just wide' doesn't equal to a good picture. I remember a thread / posting by night86mare where he highlighted that many people just create a big emptiness using UAW. So composition needs to be adjusted.

 

[daredevil123]

Portrait shot with Tokina 11-16 and Landscape shot with 55-200VR:

Focal length is just a focal length. There is no limit to what range of focal length is meant for what kind of subjects. In the end, it is up to you, the photographer, to determine what focal length you need for the image you want to create, irregardless of the subject.

 

[ZerocoolAstra]

I like to shoot landscapes. So I'm guessing 17mm isn't wide enough for general landscape photography?
Yeah I always wanna do wide shots. How about say 15mm or 16mm? Does the FOV differ a lot from 17mm?

of course I'm using an APS-C sensor camera.

You should try your best to erase such stereotypes from your mind before you start. There's nowhere on a UWA lens that says "landscape".
Anyway DD123 has already brought this point up.

 

[incubus]

ive never used my sigma 10-20 at any other focal length other than 10mm. Only reason i got a 10-20 looong time ago was that 17mm isnt wide enuff on a cropped d70 censor. So it makes little sense for me to use it at 20mm. Its sole purpose for me is as a landscape lens.

No one can decide for you if u need UW or W actually. The first question one asks himself when torn between 2 lenses is usually which focal length he will shoot with most and a close second is which subject(s) or vice versa.

 

[machiavellian]

interesting. Thanks everyone for your inputs.

 

[An drew]

Try wide angle first. If not wide enough then try ultra-wide.