My Search for a Wide Angle Lens

[caption id="attachment_51" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Cathedral--Granada, Spain"][/caption]

This summer, I went to Spain to celebrate my 15th wedding anniversary (sans, kiddies-woot!).  Anyway, I knew that I'd be taking LOTS of pictures (with my Canon 7D) and I wanted to have a wide angle lens for both indoor and outdoor architectural shots.

A little background info on me....

I am one of those people who has to shop around as well as get a lot of information before pulling the trigger and making a purchase.  And, yes, it takes me much thought and deliberation to take the plunge on most of my purchases. So, as you can imagine, I spent numerous hours on various camera review sites and message boards searching for the "perfect" lens.

Due to my inability to make a decision, I ended up going to my local camera store (the day before my departure!) and talking to a sales person who recommended the Tamron 10-24mm wide angle lens.  The $50 rebate as well as the less expensive price tag (compared to the Canon 10-22mm) and the fact that I was LEAVING the next day, swayed me to take this lens leap and I have to say, I'm glad I did.

I am thrilled with the photos I was able to capture of palaces, building facades, cathedrals as well as scenic photos that included people (mostly of my husband).  I found it to be a great lens and even though I brought other lenses with me, I never took it off my camera throughout our vacation.

I read mixed reviews on this lens.  Some photographers loved it and others found it to have some faults- i.e. vignetting, distortion, etc.  But in my honest opinion, the build is sturdy, it is fast-focusing, and it has a terrific wide angle focal range all of which allowed me to get some great shots.  The slight adjustment I had, was getting used to zooming the opposite way of my other Canon lenses, but aside from that it functioned perfectly.

Here are a few sample photos--if you'd like to see more photos or get more feedback, please leave a comment below:

[caption id="attachment_49" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The Streets of Madrid"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_50" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The Mezquita--Cordoba"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_53" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Bull-Fighting Ring--Sevilla"][/caption]