24-105mm

elynch

Hi Moose!
I have the Canon SL1 with the standard 18-55mm lens. Taking a trip to Switzerland in the summer and really want to start amping up my skills and get off auto mode! I'm looking at getting the 24-105mm f/4 L lens and didn't see a set for that one. I am going to purchase the 18-55mm set. Any chance you have something that would work for that lens as well, or do you have recommendations on a better lens? Looking for something good for travel/landscape/nature but also good all around. Many thanks!

PBked

Hi @ELYNCH,
There is no doubt that the 24-105mm is a good lens, but it is an L lens so it should be, especially considering the price. However, you might find it a tad top heavy on your 100D. Also it is designed for full frame cameras, although it will work on your APS-C camera.
The lens that is rarely off my camera is the 15-85mm EF-s lens. Although not an L lens, its quality is hard to beat and it is designed for APS-C. It is ideal for a travel lens, wide enough for landscapes, and a 5.6x zoom. It also focuses from 39cm making it good for reasonable close-ups. It is also way cheaper than the 24-105mm.
If you want to get away from full auto, you could try P mode which is still an auto mode but gives you some control whereas full auto gives you none. Or you can jump straight into AV mode especially for landscapes and non moving subjects. With the 15-85mm set at f/8 and auto ISO on, you will get some cracking pictures, especially if you use IS, which will enable you to get good handheld pictures at quite low shutter speeds, although, hopefully, in summer you will not get low shutter speeds.
If you shoot in Jpg you can enhance your pictures by choosing landscape as your picture style. If you shoot in RAW then you can change styles in post editing.
Hope I have given you some food for thought.
Regards,
PBked

elynch

Thanks so much @PBKED! I really appreciate the insight and will get to the research. ;)