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I currently have Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G and NIKON AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II Lens.

  1. Which lens should I taken for Banff and is there any other lens that is recommended for taking photos of landscape?
  2. Is wide-angle lens preferred for landscape photography?

EDIT: Banff, Alberta

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    \$\begingroup\$ Banff Scotland or Banff Alberta? \$\endgroup\$
    – xenoid
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 13:01
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    \$\begingroup\$ ...why not take both...? \$\endgroup\$
    – OnBreak.
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 13:26
  • \$\begingroup\$ @Hueco I was wondering if any other lens is recommended over the lens that I have. Since I have couple of months, I am planning to invest in one decent lens. But, yes, I was planning to take couple of lens on my trip. \$\endgroup\$
    – would_like_to_be_anon
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 13:32
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    \$\begingroup\$ What are you wanting to shoot? You would want very different lenses for capturing a wide landscape vista containing two or more mountain peaks vs capturing that black bear walking across that hillside 300 meters away... \$\endgroup\$
    – twalberg
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 14:15
  • \$\begingroup\$ @twalberg I am not planning to shoot any wildlife. I am mostly planning to use it for: 1. Capturing mountains along with adjacent lakes (eg. Moraine Lake, Lake Louise) 2. My wife in the foreground and mountains in the background (for sharing with family) 3. Some waterfalls along the way (eg. Takakkaw falls) and 4. Maybe some cloud cover on the top of the mountains. \$\endgroup\$
    – would_like_to_be_anon
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 15:28

3 Answers 3

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The lenses that you decide to use are ultimately a very personal decision. Some people like primes, others zooms, others all-in-one-zooms. Pending your shooting style, whether or not you get the shot that you want will be determined by the focal length that you have available along with the aperture you have available on that particular lens.

Some people here would prioritize never changing the lens while traveling - thus using a super zoom. The trade off of this decision being decreased image quality and a need to push the ISO due to super-z's usually being in the f/5.6 range or worse.

A more professional kit would be something like a 16-35 f/2.8, 24-70 f/2.8, and 70-200 f/2.8. 3 lenses with a massive range all available at f/2.8. Obviously, a kit like this is expensive and heavy.

If one wanted to pair this down a bit, you could do something like a 16-35 f/4, 24-105 f/4, and 70-200 f/4. Same range, sacrificing the aperture for a lighter weight kit.

And of course, there are many more variations of this using other zooms with more closed apertures or adding primes in to fill gaps or add low light flexibility. Ultimately, the choice is yours.

However, for landscapes, I would personally sacrifice carrying everything I own to simply have my 16-35 f/4 and 100mm x 100mm filter kit. Why? Because the wide angle suits my style and, for me, the importance of a polarizer and ND's and GND's for landscape work cannot be overstated.

Within your existing kit, you obviously have a gap to fill at less than 55mm. How you fill that is completely up to you and your budget (pro zoom, consumer zoom, prime, etc). I would encourage you to budget in a good polarizer, though, at minimum.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ This is good advice for full frame, and indeed somewhat similar to what I have, but I'd say for crop use crop lenses. Less weight to carry that way due to the smaller image circle, and around f/4 (let's say f/4.5 - 5.6) wide angle zooms can be found for crop in very lightweight packages. Also, if one has full frame mirrorless, the Sony 24-240mm lens is quite acceptable for travel, and I'm sure the upcoming Canon 24-240mm lens is too. So, certainly not all superzooms are lenses to avoid. \$\endgroup\$
    – juhist
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 18:40
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I personally would take the 55-200mm

This is assuming you have a decent phone to take wide angle pictures with.

200mm will be useful because you are likely to encounter wildlife, like deer, bears, squirrels, etc. Having a close up pictures will be more interesting. Plus zoom lenses are typically more practical than prime because of their variable focal length

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    \$\begingroup\$ That's what I usually do, I keep the 55-250STM on the camera and use my phone for wider shots. But I also keep the other lenses on the backpack as well, and then switch if I want a bit more out of the picture... \$\endgroup\$
    – Fábio Dias
    Commented Jul 17, 2019 at 19:20
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The D3300 being an APS-C camera, your shorter lens (50mm) is not even "standard", it is a short tele. So if you want to take landscapes, get either

  • a 35mm or 24mm prime
  • the usual standard zoom lens (18-55mm being frequent)
  • a better-than-kit lens: typically a 17-50 f/2.8 (Tamron, Sigma) or with a bit more reach but a bit less aperture the Sigma 17-70mm
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  • \$\begingroup\$ For landscapes, I would say even a wide angle zoom isn't excessive if you want to include a lot of the landscape into your image. None of your options mention such a possibility. \$\endgroup\$
    – juhist
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 14:25
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    \$\begingroup\$ I have a 10-20mm and seldom use it for landscapes. I use it mostly where I can't have enough distance, inside buildings or in the streets. \$\endgroup\$
    – xenoid
    Commented Jul 16, 2019 at 14:57

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