700D Kit lens upgrade

My Sigma UWA lens and recently acquired Canon EF 300mm IS lens cover my top and bottom / wide angle requirements very well but I would now like to upgrade the 18-55 kit lens that originally came with the Canon 700D camera. Doesn't need to be Canon.

Apart from just better build quality I want to ensure it has:

• Better manual focus with approximate focus distances marked (I thought this was standard until I got this kit lens);
• Wider aperture say f2.8 or thereabouts?
• Unless there's a downside I've overlooked, an EF equivalent rather than EFS - I use an internal Astronomik light pollution filter for astrophotography which fouls the longer back focus of an EFS lens; what is the operating difference between EF and EFS lenses?

Thanks, Graham

groberts wrote:

My Sigma UWA lens and recently acquired Canon EF 300mm IS lens cover my top and bottom / wide angle requirements very well but I would now like to upgrade the 18-55 kit lens that originally came with the Canon 700D camera. Doesn't need to be Canon.

Apart from just better build quality I want to ensure it has:

• Better manual focus with approximate focus distances marked (I thought this was standard until I got this kit lens);
• Wider aperture say f2.8 or thereabouts?
• Unless there's a downside I've overlooked, an EF equivalent rather than EFS - I use an internal Astronomik light pollution filter for astrophotography which fouls the longer back focus of an EFS lens; what is the operating difference between EF and EFS lenses?

Thanks, Graham

Does it have to be a zoom?

R2

Preferably - I have a fixed 50mm and like the versatility of the 18-55mm.

groberts wrote:

Preferably - I have a fixed 50mm and like the versatility of the 18-55mm.

Just asking 'cuz if you're shooting wide-field Astro, then very fast lenses are preferred.

Most of Canon's fast and wide EF zooms (f/2.8) are really better suited to FF bodies.

Your filter arrangement seems to be the limiting factor.

R2

Most of my astro work is with a dedicated mono CMOS camera and telescope, see my website here:

https://watchthisspaceman.wordpress.com/

But from time-to-time I do widefield using Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 EX DC HSM an EF-type fit that works fine with the 700D APS-C format camera.

I'll probably use the replacement to the kit lens for general day-to-day terrestrial photography. It's just that if I'm upgrading it would make sense that it also works for astrophotography and if possible accommodates the aforesaid light pollution filter.

Was thinking about something like this perhaps or are there others to consider?

Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX DC OS HSM standard zoom lens

or the Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM C?

groberts wrote:

Most of my astro work is with a dedicated mono CMOS camera and telescope, see my website here:

https://watchthisspaceman.wordpress.com/

But from time-to-time I do widefield using Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 EX DC HSM an EF-type fit that works fine with the 700D APS-C format camera.

I'll probably use the replacement to the kit lens for general day-to-day terrestrial photography. It's just that if I'm upgrading it would make sense that it also works for astrophotography and if possible accommodates the aforesaid light pollution filter.

Was thinking about something like this perhaps or are there others to consider?

Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX DC OS HSM standard zoom lens

What I'm getting at is that there are a lot of really good EF-S standard zoom lenses out there...

R2

I'd also post your question on the Canon SLR Lens Talk forum.

R2

Thanks, missed that.