Going to Devil's Tower with Rebel T5 and IS kit lens - suggestions?

Been in Wyoming now for about a month and I think this weekend, being a paycheck weekend, I'm going to go to Devil's Tower and take some pics (it's about 2hr 45min away).

My camera gear is pretty limited at this point.  I have the T5, the 18-55mm IS kit lens, and the 75-300mm.

I don't have any filters or a tripod.  Now, there apparently IS a camera store in Casper, about 45min away.  What do you think I should get, gear-wise, for this?  I know I want a tripod, was hoping to spend no more than $150 on that (including head).  Should I get a polarizer or ND filter?

Weather this weekend says Mostly Sunny both Saturday and Sunday, highs in the mid-upper 90s, so natural lighting should be plentiful.

With a tripod and the 18-55mm IS, stopping down to around f/8 will be simple to get the best out of that lens.

If they have a 50mm f/1.8, I'm not sure if I'd get it or not.  50mm on a crop camera isn't so hot despite IQ.

Budget should be as below $300 as I can get while getting what I can use.

Any other suggestions or recommendations would be supremely helpful - thank you!

CybrSlydr wrote:

Been in Wyoming now for about a month and I think this weekend, being a paycheck weekend, I'm going to go to Devil's Tower and take some pics (it's about 2hr 45min away).

My camera gear is pretty limited at this point. I have the T5, the 18-55mm IS kit lens, and the 75-300mm.

I don't have any filters or a tripod. Now, there apparently IS a camera store in Casper, about 45min away. What do you think I should get, gear-wise, for this? I know I want a tripod, was hoping to spend no more than $150 on that (including head). Should I get a polarizer or ND filter?

Weather this weekend says Mostly Sunny both Saturday and Sunday, highs in the mid-upper 90s, so natural lighting should be plentiful.

With a tripod and the 18-55mm IS, stopping down to around f/8 will be simple to get the best out of that lens.

If they have a 50mm f/1.8, I'm not sure if I'd get it or not. 50mm on a crop camera isn't so hot despite IQ.

Budget should be as below $300 as I can get while getting what I can use.

Any other suggestions or recommendations would be supremely helpful - thank you!

I find a 50mm on crop too zoomed in for landscape's.

If you have the urge to buy something, I would get a polarizer.  I don't use mine lots but they are kind of neat to play with.

If I were you I'd just buy a tank of gas, a bag of chips and a pop and enjoy the drive.

You say you have the 75-300, your gear list says you have the 70-300. Which on do you have? If you really have the 70-300, I'd say you don't need to buy anything for this trip. If you have the 75-300, get rid of it and get the 55-250. It's good and not expensive. You don't really need a tripod if you'll be shooting in good light. A polarizing filter would be something to consider but don't go cheap.

You should however, make a point of getting out of your car to shoot. I looked at your Flickr, a lot of mirrors and windshield glare.

jvc1 wrote:

You say you have the 75-300, your gear list says you have the 70-300. Which on do you have? If you really have the 70-300, I'd say you don't need to buy anything for this trip. If you have the 75-300, get rid of it and get the 55-250. It's good and not expensive. You don't really need a tripod if you'll be shooting in good light. A polarizing filter would be something to consider but don't go cheap.

You should however, make a point of getting out of your car to shoot. I looked at your Flickr, a lot of mirrors and windshield glare.

Whoops, my mistake - it is the 75-300mm, just checked my bag.

As for the Flickr stuff, if you're looking at my Wyoming stuff, it's because I just moved to Wyoming from Ohio and was just taking pics with my cell phone. I was just getting things for my family to see.  The stuff in the mountains was going out to inspect a couple gravel pits and I was the passenger, just using my cell phone, not my T5.

Now, the pics of me walking the trail behind the local high school, I did that hand-held with my T5 and the 18-55.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/cybrslydr/albums/72157714797832292

CybrSlydr wrote:

jvc1 wrote:

You say you have the 75-300, your gear list says you have the 70-300. Which on do you have? If you really have the 70-300, I'd say you don't need to buy anything for this trip. If you have the 75-300, get rid of it and get the 55-250. It's good and not expensive. You don't really need a tripod if you'll be shooting in good light. A polarizing filter would be something to consider but don't go cheap.

You should however, make a point of getting out of your car to shoot. I looked at your Flickr, a lot of mirrors and windshield glare.

Whoops, my mistake - it is the 75-300mm, just checked my bag.

As for the Flickr stuff, if you're looking at my Wyoming stuff, it's because I just moved to Wyoming from Ohio and was just taking pics with my cell phone. I was just getting things for my family to see. The stuff in the mountains was going out to inspect a couple gravel pits and I was the passenger, just using my cell phone, not my T5.

Now, the pics of me walking the trail behind the local high school, I did that hand-held with my T5 and the 18-55.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/cybrslydr/albums/72157714797832292

Then I'd get rid of the 75-300. It's generally agreed that it's one of the worst lenses Canon makes. Canon's refurbished store has the 70-300 f/4-5.6 IS II USM on sale for $398.99 and the 55-250 f/4-5.6 IS STM for $239.99. I've bought several lenses and one camera from the Refurb Store, I couldn't tell they weren't new and they come with Canon's 1 year warranty.