Upgrading Gear

[eagle3190]

Hi guys my name is Dario, from Italy but living in Sydney and i'm about to upgrade to " Enthusiast
" my gear.
So I've already decided for the canon 70D but i'm not sure about what lens.
I could get the bundle with the 18-200 but i think with this kind of camera i need to invest in something more for the lens.
So my doubt is between the Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 and the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM.
The main purpose would be travel photography as i'm about to go in Thailand and after India.
So what kind of lens would better? I have to say that I kind of like the macro so the sigma would better having a focus distance of 0.30 cm but with the canon i have more zoom range which is better i guess for travel. Which lens should i buy? Or even other lens with a budget around 600$. Thank you, if you will find the time to reply me!

P.S. This is what i think i gonna buy with a budget of 3000$. Let me know what you think!

[crafty1tutu]

Hi there Dario, I have the Canon 18-200 lens that has been my staple travel lens for the last few trips that I have been on and I have always liked the fact that it is a good all rounder if you only want to take one lens with your on your travels. I have used it on a 400D, 50D and last trip 7D. I have just upgraded to a 5D MK III and sadly it does'nt fit a full frame camera. I am going to South Africa next week and have purchased a 24-105 L series lens to take with me along with my 100-400 lens for the long reach. In your case, I think the 18-200 is a good all round lens which will cover wide angled for landscapes and the zoom for when you want to get closer to the subject. You can see my travel photos on Flickr at

https://www.flickr.com/photos/836460...7634591366214/ or https://www.flickr.com/photos/836460...7630565377456/

[Babu]

Hi Dario
I think you should keep in mind that the 70D is a 1.6x crop factor camera when considering effective focal lengths.
So, if you are travelling with one lens, think of them this way:
24-70 ---> 38.4-112 offers better lower light capability with f/2.8 Full frame lens
24-105--> 38.4 -168 (EF) only f/4 but has IS and a bit more zoom
18-200--> 18 -200 (EF-S) considerably wider and longer but lesser IQ
What sorts of things do you think you'll be shooting- beach/street scenes, palaces / temples /mosques / ghats or tigers at 50 metres+ on game drives......?
Depending on what you want to spend, you could look at
15-85 f/3.5-5.6 IS (EF-S)
or 18-135 f/3.5-5.6 IS (EF-S)
and 100-400 f4.5-5.6 IS which is effectively 160-640 on a crop body.
It really depends on what you are interested in photographing and your budget.