SteveLoker Loc: Fort Worth, TX

I agree with ehess. Learn the gear you have now and see If there is an area that NEEDS new glass. Otherwise you could find yourself with a lot of cool gear that is basically of no benefit to you.
Remember, buying a racecar does not make you a driver. You need the basic skill set first then invest in new gear when you out grow the gear you now have...if that makes sense.

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

Thank you.

Dennis

Bazbo Loc: Lisboa, Portugal

I have been using this glass since the Hasselblad days in the early '70s. I have never been disappointed. Currently us the 18mm the 50 mm the 135mm and the 100mm Makro (all prime) for the FX and the 16-70mm zoom and the 12 mm prime for the Sony Crop sensor.

These are a bit pricey, but worth it IMO.

Mbanker

Good point. Thanks

Mbanker

It does and I agree. Thanks

Mbanker

Good advice. I stopped posting because compared to most other posts my sharpness was lacking. Also I need to work on composition. For now I will just keep leaving and practicing. Hope to have some worthy shots to post in the future. Thanks for commenting

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

You probably want to use the <quote reply> link for specific responses. I looked at your Native American dancers and a bird. It's shooting / focusing technique that makes a difference in this area, with some processing as well. The dancer could have been a slightly slow shutter speed for the subject movement, but I suspect the placement of the AF point and the AF tracking mode also came into play. Your T7i and three lenses are all plenty capable of razor sharp images, but they require your active management of the advanced controls, including the specific placement of individual AF points or the zone / group (if available on that model). For me, the most impact to my results was changing to AI Servo and the BBF configuration.

Mbanker

Thanks for comments. And yes I usually use quote reply. Just missed it, I will watch it better in the future. Good coaching, and yes the T7i has a wealth of features I am just learning. I have David Busch's book on the T7i and I am going thru it now. He also suggests changing to AI Servo. All shots I have posted in the past were with my old Canon, and shot on full Auto. Lots to learn, thankful for digital and not film.

rlscholl Loc: California

The simple answer is "it depends". I have a Zeiss Touit lens, with an e-mount for a Sony APS-C camera. It is an auto-focus lens. As far as I can tell, its performance is comparable to similarly priced Sony and Sigma lenses.
I also have a series of Zeiss lenses for EF-mount Canon full-frame cameras. The current version of these lenses are "Milvus" lenses. These are all relatively large, heavy manual focus lenses. With careful focusing of these lenses they definitely produce noticeably sharper images with improved color, especially with larger prints (e.g., larger than 8x10) than I can see with Canon auto-focus lenses. These lenses also tend to be significantly more expensive than the similar focal length Canon lenses. I believe these lenses, primarily because of the manual focus aspect, are special purpose lenses and don't compete directly with the Canon auto-focus lenses for general purpose uses. (Note: I also have a Canon 24mm tilt-shift manual-focus lens that is priced comparably to these Zeiss lenses; it appears to produce similarly sharp images to the Zeiss lenses, but without the Zeiss color difference.)

Mbanker

Thanks I am learning a lot. Sounds like at my level of skill I don’t need the Zeiss glass. Maybe a few years down the road.

Beenthere

It was a typo.., We knew what her meant.., GEEZ!

Mbanker

LOL. Thanks. So I am so appreciative of all UHH community for the comments and coaching and advice. Without it my advancement from rank amateur to a reasonably decent photographer will never happen. Thanks to everyone.

usnret Loc: Woodhull Il

If the "WOW" factor isn't in whatever pictures you take with the lenses you have then the Zeiss lens isn't going to put it there. It didn't take long for me (budget issues), to learn that becoming a better photographer was way more important than spending zillions on gear.

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

Mb, you confess a beginner's problem, but also one that even pros can suffer from--that when a poor workman blames his tools. If we all devoted our efforts to getting the greatest results possible from what we have--before adding what we do not have--we could all do better. Many great photographers had lenses not as good as yours (and fewer of them). Probably, we don't clearly know what else we need until we have mastered what we have.
So I suggest you learn what you can do with your lenses, and do that. I can't imagine how many great weddings were recorded on the simple Yashica twin lens with only the one lens--when that was all we had, we found, in time, that we can listen to the camera instead of making the equipment listen to us. Only when you really know what you need to get next will there be any point shopping.
From the simple question, as you master your equipment, notice what you need but are not getting--and be sure whose fault it is. With Canon, you can in time move up to their finest lenses, perhaps for a start filling the gaps. They have some moderately priced very wide angle lenses you do not have yet.

dickwilber Loc: Indiana (currently)

A 100 mm would not be my choice for either birds (especially not birds) or landscape.