Which lens to rent? Portraits around Niagara/Ithaca

esheato

Hello all,

I'm heading out on a quick weekend camping trip with my son next weekend and wanted to rent a good portrait lens.

Destination is Niagara Falls and the gorges in downtown Ithaca, NY.

My current gear: Canon 1DsMkII (full frame) and 24-70 f/2.8 and 70-200 f/2.8 IS and 50mm f/1.8. I'll be taking all three and a 35mm film camera (Canon as well) and plan to shoot like crazy for a few days.

Optimally, I'd like to try a high end L prime lens to document this mini adventure.

My initial thoughts are 50 f/1.2 or 85 f/1.2. Of course, the gorges will be fairly dark, so a fast lens is almost a necessity. On the other hand, I worry about the 85mm having to much zoom. I'm not sure how much room is down there on a trail next to a river...same as being on the Maid of the Mist and around the Falls.

Maybe the 35 1.4 is better?

Please make a suggestion as I plan place my order on Monday, Aug 10th. Thank you in advance.

Ed

ziggy53

My favorite head-shot/head-and-shoulders lens for a FF Canon body is the Canon EF 135mm f2L USM. Wonderful bokeh to f2.2 and excellent background control. DOF is extremely shallow at the large apertures of f2-f2.2, so it requires good focus technique. (Don't use focus-recompose.) Do use the lens hood, always. (I also recommend using a protective filter in the mist area and bring plenty of microfiber cloths to clean often.) I have no idea what FOV is required for where you might wish to shoot, but if you have the room it is unmatched for what it does best.

For full and 3/4 length and group portraits, your 24-70mm f2.8L would probably be fine, and your 70-200mm f2.8L IS can work well for most any sort of portraiture, given enough room to shoot.

Since you are renting equipment, consider a 5D Mark III or a 1D-X, both of which offer much better high-ISO compared to your 1DsMkII, and leave the film camera at home. (Just bring two digital bodies.)

Yes, a large aperture prime is probably indicated, but I would choose the Canon EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM for environmental portraits and vista landscapes. Yes, the 24-70mm zoom can double duty, but the 24mm f/1.4L II is very nice wide open and 2 stops worth of extra light (wide open), plus better rectilinear correction.

chrisjohnson

I have portraits of my children and grandchildren in my living area. 75% taken with the Canon EF 135mm f2L USM on a FF (6D). It really is a delight. Use the centre point focus to get the leading eye sharp and crop in post if needed - the DOF is paper thin but when the eye is clear you will never notice.

esheato

Well....no plan survives first contact, right?

I ended up renting the new 16-35 f/4 IS lens. I got talked into it by a colleague who suggested the wide angle for the falls and gorges and the IS for lower light situations. Can't say it was bad, but 16mm is really, REALLY wide.

I've attached some example shots from the trip.

Thanks for the suggestions.

claudiusmax

ziggy53 wrote: »

My favorite head-shot/head-and-shoulders lens for a FF Canon body is the Canon EF 135mm f2L USM. Wonderful bokeh to f2.2 and excellent background control. DOF is extremely shallow at the large apertures of f2-f2.2, so it requires good focus technique. (Don't use focus-recompose.) Do use the lens hood, always. (I also recommend using a protective filter in the mist area and bring plenty of microfiber cloths to clean often.) I have no idea what FOV is required for where you might wish to shoot, but if you have the room it is unmatched for what it does best.

For full and 3/4 length and group portraits, your 24-70mm f2.8L would probably be fine, and your 70-200mm f2.8L IS can work well for most any sort of portraiture, given enough room to shoot.

Since you are renting equipment, consider a 5D Mark III or a 1D-X, both of which offer much better high-ISO compared to your 1DsMkII, and leave the film camera at home. (Just bring two digital bodies.)

Yes, a large aperture prime is probably indicated, but I would choose the Canon EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM for environmental portraits and vista landscapes. Yes, the 24-70mm zoom can double duty, but the 24mm f/1.4L II is very nice wide open and 2 stops worth of extra light (wide open), plus better rectilinear correction.

Hey Ziggy, I have the 5D Mark lll and do a lot of portrait work with the Canon 70-200
f2.8L IS, I've got an indoor shoot with a model posing with car coming up soon and I'm just not going to have enough room, is there another lens that you would recommend. I was thinking about the 24-70mm f2.8L...any thoughts. Thanks.

ziggy53

claudiusmax wrote: »

Hey Ziggy, I have the 5D Mark lll and do a lot of portrait work with the Canon 70-200
f2.8L IS, I've got an indoor shoot with a model posing with car coming up soon and I'm just not going to have enough room, is there another lens that you would recommend. I was thinking about the 24-70mm f2.8L...any thoughts. Thanks.

You need to visit the venue in advance to see what you will need. Until you know the distances and angles involved, your guess is as good as mine.

When you do get the distance to subject and angle-of-view information, I can give you a recommendation. Otherwise, hedge all bets and rent both the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM (or the original version) standard zoom plus a Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM wide-angle zoom (or original version or a Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM or a Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM).

For a really tight working space you may need the wide-angle zoom, especially if you need to capture most of the car too.

I suppose that in a "really, really" tight space you could even consider a Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM, but now perspective distortion might turn the "portrait" session into something entirely different. (I have no personal experience with this lens.)

claudiusmax

ziggy53 wrote: »

You need to visit the venue in advance to see what you will need. Until you know the distances and angles involved, your guess is as good as mine.

When you do get the distance to subject and angle-of-view information, I can give you a recommendation. Otherwise, hedge all bets and rent both the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM (or the original version) standard zoom plus a Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM wide-angle zoom (or original version or a Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM or a Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM).

For a really tight working space you may need the wide-angle zoom, especially if you need to capture most of the car too.

I suppose that in a "really, really" tight space you could even consider a Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM, but now perspective distortion might turn the "portrait" session into something entirely different. (I have no personal experience with this lens.)

Thanks for the reply Ziggy, I have the Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM and the Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM but I have no experience with the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM. I will be shooting in a photolab but the exact distance I do not know. I guess the best thing to do is rent the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM and I will have it all covered.:D Thanks Ziggy.