What lenses should I get?

ccpickre

I've been trying to get started with studio work, and I'm curious what kind of lenses would work best?

I'm planning on buying some prime lenses that start at f/1.4 or f/1.8 for concert photography, but I'm wondering if any of them could work for studio work since they're prime.

Here is a list of lenses I'm considering right now. Any suggestions or advice would be great, thanks.

So far I'm considering...

Canon EF 28mm 1.8
Canon EF 35mm 1.4L
Canon EF 50mm 1.4
Canon EF 85mm 1.8
Canon EF 135mm 2.0L

Right now I'm leaning towards the 135mm for concerts and maybe the 35 and the 50. Anyone have better suggestions?

gus

ccpickre wrote:

I've been trying to get started with studio work, and I'm curious what kind of lenses would work best?

I'm planning on buying some prime lenses that start at f/1.4 or f/1.8 for concert photography, but I'm wondering if any of them could work for studio work since they're prime.

Here is a list of lenses I'm considering right now. Any suggestions or advice would be great, thanks.

So far I'm considering...

Canon EF 28mm 1.8
Canon EF 35mm 1.4L
Canon EF 50mm 1.4
Canon EF 85mm 1.8
Canon EF 135mm 2.0L

Right now I'm leaning towards the 135mm for concerts and maybe the 35 and the 50. Anyone have better suggestions?

As good as the 135 f/2 is...on a cropped camera (or full frame for that matter) its a very long lens for indoor portrait stuff. Outside where you can get back a good distance its amazing.

If it was me i would be looking at the 50mm range.

ccpickre

gus wrote:

As good as the 135 f/2 is...on a cropped camera (or full frame for that matter) its a very long lens for indoor portrait stuff. Outside where you can get back a good distance its amazing.

If it was me i would be looking at the 50mm range.

Well, I've shot concerts all the way up to the stage with a 300mm 2.8, so a 135 wouldn't be a problem for me. It's that f/2 I'm liking, but that would be more for concerts.

For studio stuff I'm probably leaning towards the 35, 50, and 85. Eventually I'm going to get them all, I just was curious which ones would be better lenses to buy first.

gus

ccpickre wrote:

Well, I've shot concerts all the way up to the stage with a 300mm 2.8, so a 135 wouldn't be a problem for me. It's that f/2 I'm liking, but that would be more for concerts.

For studio stuff I'm probably leaning towards the 35, 50, and 85. Eventually I'm going to get them all, I just was curious which ones would be better lenses to buy first.

You asked about the 135 in a studio...

As for concerts i dont believe there could be a better canon lens. Here are some of my samples with it in concerts.

ccpickre

gus wrote:

You asked about the 135 in a studio...

As for concerts i dont believe there could be a better canon lens. Here are some of my samples with it in concerts.

Ok, let me start over.

There are 1000's of lenses I want to buy. Here are 5 I'm considering right now in general due to the wider apertures, I'm wondering if any of them could also work in studio use as well (such as the 35 and 50). I'm definitely wanting the 135, for concerts though, the 50 and 35 maybe for wide angle shots during concerts, but hopefully put them to use with art photography and studio work maybe.

(If that still doesn't make any sense, then I apologize. I'm sick and a littl delerious right now )

ziggy53

By "studio" I will assume you mean "portrait studio", because that's what most people think of. In addition there are also commercial and product studios, as well as other classes of studio photography.

I will also assume a crop 1.6x camera body.

For portraiture, 1 and 2 shots, I think the 50mm, f1.4 and the 85mm, f1.8 should be fairly standard. For a small group I think I would suggest a zoom lens, maybe the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS or your Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di.

ccpickre

ziggy53 wrote:

By "studio" I will assume you mean "portrait studio", because that's what most people think of. In addition there are also commercial and product studios, as well as other classes of studio photography.

I will also assume a crop 1.6x camera body.

For portraiture, 1 and 2 shots, I think the 50mm, f1.4 and the 85mm, f1.8 should be fairly standard. For a small group I think I would suggest a zoom lens, maybe the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS or your Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di.

Yeah, my 40D is what I'll be using. And not so much "portrait" stuff, but art stuff in general that may or may not be in a studio.

ziggy53

ccpickre wrote:

Yeah, my 40D is what I'll be using. And not so much "portrait" stuff, but art stuff in general that may or may not be in a studio.

3 dimensional art, like sculpture, carvings and castings, are best captured with a lenses selected according to both the size and scale of the piece as well as the perspective requirements. A "PC" (perspective control) lens might be required.

Flat work is best captured with a large format film camera and flat-field lenses. If you use a digital SLR, your best bet is a macro lens, sized according to the piece.

In a pinch any prime lens might work, with longer focal lengths generally preferred.

gus

ccpickre wrote:

Yeah, my 40D is what I'll be using. And not so much "portrait" stuff, but art stuff in general that may or may not be in a studio.

Really you cant go wrong with any of your prime suggestions. I love my primes. It ..of course brings the photography demons out with 'what lens should i have on right now' or 'man i wish i had the longer on at that moment'

Just something i have found is that with 2 camera bodies & primes ..it makes things sooo much better. I have the 20 & 30D and i use the 135 f2 & the 50 f1.8 on each. I know it is an obvious statement but having 2 cameras with primes like these 2 on each is a real life saver. Thus maybe you might look at a 2nd hand 20D/350D. I have no idea of their 2nd hand value in the US but man it makes things so much easier.


Just a thought.

Glenn NK

Have you considered this lens? On a crop, it's effectively a 96mm.

http://www.photozone.de/8Reviews/lenses/canon_60_28/index.htm

It's so sharp that you must be careful where you aim it.:D

Seriously, it out performs basically all the rest of the Canon lineup, including the L's. If you can find another one that has MTF values as good, I'd like to know.

And of course, it can be used as a macro lens too.

gus

Glenn NK wrote:

Have you considered this lens? On a crop, it's effectively a 96mm.

http://www.photozone.de/8Reviews/lenses/canon_60_28/index.htm

It's so sharp that you must be careful where you aim it.:D

Seriously, it out performs basically all the rest of the Canon lineup, including the L's. If you can find another one that has MTF values as good, I'd like to know.

And of course, it can be used as a macro lens too.

How fast is the focus on this lens ? I have the 100mm macro & man you can roll a smoke & get a coffee whilst it decides the focus.

LiquidAir

I shoot a lot of my table top work around 50mm on the 5D. I find that is a good compromise which keeps the perspective reasonably natural without requiring a ladder to get the right point of view. If you want to use a prime for table top work, either the 28 or the 35 would be a good choice for the 40D. That said, when working close I am often stopped down as far as my light will let me to get depth of field so I often don't find much benefit from using a prime.

Scott_Quier

I think you will find the 85 a touch long in studio for anything other than very tight head-shots. Typically , you don't have the room to get enough distance. I know I don't.

In the days of film, the 85mm - 105mm was/is considered the sweet spot for portrait work. The 50mm f/1.4 would fill that bill quite nicely.

For larger (5 - 10, depending on the size of your camera room), you can look at either the EF 35 or the Sigma 30 f/1.4. I think you will be pleased with either. I'm guessing about the EF 35L as I've never seen one, but it is an "L" after all...

LiquidAir

Scott_Quier wrote:

I think you will find the 85 a touch long in studio for anything other than very tight head-shots. Typically , you don't have the room to get enough distance. I know I don't.

In the days of film, the 85mm - 105mm was/is considered the sweet spot for portrait work. The 50mm f/1.4 would fill that bill quite nicely.

For larger (5 - 10, depending on the size of your camera room), you can look at either the EF 35 or the Sigma 30 f/1.4. I think you will be pleased with either. I'm guessing about the EF 35L as I've never seen one, but it is an "L" after all...

On the 5D I shoot most of my portrait work betwen 50mm and 135mm with the 50 being used for small group shots, the 135 used for head shots, and the 85 for anything in between.

As for the 35L, it is a fantastic lens and one of my favorites for low light candid work. On the 5D it is too wide for most of my studio work, but on a 40D it would cover the wide end nicely.

Glenn NK

gus wrote:

How fast is the focus on this lens ? I have the 100mm macro & man you can roll a smoke & get a coffee whilst it decides the focus.

I have the 100 also, and sometimes it goes hunting, but since I use this lens for closeup/macro, the AF is usually turned off.

As for the 60 mm version, I really don't know.

According to "photozone" - "The AF speed is very fast which is unusual for a macro lens". Photozone gives it a "highly recommended" rating.

http://www.photozone.de/8Reviews/lenses/canon_60_28/index.htm

There are times when I wish I'd bought this lens instead of the 100 (most of the time).