Upgrade to FF Advice

jwngreen · June 20, 2012

So I am thinking of upgrading myself to a FF camera but wanted to get some advice before doing so. Right now I am using the following equipment:

Canon t2i
Canon EF 24-105 f/4L
Canon EF 28mm f/1.8
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 (MKII)
Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5
(Canon EF-S 18-55 and EF-S 55-250)

I am thinking of purchasing a Canon 5D Classic, the prices seem fairly reasonable and there seem to be a few going up on various forums each day. I believe this would meet my needs; right now I am mainly interested in landscape and travel photography but I am starting to do more portrait work. If I sold the t2i with the EF-S lenses (not used any more) and the Tamron (would not work FF) then I could more than cover the upgrade cost.

The questions I have are:

1) Does this path make sense?
2) Would I be better off looking for a 5DMKII? (I have no interest in video and don't do much low-light work)

The longer term future upgrade path for me looks like:

Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 (replace the 1.8)
Canon EF 70-200 f/4L + Canon EF 1.4x II Extender
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8

and probably a flash at some point as well. Any advice there?

A lot of information thrown out there but pulling the trigger on an upgrade is always hard for me to I spend a lot of time researching and asking questions so any help is appreciated!

nak · June 20, 2012

Some portrait shooters much prefer the 135mm f/2L to the 85mm f/1.8 you mentioned. Look up purple fringing regarding the 85. The 135mm on a full frame (I shoot it on a 5d2) is an extremely satisfying portrait lens. It's not that the 85 is particularly bad, but the 135 is exquisitely good; sharpness, focus speed, color, and best in class bokeh. The perspective of 135mm on a full frame is very much to my liking (your preference may be different).

jwngreen · June 20, 2012

Hi nak, thanks for the input. I've actually used the 135L a number of times and loved it, one of my good friends has it so he has been kind enough to let me use it with his 5DMKIII. That said I am still trying to find the right cost balance but going for a 5Dc vs MKII might allow me to take a faster lens upgrade path!

rainbow · June 21, 2012

I own a 5D. I am currently not interested in 5DII due to increased file size -- more disk space needed and slower processing times on an older computer. And I am a hobbyist that mostly views my shots on my PC and posts on Smugmug, so no pressure to get better shots (if a 5D II actually does that...). No interest in video. If anything, I would upgrade in future to 5D III.

On lenses:

24 - 105 is a great all purpose/walkaround lens. Use as a workhorse for events. However, for street shooting, I bring my 17 - 40 (I love the wider end).

The 135 is my favorite -- never use it enough. It is a magical lens and once I got it, rarely/never use my 85/1.8. If portraits are main use, this should be your first purchase. And then you will love your upgrade to FF even more!

If 70 - 200 f/4, would consider the IS model. 1.4 X works with this and the 135 (to get 190/2.8). But I love my 70 - 300L for equal quality pics and not to heavy to carry around. So there is a cost/benefit correlation here and budget will determine which way to go for these three great lenses.

Not sure if 50 upgrade to 1.4 does that much for you. Maybe save money here to save for above upgrades.

Make the jump!

eoren1 · June 21, 2012

Just posted my 85/100/135 on 5d mk III 'shootout' in the forum. Hope it helps

jmphotocraft · June 21, 2012

If you're not into video then a 5D could make a lot of sense. Just consider how big you want to be able to print. You need at least 200dpi for a quality print.

jwngreen · June 22, 2012

Thanks everyone for the tips, there are so many lenses I want to get so hands-on feedback helps narrow the field down a little bit (thanks rainbow).

I believe I will go ahead with the 5Dc purchase; now I just need to look around for a good price on a low-shutter count one in good condition. Down the line a MKIII might make sense but it sounds like for my purposes at the moment the 5Dc should satisfy my needs (and my desire to move to FF).

eoren1 - nice comparison, I want them all

jmphotocraft - I haven't done a huge amount of printing, I believe the largest I have gone is 20x30 but most of the time the maximum I will go is 8x10 so I believe the 12MP sensor should be more than adequate for those purposes.

Thanks again!

jmphotocraft · June 22, 2012

jwngreen wrote: »

jmphotocraft - I haven't done a huge amount of printing, I believe the largest I have gone is 20x30 but most of the time the maximum I will go is 8x10 so I believe the 12MP sensor should be more than adequate for those purposes.

For sure. I've actually printed a couple pleasing 20x30"s from just 8mp. Yeah if you get right up to them they're a little soft, but from normal viewing distance they totally get the job done.

DeVerm · June 22, 2012

Hi,

I would sell the t2i, 10-24, 18-55 and 55-250. I would buy the 5Dc and the 17-40L. After that it depend on what you shoot but for travel, nature, wildlife think about a 70-300L. For portraits either the primes or a 70-200 f/2.8L

Brett1000 · June 24, 2012

jwngreen wrote: »

So I am thinking of upgrading myself to a FF camera but wanted to get some advice before doing so. Right now I am using the following equipment:

Canon t2i
Canon EF 24-105 f/4L
Canon EF 28mm f/1.8
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 (MKII)
Tamron 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5
(Canon EF-S 18-55 and EF-S 55-250)

I am thinking of purchasing a Canon 5D Classic, the prices seem fairly reasonable and there seem to be a few going up on various forums each day. I believe this would meet my needs; right now I am mainly interested in landscape and travel photography but I am starting to do more portrait work. If I sold the t2i with the EF-S lenses (not used any more) and the Tamron (would not work FF) then I could more than cover the upgrade cost.

The questions I have are:

1) Does this path make sense?
2) Would I be better off looking for a 5DMKII? (I have no interest in video and don't do much low-light work)

The longer term future upgrade path for me looks like:

Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 (replace the 1.8)
Canon EF 70-200 f/4L + Canon EF 1.4x II Extender
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8

and probably a flash at some point as well. Any advice there?

A lot of information thrown out there but pulling the trigger on an upgrade is always hard for me to I spend a lot of time researching and asking questions so any help is appreciated!

I think you're better off with the 5DmkII which is going for around $1,400 on the CLP program

Upgrade to FF Advice

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