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02/10/2004 05:12:37 PM · #1 |
Photonotes.org Canon EF lens faq
A very long faq about lens technology, types of lenses, in what categories lenses can be listed (cheap rubbish, middle class, good, pro), what lenses are good, what lenses are dogs, general things about lenses, what USM is, what L is, filters, mounts, third party lenses, compatability lists for converters and such.
If you are pondering what lenses to buy and don't have a clue, check this faq. A long but very informative read.
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02/10/2004 05:19:09 PM · #2 |
Its missing the on fundamental bit of information - how to fund purchasing them....That's what I really need to know about canon EF lenses...
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02/10/2004 05:24:45 PM · #3 |
When you put it against the price of the EF 1200 5.6 L USM (lists for 108000 euro here) all the other ones are dirt cheap! :)
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02/10/2004 05:44:46 PM · #4 |
yeah, but when you compare a house to the 1200mm lens, some of them are cheap too...
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02/10/2004 07:03:26 PM · #5 |
Nice article. Way long so i didn't read it all yet, but i liked the part where he wrote:
'don't trust anyone on the internet with advise on buying lenses'
I can use the info! Thanks! |
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02/10/2004 07:32:09 PM · #6 |
He forgot to tell me where the hell to find $7000 to buy "the Good lense".
I know which is good and which is bad don;t need him to tell me that,for sure $100.000 Porche is better than $9.000 Hyundai.... |
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02/10/2004 07:39:57 PM · #7 |
That is a good article.. it attacks the questions the way I like to see it done... 'what are u gonna do with it?'
When I see people post questions here on DPC in relation to 'what lens(es) should I buy?' the responses are usually the same...
1. You need L glass
2. You need a fast lens
3. You need what I've got
These statements could possibly be true, but in a lot of cases, they are not. A good photographer can make good use of most any lenses. Certainly there are situations where fast lenses are nice, and even required. Nighttime/indoor sports photography... certain situations in wildlife photography... there are others i'm sure...
I hear constant rumbling about how sharp the L lenses are. I have never used one so I don't know. What I do know is that my less-expensive lenses produce good photographs. If they are soft, they always respond very well to the unsharp mask in photoshop. If they don't, it's because I didn't expose it properly or I introduced motion blur into my image.
I bought three lenses to start with when I upgraded to the 10d. I spent less than $1000 on glass. After about 3000 photos with this camera, I don't see a need (based on my style of shooting and my own subject interests) to spend the extra money on big aperture lenses.
If someone specifically asked me what lenses to buy to start out with, I think my answer would be this: (assuming Canon DSLR - substitued comparable lens for other manufacturers)
Buy a 28-80mm or 28-100mm f/3.5-4.5 lens and nothing else. If you are asking what lenses to buy because you don't know, you should let your needs dictate what lenses you purchase. After you have shot some with this lens, you may determine that you need a longer zoom. If that is the case, buy a longer zoom. You may also determine that you need a wider angle lens... if so, buy one.
If you have an unlimited supply of money that you wish to spend on camera gear, buy the most expensive lenses you can find. You won't be disappointed with them.
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02/10/2004 07:53:30 PM · #8 |
I don't notice the difference between lenses until I start doing prints up above 11x14 or so. Then it gets pretty horrible pretty quickly with the less good lenses.
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02/10/2004 08:21:05 PM · #9 |
In line with John's comments I didn't notice any shortcomings in my lens selection (Canon 50mm f/1.8 and Quantaray 70-300 f/4-5.6) until I started to shoot some specific scenes. Out of doors or at family functions with decent lighting, those lenses worked fine. When I started shooting indoor sports photos or weddings with muted lighting I started to see a need to get better quality of glass for the contrast and depth that it added to the pictures and larger apertures to compensate for handholding shots where setting up on a tripod became difficult and caused me to miss shots and then I'd have to reset the subjects.
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02/10/2004 10:20:25 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by jmsetzler:
That is a good article.. it attacks the questions the way I like to see it done... 'what are u gonna do with it?'
When I see people post questions here on DPC in relation to 'what lens(es) should I buy?' the responses are usually the same...
1. You need L glass
2. You need a fast lens
3. You need what I've got
These statements could possibly be true, but in a lot of cases, they are not. A good photographer can make good use of most any lenses. Certainly there are situations where fast lenses are nice, and even required. Nighttime/indoor sports photography... certain situations in wildlife photography... there are others i'm sure...
I hear constant rumbling about how sharp the L lenses are. I have never used one so I don't know. What I do know is that my less-expensive lenses produce good photographs. If they are soft, they always respond very well to the unsharp mask in photoshop. If they don't, it's because I didn't expose it properly or I introduced motion blur into my image.
I bought three lenses to start with when I upgraded to the 10d. I spent less than $1000 on glass. After about 3000 photos with this camera, I don't see a need (based on my style of shooting and my own subject interests) to spend the extra money on big aperture lenses.
If someone specifically asked me what lenses to buy to start out with, I think my answer would be this: (assuming Canon DSLR - substitued comparable lens for other manufacturers)
Buy a 28-80mm or 28-100mm f/3.5-4.5 lens and nothing else. If you are asking what lenses to buy because you don't know, you should let your needs dictate what lenses you purchase. After you have shot some with this lens, you may determine that you need a longer zoom. If that is the case, buy a longer zoom. You may also determine that you need a wider angle lens... if so, buy one.
If you have an unlimited supply of money that you wish to spend on camera gear, buy the most expensive lenses you can find. You won't be disappointed with them. |
Since I've used and owned a LOT of different eos lens, I'll chime in on this one. Stop your lens down 2-3 stops from wide open, that's the sharpest your lens can get. Some of the high end tele's are specifically designed to be super sharp wide open, but generally it's a good rule of thumb.
Unless your rich (or money just burnning a hole in your pocket), a professional, or someone who is aspiring to go pro. You DO NOT need "L" Glass. It's great, I wouldn't use anything else. It's just not needed for most of the photography I see here. Pick a format that fits your end result. If you don't print bigger than an 11x14, or your not marketing your stuff. Save some cash.
Let good technique make up the difference between "L" Glass and normal glass... |
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