I know that this topic has come up on the discussion boards many times before (and I’ve read through the more recent ones), but I was hoping to get some personalized recommendations. I have a canon rebel t2i with the 18-55mm kit lens. My #1 subjects are my kids. My #2 subject is probably food. Ultimately, I think I want something that shoots great crisp portraits and does well in low light indoor situations.
Having said that, I thought that I was set on getting the 50mm f1.8 lens because of the appealing price tag and because some of the other “kid-centric” photographers that I follow and admire (@egad @rbowphotography@katiebrenkert) use a 50mm lens - but don’t know if they use the f1.8 or not.
But, after having read some threads on here, there was a discussion about 35mm lens and crop factor and all that. And I thought, maybe a 35mm would be better suited for me. I took a quick survey of my shots over the past month and it seems like my indoor shots range from 18-37mm. My outdoors shots are all over the place. And my food shots are also 18-28mm.
Finally, one last q – is the most popular 35mm lens the f2? If so, what’s a typical price for it? I did a quick google search and it was all over the place. If you own one, how much was yours?
Okay, with that info, any recommendations? Thanks in advance!
Ultimately you want both :-) For a crop sensor camera, the 35mm might be more versatile. It means close to 50mm on a full frame camera, which is the "normal" lens. It gives you a more standard image. A 50mm on a crop sensor is a slight telephoto. It often doesn't focus as close as a 35mm (for food shots), It makes for a nice portrait lens though.
I shoot Nikon, so I don't know about Canon prices.
Hi Cristina, just pointing you to another 365'er I follow Stacey http://365project.org/newbie/365, Stacey uses the Nikon 35mm f1.8 that is comparable to the Canon 35mm f2 and takes absolutely gorgeous sharp images of her daughter with the 35 mm f1.8.
35mm will be a great lens for kid portraits indoors and food product shots.
From every comparison that I have seen image quality is the same.
Seen Grey market Canon 35mm f2's for around $260 AU about the same as the Nikon 35mm f1.8
Hope this helps.
I would like to recommend a great lens that I fell in love with and carried me to a path that lead to the purchase of a full frame, now although that might sound appealing my eyes are on the tamron 28-75 2.8 its roughly $550. so if your considering a full frame camera in the future be sure to consider a full frame lens, basically anything thats EF. but the tamron is not the lens im recommending i would say take a look at Sigma 17-70 f/2.8-4, seems to be a focal range you might like, and its macro so you can get real close for food and fun shots with kids.
I still use this lens when i have my canon xs with me and i really like it
but FYI its not a full frame lens
I have a couple of 50mm f/1.8 II and it sure is affordable and performs pretty good for the price, no wonder they call it the nifty fifty ... well I use it on my full frame a lot, cause its an EF lens and its great, but i do find it has its flaws, no macro for one and lots of distortion at 1.5 ft focal distance, you want to be far back with the nifty fifty, at least 3-4 feet preferably on infinity focal distance to be honest so its better for full body portraits when it comes down to it but it doesnt even have a focal ring with numbers so i never have any idea where i am when im focusing and always rely on the AF which is not good either with the nifty fifty
If I were you I would seriously consider if you are aver going to upgrade you camera body as the lens you buy now may not fit a new upgraded body.
If you are planning to upgrade ensure you get the EF mounted lens and not the EF-S. The rebel can take both but the more $ camera bodies can only take the EF lens.
I use my canon 50mm f1.8 lens almost all the time, and I shoot all my food & portraits (& pretty much almost everything else though i probs shouldn't hahaha) with it :) it also handles low light pretty well. I think it's an awesome lens and probably one of the cheapest? i've seen, well worth it! :)
I am a die hard nikon nut (and yes I have had both) but that argument aside, I suggest a 50mm prime for either side of the fence. I say that now to not have it brought up later. By having a nifty 50 I think will really help with lenses you may get later, and shoot as much with the 50 in manual. your next glass i suggest a wide, and after using the 50 (IMHO) you will appreciate the wider more. just food for thought. regardless, either way you will be happy. happy shooting!
I was just pleased to see a discussion in which the opening passage is readable. Well done on being one of the only 365ers who have mastered spelling and grammar.
I have a 28mm 2.8 and a 50mm 1.8f on my Canon and they were both cheap enough, I have a 35-70mm which I never use. Most of my portraits are with the 50mm but like has been said before there're focus issues sometimes. Teresa @pocketmouse has an f.1.4 that she uses on her Canon and the portraits are amazing, and also the food shots, so maybe try for that one but it won't be cheap!
I have a canon 550d and I use a 60mm lens, I find it really versatile, it is an awesome macro lens as well as taking lovely portraits, I have also taken lots of food shots with it :)
@cristina3611 I have Canon 50mm 1.8 and I LOVE IT! It's fast and sharp (for what I need it for). I take pictures of my kids with it every day. Most of my best pictures in my project were taken with 50mm. It took me a little while to fall in love with it, because my other lens is long zoom Tamron 18-270mm so at first I think I felt limited without zoom and I was just used to stand on one spot and not move but use the zoom, so this lens taught me to use my legs :-) I highly recommend it, its much cheaper ($110) compare to Canon 35 f2 ($360). I don't know anything about 35mm so I can't compare. But to me my nifty fifty is worth every penny! I'm excited for you about your new lens not matter which one you decide to get ;-)
The Nifty Fifty (1.8f) is a truely remarkable lens for the price tag.. but i would really like a 35mm now, because on a cropped sensor as stated above you do get a slight telephoto.
I have both a 30mm sigma 1.4 and a 50mm nikkor 1.4 and I like them both.... With the 30mm on my nikon d60 which is a cropped sensor, it looks just like what your eyes would see.
@chewyteeth Haha--I'm a big fan of proper spelling and grammar, as well.
@cristina3611 I use both a 35mm 1.8 lens and a 60mm 2.8 macro lens. I tend to use the 60mm lens daily (and for everything from macro, to kids, to food) because the build and image quality are superior to the 35mm lens. But, they are $200 and $600 lenses, respectively. My 35mm is great, though. Not sure about Canon, but Nikon's 35mm 1.8 lens is built to be very sharp at wide apertures. It outperforms even the 50mm 1.4 lens when shot at f/1.8. In summary--I think you'd be happy with either...but may want both later down the road.
I have 50mm Nikkor and absolutely love it for portraits but it is not very good for close-ups. I usually use my macro lens for just about everything but the 50mm give you way better aperture. Also on a crop sensor the 50mm actually equals a 75mm so it might not work well indoors.
@flagged - Thanks for pointing me towards Stacy. Her portraits are really great! @eryck - Thanks for all of the info. I think I want a prime lens for now, but I well definitely keep that zoom lens in mind for the future. @agima - Thanks for the input Brendan, but I don't see myself upgrading to a full frame unless I go pro - which is extremely unlikely! @spangiepantz - Thanks Angelica - I love your food shots, so your recommendation is appreciated!
@chewyteeth - That made me laugh!!! Well, thank you very much for the wonderful compliment. I do pride myself on having proper grammar and spelling (and am quite irked when others don't). Have you read, "Eats, Shoots & Leaves"? A wonderful book for the grammar nerd!! I went back and read my post and there are a few things I would have changed if I knew someone was paying attention to my grammar! Anyway, thanks for the lens input!!
@zuzana - Zuzana - that is really wonderful to hear. You know I'm a huge fan of your photos, so you may have sealed the deal! @4stories - Thank you Liz! I love your kid shots as well, but didn't mention you in my original post because I noticed you mostly shoot with an 85mm lens. It's good to know that the 50mm is where you started!
Thanks Cristina! I do have the 50 mm f/1.8 which I use to take photos of my sons. Plus, my sister has a catering business, so I do take food photos with it also. I have only had it a few months, so I am still getting used to it but I really like it for both subjects.
I think you have some good advice here. I don't shoot Canon so have no opinion about specific lenses. However, as far as focal lengths go, I have two 50mm lenses and never use them, at least not a normal way. Even when I'm using a zoom with 50-55mm I rarely use it. I either want something wider or something longer. 35mm, on the other hand, is a focal length I use all the time. So my first thought when I saw the title was to say get a 35, it the lens I have that most closely gives me what my eye sees. If I could only take one prime lens, this is the focal length I would choose for most regular things.
However, I never/rarely do portraits. If your primary use is portraits then the 50 would be better - the 35 isn't the best for formal type portraits.
I think it really depends on how you shoot and what you like to shoot. For every day life, I dont think you'll have any problems with either. I dont like using the 50mm 1.8 in the studio because i've got a crop sensor and find myself too far away from the model to really communicate.
I'm also not a big fan of how it hunts alot (focus wise) and its a little noisy (although not really THAT much noisier to be honest) for me.
Since you have a Dx with 1.5 crop factor, I would go with the 35mm (making it 50mm full frame equivalent) - or down to 28mm. If you go to 50mm with Dx, I think it will be a little too long, just my opinion. I have full frame 50mm 1.4 and love it! Sigma also makes a 30mm 1.4 that you might consider. I have nikon gear but chose sigma 50mm 1.4 over nikon because I thought the sigma's bokeh was better (although nikon was slightly sharper and has better resale value). Canon makes great lenses and you can't go wrong sticking to canon.
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I shoot Nikon, so I don't know about Canon prices.
35mm will be a great lens for kid portraits indoors and food product shots.
From every comparison that I have seen image quality is the same.
Seen Grey market Canon 35mm f2's for around $260 AU about the same as the Nikon 35mm f1.8
Hope this helps.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/670047-REG/Sigma_668101_17_70mm_F2_8_4_DC_Macro.html
I still use this lens when i have my canon xs with me and i really like it
but FYI its not a full frame lens
I have a couple of 50mm f/1.8 II and it sure is affordable and performs pretty good for the price, no wonder they call it the nifty fifty ... well I use it on my full frame a lot, cause its an EF lens and its great, but i do find it has its flaws, no macro for one and lots of distortion at 1.5 ft focal distance, you want to be far back with the nifty fifty, at least 3-4 feet preferably on infinity focal distance to be honest so its better for full body portraits when it comes down to it but it doesnt even have a focal ring with numbers so i never have any idea where i am when im focusing and always rely on the AF which is not good either with the nifty fifty
hope that helps
If you are planning to upgrade ensure you get the EF mounted lens and not the EF-S. The rebel can take both but the more $ camera bodies can only take the EF lens.
I have a 28mm 2.8 and a 50mm 1.8f on my Canon and they were both cheap enough, I have a 35-70mm which I never use. Most of my portraits are with the 50mm but like has been said before there're focus issues sometimes. Teresa @pocketmouse has an f.1.4 that she uses on her Canon and the portraits are amazing, and also the food shots, so maybe try for that one but it won't be cheap!
@cristina3611 I use both a 35mm 1.8 lens and a 60mm 2.8 macro lens. I tend to use the 60mm lens daily (and for everything from macro, to kids, to food) because the build and image quality are superior to the 35mm lens. But, they are $200 and $600 lenses, respectively. My 35mm is great, though. Not sure about Canon, but Nikon's 35mm 1.8 lens is built to be very sharp at wide apertures. It outperforms even the 50mm 1.4 lens when shot at f/1.8. In summary--I think you'd be happy with either...but may want both later down the road.
@eryck - Thanks for all of the info. I think I want a prime lens for now, but I well definitely keep that zoom lens in mind for the future.
@agima - Thanks for the input Brendan, but I don't see myself upgrading to a full frame unless I go pro - which is extremely unlikely!
@spangiepantz - Thanks Angelica - I love your food shots, so your recommendation is appreciated!
@4stories - Thank you Liz! I love your kid shots as well, but didn't mention you in my original post because I noticed you mostly shoot with an 85mm lens. It's good to know that the 50mm is where you started!
However, I never/rarely do portraits. If your primary use is portraits then the 50 would be better - the 35 isn't the best for formal type portraits.
I'm also not a big fan of how it hunts alot (focus wise) and its a little noisy (although not really THAT much noisier to be honest) for me.
If it were my choice, i'd go with the 35mm :)