hi there all sifu,i'm going to buy my EOS...and i wanna know something more about lens.....but why dont we make a list here to show what lens is suitable for what occasion....firstly i wanna ask something....what lens should we use for wedding??? As i know mostly people will know telephoto lens,wide angle lens...and more......so which is suitable??

thanks

usually what i hear from the pros is that indoors use wide/ultra wide as there isnt enough space..

oh.....is it?? but i saw many photographers shooot in wedding also not using wide angle........haha

actual wide angle lens are best used with a full frame DSLR.. but considering EF-S 10-20mm cant be used with eos5D, many chose to get the 30d/40d. otherwise 17-40 f4l would suffice the needs. or just get a 20mm prime lens with fixed focus range.

i personally love the 10-22mm.. gonna get it this sunday if the deal's still on. *prays*

oh.......complicated........haha

Kit lens will be fine for wedding. You gonna use a flash anyway, so fast lens is not required.
Of course you could be benefited from higher quality glass, but that's a premium to be paid.

Usually in events like wedding for example, multiple lenses are used. The standard ones are something around the range of a wide angle zoom (standard zoom) at 16/17mm - 50/105mm. Some would prefer using prime lenses for single portraits maybe around 50mm and 85mm on a separate body. One of the popular standard zoom lens is 24-105mm F4L IS USM using a FF body. You can cover from wide angle to standard zoom range like stage presentation shooting during a wedding. One lens to do all. If you can control the environment like group shots and some portraits, the 24-70mm F2.8L is quite a good lens too. The most important thing is, there is no one lens suitable for everything. You choose wisely and you only choose the right equipment for the job. No overkills here.

I see some photographers using only a 50mm F1.8/1.4/1.2L for their shooting which is superb. I respect their diligence. I also see some pros using 70-200 range to cover extended range if the wedding dinner hall is very big and they want to capture some candid shots. But I would prefer 24-105mm range. Others may want to use 10-22mm range for ultra wide angle like taking the whole hall in just one shot.

A lot of flexibility and no rights and wrongs. Just great photos or missed opportunities.

basically when u hire a wedding photographer, u have to consider the equipments they bring along. i would love to cover weddings if i were paid min 1.5k for the whole wedding ceremony. that includes photo albums and printed photos but excludes petrol expenses and toll fees. provided i have the right equipment for the wedding.

i have experience covering events before, mostly sports and festivals.

10mm is the widest you can go on a Canon non-FF body.

for FF body, you can always go for those 12-24 and it's still WAY wider than 10mm on non-FF.

carcraze66, basically you need to know what you plan to shoot.
1. macro
2. wide
3. ultra-wide
4. tele
5. prime

a quick summary of what's available.

cheapest you can get are #2 wide and #4 tele. your kit lens would be 18-55 already (assuming you're going for the cheapest kit lens bundle la) since you're talking about EOS, which is clearly a Canon.

tele like the sigma / tamron / canon 70-300 can be acquired for like RM 600 - 700, the sigma and tamron one comes with macro (#1) mode! usually 1:2 ratio but heck, it's worth it mah.

then there's #5, the prime lens. the EF 50mm f1.8 is damn popular among Canon users. almost everyone has one because it's cheap (below RM 350. some people got it for around RM 250...... like me!) and snap sharp pics. just the other day i went to Orchid Park and met a fellow (stranger) photog - both of us carry also have the 50mm with us, it's like a common denominator among Canon users, either you had it or still have it.

so it's only Ultra-wide that you've not cover, which usually is costly (above RM 1k).

now with the kit lens (18-55) and cheapest tele lens (70-300) you also get macro capability already.

does that mean you won't be spending anymore on macro / wide / tele? NO!

it's later as you progress in skill, you'll find some stuff limiting you. or you wish to have lens that comes with features that allows you to take pics at less optimal conditions.

then you have options to get dedicated macro lenses (like the Tamron SP90, Sigma 105).
then you have options to get better kit lens (like Tamron 18-50 f2.8...... or even the Canon EF-S 17-55/2.8 IS USM that costs a bomb!)
then you have tele options (like the 70-200 F4L / F2.8L IS or non-IS version with USM)
then you have prime options (like EF 50mm f1.4......or even the f1.2!)

anyway I'm just stating the examples. there's plenty others to choose from. you don't have to buy everything, just take a while and understand what kind of photographer are you and buy what you need.

phew. lengthy but that's as much as what my beginner brain can produce. open for corrections.

btw my favourite lens in my arsenal so far is my Sigma 18-200 OS. damn fun to go around every where with it. this lens put my kit + 70-300 in cold storage. hehe.

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Added on February 23, 2008, 12:42 am

ouhh this i like man!



Canon's 10-22 is not mountable on FF. too bad. they can get close to the 10-22mm by using the 17-40L

no matter what lens u plan to get, get the 50mm f1.8 II. haha. damn cheap & sharp lens.

for wedding, get flash 1st instead of getting lens.

goldfries, nice advise lol. i also kinda refer to ur advise. haha. now
I'm using 17-40L as a kitlens. It'll automatically 'transform' to ultrawide if i upgrade to FF lol.

Its time that you check back closer again. Good wedding photogs will definitely use wide angle lenses. I have never seen a good one shoot using only a kit lens.

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Added on February 23, 2008, 2:18 am

Usually they will use the advantage of the full frame with nice portrait lenses like the 85mm f/1.2 which gives a very very nice and creamy background. Also check out Jessica Claire's shot using the 50mm f/1.2 lens. Absolutely amazing!

http://www.jessicaclaire.net/index.cfm?postID=273

haha.. thanx mavik.. i've been looking for that name since yesterday.. forgot de.. the wed photog who uses f1.2L

She shot Gary Fong's wedding if I am not wrong.

Gary Fong is the guy who created the bowl like thing which people put on their flash.

i can verify that you're not wrong. saw Gary Fong's wedding pics, stunning!

Hey guys. I know this is way _OT_ but thanks for the links. Now, that is one photographer I'll be willing to part good money for my wedding photos. (unfortunately for me, mine was taken by/at a stupid photo studio in SS2. I didn't pay a dime over the original pre-determined amount!)

I like this shot.

http://www.jessicaclaire.net/images/content/ACF5BBB.jpg

hoho.. if you're gonna pay for jessica claire, first u have to consider her rm5000+ lens on an FF body.. prior to that is her skills, professionality and work hour.

thats gonna cost u alot i can say.

And she used a 50mm 1.0 too.

Rule No.1 : Never buy a lens on hearsay.

it's best for portrait work or street shooting. but not that great for landscapes or covering events

in a rushing situation like wedding coverage, personally i feel that using 50mm is very annoying since u can't recompose or zoom in/zoom out... very wasting time.

the best lens for wedding, either kit lens, or big aperture wide/telephoto zoom... hence u don't need to swap lens many times.

when you're paid to cover wedding, you're rushing between catching up with the time and also to get the best composition.

unless you're doing outdoor pre/post-wedding garden shooting, 50mm (or any prime lens) will do just great because of OOF effect. and you have all the time to spend with the couples.

i agree with soulfly on that. the 50mm may be great in doing composition and having bokeh balblablabla but it's limited in focal range and with a cropped sensor body, 50mm works like 70mm++ already so the issue of space / distance comes to mind.

when tis prob arise...there's always 30mm f1.4 Sigma maybe?

I think a good reliable and quality standard is zoom is better for ever changing environments like a wedding dinner event. The situation is usually very volatile and could change unexpectedly. If you like primes, get another dedicated body for it hehehehe! Actually upgrade to a FF body and maintain your APS-C camera to just use primes.

actually i am really blur when talking about lens...can any sifu explain something about lens?? coz sometimes i only know wide angle is for wide place or wide scenery,telephoto is for far object........so can someone tell me how ppl choose lens?? according to its zoom?? to its aperture capability?? thanks and wiling to learn more.......hahaha

It depends on your requirement, personal preference and budget. There is no specific rules. If you know how to use a DSLR properly, know how to compose and expose properly, you should know how to choose a proper lens for yourself.

Actually there is no right and wrong lens for anything. Some people use wide angle for the wrong purpose but still get good results. I for an example used my 70-200 for short range shooting. I like everything close to the viewfinder. So sometimes you can explore pretty good results with different lenses. Sometimes they provide you with a different perspective.

love it! tested it today. guess what i bought!

the sigma lens is awesome. but somehow, it is still a sigma. nothing against them though. it is their built quality that i really beh tahan

so 18-55mm is it suitable for wedding photograph??

Since you still very new in the SLR world, don go for any good lense first la, just play around with your kitlens 18-55mm, and buy another cheap 70-300mm zoom lense to play. These 2 lenses can keep you entertained for quite sometimes.. then until then you will know what to buy next. normally you will feel limited and buy your speedlite, then later on you start to notice something is limiting you.... then can come to this forum again to drink poison.

18-55 is definitely suitable for a general walkaround lens. But you need a 70-200/300 range for covering the stage wine toasting ceremony or taking candid shots from afar. Follow the advice given by our forummer, get an affordable 70-300 lens. I can easily recommend the Canon EFS 50-250mm with 4-stop IS or a cheaper Canon EFS 55-250mm without IS. Actually before buying lens, you should explore more in the areas of exposure. So I suggest buying a Canon 430EX flash. When you are accustomed to taking photos indoor and playing with light, then you invest into better optics to do more types of exposure.

You may want to consider my own upgrade plans (again no rights and wrongs here):

1. Buy Canon 430EX flash (purpose: To extend the usability of the 18-55 kit lens)
2. Buy longer range lenses like 70-300mm for telephoto coverage. (Spend a little more for IS so you can use it indoor. Use flash to freeze objects and IS to prevent camera shake)
3. Buy battery grip (purpose: To improve handling and stability)
4. Buy a higher quality wide angle lens (purpose: To replace 18-55 kit lens)
4. Buy ultra-wide angle lenses like 10-22mm (purpose: To extend creativity on other focal perspectives)

Items like bags, flash diffusers, UV filters and etc can be bought anytime within the upgrade plan whenever you need it or have the money and time to scout for one.

The choices of lens (focal range, aperture, IS, USM, etc) will depends on the extend of your budget, photography needs and seriousness into photography as a hobby. And also whether you plan to upgrade your camera body to FF. Don't buy into 'the best will give best photos' suggestions. Sometimes a reasonable lens can give you extraordinary results. Get the basics right and when you know you are serious, then you can spend more on better lenses. Photography can really ripped out a big hole in your savings. Kekekeke

Seems like David Mak are very active on lenses advises liao.. And he is right...

I have to be more quiet now because need to do serious work.... And also I only know how to give people advices but I myself now kena stuck...

Why kena stuck? I sold off my excellent EFS10-22 and bought 17-40 L, thought will be getting the new 5D replacement, which never launch yet... So now end up with no super-wide on hand... Really worry a bit if it happen that I need it... Stupid mistake of mine...

Now... what if I go to travel in May where super wide is the most imporant???

Wei TheVOIP, me not action lar. Just thought of sharing what I know kekekeke Because me last time also caught with lower F-aperture equals great lens. Actually not lar. In fact what a beginner/starter need most is lighting to help on the exposure side of things. So what is better than to have a flash to compensate for you automatically and provide WB feedback?

Hmm.. 17-40 F4L still good lar. If you still need 10-22 and out of budget, then it is time you try something non-Canon for a change. Goldfries can easily tell you his new toy. kekekeke! HIS Sigma 10-20mm! Come on, the Sony A200 changed your perspectives and it is time you see some changes and improvements on 3rd party lenses too.

Brother... I had never say you action la... Siao meh...

I really agree with you la... I actually like the smaller 70-200, which is great for travel.

FYI, yesterday I carried so many gears and walking uphill.. and now whole body pain pain... weight is really a concern in real life... And I glad Canon made the 70-200 f4 serise.


Maybe talking with my friends and exchange some lenses when I travel... because he has super wide ma. Then wait until year end when I got myself the new camera...

Now both my legs pain pain... certainly seriously lack of exercise....

Oops solli solli. I misread 'active' as 'action' hahahaha! Cause I was busy with other things and just reply. Actually the EF70-300mm IS USM also not bad. Very matching with the 17-85 IS USM. With that you have affordable IS solutions from 17-300mm. Sometimes I feel that 200mm cannot reach far enough. If you have shaky hands, the IS is really useful at long range. If you don't want the bulkiness of 70-300 IS then get the DO version. But your wallet will scream

If you don't need L reliability and weather proofing, then these models are good enough. Actually IS is really important. Too bad only L lenses have both IS and fixed F-aperture ratings with exception to a few expensive EF-S lenses.

I wonder how is the Sigma 10-20mm on the Sony. I expect it to be quite distorted as well as I am using the Nikon mount one and at 10mm, very distorted especially around the edges. But its this distorted effect that can get some very very interesting angles and shots.

hehe. other than snake-skin effect when it goes older, i don't have any complaints lor.

can't compare it to L lenses la but i find it them solid when i hold and i like the texture.



200mm i find ok. 300mm would exaggerate the hand movement and tends to be soft.

on a cropped sensor body, the 200mm is more than 300mm already anyway. so better get used to it cos you're not getting that range on FF unless you get a 300mmer.

If you're used to prosumer like me in the begining, the reach of a 12x optical is far greater than a 200mm lens. But you'll get used to it. Have to make do by moving forward a bit IF POSSIBLE.

As for the 70-300 DO IS USM, I heard its not a very good lens optically. Just that it uses less elements thus reducing the lenses in this family by size and weight.

And not all L lenses are weather proof. The 70-200 F4 L isn't but its IS Brother is. Not sure about other models in the L family. Older lenses tend not to be weather proof.

Yes... you are right.

I tried the older 80-200 f2.8 L in rain. As a result, water go in and got fungus and stain in real elements... and also cannot be removed because those elements are stuck/glue together in some soft of metal.

I think 85L also not weather resistenace... So please do not shoot romantic potrait with 85L in heavy rain...

Just checked my Canon lens Book. Actually quite a few L lenses not weather proof. I guess we have to factor this in as well before our next purchases...... For L lenses.

can you list them out?

I need a lot of volunteers in order to generate the list.

no leh, julchin_09 already mention there's a Canon lens book. so can list out from there lor.

any website has the most complete & updated list? I googled around but found that most are not updated.

sooner or later this thread will become a poison room. awesome

OK. Here goes:

Weather sealed (Water/Dust Resistant) L Lenses OR D.O Lenses:

Primes:
EF 50mm f/1.2 L
EF 300mm f/2.8 L IS USM
EF 400mm f/2.8 L IS USM
EF 400mm f/4 DO IS USM
EF 500mm f/4 L IS USM
EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM

Zooms
EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L USM
EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM
EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM
EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM
EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM
EF 70-200 f/4 L IS USM
EF 70-200 f/2.8 L USM
EF 70-200 f/2.8 L IS USM

Extender EF 1.4x II
Extender EF 2x II

Non L OR D.O weathersealed lens

EF 20-35mm f/3.5-4.5 USM


Surprising exclusion from the list:

EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM

P:S These are based on the lens map I have. Do correct should there be mistakes.....

looks like i need to get the 70-200 F4L IS USM already. cos the non-IS version no weather-seal. shoot paintball not good.

Yes. Highly recommended lens!

yeah, it's so good, even a used unit is rarely found.

there's a whole lot of used 70-200 F4L non-IS though. i believe that will be my first L lens and i sincerely hope so.

EF 17-40 F4L is not weather/dust seal.

You still need a filter attached infront to be dust sealed. The rear element moves in and out when you zoom in or out. this it is not really sealed. Take a look at the rear element for 70-200 F4L, it doesnt move

Yes, I have got used to it. It was my experience when I tried both the 70-200 and 70-300. I found the build quality of the 70-300 not as good as the 70-200 so I got the 70-200. Had a feeling that the L optics must be something which I was right in the end. It was a good purchase.

The DO version sports fewer optics due to the diffractive optics where light is bent more efficiently and requires less ULDs to do the same job. I think DO is Canon's test product to try on newer technologies. But up to now, it is very experimental in nature.




Yes, the 70-200 F4L is not weather-sealed and everyone including the salesman thought it was. I knew from the very start because I checked the Canon Lens Work and other resources before buying it. Anyway the front and the rear elements are sealed by design but the zoom and focus rings aren't. That is where the moisture can go in. It would be safe to say that it is sealed from dust though but not moisture and water.

The 70-200 F4L IS USM is definitely the way to go from the regular F4. No need to think about the F2.8 unless you have other work requirements in mind.

Yes, I checked out a review site that it needs a filter to be attached in order to be really sealed. The rear element moving is not much of a concern since when it is screwed on the body mount, it should be sealed anyway. I'm not sure if the body's metal mount is considered seal when screwed in. Does the 1D Mark IIIs have their mounts with sealants anyway? Sorry might be a silly question.