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Canon Lens Recommendations?
Hi Guys,
I’m going to buy myself a 60D for cinematography,
but could do with advice on what lenses I should get.
I’m only going to get two.So far I’ve decided to get the stock 18-135mm IS lens for general purpose shots.
I’d really like to get a 50mm.I like the look of the Canon 50mm 1.4f lens, but have heard it’s unusable for macro.
Would the 50mm macro be better? Or should I look at a Sigma or other brand?Any suggestions are much appreciated 🙂
~Caleb
— Caleb
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7 Replies
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What is your budget? I would recommend against the kit lens if it is at all possible in your budget. Also, what type of shooting are you going to be doing? (makes a big difference)
John -
$1800 at the most.
I’m just a beginner so I don’t need the absolute best. I’ll be using it to shoot short films for school,
So there’ll be dialogue and faces and what not, although the specifics change a lot.
I absolutely love macro, shallow depth of field and low light kind of stuff, which is why I like the 50mm 1.4f. I’ll also be using it for a little photography.— Caleb
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Hi Caleb,
You need to decide which is more of a priority because specialised macro lenses are not suitable for low light and low depth of field.
Macro lenses and macro imaging need a deeper depth of field and are therefore made with a much smaller iris aperture.You might consider purchasing a close up diopter filter or reversing adaptor (not a particularly convenient option for EOS lenses due to lack of manual iris) for the 50mm f1.4 until you afford that specialised macro lens.
Some of the reputable other brand lenses such as Sigma, Tokina and Tamron hold up very well performance wise and another option is to purchase good used lenses. Companies such as Novoflex make very good adaptors that enable you to fit other brands such as Nikon to the Canon camera (they become a manual lens but this option gives you the benefit of a manual iris on the lens, that with with a small modification can be de-clicked to allow smooth video / film style iris pulls).
Finally buying the best quality lenses you can afford is a good investment, they will outlast all the technology in your camera body by many generations.
Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/ -
Wow, thanks heaps!
Kudos for the diopter idea, I’ve never heard of them before. I noticed from your website that you’re based in Australia. Are there any cheap places you would recommend to buy from, used or unused?— Caleb
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From my website you can email me from the contacts page. I’d prefer to keep recommendations off a public list.
Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://philming.com.au
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/ -
True, that makes sense.
Thanks for your help.— Caleb
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Get a few good prime lenses would be a wise decision. A 35mm 1.4 and a 50mm 1.4 are good.
I always tell people that if you are going to go for a slow kit lens you might as well just shoot on a regular video camera: That way you can zoom in and out and have audio inputs!Errol X. Lazare
EXL Films
http://www.exlfilms.com
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