-
Trying to Determine what lens to purchase for 7D
Guys, I find myself stuck on a determination of what additional lens to purchase for my 7D
I primarily use my camera for video work and I have a 3.5 28-105mm lens.
Now I am looking at a non zoom 50mm 1.8 lens OR 18-50 mm 2.8 lens.
We all see the pros and cons of both lenses but the thing I am stuck on is whether or not I will use the 50mm lens as much as the 18-50mm
this question goes out to my fellow videographers, do you find yourself using the fixed low light lenses a lot or is it worth sacrificing the stops and getting the wider angle 2.8 lens?
a lot of the work I do is corporate with a few creative online commercials so, for the most part, light is not an issue..what do you guys think?
-
11 Replies
-
I have the 50mm 1.8 lens and love it. It is by far the best value in Canon’s lens lineup. You will achieve great lowlight footage with this lens. You also will get a fantastic shallow depth of field for some very nice shots. For less than $100 you can’t beat the Canon 50mm 1.8.
I wish I was good at one thing rather than average at many, but oh well.
-
Thanks Nick, starting to lean that direction.
-
Get the 50mm 1.4 more more focus friendly for video and is every faster vs the 50 1.8.
Are you looking at non-Canon lenses since I don’t know of a 28-105 or 18-50 2.8 made by canon.
-
yeah, i was looking at some Sigma lenses at B and H.
and absolutely about the 1.4..hmm it seems you cool cats would rather I get a fixed low light lens as opposed to 2.8 17-55 or 18-50…no arguing- shallow depth of field wins fans ^_^
-
If you are going to go for the 50mm get the f1.4. You already have this focal length covered with your current zoom so it’s main benefit will low light advantage hence you’d be better off with the f1.4.
Canon have an EF S 17-55 f2.8. Shooting video you’ll often find yourself in a confined space or wanting to do camera moves that often better done using the perspective properties of a wide angle lens.
You might get away with using a good quality alternate manufacturers lens with video, because a certain amount of information has to be lost extracting the 1920 x 1080 image. The stills format will not be as forgiving though. Spending more on good quality lenses is always a wise investment, they’ll outlast your camera by a number of generations.
I’m still using a couple of Mamiya 645 lenses and some fast Pentax SMC lenses with Fotodiox adaptors, that I’ve had for over 20 years, when my new Canon zooms aren’t fast enough or long enough.
Cinematographer, Steadicam Operator, Final Cut Pro Post Production.
https://www.steadi-onfilms.com.au/ -
For me it is more than the extra 2/3 stop, it is the focusing ring itself. There is nothing wrong with the 50 1.8 in autofocus but it is almost impossible for me to manual focus, take my hand off the ring and not move it. Also if you every get a follow focus it will work better.
This is a great portraite lens for our type of cameras, it is like having an really expensive 85 1.4 lens. For weddings and other low light this lens is just great.
-
I use the Canon 50mm f1.4 and use it a lot, you wont realize until you really get into using a DSLR for video how valuable the f1.4 to f2.8 apertures are, not only for shallow depth of field shots, which look great on my 7D, but keeping iso low, which has a huge impact on video quality.
F3.5-5.6 lenses are generally amateur still photo lenses, the light loss you experience when zooming to frame shots is a lot.For wide angle shots, I use an old 1980’s Nikkor AI 24mm f2.8 and get wide enough angles for me, without worrying about verticals lines in the frame bending like a banana, I use an EOS to Nikon adapter for around $10.00 from Ebay.
A lot of the time shots that I do, I can walk back or forwards a little to frame the shots, so I don’t feel limited at all by shooting primes, as all settings for movies I shoot are all manual.
-
Gentleman, all of your counseling…I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it. It is now SETTLED!!
I am going to purchase a 50mm 1.4
after hearing all of your advice I am SOLD.
thank you guys!
-
So, does that mean they all get maybe a 10% finder’s fee with your purchase? I mean…you did say you were sold on it 😉
-
You won’t be disappointed with 1.4. I’ve owned all 3 50’s at one point or another. I currently have the 1.4 and the 1.2. To be honest for video work I end up using the 1.4 more. I think its a touch sharper then 1.2 and trying to get accurate focus at 1.2 is very very hard. The only “bad” thing I can say about the 1.4 compared to the 1.2 is the focus ring isn’t nearly as smooth (think heavy and dampened with the 1.2) but the 1.2 costs the same as 3 1.4s (ouuuuch)
The only thing I would caution with any of the 50s on a 7D is how you frame it as with the crop factor its going to be about 80mm which is nice for portrait work like interviews but you might need to back a way a touch.
Robbie Carman
—————-
Colorist and Author
Check out my new Books:
Video Made on a Mac
Apple Pro Training Series DVDSP
From Still To Motion
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up