Hey guy,

I think Im ready for a new lense. Ive been doing a bit of research here and there and have made a decision on a couple. Can you guys give me some input and opinions?

Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/R...ns-Review.aspx

OR

Canon EF 35mm f/2.0

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/R...ns-Review.aspx



If you guys have other lenses you think I should look at, feel free to post up!

 

the 50mm is a really good portrait lense... but i would recommend the 28-135mm canon one.. i love using that lense

 

what are you shooting mainly?

 

dont get a new lens, just give me the cam

 

im looking for something that I can shoot a wide variety of things. My car, close ups of items, pictures of friends and such (full body and half body), and scenery.

 

get the all around 50mm lense

 

get the 50mm. It is a favorite with all photographers. I am looking to get one myself as soon as i can come across some money.

 

neither of those lenses will really achieve those.

The lens i would recommend is the 24-70mm L, but this lens is kind of pricy

 

yeah. that 24-70 is really expensive.

My range is more around <$500.

any other lenses I should look at, don?

 

50mm 1.8 II is really good for the money, but a little noisy (literal noise, not image noise)

what body are you using?

 

ha ha sounds like the canon 15mm fisheye. that thing is noisy as hell. BUT prolly one of my favorite lenses.

 

i have the 50mm f/1.4 and i love it. the only thing is that since i have a XT and its a crop sensor it basically zoomed in a lot (equivalent to a 70mm on a full frame/35mm) and not really great for a walk around. but you really cant beat that bigggg aperture.

i assume you have a kit lens 18-55 so try it yourself. zoom to 50mm and walk around with it like that. youll understand what i mean. then try it zoomed to 35 and walk around with that. youll get a sense of what those two zoom levels are and you can decide what youre comfortable with

 

actually, a 50mm on a body with an EF-S sensor would be equivalent to an 80mm, not 70mm

 

I have an XTI. I was debating between the 50mm f1.4 or the other one don mentioned, the 50mm f1.8 II.


Is the USM really worth it? I played with the 1.8II at a store and its kinda noisy. It doesnt really bother me much though.

What other advantages does the USM offer that would justify the price?

 

not really much advantage if you're not requiring super fast focusing...

the build is better of course, since the 50mm 1.8 II is made of plastic though, but its almost a disposable cost....

 

my bad i knew it was something in that range..

i was about to say that the price difference between the 1.8 and 1.4 was not that much but after a quick look on amazon youre looking at ~$100 for the f/1.8 or ~$300 for the f/1.2

the f/1.2 is definately built better and in low light i would think that the quicker USM in the 1.2 would be advantageous..

 

I have the 50mm f/1.4

It was worth the money. I use it to mainly do vehicle photoshoots, with occassional candids. With the right settings, it has a pleasantly soft bokeh (the background blur with the main object in perfect focus). The f/1.8 version (about 1/3 the price) is good too if you're not looking for good bokeh. It's the better buy for general use.