Building an EOS system

SamGuss · Feb 8, 2008

This next week I will be getting a Canon Rebel K2 with kit lens (28-90mm I think it is).

My plan is to buy a wide-angle lens and a telescopic lens over the course of this year and then purchase a digital EOS camera. Originally I was planning on getting the Rebel XT or XTi. This original plan plan was so that I could get use of my lenses from both camera's.

Recently, though I found out that the lenses would work different in the digital format. Mainly, the wide angle would not be so wide-angled and the telephoto would appear even more longer. It's been sugested an easy fix would be either t skip the film body altogether or go with the Canon 5D when I get the digital body.

I do want to use both formats eventually and I do want to begin with film.

So, my question is this:

How do I implement both the film and digital camera's: i.e. are there other options other than the 5D, or is there some lenses I should look into that would function equally well on both camera bodies (the K2 and the XT or XTi). Keep in mind of course, I would only be getting 2 lenses in the EF format and afterwards the EF-S format to use on both camera's. EDIT: The EF-S lenses for just the digital and the EF lenses for both.

Any other advice or pointers would be great to hear as well. Thanks in advance!

Sam

lifeafter2am · Feb 8, 2008

1) EF-S lenses won't work on the Non-APS sized sensors or any of the film bodies.

2) It is not that they won't perform well, it is that they will be longer because your digital sensor is smaller. Multiply the length by 1.6 and that is what the lens will actually be on the digital body.

anderspj · Feb 8, 2008

Hi,

Having just come out the end of deciding on a camera system, I'll share a couple bits of advice that helped me make my own decisions about how to choose my lenses/camera.

You mentioned that you wanted to work in both film and digital, with your lens system compatible with both cameras. It would seem the smarter choice (from a cost perspective) to avoid EF-S lenses, as they will not work on a full frame digital (for example, 5d) and present their own problems (vignetting) when used with 35mm film bodies. You can read all about this mount here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_EF-S_lens_mount

As you know, you'll have to take into account a crop factor on any camera besides the 5d for non EF-S lenses. Multiply the focal lengths of your lenses by 1.6 (or 1.3, for the 1d) and you'll have the 35mm equivalent. If these numbers are something you can live with with, the cost of designated EF-S lenses may not be worth them being incompatible with a full-frame camera.

This would be something to consider when deciding between two lenses such as the $689 EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 or the comparably priced full frame equivalent EF 17-40mm f/4L. With the first lens on a 1.6 crop body, you'll get a field of view equivalent to 16-35mm lens fitted to a 35mm body. The second lens on a crop body would produce a field of view equivalent to 27-64mm. The lens that you just bought (28-90) would appear as 45-144mm.

In short, if you are either looking at getting a 5d now, or foresee an upgrade to one in the reasonably near future, in my mind it makes sense to invest in the best quality lenses your budget allows and to select lenses that would not be rendered obsolete by a move to a 5d body. If you are not planning on a 5d, but still want to have lenses you can use on both your Canon cameras (presuming you stay with Canon for your dSLR) make sure you aren't unhappy with the ranges they provide on a crop body. In either case, to my mind, this means avoiding EF-S lenses because of their limited compatibility.

If it were me, I'd go with a crop body digital, upgrade to a 5d (or its successor) later when my budget and desire allowed, and not get EF-S lenses at all.

I hope this helps you out some.

SamGuss · Feb 8, 2008

Thank you all very much for the advice - and this piece here really hit it well with me (numbers and all).

Nice to know I'm not the only one who had to figure out if this would work or not and how it would work.

Thanks a lot!

Sam

anderspj said:
Hi,

Having just come out the end of deciding on a camera system, I'll share a couple bits of advice that helped me make my own decisions about how to choose my lenses/camera.

You mentioned that you wanted to work in both film and digital, with your lens system compatible with both cameras. It would seem the smarter choice (from a cost perspective) to avoid EF-S lenses, as they will not work on a full frame digital (for example, 5d) and present their own problems (vignetting) when used with 35mm film bodies. You can read all about this mount here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_EF-S_lens_mount

As you know, you'll have to take into account a crop factor on any camera besides the 5d for non EF-S lenses. Multiply the focal lengths of your lenses by 1.6 (or 1.3, for the 1d) and you'll have the 35mm equivalent. If these numbers are something you can live with with, the cost of designated EF-S lenses may not be worth them being incompatible with a full-frame camera.

This would be something to consider when deciding between two lenses such as the $689 EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 or the comparably priced full frame equivalent EF 17-40mm f/4L. With the first lens on a 1.6 crop body, you'll get a field of view equivalent to 16-35mm lens fitted to a 35mm body. The second lens on a crop body would produce a field of view equivalent to 27-64mm. The lens that you just bought (28-90) would appear as 45-144mm.

In short, if you are either looking at getting a 5d now, or foresee an upgrade to one in the reasonably near future, in my mind it makes sense to invest in the best quality lenses your budget allows and to select lenses that would not be rendered obsolete by a move to a 5d body. If you are not planning on a 5d, but still want to have lenses you can use on both your Canon cameras (presuming you stay with Canon for your dSLR) make sure you aren't unhappy with the ranges they provide on a crop body. In either case, to my mind, this means avoiding EF-S lenses because of their limited compatibility.

If it were me, I'd go with a crop body digital, upgrade to a 5d (or its successor) later when my budget and desire allowed, and not get EF-S lenses at all.

I hope this helps you out some.