Choosing the right Lens(es) for Canon 600D - portrait/close-up/video

dzejsondonovan · Dec 25, 2011

Hi,
I decided to buy a Canon 600D ( with 18-55 just to have something for wide angles ) and I my main interest is Portrait, close-up photo and video.

Here is what came with so far :

For portrait and macro :
Canon EF-S 60 mm f/2.8 Macro USM ( and then maybe I'd go for 85 mm, f/1.8 )

For video... well I don't know really.
Videos i'd like to create would be sth like :
http://www.youtube.com/wa...feature=related

I was thinking about going for 50mm prime lens 1.8 like Canon or Takumar ( but don't know if that would be such a great choice for amateur film maker ). Or maybe i should look for something with stabilization.

Can you please help me with choosing the right lens for videos and maybe give some thought on portrait/macro lens selection ?
best regs,

Derrel · Dec 25, 2011

Tokina 100mm f/2.8 macro sems to be a well-reviewed, affordable macro lens. Tamron's 90mm f/2.8 SP macro with AF motor for Canon is another good lens. Canon makes a nice 100mm f/2.8 EF macro that's pretty good. I own a 60mm macro lens...to me, the length is simply too short for many subjects, except FLAT-plane, medium-sized documents, like typed or printed 8.5x11 paper documents, Christmas cards, etc...60mm is a nice length for "artwork". If you have an old, modified 35mm enlarger, you can make a pretty good copy stand quite easily, and then use a 60mm as the lens for doing FAST document copy work--much faster and easier than scanning things.

For video, I would want a high-quality zoom lens, so that I could shoot different shots and not need to change lenses. I hope you enjoy the new d-slr!!! It's always really exciting to get a new camera.

Overread · Dec 25, 2011

If you want a good zoom lens for video work you have to make sure that its parafocal, which means that if you change the focal length (ie zoom in or out) the focal point remains in the same place. For DSLRs this is typically not a highly in demand feature, however for video work and manual focusing you will certainly need (or at least get greater use out of) a parafocal zoom lens (prime lenses are a not a problem since there is no zooming at all).

The Canon 24-105mm f4 IS L is a parafocal lens and also a high grade lens worth considering for portrait and video work - and with a set of extension tubes (Eg Kenko AF extension tubes) can even good good macro and close up photography.

Derrel · Dec 25, 2011

"parfocal".

dzejsondonovan · Dec 26, 2011

Derrel said:
Tokina 100mm f/2.8 macro sems to be a well-reviewed, affordable macro lens. Tamron's 90mm f/2.8 SP macro with AF motor for Canon is another good lens. Canon makes a nice 100mm f/2.8 EF macro that's pretty good. I own a 60mm macro lens...to me, the length is simply too short for many subjects, except FLAT-plane, medium-sized documents, like typed or printed 8.5x11 paper documents, Christmas cards, etc...60mm is a nice length for "artwork". If you have an old, modified 35mm enlarger, you can make a pretty good copy stand quite easily, and then use a 60mm as the lens for doing FAST document copy work--much faster and easier than scanning things.

For video, I would want a high-quality zoom lens, so that I could shoot different shots and not need to change lenses. I hope you enjoy the new d-slr!!! It's always really exciting to get a new camera.

Both Tokina and Tamron's lenses seem to be pretty decent I just wonder how they would work for portrait ( bokeh ? ) in comparison to 60mm. When it would come to shooting macros i don't need 'em for eye of an ant

the smallest thing pohotgraphed would be a business card probably and the biggest I guess A3 - (close-up just to show the texture of paper).

For video - hmm the "L" lenses are out of my financial reach for the moment, can you please advise mi something else instead ?

THanks for replies.