Lens decision

shebu_18 · May 6, 2011

Hello all, thsi is my first post here on the forum, happy to foun you all.

What would you recommend me between:
Canon 35/f2, 50/f1.8(this one i own), 85/f2, 100/f2.8, and Sigma 18-50/f2.8-4.5 or should i go for
Sigma 18-50/f2.8-4.5 and Sigma 24-70/f2.8?
I do not have the money for Canon 24-70. The camera i hopefully us the lenses with will be a Canon 7D.

I used Nikon D200/700/D3(not mine), but the colors on the Canon camera are more liked by my eyes, so i switched to Canon an bought the 350D form a friend. Now i want to upgrade to the 7D and i want to know on what lense path should i go. Primes or tele. I like primes because they sharp and good in low light. On primes you have the advantage of zooming, but are not so sharp and not so good in low light.
The lenses will be used in wedding photography, and family, hobby pictures.

Thanks, cris.

LE: Now i have a little problem with the decision on a body. i have 3 Canon lenses. As i sad, i used a D700 in the past and have some nice shots with it. I like the details on 100% size, the texture, you can see everything. No noise. I googled some 7D(my wish body) samples and they were noisy, unsharp. I don't want to pay for that. Now looking at some 5dmkII samples i see the same characteristics as the d700, sharp good pictures. Is this the difference from fullframe to APS-C? Can someone post some low ISO, very sharp images with a 7D?
I swing between a 60D and a 7D. I would go with the 7D if the images are like i wish them to be.

subscuck · May 6, 2011

What is your budget for lenses? There are possibly some other options out there, but it's hard to say not knowing how much you want to spend.

shebu_18 · May 6, 2011

1400-1500Euro. There is one litle problem. The options should be available in my country. I found the Canon 24-70/f2.8 for 1500Euro, but on an APS-C it is a bit much money for a short lens.

subscuck · May 7, 2011

The reason the 24-70 is so expensive is because it's an "L" series lens. The "L" series are Canon's Pro line of lenses. In general, they are the sharpest, fastest lenses they make, as well as having the best color, contrast, bokeh, etc. A lot of people on this forum use the 24-70 on their crop cameras. In fact, the 7D really needs excellent lenses to get the most out of it. For what you're looking for right now, I wouldn't recommend it, as it would limit you to one lens.

If you like the zoom range of the Sigma 18-50 you're looking at, rather than the 2.8-4.5, consider their constant 2.8. I'ts a better lens all around, and if Tamron is available in Romania, they make a 17-50 constant 2.8. The Tamron generally gets spoken of better than the Sigma. Honestly, if you get a 7D, zoom lenses under $200US just aren't worth putting on it. You'll need to settle for fewer, but better lenses. Canon also makes a constant 2.8 17-55, but it's almost $1,100US.

I would upgrade your 50 1.8 with either a Canon or Sigma 50mm 1.4. It'll make a big difference on the 7D.

If you want a "normal perspective" lens, than either the Canon 35 f2 or the Sigma 30mm f1.8 would be good choices for a 7D.

As far as an 85 or 100mm, they're really more portrait lenses than general photography lenses, so I would hold off until you feel you need one.

So if you were to go with a Sigma or Tamron f2.8 zoom, Canon 35mm 2.0 and 50mm 1.4, you could possibly have enough to get a Canon 70-200 f4L to give you some reach. The 70-200 f4L gets mixed reviews, but it's more than good enough.

shebu_18 · May 8, 2011

Thank you for your replay.
I read the sigma vs tamron thread on the 18/17-50 lens. I found some Sigma sellers in my town and the next week i will meet with them and see the lens. From what i read here the sigma lens was made in 3 series, the good one is "Sigma 18-50 F/2.8 DC EX HSM MACRO", this is the 3rd series, the first two are not so good. The tamron gets mixed comments. i think i will opt for the Sigma.
The next lens will be an 85mm, I would need it for portraits on weddings. Then i think the 35mm and afterwards an upgrade on the 50mm. Right now i am very happy with the 50mm.
I like macro photography so this is why i want the 100mm lens.
The next important thing would be a good backpack, where all that will fit in, maybe something from Lowepro.