Help with Lens selection

[chu_iris]

<span style="font-size: x-small; font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;"]<span style="color: #333399;"]I'm a mum who likes to take pictures of my child.


<span style="font-size: x-small; font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;"]<span style="color: #333399;"]I'm presently using a Canon 500D with the kit lens EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS.


<span style="font-size: x-small; font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;"]<span style="color: #333399;"]I am looking for something that has bigger aperture that allow more lights into the camera? Basically I need a lens that is fast that is able to capture the fast movement of young children, especially for indoors situation.


<span style="font-size: x-small; font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;"]<span style="color: #333399;"]I was browing around the Canon website.. EF-S17-85mm f/2.8 IS USM &amp; EF17-40mm f/4L USM are within my budget.


<span style="font-size: x-small; font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;"]<span style="color: #333399;"]May I have some suggestions on which is a better choice for my purpose? Or if you have any other suggested lens.


<span style="font-size: x-small; font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;"]<span style="color: #333399;"]Thanks!

[NFLD Stephen]

HI and welcom to TDP!


Just to clarify, there is no EF-S 17-85 f/2.8 lens. There is a EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM and a EF-S 17-85 f/4-5.6 IS USM. Both are completely different lenses! Check out the reviews on this web page to see some of the differences.


Since you are looking for something to capture fast movement (children), as you mentioned you need something with a large apeture. In a zoom lens, the largest apeture availible i s f/2.8. An excellent choice would be the 17-55 f/2.8 mentioned earlier. You might also consider getting a fast prime lens. Prime lenses (with a fixed focal length) can generally have much wider apetures. Best thing to do is to determine what focal length suits you best and then see what primes fit your needs and budget. As a starter you might consider the 50mm f/1.8 prime (AKA: nifty fifty, plastic fantastic, etc). This is a very cheap (~$100) lens but it takes good quality pictures and has a fast apeture. This will definately give you a better idea of what you need with regard to apeture and also let you know what it is like to work with a prime lens.


This is just a starting point as I'm sure others here will chime in with other suggestions as well!


Stephen

[Kayaker72]

+1 on recommending the 17-55 f/2.8 or a fast prime, and the 50 f/1.8 is a great ($100) place to start, as it is an inexpensive way to see what fast primes can do, but the AF is slow, so for capturing pictures of fast moving children, you will likely want something with a faster AF.


Others to consider, 85 f/1.8 (check out Baker's current thread on Basketball), EFS 60 f/2.8 macro, 50 f/1.4 or the 35 f/2. I only own the 50 f/1.8, but have considered buying all of those lenses at one point or another. I would look at what focal length you currently use the most with your 18-55 lens and either buy a prime that has that focal length/works around your house (if you are always at 55 mm, one of the longer focal lengths may work) or buy a faster zoom lens, such as the 17-55 f/2.8.


Good luck

[neuroanatomist]

Hi, and welcome to the TDP forums!

May I have some suggestions on which is a better choice for my purpose?

When I started out with this expensive hobby, it was with a 500D, the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, and the EF 85mm f/1.8 - and my main subject was my young daughter. The 85mm lens is great for close-up portraits, but too long for general use on a 1.6x crop body like the 500D.


The EF 17-40mm f/4L will definitely not be fast enough. As Stephen points out, there is no EF-S 17-85mm f/2.8 lens. There are EF-S 15-85mm and EF-S 17-85mm lenses, both of which have variable (and slow) apertures just like your kit lens. The 15-85mm lens is about the same price as the 17-40mm. There's also the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, which is about one-third more expensive than the 17/40/15-85 lenses. If you do mean the17-55mm, it's a very versatile lens that is great for using in and around the house. But, even with the f/2.8 aperture on the 17-55mm, it was difficult for me to get action-stopping shots of my toddler indoors with ambient lighting. Even though the lens is image stabilized, that helps only with your camera shake, and does not help with moving subjects.


A fast prime is one answer - the EF 50mm f/1.4 lets in 4 times as much light as the f/2.8 of the 17-55mm (and 16 times as much light as your 18-55mm kit lens at the same focal length!), meaning you can get those action-stopping shutter speeds. But there's a trade-off that many people aren't aware of when they first get a fast prime lens - depth of field (DoF), which is the part of an image that's in acceptable focus. The wider the aperture, the thinner the DoF. For example, if you're shooting with the 50mm f/1.4 at f/1.4 and you're about 2.5 m / 8' from your subject (a reasonable distance indoors), the DoF will be ~13 cm / 5" - enough to get a face in focus, but not a whole person and probably not two faces unless they are well-aligned.


One other thing to consider is using a flash. Your 500D has a pop-up flash, but that delivers harsh light and I personally don't like it (it is useful for fill-flash when shooting backlit shots outdoors in the sun, but that's about it). However, a good external flash like the Speedlite 430EX II can produce excellent results - it can be bounced off the ceiling, meaning a large light source and soft light. In Bryan's review of the 430EX II you can see an example of a shot with the pop-up flash vs. a bounced 430EX II. Also, in dim light autofocus can have trouble. You might have noticed that in the automatic modes in dim light, your flash pops up and fires a fast strobe burst to help with focus. The 430EX II has a red/infrared AF assist lamp, which is much less annoying (that's one reason I recommend the 430EX II over the cheaper 270EX).


Hope that helps...


--John

[Jayson]

I agree with everyone here about the lenses. If you indeed meant the 17-55 f2.8 by canon, by all means get that bad boy. Heard nothing but great things about it. If you wanted to save a little cash and maybe pick up a flash, you could try the Tamron 17-50mm.http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Tamron-17-50mm-f-2.8-XR-Di-II-Lens-Review.aspx


I still own mine and it works great for the kids. Just make sure you test it to see if it correctly focuses at the camera store before buying or if your buying online, get it from a dealer that allows a 30 day return policy. I missed the 15 day window so I had to send it to Tamron for the focus. Once fixed, it is a great piece of glass.


I use my 50mm 1.4 almost all the time for my kids in the house and in the back yard. I never stray to far from them climbing on things so it serves my uses very well. The other thing you could consider is the 35mm f2. It is an older model lens and makes a little noise when trying to focus, but it gives some overall sharp images and serves its purpose very well for the kids. I believe the 35mm is about $200 and you could get a 430exII for around $300 and you have a great setup for pictures.


Everyone here has great suggestions and I know they will point you in the right direction!


Jayson

[chu_iris]

Thanks for all the reply!


Oops. I was referring to EF-S17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM &amp; EF17-40mm f/4L USM.


I have a EF50mm f/1.4 USM. It is a GREAT lens. I like the pictures taken with it. But I do have problem with indoor taking a group of children, it is not wide enough to accommodate everyone within the frame.


I

[neuroanatomist]

I&rsquo;m not looking at using a flash at the moment. It&rsquo;s just too many things to carry for a mum like me.


Looks like EF-S17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM is a lens I should go for?

If you want a zoom lens, f/2.8 is as fast as they come from Canon. So, the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS would be your best bet. I would encourage you to rethink the flash at some point - after all, photography literally means writing with light, and a flash is one step towards controlling that light.


For example, you just posted another thread about taking a photo of a large group indoors in low light. Wide apertures and large groups don't mix - the DoF is too thin. To get sufficient DoF, you need a narrower aperture - and indoors in relatively low light, that means adding light. A flash is a great way to do that, and a whole lot more portable than a set of 10 floor lamps...

[chu_iris]

Thanks


Yes, I will consider the flash at some point. Actually I did consider getting one, jus the amount of stuff to carry hold me back.


The other post on group photo, my cousin do have a flash that we should be using. However, we only have kit lens to play with.

[Steven23]

/vote 17-55 2.8. and spend the money on a couple of flashes if you have some extra cash or save up. Put the flashes in a corner/near ceiling and can light up the whole room and get nice photos. Only if you have white walls/ceiling lol. Some simple starting flashes are the Vivatar 285 like 80 bucks new and cheaper used, just need some cables/triggers and have a good basic set up. With the set up can do birthday parties and xmax photos! /joy! Happy shooting!