qh Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Hi all, I've been playing with Canon 10D and two prime lenses 24mm f/2.8, 85mmf/1.8 for street / travel photography. I'm quite happy with them inthe last 1 year and a half. It's now time for me to add one more lensto my collection. I'm really confused ... prime or zoom, quality /price trade-off, etc. Any recommendation? Thx Dang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spearhead Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Why do you want to add another lens? Is there something you haven't been able to do with what you have? If so, what is it? Acquisition of equipment without a purpose rarely has any, well, purpose. Music and Portraits Blog: Life in Portugal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfimages Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Well, the 50mm f1.8 which can be had for $70 or so, by following the links on the p.net homepage, should get you started. On a 10D, it becomes an effective 80mm or so - great for portraits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qh Posted May 23, 2005 Author Share Posted May 23, 2005 Thx for your question. Well, first I just felt like I needed to add one more lens without any specific detail. Now I think I want a telephoto lens, longer than 85mm that I already own. I was thinking about the 75-300mm IS USM, then I found the 70-200mm f/4 L but not sure if I can handhold it or is it too instrusive / too long for street photography? The 70-300mm DO IS is certainly the best choice in term of size and convenience for street / travel but its price kills me ... Another choice is a prime lens, says 200mm (any?), but I think I already have 2 primes, so no more ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wgpinc Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 I think the 35mm 2.0 fits right in between the 24mm and the 85mm. Small, light, fast and sharp. I use it for my walking around lens on the dRebel or 20D. Otherwise I might look at the 28-75mm Tamron. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob_murray Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 How about the 135mm F2.8 soft focus lens. its sharp when soft focus is turned off. then add a 50mm F1.8 and you will have 4 sharp primes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kai_griffin Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Hi Dang, The f4/70-200 is hand-holdable in that it is relatively light for its focal length (compared to, say, the 2.8/70-200). On the other hand, it doesn't have IS, so you need to be sensible with it. I have this lens and love what it can do - it's very sharp, colours are rich... but I found myself leaving it at home quite often because carrying it was not always convenient. Like you suggest above, I did feel a little bit self-conscious using this lens in urban situations... and I ended up purchasing the 70-300 IS/DO specifically for that purpose. I've not regretted the choice; though it cost more in relative terms, for my purposes, the saving in size was a big deal, as well as the fact that it just doesn't stand out at all when walking about with it. I won't pretend that side-by-side shots taken with the 70-200 and the 70-300 DO are indistinguishable - the DO is softer and less contrasty - but with good post processing, the difference becomes much more acceptable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_nancarrow Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 First get the Tamron 28-75mm, fits right in between your 2 primes, has great color/sharpness, gives you zoom flexibility which you lack now and costs about 305.00. Next, you could get the 70-200 f/4 which will give you the length you might want someday, together you have 2 good primes, then 2 good-great zooms for most needs and the zooms will cost about 900.00 together. Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qh Posted May 23, 2005 Author Share Posted May 23, 2005 Thx all for your recommendations. The Tamron 28-75mm is really a nice surprise to me! How come I didn't notice it. However, the 70-200mm f/4 is still very intrigued. Its length and "white" are ... scary but the quality/price is certainly unbeaten. Dunno what to buy first ... Hmm, wait ... I've heard that 70-200mm f/4 has focus prob with 10D, is that right? 70-300mm DO is great but paying that much really makes me feel guilty, I haven't earned a cent from photography yet ... So Tamron 28-75mm for more comfortable or Canon 70-200mm for a new vision with "L" quality? What a tough decision! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaron_lam Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 70-200mm F4 worked fine on my 10D. The 200mm F2.8 will give you something about the same size as the 70-200 f4, black, faster for available light and if you can find a MKI... built in hood. The 70-200F4 has an ENORMOUS hood if you use it... more than half the body length. Best regards, aaron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mormegil Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 One nice thing about the 70-200 4L for street photography is, your subject would probably be too far to notice you (right away), if you're going for candids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad_ Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 <I>One nice thing about the 70-200 4L for street photography...</I><P> That's hardly street photography. www.citysnaps.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willio Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 what about 16-35/L or 24-70/L? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yakim_peled1 Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 >> The Tamron 28-75mm is really a nice surprise to me! How come I didn't notice it. You probably do not read a lot in photo.net. >> Another choice is a prime lens, says 200mm (any?), but I think I already have 2 primes, so no more ... Why not? I had the 70-200/4 and replaced it with 85/1.8 and 200/2.8. The prime is a bit shorter and, more importantly, black. That makes it a lot less obstructive. The problems is, like with the 70-200/4, the hood. That of the Mk I is shorter but I have Mk II which is really long. Nevertheless, as I am a firm believer in using the hood at all times. I just bear with it. Oh, and I find the primes to be optically much better than the zoom.... Happy shooting, Yakim. OT: I have 5 primes (24/2.8, 35/2, 85/1.8, 200/2.8, 300/4 IS) with no zoom and no real need to purchase one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew robertson Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 The 135mm f/2.8 SF is really nice. In fact, it's much nicer than the 70-200 f/4L for my purposes. I sold my 70-200 f/4 after barely using it for a year. Tack sharp wide open and with the softness turned off, and the soft effect is interesting but not really my main use for the lens. Otherwise, get something that'll expand your photographic ability set, like a macro lens or a tilt shift lens. The 45mm f/2.8 TS-E lens would allow you to make some view camera type movements for effects unlike anything you can do with an ordinary lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kai_griffin Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 I still reckon the cheap 1.8/50mm is a great street lens on a 1.6x crop factor camera, for zeroing into scenes. I used to use mostly 16-35, but have been giving equal time to the 50mm of late.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qh Posted May 24, 2005 Author Share Posted May 24, 2005 It seems like the 70-200mm f/4 L with the hood becomes a real "chain gun" on the street, while there is no negative opinion about the Tamron 28-75mm so far. I think I will first buy the Tamron, then either wait for a cheaper DO lens or add another prime to my bag. Thank you all for great responses. All of the lenses that I bought were advices from photo.net and I am totally satisfied with them ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_r._fulton_jr. Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 Dang.....I just don't get what the 28-70 is going to do for you? You have the 24 and 85? Sorry, maybe I missed something. Seems like a 200 is what you need, or perhaps, the 70-200. Either of those are going to give you a different 'look' at what you're photographing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qh Posted May 25, 2005 Author Share Posted May 25, 2005 As I said before, I would definitely go for 70-200mm if it were shorter, or 70-300mm if it were cheaper. Both of them indeed give me a different look. However, I am also missing a general purpose good/cheap zoom lens (for general / casual occassions). The Tamron is a nice bargain. In fact, I'm a bit unsure which lens I will use more for street photography. I had no big trouble shooting with primes, zooming ... on foot seems quite OK with me :) I just don't want to carry so many primes in my bags when traveling ... Yeah, it seems my third lens is really hard to choose ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mondiani Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Using 200mm for nostril street photography? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niels_de_boissezon1 Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 I'm also voting in favor of the 135/2,8. It's so small light and good :D I would also consider a superwide - how about a Tokina 12-24/4 AT-X? That will give you a new perspective on things ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew robertson Posted May 26, 2005 Share Posted May 26, 2005 Mondiani, in many parts of the world streets can be a mile long, maybe more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mondiani Posted May 28, 2005 Share Posted May 28, 2005 And so, can't you walk closer? ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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