Canon EF 50mm F1.4?

[james_taylor11]

Sorry - looks like the 580EX was released after the 20D so it should work as well as the 430EX. I guess I need to decide if I want to purchase the 430EX with the 50mmMKII or the 580EX

 

-James

[picturesque]

I would base my flash purchase decision on how much use you will make of the flash later and whether you need the extra power and bells and whistles of the 580. I do think the 420 is being discontinued, and if you opt for the lower powered flash, the 430 is better anyway, but if you do get it be sure to update your 20D firmware as I believe the latest version fixes some bug that has to do with the 430.

[trw]

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/3819223"><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/3819223-sm.jpg" /></a><br />

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/3819236"><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/3819236-sm.jpg" /></a><br />

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/3060854"><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/3060854-sm.jpg" /></a>

[Ian Taylor]

I use this lens near the wide open end all the time.

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[mattalofs]

"The philosophy of skimping on the glass is a fool's errand. It devalues instantly, degrades all the money you put into the digital camera itself, and is less reliable. "

 

And you eventually end up buying the better lens anyway. In which case you've not only paid for the expensive lens, but also the piece of junk. Not that the 50 1.4 is a piece of junk.

[djphoto]

Not suggesting that James skimp on glass, Marc, but he had already said that the 28/f1.8 is at the upper end of what he can afford. If that's the case, the 24/1.4 would certainly be out of his reach at this time. Sometimes we have to use what we have and maybe make a little money with it so we can afford something better.

 

As for the 50/1.4, I own, use, and love it. But it's simply not the appropriate lens for his immediate need.

 

James, get the 580 if you possibly can. You will never regret having the extra power.

[mike dixon]

A good general-purpose lens for a 1.6-crop camera is the 28/f1.8. It's 2/3 stop slower than the 50/1.4, but it gives you a normal angle of view, more DOF, and "real" USM focusing. Only costs about $100 more than the 50/1.4, so it probably still fits your budget.

[fxdonny]

I can't understand anyone shooting without normal or wide angle lenses, especially when shooting indoors. Marc is right, cuz I do like the 24/1.4, but if budget is really a concern, consider sigma 24/1.8, or 28/1.8 or Canon 28/1.8 USM (like Dave and Mike said). 50 just not wide enough for me.

[james_taylor11]

Thanks again everyone! Just wanted to let you know I decided to order the 580EX. It should be here in less than a week. That should give me some time to learn to use it before the party. I also picked up a used 50mm 1.8 to play with, but I will most likely be using my 18-55 kit lens for this particular job. The 50mm 1.4 will have to wait until next spring.

 

-James

[fotografz]

Good move James. I shoot a fair amount of company parties around this time of year

also. Here's a couple of tips to consider when practicing with the 580EX:

 

Look at the Light Sphere diffuser from Gary Fong. It's simple to use and very useful when

using flash at close quarters like you'll be doing.

 

http://secure.mycart.net/catalogs/catalog.asp?prodid=4282948&showprevnext=1

 

Try this technique: Set your camera on Manual and leave the flash on ETTL. Set the shutter

to the lowest hand-holdable speed possible (50mm=1/50th). Set the lens aperture based

on what DOF you think is necessary, but no more. When you shoot this way you'll get the

maximum ambient light possible behind the subject rather than a wall of black, and the

flash will do the rest by naturally lighting the foreground subject.

 

Best of luck !

[oofoto]

Yep, If I'd read the Q properly then I wouldn't have suggested the 20-35mm as you already have the 18-55mm. Happy xmas!

[james_taylor11]

Hello,

 

I just wanted to thank everyone again. The job is finished and everything turned out fine. I can't tell you how glad I am that I purchased the flash instead of the 50mm 1.4. The flash made all the difference in the world. I ended up using the 18-55 kit lens the entire time. I put the camera in manual, set it to 5.6, iso 100, shutter speed 1/60, and let the flash do all the work. I did use a Sto-Fen Omni Bounce most of the time.

 

As it turned out, there were no lights on in the building. The only light source was from half a dozen Christmas trees, and lights that were strung around the room. The only place with a decent amount of light was right at the door to the building. This was also the only place I could bounce the flash. I tried getting several photos throughout the room, and many of them turned out ok, but the background was too dark for my liking.

 

The party was for a real estate agency. They wanted to get 4x6 prints made of their clients to send a thank you note after the party - another point of contact. After taking several photos I decided that my best option, under the circumstances, was to stand at the door and get photos of the guests as they were leaving. Not very exciting, but as John pointed out, "party photography isn't art." There was a nice backdrop, and as I said, it was the best light. As it turned out, I got around 130 photos that they could use. I was told they printed in excess of 200 photos to send out to clients - they were happy with the results. The only complaint I received was that one realtor wished he had more photos of his clients. I asked almost everyone as they left, but some declined to get their photo taken.

 

I'm sure I will get the job next year, so I'm really happy with the way everything turned out. I'm already thinking about a better lens, and possibly another flash that I could fire wirelessly from a stand.

 

I still have a lot to learn about flash photography, but I'm excited to see what the possibilities are. That link -photonotes.org/eosflash- tuned out to be extremely valuable. I've read through it once, but I think I will need to go through it again to really start to get a grasp on using the flash.

 

Thanks again,

 

 

-James