Best Lenses for 5D Mark II

[alexey_nosal]

Hi, i know you guys like to talk about lenses, so...

I will get 5D mark II for my b-day in december... BUT i want to get couple lenses with it too. i don't really need "kit"

lens (i know it's "L", i know it's good) my problem is - GOOD is not enought! i've read reviews... 24-70 L seems to

be the winner to me compare to 24 105 in image quality, and i need portrait lens(es) too, 50 1.2L or 85 1.2L by the

info i found about those two - 85 seems like the winner in IQ. basically i'm asking YOU (big photography guys with

expirience and awesome portfolios) to help me to build my lens collection. i'm gonna shoot from landscapes to

portraits and i want all the best IQ i can get from my camera.

P.S. i use to have XTi + "Tamron Kit lenses" i was getting awesome results (compare to what i can get from P&S :)

i want TOP SHELF now, and i'm asking your advice.

thanks in advance

 

Alex

 

p.p.s.: sorry 4 my english :) i shoot better than speak :)

[rainer_t]

-- "my problem is - GOOD is not enough"

 

Sounds like a real problem to me.

 

-- "basically i'm asking YOU (big photography guys with expirience and awesome portfolios) to help me"

 

Ok, I admit, it's certainly not me that you ask.

 

-- "i want TOP SHELF now".

 

Here's my suggestion for your shopping list.

 

EF 14/2.8L + EF 24/1.4L + EF 35/1.4L + EF 50/1.2L + EF 85/1.2L II + EF 100/2.8 macro + EF 135/2L + EF 200/2.8L

 

evenutally add a EF 16-35/2.8L + EF 24-70/2.8L + EF 70-200/2.8L IS + EF400/2.8L and may be one of the tilt shift

lenses.

 

If this all gets you the top quality that you're after, is a different story. I'm missing a few things in your

equipment wish list ... like a 580ex (or two) and like a solid tripod.

[dave chew]

Well that certainly covers it! If you're actually going to carry all this stuff around, and if you want to do

this in stages, I would reduce the initial list to:

 

24f/1.4II (should be available about when the 5DII is)

35f/1.4

85f/1.2 (or the f/1.8, which is very good as well)

135f/2

 

And as Rainer points out, flash(s), flash bracket, tripod, ballhead, camera plates, bag(s)...

 

You may actually want to purchase the kit lens, since you would gain a very capable lens for

documenting family / friends / events. I find it a bit obnoxious to take all this stuff to a party, holiday or

some other informal gathering. Or just get a good P&S for that purpose and deal with the annoying

shutter lag...

 

Dave Chew

[dan_hall4]

The 24-105 is an amazing lens and I am curious where you read otherwise. It is not you average "kit" lens. With your interest, a 17-40, 24-105, and 70-200 IS would cover a lot of ground. You would also have three of the most popular Canon lenses out there.

[yakim_peled1]

Landscapes? 16-35/2.8 II. Portraits? 35/1.4 + 85/1.2 II + 135/2. General purpose lens? I had the 24-105 and have no trouble recommending it. Great range, fast AF and very sharp wide open.

 

You did not mention budget size or if there is any weight issue. The 85/1.2 for example, is significantly heavier than its younger sister, the 85/1.8, which is also excellent.

 

Happy shooting,

Yakim.

[charles_zabilski1]

I shoot exclusively landscapes with a 1Ds MkII (16 Mp) and have the following lenses. 17-40 L, 24-105 L and 100-400 L. I use the 24-105 95% of the time and the quality is excellent. I highly recommend it. No problem printing at 20x30.

[zml]

I don't shoot with 5D2 (well, very few people outside of Canon actually do...) but I find the EF 100/2.8 macro very,

very good on 1Ds3 (also a 21 mpx camera) as a general-purpose lens when you need this focal length (say, for

portraits.) The 24/3.5 T/S lens is very good for landscapes, architecture, etc. Both lenses are very sharp, contrasty

and deliver great color! And the EF 24-105 practically lives on my 1Ds3 and the 35/1.4, 300/2.8 and 70-200/2.8 are

other glass I use often. Generally, you'll be hard pressed to find a "substandard" "L" lens in the Canon lineup

provided of course that your main goal is photography, not pixel-peeping.

[alexey_nosal]

at digitalpicture(dot)com in ISO chart 24-70 is better than 24-105 + i would be perfect combo with 70-200

 

im thinking 24f/3.5 T/S or 24f/1.4II + 24-70f/2.8 + 85f/1.2II + (maybe) 70-200f/2.8is

 

p.s. to Rainer: if i would be crazy enought to buy all that lenses at once - it would be cheaper to hire some smart ass to make pictures for me.

[sarah_fox]

Before I bought my 5D and 24-105, I looked through multitudes of comments, reviews, sample images, etc. -- basically agononizing over the choice between the 24-105/4 and the 24-70/2.8. From what I read/saw./heard, I came to the same conclusion that the image quality of the 24-105 was not quite as good as that of the 24-70. However, the difference appeared very slight, and I opted for the 24-105 for its greater reach and its IS (a feature I like very much).

 

The 24-105 I received greatly exceeded all my expectations in image quality, so at least based on my own experiences, I would have to say the reviews and sample images underestimate the lens. The only issue is a bit of vignetting when shooting wide open and zoomed fully out (easily corrected in PS). Otherwise the lens is amazingly consistent in delivering superb sharpness and contrast across apertures and across focal lengths. Truly extroardinary.

 

So I think you will find the 24-105 "top shelf" enough. I think you would also like the 24-70. Pick confidently, based on the features that matter to you (e.g. IS, larger aperture, size/weight, zoom range, whatever).

[alan_bryant1]

Alex, you did say "GOOD is not enough" and gave no price limit. Rainer's list is pretty much what I would have suggested.

 

I can vouch for the 24-105 being a very sharp lens. I agree the-digitial-picture.com charts show the 24-70 may have a slight sharpness edge, but it's very small. I wouldn't make my decision based on that alone. Personally, given that f/2.8 isn't very fast for normal-range lenses, I prefer to take the greater versatility of the 24-105 as my walkabout lens and use fast primes when I need speed.

[wolf_rainer_schmalfuss]

The answer is very simple. Buy the new excellent ZE glasses from Zeiss, together with the excellent ground glass from Katzeye ! I was really deeply impressed seeing these combination at the Photokina trade fair in Cologne/Germany in September.

 

Cheers

[alexey_nosal]

Thanks a lot for all your comments.

 

I really needed real users opinion coz looking at charts and sample tests over and over made me sick. :) i just

wanted to buy reasonable amount of lenses to cover my needs that's why i'm so picky about IQ and i didn't mean

that 24-105 is not good - it's awesome lens and i've read a LOT about it. but 105 is too long for me + i really wantet

to get every tiny little bit of IQ possible without going ower the limit of crazyness in lens quantity

 

Thanks a Lot to all who answered to my topic

 

p.s. any more comments welcome

[zml]

<i>The answer is very simple. Buy the new excellent ZE glasses from Zeiss, together with the excellent ground

glass from Katzeye ! I was really deeply impressed seeing these combination at the Photokina trade fair in

Cologne/Germany in September. </i><br><br>Really? THAT simple? Have you had a chance of actually testing

the Zeiss lenses or they simply looked good and you fell in love with their marketing literature..? Sheesh...Don't you

think that making statemets like yours is a bit irresponsible when nobody really knows how these lenses will perform

on a FF camera? There is enough fluff flying around on the 'net..!

[wolf_rainer_schmalfuss]

Hi Michael, a friend of mine (opthlamologist) owns a Canon 1Ds MkIII. I've borrowed for a couple days a Contax/Canon adapter and have asked him, whether he would like to test a 15mm,18mm and 25mm CZ Distagon with his camera. We went down to a river site and these above mentioned lenses were shot with full opening and with f-stop 5,6. My friend went down to the same spot after I've left, with his similar Canon glasses to compare them with the Zeiss glasses. In the evening he called me up after he has checked these results on his Mac 30" monitor, and told me, that the Zeiss glasses were fully open and with stopped down 5.6 aperture clearly much better, as his Canon glasses. Result: He bought himself at the same day, a used 18mm Contax/Distagon in very good condition and price. Unfortunately, the rear lens glass was slidly scratched. I've ordered a new lens glass for him, and the firm Wiese-Fototechnik in Hamburg/Germany installed the new glass within 3 days, because my friend wanted to go on leave.

Final: My friend is very impressed with the excellent optical quality of this adapted Zeiss glass on his 1Ds MkIII. It is also known for example, that the Distagon 2,8/21mm is also searched like a diamond, and the prices for this glass exceed the former purchase price by far. At the Photokina, I had the two ZE Zeiss glasses checked on a 5D body, and I believe, that many Canon owners will enjoy working with these new excellent Zeiss glasses. By the way, my friend is going to replace his bulky and heavy 1,2/85mm L Canon with the compact ZE Planar 1,4/85mm as soon it becomes available end of this year.

 

Cheers

[yakim_peled1]

For me a MF lens is a non-option as I use AF almost all the time, even in macro. Not only that but I usually look for the fastest AF possible and that means a combination of Ring USM, IF/RF design and non-rotating front element. Within these limitations (which I happily impose on myself) I look for the best IQ.

 

Happy shooting,

Yakim.