Lenses for 5D Mk II travel

[nickdemarcofoto]

<p>I am a lucky happy owner of the new 5D Mk II. In the past I have been a user of the 5D and Leica M8. I still use Leica film bodies and love the lenses. I have a number of Canon EOS lenses, including various L lenses, and have picked up quite a few bargain used third party lenses with adapters to use on the 5D/5D2 (Leica R 21mm f4, 28mm f2.8, 35mm f2 and 35mm f2.8, 50mm f2, 90mm f2; Contax 50mm f1.4 and 85mm f1.4, Olympus Zuiko 21mm f2 and 28mm f2).</p>

<p>Having so many lenses I love gives me a headache when planning a far off trip for some photography (later this week, first time in Myanmar). On the one hand you want the best, and a choice, on the other to take too much is not just not practical, but means I fear I will take too long worrying about what lens to use instead of taking photos. Whilst many people prefer zooms, I prefer prime lenses not only for their superior quality (generally) but also because they can be less big and obtrusive. I also have a preference for wide angle photographer and - often - wide apertures.<br>

I am narrowing down my choices. Along with the 5D Mk II I will take one old Leica film body (the M6) with just one lens (the 35mm Summicron f2) and only black and white 400 ISO film.<br>

With the 5D Mk II I intend to use as my main 'walkabout' lens the 35mm f1.4L. I recently got this second hand and think it is one of the best Canon lenses own. It is excellent in low light and has a very nice bokeh. 35mm is also my favourite focal length. Instead of zooming in or out I think it would be better to just use this for most situations.<br>

I think I need one telephoto, and although I have recently fallen in love with the Contax 85mm, I think I should take the Canon 135mm f2. Its my other favourite Canon lens, with great bokeh, has AF (of course) and is more telephoto.<br>

Instead of the 24-105mm f4L zoom, which I have and think is a good practical lens, but not a beautiful lens, I think I want just one small fast 50mm prime, and I am plumping for the Leica R Summicron f2 as I think it is so much more beautiful wide open than the Canon 1.4.</p>

<p>My real headache comes with extra wide. I have the Canon 16-35mm f2.8L MkII. In the past this would have been the first lens in my bag for such a trip. I love the range and the lens is very good. But I rarely us it at 16mm, at 35 my 35 prime is far better, and I am not convinced it is as good or better than the small primes I have in the 21-28 range. I am leaning towards the Olympus Zuiko 21mm and 28mm lenses. They are both very light and small, and unobtrusive (making the 5D Mk II look almost like a normal camera). They both seem very sharp stopped down. They both can go up to f2 (although the bokeh is rather rough, especially on the 21mm in my opinion), and they are nice and easy to use. I am not sure if the Leica 21mm Super-Angulon f4 is much better than the Olly 21, although I expect if I could focus it more accurately, and had it on a tripod, it would slightly out perform it. It is heavier and I find slightly more difficult to use. So I am narrowing it down to the Zuiko 21 and 28, the canon 35, the Leica 50 and the Canon 135.</p>

<p>I realise this is all a matter of personal taste and preference. Many would prefer to take just one lens or all the best zooms etc. So although I don't espect anyone can tell me what lenses are best for me, the whole point of these forums for me is to discuss and get other people's ideas. So if anyone has thoughts or advice about this choice, or good/bad experiences with any of these lenses, I would be grateful. In my first few days of experimenting with the 5D mk II this week (whilst at work) I have made a couple of galleries using some of the lenses I am uncertain of. They are here<br>

www.pbase.com/nickdemarco/canon_5d_mark_ii<br>

Thanks</p>

<p>Nick</p>

[Ian Taylor]

<p>My travel kit these days - 35/1.4 and 24-70mm.</p>

 

[bengt_rehn]

<p>I used to build my travel kit from 35mm as starting point and then add 50,24,85,17 and 135mm in that order. I have found (not surprisingly) that the number of subjects that fits for a given focal is inverse proportional to the deviation from the 35mm focal lenght.<br>

By time I tend to bring fewer lenses when travel. Nowdays I am quite satisfied with just 24/2,8, 35/2,0 and 50/1,4. You will almost certainly find yourself in a situation where the 135/2,0 would be wonderful to have, but is it worth the effort to carry around that bulk and weight for relatively few occasions ?</p>

[delwyn_ching]

<p>My travel kit: Speedlite 580Z Flash, 24-105 f/4.0L lens on my 5D.</p>

[sbp]

<p>Travel kit for 1D3: 24-70 f/2.8L, 70-200 f/4L, 24 f/1.4L, 580 II, Leica table top tripod with Manfroto 484 ball head, Epson P5000 (file backup), lens cleaning stuff, electrical tape, battery charger. FWIW, the 135 f/2L is the sharpest lens in my kit. I travel with zooms for flexibility, but love the 135.</p>

[nickdemarcofoto]

<p>Thank you for the feedback which is illuminating. I am fortified in my decision to take the 35mm f1.4L as my main lens. I take the point about the 135mm f2 being big and not being used much. I have the 70-200L f22.8, wehich I once took to Lao, but it weighs a ton. I think I might leave the 135L behind and take the 85mm Contax 1.4 instead. Ok it's the same weight (or slightly more) but almost half the size and a slightly more useable focal range for me. I have decided to take the 21mm and 28mm Zuiko f2's (both almost pocket size), the 35mm f1.4L, the 50 'cron and the contax85mm. I realise I am going without much AF, but I experimenetd for the first time with focus on the live view screen of the new 5d mk II last night and it can give perfect results - if I need walkabout the 35mm with AF will stay on my camera. What a loose in terms of the flexibility of a zoom I hope to gain in terms of the discipline of composition. I will also take my Manfrotto tripod (for those shots in Bagan with the wide angle lenses) and the Leica table top tripod I forgot about.<br>

Nick</p>

[nickdemarcofoto]

<p> So, on the eve of a trip to Myanmar I narrowed down my travel options. Leica 21mm f4 (I compared it to my Oly 21/f2 and it was far better throughout the aperture range), Oly 28/f2 (which, on the other hand, is flawless), Canon 35L f1.4, Leica Summicron f2 (far, far nicer than the Canon 1.4) and Canon 135L f2 (another great Canon lens). Then - just tonight - I noticed an old second hand Olympus SLR on my shelf I had picked up for about #60. I wondered what lens it had on it. Sure enough it was the Olympus Zuiko 50mm f1.8. I tried it on my 5D mk II straight away and was immediately impressed. I then quickly compared it to the Leica Summicron and found, to my shock and disbelief, I think it produces better images than my Summicron, and even a smoother bokeh. Whilst it is not engineered as well as the Leica, it is half the weight and tiny. So the Leica will say at home and the surprise find, Oly 50/1.8, is coming on holiday to Asia. </p><div></div>

[noli_tan]

<p>I'd go with the Canon EF 24-105 IS lens.</p>

[i386]

<p>Nick,<br>

You're cracking me up with all these possibilities. I have Oly 21 f/3.5 and Oly 55 f/1.2 for my OM-2n just waiting for my 5D adapter, love to have the 18mm or 21mm f/2.<br>

My travel kit is, Manfrotto carbon tripod,17-40L landscapes on the tripod, 24-105L walkabout hand-held what ever happens next lens , 70-200 f/4 when I need a zoom, 50mm f/1.4 for nighttime and low light. The f/2.8 70-200 is a brick to carry around, leave it at home :D, that's why I got the f/4, at wide open it's pretty sharp and lightweight at 700g compare to "the brick".<br>

I have 135L but rarely use it, great for event photography but these days I concentrate on landscapes. I hear MF with Live View is awesome. Have fun on your holidays!<br>

Gavin<br>

<a href="http://www.glyons.at">http://www.glyons.at</a></p>

 

[nickdemarcofoto]

<p>To my surprise I ended up using the Oly 50 f1.8 much more than anything else, even the Canon 35L. The combination of the Oly 28 and 50 make a very good light travel kit, and I would be tempted to leave nearly everything else behind. The 135L was rarely used, except for landscape stuff in Bagan.<br /> I will be uploading some of the photos taken on my site over the next week, but here is one of the examples taken using the Oly 50 on my first day there</p><div></div>

[heidi1]

<p>Hi Nick, stunning image - love the colour & bohek. Sorry I am new to digital, and am currently doing some reasearch on maybe adapting my zeiss lenses for the 5dII or getting some other canon lenses.... So I was wondering do you have only one adapter for all of those lenses or do you need different adapters for the lenses? And if so which adapter have you used for your Oly 50 f1.8 lens? Looks like it could be the new lens I would like to get to add to my tiny collection.</p>