Versatile TS Lens?

[richard_barry6]

<p>Fellow enthusiasts,<br /><br />I am after a good, versatile TS lens for a 5D MKII. I'm kind of unfamiliar with the actual benefits of a TS lens- mainly just enticed by the effect that one can create with them.<br>

Looking for a reasonably wide-angle lens- am replacing the 14mm f2.8- and am also considering the 16-35mm. Essentially I want a highly versatile lens- being somewhat lazy at perpetually changing lenses for each shot- that I can drag around and shoot most things with; portraits, street photography, landscapes etc.<br /><br />What would you recommend?<br /><br /><br />Thanks in advance,</p>

<p>Richard </p>

[William Michael]

<p>I would think that most Landscapers love the TS-E17 and next in line the TS-E24MkII.<br>

But I don’t think many Street Photographers would want to use either: or in fact any TS-E Lens.</p>

<p>I probably tend to make more Portraits, than anything else, and have waxed and waned between the TS-E 45 and the TS-E 90 and finally decided that the TS-E45 is the more versatile Portrait Lens of the two (for a 5D).<br>

Although I use a 24mm Lens for Portraiture (and also the 16 to 35) – I don’t think I would ever buy the TS-E24, for Portrait use.</p>

<p>It seems a strange question in some aspects – as the trilogy of: “versatile” + “portraits, street photography, landscapes” + “TS-E” doesn't bring harmony to my ears, at least.<br>

Perhaps you had better settle for: “two outa three ain’t bad”?</p>

<p>WW </p>

[John Crowe]

<p>TS-E lenses are not particularly "versatile" since they are all primes. If you have enjoyed the 14/2.8 and are considering the 16-35 then the obvious choice is the 17 TS-E and a 1.4x. I used a 17mm lens for 15 years and then a 14/2.8 for 5 and now have a 17 TS-E and have a 1.4x on the way.</p>

<p>However, I do recommend you finding out why you want one. I discovered the reasons over 20 years, but noticed more in the last two years when the 17 TS-E became available. The biggest advantage for me is being able to correct converging vertical lines in landscapes and architecture using Shift. Altering the plane of focus is more significant with the 45 and 90mm lenses if that is the "look" you want to achieve. </p>

[Spearhead]

<p>Do you realize that not only are the TS-E lenses primes, the 17mm lens William mentions is a) manual focus, b) can't use filters, and c) has no lens hood and a huge protruding front element. The 24mm is manual focus and there is a third party hood for it. Exposure should be done manually with both of them.</p>

<p>Given that you have said you are lazy, this would seem to be a bad choice.</p>

[scott_ferris]

<p>Forget TS-E's, get the 16-35 and a PS plugin that gives lensbaby effects, or just get a lensbaby. No TS-E lenses have any versatility. They do one thing, well two if toy like miniatures are still in vogue, better than anything, but that is pretty much it. </p>

<p>Like Jeff says, they are all manual focus, they tend to be slow in the aperture compared to other primes too. But the 24 TS-E's, both MkI and MkII both come with Canon lens hoods and you can use metered exposure but you have to adjust EV compensation, perversely even though the viewfinder goes darker as the lens is shifted the compensation needs to be wound down, normally between -1 and -2.</p>

<p>But I must agree with his last comment :-)</p>

<p>Hi WW ;-)</p>

[stp]

<p>Personally, I'd use a TS lens for architecture and landscapes, but not generally for portraits and certainly not for street photography. I hardly ever consider a wide angle to be a good portrait lens, but some folks go that route. If you're considering a 16-35mm, you might also look at the 17-40mm: nearly identical IQ, a stop slower, and much less expensive.</p>

[dan_south]

My TS-E 24 II came with a hood.

 

Versatile? I think it's the most versatile lens I own with the possible exception of the 24-105 f/4 IS. I use it for

landscapes, cityscapes, architecture, nature, wide-angle close-ups. That said, it's not suitable for street phitography,

horrible for portraits, and worthless for events. And I would never recommend it to someone who Is "kind of unfamiliar

with the actual benefits of a TS lens".

 

On the other hand, the 16-35 isn't the ideal portrait lens either, even those it's a very good wide-angle zoom lens.

 

Do some research before you spend your money. Do a LOT of research before you buy a TS lens. It's not for

shooters who aren't prepared to invest the time necessary to understand and use movements properly.

[philip_wilson]

<p>A TS lens is quite specialized and has several uses. Not in any order they are:<br>

Shift - allows you to avoid converging verticals as you can keep the camera horizontal and move the lens up or down (for example this allows you to get the top of a tall building in a shot without pointing the camera up - it is pointing the camera up that causes the verticals to converege)<br>

Shift - can also be used horizontally on a tripod so you can shift left, shoot and then shift right. Later in Photoshop you can join the two photos to get a perfect match and it looks like you have a much wider angle lens (probably about 11mm)<br>

Tilt - a slight tilt will give you enormous depth of field - this allows you to have the foreground and items at infinity sharply in focus while using an aperture of F8 - F11 and thus avoiding the loss of sharpness you get with a conventional lens due to diffraction<br>

Tilt - extreme tilt can be used to emphasize parts of the image (through selective focus) or even to create the "model world effects" that you see<br>

While the TS lenses are amazing fun they do have some issues, namely:<br>

They are very expensive<br>

They take quite a lot of practice to use<br>

They are Manual focus only with focus confirmation - but be aware when tilted or sometimes shifted the focus confirmation is not always correct<br>

The 17 F4 is very vulnerable to damage as it has a big bug eyed front element<br>

The metering of the camera is thrown off - especially in shift<br>

You cannot use filters with the wider angles as they have bulging front elements<br>

They are slow to use and a tripod and live view often help<br>

They are relatively slow apertures<br>

That said both the 17 F4 and 24 F3.5 II are amazingly sharp (especially the 24) both of them deliver a much higher image quality than my 16-35 F2.8 II. I love my Tilt Shift lenses but they are specialized tools and except for Comic miniature shots are really only useful for landscape and architectural work. Of course unshifted they can perform the same job as primes. From your description I agree with the other posts and suggest you start with a prime. I personally use a Mirex Tilt Shift adaptor for longer focal lengths as I had a big collection of Mamiya Medium Format lenses and the adaptor is only about $400 all in. Of the Canon range (in my opinion) the 17 F4 and 24 F3.5 II are the best although the 45 and 90 are good lenses - just not generally as useful as the wider angles for landscape and architecture. For the fake miniature shots the longer focal lengths work best - but it is a lot of money for a comedy shot.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>They speak with straight tongue.</p>

<p>These perspective-control (and tilt) lenses are wonderful tools <em>if you need them</em>. They <em>are</em> usable for other purposes with high-quality results.<br>

However, as said, they are not to be associated with the idea of "lazy" or "use-it-for-anything" applications. They are simply fantastic if you need shifts and tilts. Otherwise, not even I would want to use it as an "everyday" lens.</p>

<p>Pretty much everything is manual, older or third party versions completely so. They are for deliberate shooting with great care to detail, settings, and all.</p>

<p>Get a EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS or something similar if you want to have a one-lens solution.<br>

Of course, there are faster and broader range zooms, but only you can decide whether the compromises inherent in such lenses are acceptable to you - and that applies even to the 24-105, not just the still longer range lenses, although the longer, the greater the compromises have to be. This is physics, not subjective opinion. As already noted, there are AF prime lenses in the pack that are fantastic, but you do need to settle on one focal length or be ready to swap lenses a lot. I can't see how you can get around that.</p>

[peter_e]

<p>Richard: What do you mean by TS? To everyone else here, it means tilt-shift, but I don't think that is what you had in mind, correct?</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>Other meanings of "TS"?<br>

I thought Tough Sh*t lenses were all from another manufacturer?</p>

[richard_barry6]

<p>Great advice guys- thanks! Obviously I realise I have to change lenses frequently, I can become somewhat lazy though, when like recently, I was marching around villages in Sumbawa (an Indonesian island) in 45oC heat and sweltering humidity for hours taking shots. Thus I'm hungry for versatility! Some great information on the TS lenses but it seems like it might be a little too specialised and not really conducive to my style. The 24-105mm f4 seems like a great lens, but perhaps I should opt for the 16-35 if I eventually intend to get the 100mm macro?</p>

[William Michael]

<p>I use the 16 to 35/2.8 plus the 100/2.8 Macro as a pair: esp. for travelling / walking in the country (rural) areas. <br>

The 24 to 105F/4 has been for a long time "something I have been thinking about as my 'lazy everything lens' ".<br>

But I have yet to part with the money, to accommodate the "laziness", so I really am not convinced the 24 to 105/4, is a lens for me: 16mm is <strong><em>a lot wider</em></strong> than 24mm and if one <strong><em>uses</em></strong> the wide, then 24 just doesn’t cut it.</p>

<p>WW</p>

[dan_south]

Philip Wilson gave an excellent overview of the specialized capabilities of tilt-shift lenses (perspective control in Nikon lingo). I might

add a couple of clarification in terminology.

 

Shift is traditionally used to refer to a horizontal movement. When you use the movement in the vertical direction it's traditionally

called rise when you shift the lens upward and fall for downward movements. That said, TS lenses can also shift diagonally, so the

general term "shift" seems to be direction independent with modern technology.

 

Tilt is a vertical movement (up or down). Tilt on the horizontal dimension is called swing. In diagonal directions? Who knows? Maybe

we should call it "wobble". :-)

[dan_south]

The 24-105 is my lazy, why bother to change it lens. And it just happens to be a very nice lens.

 

JDM - TS redefined - you're killing me, man! I love it!

[mark_schafer1]

<p>As said before, it's hard to describe the TS lenses as versatile, but i feel one aspect is completely overlooked: You can actually change the field of view without moving the camera, just moving the lens. Something more obvious when you come form large format cameras. So i can see lower or higher with street or landscape photography without pointing the camera up or down.<br>

I personally don't like wide angle lenses for portraits and prefer 50-85mm on my Canons, but i catch myself over and over again using the 45TS for a lot of shots, studio stills, landscapes, travel, etc. It's definitely a more manual approach, set exposure, focus, adjust field and shoot, but i like to think a bit while taking photographs.<br>

The new 24mm TS is probably one the most outstanding lenses on the market today, and with a little cropping, along with the depth of field could be a great street photo lens. Oh, and they are crack sharp, fit perfectly with my L lens line up 35-50-85 and the 70-200 II, not so much with the 24-70 or 105.<br>

If you can, i would rent the 24 TS for a weekend and shoot all day all subjects and see if it fits your vision of the world...</p>

[yakim_peled1]

<p>For versatility (or fun, or create effects no other lens can) there's simply no other lens can trump TS lenses. These creatures can <strong><em>move</em></strong>. It's a lot of fun playing with DoF (tilt) and perspective (shift). So what if they are all manual focus primes? Dust out your tripod and get a healthy dose of patience. You won't regret it.</p>

<p>Happy shooting,<br>

Yakim.</p>

[richard_barry6]

<p>Cheers everyone! </p>

[clgriffin]

<p>Just to experiment, get one--even the version 1 24mm. Play around, you might be surprised at what you get.</p>

<p>They also do great for panoramas.</p>

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[richard_barry6]

<p>Thanks Charles.</p>