Why f2.8

Choose a lens that suits your requirements, eg indoors the ef-s 2. I bought the little ex for use with my 6D while traveling, it is excellent for small groups and fill flash.

Ian the pbase supporter. An amateur with dreams of being a good to excellent photographer. Yes it is important. Especially when you need to stop down past 2. For indoor low-light look at getting f1. If the kids are playing indoor court sports basketball, volleyball, etc. Volleyball is more demanding than basketball, by the way, because of the swift ball and arm movements. If its a daytime field sport, the usually good enough - it will miss some shots, but that's OK as you don't need them all.

Bounce Flash - As it turns out, you don't usually have the luxury of having your back to a window or other good light source. People don't notice bounce flash at ISO with a fast lens nearly as much as you think - its not that bright.

I use a "professor kobre's lightscoop" instead of a hot shoe flash in these situations to keep the camera's profile low. Being budget conscious, the is a popular all around, general purpose zoom on a 60D with an excellent wide end Having the Tamron would be redundant so selling it would offset part of the cost The fact is this lens is:.

If I could do it over again. I wouldn't buy any other cheap standard zooms. I sold off all my other lens and only keep these 2 zooms:. These 2 lens are stunning. They sharp wide open and perform like professional tools without complains. AF is instant, and zero hunting issues. I would consider using the flash or putting the ISO high enough to use indoors. The pop-up flash is ok for snapshots and slightly better when you add a diffuser to it eg Gary Fong brand, or a bulkier DIY diffuser.

If you have a hot shoe flash, aim it at the ceiling to get softer reflected light avoid if the ceiling isn't white or off white. Only 3. This isn't to say that I don't like the Just the opposite, I loved mine and highly recommend it. But you need to know what you're getting and not getting.

The problem with the XX lenses is that, on a crop, they won't give you a wide angle. That could be the difference between ISO and , or and For my style of shooting, absolutely. Vital for separating subject from background at crowded functions on my f2. If you primarily shoot portraits and indoors you may need the f2. If you primarily shoot outdoors and landscape or general travel photography you don't really need it.

I chose and a fast prime Sigma 30f1. I use this combo for travel and landscape and general photography. It has a good range, wide and long, and I also have a prime for DOF, subject isolation, and low light. I borrowed my friends and f2. I have to resort to primes or using flash. So in my opinion if you really want the low light performance and the subject isolation DOF then go for a prime.

For any given camera and lens, lower f-ratios result in larger aperture diameters. The larger the aperture diameter, the more shallow the DOF and the more light that falls on the sensor for a given shutter speed.

The more light that falls on the sensor, the less the noise. Does one stop matter? That's entirely subjective. Sometimes, no, it absolutely doesn't matter at all. Other times, it makes a noticeable difference. Will a stop ever make or break the pic? Every time it comes out of the bag you know shit just got real ;.

What people fail to recognize is that the faster lenses give a brighter viewfinder, the diaphragm is open until you hit the shutter. Remember when people installed Beattie ground glass in their cameras? I understand that it brightened the viewfinder.

I don't perhaps if you compare it next to each other you may see the difference. I went and bourght some slow zoom for two reasons.

Got tired of dragging those big heavy 2. When doing casual shooting, you really don't need to shoot at ISO or lower with today's cameras. Maybe not on their own but when you have your camera and lenses in your bag, together they add up. Not only in weight but also in size. I confess - I went milc and bought a small aps-c camera with a couple of kit lenses and I'm having fun again.

No need to take you bag with you when you go out. You just put the dam thing in your jacket pocket and off you go. If you are going on a gig, you take you bag with the "pro" stuff, but in between gigs, I've found myself shooting more and more, all down to the weight saving. For full frame. All zooms should be 2. All primes should be 1. No excuses. If you want a light weight kit go shoot with your iphone.

I use the lens for basketball and concerts, and I found that the AF on the 1. I find the weight and handling of the f4 lens great coupled with the Canon 7d mark 2. This gives me some wonderful results. Do you need one? Perhaps my article make people think twice about getting that large, heavy, expensive lens. It is about being realistic and aware of what you need. Realistically I do need one and do have some. The question proposed in the Article's title presupposes the notion that everyone should NOT purchase one, as your statement so clearly points out So who cares?

Maybe it would have been better to advise people of other options to these so-called heavy, etc lenses, point out the differences and let it be at that. You are probably underestimating the intelligence and most importantly the wants and needs of us I have no qualms about carrying around my equipment, and yes I DO have lighter lenses which I do use.

I just prefer the "heavy, expensive" lenses for the situations where I truly need them. For more than 55 years now. We all wish to be as strong as you are ; Perhaps we can hire a caddy, or a sherpa for our equipment :. And if you own some wide open primes even the less. But IMHO your second example blonde woman seems to suffer a back focus and therefore it is not the thin dof which is responsible for the one eye not precisely in focus.

And to mention: There is a market for second hand pro lenses. They are generally much cheaper. For those who do not mind the weight. Second hand market is a good one, where all those photographers who want to get rid of their lenses with large apertures they never used and became too heavy. The photo of the blonde girl does not suffer from back focus at all. The lenses I use don't suffer from this. I know because I checked. I think I see the focus range going to the back starting from her right eye on the left side.

I imagine you focused one of the eyes, the one further to the front is generally used. But the focus in your image extends from the other eye to the back. That is why I guessed a back focus.

Maybe you or she moved a bit after focusing? In any case, if you or the camera hit the focus better, both eyes would have been sharp. Only beginner will fancy these extreme bokeh effect, after some years you will find it boring just like you shot everything with a fisheye lens and start to stop down so that the background can tell more story. That is something I read somewhere also. It is fun to use Well, at least for some photographers.

This of course depends on how people shoot and how content they are with the images they produce.. Home Topics Gear. I was so proud having this lens, enjoying not only shooting with it, but also the reactions from fellow photographers who were perhaps more wise by spending not all their money on these really expensive lenses.

Years ago, we shot this at a Canon event and we tried to tell stories in a specific way. When shooting with more natural lighting, this works—even though flash was used with this story many years ago. The further the reach of the lens, the better the bokeh tends to be. This helps in comparing these two lenses the f4 can reach much further than the f2. Personally, I do prefer the bokeh in the f2. It may not reach as far but it still has a full stop more bokeh power.

And in all honesty, I could have done this with my phone and showed everything in focus. It helps to deliver a creamier feeling but the lighting is really what made this shot. Arguably, this could have been done with an f4 or f2. Again, lighting is what mattered. So if you have more effective lighting knowledge and techniques, you can find a way to create a better story with an f4 lens. Even when I use zoom lenses, I end up only going to certain focal lengths anyway.